Contemporary Romance
High Passion (Adrenaline Search & Rescue #2) by Vivian Arend – Sept 3rd (Berkley)
LIFELINE: an elite search-and-rescue squad based out of Banff, Alberta. Specializing in high-risk rescue missions, this team goes wherever the job takes them…
Alisha Bailey left a life of privilege for the dangerous but thrilling world of search and rescue. Denying the lure of attraction to her teammate is another sacrifice she’s made to prove to everyone—including her family— that she’s more than a pretty face or a business commodity.
Since their training days, Devon Leblanc has used the competitive fire between them to hide his fascination with the petite beauty. When a natural disaster forces their rivalry aside, heated passion finally flares between them. Sexual pleasure slowly gives way to a new appreciation for each other’s skills—on the field and in the bedroom.
But when unexplained accidents begin happening to the Lifeline team, their newfound unity may be their only hope for survival…
*blurb from Goodreads here
Uncommon Passion by Anne Calhoun – Sept 3rd (Berkley Trade)
After leaving a restrictive religious community, Rachel Hill is on a mission to divest herself of her virginity. Newly independent and struggling to establish herself, she’s not looking for anything complicated. She bids on sexy SWAT officer Ben Harris at a bachelor auction, confident he’ll give her the night of her life and nothing more.
But Ben is jaded and detached, living his life in an endless cycle of danger-fueled adrenaline jags, drinking, and sex. When he misses the fact that his bachelor auction hookup is a virgin, he’s shocked by his obliviousness, and by the risk she took. To make amends, Ben offers Rachel all he can: a no-strings-attached sexual education.
Ben’s lessons introduce Rachel to down and dirty passion, but she’s searching for something more profound than sex, and she’s willing to walk away to find it. Ben can’t get Rachel out of his head, but will he come to terms with his troubled past and learn to love?
*blurb from Goodreads here
Cake by Lauren Dane – Sept 15th (Harlequin)
She won’t be satisfied with just one bite…
Art student-slash-bike messenger Wren Davis pursues what she wants. And what she wants now is Gregori Ivanov, rock star of the Seattle art scene. With his tattoos, piercings and sensual sneer, Gregori is the ultimate bad boy. Wren’s gotten to know the man beneath the body art, too—and it only makes her crave him more.
But Gregori loves women like he loves cake and champagne—intensely, but only for the moment. And after Wren experiences just how scorching sex with Gregori is, she’s determined to show him that just one taste won’t be enough…
*blurb from Goodreads here
Flashback by Amanda Carpenter – Sept 17th (Samhain)
A Retro-Romance release by Thea Harrison writing as Amanda Carpenter (backlist ebook release)
To be forced to live the constant nightmare of being telepathic was to Dana Haslow, unbearable to the point of driving her to long for death as a merciful release. Then David Raymond arrived and at last she found someone who not only sympathised but also understood only to discover there is a greater emotional pain – to offer love and have it thrown back in her face!
*blurb from Goodreads here
Christmas on 4th Street by Susan Mallery – Sept 24th (Forever)
There’s nowhere better to spend the holidays than with New York Times bestselling author Susan Mallery in the town of Fool’s Gold, where love is always waiting to be unwrapped… Noelle Perkins just got a second chance at life, and she intends to make the most of every minute. That’s why she ditched a frustrating legal career to open her own store in Fool’s Gold, California. The Christmas Attic celebrates everything that’s magical about her favorite season. Business is booming, and as a bonus, gorgeous army doctor Gabriel Boylan has offered to help out during the holiday rush.
Gabriel’s memories of Christmas past contain more sour grapes than sugar plums, thanks to a drill sergeant father who ran his home like a boot camp. Spending the holidays with his family while he recuperates from injury sounds as appetizing as last year’s eggnog. Still, there are some enjoyable distractions in town, including sunny, sexy Noelle…and the red-hot mistletoe kisses they can’t stop sharing.
Gabriel didn’t think he was made for happily-ever-afters. But when fate hands you a love as sweet and surprising as this, only a fool could refuse…
*blurb from Goodreads here
Always on my Mind (Lucky Harbor #8) by Jill Shalvis – Sept 24th (Forever)
THERE’S NOTHING LIKE THE REAL THING
After dropping out of pastry school and messing up her big break on a reality cooking show, Leah Sullivan needs to accomplish something in her life. But when she returns home to Lucky Harbor, she finds herself distracted by her best friend, Jack Harper. In an effort to cheer up Jack’s ailing mother, Dee, Leah tells a little fib – that she and Jack are more than just friends. Soon pretending to be hot-and-heavy with this hunky firefighter feels too real to handle . . .
No-strings attachments suit Jack just fine – perfect for keeping the risk of heartbreak away. But as Jack and Leah break every one of their “just friends” rules, he longs to turn their pretend relationship into something permanent. Do best friends know too much about each other to risk falling in love? Or will Jack and Leah discover something new about each other in a little town called Lucky Harbor?
*blurb from Goodreads here
Fantasy
Soul of Fire by Laura Anne Gilman – Sept 24th (Harlequin)
Three months ago Jan learned that elves were real, our world wasn’t safe and it was up to her to save her boyfriend-and the world-from being englamoured into slavery. Now Jan has a new deadline-ten weeks, ten days and ten hours. That’s when the truce she arranged between our world and the elves’ realm ends, and the invasion starts.
While supernatural creatures work to defend humanity, Jan and the kelpie Martin have to find the preter queen, and use her to force the portals closed. But when magic mixes with technology, shutting it down isn’t as simple as closing a door or pulling a plug….
Jan’s geek-girl know-how might have gotten her this far, but they’re going to need technical skills and magic to shut the portals for good….
And their time’s nearly up.
*blurb from Goodreads here
Fantasy (YA)
Scorched by Mari Mancusi – Sept 3rd (Sourcebooks Fire)
Trinity
Don’t leave me here… It starts with a whisper. At first Trinity thinks she’s going crazy. It wouldn’t be a big surprise—her grandpa firmly believes there’s a genuine dragon egg in their dusty little West Texas town. But this voice is real, and it’s begging for her protection. Even if no one else can hear it…Connor
He’s come from a future scorched by dragonfire. His mission: Find the girl. Destroy the egg. Save the world.Caleb
He’s everything his twin brother Connor hates: cocky, undisciplined, and obsessed with saving dragons.Trinity has no idea which brother to believe. All she has to go by is the voice in her head—a dragon that won’t be tamed.
*blurb from Goodreads here
Battle Magic (Circle Reforged #3) by Tamora Pierce – Sept 24th (Scholastic Press)
On their way to the first Circle temple in Gyongxi, mages Briar, Rosethorn, and Evvy pay a visit to the emperor’s summer palace. Although treated like royalty when they first arrive, the mages soon discover that the emperor plans to invade Gyongxi, posing a fatal threat to the home temple of the Living Circle religion. Accompanied by one of the emperor’s prize captives, the three mages rush to Gyongxi to warn its citizens of the impending attack. With the imperials hot on their trail, Briar, Rosethorn, and Evvy must quickly help the country prepare for battle. But even with the help of new allies, will their combined forces be enough to fight the imperial army and win the war?
*blurb from Goodreads here
Shadows by Robin McKinley – Sept 26th (Nancy Paulson Books)
A compelling and inventive novel set in a world where science and magic are at odds, by Robin McKinley, the Newbery-winning author of The Hero and the Crown and The Blue Sword, as well as the classic titles Beauty, Chalice, Spindle’s End, Pegasus and Sunshine
Maggie knows something’s off about Val, her mom’s new husband. Val is from Oldworld, where they still use magic, and he won’t have any tech in his office-shed behind the house. But—more importantly—what are the huge, horrible, jagged, jumpy shadows following him around? Magic is illegal in Newworld, which is all about science. The magic-carrying gene was disabled two generations ago, back when Maggie’s great-grandmother was a notable magician. But that was a long time ago.
Then Maggie meets Casimir, the most beautiful boy she has ever seen. He’s from Oldworld too—and he’s heard of Maggie’s stepfather, and has a guess about Val’s shadows. Maggie doesn’t want to know . . . until earth-shattering events force her to depend on Val and his shadows. And perhaps on her own heritage.
In this dangerously unstable world, neither science nor magic has the necessary answers, but a truce between them is impossible. And although the two are supposed to be incompatible, Maggie’s discovering the world will need both to survive.
*blurb from Goodreads here
Historical Romance
The Untamed Mackenzie (Highland Pleasures #5.5) by Jennifer Ashley – Sept 10th (Penguin Historical)
To redeem her family’s disgraced name, Lady Louisa Scranton has decided to acquire a proper husband. He needs to be a man of fortune and highly respectable in order to restore both her family’s lost wealth and reputation. She enters the Marriage Mart with all flags flying, determined to find the right bachelor.
But Louisa’s hopes are dashed when the Bishop of Hargate drops dead at her feet—and she is shockingly accused of murder! Soon, Louisa’s so-called friends begin shunning her, because the company of a suspected killer is never desirable in polite society.
The problem comes to the ears of Detective Inspector Lloyd Fellows, by-blow of the decadent Scottish Mackenzie family and an inspector for Scotland Yard. He has shared two passionate kisses with Lady Louisa–and vows to clear her name. For not only does he know she’s innocent, he recognizes he’s falling for the lovely lady.
Fellows is Louisa’s only hope of restoring her family’s honor—and it is he alone who intrigues Louisa in a way that may be even more scandalous than murder…
*blurb from Goodreads here
Paranormal Romance
By the Tail (Cougar Falls #7) by Marie Harte – Sept 3rd (Samhain)
It’s more than whether you win or lose; it’s how you play with your prey.
Cougar Falls, Book 7
Joy Bermin’s sweet crush on Quince Castille went sour when he got involved with a psychotic feline who nearly destroyed the pride. That bastard is dead, but now Quince is trying to convince her he had nothing to do with it.
She’s been doing her best to ignore him, but the stubborn panther is always underfoot. When he tricks her into seeing how good things could really be between them, she’s stuck between dismay and desire.
Just when Quince was ready to prove his love for Joy, that mess with the pride shot his credibility all to hell. Trickery is the only way to break her resistance and show her the truth. And holy hell, that woman could melt steel with her heat.
Between trying to pin her down and dealing with upstart cats out to destroy what he’s worked so hard to rebuild, Quince is through playing by the rules. Whatever it takes to make Joy his mate, it’s on the table. And God help anyone who gets in his way.
Product Warnings
The Miami heat may induce passion, trickery, feline sunbathing, stubborn brothers bossing around temperamental sisters, and a cat smackdown of epic proportions.*blurb by Goodreads here
The Protected (The FBI Psychics #4) by Shiloh Walker – Sept 3rd (Berkley)
An Assignment She Can’t Refuse
Agent Vaughnne MacMeans would do anything to avoid setting foot in Orlando again. But her new assignment, keeping tabs on a psychic kid who may or may not be in danger, is forcing her right back to the city where her sister was murdered. And she didn’t count on a startling attraction to the boy’s guardian…An Attraction He Can’t Deny
Protecting Alex is a priority for Gus. Gus may not understand the young man’s “gift” but he knows that some people would kill for it. When a beautiful stranger moves in next door, his impulse is to take the kid and bolt. But Gus has learned never to flee without a plan, and besides…she doesn’t exactly look like an assassin.A Game They’ll Play For Keeps
But when some dangerous people from Gus’s past do catch up to him and Alex, it’s too late to run. His new neighbor is the last person he thought he could turn to, but Vaughnne isn’t just beautiful. She’s fearless. And she’s the only chance Gus and Alex have left.*blurb from Goodreads here
Blood Mate (Project Rebellion #2) by Mina Carter – Sept 17th (Samhain)
The only thing they have in common? Really…sharp…teeth.
Major Antonia Fielding has one goal: to escape the clutches of the Project. With the blood-virus infecting her system, though, a body bag is likely her only way out. Until her boss lets slip that he may just have a cure for her—if she brings in an escaped Lycan.
Can she trust him? Now there’s the million-dollar question. Then again, can she afford to take that chance?
Darce Foster was a Special Forces soldier, until the Project got hold of him. Now he’s a Lycan, a lab-created werewolf, this close to escaping his creators—until another of the projects experiments stops him in his tracks. Not because she has the power to hold him, but because he instantly recognizes the impossible. The vampiress is his mate.
Allowing her to bring him in is his only choice—and possibly the last mistake of his life.
Enemies or lovers, it doesn’t matter. When they discover that the Project is hiding yet more secrets, they must work together to bring it down…or die in the attempt.
*blurb from Goodreads here
Bound by Night (MoonBound Clan Vampire #1) by Larissa Ione – Sept 24th (Pocket)
A WOMAN OUT FOR BLOOD
Nicole Martin was only eight years old when the vampire slaves rose up in rebellion and killed her family. Now she devotes her life to finding a vaccine against vampirism, hoping to wipe out her memories—along with every bloodsucker on the planet. But there’s one thing she cannot destroy: her searing, undeniable attraction for the one man she should hate and fear the most…A VAMPIRE OUT FOR REVENGE
A member of the renegade vampire MoonBound Clan, Riker is haunted by demons of his own. When he recognizes Nicole and remembers how her family enslaved his loved ones, his heart burns for vengeance. But when he kidnaps Nicole and holds her in a secret lair, his mortal enemy becomes his soul obsession, his greatest temptation, and, perhaps, his only salvation—a hot-blooded lover who could heal him with her touch…or bury him forever.*blurb from Goodreads here
Steampunk
A Study in Silks (The Baskerville Affair #1) by Emma Jane Holloway – Sept 24th (Del Rey)
Evelina Cooper, the niece of the great Sherlock Holmes, is poised to enjoy her first Season in London’s high society. But there’s a murderer to deal with—not to mention missing automatons, a sorcerer, and a talking mouse.
In a Victorian era ruled by a council of ruthless steam barons, mechanical power is the real monarch, and sorcery the demon enemy of the empire. Nevertheless, the most coveted weapon is magic that can run machines—something Evelina has secretly mastered. But rather than making her fortune, her special talents could mean death or an eternity as a guest of Her Majesty’s secret laboratories. What’s a polite young lady to do but mind her manners and pray she’s never found out?
But then there’s that murder. As Sherlock’s niece, Evelina should be able to find the answers, but she has a lot to learn. And the first decision she has to make is whether to trust the handsome, clever rake who makes her breath come faster, or the dashing trick rider who would dare anything for her if she would only just ask.
*blurb from Goodreads here
I completely forgot about The Untamed MacKenzie. I really enjoyed the Christmas novella from last year. Hope she writes more between the full length books.
I’ve read a couple of these already and am not all that impressed with September’s offerings. (Hey, at least my wallet will get a break! ) That Shalvis one was “meh” to say the least.. and Anne Calhoun. That one was a mixed bag. Great writing, but thought the ending didn’t match the rest of the book.
The one I’m most looking forward to isn’t on here. It’s Seanan McGuire’s Chimes at Midnight! (UF) Just 1 more day!
@Readsalot81: Oh no! I’m really looking forward to the Shalvis book!!! /sadface
So many great books! But I really, really want the new Jennifer Ashley.
@Readsalot81: Thanks for mentioning the October Daye series — I’d lost track of that one:-)
@Vi: @xaurianx: I really hope you enjoy it!!
I read a few of those already and loved them. Susan Mallery is great as always and Cake was a nice shortie. I’m still reading Bound by Night, but so far is good. Already got my hands on the last Vivian Arend. Love her series!