Urban Myths

Hey, did you hear the one about the man who dropped a lit cigarette into the toilet with some gasoline-soaked rags? Of course you did, it happened to your gym teacher's cousin. Or was it your cousin's gym teacher?

In the days of yore, he flew the skies and scorched angry mobs - now he hides from swamp tour boats and rises only with the greatest reluctance from his La-Z-Boy recliner. Laying low in the bayou, this once-magnificent fire breather has been reduced to lighting Marlboros with nose sparks, swilling Absolut in a Flashdance T-shirt, and binging Netflix in a fishing shack. For centuries, he struck fear in hearts far and wide as Wyvern, Lord Highfire of the Highfire Eyrie - now he goes by Vern.

Jack was once a simple college kid who dreamed of getting laid at cosplay parties. But when he discovers fairy tales living among us and becomes their protector against evil and humanity (that’s right!), he’s soon thrown into a war of epic proportions. To stand a chance in this war, Jack goes to the fae lands - the fabled Avalon - where he must conquer his demons, level the hell up, and find some new teammates to add to his already-large party. Will Red, Pucky, the Swan Princess, and Big Bad Wolf be okay with these new party members?

Becoming Los Angeles, a new collection by the author of the acclaimed memoir Holy Land, blends history, memory, and critical analysis to illuminate how Angelenos have seen themselves and their city. Waldie’s particular concern is commonplace Los Angeles, whose rhythms of daily life are set against the gaudy backdrop of historical myth and Hollywood illusion. It’s through sacred ordinariness that Waldie experiences the city’s seasons.

The Greek Gods are dead, but their legacy remains. Kairos, pirate lord of Histria, is concerned. A dungeon on his island turns out to be the last entrance to the Underworld, full of wealth and dangers; while beyond the sea the Poison King Mithridates builds up his forces. Enemies old and new prepare for a new war that will determine who shall replace the fallen Olympians. And Kairos is determined to be on the winning side.

Vampires: murderous creatures in the shape of humans, they stalk the night feeding on the blood of innocents. Seemingly immortal, they can be destroyed only by the use of a stake through the heart, severing of their heads, or exposure to sunlight. By the year AD 12,090, vampires have ruled the Earth for almost 300 years, and it is only these weaknesses that have kept these foul monsters from totally overrunning the world. But what happens when those rules no longer apply?

Morganna and Arthur have returned - and Morganna’s lust for power leads my fairy tale ladies and me on a high stakes chase across the globe.

When Hunter Cassidy revealed her true power to Slade Baines during a fight for their lives, everything she wanted was ripped away from her. Now, with her heart in pieces, Hunter is left only with her determination to find and destroy the deadly weapon that led her to infiltrate the Assassin's Legion in the first place.

Rick Yancey’s first gothic suspense tale, The Monstrumologist, earned him a prestigious Michael L. Printz Award. The second installment of this acclaimed series, Curse of the Wendigo, finds young Will Henry on the hunt for a supernatural beast plaguing New England in the late 1800s. Will and his mentor, the domineering Dr. Warthrop, are enlisted to help the doctor’s former fiancée. It seems her husband has been lost in the Canadian wilderness.

War has come to Kairos' doorstep right as his dynasty seems secure. The Poison Emperor Mithridates has launched his conquest of the Sunsea, sowing death and destruction in his path. The vile Romulus feeds on the chaos in the hope of freeing his dreadful master, the wolf-god Lycaon. As his final battle approaches, Kairos gathers his many allies to face his foes once and for all. Two would-be pantheons will now clash to determine which of them will inherit the Olympians' throne. At the apex of the world, there is only enough space for one.

For 17-year-old actress Kelley Winslow, faeries are just something from childhood stories. Then she meets Sonny Flannery, whose steel-gray eyes mask an equally steely determination to protect her. Sonny guards the Samhain Gate, which connects the mortal realm with the Faerie's enchanted, dangerous Otherworld. Usually kept shut by order of icy King Auberon, the Gate stands open but once a year.

All I wanted to do was take a break from college to check out LegendFest, some good ol' cosplay, and maybe find a lady to hit it off with. My life took a new direction, though, when I found out myths like Red Riding Hood are real, and they’re in an ongoing war against evil to save us all. More than that, they are being hunted, mistaken as humanity's enemy. They need a mortal to serve as their protector, someone to keep them out of harm's way while leading the battle against the likes of the Big Bad Wolf, Baba Yaga, and other evil legends. Now, I am that protector.

Rick Yancey won the Michael L. Printz Award for the stunning first entry in his Monstrumologist saga. In the series’ third entry, Will Henry is left behind as Dr. Warthrop and his eager new assistant Arkwright embark on a quest to find the “Holy Grail of Monstrumology.” But when Arkwright returns with news of the doctor’s demise, Will sets off on his own quest, to the Isle of Blood, to determine the truth.

The city sleeps. Selene DiSilva walks her dog along the banks of the Hudson. She is alone - just the way she likes it. She doesn't believe in friends, and she doesn't speak to her family. Most of them are simply too dangerous. In the predawn calm, Selene finds the body of a young woman washed ashore, gruesomely mutilated and wreathed in laurel. Her ancient rage returns. And so does the memory of a promise she made long ago - when her name was Artemis.

Feyland is the most immersive sim-game ever designed, and Jennet Carter is the first to play the prototype. But she doesn't suspect the virtual world is close enough to touch - or that she'll be battling for her life against the Dark Queen of the faeries. Tam Linn is the perfect hero - in-game. Too bad the rest of his life is seriously flawed. The last thing he needs is rich-girl Jennet prying into his secrets, insisting he's the only one who can help her.

Much has changed since autumn when Kelley Winslow learned she was a Faerie princess, fell in love with changeling guard Sonny Flannery, and saved New York City from a rampaging Faerie war band. Sonny has been relegated by Kelley's father, King Auberon, to the Faerie Realm, where he's hunting down the remaining deadly warriors with blood magick - his own blood. Kelley is stuck in New York, rehearsing her lines for Romeo and Juliet and missing Sonny more with every stage kiss.

So, it turns out Titan power is pretty awesome. Only I can’t control my new gift and that’s not only embarrassing but also dangerous. And I’m sure our new professor is one of the two demons I accidentally let loose in Olympus. Icarus says we should lay low for a while but every time Professor Neos flashed me those red eyes I want to challenge him. And when students start collapsing to the ground with their souls stolen, I don’t have a choice but to act.

When Nicole Cassidy moved to a new town, she discovered that she was a witch descended from gods. But that was nothing compared to learning that it was up to her and four others with mysterious elemental powers to help save the world from the Titans, who would soon return to Earth. Her relationship with Blake - the fire Elemental - is finally heating up. But she must remain focused, because Typhon, one of the deadliest creatures in history, has escaped from the weakening prison world. Only one object can destroy him - the head of Medusa herself.

Summer skill camps provide opportunities for the elite to train with the best. And by longstanding tradition, for teens of the In-between to evaluate the compatibility of their peers. Glint Starmark's reputation as a matchmaker has been holding true for millennia. At 17, Mikoto Reaver is the youngest headman in Wardenclave's history. He's had very little time to adjust to his new role before their close-knit community opens its doors to children of pedigree, the specialists who will mentor them, an allotment of battlers, and a celebrity or two.

All Dahlia wanted was her freedom. But first, she needed to buy out of her promised bonding - a promise that was made for her before she was even born. Almost a century of trying had taken its toll, and she did some things she isn’t proud of. She lost parts of herself along the way and flirted with the darkness inside her...and it flirted back. Everything in her life systematically blew up in her face one piece at a time. Blaming it all on the beautiful, egotistical vampire who showed up in her life would be easy, but it started long before he arrived.