Showing results by narrator "Heather Costa" in All Categories

Young Deirdre Gage. She has typical California pastimes. She jogs, eats health food, takes ballet lessons - and communicates with spirits. Namely, her brother, a tragic suicide, and, surprisingly, a long-dead Japanese novelist. Suddenly Deirdre is launched on a wild, perilous journey toward self-discovery and beyond. Her journey ends in a lonely hotel room. Within waits danger, delight, and the sweet temptation of oblivion.

When her grandmother dies, 13-year-old Christy inherits an old family secret: The pond behind her house is, in fact, a portal to another world. What's more, she learns her grandfather went through the portal when he mysteriously "disappeared" nine years ago. Christy tries to respect her grandmother's final wishes to not go exploring, but when a classmate named Rob falls into the pond, she has to act.

The battle of Armageddon was finally fought... and ended with no clear victor. Upon the mountain, the armies of Hell and Heaven beat each other into a bloody, uneasy standstill, leaving the Earth in ruins. Armageddon should have ended with Heaven winning, ushering in an era of peace. That's what the prophecies said. Instead, the two armies--one of angels, one of demons--hunker down in the scorched planet, lick their wounds, and gear up for a prolonged war with no end in sight.

Meet Selena Goode. She's an herbalist, she runs a small museum in Salem, and she's a practicing solitary Wiccan. She likes her life, quiet as it is. Then Brian Gottschalk comes barreling into it with the force of an Atlantic storm. He works for a ghost-hunting TV show, and he's in Salem to find a story. He's witty, charming...and a total jerk. Selena has no problem with ghosts. She does, however, have a problem with big-city Brian. It will take all his charm, plus the silent advice of a caring ghost, to make Selena realize that maybe, being big-city isn't so bad after all.

The Dark Mage thinks he's defeated Riley. After poisoning her and leaving her to die, Rendal heads toward New Perth to claim his new kingdom. Victory appears to be in his grasp. But not if Riley has anything to do with it. She knows to defeat him she has to finally master the magic within her. To free her kingdom, she must become the most powerful mage Australia has ever seen. Cured of Rendal's poison, Riley trains under the woman who brought magic to her continent. The woman who learned from Ezekiel himself. The woman who taught Rendal.

With magical powers to complement her formidable sword skills, Riley Trident heads to Sidnie with the fates of her best friend and an entire kingdom in her hands. The practice of magic thrives in Sidnie, but Hemmons' capabilities are far beyond those of even its most accomplished citizens. He shuts down their schools and opens his own, training warrior mages in round the clock shifts to achieve his ultimate goal: Sacking New Perth and conquering the nation.

Riley Trident narrowly escaped New Perth after a vicious battle with Rendal, but now she has an even bigger problem. Rendal holds Mason captive on a ship headed for the kingdom of Sidnie. To force her allegiance, there's nothing he won't do to the most important person in her life. If he can't have her allegiance? Then he'll punish her. Everyone around Riley implores her to refine her magical powers. Without them, she's no match for Rendal. Yet without her, Mason's days are numbered and Sidnie falls.

It all started out as a game. Just a way to have fun. We figured as long as we had rules, it wouldn't be a problem. RULE 1: Only break into one another's houses. RULE 2: Only take stuff that can be replaced. It worked for a while. Whoever's turn it was to break in got a rush, and the rest of us laughed over the trophies they brought back. But then someone went too far. Lives got ruined. Someone is dead. And I might be next.

Oriana dreams of escaping her life of ruthless cruelty from the people who now rule over those who remain. With no telling whom the plague will strike next, Oriana draws strength from ancient tales of her enemy and transforms herself from victim to warrior with the help of a mysterious and powerful dagger given to her by a kind and dying boy. Years later, during her enemy's betrothal ritual, Ezra, a boy she has never before seen, selects her as his mate. Whisked away to a seemingly perfect world, Oriana discovers sinister secrets at every turn.

Discussions about inequality often focus on achievement gaps. But opportunity is about more than just test scores. Opportunity gaps are a function of not just what students know, but who they know. This book explores the central role that relationships play in young people's lives and provides guidance for a path forward. Exploring the latest tools, data, and real-world examples, this book provides evidence-based guidance for educators looking to level the playing field and expert analysis on how policymakers and entrepreneurs can help.

Students at Lissa’s witch academy are falling ill—clearly under the effects of Hyde, an illegal street drug. When another young woman’s mutilated body is found in an alley, I realize we’ve got a murderer on the loose. And I have a feeling the two cases are tied.… I’m just not sure how or why. As if that isn’t stress-inducing enough, the vampire council is in town, and that means I need Vlad’s protection. What I don’t need is his constant amorous attempts.

Running from demons isn’t exactly as Laney expected. After saving her Shadowbringer from his fate in Hell, Laney returns to a hot mess on Earth—and she’s at the center of it. With Adne seeking revenge, the Hunters out for blood, and the original Shadowbringer dangling Cas’ soul over both their heads, Laney soon realizes that she needs to take matters into her own hands. Thank God, there is Gladys, who still remembers how to perform a ritual needed, and Avery and Tyler, who fight their own little battle against wicked Luc.

Practical and reliable, Bekah Matthews is tired of her good-girl image. After her boyfriend dumps her, she decides to throw caution to the wind. So what better way to let her hair down than to have a no-strings-attached fling while living on the paradise that is Hazel Island?

Life on the remote Glavine 2 outpost fits fighter pilot Teddy Zartler like a glove. Cards, booze, girls, and not an enemy in sight. But when Glavine 2 is wiped out by the onslaught of the Memnon fleet, he and his squadron must find their way back home before it’s too late. Reeling from the fallout of the Memnon Uprising, Commander Dominic Graves and the Dragonfly crew lead the remnants of the Aquarian fleet against the invading force. Outnumbered, outgunned, and trapped by a secret Memnon weapon, can the remnants of Aquarian civilization survive?

The world teeters on the brink of a fated apocalypse and time is running out. The Fae have one chance to save the earth from the demons that seek to possess its inhabitants . . . but there is no promise of victory when three prophecies foretell three outcomes—all with separate victors. Worse, Cassie is without Orion, who has fallen prey to a scheming demon prince and transformed into her most deadly foe. Racing against the clock to fulfill the only prophecy that will keep them alive, she must find a spell that will bring the young queens into their full power before war is upon them.

New witch and midwife Cassie Strega helped a human mother through the tumultuous birth of the queen of the demons, and now Cassie and the baby have been kidnapped by one of the demon princes fighting each other to lay claim to their new queen. Cassie hopes she can appeal to the human side of the child in order to save humanity, but as the child feeds upon her soul, Cassie must also battle the four demon-prince-uncles who intend for the infant to fulfill her dark destiny.

When even the gods are dying, the hope of the world may lie in its most feared enemies. A new god proclaimed as the All-Holy has arisen in the west and leads an army eastward, devouring the gods and goddesses of the lands between, forcibly converting their folk and binding their souls to himself. The very fabric of the world appears threatened by forces beyond the understanding of scholars and wizards alike.