New Releases August 4-10 and Reader's Choice C*ntest

It's that time again...new releases in speculative fiction, and a Reader's Choice giveaway. What else could you want on a Monday morning? It's a pretty big list again this week, too!

A quick housekeeping note. I'll be posting an interview with author Lexi George tomorrow with a giveaway of her new novel, Demon Hunting in the Deep South. And then the rest of the week, my plan is to post several times a day with a photo or some nonsense from Authors After Dark. I'll be driving to New Orleans on Tuesday! I'll be doing giveaways from AAD as well, so be alert. And if I'm slow in responding to comments, bear with me. I figured out how to post from my iPhone but not how to comment. Sigh.

Okay, on to this week's releases...

Desire After Dark (Lords of Pleasure #2), by Jo Carlisle (August 7, NAL)
Excess has long been the name of the game for vampire brothers Aldric, Soren, and Luc Fontaine. Now, one of them will leave behind La Petite Mort — New Orleans’ hottest fantasy resort for uninhibited adults — and discover an undeniable desire of his own. With his brothers Aldric and Soren under fire from all sides, Luc Fontaine should have stayed at La Petite Mort to take care of business. But the chance to get away was just too tempting — and what begins as a pleasant afternoon ride becomes a life-and-death battle with a savage werewolf.

Dream Lake (Friday Harbor #3), by Lisa Kleypas (August 7, St. Martin’s Griffin)
Dream Lake takes readers once again to the exquisite setting of Friday Harbor, and tells the story of Zoe Hoffman, an innkeeper who has all but given up on love. She’s a gentle, romantic soul, but has been so hurt in the past that she dare not trust her heart with anyone. Especially not Alex Nolan. Alex is the most haunted of all the Nolan brothers. He drinks to keep his demons at bay and not only has he given up on love, he has never, ever believed in it. Zoe and Alex are oil and water, fire and ice, sunshine and shadow.

Eternal Beast (Mark of the Vampire #4), by Laura Wright (August 7, Signet)
Ever since his abduction by the Eternal Order of Vampires, Gray Donohue has finally found his true calling: vengeance. He will stop at nothing to bring his fellow Impure vampires the freedom they deserve. Now if he could just release his primal need for the beautiful vampire who saved his life, and rules his thoughts and desires. After nearly killing the senator she was assigned to protect, Dillon is now in mortal danger.

Heart Secret, by Robin D. Owens (August 7, Berkley)
On the faraway planet Celta, there are some things you can never tell — until someone discovers your Heart Secret. When a virulent disease killed the woman he loved and her baby, Garrett Primross was left alive, a reluctant survivor. Now, as a private eye, he strives to banish the memories of his past and rebuild his life. But the Healers of Celta have something else in mind.

Hearts of Darkness (Deadglass #1), by Kira Brady (August 7, Zebra)
In the first of a dazzling new romantic trilogy, one woman’s courageous search plunges her into a millennia-old supernatural war—and an irresistible passion. Nurse Kayla Friday has dedicated her life to science and reason. But for her, Seattle is a place of eerie loss and fragmented, frightening memories. And now the only clue to her sister’s murder reveals a secret battle between two ancient mythologies, and puts Kayla in the sights of lethally-sexy werewolf mercenary Hart.

Master of Darkness (Mageverse #9), by Angela Knight (August 7, Berkley)
In the final Mageverse book, two werewolves must save humanity from a madman, despite their mutual distrust—and growing passion. Miranda Drake is the daughter of Warlock a werewolf sorcerer and sworn enemy of King Arthur. William Justice was born to a long line of cops and thinks protecting Miranda is his chance to redeem himself for not being able to stop Warlock’s manipulation of the werewolves into war.

Stygian’s Honor (Breeds #27), by Lora Leigh (August 7, Berkley)
Window Rock, Arizona, is the last known location of Honor Roberts, who vanished when she was just thirteen. It was her only sanctuary from the Breed research that would surely have ended in her death—one such insidious experiment should, indeed, have killed her. That she lived is both a miracle—and a great mystery.

Time Untime (Dark-Hunter #22), by Sherrilyn Kenyon (August 7, St. Martin’s Press)
Kateri Avani has been plagued her entire life with dreams she doesn’t understand. Images of places she’s never been and of a man she’s never seen. Her quest for answers has driven her to Las Vegas where she hopes to finally silence the demons in her mind.

Wilder (The Chosen Ones #5), by Christina Dodd (August 7, Signet)
As a young man, Aleksandr Wilder abandoned his duty—and for that lapse, he was tortured, tormented ... and transformed. Now he prowls the tunnels beneath the city, fighting on the frontline against the forces of hell, never daring to dream that he can live as a man again.

Nevermore: The Final Maximum Ride Adventure (Maximum Ride #8), by James Patterson (August 6, Little, Brown and Company)
Are you ready for the final chapter? Are you ready for the ultimate flight? Because this is one last chance for Max, Fang, Angel, Iggy, Nudge and Gazzy before it all ends. One last incredible, explosive adventure with an astonishing ending that no one could have seen coming. Young Adult.

A Wolf at the Door (Jesse James Dawson #3), by K.A. Stewart (August 7, ROC)
Jesse James Dawson was once an ordinary man until he discovered that demons were real, and fighting them meant putting his own soul on the line. His new case is a beauty: Gretchen Keene, a Hollywood starlet who’s become an unwitting catalyst in an all-out demon war. It’s not her soul Jesse needs to protect, but the two-hundred-and-seventy-six others she’s carting around—all the souls sold to spend just one night with the blonde bombshell. That’s a lot of baggage, although it might explain her meteoric rise to fame. And it’s all up for grabs by the demon world.

Biting Cold (Chicagoland Vampires #6), by Chloe Neill (August 7, NAL)
Turned into a vampire against her will, twenty-eight-year-old Merit found her way into the dark circle of Chicago’s vampire underground, where she learned there was more to supernaturals than met the eye—and more supernaturals than the public ever imagined. And not all the secrets she learned were for sharing—among humans or inhumans.

Blood and Silver (Deacon Chalk: Occult Bounty-Hunter #2), by James R. Tuck (August 7, Kensington)
Deacon Chalk normally has no trouble telling innocent victims from real monsters. So protecting an abused pregnant were-dog is a no-brainer...until a vicious lycanthrope leader and his brotherhood target Deacon, other shape-shifters, and any humans in their way. Suddenly, Deacon is outnumbered, outgunned, and unsure who — or what — to trust. The only edge he has left is a weapon hungry for his soul and his most savage impulses. And using it will exact a price even this hell-raising hunter fears to pay.

Blood Bath and Beyond (An Immortality Bites Mystery #1), byMichelle Rowen (August 7, Signet)
Sarah Dearly is adjusting to life as a fledgling vampire, satisfying her cravings at vampire-friendly blood banks. But when her fiancé Thierry takes a job with the Ring —the secret council in charge of keeping vampires in line — Sarah’s about to get more than a taste of danger. Being engaged to a centuries-old master vampire can be challenging—especially when he takes a job with the Ring. Thierry’s in for fifty years of nonstop travel and deadly risk. It’s enough to make any woman reconsider the wedding. Any woman except Sarah, that is.

Blood Fever (The Watchers #3), by Veronica Wolff (August 7, NAL)

It’s the start of the fall semester, and a new crop of Acari and Trainees have descended on the Isle of Night. Watcher training has intensified, and Drew has a new roommate named Mei-Ling. But Mei-Ling harbors a dangerous secret that drove the vampires to abduct her against her will. Drew knows she shouldn’t get involved, but she can’t seem to leave her roommate to fend for herself.

Dying for You, by MaryJanice Davidson (August 7, Berkley)
Collected in this anthology of death-defying passion are four of MaryJanice Davidson’s wildest novellas of paranormal romance, featuring an amorous ghost, a witch and witch-hunter, a love-struck psychic, and a vampire and a werewolf.

Enchanting Lily, by Anjali Banerjee (August 7, Berkley)

Into the quaint town of Fairport on Shelter Island comes Lily Byrne, a young widow who is not so much running from the old but rather edging toward something new and indefinable. Here in the peaceful Pacific Northwest, newly engaged in her vintage clothing boutique, she hides from the world. But Lily knows that solitude can’t sustain her forever. Somehow, somewhere, something’s got to give. It does, with the unexpected arrival of an exuberant little cat.

Girl of Nightmares (Anna #2), by Kendare Blake (August 7, Tor)
It’s been months since the ghost of Anna Korlov opened a door to Hell in her basement and disappeared into it, but ghost-hunter Cas Lowood can’t move on. His friends remind him that Anna sacrificed herself so that Cas could live—not walk around half dead. He knows they’re right, but in Cas’s eyes, no living girl he meets can compare to the dead girl he fell in love with. Now he’s seeing Anna everywhere: sometimes when he’s asleep and sometimes in waking nightmares. But something is very wrong. These aren’t just daydreams.

In the House of the Wicked (Remy Chandler #5), by Thomas E. Sniegoski (August 7, Roc)

PI Remy Chandler has always been able to rely on his angelic powers when the situation called for it. But now his human and angelic natures are sharing the same space, and Remy can feel himself becoming more and more volatile. Then Ashlie Berg, a young woman who is like a daughter to him, vanishes without a trace. A once-formidable sorcerer has taken her. The man wants vengeance against those he believes wronged him—and Remy will be the instrument of his wrath—or Ashlie will most certainly die.

Precinct 13, by Tate Hallaway (August 7, Berkley Trade)
Recent college grad Alex Conner is thrilled to have landed a job as the Hughes County coroner/medical examiner in Pierre, South Dakota. But when her first day on the job ends with a missing corpse, Alex starts to wonder if she would have been better off collecting unemployment...When the cops made some cryptic comments about being careful with the body they brought in, Alex just thought the boys in blue were messing with her. That is, until something freaky happens that no amount of med school could have prepared her for. By the time Alex gets herself together, the body has disappeared and the other residents of the morgue start talking her ear off.

Rivals and Retribution (13 to Life #5), by Shannon Delany (August 7, St. Martin’s Griffin)
Pietr and Jessie will find themselves caught in a pack war with a new breed of werewolves. Jessie Gillmansen is in trouble again and she’s in for the fight of her life—and Pietr’s. With Marlaena’s dangerous wolf pack putting more pressure on the Rusakova family, change is inevitable and when it comes, it brings a heavy price that forces Alexi into action to save his youngest brother’s heart, head and life.

Seawitch (Greywalker #7), by Kat Richardson (August 7, Roc)

A quarter century ago, the Seawitch cruised away from her dock and disappeared with everyone on board. Now, the boat has mysteriously returned to her old berth in Seattle and the insurance company has hired Harper to find out what happened.

Two Weeks’ Notice (Revivalist #2), by Rachel Caine (August 7, Roc)
After dying and being revived with the experimental drug Returne, Bryn Davis is theoretically free to live her unlife—with regular doses to keep her going. But Bryn knows that the government has every intention of keeping a tight lid on Pharmadene’s life-altering discovery, no matter the cost. And when some of the members of a support group for Returne addicts suddenly disappear, Bryn begins to wonder if the government is methodically removing a threat to their security, or if some unknown enemy has decided to run the zombies into the ground.

Wake (Waterson #1), by Amanda Hocking (August 7, St. Martin’s Griffin)
Gemma seems to have it all—she’s carefree, pretty, and falling in love with Alex, the boy next door. He’s always been just a friend, but this summer they’ve taken their relationship to the next level, and now there’s no going back. Then one night, Gemma’s ordinary life changes forever. She’s taking a late night swim under the stars when she finds Penn, Lexi and Thea partying on the cove. They invite her to join them, and the next morning she wakes up on the beach feeling groggy and sick, knowing something is different.

Extreme Zombies, edited by Paula Guran (August 1, Prime Books)
It’s too late, the living dead have already taken over the world. Your brains have been devoured. Nothing is left but spasms of ravenous need—an obscene hunger for even more zombie fiction. This collection includes pieces by Jesse Bullington, Nancy A. Collins, Dennis Etchison, Cody Goodfellow, Brian Hodge, Nina Kiriki Hoffman, Harper Hull, Brian Keene, Nancy Kilpatrick, Joe R. Lansdale, Robin D. Laws, Edward Lee, Murray Leeder, George RR Martin, Elizabeth Massie, Yvonne Navarro, David Moody, David J. Schow, John Shirley, Thomas Roche, Norman Partridge, David A. Riley, Monica Valentinelli, Tim Waggoner, and David Wellington.

A Witch Before Dying (A Wishcraft Mystery #2), by Heather Blake (August 7, Signet)
When Darcy is hired by Elodie Keaton to clean up her missing mother’s disorderly home, the Wishcrafter is certainly up for the task in his supernatural mystery. After all, the motto of her Aunt Ve’s personal concierge service As You Wish is “No Job Impossible.” But beneath the piles of old newspapers and knickknacks, Darcy discovers something much more disturbing: Patrice Keaton’s body.

Blood Ninja III: The Betrayal of the Living, by Nick Lake (August 7, Simon and Schuster)
The fate of feudal Japan hangs in the balance in this conclusion to the trilogy. Taro is at a crossroads: He has vanquished Lord Oda for good, but with no land and no title, he has no hope of marrying Hana, the daughter of adaimyo. So when Taro receives news of a murderous dragon and the large reward for killing it, he and his friends find themselves on a dangerous quest to slay the beast.

Libriomancer (Magic Ex Libris #1), by Jim C. Hines (August 7, DAW)
Isaac Vainio is a Libriomancer, a member of the secret organization founded five centuries ago by Johannes Gutenberg. Libriomancers are gifted with the ability to magically “reach” into books and draw forth objects. When Isaac is attacked by vampires that “leaked ”from the pages of books into our world, he barely manages to escape. To his horror he discovers that vampires have been attacking other magic-users as well, and Gutenberg has been kidnapped.

My Favorite Fangs: The Story of the Von Trapp Family Vampires, by Alan Goldsher (August 7, St. Martin’s Griffin)
Maria von Trapp is sweet, innocent, and can sing like an angel. Oh, and she’s also a bloodthirsty vampire. When Maria is kicked out of the Abbey where she’s been residing for the past thousand or so years, she lands a job caretaking the family von Trapp, a rowdy clan in need of some serious discipline, or vampirification. After Maria turns the von Trapp children into children of the night and marries the von Trapp patriarch, the family seems destined for eternal (really, really eternal) bliss.

The Constantine Affliction, by T. Aaron Payton (August 7, Night Shade Books)
In 1864 London is a city in transition. The Constantine Affliction—a strange malady that kills some of its victims and physically transforms others into the opposite sex—has spread scandal and upheaval throughout society. Scientific marvels and disasters, such as clockwork courtesans, the alchemical fires of Whitechapel, electric carriages, and acidic monsters lurking in the Thames, have forever altered the face of the city.

Glitch (Glitch #1), by Heather Anastasiu (August 7, St. Martin’s)
In the Community, there is no more pain or war. Implanted computer chips have wiped humanity clean of destructive emotions, and thoughts are replaced by a feed from the Link network. When Zoe starts to malfunction (or “glitch”), she suddenly begins having her own thoughts, feelings, and identity. Any anomalies must be immediately reported and repaired, but Zoe has a secret so dark it will mean certain deactivation if she is caught: her glitches have given her uncontrollable telekinetic powers.

Love on the Run (Nola O’Grady #4), by Katherine Kerr (August 7, DAW)
Nola O’Grady is sick and tired of psychic squid-images following her everywhere, waving their tentacles and generally making nuisances of themselves. She and her partner, Ari Nathan, have a dangerous job on their hands, hunting down two criminals who have escaped into another level of the multiverse, the San Francisco of Terra Six. Terrorists have turned parts of that city into a deathtrap—religious fanatics, yes, but from what religion? Nola suspects that the Peacock Angel Chaos cult lies behind the bombings and mass murders. As she gathers evidence, she finds herself face-to-face with part of her own personal past that she’d prefer to bury forever. And by the way, just who is it that keeps trying to kill her?

Queen of Wands (Special Circumstances #2), by John Ringo (August 7, Baen)
Soccer mom and demon fighter Barbara Everette has a problem. It seems Janea, Barbara’s assistant and The Foundation for Love and Universal Faith’s best operative, has been thrown into a coma by some very nasty magic she’s stirred up. Barbara must track down the perpetrators and break the spell or Janea’s soul will be forever lost on the astral plane. Oh, and if she can’t break the spell, zombies will destroy all mankind.

When Diplomacy Fails (Freehold: Ripple Creek #3), by Michael Z. Williamson (August 7, Baen)
Alex Marlow and Ripple Creek Security’s best personal security detail reallydon’t like their principal, World Bureau Minister Joy Herman Highland—a highly-placed bureaucrat with aspirations to elected office. Even worse, Highland’s assistant wants to publicize every movement and action for his boss’s pending campaign, which is anathema to good security. With a person of this status, it’s not a case of someone wanting her dead. The only question is how many people want her dead, and what are they bringing to the fight?

King of Thorns (The Broken Empire #2), by Mark Lawrence (August 7, Ace)
The Broken Empire burns with the fires of a hundred battles as lords and petty kings battle for the all-throne. The long road to avenge the slaughter of his mother and brother has shown Prince Honorous Jorg Ancrath the hidden hands behind this endless war. He saw the game and vowed to sweep the board. First, though, he must gather his own pieces, learn the rules of play, and discover how to break them.

Rift (Nightshade Prequel), by Andrea Cremer (August 7, Philomel)
Sixteen-year-old Ember Morrow is promised to a group called Conatus after one of their healers saves her mother’s life. Once she arrives, Ember finds joy in wielding swords, learning magic, and fighting the encroaching darkness loose in the world. She also finds herself falling in love with her mentor, the dashing, brooding, and powerful Barrow Hess. Young Adult.

Shadowlands, by Violette Malan (August 7, DAW)
The war in the Land of the Faerie has finally ended. Prince Cassandra dispatches Stormwolf, formerly a Hound but cured by his prince’s magic and restored to the Rider he once was, to the Shadowlands to call home the People who remain refugees there. But Stormwolf finds the Hounds of the Wild now prey upon the souls of humans. Together with Valory Martin, a mortal psychic, Stormwolf must find the magic needed to defeat the Hunt.

The Fate of Dwarves, by Markus Heitz (August 7, Orbit)
There has been no word from the courageous warrior Tungdil since the bitter struggle that took place at the Black Abyss. Dragons, magicians, and the cruel älfar have advanced far into the kingdom Girdlegard, ruthlessly seizing vast areas of land. It seems that the dwarves are facing their next battle with very little hope of survival.

The Grass King’s Concubine, by Kari Sperring (August 7, DAW)
When a wealthy young woman, obsessed with a childhood vision of a magical Shining Palace, sets out with her true love to search for a legendary land, she discovers the devastated WorldBelow—the realm of the Grass King—and the terrifying Cadre, who take her prisoner, and demand she either restore the king’s concubine, or replace her.

Throne of Glass (Throne of Glass #1), by Sarah J. Maas (August 7, Bloomsbury)
After serving out a year of hard labor in the salt mines of Endovier for her crimes, 18-year-old assassin Celaena Sardothien is dragged before the Crown Prince. Prince Dorian offers her freedom on one condition: she must act as his champion in a competition to find a new royal assassin. Young Adult.

Holy bookmobile, Batman. That was a pile of them. Which one do you most want to read? Tell me and you can win it. You know the routine: one entry for a comment, plus extra entries for a blog follow, a Twitter follow, and a Tweet or Retweet. Now...go, already!