The Queen's Gambit


Book Description

“A welcome way to spend an adventurous time in Renaissance Italy.”—Margaret Frazer As Court Engineer to the Duke of Milan, Leonardo DaVinci turns his superior mind to a variety of pursuits—from advances in painting to the invention of war machines. And with his favorite apprentice Dino to aid him, his keen intellect is perfect for sleuthing. . . . 1483. Milan, province of Lombardy. On a royal whim, Ludovico Sforza, the Duke of Milan, orders a living chess game to be enacted by members of his court. DaVinci conjures the spectacle in a single night, but his latest success turns bitter when one of the “pieces” is murdered. With even the Duke’s closest advisors suspect to treachery, DaVinci is the only man Sforza can trust to conduct the investigation. With his scrupulous eye for detail, DaVinci uncovers a vile nest of secrets—and danger—but the most surprising secret of all may be the true identity of his most talented, most trusted apprentice. . . . “Impressive . . . Vivid.”—Publishers Weekly (starred review) “Readers can expect plenty of intrigue and danger in this refreshing new series.”—Mystery Scene Magazine




The Queen of the Damned


Book Description

“With The Queen of the Damned, Anne Rice has created universes within universes, traveling back in time as far as ancient, pre-pyramidic Egypt and journeying from the frozen mountain peaks of Nepal to the crowded, sweating streets of southern Florida.”—Los Angeles Times In a feat of virtuoso storytelling, Anne Rice unleashes Akasha, the queen of the damned, who has risen from a six-thousand-year sleep to let loose the powers of the night. Akasha has a marvelously devious plan to “save” mankind and destroy the vampire Lestat—in this extraordinarily sensual novel of the complex, erotic, electrifying world of the undead. Praise for The Queen of the Damned “Mesmerizing . . . a wonderful web of dark-side mythology.”—San Francisco Chronicle “Imaginative . . . intelligently written . . . This is popular fiction of the highest order.”—USA Today “A tour de force.”—The Boston Globe




Taken by a Vampire


Book Description

Joey W. Hill's Vampire Queen novels "keep the pages turning, your imagination running, and] your dreams carnally vivid" (Bitten by Books). In her newest installment, a servant sentenced to death is sent into hiding and finds a passion she never expected in her new protector... Groomed from birth to be an Inherited Servant and serve only the most powerful vampire Masters, Alanna never resented her destiny. Then she did the unthinkable: she betrayed her Master to the Vampire Council. Now death is her future, but until her Master is captured, she must be protected. The Vampire Council assigns her to Evan, a vampire whose wandering lifestyle makes him the perfect guardian... Alanna's training was for a vampire of power and ambition, not for someone like Evan who lives in mountainside shacks and caves. Even his servant, Niall, is rough mannered. But these two men are about to teach Alanna something her rigorous training never did: how to feel, how to desire...perhaps even how to love. Then the Council captures her Master, and Alanna has no choice but to accept her destiny. But Evan and Niall are no strangers to defying fate--and they will stop at nothing to make Alanna theirs forever...




The Vampire Queen's Servant


Book Description

His blood. His soul. His body. Hers for the asking¿ Lady Elyssa Yamato Amaterasu Wentworth is a centuries-old vampire who's been given a new servant - Jacob, a total alpha male unaccustomed to submitting to any woman's wishes. What really binds Jacob to her are not her sensual midnight hungers, but something far more provocative. It stirs her blood, renews her life and awakens her soul like only true love can. The passion between Lyssa and Jacob yields something else unexpected - a shared history that reaches back through the centuries and is fated to challenge their destiny like nothing ever will again.




The Vampire Lestat


Book Description

#1 New York Times Bestselling author - Surrender to fiction's greatest creature of the night - Book II of the Vampire Chronicles The vampire hero of Anne Rice’s enthralling novel is a creature of the darkest and richest imagination. Once an aristocrat in the heady days of pre-revolutionary France, now a rock star in the demonic, shimmering 1980s, he rushes through the centuries in search of others like him, seeking answers to the mystery of his eternal, terrifying exsitence. His is a mesmerizing story—passionate, complex, and thrilling. Praise for The Vampire Lestat “Frightening, sensual . . . Anne Rice will live on through the ages of literature. . . . To read her is to become giddy as if spinning through the mind of time, to become lightheaded as if our blood is slowly being drained away.”—San Francisco Chronicle “Fiercely ambitious, nothing less than a complete unnatural history of vampires.”—The Village Voice “Brilliant . . . its undead characters are utterly alive.”—The New York Times Book Review “Luxuriantly created and richly told.”—The Cleveland Plain Dealer




The World Without Arkhalla


Book Description

Arkhalla.She was the most powerful woman on earth. A cruel, undying queen feasting on blood, she ruled a nation feared across the ancient lands of Sumer, her only weakness a still all-too-human heart.And now she is dead.It has been ten long years since Arkhalla's death, and the Council led by SIN and BEL rule a realm in the grip of civil war. The humans, denied their freedom after the Undying Queen's demise, have rebelled, and strife brews between Sin and Bel, who is plagued by crippling guilt for his role in Arkhalla's fall.When Sin draws the human Akkadian king, NIMROD and his daughter AISYAH in an alliance against Bel, Bel turns to NARAMA, long estranged from him after he refused her love because of his obsession with Arkhalla. Narama rushes to his aid, but too late to stop the erratic, self-destructive Bel from being provoked into war against Sin or from committing genocide against entire cities of humans. In the wake of the almighty queen's death, the Sumerian kingdoms are rocked by chaos. Meanwhile, SHAMATH, drawn out of his seclusion by dreams of his lost love tormented in the demon god Asag's hellish domain, joins the human rebellion and slowly rises through the ranks to become their leader and a legend among men.The second chapter of the trilogy begun in The Undying Queen of Ur crafts an epic tale of war, intrigue, revenge, and a tangled skein of characters in a world forever haunted by the one who gave meaning to all their lives. What is to become of the world without Arkhalla!




Undead and Unemployed


Book Description

Betsy Taylor, Queen of the undead, has snagged a dream job in a shoe store (just like a normal person!). But when vampires start getting killed off, Betsy enlists the help of the sexy vampire Sinclair. Now she's really treading dangerous ground-but this time in brand-new high heels.




Queen Takes Knights


Book Description

A lost virgin vampire queen. Two vampire knights sworn to protect her. It's about to get very hot... and bloody...Ever since her mother was murdered by monsters five years ago, Shara Isador has been on the run. Alone, scared, and exhausted, she's finally cornered in Eureka Springs, Arkansas. Out of hope with nowhere else to turn, she's ready to end it all when two men come to her rescue.They say she's a lost queen descended from Isis, and they're her Blood, vampire knights sworn to protect her. It all seems like a crazy nightmare, until the alpha offers his blood. Then she realizes she's never wanted anything more. Except maybe his body... and his friend's, too.But they're not the only ones searching for a lost queen. Shara must learn how to wield her new powers quickly and conquer her fears if she intends to keep them all alive.







Queen Takes Checkmate


Book Description

The god of light has met his match.But whose life will the red serpent claim? Killing the queen of New York City has added a million new responsibilities to Shara Isador's list. The former queen's Blood must be dealt with before they turn thrall. The queens Keisha Skye coerced into sibling relationships must either be formally sworn to House Isador or freed. Though Shara can't in good conscience allow anyone into her house who took part in the rampant torture in which House Skye indulged. While every single day, Shara feels the weight of the red serpent coiled around her throat. The goddess's gift grows heavier with every passing moment. If she doesn't act, the serpent will consume everything she loves. But if she goes after Ra as promised... Someone she loves very much will die. Any of her Blood will gladly pay that cost, but Shara loves them too much to even consider losing one of them. Who will survive the epic showdown with Ra, the god of light, and will this be the end of Shara Isador's story?