The barrier has kept the man-eating mites out of the valley for 200 years and continues to protect what is left of humanity. In exchange for maintaining this barrier, the sorcerer from the mountain asks for only one thing-children. With yet another child sacrificed to fates unknown, some question the motives and the authority of the ageless man who hides away in his tower. Nora Vanderwilde's curiosity of the sorcerer and the world beyond the walls lies dormant until a mute boy tumbles into the valley, having fled a terrible, fire-spitting monster. Believing until now that no human could survive outside the valley, Nora agrees to hide the boy, and their search for answers begins. The questions Nora has held in her heart all her life are suddenly dwarfed by greater truths. Mites aren't the only threat outside the barrier, and with a hole in the shield, even the sorcerer fears what may have crawled in.

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Once, I was a broke college student. Now, it seems I'm destined to rule as the Lightbringer--queen of the demon realm. Except I have competition in the form of Orion, the Lord of Chaos. Like me, he has been marked as a leader. We can't keep our hands off each other, even if he swore an oath to kill me. It seems we both want the same thing--the crown. And in this battle of wills, only one of us will be left standing.

The latest in the award-winning Counterpunch series detonates an explosion of voracious, opinionated and witty fireworks on the unexpected intersections of politics, art, music, architecture and sex. This book showcases essays from the nation's most exciting and radical cultural critics.

The final book in the Demon Queen Trials. Once, Orion and I were lovers. Then, the gorgeous demon king broke my heart. He kicked me out of the City of Thorns, exiling me to the mortal world. Now, I have plans to get back at him--and save the world while I'm at it. Orion wants revenge on all the mortals. If I steal his crown, I can stop the bloodshed. All I have to do is beat him in a series of trials, proving that the gods chose me as queen. But Orion seems determined to seduce me with his apologies and sensual charm. And the fact is? He's hard to resist. In the City of Thorns, nothing is ever as it seems, but figuring out who to trust is the most important trial of all. Because if I get it wrong, I'll have the blood of thousands on my hands.

In the court of Henry VIII, there are many secrets—and some people will kill to keep them hidden.Susanna Dallet is the daughter of a Flemish painter and wife to a philandering husband, living in the court of Henry VIII. When her husband is murdered, Susanna is suddenly left with a household to provide for and nothing to her name. Her days of anonymity are over when Susanna finds that guild rules preventing women from working do not apply at the king’s court, and she manages to secure a position as a miniature-portrait painter. Before long, she has not only made a name for herself, she is close to those who surround Princess Mary. But even in this lofty company, Susanna is not safe. An old manuscript that she has inherited turns out to hold the keys to an age-old mystery, and the forces that claimed her husband are closing in. As danger looms, Susanna joins with Robert Ashton, secretary to Henry’s cunning and ruthless adviser Archbishop Wolsey, and together they must fight a fearsome society in league with a demon.Combining heartpounding action, sly humor, romance, and supernatural twists, The Serpent Garden is the story of a creative and resourceful woman who unwittingly finds herself in a dangerous—and deadly—game of hide-and-seek.