Being the Chosen One is the only thing Six ever knew to be. Now, at thirteen years old, she is called upon by the Goddess of Destiny, to complete the divine quest centuries in the making: venture into the Ever-Changing Forest and slay the last of the Cursed Beasts, demons who once thought to usurp the rule of the gods. Her death is as certain as her victory. But Six owes her life to Destiny, it seems only fitting that she dies by it too. The strange man in the Forest, however, disagrees. (The voices inside her head agree with him, even when they want to be as far from him as possible.

Cara doesn't know who she is. She's never been particularly interested in finding out, either. To her defense, no one really knows anything about her. She's simply Crow, a bodyguard-for-hire that circles amongst the upper class families that can afford her services. When she's hired as the protective lady-in-waiting for the prospective bride of the Usurper Prince, she comes closer to secrets she didn't even know existed. Suddenly a member of the most dangerous court in the land, how can Cara protect her charge and herself, when everything she knows seems to be crumbling down around her? [ © endymions_ ]

Irina would give her heart and soul to hunt a snow bear. The massive, ancient beings live only on the farthest reaches of the endless snows, near to the end of the world-so when she finds one in her father's favorite valley, hunting for game before winter sets in, she drags her brother up a tree to wait it out. Except the bear isn't alone; she has cubs, and when Irina kills one of them, she has trespassed against one of the oldest laws of nature. She's punished for her crime when the Prince of Always Night, ruler of the endless snows, snatches her brother from her side and into the dark. But he doesn't expect Irina to leash up her dogs and follow after him. When she comes knocking at his door, there's little he can do but hope this heartless hunter is willing to change-or else she and her brother will be stuck on the snow until the end of time.

APOLLINAIRE is the grandson of the oldest witch in the South. He's the first boy born in her line for three hundred years, and she guards him jealously, teaching him all the magic she knows before anyone else can corrupt him. Between his bloodline and his talent, there's a lot riding on his shoulders, all before he's twelve years old. And then his father sues for custody in the divorce. PAUL ST. ROSE is an emergency medic. At 21, it's not the end of his career path-or his schooling-but it's a good place to land and catch his breath. He's always done well in high-stress environments, managing to keep his cool even when the world is falling apart around him. But when his grandmother dies, he's pulled back into the life he used to lead: back into Old Mère's rickety trailer with the black soil garden out front; back into the social rough-and-tumble of his mother's side of the family, rife with petty backstabbing; back into who he used to be. Between the cold success of Paul and the honeysuckle-sweet occultism of Apollinaire, he crumbles under the weight of everything that he was supposed to be by now. He's always done well in high-stress environments. But what can he do when he's the one falling to pieces?

❝ beware of those who enter the forest. ❞ They are creatures that born from the sublime and haunt those who wrongs them. It was the written rule the Nascherein was built upon, but to Leon Kiesinger, it was much greater than the imperial soldiers could hold. Sheltered away from the war and its decaying matter, he finds himself unable to avoid death, his haunting dreams told him to follow it, to see where it would lead him to. But it comes with a price, something that calls for a ghost among trees. © arden reni 2017 ― Featured as 'Hot Off the Press' | 04.18.18 ― Wattys Longlist | 08.31.18