Hired by an infamous art collector, an art historian must decide whether to expose a painting's truth or risk everything for the woman who may be deceiving her. * * * * * When Michelina "Mikey" Amato, a struggling art historian, catches the eye of an alluring art collector at auction, sparks instantly ignite between the two women. But Mikey learns the collector is none other than Domenica Fiori, a woman with no maximum bid whose name is synonymous with scandal. Hoping to restore her reputation, Domenica offers to hire Mikey to authenticate a painting in her collection. Mikey sees it as an opportunity to make a name for herself and accepts despite all the whispers of forgery. Working closely alongside Domenica in her secluded Sicilian villa, Mikey starts to see beyond the collector's tarnished and guarded past. But inconsistencies with the painting---and Domenica---create more questions than answers. As Mikey's suspicions begin to grow, so do her feelings for Domenica, threatening to cloud her integrity. When the forgery rumors start to look true, Mikey must decide whether to expose the painting's truth or risk losing everything for the woman who may be deceiving her. #wlw

Burnt-out influencer Wynne Mayfield gave up on her social media dream five years ago. But a new sponsorship deal might be her second chance, even if it means returning to the island she has tried to escape. When she crosses paths with her former best friend, Sienna, Wynne can no longer avoid her. With only twenty days before the sponsorship deadline, Wynne plans to drown her feelings for Sienna--but the more their history resurfaces, the more the two find they understand each other better than before. **** Written for the Open Novella Contest 2025 (ONC), using prompts 110 and 120. Cover by @-MilaSteele

**WATTPAD HQ EDITOR'S PICK for August 2021** *FEATURED IN THE "CHILLS AND THRILLS" READING LIST ON WATTPAD'S "Paranormal" page!* **FEATURED ON WATTPAD'S #PrideatWattpad READING LIST** Can we understand what happens after death by summoning ghosts? And are ghosts... real? Twenty-two-year-olds Arielle Daniels and Stella Sullivan go on an east-coast ghost-hunting tour to honor their recently deceased best friend, Jade, whose death remains a mystery. Only her parents know the circumstances, and they refuse to tell anyone. Stella wants to pay her respects by following Jade's bucket-list; but Arielle wants real, palpable answers. What happens after death? Why has she lost so many loved ones? And how exactly did Jade die? In the midst of their journey, Arielle realizes she might have been in love with Jade, but now... she has no way to be sure, and no idea how to reveal this to Stella--or anyone else, for that matter. As they travel, the girls discover more about themselves than they anticipated, both forced to come to terms with their emotions; Arielle to accept her bisexuality, and Stella to acknowledge her heritage as the descendant of a long line of psychic mediums. But the trip takes on an eerie tone when they get more than they bargained for, and swallow up more occult knowledge than either ever expected to find in their lifetimes. • WARNING: this book is rated MATURE for handling triggering, sensitive issues. There will be jumps, screams, and heart-palpitating moments. Proceed with caution.

2026 Watty Awards Shortlist Finalist! Helena Pierce has it all. A company built from nothing, wealth, a best friend who knows her better than she knows herself, and a brother who would move mountains for her. On paper, her life is flawless. But perfection doesn't fill the emptiness. Helena is lonely and love has never come easily, and when it did, her need for control always pushed it away. She rules every part of her life with iron precision, and that same power keeps her from letting anyone in. Helena doesn't know how to surrender - and maybe, deep down, she fears what would happen if she did. ❁ ⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯ ˋˏ༻❁༺ˎˊ ⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯ ❁ June Holloway refuses to back down. Words are power, and behind a screen, she wields them all. Declared deaf at six, though she had struggled to hear long before, she controls her world from home, safe from the noise and chaos she can't fully navigate... but safety has a price. She has her work, a best friend who never leaves her side, and a brother who would give his life for her. Yet love has always been complicated. Speaking, hearing, connecting - it should be simple, but for June, it's a battle she fights again and again, never easily won. Even so, she keeps trying. Even so, she refuses to be silenced. ❁ ⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯ ˋˏ༻❁༺ˎˊ ⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯ ❁ Since June starts working for Helena, things begin to unfold and feelings grow quietly, almost unnoticed. Both hide behind screens, careful and measured, yet there is a pull between them they can't ignore. Every word, every message lingers a little longer, makes them think a little more. Neither is ready to admit how much they want it to go further. Helena doesn't know June is deaf, and could that secret change everything between them? #1 under #lesbian 1/9/26 #1 under #wlw 1/11/26 #1 under #sapphic 1/12/26 #1 under #girls 3/15/26

When their powerful families announce a high-stakes business merger, Lacey Davidson and Niko Gladstone are forced into a fake relationship to prove the two empires can "blend seamlessly". Lacey, bright and good-natured, wants to survive the charade without losing her mind. Niko, stoic and ruthless, makes that nearly impossible. However, as public appearances blur into private moments, sparks ignite between the two, making their "fake relationship" seem awfully real. But they're just faking it...right?

[Wattpad's Summer Reading Checklist 2022 Pick / 2025 Wattpad Pride Pick] "'Hella heavy' is your response to seeing me with a literal fish tail?" "Sorry. Should ... should it be something else? Wait, does this mean that you can't eat sushi?" * * * * * When Alyssa shows up in Hulhazy Front a week after wiping the memory of her partner, she's terrified of ruining everything again. Her brother and dad are convinced she'll be okay as soon as she's able to "move on", which makes no sense to her, because they sound like the exact same thing. Alyssa doesn't care about moving on--she just cares about hiding the fact that she's a mermaid from this new small town, and especially her new coworker, Elliot. Elliot has spent the past year trying to figure out how to be out. It seems that every time she finds some kind of balance, something has to happen. Her parents say something homophobic before she's about to confess her "big secret," or her old friends from the swim team make some jab about all the things they're convinced Elliot did sophomore year. She's planning on her summer consisting of working at the public pool, hiding her sexuality, and third-wheeling it up with her best friends, Neema and Duncan. Until, of course, she meets Alyssa. *cover created using graphics from freepik*

A hunter haunted by her demons. A mage in way over her head. Two worlds collide. Brought together by chance, bound together by fate -- or a curse, depending on who you ask. 《《☆》》°《《☆》》°《《☆》》°《《◇》》°《《☆》》°《《☆》》°《《☆》》 ONE THOUSAND YEARS after the events of the Kingsfall, the world of Primae is still reeling from the Sundering -- a catastrophic rift that shattered the moon and tore a hole in the fabric of reality, unleashing a plague of demonic creatures upon the realm. Now, with a new threat on the horizon, two women from different walks of life may be the world's only hope . . . if they can survive each other. EXPECTED TO JOIN the ranks of the acclaimed Imperium Arcana and follow in her father's footsteps, living up to his legacy has never been Danika's dream. Despite her reluctance to learn magic, as the only child of a Supreme she feels trapped by her family's expectations. But when a chance encounter with an old friend from her childhood disrupts her life, Dani is thrust into the midst of a plot that threatens to alter the course of her destiny in unexpected -- and dangerous -- ways. A MERCILESS HUNTER with a reputation that precedes her, Ashe's time spent training under some of history's top assassins has made her bitter and cold; in a world running rampant with monsters and magic, she would much rather be the predator than their prey. But after a reckless decision one night reunites her with a mage from her past and paints a target on her back, Ashe must find a way to secure her own survival -- if the secret she harbors within doesn't destroy them, first. WITH BOTH OF their lives at stake and running on borrowed time, their journey will test more than just their patience -- the choices they must make will force Ashe and Dani to choose between their heart and their soul.

[2024 WATTYS WINNER] Data predicts they will fail. Their hearts say otherwise. In a world sliced in two by a violent, massive wall, there are only two choices: struggle for survival in the dead lands of the Other Side, or surrender your identity to the data-driven Reg Society. When Grace Hayes and her brother Michael decide to cross the wall into the Reg Society, they have no idea an explosion will tear their world apart, leaving Michael stranded on the Other Side. Grace, now alone in a high-tech "paradise", is assigned as a Naval Officer. Her mission? Protect the wall. Her reality? A cold, blue-eyed superior, Heather Anderson, the woman who closed the gates the day of the attack and left her brother behind. Getting close to Heather might be the only way to uncover the truth and bring Michael back. But in a society where memories can be bought, altered, or erased, trust is a dangerous game, and falling for the enemy was never part of the plan. 𝔽𝕖𝕒𝕥𝕦𝕣𝕖𝕕: ⚡Romance reading list - @project_Athena ⚡ ★彡[ᴀᴡᴀʀᴅꜱ:]彡★ ⚡2025 Happiness Awards - Thrid place - LGBTQ+ Category⚡ ⚡2024 WATTYS WINNER⚡ ⚡2024 GemStone Book Awards - First Place - Sci-fi Category ⚡ ⚡2024 Zelicaon Awards - Second Place - LGBTQ+ Category ⚡ ⚡Adorn Award Book - Second Place - Romance Category⚡ ⚡The Crown Awards - Third Place - Adventure Category⚡ ⚡Qualified Queerverse activity #FreeTheWriting⚡

[2026 WATTYS SHORTLIST] They were supposed to conquer colossal creatures... not each other. Neven Elsin lives by perfection: flawless technique, absolute discipline, total control. Being number one is her destiny, until Ember Draven steps into the arena. Wild, reckless, and impossible to read, Ember turns every competition to chaos... and every encounter to something far more dangerous. In a future where humanity has settled across four planets, a thrilling new sport unites them all: Orak Mounting. Competitors, known as Orak Mounters, risk everything to scale colossal alien beings and claim victory by touching their massive eye. But as the line between rivalry and desire begins to blur, Neven and Ember uncover a secret that could tear their worlds apart... will their hearts survive it too? ⭐AWARDS⭐ - 2026 Honourable Mention in the Pride Awards by @FreetheLGBT🌈

What would you trade your soul for? The answer is simple for Jessa: nothing. Life isn't perfect, but it's pretty good with her best friend Taylor at her side. But everything changes when the Devil--disguised as an attractive high school girl--comes to town. Soon Jessa--the girl with absolutely no experience with love--finds herself doing the unthinkable: trying to set up the fallen angel with heartthrob Billy Stevens. It's easier said than done, and in the resulting chaos, the lines between friend and foe, good and evil, begin to blur. Jessa starts to wonder: Is the Devil truly her friend? Who is worthy of love? And what, exactly, does Jessa want? All is fair in love and war. - - - A genre-bending tale that's one part teen fiction, one part paranormal/fantasy, and one part slow burn romance! A Wattys 2018 Shortlister! LGBTQ+! Cover made by @bdicocco in Canva.