*COMPLETE* There are whispers across the kingdoms that the Paragon, that strangely gifted person who can wield all four Skills, has been found. They're wrong, of course. No one has caught the Paragon. Allayria should know: she's it. But Allayria doesn't want to be the Paragon, and in her pursuit of freedom she finds herself enmeshed in a web of lies, caught in a group who might be even more dangerous than she could have imagined. Still, she's not the only one who has problems: bigger tides of change and danger are shifting across the world she has been assigned to protect. The Jarles, a kingdom in the east, has begun moving across its borders, and there are strange murmurings about what they have done, and where all the children they abducted have gone. Faced with responsibilities she never wanted, and a life she thought she could never have, Allayria must decide how she will help--and if she will be the Paragon at all. _____________________ WIP Cover art and written work by Azi. Highest ranking: #66 in Fantasy 2/3/2018 Hi everyone! Thanks a ton for taking the time to read Paragon. I'm so excited to share it with you, and to hear your feedback, theories, and insight. It's just me, myself, and I on this one (no beta) so if you catch any errors or inconsistencies, give me a shout--it will be much appreciated. The plan is to release a new chapter each weekend until we reach the end. - Azi Note: violence, sexual themes, and some coarse language will appear in Paragon.

When Beatrix Alcott moves to a strange town with her family, she expects an old house and a fresh start. Instead, she finds a home full of questions. The ravens gathering outside are only the beginning. The neighbors everyone trusts seem to know too much about her property, and Bea can't figure out why. As she gets closer to the truth, Bea discovers there is more to her house than anyone wants her to know. But someone is determined to keep its secrets hidden.

Laura was three years old when she was accepted into the prestigious Gates Program, a gifted youth initiative for the country's most exceptional minds. Her parents thought they were giving her the opportunity of a lifetime. In reality, they were giving her away. Behind the walls of Gates, children weren't being prepared for the future. They were being studied, tested, and transformed into something far beyond what anyone outside the program could understand. Years later, Laura discovers the truth behind Gates. What was supposed to create gifted minds became something much darker, and the Paragon will do anything to protect what's hidden inside its walls.

An aspiring knight unwittingly saves the dragon he was sworn to kill. But can he also win the dragon's heart and stop his kingdom from burning to ashes? *** It is tradition for knights to prove their worth by slaying a dragon in the Serpentine Mountains. For Laurence Montbow, an aspiring knight from a decrepit noble house, it's his only chance to save his family from losing their land, and to secure a good marriage. After a dragon hunt gone wrong, however, Laurence finds a naked elven man with amnesia instead. Knowing the guileless elf wouldn't survive on his own, especially when trapped in his enemy's land, Laurence reluctantly takes the man along and tries to help him regain his memories. This act of goodwill turns complicated as the elven man keeps worming himself further into Laurence's heart until it becomes hard to fight the attraction. But the elven man is not what he appears to be... and neither are the dragons from mount Serpentine.

He found the tablet in the east trench and put it on his desk. Now there's something in his basement that hasn't eaten in eight thousand years, and it can't take a single thing from him unless he says yes. Tobias Rooke says yes. By morning every woman on campus is looking at him. By Friday one of them is dead. And the thing in his basement is not sorry, is not jealous, is not 𝘢𝘯𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 she has a word for---she just doesn't like other people touching what's hers. The tablet is cracking. She can count what's left. 𝗦𝗵𝗲 𝗶𝘀 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗳𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝗻 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗵𝗶𝗺. 𝗦𝗵𝗲'𝘀 𝗮𝗻 𝗲𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁-𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘂𝘀𝗮𝗻𝗱-𝘆𝗲𝗮𝗿-𝗼𝗹𝗱 𝗽𝗿𝗲𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗼𝗿 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗮 𝗽𝗼𝘀𝘀𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗯𝗹𝗲𝗺, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘀𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗯𝘂𝗿𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗼𝘄𝗻 𝗱𝗼𝘄𝗻 𝗯𝗲𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝘀𝗵𝗲 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗱𝗶𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲.

THE SELECTION x CINDERELLA RETELLING - In a kingdom ruled by potions and alchemy, poison is magic. Welcome to the Pestilence Trials. - Lirabelle Blythe has long endured a life of servitude and drudgery as a way to pay off her parents' debts. Indentured to House Sylverleaf, a proud aristocratic family fallen on hard times, her only companion is Sybille, the family's timid and overlooked third daughter. When the crown announces a deadly competition for the title of Royal Poisonmaster and the prince's hand in marriage, Lirabelle concocts a daring gamble: sneak into the trials and help Sybille steal the prince's heart. But the palace is a maze of poisoned corsets, laced chalices, and brewing conspiracies. Worse, the prince is nothing like Lirabelle expected. As she works to push Sybille into his arms, Lirabelle finds herself drawn into a game of dangerous chemistry with none other than the prince himself. In a world where one drop can kill, the growing attraction between them might be the deadliest poison of all. -- 🧪 Poison-based magic system 👑 Royal Court Intrigue ⚔️ Deadly Competition ❤️‍🔥 Slow burn, forbidden romance (friends to lovers) Beautiful cover by @Pennywithaney

[in Noir reading list of @mystery in Diverse Fiction RL of @Ambassdors] In the small town of Chandaneshwar, a young woman by the name of Amba works as a flower seller. After the death of her father, she is offered a job to work in the temple of Raja Vijay Mukherjee. Although poor, she is a Brahmin woman, so she has knowledge about the divine. One night, while fleeing from the beastly hands of Tirtha Mukherjee, she witnesses something she shouldn't have. Next morning, the fifth murder of the year takes place. Amba might not have solid proof, but she is sure these are the doings of the Mukherjee. These are all human sacrifices- narabali.

Lagos broke Nwoke Ugwu three times. Two contracts. One betrayal. Then three years hiding in Enugu, watching his dream rot on a dead laptop. Now his best friend is gone---and he left Nwoke two things: an unfinished song, and a promise no sane man would keep. So Nwoke goes back. Back to the city that ate him alive. No money. No name. One rule: this time, he doesn't run. Then a girl laughs at him from the back seat of an Uber in traffic. Then her family hands him everything he ever wanted. Then he meets the one person he was never supposed to want---at the worst possible dinner table in Lagos. They say third time's the charm. Charm is how he lost everything. This is not a love story. This is a confession.

Aza Nut-Amoi's life changes forever when a powerful alien empire sets its sights on Earth. Thrust into a cosmic conflict that spans worlds, Aza finds herself at the center of a battle for the survival of her planet and the future of humanity. As she uncovers the hidden truths of her family's past and the mysterious force connecting her to the invaders, Aza must navigate treacherous alliances, ancient secrets, and an overwhelming destiny that could reshape the universe. The stakes have never been higher, and the choices she makes will determine the fate of everything she holds dear.

I was four years old the first time I touched a dying man and he got up again. My mother made me promise never to let anyone see. She was right about that. She was right about most things, and then she died, and the last thing she ever told me was a name I'd never heard. There's a fire in me. It's been there since before I was born, and it isn't mine, and it's killing me---three hundred years late and nineteen days fast. Only the Barons can teach me to control it. Fallen gods. The kind that eat girls like me to make the hunger stop. So I walked into Hell's Gate on my own feet and offered them a trade. The cold one claimed me. Called me 𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘥. Never my name. The beautiful one wept gold and begged me not to let them love me. The silent one asked me what I wanted, and I didn't have an answer. And one of them was kind to me. Only one. From the first night. That's the one I should have been afraid of.