In the Civilized World, everyone is rich, yet money doesn’t buy safety. It only buys a gold coffin. The real currency is having the right allies. Low-citizens survive by joining high-citizens’ exclusive inner circles, trading loyalty for protection from laws that govern speech, dress, and posture—and punish mistakes with public beheading. Low-citizen Loredana Waldsten already knows the cost of breaking the rules. Once a rising fencing prodigy, she lost the right to carry weapons after killing a high-citizen in a brutal locker-room attack. The courts erased his death to preserve his family’s honor. Now she’s unarmed, legally defenseless, and enrolled at the elite Grandmaster University, where champagne spills into the gutters and reputations are built on death duels. When Loredana’s father, a low-citizen politician, publicly challenges the high-citizens, she becomes a target. Some classmates demand her execution. Others hunt her for sport. And by law, she’s forbidden to fight back. Her only chance of survival lies with Edmund Prew, a powerful and ruthless high-citizen student she’s been warned against. His family has been locked in a bitter feud with Loredana’s for years, and he wants nothing to do with her until a lost bet forces him to protect her within his inner circle. What begins as a scandalous, strategic alliance turns perilous as they fall for each other. Because the man Loredana killed was more than an average high-citizen. And if Edmund ever learns the truth, the only person keeping Loredana alive may become the one most determined to kill her.

In the Civilized World, everyone is rich, yet money doesn’t buy safety. It only buys a gold coffin. The real currency is having the right allies. Low-citizens survive by joining high-citizens’ exclusive inner circles, trading loyalty for protection from laws that govern speech, dress, and posture—and punish mistakes with public beheading. Low-citizen Loredana Waldsten already knows the cost of breaking the rules. Once a rising fencing prodigy, she lost the right to carry weapons after killing a high-citizen in a brutal locker-room attack. The courts erased his death to preserve his family’s honor. Now she’s unarmed, legally defenseless, and enrolled at the elite Grandmaster University, where champagne spills into the gutters and reputations are built on death duels. When Loredana’s father, a low-citizen politician, publicly challenges the high-citizens, she becomes a target. Some classmates demand her execution. Others hunt her for sport. And by law, she’s forbidden to fight back. Her only chance of survival lies with Edmund Prew, a powerful and ruthless high-citizen student she’s been warned against. His family has been locked in a bitter feud with Loredana’s for years, and he wants nothing to do with her until a lost bet forces him to protect her within his inner circle. What begins as a scandalous, strategic alliance turns perilous as they fall for each other. Because the man Loredana killed was more than an average high-citizen. And if Edmund ever learns the truth, the only person keeping Loredana alive may become the one most determined to kill her.

A Briar universe standalone romance featuring the next generation Off-Campus characters—where one unforgettable summer changes everything After a brutal breakup, college junior Blake Logan escapes to her family's lake house in Tahoe, determined to shut out the world. Her plan is simple: no men, no drama. Until Wyatt Graham shows up. Four years older and far too good at getting under her skin, Wyatt is the living embodiment of a "bad idea," and the guy who shattered her pride when she confessed her crush at sixteen. With his music career stalled, Wyatt has come to Tahoe for inspiration. The last thing he expects is to find it with Blake. He's spent years keeping his distance, convinced he's all wrong for her, but she's no longer the innocent girl he once knew. She's confident, captivating, and impossible to ignore. And the slow-burning tension between them? It's catching fire fast. They both know this can't last, but one reckless kiss turns into another, and soon they're tangled in something that feels dangerously like more. Just as they finally give in to the pull, tragedy tears them apart, leaving their hearts in pieces. But forgetting that one, nearly perfect summer? Not a chance. And when fate brings them together again, Blake and Wyatt must decide if this is a second chance...or the final verse.

A Briar universe standalone romance featuring the next generation Off-Campus characters—where one unforgettable summer changes everything After a brutal breakup, college junior Blake Logan escapes to her family's lake house in Tahoe, determined to shut out the world. Her plan is simple: no men, no drama. Until Wyatt Graham shows up. Four years older and far too good at getting under her skin, Wyatt is the living embodiment of a "bad idea," and the guy who shattered her pride when she confessed her crush at sixteen. With his music career stalled, Wyatt has come to Tahoe for inspiration. The last thing he expects is to find it with Blake. He's spent years keeping his distance, convinced he's all wrong for her, but she's no longer the innocent girl he once knew. She's confident, captivating, and impossible to ignore. And the slow-burning tension between them? It's catching fire fast. They both know this can't last, but one reckless kiss turns into another, and soon they're tangled in something that feels dangerously like more. Just as they finally give in to the pull, tragedy tears them apart, leaving their hearts in pieces. But forgetting that one, nearly perfect summer? Not a chance. And when fate brings them together again, Blake and Wyatt must decide if this is a second chance...or the final verse.

The sizzling, darkly seductive Ravenhood saga continues in the second in the spin-off Ravenhood Legacy series. the book that fans of this internationally bestselling series have been clamoring for—Tyler’s story, in his own words . . . Tyler Carter Jennings is an enigma. Charged with the task of guarding the Ravenhood as well as every secret of those who belong to it, he keeps those burdens, along with his past and personal heartbreak, to himself. A highly trained Marine and tactical reckoning force, there’s never been a situation he couldn’t handle . . . until her. Larissa DiCicco is all too familiar with the burden of secrets and their consequences. A member of one of the most powerful and influential families in the world, she was just a teenager when her older brother disappeared. Charged with the burden of maintaining her family’s legacy, she has no choice but to seek refuge in the only man who may be able to help her escape her fate. It’s when Larissa and Tyler collide that they both recognize just how powerful of adversaries they are. And that losing their hearts to one another while unveiling their secrets might be the most damning and dangerous thing they’ve ever done.

The sizzling, darkly seductive Ravenhood saga continues in the second in the spin-off Ravenhood Legacy series. the book that fans of this internationally bestselling series have been clamoring for—Tyler’s story, in his own words . . . Tyler Carter Jennings is an enigma. Charged with the task of guarding the Ravenhood as well as every secret of those who belong to it, he keeps those burdens, along with his past and personal heartbreak, to himself. A highly trained Marine and tactical reckoning force, there’s never been a situation he couldn’t handle . . . until her. Larissa DiCicco is all too familiar with the burden of secrets and their consequences. A member of one of the most powerful and influential families in the world, she was just a teenager when her older brother disappeared. Charged with the burden of maintaining her family’s legacy, she has no choice but to seek refuge in the only man who may be able to help her escape her fate. It’s when Larissa and Tyler collide that they both recognize just how powerful of adversaries they are. And that losing their hearts to one another while unveiling their secrets might be the most damning and dangerous thing they’ve ever done.

Tame her wild. Fan his flame. A Burgeoning Peace Two realms sit on the edge—not only of the physical chasms that divide them, but of the fragile truce forged between Arcanians and humans in the wake of the Arcane Crucible. A Shadow Unleashed Elyria Lightbreaker may have survived the Celestial Sanctum, but she remains haunted by all that occurred, all that she did, within. Determined to reclaim the Crown of Concord and unmask the dark sorcerer behind its theft, she must master her own inner darkness if she’s to survive the journey ahead—and untangle the dangerous feelings pulling her toward Cedric. A Victor Unmoored Cedric Thorne sacrificed everything to conquer the trials. Now, burdened by a power he cannot control and truths he refuses to face, he finds himself in a kingdom splintering beneath the surface—and bound to Elyria by something he cannot, will not, sever. But some secrets are meant to stay buried, and uncovering them could be the key to lasting peace . . . or the spark that ends it. A Bond Reforged As twin victors of the Crucible, Elyria and Cedric soon learn there are many roles they must play in the pursuit of a new Arcanis. With enemies lurking in plain sight, they will have to fight with a whole new array of weapons, all the while trying to understand the bond that thrums between them: reforged, rekindled, renewed. Now the real game begins. SPLINTERED KINGDOM is the sequel to Smoke and Scar and the second book in the Shattered Crown trilogy, an epic romantic fantasy series perfect for fans of high stakes, character-driven plots, rich world-building, a diverse cast of characters, elemental magic, and tension-filled romance—and authors like Carissa Broadbent, Helen B. Scheuerer, Raven Kennedy, Leigh Bardugo, and Sarah J. Maas. Content note: This book contains strong language, adult themes, and open door spice, and is thus recommended for readers above the age of 18.

Tame her wild. Fan his flame. A Burgeoning Peace Two realms sit on the edge—not only of the physical chasms that divide them, but of the fragile truce forged between Arcanians and humans in the wake of the Arcane Crucible. A Shadow Unleashed Elyria Lightbreaker may have survived the Celestial Sanctum, but she remains haunted by all that occurred, all that she did, within. Determined to reclaim the Crown of Concord and unmask the dark sorcerer behind its theft, she must master her own inner darkness if she’s to survive the journey ahead—and untangle the dangerous feelings pulling her toward Cedric. A Victor Unmoored Cedric Thorne sacrificed everything to conquer the trials. Now, burdened by a power he cannot control and truths he refuses to face, he finds himself in a kingdom splintering beneath the surface—and bound to Elyria by something he cannot, will not, sever. But some secrets are meant to stay buried, and uncovering them could be the key to lasting peace . . . or the spark that ends it. A Bond Reforged As twin victors of the Crucible, Elyria and Cedric soon learn there are many roles they must play in the pursuit of a new Arcanis. With enemies lurking in plain sight, they will have to fight with a whole new array of weapons, all the while trying to understand the bond that thrums between them: reforged, rekindled, renewed. Now the real game begins. SPLINTERED KINGDOM is the sequel to Smoke and Scar and the second book in the Shattered Crown trilogy, an epic romantic fantasy series perfect for fans of high stakes, character-driven plots, rich world-building, a diverse cast of characters, elemental magic, and tension-filled romance—and authors like Carissa Broadbent, Helen B. Scheuerer, Raven Kennedy, Leigh Bardugo, and Sarah J. Maas. Content note: This book contains strong language, adult themes, and open door spice, and is thus recommended for readers above the age of 18.