"Patrick Millikin...as if to prove his witty claim that 'sunshine is the new noir, ' offers one superb specimen, 'Whiteout on Van Buren, ' in which author] Don Winslow makes skillful use of a city street at high noon to provide the perfect metaphor for life and death."--New York Times Book Review Brand-new stories by: Diana Gabaldon, Lee Child, James Sallis, Luis Alberto Urrea, Jon Talton, Megan Abbott, Charles Kelly, Robert Anglen, Patrick Millikin, Laura Tohe, Kurt Reichenbaugh, Gary Phillips, David Corbett, Don Winslow, Dogo Barry Graham, and Stella Pope Duarte. Patrick Millikin is a bookseller at the Poisoned Pen Bookstore in Scottsdale. As a freelance writer, his articles, interviews, and reviews have appeared in Publishers Weekly, Firsts Magazine, Paradoxa, Yourflesh Quarterly, and other publications. Millikin currently lives in central Phoenix.

An impossible journey. A spoiled rich kid. It's a recipe for disaster. Hale Firena has everything--looks, money, power, more girls than he knows what to do with. But in one night everything changes, as a bloody coup turns Hale into a penniless refugee on the run for his life. Hale's not cut out for real life--the thought of holding down a real job is almost more horrible than the pirates and bandits chasing him. Is Hale's swagger enough to see him to safety, or has his luck truly run out? Read the story of Hale Firena before he joined the Confectioner's Guild in this Confectioner Chronicles prequel novella.

Mulan meets Sarah J Maas in this thrilling tale filled with celestial magic, death-defying adventure, and enduring friendships. Kai is a Moonburner—a female sorceress reviled by her people and normally killed at birth. Except Kai's parents saved her by disguising her as a boy—a ruse they've kept up for almost seventeen years. But when her village is attacked, Kai’s secret is revealed and she’s sentenced to death. Thankfully, the gods aren’t done with Kai. Despite the odds stacked against her, she escapes her fate, undertaking a harrowing journey to a land where Moonburners are revered and trained as warriors. But her new home has dangers of its own—the ancient war against the male Sunburners has led the Moonburners down a dark path that could destroy all magic. And Kai, armed only with a secret from her past and a handsome but dangerous ally, may be the only one who can prevent the destruction of her people... Moonburner is Book One in the completed Moonburner Cycle, a sweeping coming-of-age fantasy series perfect for fans of Sabaa Tahir, Alison Goodman, J.C. Kang, and Elise Kova. Scroll up and one-click to read today!

A hidden legacy. A shared destiny. All Princess Rika wants is to be a moonburner like her mother, but her powers are nowhere to be found. When a fleet of dark ships appears on the horizon, Rika is convinced this is the perfect opportunity to force her magic to manifest. But the ships bring more than Rika bargained for—an invasion of soul-eating monsters intent on consuming all she holds dear. Overwhelmed and outmatched, Rika finds an unlikely ally in Vikal—a dangerous man enslaved to the monsters that killed his family and ravaged his homeland. Thrown together in a desperate attempt to evade the soul-eaters, they begin to realize they have more in common than they ever thought possible. Alone, their lands and people are doomed to fall to the encroaching darkness. But together, they have a prayer of a chance to save their worlds. And to find something more in the process. Don't miss this final book in the Moonburner Cycle! Can be read as a stand-alone novel.

Better the devil you know than the devil you don't... A deadly new enemy rules Alesia with an iron fist--and an unnatural interest in the magic of the Confectioner's Guild. Betrayed by one of their own, Wren and her few remaining allies flee Maradis to secure whatever aid they can find. But new dangers and old ghosts lurk around every corner, forcing Wren to confront truths she thought she'd buried deep long ago. Will Wren be able to piece together an alliance, and enough of her own shattered heart, to take back her home from those who hold it hostage? Or will her magic prove too tempting a morsel for her enemies to refuse... Don't miss this thrilling conclusion to the Confectioner Chronicles!

A desperate wish. A creature shrouded in myth. A perilous journey to the heart of what it means to truly live... There is no greater pain than a wish unfulfilled— a truth Elodie Mercer and Sebastian Beringer know all too well. After four long years of trying for a child, Elodie’s hopes of motherhood have all but consumed her. She’s convinced a baby will save her loveless marriage and help banish her husband’s demons. Sebastian’s suffered his own secret pain—watching Elodie married to the wrong man for all these years. So when a stranger comes to their quiet village with a fantastical tale of a mythical, wish-granting creature, Elodie latches onto the story as her salvation. Driven by the desperate desire to see their wishes fulfilled, Elodie and Sebastian embark on a dangerous quest to find the Wish-Eater, only to discover that there are things worse than a wish unfulfilled, after all. From the author of the Confectioner Chronicles comes a stand-alone fairy tale romance that explores the complexities of love and family, the true flavor of folklore, and the cost of the slow erosion of hope.

Each year, more than two million children around the world fall victim to commercial sexual exploitation. The numbers of children sexually abused for non-commercial purposes are even higher. Put simply, the growing, increasingly-organized epidemic of child exploitation demands a coordinated response. The aim of this book is to bring some fresh thinking to this complicated area of the law, and to help erase some of its counterproductive mythology. The book provides the first comprehensive, practical introduction to the history and present-day reality of child sexual exploitation, as well as to the interconnected web of domestic and transnational federal laws and law enforcement efforts launched in response thereto. It is written from the distinctive perspective of those who have spent their careers in the trenches investigating, prosecuting, and adjudicating these intricate and commonly emotional cases. Relying on real-world examples, the authors offer proscriptive and descriptive practical advice and reform proposals aimed at those involved at all levels in this difficult area. Serving as a “first-line” resource for clear, practical thinking on the range of complex, and often misunderstood, investigative, prosecutorial, and rehabilitative issues surrounding child exploitation cases, this work is a must-have for anyone with interest in the protection of children from sexual exploitation and trafficking.

These enemies are not flesh and bone. How can they fight them? Kai, the newly-crowned queen of Miina, finds her reign threatened by a plague of natural disasters that leave death and destruction in their wake. Are the gods truly angry at the peace between the moon and sunburners, or is something more sinister to blame? Kai's throne and her very life may be forfeit unless she can appease the gods' anger and her peoples' superstitions. Determined to find a solution, Kai and the Sunburner Prince Hiro embark on an extraordinary and dangerous journey to discover the true cause of the plagues. What they find is an ancient enemy determined to plunge their world into eternal darkness — and one desperate chance to save it. Sunburner, Book 2 in the Moonburner Cycle, is a young adult fantasy will appeal to fans of Sabaa Tahir, Sarah J. Maas, and Leigh Bardugo.