Alternative cover edition of ASIN B00XS06OS6 Every town has its history and skeletons, but Silent Bend, Mississippi’s are darker than most. Ruled from the shadows by the House—the immortal Born and their aging, enslaved Bitten—everyone knows not to go out after dark and that the police will never look into crimes involving blood. Alivia Ryan didn’t know the man who claims to be her father through a will even existed until she inherits the Conrath plantation. Instead of the sleepy house she expects, she finds a mansion and a staff who look at her with fear in their eyes. Ian Ward tried to kill Alivia the first time they met, and then insisted he train her to defend herself against the House, who he claims will try to manipulate and take her in for their own political reasons. And the growing attraction between them will threaten their lives—Ian is a sworn enemy of the House. In Silent Bend, people disappear, the threat of a demented King and the legend of his resurrecting Queen hang over everyone’s heads, and proving loyalty means far more than blood. You’d better watch who you trust in this town…

The town of Silent Bend is about to explode into a war. Alivia swore to take the House from Jasmine after what she did, but it won’t happen without retaliation. The whole town is caught in the crosshairs of their manipulation and the body count is climbing. The explanation for Ian’s change is one he just can’t accept. To Alivia, it should fix all their problems, but Ian has become everything he hates most. And Liv accepting her fate and position will test their relationship to the breaking point. The threat of the King’s arrival looms just weeks away, and Alivia knows he will kill her as soon as he comes. She’ll need supporters at her side—immortal ones. And that means turning old enemies into loyal subjects…

Alivia’s father left her a letter before he died, begging her to stay away from the King and the Royals. But it was a plea made in vain. She never could have run from this life, not when she might be Cyrus’ resurrected queen. The King has arrived in Silent Bend and with him, he brought the end to Alivia’s mortal life. Uncontrollable bloodlust and an ever-shifting world rule her nights now. These twisted politics are deadly enough, but now her heart is the newest battleground. There’s no hiding from the one who hates everything she was born to, a spy who embraces everything she’s become, and a King who vies for someone she may soon remember. The games have begun. The House of Conrath is growing. Blood will be shed, the bodies will fall. Alliances will be tested and old enemies look like harmless children compared to the new ones rising from the shadows.

Alivia’s story continues in the next book in the HOUSE OF ROYALS series. Full description and final cover coming soon! “Even I am not sure what the truth is. Did Alivia commit treason in the dark? Did she build an army behind the veil of the poor, fatherless child? Or has she been framed by someone so clever that we have never yet seen an enemy so invisible?” -King Cyrus

Alivia has returned to Silent Bend, and the House of Conrath is stronger than it has been in centuries. She knows exactly who she is as a leader, and those that surround her are loyal—family willing to die for one another. She will need each and every one of them, because an army has been building in the dark, biding its time, ready to break out into civil war. The tension between the Born and the Bitten could crumble the entire monarchy. It’s a revolution that may leave no survivors. With an ancient key in hand, Alivia is about to unlock the final secrets to the Conrath legacy, and discover the answers to every question she’s had from the very beginning. The truth isn’t always what it seems…

It’s easy to blend in and disappear on the streets of Boston. Elle Ward has finally taken control of her own destiny—away from the dark shadow of her family’s reputation. Putting her botany and chemistry degree to work, she’s the successful owner of her own apothecary. But she lives by a secret identity. Curing innocent Bitten in the basement, she flies under the radar, risking her life, and risking punishment from King Cyrus. But being raised in this world means she can never truly get away from the Houses and their politics. She lives under the rule of the House of Allaway, and Charles is out to avenge the brutal murder of his twin: a sister for a sister. Elle has fought tooth and nail to claim her own life, and she’s not about to let it be ripped away. But her brother demands a Born move in to protect her, someone who knows how the enemy thinks. Elle has live in a House with Lexington Dawes before, but she’s no longer a fragile girl, and he’s not the bitter, sarcastic man she remembers… The House of Royals world continues with Garden of Thorns.

Elle has survived twenty-three years as a human surrounded by vampires, but her mortality has never been a disadvantage until now. Trapped in a basement, she’s waited to make her escape and get home to Boston. There will be no forgiveness for what Charles Allaway has done, this is the end of his House, and Ian and the House of Martials won’t rest until he’s dead. With a well-practiced poker face, Elle just wants to pretend nothing has happened, but Lexington sees the truth: she’s not okay and she’s still in danger. There is a Hunter from Court in town, and he’s taking out the Bitten and anyone tied to them…especially whoever has been curing them…

The King has arrived in Boston. Lexington confessed to a crime he didn’t commit to save Elle’s life. Now she’s summoned the one and only person who can spare him, but it comes at a dangerous confessing every one of her secrets to the King. That she is the one who has been curing the Bitten, and who the true father of her unborn child is. Trying to do good comes with unforeseen consequences—a cured Bitten, one who should have just walked away and tried to forget, wants revenge. The cycle must stop, and the only way to do it is to expose all vampires to the world. The decree has been made, the fate of Charles Allaway is sealed; he will die. But first they have to find him. No more hiding, Elle is ready to take her fate, and that of her child, into her own hands…