Showing results by narrator "Krystal Hammond" in Literature & Fiction

Six immortal siblings. Five sworn to peace. One demands a throne. Radiance, the mysterious power of life and creation, is theirs to command. Death cannot claim them. For hundreds of years, the ever-living ruled with ease. Yet when the world is nearly broken beneath their reign, the humbled six swear a vow: They will sit upon no thrones, wear no crowns, and no longer teach humanity the gifts of radiance. But after centuries of peace, Eder rejects their vow, anoints himself Voice of Father, and spreads a cruel new faith across the land.

Hollywood teen actor Arden James' messy reputation is interfering with her career when a notoriously picky director won't give her a role based on her party-girl image. So she and her publicist make up a lie – not only is she from a small town (true) but her childhood best friend Caroline, is her long-term girlfriend (false) and she can prove it when she goes home for Christmas.​ Caroline Beckett hasn't thought about her ex-best friend Arden James for years, focusing instead on her dreams about becoming a journalist.

I don't understand why the hospital director has insisted that Siena Collins work in oncology. She is a spoiled brat, unreliable, and causes too much trouble in a department where we must look into the eyes of death every day. To make matters worse, she can't even touch or talk to patients. She is still in medical school and considering quitting altogether.

Grieving but feisty widow Vivian Laurent is at a late-in-life crossroads. The man she loved is gone. Their only daughter is estranged and missing. And the assisted-living facility where her husband died is going into quarantine. Living in lockdown with only heartache and memories is something Vivian can’t bear. Then comes a saving grace.

Horror movies hold a complicated space in the queer community: historically misogynist, and often homo- and transphobic, the genre has also been inadvertently feminist and open to subversive readings. It Came from the Closet features twenty-five original essays by writers speaking to this relationship, through connections both empowering and oppressive. From Carmen Maria Machado on Jennifer’s Body, Jude Ellison S. Doyle on In My Skin, Addie Tsai on Dead Ringers, and many more, these conversations convey the rich reciprocity between queerness and horror.

In Nebula Award-winning author Sam J. Miller’s devastating debut short-fiction collection—featuring an introduction by Amal El-Mohtar—queer infatuation, inevitable heartbreak, and brutal revenge seamlessly intertwine. Whether innocent, guilty, or not even human, the boys, beasts, and men roaming through Miller’s gorgeously crafted worlds can destroy listeners, yet leave them wanting more.

Reeling from her brother's death, Gianna Del Vecchio finds comfort in an online forum from a woman who suffered a similar loss. Theirs is a club no one wants to join—survivors of a loved one's suicide. Photos posted to the forum of the woman's cute therapy dog bring cheer when nothing else can, and Gianna is compelled to reach out to say thanks. After two years, Keenan McEvoy is still fighting her way back from despair after losing her partner, Annabel. She's surprised when she connects with Gianna, whose kindness and compassion ignite a spark she wasn't sure she'd ever feel again.

After forty years of wreaking havoc across the galaxy, the outlaw Nine Lives—AKA Former General Gabriella Ortiz—has finally run out of lives. Shot down into a backwater at the system’s edge, she is rescued by Deputy Air Marshall Havemercy Grey. Hav is a true soul, trying to uphold what is right in the heedless wastes. Hav is determined to see justice done. And Hav could sure use that twenty-million bounty … But escorting the most dangerous fugitive in the system across the stars is no easy task.

In her second collection from Trepidatio Publishing, award-winning author Gemma Files takes her listeners on journeys out beyond safe borders—from the trackless depths of the sea, to the empty desert frontiers of the Weird West, even to the edges of cracks between worlds. Here, in these narrow spaces between the known and the unknown, behind the paper-thin curtains of reality, lurk monsters both human and ancient: selkies and avenging revenants, voodoo priestesses and pirate sorcerers, ghosts and vampires, and the most famous murderer of all time.

Olivia knows everyone at the guild is on high alert, but no one will tell her why. She’s certain the death of her boyfriend is behind it, but the truth is far worse. Darkness has come to the mortal kingdom. When the guild protecting them is attacked by vampires, Olivia is swept away from the safety of her home when her mom and best friend are taken. Before she can get away, she’s captured by a vampire, Sebastian, who insists he’s protecting her. But when she’s taken to the City of Nightmares, the most dangerous place in the vampire kingdom, she realizes she’s a prisoner.

Thrust into the middle of a dark web of politics and corruption, Olivia is beginning to fear she won’t live long enough to see her vampire awakening. Deadly plots. Malicious schemes. Finding her place in the nefarious kingdom has become a fight to survive.

A former child prodigy, she has been educated in one of the best medical schools under the supervision of the prestigious Daniela McKenna. At the age of twenty-seven, she moved from Boston to Los Angeles in search of a smaller hospital that would allow her to grow faster as a surgeon. Little did she expect that by a quirk of fate, she would find herself as interim chief of surgery, fighting for the permanent position against much more experienced doctors.

When Rowan and her family move into the 1800s home nestled in the woods on a bluff near Lake Michigan, she's looking forward to a summer reprieve. However, she soon discovers that Helme House harbors dark secrets, including people who have vanished from the house and never been found.

Five sisters share one business like no other. Warded by fae magic, this shop’s inventory shifts to meet the needs of its customers, summoning the sister whose expertise is required. With Lily behind the counter, it’s a candle boutique. Aster manages the bookstore. Crystals are Iris’s specialty. Fern sells flowers and herbs. And Daisy tends to the apothecary and oils.

Trapped behind enemy lines, Olivia is forced to watch as the rogue soul vampires destroy countless mortals. In a bid to end the monarchy, the creatures and their leader will stop at nothing.

Arya has time for only one thing: saving lives as a surgeon. She is not interested in a relationship. Her life is already too complicated without adding new problems into the mix. Besides, there are too many other women out there to settle for just one. Patricia wants to be seen as more than a single mother. Her seven-year-old son fills her life, but after leaving behind the toxic relationship with her ex-husband, she's been longing to feel wanted again.

A dark and twisted fantasy stand-alone romance where hate and love collide in a world filled with snarky witches and vengeful gods. Grieving being torn from her beloved sister, who remained behind in the human kingdom, Elle makes it her life purpose to become a keeper in her cursekeeper coven. But this calling won’t be an easy one. The magic possessed by her small coven of four casts them as outsiders throughout the kingdom. Yet when witches are found murdered in the woods, the cursekeepers quickly become the town’s only hope.

Culinary student Quinn is excited to finally move up in her culinary career when she lands an internship of a lifetime on Coastal Cruises. It's the opportunity of a lifetime, and an adventure that will take her across the sea. The only downside? It means spending the summer with her lazy rival, who's only there because his father is a famous chef. And he isn't afraid to play dirty . . . . . . even if that means throwing her overboard.

Eve has a carefully curated online life, works occasionally, and texts constantly with her best friend, Ezra. Basically, she is an archetypal LA millennial. She has also been carrying on a year-long conversation with her deceased friend Miggy over text. But when Ezra goes missing on the anniversary weekend of Miggy's death, Eve feels like her world is shattering. Over a frantic weekend Eve investigates Ezra's disappearance, scouring social media for clues, while drowning her anger and anxiety in drinks, drugs, and spiritual cleansing.

A lush and elegant collection of tales—many having appeared in various “Best Of” anthologies—teeming with frightful and tragic events, yet profoundly and intimately human. These chilling tales will engross and enthrall. For listeners of Kelly Link, Carmen Maria Machado, and Angela Carter, this is a must have collection of ghostly tales set to deliver a frisson of terror and glee.