Angela's life pretty much sucked until she met Giacomo. Tall, dark and handsome, he would be everything she could wish for - if he weren't a penniless and homeless illegal Italian immigrant who happens to be four years her senior. Or is he? Penniless and homeless, that is. The truth that slowly unravels seems to be far more sinister and bloody. Suffice it to say that Angela doesn't exactly look forward to meeting his family, especially his godfather... Follow Angela on her journey as she struggles to find her place in a world beyond her wildest dreams - and nightmares.

The final battle for love, life and liberty has begun! Ayla has had to defend her people in the past, but this time, it is no mercenary rabble outside the gates of her castle: it is the army of the Margrave von Falkenstein himself. Her people are outnumbered and have nowhere to run. But they do have one last, desperate hope: A knight in blood-red armor with the face of a god and the heart of a devil. Will the enemy succumb to him? And more importantly... will Ayla? The third and final volume of Robert Thier's "Robber Knight"-Trilogy.

Ayla has uncovered a terrible secret: the man she loves is in fact her worst enemy. As a mighty army gathers to destroy her and her people, she must ask herself: will he join them to destroy her? Must she cut him out of her heart to survive? Or is there another way – a way to forgiveness and... love? Sequel to Robert Thier's #1 Hit 'The Robber Knight'.

When you are fighting for the freedom of your people, falling in love with your enemy is not a great idea. Or is it? Ayla has to defend her castle and her people all on her own, with nobody to help her but a dark warrior she hates with all her heart.

In the desert, an instant turns life into death and hate into love. In the desert, everything is different. Boundaries break down, and you find yourself doing things that you would never, ever have imagined. Lilly Linton finds this out the hard way: in the shadow of the pyramids, she and her boss, cold, calculating Mr Ambrose, must face death and danger together. Is the desert's heat enough to melt the cold heart of Britain's richest financier? WINNER of the PEOPLE'S CHOICE AWARD in the Wattys 2016 Sequel to Robert Thier's #1 Hit 'Storm and Silence'

"It is your choice," he said, stepping so close to me that our lips were almost touching. "Either do what I say - or get another job." My heart stood still as I gazed up into his deep, dark, dangerous eyes... In a world where women's only role in life is to sit at home and look pretty, Lilly is determined to fight for her freedom. There's only one problem: a powerful man blocking her way.

[ORIGINAL DRAFT SAMPLE] Given a new chance at life, Sara Gaspard returns to Verweald and must decide how the Sin of Pride fits in with her daily routine. Before they have a chance to settle, a strange box arrives at Sara's doorstep and tears them from the Terrestrian realm. The box throws both mortal and Sin into a world - and conflict - neither has ever seen before. Dragon blood is spilled. A king rises from exile and ignites a war. Magic enthralls, fire lights the night, and kingdoms balance upon the edge of destruction. Sara and Darius' search for a way home becomes far more perilous than expected. The Sundered Vale awaits. __________________________ Sequel to Bereft: Foretold

************************************************************************************** An outcast rogue must break a curse put on his fate, or die on his nineteenth birthday. To survive, he'll need the sword of a maiden, the aid of an immortal, and the power of forbidden magic that could cost him the only girl he ever loved. ************************************************************************************ *** THE JACK OF SOULS won a Silver IPPY this year! *** THE JACK OF SOULS won 1st place in the PNWA Competition in Fantasy! * *** THE JACK OF SOULS won 1st place in the Southwest Writers competition! * *** A "Featured Book" on Wattpad! * *** Now a "Staff Pick" on Kickstarter! * *** Available on Amazon in paper, hardback, and ebook ! * *** My contract with Kindle Select won't allow me to post more than 3 chapters here, but... *** Sign up for my newsletter on stephenmerlino.com for alerts when it's free on Amazon! * MY INSPIRATION I wrote this out of pure love of trickster rogues; I love the wit over brawn motif -- Odysseus over Achilles, Raven over Eagle -- so I like to play with it in my stories. In JOS I set the rogue and con-artist Harric against a foil of warriors in a land threatened by magic and civil war. Whenever possible I turn familiar tropes on their heads: instead of a handsome young Lancelot, I cast a broken-down ex-champion addicted to pain-killing herbs; instead of a dashing Squire Brian, the old knight reluctantly takes an ambitious young woman as squire. Similarly, I re-imagine the standard medieval milieu by infusing aspects of two of my favorite historical periods, Elizabethan England, and The American Frontier. Both eras boast a kind of nationalistic arrogance that borders on hubris, and a magnificent spirit of resourcefulness and re-invention that is fun to play with. SERIES The Jack of Souls is first in a series. I am posting parts of the sequel here now (The Knave of Souls), to help me refine the story.

Family - the most important thing in the world, right? If it's your own, maybe. But if it's the family of the incredibly powerful, incredibly alluring businessman with whom you've been conducting a secret office affair, and they don't yet know about the affair, things are a little bit different. Life is about to get real for Lilly Linton. All those stolen moments behind closed doors, those secret kisses and whispered words are about to catch up with her. As she and her boss, business-magnate Rikkard Ambrose, travel north to his parents' palatial estate, she is about to discover whether she has the strength to step out of the shadows and change her fate forever. Volume four of the award-winning "Storm and Silence" series.