Every member of the fae royal guard has a unique power and mine is skill with the blade. So when my queen hears of a new plot against the crown, I'm her top choice to track down the traitor. Only problem is, our biggest suspect is Lugh, a powerful fae who calls himself the king of the secretive House of Wraiths. But as I grow closer to finding the truth deep within the Edinburgh streets, a strange and dangerous magic draws me to Lugh. When his skin touches mine, I feel alive. And it makes one thing achingly clear. Lugh might be plotting to destroy my court. But he might also be my mate. The one an old prophecy claims I'm destined to kill.

She was cursed at birth to marry him. He is cursed to never know love. Rhoslyn Gautier refuses to accept her fate. All her life she believed she was nothing more than a poor merchant’s daughter from Factory Row. Not an elven princess in an arranged marriage. But when thrown to the wolves as punishment after challenging her queen, she becomes trapped with Fentienne Beausoleil, an aristocrat in an enchanted chateau who is half-monster by daylight and full monster by moonlight. An ugly, tormented man from an enemy realm she was bound to in faerie blood from her first breath. And there is no escape. If she breaks their bonds, she will die. If she falls in love with him, she will die. Rhoslyn believes the chateau will be her tomb. Then a mysterious man appears in her dreams with claims that he, too, is a prisoner. A wickedly beautiful man with a sharp mind and even sharper heart who captures hers completely. Magic seals away his identity. Yet Rhoslyn suspects that appearances are not all what they seem. But to know for certain, she would need to revolutionize more than a realm on the brink of civil war. And trigger a curse that will claim her life. OF THORNS AND CURSES is a new adult elven fantasy spin on the romantic tale of Beauty and the Beast, blending faerie magic and pagan ritual with a French Revolution inspired setting. Guaranteed to please readers who love angsty, enemies-to-lovers villain redemption fated romances, twisted fairy tales, and strong found family themes. STANDALONE in a connected series / shared world. Books can be read in any order. Guaranteed happily ever after

In the underground Fae realm, only the strongest and most ruthless have power—but a young human woman forced into a life of servitude is about to change everything. Kenna Heron is best known in her village for being a little wild—some say half feral—but she’ll need every ounce of that ferocity to survive captivity in the cruel Fae court. Trapped as a servant in the faeries’ underground kingdom of Mistei, Kenna must help her new mistress undertake six deadly trials, one for each branch of magic: Fire, Earth, Light, Void, Illusion, and Blood. If she succeeds, her mistress will gain immortality and become the heir to Earth House. If she doesn’t, the punishment is death—for both mistress and servant. With no ally but a sentient dagger of mysterious origins, Kenna must face monsters, magic, and grueling physical tests. But worse dangers wait underground, and soon Kenna gets caught up in a secret rebellion against the inventively sadistic faerie king. When her feelings for the rebellion’s leader turn passionate, Kenna must decide if she’s willing to risk her life for a better world and a chance at happiness. Surviving the trials and overthrowing a tyrant king will take cunning, courage, and an iron will... but even that may not be enough.

My normal life as a fae royal guard doesn't feel so normal anymore. It hasn't since I met my mate, the cocky, seductive King of the Court of Wraiths.My search for a way to undo the prophecy has come up empty. I'm still as destined as ever to kill Lugh one day. That's why I've kept my distance.Until now. He needs my help. And I can't turn him down. A new threat looms in the Edinburgh streets. If we don't stop it, my mate-murdering prophecy will be the least of our worries.Lugh could lose his very soul. And if that ever happens, there will be nothing to stop him from unleashing the nightmare wraiths from the darkest part of Faerie. The mortal realm will never survive.

Too often seen as a ghost from the past, nationalism has resurfaced as a major factor in European politics and culture. A powerful commitment to national autonomy has marked Scottish writing throughout the twentieth century. How has the emergence of new voices from feminist, gay and lesbian critics transformed that commitment? How critical and pluralistic can the new nationalisms be? This collection serves notice that the tradition is being read in new and disruptive ways. Five women and four men examine the relationship between gender and nationality, how male and female authors portray women, the treatment of sexuality in Scottish writing, the construction of Scottish masculinity and its relation to class and homophobia. Covering modern fiction and theatre, poetry, film and television, it is a provocative reassessment of the gender and culture of a 'stateless nation'.

This book is intended for medical and mental health clinicians faced with the challenge of evaluating adolescents and adults in the legal context who may have a fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD). Luminaries in their respective fields, the contributors to this book offer a range of expertise and perspectives regarding the forensic investigation of FASD: medical, psychological, psychiatric, criminal defense, prosecution, and the judiciary. The primary goal of the book is to provide medical and mental health clinicians with practical procedures that can be used in a variety of forensic and clinical settings. It includes protocols that have been used successfully in legal matters ranging from rights waiver and competency to capital murder and sexual offending. It not only provides detailed guidelines for interviewing birth mothers about the delicate topic of substance use during pregnancy but also introduces a methodology that can be used in the absence of exposure confirmation to arrive at a sound diagnostic conclusion through the process of differential diagnosis. Taken as a whole, the methodological procedures described by the contributors to the book serve as ‘best practices’ for comprehensive forensic mental health evaluation of potential FASD in juveniles and adult defendants as well as in victims.