Rachel Rener

Contains the complete Lightning Conjurer series: Book I: THE AWAKENING Book II: THE ENLIGHTNING Book III: THE CHRISTENING Book IV: THE RECKONING Synopses (includes spoilers in sequel descriptions): THE AWAKENING Three years ago, Aspen (as she calls herself), woke up in an abandoned cabin without a single memory. Forced to start her life from scratch and exist entirely off the grid, she’s led a lonely life, but a quiet one... Until now. Suddenly, strange things are happening all around her: phantom tornadoes, exploding fireplaces, massive sink holes – not to mention the strange man that's been following her everywhere she goes. When Aspen audits a college class for a much-needed dose of normalcy, she’s shocked by the assistant professor’s cold disdain for her, and her alone. Their heated confrontation turns a corner when Aspen panics, accidentally shattering every bulb in the classroom. That’s when Aiden realizes what she is... but he's not the only one who’s been paying attention. In her mission to discover who – and what – she is, Aspen must learn to control her powers, navigate her budding feelings for this new and mysterious ally, and, finally, discover the shocking truth about her past. THE ENLIGHTENING After narrowly escaping Savannah and her Asterian thugs, Aspen has finally unearthed a clue to her forgotten past: a small brass key and a handwritten note that says 'Start here'. With nothing but her resolve – and Aiden’s silver lighter – Aspen sets forth on a solo cross-country journey. But things begin to unravel quickly on the open road, and Aspen soon realizes that her biggest challenge on this trip won’t be making it to California in one piece, but keeping her growing powers in check. Meanwhile, Aiden, on his own mission to find his sister, has gone radio silent. Though an old ‘friend’ from Aspen’s past warns her not to go after him, she knows she has no choice. But their impromptu reunion has some unintended complications: ghosts from Aspen’s past come back to haunt her, painful secrets that Aiden has been harboring come to light, and deep-rooted family conflicts threaten to tear their bond apart. Still, there’s a faint light at the end of the tunnel: Aspen now knows for certain that her mother is alive and being held prisoner. She and her friends just have to get there in time – and pray Savannah doesn’t catch them first. THE CHRISTENING It’s been two months since the Day of Enlightenment, the day a true Pentamancer emerged once more on the world stage after centuries of extinction. Under the protective arm of the Magistrate, Aspen has agreed to cooperate with the Inner Circle in hopes that her radical visions for the Elementalist community can be realized. On the surface, things are going well: she’s been traveling the world, rescuing cities from Terramantic temper tantrums, attending Elementalist conferences, and meeting powerful Asterian Officials around the globe. And yet, in spite of (or perhaps, because of) Aspen’s tenuous alliance with the Magistrate, political divisions are simmering among his Prelates. Not everyone shares Aspen’s utopian vision, and the Magistrate’s grip on the Inner Circle is beginning to slip. Whether by destiny or by chance, the fate of the Community now rests on the shoulders of the so-called “Prophet”; it’s up to Aspen to decide whether to embrace her newfound status, or refuse it. Whatever path she chooses – there’s no turning back. THE RECKONING Four years after the collapse of the Inner circle, the Asterian Order is functioning as Aspen and the late Magistrate envisioned; containment centers have been shut down, antiquated laws have been abolished, and free elections for a new Prime Minister are underway. In the meantime, Aspen and her fiancé, Aiden, have been enjoying their peaceful life out of the spotlight and away from the Order. However, in the absence of containment and conviction, the line between freedom and secrecy has been blurred; amid the turmoil, a fresh wave of Elemental Supremacism is threatening to take hold of the Asterian Parliament. To combat this, Ori announces his bid to become Minister. If he loses, his radical opponent will be turning dangerous rhetoric into a stark reality that poses a direct threat to the entire human race. While he and Aspen embark on a crucial political mission, Aiden, Eileen, and Sophia are joined by an old nemesis to carry out their own top-secret quest: scouring the globe for rogue Elementalists with extraordinary powers. If they succeed in recruiting these hundreds of Wilders to their cause, they’ll have a slew of newcomers to support Ori’s campaign. But if they fail, their adversary will have access to the greatest army of Elementalists the world has ever seen. The stakes have never been higher for Aspen and her friends… and losing has never been more dangerous.

When Zayn, your smoking hot boss, tells you never to touch the cache of deluxe tattoo ink locked away in his office, you listen to him… until the day you run out of your own ink, your squirming client is on the verge of peeing his pants, and your boss is nowhere to be found. Desperate times call for desperate measures, right? I fully expected Zayn to yell at me when he returned to the shop. What I didn't expect was the fresh cobra tattoo on my client’s butt magically springing to life. Or the interdimensional filing cabinet hiding in the back of Zayn's office. And, oh, did I mention that my gorgeous, magic-ink-hoarding boss is actually an incubus? Now – through (mostly) no fault of my own – we have to venture into a strange and distant land where a never-ending list of lethal flora, fauna, and fae await us. When you add in my Jewish mother’s string of poorly-timed, hysterical phone calls, there is one thing I’m grateful for: there’s no cell service in the fae realm.

I keep telling myself things could be worse. Okay, so my mom's been harboring some hefty family secrets. Big deal. And, yeah, maybe there are still two or three teensy details about Zayn that I don't know – his backstory, his private life, or his real name, for starters. Oh, and let's not forget that there's a bloodthirsty, power-hungry, magical mob boss who's due to appear at any moment. No biggie. So long as there are no more family bombshells, incubus-related heartbreaks, or unexpected, terrifying journeys into the Fae Realm, I'll be completely fine. Because, as I've already reminded myself at least twelve times since breakfast, there's no way things could possibly get worse. …Right?

I used to eat rocks as a child. The family doctor diagnosed me with pica, dooming me to years of intensive therapy and extensive dentistry work. It wouldn’t be until much later that I would understand the all-consuming, insatiable craving that spurred me to eat a variety of rocks and minerals wasn’t a mental disorder, but an innate gift that allows me to extract the magic contained inside them: tourmaline for speed, celestite for strength, augite for a powerful laxative effect (that I had to discover the hard way). Twenty years later, I’ve hidden my abilities beneath a white lab coat, working as a small-town pharmacist who creates proprietary “naturopathic” tonics that treat everything from memory loss to erectile dysfunction. Those tonics, in turn, fund my expensive lifestyle of solo flying around the world to search for more rocks. What more could an airplane-loving, mineral-munching, magical alchemist want? Unfortunately, my arch nemesis, Heath Spencer, has recently taken it upon himself to single-handedly ruin my life. No longer content with annoying me from afar with his overpriced, tacky rock shop, Heath has decided to further antagonize me by dangling the opportunity of a lifetime right in front of my face: traveling to an ancient copper mine in China, which is home to some of the rarest and most stunning minerals on Earth. It’s not until after I’m trapped halfway across the world with my least favorite person on the planet that I’m forced to come face-to-face with three terrible realizations: everything I thought I knew about Heath Spencer is wrong, some minerals were never meant to be ingested, and – worst of all – I’m not the only one who’s been keeping secrets...

⋆˙⟡ Includes all four books of the award-winning, internationally-bestselling Gilded Blood series! ⟡˙⋆ Synopsis, Book 1: When Zayn, your smoking hot boss, tells you never to touch the cache of deluxe tattoo ink locked away in his office, you listen to him… until the day you run out of your own ink, your squirming client is on the verge of peeing his pants, and your boss is nowhere to be found. Desperate times call for desperate measures, right? I fully expected Zayn to yell at me when he returned to the shop. What I didn't expect was the fresh cobra tattoo on my client’s butt magically springing to life. Or the interdimensional filing cabinet hiding in the back of Zayn's office. And, oh, did I mention that my gorgeous, magic-ink-hoarding boss is actually an incubus? Now – through (mostly) no fault of my own – we have to venture into a strange and distant land where a never-ending list of lethal flora, fauna, and fae await us. When you add in my Jewish mother’s string of poorly-timed, hysterical phone calls, there is one thing I’m grateful for: there’s no cell service in the fae realm.

War is coming – and this time, I swear it’s not my fault. Sol and his reanimated Unseelie army are hell-bent on destroying the Seelies once and for all. Worse, he’s stolen the most priceless relic in this land – Zayn’s grimoire – along with my magic-unleashing gilded blood. Oh yeah, and Sol’s claim is slowly killing me (though I’m so pent-up, I might actually die of horniness first). But not all hope is lost. I somehow led the elves through the mountain, arriving at the Summer Palace in one battered, weary piece. Bonus points: I’ve expanded our ad hoc army by two hundred more soldiers – never mind the fact they’re completely untrained, three-foot-tall tommyknockers. And, for better or worse, while Zayn was busy prepping the castle for battle, my loud-mouthed Jewish mother gained the “support” of our equally-shrill family members. Unfortunately, banshees have the power to predict the future, and our outlook isn’t looking so good. The only way we’ll survive the impending war is by finding some mysterious “ally” in the most inhospitable, remote corner of the Fae Realm: a ghost from Zayn’s past who will either help lead the Seelies to salvation…or doom us all.

A lot can change in a week. Seven days ago, I was just Talia – an art school drop-out with an affinity for tattoos, a hopeless crush on my boss, and a knack for finding trouble. Now, I’m a gold-blooded, magic-harnessing, Runemaster-in-training. The good news is, all of that has resulted in one hell of a promotion. Instead of sweeping floors, I’m sweeping swarms of venomous squatters out of castles. I’ve been enrolled in accelerated, hands-on rune lessons – super handy for those, like me, who are death-adverse. Oh, and I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention my incu-boss’s upgraded benefits “package,” which has been particularly generous. Sadly, promotions aren’t just about the perks. There are increased responsibilities as well: amassing a magical army alongside the newfound fae king, repairing centuries-old divisions among the Seelies and Unseelies, and vanquishing a completely unhinged demon lord whose ego may have gotten the teensiest bit damaged when I became the first woman with a pulse to ever spurn his advances (oh, and nearly kill him too). But hey, when you’re the most coveted tattoo artist in two realms, it’s all in a day’s work.

Three years ago, Aspen (as she calls herself), woke up in an abandoned cabin without a single memory. Forced to start her life from scratch and exist entirely off the grid, she’s led a lonely life, but a quiet one... Until now. Suddenly, strange things are happening all around her: phantom tornadoes, exploding fireplaces, massive sink holes – not to mention the strange man that's been following her everywhere she goes. When Aspen audits a college class for a much-needed dose of normalcy, she’s shocked by the assistant professor’s cold disdain for her, and her alone. Their heated confrontation turns a corner when Aspen panics, accidentally shattering every bulb in the classroom. That’s when Aiden realizes what she is... but he's not the only one who’s been paying attention. In her mission to discover who – and what – she is, Aspen must learn to control her powers, navigate her budding feelings for this new and mysterious ally, and, finally, unearth the shocking truth about her past.