Tucked within an idyllic corner of New England, Newlyn University stands as a bastion for the academic elites. Inside its hallowed halls, students can pursue degrees in medicine, history, technology . . . or the Arcane Arts—the esoteric study of powerful magical forces. Enter Ellsbeth long determined to pursue a graduate degree in arcane mechanicals at Newlyn. Headstrong and driven, she convinces Thaddeus Rawlins, one of the field’s most celebrated professors, to take her on as a student. Against his better judgment, but invigorated by Ellsbeth’s ambition, Rawlins allows her to pursue a thesis on writ magic, the long-forbidden power to control and compel others.
While student and teacher both profess academic interest in the topic, each wants it for their own secret purpose. And they soon discover that Newlyn itself may be hiding the darkest secret of all . . .
As Rawlins and Ellsbeth undertake their clandestine research, their flirtation crosses into uncontrollable desire, which threatens to bloom into something even more love. But when their project begins to spin out of control, entangling them in a destructive web of lust and power, the question can two people who are masters of manipulation ever trust each other?
Publication: May 19, 2026
Highest Point (Hastings #3) by Kels & Denise Stone
Alec Hastings
I had a plan for everything. Gear lists, weather patterns, mountain routes down to the mile.
But nothing prepared me for the moment I watched my best friend fall into the abyss.
After Finn’s accident, I walked away from the mountains to fix up the abandoned lodge we bought as teenagers so he has a safe place to recover. The man who sold us the place is gone, but his granddaughter, Clementine, is here, and she needs a partner to enter a high-stakes wilderness competition with a cash prize she’s desperate to win.
She knows design. I know survival. So we strike a She helps me finish the lodge, I help her win.
This year, the annual competition is bigger than ever, so we start training—hard. While I had my doubts initially, Clementine doesn’t quit, even when she should. I’ve summited K2 and Everest, but I’ve never encountered anything like her. She’s too young, too sunlit, too…everything.
And the longer we work together, the harder it is to pretend this partnership, and my time in Alaska, is temporary.
Clementine Lennox
Newly promoted principal dancer with the New York City Ballet.
That’s what was meant to happen.
Instead, I packed up my dreams and fled to the remote town where I spent my childhood summers. The only goal I have now is paying off the mountain of debt that followed me across the country.
My solution? Winning Wild Trails—with the help of legendary mountaineer Alec Hastings.
Alec is enigmatic and intense, and though he pushes me to the brink, he’s always there to catch me. His faith in me makes me feel like I still matter…like I’m not a failure.
With each milestone I achieve, I prove to myself that I’m more than the sum of my broken dreams—and that I’m allowed to choose myself. And I might have to. Because Alec has always chased the next adventure, and with the clock ticking on our agreement, I have a feeling he’ll be gone when the seasons change.
Highest Point is the third book in The Hastings series, a collection of interconnected standalone sports romances about the Hastings siblings, scions of sports royalty.
Publication: November 5, 2025
Nightwither (Starheart #2) by Lana B. Knight
A HIGH FANTASY sequel to STARHEART ~When Darkness Spreads, Will Light Prevail? ~
Stella arrives in her mother's homeland, Myera, a realm of unfamiliar creatures, magical lands, and values that challenge her core beliefs. Nothing could have prepared her for the responsibility of her mother's legacy. With a long history of tension rising and a civil war on the horizon, Stella is forced into her role as the Starheart to heal old wounds.
Navigating a treacherous web of politics and power as the realm begins to fracture, Stella must be a pillar of strength and stability even as she quietly unravels beneath the weight of her own unmet expectations. But the greatest challenge doesn’t lie within her.
At the centre of the unrest stands Noxryn.
Caught between clashing wills and pride, Stella faces something far more dangerous than failing—the possibility of understanding the man who betrayed her and the one responsible for the chaos threatening to consume the realm. Taking off Noxryn’s mask might offer answers to bring peace, or which lures both her and Myera into a darkness there’s no coming back from.
Nightwither is the second book in The Starheart Saga, an ongoing four-book epic fantasy romance series. The Starheart Saga is perfect for fans of unique magic systems, mythical creatures, angst and tension, and hilarious banter. Nightwither will appeal to fans of plot-heavy, character-driven fantasy and enemies-to-lovers romance.
Publication: April 14, 2026
Shadow Reaper (Shadow Reaper #1) by Lynette Noni
NEVER BARGAIN WITH A REAPER.
The city of Aravell is in peril, plagued by a deadly blackmist that kills all it touches, and reapers who roam the streets, stealing magic from innocent children in their thirst for power. Seventeen-year-old Viridia Solace has trained for years to hunt these reapers but their ranks keep growing, led by the man who murdered her parents: the Reaper Priest.When the Priest's most loyal follower, Reeve Ashton, is captured, he offers Viri a chance to avenge her parents . . . for a price. She knows better than to bargain with a reaper, let alone this reaper, but his offer is too good to resist.
Soon she's breaking him out of prison, colluding with his crew of magic thieves, and following him deep into the blackmist forest in search of an ancient legend, all so they can stop the Reaper Priest’s plot to doom the city. Viri is staking her life on Reeve's plan, but how can she trust a silver-tongued criminal to keep his word? And how can she trust her own heart when a buried secret could shatter everything?
Publication: June 16, 2026
When a maiden is selected to marry the emperor, her journey to the palace will see her fighting both a spark of magical power and her growing feelings for her broody escort in this romantic fantasy duology opener, inspired by a true story from the Inca empire.
In Amaru, it is an honor to be chosen in the annual harvest and serve the gods'-favored emperor. Nina’s brother has already been chosen, but when the emperor’s men come a second time for her sister, Nina volunteers instead. She is taken to the acllahuasi, a gilded cage where women train to become servants or wives for the ruling class. It is there that a soldier comes to collect her, and Nina learns of her fate—to become a wife...to the emperor.
As the emperor's trusted friend and soldier, Kasik is ordered to retrieve Nina and deliver her untouched. But the emperor’s betrothed is not as he expected. The distrust between Nina and Kasik is thicker than the trees surrounding them, and Kasik’s honor is put to the test when their path back to the capitol leads them into dangerous territory. Their lives and hearts are in peril as forbidden desires are unearthed, along with a stirring of dark magic in Nina that inexplicably ties her to the gods.
What begins as a simple task becomes a tense journey that forces Nina and Kasik to confront where their true loyalties lie—with the emperor and the fate of their people, or with the desires of their own hearts.
Publication: June 2, 2026
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