Showing results by author "C. S. Johnson" in All Categories

Kallie once looked forward to the Spring Fling, the one dance allowed at Cuttingham City High School. It was too easy to dream of Blake Turner as her perfect date.... But now, thanks to her deal with Abuela-Blanca, they’re spending the weekend in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, attending the “retirement gala” for Zina “ZZ” Morozova--one of the last and youngest inductions to the KGB.

Sixteen-year-old Hamilton Dinger leads a charmed life. He's got the grades for the top of the class, the abilities of a star athlete and Tetris player, and the charisma to get away with anything. Everything seems to be going along perfectly, including his plans to ask out Gwen Kessler, as he enters into tenth grade at Apollo Central High School.

Could you live a perfect life, knowing someone else took on all your pain and despair? Skyla has always lived a perfect, happy life - just like everyone in her community. Even if there are brief moments where she is certain she has experienced pain and regret, those moments are brief and quickly forgotten. But when Aiden, Skyla’s next-door neighbor, reveals the truth of the community and their perfect lives, Skyla is faced with an unexpected choice regarding her future. Will her actions lead her community to a better life? Or will she doom them all?

Benedict Svoboda knows what it means to experience loss. After the death of his mother, the rejection of his father, and the loss of his mentor, Ben is determined all the more to protect those in his care—and none more so than his beloved wife, Marguerite. However, Marguerite is no stranger to espionage. Having worked with Lady Penelope Ollerton-Wellesley and the Order of the Crystal Daggers for many years, Marguerite is able—and perhaps too eager—to work with Ben on his various missions, despite his objections.

After a long, adventurous and exhausting spring break, Kallie's almost ready to go back to school just so she can forget about her mother, trouble with Azure, and especially everything that happened with Zeus. But trouble never takes a break, especially when Kallie's certain AB's enemy is targeting her friends and turning them into Alterants—and when Amory reaches out to Fatgirl over her website, Kallie fears the worst. But her worst fears are nothing compared to Amory's.

Kallie's come a long way from accidentally stuffing her face full of Abuela-Blancha's radioactive doughnuts. Now, Kallie's actually almost confident she can handle anything—even if it means standing up to her best frenemy, especially when Amory declares no one in their group of friends will have a date for the Spring Fling. Too bad Kallie's set to miss it anyway, since AB needs to go to Fort Lauderdale to confront ZZ over who gave her AB's stolen doughnut recipe.

Brixton Flew works as a professor of wielder instruction at Rembrandt Academy, hoping to erase the regrets of his youth along with the resulting debt. But when he comes face to face with his biggest regret—the woman who broke his heart, Adelaide Favan—Brixton soon realizes his troubles have only begun. Unable to control her magic, Adelaide knew leaving Brixton was the only way to protect him when they were younger. Now she discovers he is the key to recovering the Dragon Eyes, a legendary treasure connected to her magic and her family's disgraced legacy.

Solomon McCain has long been the sheriff around Fairmont, and even though it's a small town, there's always a bit of trouble here and there. And while he's helped put away criminals, both petty and professional, nothing prepares him for the morning of the Fairmont Pie Contest. What should have been an easy, fun-filled day is suddenly filled with accusations of murder, cheating, assault, and more—and all from individuals he'd known and worked alongside for years. Solomon knows there will be hell to pay if he authorizes a formal investigation.

Kallie—as her super-sized, super-hero self—has had a hard day, and literally the last thing she needs is to find out another Alterant is running loose. And when AB's Phi-ger goes off, she's hardly pleased. But genuine worry starts to overtake her, as this time, it's Zeus who's digested the radioactive doughnuts. If he's compromised, Zeus could easily reveal Fatgirl's true identity to the world, and what else could be his worst fear? Along with AB, Kallie races over to save him. Only to be met with the shock of her life.

There's nothing worse than a long ride in the car with AB, or so Kallie thinks as they head off to the Fairview Mountain Rehab Center to pay a visit to Trevor Darlington. But once they arrive, she finds there are some things that are indeed worse than Abuela-Blanca's kami-nazi driving—such as running into Azure, her fashion designer from Model Middle America. Only he's not Azure—or is he? There's nothing "Azure" about the pasty-faced, non-makeup-wearing man who shares Azure's face. Kallie's more than certain it's a twin thing, even as he begs her to keep his devastating secret.

Orpah Abraham has always been a woman who's had the world against her. After working hard and doing her best to appeal to all the right people, she's learned the full value of persistence and perseverance. But now that Martha Davidson—her one true rival for the coveted title of Pie Queen, and the one woman she'd never been able to win over—is dead, and her friends and family are asking questions, Orpah finds her career and reputation on the line. For her, it's time to draw a line in the sand—and cross it herself. It's time for No More Miss Nice Pie.

Garland Morris is an easygoing guy—eager to please, quick with a smile, and always interested in a good gamble. For years, he's enjoyed his job at the First Bank of Fairmont, especially since it provides him the stability he needs to be a little adventurous when it comes to hedging his bets. But when Charles Piper and Orpah Abraham, Fairview's most respected judge and one of Alabama's most prominent media figures, approach him, each asking for a "special request" regarding the bank's financial records, Morris finds himself stuck between a rock and a hard place.

Upon their return from a largely disappointing trip to Florida, Kallie and AB are both expecting a slow week. However, their expectations are quickly subverted when AB finds out there are still more radioactive doughnuts out in the city—and one's been eaten by none other than Officer Max Powers, the same man who'd helped Kallie the night of her Model Middle America audition. And when Officer Powers becomes his greatest fear—a man with nothing left to lose, wildly desperate to enact vengeance against his brother's killer—Kallie and AB have new, unpleasant questions to answer.

After a lifetime of failure and half-hearted successes, Edith Hennessey is far from content with her life—but she's still grateful to at least be alive. When her best friend and next-door neighbor, Martha Davidson, is found dead, Edith strives to think of a way to honor her passing.

The first time I fell in love with Princess Mele was when I saw her smile, and I fell in love with her the second time the moment I heard her sing.

What makes a book sexy? I’m not talking about erotica per se, but what is the difference between a book you eagerly devour and a book you slum your way through? While there are individual exceptions, the most objective difference between a good story and a downright terrible one is simple—it all comes down to the writing. It’s either good writing, and we can forgive the technical flaws a little more easily, or it’s bad writing, and bad writing is just bad. Good writing is more than just good writing. Good writing is sexy.

Known as the dark-skinned princess from the southern colonies—formerly the kingdom of Marula—Ebony is no stranger to hardship and loneliness. Forced into royal servitude after the death of her father, Ebony resolved to keep her head held high despite her sorrow—no matter how much vitriol she endured from her stepmother, Varyes, queen of Pommier. As the queen’s son, Prince Rion, helps to piece her broken heart back together with his love and kindness, Ebony begins to hope she will one day find a new home for herself.

Kitsuneko has always done her best to honor her duty. As a young fox-cat changeling, she was conscripted into slavery by King Dario and Queen Arianna of Toulacoeur to serve as the surrogate for Princess Cari, their daughter who was kidnapped 17 years ago. But when Kiro, Cari's younger brother and the heir to the throne, proclaims his love for her, Kitsuneko is torn between her duty to the kingdom and her desire for the virtuous prince. And when Kiro's kisses leave her breathless, Kitsuneko finds herself—and the kingdom—in mortal danger.

Charles Piper has been a respected judge in the small town of Fairmont, but there is little he can do to sway the courts of public opinion. When Martha Davidson's marriage fell apart, he was quick to offer her his help, and she was quick to return his kindness with his favorite chocolate pie—and that's when the town's whispers began to swirl....

Saturn. The Ringed Planet. Harbinger of ideas and wonder. The planet that gave birth to the modern era of science envisioning the myriad of multi-colored rings circling the planet, one of the reasons for the invention of the telescope, and the second largest in our solar system. These are the stories of Saturn, the great Titan. Tales of time, age, and endings.