Tempt Me Tuesday #90 by Mad Hatter Reads

 

I had to dig deep for this week’s temptations. Most of these are from new-to-me authors but they sound pretty good. Anything tempting you this week?

 

A Cursed Bloodline by Cecy Robson

Weird Girls, #4

Just when Celia thinks the supernatural world can’t turn deadlier, a new rival emerges, proving just how dangerous a power-hungry were can be.

Since being cursed with unique abilities, Celia Wird and her three sisters have fought the most bloodthirsty preternaturals in the Lake Tahoe region. But Celia’s greatest threat is someone she would have never suspected: Anara, a werewolf Elder who has allowed his hatred for Celia to spiral out of control. In a play for dominance, Anara tortures Celia and gives her an ultimatum: sever her mate bond with pureblood were Aric — or Anara will kill everyone she loves.

From the instant they met, Celia and Aric have shared an attraction that cannot be tamed. So keeping Aric away is impossible, and Aric would sooner die than allow anyone to hurt the woman he loves. Misha, master vampire and Celia’s sworn protector, also finds his way into the chaos, seeking blood from those who have harmed her.

Now Celia and her sisters are caught in the middle of a war driven by lust, fueled by hatred, and destined to end in tragedy. For Anara is a force to be reckoned with, and he will not succumb without robbing Celia of those who hold her heart.

 

Gunpowder Alchemy by Jeannie Lin

The Gunpowder Chronicles, #1

In 1842, the gunpowder might of China’s Qing Dynasty fell to Britain’s steam engines. Furious, the Emperor ordered the death of his engineers—and killed China’s best chance of fighting back…

Since her father’s execution eight years ago, Jin Soling kept her family from falling into poverty. But her meager savings are running out, leaving her with no choice but to sell the last of her father’s possessions—her last memento of him.

Only, while attempting to find a buyer, Soling is caught and brought before the Crown Prince. Unlike his father, the Emperor, the Prince knows that the only chance of expelling the English invaders is to once again unite China’s cleverest minds to create fantastic weapons. He also realizes that Soling is the one person who could convince her father’s former allies—many who have turned rebel—to once again work for the Empire. He promises to restore her family name if she’ll help him in his cause.

But after the betrayal of her family all those years ago, Soling is unsure if she can trust anyone in the Forbidden City—even if her heart is longing to believe in the engineer with a hidden past who was once meant to be her husband.

 

Reign of the Vampires by Rebekah R. Ganiere

The Society, #1

She wants security. He wants freedom. Together their love could destroy the world.

Ten years after the outbreak of the V2000 virus turns the majority of humans into a mutated Vampire sub-species, the last remaining true humans are the world's hottest commodity. In this new world, it's The Society that rules.

Being the only female Vampire Lord in America isn't easy. Being thrust into the role of CEO is even harder. Danika Chekov refuses to let her father's legacy die. She’s resolved to keep everything under her tight control. But after she's almost killed, she’s forced to purchase a human guardian.

Mason is human, or so the Vampires think. He’s determined to protect his secret, but Lord Danika buys him before he can make his escape. Their passion for each other threatens everything they want most. And when Mason’s true nature is exposed, the results could be devastating.

 

Stolen by Melissa de la Cruz and Michael Johnston

Heart of Dread, #2

Who is Eliza Wesson?

Months after Nat and Wes said good-bye on the shores of the Blue, Nat is learning how to control and use her new power. She and her drakon are the last of their kind—and she’s risked her life for their reunion. When she receives a mysterious distress call, she races to help, soliciting the guidance of her new friend, the beautiful and aloof Faix Lazaved of the Blue.

Still heartbroken over losing Nat, Wes is racing cars on a New Vegas racetrack while his team is scattered and lost. When he finds out that his sister, Eliza, is being held in the golden domes of El Dorado, he does what he’s best at—running to her side—and gambles on luck to see him through one more time.

Magic, romance, and danger collide as Nat and Wes become entangled in a dark new adventure that leads right to the heart of the mystery of their frozen, broken world. They soon discover that the answer to both their quests lies in the same question: Who is Eliza Wesson—what is she capable of, and why was she stolen from her family so long ago?

 

Touch of Desire by Lia Davis

Ashwood Falls, #4.5

As the wolf senior enforcer, Torin Fisher’s job is to protect the pack and each of its members. That includes the beautiful submissive wolf, Cora Rivers. He’s known for a while she belongs to him, but he decided to wait for her to come to him willingly. Since her brother’s death, he’s watched her withdraw from the Pack little by little. Tired of sitting by watching her suffocate her wolf, he decides the time has come to claim her.

Cora Rivers is no stranger to pain. Just as she comes out of her mourning over her parents’ brutal murder, her brother—and best friend—suffers the same horrifying death. Grief cripples her and in attempt to learn to be independent, she inadvertently stifles her wolf by not letting her out to run on a regular basis. When Torin Fisher, begins the mating dance, her only choice is to run.

Together they have a chance to not only release her wolf, but find the connection and future they both deserve.

 

Witch Hunter by Shari Nichols

The Ravens Hollow, #1

Determined MBI (Magickal Bureau of investigations)agent Alex Denopoulos will stop at nothing to catch a killer, including recruit notorious felon, Willow McCray to work for the agency. The lines between duty and passion become blurred the more time he spends with the sultry witch. In the midst of the investigation, they succumb to the dark edges of desire, placing both their lives in danger. Alex will risk more than his badge to keep her alive.

Kick-ass witch Willow must use her powers for good if she wants to stay out of Hellios, a mage prison for those who have broken the Wiccan Rede of ‘Harm ye None.’ Willow never expects to fall so hard for Alex, a mortal with a penchant for justice and a deep seated hatred of witches. Though a future together seems impossible, she doesn’t want to let him go.

Can she vanquish the evil surrounding them and give Alex her mind and body before she loses her heart and maybe her soul?

 

Witches’ Waves by Teresa Noelle Roberts

Duals and Donovans: The Different, #4

"The ocean is on their side. But the fight is on land and it s about to get dirty."

Long held captive as the Agency's secret weapon a blind witch with visions Meaghan has come to a line she refuses to cross. Rather than betray the infant child of five bloods to the Agency's scientists, she chooses death. Except when she throws herself into the ocean, she doesn't die. Her repressed water magic comes to life.

When the sodden, delirious witch drifts into Kyle's arms, his otter dual instincts tell him to get her to the Donovans as fast as possible. Even though one particular surfer-dude Donovan broke his heart.

Declan Donovan continually kicks himself for pushing Kyle away, but his touchy combination of water, earth and lightning magic is too volatile, and Kyle wanted more than Deck was ready to give.

When they come together to help Meaghan control her new magic, it leads the Agency straight to the child of five bloods. They'll have to dive head-first into total trust in their magics, in themselves and in each other to save the child and stop the Agency once and for all.

Warning: Contains an oceanful of sex between an ethereal blind heroine who swears like a pissed-off Marine, an overly serious otter shifter, a would-be beach bum who may be descended from a Norse god, in permutations as fluid as the sea and themes of abuse and recovery."