urbanfantasy

The City of the Gods: Gold

by Zach Erwin

Raymond Chandler meets Stephen King in a universe like early DC Comics. As the scars of T-Day fade into memory, Empire City braces for a new nightmare brought forth by the sudden disappearance of Bonnie Connor, daughter of the enigmatic Theodora Connor. Reluctantly returning to her Scarlet Sparrow persona, Theodora seeks aid from the demon who bestowed powers upon her. As the devil inside takes control, she grows weaker and more disconnected, slowly losing her life and soul to her demonic savior. In his search for Bonnie, rookie detective Skip Gibson unexpectedly unearths a chilling truth—a sinister cult consisting of Empire City's most affluent socialites, intricately woven into Theo's dark past and possibly withholding information as to Bonnie Connor's whereabouts. Meanwhile, the same night Bonne vanishes, Doctor Nadir Singh's scientific team stumbles upon a mysterious UFO near the Connors' residence north of the city. With each revelation, Empire City transforms into a battleground where technology and the occult clash. In the midst of this chaos, Theodora, Skip, Nadir, and others must navigate a treacherous maze of betrayal and redemption, racing against the clock to uncover Bonnie's fate and protect the city's very soul. As the mysteries intertwine and enemies emerge, the fate of Empire City teeters on a knife's edge, balancing between salvation and utter destruction. [Read More]

A Field Beyond Notions

by Atria J. Merian

Rosario My alchemy diploma is as useless as the men I’ve been dating. Blacklisted from the industry, I took the job nobody else would touch: glorified assistant to the Divine Executioner—God’s favorite assassin. He tortures with flair. Kills with a smile… but it’s his longing stares that leave me truly terrified. This gig is only temporary. Until I save up enough to start my own alchemy boutique. But the Executioner is a ruthless immortal beyond mortal laws, said to tally corpses and lovers in equal measure. I have a bad feeling he will never let me go. The Executioner Humans think I’m a psychopath. I don’t think about them at all. My routine keeps me sane. Seven days per prisoner. Feed on fear. Dispose. Paperwork. Repeat.
But ever since Rosario became my operations manager, I’ve been lovestruck. For the first time in centuries. I watch her sleep. I plan our life together. I hear the bells toll.
 Till death do us part is a wonderful notion… especially when you’re immortal. Content note: this is a paranormal dark romance. It contains mature themes that some readers might find very disturbing. Read at your own risk. A full CW list is available on the author’s website. Tropes: Icy Black Cat FMC x (Rabid) Golden Retriever MMC Stalking, Obsession, Intense Devotion Forced Proximity Revenge [Read More]

Duskshade

by Madison Patershuk and Ebony Dobson

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Ophelia’s life is anchored by the measurable laws of the universe. As a dedicated heliophysicist, she trusts what she can prove and she trusts Nick, the man she believes is her soulmate. But when an impossible fracture in reality violently tears Ophelia, Nick, and her loved ones out of the human world and plunges them into the untamed Fae realm of Fenraeis, all earthly logic shatters. Stranded in a world that shouldn't exist, Ophelia quickly realizes they aren't just lost. They are being hunted. The Crownless, a terrifying and relentless entity, doesn't want her dead; he wants her caged. He intends to enslave Phee to siphon the elusive, ancient power awakening in her blood. It is a dormant, near-endless well of magic that hasn't been seen in an age, and this scientist has no idea how to control it. Desperate to keep the people she loves alive, Ophelia must become the warrior she was never meant to be. To survive, she is forced into an uneasy alliance with Kane—the ruthless, infuriating High King who might be just as dangerous as the monsters hunting them. As her impossible abilities rise to the surface, Ophelia realizes her arrival in Fenraeis wasn't an accident. She doesn't believe in destiny, but to keep her power out of the hands of a monster and to save those she loves, she must forge her own. [Read More]

Hex of All Hats

by Brian Keith Dye

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Janessa Miro has one rule: keep the wards intact and the drinks flowing. As The Spot’s resident wardwright and bartender, she keeps Chicago’s most notorious cross-dimensional speakeasy stitched together with duct tape, sarcasm, and sigilcraft. But when a ley line flickers and a Whisperbind blooms through the anchor wards, it isn’t sabotage—it’s personal. Someone has forged her magical style, infected the bar’s foundation, and tied the corruption to her blood. Now the Magus Arcanum is circling. The Faerie Courts are listening. And former mentor turned heretic Marlowe Finch is orchestrating something beneath the city in a cathedral called the Hollow Chord. As ancient runes begin surfacing across Chicago, Janessa discovers the attack against The Spot is only the first fracture in something far older than the Arcanum wants to admit. The magic inside her isn’t behaving like a curse. It’s remembering. With fellow wardwright Callum Shaw, Grimalkin thief Lysandra Vex, and dimension-folding barkeep Eddie Ramirez at her side, Janessa races to stop the Seal beneath The Spot from unraveling before Chicago becomes the center of a supernatural collapse. Because every lock has a cost. Every curse leaves a mark. And some curses don’t bind you—they build you. [Read More]

The City of the Gods: Silver

by Zach Erwin

Raymond Chandler meets early 1960s Marvel Comics. When a god is murdered in front of Private Investigator Skip Gibson, he finds himself at the heart of a storm brewing in Empire City, especially since the victim was Skip's best lead in the disappearance of a brilliant rocket scientist tied to the U.S. space program. Now, with the other gods turning vengeful and the city on the brink, Skip is pulled into Empire's shadowy depths. A secretive cult, mass graves hidden beneath the streets, and a conspiracy decades in the making threaten to consume everything in their path. With divine wrath tearing the city apart, Skip must rely on a patchwork crew of unlikely allies to uncover the truth, stop the chaos, and stay alive long enough to connect the cosmic dots. In a world where gods bleed and mortals dare to dig too deep, solving the case might be the only way to save what's left of Empire City. [Read More]