I was fifteen when the Death King came for us with conquest that seemed unstoppable. With a mighty black dragon named Khazmuda and the ability to command the dead like puppets on strings, he raised an army of our fallen soldiers to fight for him—and conquered us in the night using our own warriors turned against us. My father, King Laurier of Scorpion Valley, couldn’t stop him despite his military expertise and fortifications. I tried to flee the palace but came face to face with the man in black armor, the man who looked more like a god than a human with power radiating from him. Instead of killing me like he’d killed so many others, he chose to show me mercy by letting me live, but it didn’t feel like mercy at all. 👑
Not when the next ten years of my life are spent as a slave in the Arid Sands, digging for Black Diamonds from sunrise to sunset under the brutal heat that kills the weak. I’m also the personal slave of General Titan—a man who has grown obsessed with me in ways that make my skin crawl. The work under the hot sun is unbearable with blistered hands and dehydration constant threats, but I prefer it to his company any day because at least the sun doesn’t look at me like I’m property. I’ve never tried to escape because there’s nowhere to run in the desert and the punishment for trying is worse than the slavery, but all of that changes when I hear the news—that the Death King is coming to inspect the mines and I might finally get my chance for revenge or answers. 💎
I sneak out in the middle of the night to steal his dragon Khazmuda, planning to fly away and rally resistance against the Death King’s empire. But that backfires spectacularly in my face—because you can’t steal a dragon who has his own consciousness and loyalties. Khazmuda is no mindless beast controlled by commands. He can speak directly into my mind and hear my thoughts in return, creating an intimate connection I never expected. The Death King is about to kill me for the attempted theft, but Khazmuda changes his mind—because I have the gift that only appears once in a generation. The ability to speak with dragons through mental telepathy. The Death King spares my life once again and takes me back to his castle, having no idea who I am or what he did to my family ten years ago when he conquered Scorpion Valley. He asks me to fight for his cause that he won’t fully explain, but he won’t tell me exactly what that cause is or why he needs dragon speakers. And then he tells me he wants more from me than just my gift, desires me more than any other woman because like him I have the gift that binds us. Penelope Barsetti launches Death Series with romantasy about enemies, dragons, and gifts. 🐉
What makes this essential: A romantasy launching Death Series where at fifteen the Death King with mighty black dragon Khazmuda conquered Scorpion Valley using armies of the dead, sparing narrator who spent ten years as slave digging Black Diamonds under brutal sun and General Titan’s obsession—until sneaking out to steal Khazmuda backfires because dragons can’t be stolen, revealing she has the gift to speak with dragons through mental telepathy, forcing the Death King (who doesn’t know who she is or what he did to her family) to spare her life again, take her to his castle, and desire her more than any other because they share the gift.
Ginny McKensie’s life is spiraling out of control in ways she never imagined when she was planning her future. Finished with college and her degree in hand, she should have been planning her wedding to Josh, the love of her life since sophomore year. After all, Ginny and Josh were made for each other—everyone said so, including their families who were already acting like in-laws. Except the love of her life didn’t agree with that assessment, breaking up with her right before graduation without warning or adequate explanation beyond “I need to find myself.” 💔
Now Ginny is back in her hometown unwillingly single and living with her parents again, stuck in a dead-end job that has nothing to do with her degree because the economy crashed and nobody’s hiring. When she discovers she’s pregnant from their final night together—a goodbye that felt like maybe they’d work things out—Ginny is convinced her life is ending before it’s really started. Instead of planning a future with Josh that includes a career and a home and eventually children when they’re ready, she’s learning the truth about morning sickness that lasts all day, juggling bills she can’t afford on her retail salary, and seeing just how far designer jeans can stretch both literally and metaphorically when you’re broke and showing. 👶
Her life-plan never included dating again with a baby bump (not even with her too-hot new boss who seems interested despite the obvious complications), or being a single mother at 23 when all her college friends are starting careers and traveling. Now with the help of her best friends Annie and Jen who are navigating their own post-college disasters, Ginny must try to re-imagine and rebuild a life she never wanted but is determined to make work somehow. Rachel Schurig delivers humorous fiction about unplanned pregnancy, friendship, and discovering that sometimes the life you get is better than the life you planned even when it doesn’t feel that way at 3 AM with morning sickness. 🌟
What makes this essential: Humorous fiction where Ginny McKensie finishes college ready to plan her wedding to Josh—everyone said they were made for each other—except the love of her life disagrees and breaks up, leaving Ginny back in her hometown unwillingly single in a dead-end job, discovering she’s pregnant and convinced her life is ending, learning about all-day morning sickness and juggling bills while seeing how far designer jeans stretch, forcing her to re-imagine a life she never wanted with help from best friends Annie and Jen as she refuses to date her too-hot new boss despite complications.
I’ve only been with a handful of men in my limited dating history, and all of them are average at best in every measurable category. Intellectually—conversations that never go deeper than sports or weather. Physically—decent but forgettable in ways that make me wonder if this is really all there is. Anatomically, well, let’s just say I’ve learned to manage my expectations downward when it comes to what happens in the bedroom. Then I meet Deacon Hamilton at a professional conference and everything I thought I knew about men gets completely recalibrated. 🔥
Six-foot-something with broad shoulders and that light shadow on his jawline that suggests he could grow a full beard if he wanted. Eyes that are both cruel and kind depending on the context, capable of pinning you in place with intensity. A body molded with strength and discipline that suggests military background or serious athletic training. He’s definitely above average in every single category including ones I didn’t know existed. But intellectually? He’s off the charts in ways that make my conversations with previous boyfriends seem like exchanges with particularly chatty golden retrievers. 💼
A super genius—that’s what I call him after discovering his IQ and his multiple advanced degrees. But he’s not some nerd with his nose stuck in a book, unable to function in social situations or understand basic human interaction. He’s so masculine in ways that feel primal, so commanding when he speaks that people naturally defer to his authority, so everything I never knew I wanted in a man. He’s the man of my dreams built from specifications I didn’t know I had. The man of every woman’s dreams based on how they look at him when he enters a room. I’ve never been with a man so smart that he can explain quantum physics and then shift to discussing literature without missing a beat, but I really like it more than I expected. Victoria Quinn launches Hamilton series with single dad slow burn romance about intelligence being the ultimate aphrodisiac. 🧠
What makes this essential: A single dad slow burn romance launching Hamilton where narrator’s handful of men have all been average—intellectually, physically, anatomically—until meeting Deacon Hamilton, six-foot-something with cruel and kind eyes and a body molded with strength and discipline, who’s above average in every category but intellectually off the charts as a super genius who’s not some nerd but so masculine, commanding, and everything, making her realize she’s never been with a man so smart and she really likes it.
Dallas (The Bull Riders)
He never stopped looking for her. She never stopped needing him. Dallas Dodge has spent his life chasing adrenaline to quiet the demons from a childhood in foster care—first in the system where survival meant staying alert, then in the rodeo arena where eight seconds on a bull is the only time he feels truly alive, the only thing that silences the scars he’s carried since being abandoned as a kid. Riding bulls is dangerous, probably stupid, but it’s the closest thing to peace Dallas knows. But when Sarah Anderson—his former foster sister and the girl he’s never stopped thinking about despite years of separation—shows up on his doorstep desperate and scared, the past he buried comes roaring back with a vengeance. 🤠
Sarah has only ever trusted one person in her entire life: Dallas. Years ago when they were just kids being shuffled through the foster system, they were pulled apart by bureaucracy and sent down very different roads—him to rodeo circuits and adrenaline, her to a life she’s never discussed with anyone. Now Sarah is on the run from a threat she thought she’d escaped years ago but has somehow found her again, and Dallas is the only man who can keep her safe because he’s the only man who’s ever protected her without expecting anything in return. 💔
Bringing her home to Gold Valley should be simple—provide shelter until the danger passes, then go back to their separate lives. But the deeper they fall back into each other’s lives and into something neither of them ever really let go despite the years and distance, the harder it becomes to pretend their connection was only ever in the past or purely familial. She’s not the same girl who left the foster system with hope still intact. He’s not the same boy who tried to save her from every bad placement and failed. But some things never change, and the bond forged in childhood trauma might be the foundation for adult love. Maisey Yates delivers Bull Riders western romance about second chances and healing. 🌟
What makes this essential: A Bull Riders western romance where Dallas Dodge chases adrenaline through rodeo to quiet foster care scars—until former foster sister Sarah Anderson, the girl he never stopped thinking about, shows up desperate on the run from a threat, forcing him to bring her to Gold Valley where falling back into each other’s lives makes pretending their connection was only past or familial impossible as childhood bond becomes adult love.
Leaving is always the hardest decision for abuse survivors, and sometimes the deadliest when abusers refuse to let go. Pregnant and scared after finally finding the courage to escape, Laura Metcalf has finally left her ex-boyfriend who’s spent years making her life miserable through systematic abuse—who controlled her, isolated her from friends and family, and made her feel small and worthless. Now a new fear of her unknown future as a single mother drives her to do whatever she must for her unborn child, even if that means accepting help from people she barely knows. 💔
Cade Sulley’s construction company has a new employee arriving with a recommendation from his best friend—his best friend’s little sister Laura, who comes with more trouble than he can handle based on the warning he received. And a forbidden attraction he can’t resist despite knowing she’s off-limits for multiple reasons: she’s his employee, she’s his best friend’s sister, and she’s clearly running from something dangerous. Trouble is multiplied when his office is ransacked in what appears to be a targeted search, and Laura is attacked in the parking lot, confirming that her ex-boyfriend hasn’t accepted her departure and is escalating his violence. 🏗️
Cade vows to keep Laura safe while pouring his soul into his latest project, a construction job that’s more personal than professional. A project that captures Laura’s heart and gives her new purpose in the shape of a women’s shelter where survivors like her can find refuge and rebuild their lives. But when the attacks on Laura turn deadly with her ex-boyfriend willing to kill rather than lose control, she must learn to trust the one man who’s always been there for her—or lose her life to another man who wants to destroy everything she loves including her unborn child. Danielle M Haas launches Safe Haven Women’s Shelter with action romance about survival, trust, and building something beautiful from trauma. 🏠
What makes this essential: An action adventure romance launching Safe Haven Women’s Shelter where pregnant Laura Metcalf escapes her abusive ex-boyfriend, becoming Cade Sulley’s new construction employee (his best friend’s little sister) with forbidden attraction—his office ransacked and Laura attacked, forcing Cade to protect her while building a women’s shelter project that captures her heart and gives new purpose as attacks turn deadly and she must trust him or lose everything including her unborn child.
They thought they could run the town with impunity. Until they attacked the brother of an ex-Special Forces commando who still has all his skills and none of his patience for bureaucracy. Cole Maddox just moved back to his hometown in Montana after leaving the Army’s most elite unit because his superiors lied to him about a mission that cost good men their lives, and he couldn’t serve under people he didn’t trust anymore. But his town has changed dramatically since he left for the service. A ruthless gang of bikers has flooded it with fentanyl that’s killing kids, and when Cole’s brother defies them by refusing to let them operate through his business, they put him in a coma with a vicious beating meant to send a message. 💀
Big mistake. Attacking Cole’s brother was the worst decision the bikers ever made. Cole unleashes his arsenal of Special Forces skills—tactics learned in classified operations across hostile territories—to take them down methodically and without mercy. However, he soon learns through his investigation and interrogations that the gang is only the bottom layer of a criminal network much larger and deadlier than he imagined, with connections reaching into law enforcement, politics, and organized crime syndicates that make the local bikers look like amateur hour. ⚔️
Can Cole get justice for his brother while keeping himself and those closest to him alive when the entire criminal infrastructure of Montana seems designed to protect the people at the top? Ted Galdi delivers fast-paced, adrenaline-surging military thriller examining what happens when Special Forces training meets small-town loyalty, and whether one man with elite skills can dismantle a network built to be untouchable. The answer involves a lot of tactical planning, some creative violence, and Cole proving that being ex-military doesn’t mean being ex-dangerous. 🎯
What makes this essential: A military thriller where ex-Special Forces commando Cole Maddox returns to his Montana hometown after leaving the Army’s most elite unit over superiors’ lies—discovering a ruthless biker gang flooded it with fentanyl and put his brother in a coma, unleashing his Special Forces arsenal to take them down only to learn the gang is bottom layer of a criminal network much larger and deadlier, forcing him to get justice while keeping everyone alive.
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