Sam is the most promising swordsman among this year’s crop of Paladin trainees...and knows it. Brash, cocky, and unbeatable with a sword (well, almost), Sam is the kingdom of Thule’s best hope against the violence wrought by demons. The only problem is that Sam is really Lady Samantha, daughter of the seventeenth Duke of Haywood, and if her father has his way, she’ll be marrying a Paladin, not becoming one. But Sam has never held much interest in playing damsel-in-distress, and so she rescues herself from a lifetime of boredom and matrimonial drudgery. Pity that Tristan Lyons, the Paladin assigned to train her, is none other than the hero of her childhood. He hasn’t recognized her as Lady Samantha--yet-- but if he does, he’ll take away her sword and send her packing. Sam is not the only trainee hiding secrets: Braeden is a half-demon with a dark past that might be unforgivable. Sam, Braeden and Tristan set out for the western coast, charged with rooting out an infestation of demons that has made the West unlivable. As they travel, they uncover a deep-seated corruption of power that threatens to derail everything they stand for. Rebellion stirs, led by a rival faction of warriors who tempt Sam to join them with an irresistible offer. A war between men is coming, and Sam must pick a side. Will saving the kingdom cost her life -- or just her heart? Reminiscent of Mulan, but with a medieval fantasy twist, Paladin is a tale of adventure, action, and romance.

When Vienna dreamed of her future as an artist, she didn’t imagine being the starving kind but life hasn’t quite turned out as she envisaged it. Stuck in a dead-end job and living with her sworn-enemy-turned-best-friend isn’t where she thought she’d be at 23: adulthood isn’t turning out quite as she planned. It doesn’t help that she has her mother breathing down her neck, forcing her to jump through life’s hoops. When a serendipitous meeting comes her way, she has a choice to make and a risk to take: she can play it safe and keep painting by numbers or she can begin a new canvas and risk losing everything to find the joy her life is sorely missing. The natural reaction is to do what any struggling artist would: Vienna quits her job, the only safety net she has, to pursue her dream.