SPOTLIGHT - DARK FANTASY - BOUND BEAUTY (Wylder Tales, #3) by Jennifer Silverwood

Bound Beauty

Wylder Tales, #3

by Jennifer Silverwood

Date of Publication: July 14th 2026

Genre: Dark Fantasy / Fairy Tales

Publisher: SilverWoodSketches

ISBN: 979-8186406099

ASIN: B0GY9XF3LC

Number of pages: 390

Word Count: 96,456

Cover Artist: Qamber Designs and Media

Tagline: Forgotten gods haunt her steps, and the cursed prince she left behind isn't done fighting for her soul.

BLURB

Vynasha is bound to the prince of Bitterhelm. Even if she were to die, her spirit will remain trapped with him in the castle forever. But she won't give in to Grendel without a fight. With the aid of an oracle, a witchling, and the wolf that claims her heart, Vynasha plans to claim her power as the curse breaker.

Ceddrych guards their nephew secretly while fighting to keep the feral beasts roaming their borders at bay. But the monsters are closing in, and the madness he has struggled with drives him to one desperate, unforgivable act.

A war is about to begin between the forgotten people of Wylderland and the cruel might of Bitterhelm. Beings of prophecy and legend unite in the epic third chapter of the Wylder Tales Series, a romantic gothic re-telling of Beauty and the Beast.

Amazon      3 Book Series

 

Book Trailer

Excerpt
IN A FORGOTTEN CASTLE IN WYLDERLAND…
Alone with Grendel, the man she had been tempted to love, the prince she loathed, Vynasha didn’t want to wake up. Let her sleep for a thousand years like the cursed princess, Morana. Let these walls crumble, the rose garden spread throughout the keep with thorns and vines to keep the world out forever.
“I know you are awake, Ashes.”
Vynasha opened her eyes. The prince stood before the hearth, his back to her. He hadn’t changed clothes since she had last seen him. Yet his faintly luminous skin had dimmed from bronze to the dull gray she remembered. “What happened?” she asked.
“A fever in your sleep. Odym says it was the runes.” Grendel’s shoulders hunched as he hung his head. “I should not have come, I know this. But I…” he twisted to face her. “Forgive me, Vynasha, but I cannot stay away from you any longer. I could feel your pain through the bond, yet there was nothing I could do to stop her,” he growled. “Do not ask me to leave you again, I beg of you.”
Vynasha should have been disgusted, but she was coming to accept the fact that Odym had been right. No matter how she truly felt, they needed each other. And she could not deny the way his words danced about her mind and breathed life back into her limbs.
“I wish I could tell you I was different,” he continued, “before my mother cursed me. But the truth is, I was always a monster.” Grendel drew his shoulders back and lifted his chin, pushing away from the fireplace mantel. He shook his head and held his hands before him, palms upturned. “I never wanted to be my father. I shall not make his mistakes, and so I will be honest with you, Ash. No more secrets.”
She shuddered and desperately wished she could bathe, could banish dreams of Nymwe and be rid of the prince. The dread she felt before only grew as Grendel paused, clenching his fists as though steeling himself for words he could not take back.
“I owe you everything, so much more than you know. When you willingly accepted the curse, you took some of the monster into you. I have not been forced to change into a beast ever since. It has given me time to remember myself in your absence, who I was and who I hope to be.”
Vynasha ground her sharp teeth. So they not only shared a bond with his spirit, but she had taken part of his beast? That they were forced to share something she had learned to take pride in made her ill.
Whatever he saw in her face must have pained him, enough for him to turn away. “Forgive me. I shall go. I should have never hoped…” He shook his head, dispelling whatever he might have said as he took two more steps to the door.
She traced the tip of her tongue on her lip, tasting the blood she spilled to forget. His hand was on the doorknob when she said, “Wait.” The strength behind her command surprised her and caused the prince to freeze in place.
Vynasha lifted her hand with surprising ease. “Stay?”
We need each other.
His graying skin flickered to golden life as he turned with hope burning in his violet eyes. “Always.”
At his word, his promise, Vynasha released the breath she didn’t know she had been holding. Even then, a small corner of her mind railed against her actions, at the feelings she couldn’t seem to control. It must Grendel’s influence, his feelings trickling through their bond.
This is wrong.

Still, she couldn’t deny how the persistent itch beneath her skin abated with him beside her, holding her hand. It shouldn’t have mattered. Truly, she hated how easily she gave in to these feelings. She could never tell him. Grendel had bound her life to his. Even if she were to leave, to beg the wylderfolk to take her back into their home, she would never be rid of him. And the longer she remained in the prince’s castle, the less she wanted to be free.

Author Info

Jennifer Silverwood lives in the middle of an enchanted forest surrounded by cursed books, nosy spirits, and mischievous goblins she calls her children. After beginning several nonsensical degrees, she found her calling helping other authors bring their books to life. Jennifer is the author of two fairy tale fantasy series: the Borderlands Saga and Wylder Tales. Because she wasn't satisfied writing in one genre, she also invites you to explore uncharted space with the Heaven’s Edge Novellas—and dare to fall in love again with the standalone romance titles Stay and She Walks in Moonlight.

Newsletter - https://bit.ly/3TjItYg
Website - http://jennifersilverwood.com
TikTok - http://www.tiktok.com/@jennifersilverwood
Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/silverwoodj
Instagram - http://www.instagram.com/jennifersilverwood
Amazon - http://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B0085GOKJ8

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SPOTLIGHT w/INTERVIEW - URBAN FANTASY - DEAD MAN'S TRIGGER (Max Maguire Vampire Novel, #1) by Kat Huddleston

Dead Man’s Trigger

A Max Maguire Vampire Novel, #1

by Kat Huddleston

Date of Publication: October 5th 2026

Genre: Urban Fantasy Vampire Thriller

Number of pages: 378

Word Count: 119,000

Cover Artist: BRoseDesignz

Tagline: Former Special Forces Sniper. High School History Teacher. Vampire.

BLURB

Who Knew Immortality Could Be So Short?

When high school history teacher Max Maguire begins to suspect one of his brightest students is in trouble, he ends up walking down the wrong alley. Suddenly, he's staring down the fangs of a beautiful, powerful, and utterly merciless vampire named Jade.

As Max's life takes a dark turn, he’s forced to learn how to survive in Jade's twisted world. But if Jade thinks her hostage is going to play nice, she really should have read his resume. This former Special Forces sniper might just have to dust off some very lethal muscle memory.

While Max plots exactly how to kill the most dangerous predator on the planet, he discovers there’s another group of vampires that have their own plans for Jade. Before he knows it, Max is caught in the crosshairs of a vampire war that neither side can afford to lose.

And there's one thing neither side knows... Max has a secret of his own.

CONTENT WARNING: This is NOT a romance. The novel contains mature content intended for readers 18 and older. This is a gritty, fast-paced genre hybrid combining vampires with dark urban fantasy, tactical military thriller action, and sarcastic humor, with a wisecracking protagonist at its center. There is explicit sexual material, including non-consensual sex, graphic violence, torture, adult themes, and visceral horror elements. In other words, my vampires don't sparkle.

Amazon

Excerpt from Dead Man’s Trigger

Max Maguire thought vampires were the stuff of horror movies and campfire stories. Then he was turned into one. Now he’s trapped by Jade, a beautiful and terrifying vampire who is trying to turn him into a monster. Max is discovering that being a vampire isn’t anything like the legends and that Jade will stop at nothing to break him.

He found himself falling into thoughts of the past as melancholy memories washed over him. His family, his friends, the kids at school, Crystal’s loss of a normal life, it all took hold of him while the hunger began to pound through him. The hunger that would only be satisfied at the cost of another life.

Max studied the kitchen door. Presumably it led outdoors. At least that was implied by the fake light coming through the fake window in the door. What would happen if he just opened the door and took a walk in the sun? Would the sun set him on fire or turn him into dust in an instant?

He could feel the sun just outside the door. Waiting for him. Waiting to embrace him and end the insanity. Or maybe it was all an elaborate joke. Maybe his buddies were waiting for him on the other side of the door, waiting for a big laugh at how they got him with the biggest practical joke in the history of the world. That had to be it. Vampires couldn’t really exist. Max ran his tongue over his fangs. Nope. Vampires couldn’t possibly exist.

Max felt her. Jade was standing only a few feet from him. She seemed positively overdressed in her T-shirt and jeans. The clothes didn’t quite look right on her. She looked so much better naked.

“Curious about the sun?” she asked.

“It’s not the sun. It’s just a lighting fixture that simulates the sun.”

“But the sun rests right outside this door.” Jade walked up to the door and pressed her body against it. “Can’t you feel it?”

“Yes.”

“Do you want to walk out into it?” she asked.

“I don’t know. Maybe.”

Jade turned around to face him and leaned against the door.

“It’d be so much easier, wouldn’t it?”

“Absolutely.”

She smiled easily at him. “Can I show you something?”

Max laughed. “Yet another offer I can’t refuse.”

Jade walked past him and then turned back and held out her hand. Max got up and put his hand in hers. She glanced back at him with such a magnificent smile, a lover promising sweet and loving things. He wanted to forget about the evil buried beneath her surface.

She led him to the foyer, with its grand stairway. She pulled him into an embrace and he looked down into her eyes. Max held her around the waist and he couldn’t have refused her anything at that moment. She reached up and ran her fingers through his hair. Jade kissed him so tenderly and softly, he didn’t want the kiss to stop. Ever. But she pulled away and wistfully went to the big window.

Max knew this was the only window in the house that was real. A steel covering was lowered from some hidden place in the wall each morning before sunrise. For the first time, Max noticed that one tiny sliver of light escaped through the side of the covering. It was about half an inch around and the beam was strong, as if the sun was in just the right position to give it its maximum strength.

The beam was between Max and Jade.

“Jade, what...” he started.

She slowly shook her head and put her finger up to her lips signaling him to be silent.

She held her hand out and waited for Max to take it. Now Max understood. It was another lesson. Max smiled and took her hand. Jade let the light slide over her hand as she pulled Max’s hand toward it. She stopped and held her hand steady in the beam with Max’s hand less than an inch away from the light. He’d almost expected her hand to burst out into flames, but there was no change in the appearance of the skin or sign that she was suffering any kind of discomfort.

However, somehow Max knew when she began to tug on his hand he was going to have a different reaction to the tiny spot of sunlight. As his hand entered the light, he instantly felt a burning sensation. He flinched, trying to pull his hand away, but she held onto him keeping his hand steady. Finally, she stopped. The beam immediately began burning through his forearm like acid. Max felt the flesh begin to burn and burst into flames catching his shirt on fire. Teeth clenched, Max refused to scream as the fire danced over his skin.

He let his mind go someplace, as he’d learned all those years ago to do. It was Japan this time during the 1600s when peace was established under the Tokugawa shoguns after constant warfare. The pain ripped through his arm, but he held on to the shoguns. He wasn’t going to give in.

Max knew when some evil son of a bitch wanted to hurt you, you just couldn’t let them win. He unclenched his teeth and let his eyes bore into hers.

Author Info

Kat Huddleston is a Chicago-based writer, teacher and artist who loves all things sci-fi. She was an entertainment journalist for the Syfy Channel’s website and for Sci Fi Magazine a while ago, and has always had a deep addiction to writing, teaching and creating art.

Kat is an award-winning painter and fused glass artist who taught fused glass, and her art can be found in several galleries.

While Kat has mostly lived in a fantasy land, she’s made a living as a journalist and dabbled in short story and screenplay writing. 

Dead Man’s Trigger is Kat’s first novel in the Max Maguire Vampire series.

Kat lives with her two helper cats, Jax and Nicky.

The Book Junkie Reads . . . Interview with . . . Kat Huddleston . . . 

How would you describe your style of writing to someone that has never read your work?

I have a degree in Journalism from Northern Illinois University and I wrote for the Syfy Channel’s website and for Sci Fi Magazine as an entertainment journalist for a couple decades. My writing style is pretty straight forward and accessible. I like to combine dark supernatural action with humor, build strong character relationships and focus on emotionally direct storytelling. I also often write from a male protagonist’s POV. I don’t know why, it just seems natural to me.

Can you share your next creative project(s)? If yes, can you give a few details?

Dead Man’s Trigger: A Max Maguire Vampire Novel is book 1 in the series. I’m working on Book 2, which is Kill Radius, and that will open up Max’s story even more. I also have an outline of Book 3, Terminal Eclipse. Beyond the Max Maguire Vampire series, I’m putting together a non-fiction book about my book publishing journey called 30 Days or Die! How Not to Fall off the Amazon Cliff. And I have another book series in the works called The Jake Casper Supernatural Mysteries. So there’s a bunch of projects in the works.

What are some of your writing/publishing goals for this year?

This year, I’d like to find a narrator for Dead Man’s Trigger for an audio book. And also get a good draft on the non-fiction book. By this time next year, I’m hoping to have book 2 published.

If you could spend one-week with 5 fictional characters, who would they be and where would you spend that time?

I’ve been reading all The Dresden Files and the Joe Ledger series of books. So Harry Dresden and Joe Ledger, although I suspect the entire week would be end of the world action stuff, so it’d be pretty exciting and scary. I think early Anita Blake would be fascinating, as well as Sookie Stackhouse. And I think Lestat from Interview with a Vampire. And wouldn’t Buffy the Vampire Slayer be fun too. They’re all pretty much trouble magnets so it would be a busy week.

If you could go ANYWhere, money is not a concern, and spend one full year. Where would you go and what would you do with this time? Outer Space. I’m a scifi girl. I’d like to travel to distant planets and hang out with the Firefly crew as they got into trouble. So add Captain Malcolm Reynolds and the crew to the fictional characters above.

https://www.facebook.com/SciFiKat/ 

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Presented by

SPOTLIGHT - YA FANTASY - GODDESSES DON'T CARE (Goddesses of mayhem, #1) by Kim Baccellia

High school is hard enough.

Try surviving an ancient Egyptian deity.

Goddesses Don’t Care
The Goddesses of Mayhem, #1
by Kim Baccellia
Genre: YA Fantasy, Mythology  

Getting a date shouldn’t be this hard.

Jordan Lake discovers an ancient bracelet in her grandmother's house and uncovers a family mystery that links her favorite actress, Audrey Hepburn, a romantic movie, and an aunt she never knew. Jordan hopes the bracelet will bring her love. Instead, it brings one nightmare after another, unleashing Hathor, the Egyptian love goddess, who decides it's fun to mess with the McKnight High School social scene. Jordan holds the key to vanquish Hathor, but will she figure out what it is in time to save her school, one of her best friends, and get a date to the Valentine’s Day dance?

*Re-Releasing Soon Before Christmas!!*

Award-winning author Kim Baccellia grew up in Sacramento, California, the oldest of seven. She has a business associate degree from Sacramento City College, a BS degree in elementary education from Brigham Young University, and studied post grad bilingual/bicultural education at CSUF.

She’s been a telemarketer, library helper at the Harold B. Lee library at BYU, assistant manager, sales clerk, tutor, bilingual teacher, and homeschool mother.

Award-winning author. Author of YA paranormal CROSSED OUT and CROSSED FIRE. YA dystopia CANDLE IN THE WIND. Also the author of the urban diverse fantasy EARRINGS OF IXTUMEA. Short Christmas Magic in the Holiday analogy MISTLETOE AND MAGIC. Re-releasing YA fantasy series under new titles in 2026! Currently working on a historical romance set in Tuscany. 

Website * Substack * Facebook * Instagram * Bluesky * Bookbub * Amazon * Goodreads

 

Follow the reveal HERE for special content and a giveaway!

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BOOK BLITZ w/EXCERPT - YA URBAN FANTASY - THE ACADEMY WAR by Sean Scarborough

The Academy War

by Sean Scarborough

Publication date: October 1st 2026

Genres: Fantasy, Urban Fantasy, Young Adult

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Three colleges, three hearts, one prophesy that will either save magic or destroy it.

On their eighteenth birthdays, three strangers are ripped from ordinary life and thrust into a hidden world that has shaped history for centuries.

Aryna awakens a rare, volatile magic that doesn’t just channel power — it absorbs and reshapes it. At the Mage War College, her dangerous gift sets her apart and draws the secret attention of those with their own agendas.

Paul is claimed by an ancient vampire bloodline and forced into brutal trials where dominance means survival. As his humanity slips away, he realizes he’s being forged into a weapon for a war older than he knows.

Dean Blackthorn, an orphan desperate to belong, bonds with a powerful Stormwing dragon in trials where most recruits die. For the first time, he has a place — and a destiny tied to coming conflict.

Separated across rival academies, each believes they are training to protect their own kind. But when a devastating attack shatters the illusion of safety, a darker truth emerges:

They are not just students. They are pieces in a game controlled by an ancient power now awakening — and the fate of magic, monsters, and humanity may rest on who learns to control it first.

Goodreads

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CHAPTER 1:

The Wish

Aryna

“Look, Aryna,” my mom said, setting down the lopsided chocolate cake she’d clearly stayed up late making—complete with uneven frosting and slightly smudged Happy 18th Birthday written in shaky pink letters—her cheerfulness seemed forced.

“Let’s try to make today as fun as we can,” she said.

I love my mom, I really do, but sometimes she drives me absolutely crazy.

“Honey, I’m not upset you were out with your friends last night. I just wanted to know where you were.”

“Disappointed, then,” I said, unable to keep the snark out of my voice.

“Aryna!” She gave me that look, the one that said I was pushing boundaries we both knew I shouldn’t cross.

Mom walked around our tiny dining table, probably to avoid saying something she’d regret. She worked two jobs while Dad pulled night shifts, and they could barely make ends meet despite doing everything they could for me. I knew that.

Knowing they were doing their best didn’t mean it didn’t hurt.

All my hard work, school, science fair wins- everything my parents had always told me they were proud of yet it had come with the same quiet disappointment. They were always proud. They just weren’t always there.

I remembered the state championship for English literature, my best subject. I had stood at the front of the auditorium, looking out at the crowd while the other students’ names appeared on handmade signs. Their parents cheered, waved, and called their names.

I scanned the room anyway.

Just hoping I’d see Mom and Dad.

A smile. A wave. Anything that said, We’re here. We’re proud of you!

The last question was asked. “Who wrote The Divine Comedy”

Easy. I hit the button “Dante Alighieri,” one of my favorites.

Then I won first place.

I should have been excited, and I was. But there was a sadness underneath it, knowing I was experiencing it alone.

When it was over, I put the trophy in my backpack and went home.

It wasn’t that they were bad parents. They weren’t. They were busy. They were always cheering for me when they had the time—late at night, early in the morning, whenever our schedules happened to line up.

Just not in the moments when I wanted them there most.

Our apartment was so cramped, the dining room table took up most of the kitchen-dining room combo, leaving barely enough space to walk around it. On nights like this, with tension thick in the air, it felt even smaller. I could feel the frustration steaming from me.

I looked down at the table. The chocolate cake sat in front of me, eighteen candles flickering in the dim light of our cramped apartment kitchen. Mom’s face glowed with pride across the table, her tired eyes momentarily free of worry lines. Dad stood beside her, his arm draped around her shoulders, a rare moment of peace between them. Arguments about money were what I normally heard.

“Make a wish, Aryna,” Mom said.

I closed my eyes, feeling oddly self-conscious. Eighteen. A legal adult as of today, I felt no different than yesterday. What did one wish for when standing at the threshold of adulthood? College acceptance letters had already come and gone—mostly rejections with two waitlists. My part-time job barely covered gas money.

I wish for something extraordinary to happen, I thought, surprising myself with the childish desire. Something to make me special.

I leaned forward to blow out the candles.

 

Author Info

Sean Scarborough is the author of The Academy War, a young adult/new adult urban paranormal fantasy that blends magic, dragon riders, vampires, and unforgettable adventure. Although this is his debut novel, storytelling has been a passion of his for years.

Inspired by a love of immersive fantasy and the belief that books can transport readers beyond the ordinary, Sean set out to create a world that feels as real as the one we live in—a place readers can return to whenever they need an escape.

The Academy War was written through both the best and most challenging seasons of Sean’s life. Throughout that journey, writing became more than a creative outlet; it became a way to build a world filled with hope, courage, friendship, and wonder.

Sean writes from the heart, believing every character carries a purpose. Some become a source of hope, others a promise, a reminder, or a heartbreaking loss—but each one is meant to leave a lasting impression. Every scene and adventure was created with the hope that readers would become fully immersed in the story and feel connected to the people and places within it.

Seeing this world come to life and finally sharing it with readers is a dream Sean has held for years.

He hopes The Academy War is more than just a book—that it becomes a place readers can get lost in, return to again and again, and carry with them long after they turn the final page.

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The Academy War Blitz

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SPOTLIGHT w/EXCERPT - DARK EPIC FANTASY - TEMPUS UNBOUND (Sacred Band, #6) by Janet & Chris Morris

This hero of legend will encounter a challenge he has never faced before . . . 

present-day New York City.

Tempus Unbound
Sacred Band, #6
by Janet & Chris Morris
Genre: Dark Epic Fantasy Adventure, Mythology

Is this the Lemuria of antiquity, or of times to come? Once you've ridden the storm clouds of heaven from the edge of time, anything is possible. Demonic hordes threaten to destroy the very fabric of time itself. The fate of all humanity rests on the shoulders of Tempus the Black, Favorite of the Storm God. But even this hero of legend will encounter a challenge he has never faced before . . . present-day New York City.

Amazon * B&N * Bookbub * Goodreads

Not one of the hundred pillows in Chiara’s bedroom remained on her bed when the god finally had had enough of the woman who ruled here as Lemuria’s Evening Star. She lay belly down on marble tiles in a slick of oil and wine and surrounded by candles he was quenching, one by one, with his fingers.

His short sword gleamed from the midst of the mess, hair from her body and her head on its blade. He hadn’t done a protracted ritual for the god in a very long time, and Lemuria’s rites rang as ancient and primal as Enlil’s name.

Their tryst had included moments when fear glazed her round, brown eyes, and moments when he felt certain the god overestimated what Tempus’ human flesh could give and hers could accept.

Still, he’d never killed a woman unintentionally, and although she might hurt when passion fled, now she merely lazed, intoxicated, malleable, sated and unresisting in the middle of the floor.

Once he’d snuffed the last candle, she reached for a pillow and propped her chin upon it so she could watch him more easily.

The big bed might have been easier on her, but she and the god had done things by the book. Still on her belly with the pillow under her jaw, she said, “You’ll really go with Rath and Mano into their horrid world tomorrow?”

“You tell me.” He was hunting for his leathers among her pillows.

“Stay here. With me. We could recast the lot. You could be free of your god forever, here. Stay, and you’ll learn of pleasures you never dreamed . . .”

“I’m a fighter, a soldier, a simple mercenary who had the bad luck to fall in with an insatiable god. It’s been so long, I wouldn’t know how to do anything else.”

“You could be the first not to succumb to Lemuria’s legerdemain. Don’t cast a lot, and you’re safe here until you do. We have strife close at hand, should you crave excitement: all the strife of many lands. From here you can help all of humanity — ”

“You must have mistaken me for a politician or a would-be king. I’m not the one to chart any soul’s course. Not after what I did with mine.”

“What do you want, then?”

And Faun’s words came back to him: “Survival, that’s the thing.”

Don’t miss the rest of the Sacred Band Series!

The Sacred Band of Stepsons series is Homeric and heroic fiction following the exploits of an ancient cavalry unit modeled on the Sacred Band of Thebes. Deftly mixing history, myth, and fantasy, Morris’ Sacred Band of Stepsons live and die in a world where gods are real and magic works — sometimes.

Morris’ accursed cavalry commander, Tempus, first appeared Sacred Band first appeared in the million-selling Thieves’ world shared-universe in 1981. Subsequently, Janet Morris, first alone and subsequently with her husband Chris Morris, take the Sacred Band into their own series of novels, set in the fourth century BCE. Passionate, gritty, lyrical prose and unforgettable characters make this series. Perseid Press Sacred Band novels includes the “Author’s Cut” of the Beyond Sanctuary Trilogy and Tempus, as well as the epic novel The Sacred Band, and The Fish the Fighters and the Song-girl.

Find them at Perseid Press

Best selling author Janet Morris began writing in 1976 and published more than 30 novels, many co-authored with her husband Chris Morris or others. Most of her fiction work was in the fantasy and science fiction genres, although she also wrote historical and other novels. Morris either wrote, contributed to, or edited several book-length works of non-fiction, as well as papers and articles on nonlethal weapons, developmental military technology and other defense and national security topics.

 

Christopher Crosby Morris (born 1946) is an American author of fiction and non-fiction, as well as a lyricist, musical composer, and singer-songwriter. He is married to author Janet Morris. He is a defense policy and strategy analyst and a principal in M2 Technologies, Inc. He writes primarily as Chris Morris, but occasionally uses pseudonyms.

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COVER REVEAL - ROMANTASY - ANNWYN PARK (Border Land Saga, #4) by Jennifer Silverwood

Annwyn Park

The Borderlands Saga, #4

by Jennifer Silverwood

Publication date: January 13th 2026

Genres: Adult, Fairy Tales, Fantasy, Romance

BLURB

“Turn back! Turn back, before it’s too late. Before you become one of us forever…”
The clock is ticking, and Lord Gareth Alderson has come for his due.
Years ago, Dameri Pendraig made a wicked deal with the goblin king.
She won back her child, and that child has become Queen of Silver Hollow.
The last thing Dameri expected was for Amie to wish her mother away to Annwyn Park.

**Book 4 in the Borderlands Saga, Annwyn Park will release in 2027.**

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Author Info

Jennifer Silverwood lives in the middle of an enchanted forest surrounded by cursed books, nosy spirits, and mischievous goblins she calls her children. After beginning several nonsensical degrees, she found her calling helping other authors bring their books to life. Jennifer is the author of two fairy tale fantasy series: the Borderlands Saga and Wylder Tales. Because she wasn't satisfied writing in one genre, she also invites you to explore uncharted space with the Heaven’s Edge Novellas—and dare to fall in love again with the standalone romance titles Stay and She Walks in Moonlight.

Website / Goodreads / Facebook / Instagram / TikTok

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SPOTLIGHT - DARK FANTASY - SO BEATS A HOLLOW HEART: A Novella by B. M. Briar

So Beats a Hollow Heart: A Novella

by B. M. Briar

Date of Publication: August 18th 2026

Publisher: Attic Ebooks, an imprint of Nicole Frail Books, LLC

Cover Artist: Covers by Sophie

Genre: Dark Fantasy/Gothic Horror/LGBTQ Fiction

ISBN: 978-1-965852-74-3 (print) 

ISBN: 978-1-965852-73-6 (ebook)

ASIN: B0GX36X53Q

Number of pages: 116

Word Count: 22,000 

Tagline: In a crumbling village of ghosts and grief, an assassin and a necromancer are drawn into a dangerous, intimate experiment to defy death—and loneliness.

BLURB

A gothic horror story about losing the love of your life, So Beats a Hollow Heart follows a nameless assassin—a member of the feared Bloodcloaks—sent to rid a village of the necromancer who has been stealing its young women.

What the assassin finds is not the monster she expects, but a woman deep in grief, desperate to find a new body for the soul of her dead lover.

After her third experiment ends in failure, the necromancer—Isolde—turns her attention to the assassin. Neither woman can anticipate how profoundly they will be changed by Isolde’s fourth and final experiment.

So Beats A Hollow Heart is the winner of the Cover Story Writing Contest, hosted by Nicole Frail Books, LLC

Books2Read

Excerpt: 
I remembered the pain of transformation, if only as a haze of red and tearing muscle. I remembered the awful rasp of my canines being filed blunt and the burn of silver being placed over the stumps to keep my true nature at bay. I had gone through hell so that girls like this wouldn’t have to, and now I was failing her.
Isolde walked into my field of vision, blocking my view of the tortured girl and breaking me out of my spiral of self-pity; I folded up the memories and tucked them away with the others, shifting my focus to the present. Isolde’s arms were crossed, the tip of one boot tapping against the flagstones.
“This is very impressive. Look more impressed,” she demanded.
“Can I look horrified instead?”
Isolde huffed, childlike and thwarted.
“I suppose that will do,” she said. “You know, I was really counting on you to be more entertaining than George. Do they surgically remove your personalities when they pump you full of wolf’s blood?”
“I don’t know. Do they surgically remove your morals when you sign the Mage Registry?”
“Ha! I’ll have you know that several of my colleagues are terrible sticks in the mud and would take great offence at the suggestion. I’m quite certain they will stay within the bounds of safe magic use and never go even a little bit mad.”
“And you?” I ventured. “Have you gone a little bit mad?”
“Of course you would see brilliance and call it madness. If I do go mad, it’s because I have no one but a zombie to talk to. And George, I suppose.”
She smiled, just a little quirk of her mouth at one side as if the two of us were sharing a joke. I had never imagined that I would be gently needled by a target. I did not like it.
I would not say that I sulked. I had simply elected to end the conversation. It was in Isolde’s interest to keep me talking, I reminded myself: if I was talking, I was not thinking, was not planning. I needed to do both if I wanted to get myself and the girl to safety. I could come back for Isolde later. Or someone else could.
The problem was that, devoid of entertainment, Isolde had taken to scratching the bottom of a glass beaker with a scalpel. Her work was precise, careful, but the sound of sharp metal against glass scraped at my ears, interrupting all attempts at thought. I glared at her.
This was a mistake.
“I’m sure you must be wondering what I’m doing,” said Isolde, without looking up. 
“Not particularly.”
“I’m engraving the soul-binding runes into the base of this bottle.” She paused. “Aren’t you going to ask me why?”
“No.”
She was going to tell me anyway.
“I am engraving the soul-binding runes into the base of this bottle,” Isolde repeated, her voice heavy and her words overenunciated as if my disinterest was an obstacle she could overcome by sheer force. “So that I can recapture the soul, should the experiment fail.”

Author Info

B. M. Briar spent most of her childhood in fantasyland, whether that be immersed in a book or forcing her long-suffering dad to play pretend for entire weekends at a time. Little has changed over the past two decades, except that she’s given her dad a break and taken up DnD instead. 

Her work reflects her own experiences as a queer woman, is increasingly gothic, and always a little bit magic. She is the winner of the first Cover Story contest from Attic Books. So Beats A Hollow Heart is her debut novella. 

Outside of writing, she is a cat mum, a cross-stitcher, and a truly abysmal pole dancer.

The Book Junkie Reads . . . Interview with . . . B. M. Briar . . . 

LIGHTNING ROUND

What genre do you read?

I’m not completely wedded to one genre. Mostly I read fantasy and horror, with a smattering of sci fi, romance, crime and lit fic. 

What genre do you write?

With writing I stick mostly to fantasy, horror, and romance, although I have been known to pen a sci-fi short. In any case, it’s going to have a gothic vibe. 

What was the first book you fell in love with?

This is such a hard question! But I adored the Mr Majeika series by Humphrey Carpenter as a child—they really sparked my imagination. 

What was a book you said you would never pick up again?

As huge of an influence as it was on my childhood, I’ll never pick up Harry Potter again. As a member of the queer community I can’t lose myself in that world when its author has poured so much of her wealth into harming my trans siblings. 

Which fiction character do you love?

Ah! So many to choose from! I wrote my undergraduate dissertation on Brienne of Tarth from A Song of Ice and Fire, and she’ll always be in my heart. More recently I’ve been super into The Locked Tomb series and I’m batting my eyelashes at Pyrrha Dve. 

Which fiction character do you love to hate?

That’s got to be Littlefinger from A Song of Ice and Fire. 

Which fiction character do you hate?

I think for me to genuinely hate a character (rather than love to hate) they have to be neither compelling nor appealing. So dare I say almost every male character in ACOTAR?

What beverage do you drink while reading?

Love a little iced coffee/strawberry matcha/bubble tea. I’ve learned to make all of them at home for the sake of my bank account!

What do you snack on while reading?

Dried mango—the good kind from the Asian grocery. 

Have you always enjoyed reading?

Yes! I learned to read when I was three, so I’ve had my nose in a book for as long as I (or anyone else) can remember.

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