Best Selling Books by Ann Aguirre

The Macmillan FIERCE READS Fall 2012 Chapter Sampler includes chapter excerpts from Crewel, Monstrous Beauty, Necromancing the Stone, The Shadow Society, Outpost, and Promised — available for free — check out the Fierce Reads website for more information about these much anticipated new YA reads.

Get ready, science fiction and fantasy fans! Inside this special edition ebook, you get the exclusive chance to read the beginning chapters of seven incredible novels: Eve and Adam by Michael Grant and Katherine Applegate (Feiwel and Friends), Crewel by Gennifer Albin (Farrar Straus Giroux Books for Young Readers), Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo (Henry Holt Books for Young Readers), Cinder by Marissa Meyer (Feiwel and Friends), All These Things I''ve Done by Gabrielle Zevin (Farrar Straus Giroux Books for Young Readers), Enclave by Ann Aguirre (Feiwel and Friends), and Hold Me Closer, Necromancer by Lish McBride (Henry Holt Books for Young Readers).

Download the first five chapters of MORTAL DANGER, the start of a new series by New York Times–bestselling author of the Razorland Trilogy, Ann Aguirre. Revenge is a dish best served cold. Edie Kramer has a score to settle with the beautiful people at Blackbriar Academy. Their cruelty drove her to the brink of despair, and four months ago, she couldn''t imagine being strong enough to face her senior year. But thanks to a Faustian compact with the enigmatic Kian, she has the power to make the bullies pay. She''s not supposed to think about Kian once the deal is done, but devastating pain burns behind his unearthly beauty, and he''s impossible to forget. In one short summer, her entire life changes and she sweeps through Blackbriar, prepped to take the beautiful people down from the inside. A whisper here, a look there, and suddenly . . . bad things are happening. It''s a head rush, seeing her tormentors get what they deserve, but things that seem too good to be true usually are, and soon, the pranks and payback turn from delicious to deadly. Edie is alone in a world teeming with secrets and fiends lurking in the shadows. In this murky morass of devil''s bargains, she isn''t sure who—or what—she can trust. Not even her own mind.

As powerful magic comes creeping back, dangerous days are dawning… Criminal Investigation Division inspectors Janus Mikani and Celeste Ritsuko were lucky to make it out of their last mission alive. Since then, strange troubles have plagued the city of steam and shadows, apparently as a result of magic released during the CID inspectors’ desperate interruption of an ancient ritual. The fabric of the world has been unsettled, and the Council has assigned Mikani and Ritsuko to investigate. They soon discover that matters are worse than they imagined. Machines have developed minds of their own, cragger pirates are raiding the seas with relentless aggression, and mad elementals are running amok. As the chaos builds to a crescendo, Mikani and Ritsuko must fight a war on two fronts—and this time, they may not be able to turn the deadly tide…

Stranger Things meets The Lakehouse in Heartwood Box, a dark, romantic YA suspense novel with an SF edge from New York Times bestselling author Ann Aguirre. In this tiny, terrifying town, the lost are never found. When Araceli Flores Harper is sent to stay with her great-aunt Ottilie in her ramshackle Victorian home, the plan is simple. She’ll buckle down and get ready for college. Life won’t be exciting, but she’ll cope, right? Wrong. From the start, things are very, very wrong. Her great-aunt still leaves food for the husband who went missing twenty years ago, and local businesses are plastered with MISSING posters. There are unexplained lights in the woods and a mysterious lab just beyond the city limits that the locals don’t talk about. Ever. When she starts receiving mysterious letters that seem to be coming from the past, she suspects someone of pranking her or trying to drive her out of her mind. To solve these riddles and bring the lost home again, Araceli must delve into a truly diabolical conspiracy, but some secrets fight to stay buried... At the Publisher''s request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

WELCOME TO HELL The prison ship Perdition, a floating city where the Conglomerate’s most dangerous criminals are confined for life, orbits endlessly around a barren asteroid. Life inside is even more bleak. Hailed as the Dread Queen, inmate Dresdemona “Dred” Devos controls one of Perdition’s six territories, bordered on both sides by would-be kings eager to challenge her claim. Keeping them at bay requires constant vigilance, as well as a steady influx of new recruits to replace the fallen. Survival is a constant battle, and death is the only escape. Of the newest convicts, only one is worth Dred’s attention. The mercenary Jael, with his deadly gaze and attitude, may be the most dangerous criminal onboard. His combat skill could give her the edge she needs, if he doesn''t betray her first. Unfortunately, that''s what he does best. Winning Jael’s allegiance will be a challenge, but failure could be worse than death… FIRST IN A NEW SERIES!

He''s awkward. He''s adorable. He''s alien as hell. Zylar of Kith B''alak is a four-time loser in the annual Choosing. If he fails to find a nest guardian this time, he''ll lose his chance to have a mate for all time. Desperation drives him to try a matching service but due to a freak solar flare and a severely malfunctioning ship AI, things go way off course. This ''human being'' is not the Tiralan match he was looking for.She''s frazzled. She''s fierce. She''s from St. Louis.Beryl Bowman''s mother always said she''d never get married. She should have added a rider about the husband being human. Who would have ever thought that working at the Sunshine Angel daycare center would offer such interstellar prestige? She doesn''t know what the hell''s going on, but a new life awaits on Barath Colony, where she can have any alien bachelor she wants.They agree to join the Choosing together, but love is about to get seriously strange.

This anthology includes short stories from six fierce young adult authors! Inside, you''ll find a futuristic zombie tale from Ann Aguirre, a science fiction thriller from Gennifer Albin, a nautical mermaid story from Elizabeth Fama, a story full of unicorns from Lish McBride, a postapocalyptic story from Caragh O''Brien, and a paranormal alternate future from Marie Rutkowski. This free anthology will give you an exciting taste of the fierceness of these YA authors'' novels. For more information about Fierce Reads, visit our Facebook page.

During the war against murderous, flesh-eating aliens, grimspace \"jumper\" Sirantha Jax decided to go it alone. The cost of her actions: the destruction of modern interstellar travel-and the lives of six hundred Conglomerate soldiers. Now she''s on trial fro dereliction of duty, desertion, mass murder, high treason...and her life.

\"He''s relentless. He''s aggressive. His armor is scarred to hell. Toth Krag is infamous among bounty hunters. Nobody has ever seen his face and lived to tell the tale. He doesn''t fail. He doesn''t quit. And he doesn''t take prisoners. But maybe he''s getting soft. For once, he showed mercy, and no good deed goes unpunished, so now he''s tracking the deadbeats who run Volant''s Fabulous Spectacle. She''s casual. She''s spontaneous. She never liked Earth that much anyway. Yara Duncan is always at the wrong place at the wrong time. That''s how she wound up as the human attraction in a space circus. Frankly, it''s the best gig she''s ever had. Aliens pay to watch her eat and do puzzles, and she gets to see the galaxy free of charge. She''s enjoying the adventure, until the scariest hunter in the universe shows up. For some reason, he thinks she''s in charge, and he''s determined to drag her back to face his employers. Yara doesn''t run from her problems, and Krag doesn''t know what to do with a human who seems more interested in what he looks like under his armor. This time, the hunter becomes the hunted in the wildly unpredictable game of love ...\"--Back cover.

The Conglomerate’s most dangerous convicts have made the prison ship Perdition their home. And they will defend it… Perdition is under siege. Mercenaries have boarded the station with orders to take control of the facility—and execute the prisoners. Their commander is offering full pardons to the first five inmates willing to help the mercs complete their mission. Dresdemona “Dred” Devos hasn’t survived hard time just to surrender to the Conglomerate’s armored thugs. Leading a ragtag army of inmates, Dred and her champion, Jael, wage a bloody guerilla war of chaos and carnage against impossible odds. But no matter how dire the outlook, the Dread Queen never backs down…

This exciting follow-up to the wildly successful Mammoth Book of Vampire Romance contains 30 short stories of hot blood, midnight pleasures, and inhuman passions. Containing the best names in the field, such as Eileen Wilks, Caitlin Kittredge, Jennifer Ashley, Dawn Cook, and Diane Whiteside, this compilation is sure to arouse attention.

He''s cute. He''s cranky. His code is sleek as hell.What''s an amnesiac AI doing in a place like this? Helix has no idea. He knows he planned to build a life for himself on Gravas Station, but he has no clue what he''s been doing for the last half cycle. Nor does he understand why his ship crashed. A genius Tiralan scientist saved him by copying his code into an organic host, and after meeting her meddling mothers, it seems like his problems have only just begun...She''s clever. She''s creative. She claims that he''s her mate.Qalu has no interest in relationships. She''d much rather be working in her lab, innovating instead of socializing. Problem is, the Tiralan believe that one cannot be happy alone. When a solution literally falls from the sky, she leaps at the opportunity to advance her research and teach Helix how to be Tiralan while calming her mothers'' fears. It might be unconventional, but she''s ready to break all the rules for a little peace.They agree to pose as each other''s mates for the most logical reasons, but love always finds a way.

Amarrah Brewer is desperate and grief-stricken.For ages, the town of Bitterburn has sent tribute to the Keep at the End of the World, but a harsh winter leaves them unable to pay the toll that keeps the Beast at bay. Amarrah volunteers to brave what no one has before--to end the threat or die trying.The Beast of Bitterburn has lost all hope.One way or another, Njål has been a prisoner for his entire life. Monstrous evil has left him trapped and lonely, and he believes that will never change. There is only darkness in his endless exile, never light. Never warmth. Until she arrives.It''s a tale as old as time... where Beauty goes to confront the Beast and falls in love instead.

Whenever Corine Solomon touches an object, she immediately knows its history. But her own future concerns her more and more. Now back in Mexico, she''s running her pawnshop and trying to get a handle on her strange new powers, for she might need them. And soon. Then former ally Kel Ferguson walks through her door. Heavily muscled and tattooed, Kel looks like a convict but calls himself a holy warrior. This time, he carries a warning for Corine: the Montoya cartel is coming for her - but they don''t just pack automatic weapons. The Montoyas use warlocks, shamans, voodoo priests - anything to terminate trouble. And Corine has become enemy number one ...

\"When Corine Solomon touches an object, she knows its history. But her own future concerns her more and more. Now back in Mexico, she''s running her pawnshop and trying to get a handle on her strange new powers, for she might need them. And soon. Then former ally Kel Ferguson walks through her door. Muscled and tattooed, Kel looks like a convict but calls himself a holy warrior. He carries a warning for Corine: The Montoya cartel is coming for her--but they don''t pack just automatic weapons. The Montoyas use warlocks, shamans, voodoo priests--anything to terminate trouble. And Corine has become enemy number one ...\"--Page 4 of cover.

New York Times bestselling and critically acclaimed authors Julie Kagawa, Ann Aguirre and Karen Duvall imagine what it takes to survive in a world where everything you know—and love—is about to disappear…forever. Dawn of Eden by Julie Kagawa Before The Immortal Rules, there was Red Lung, a relentless virus determined to take out all in its path. For Kylie, the miracle of her survival is also her burden—as a doctor at one of the clinics for the infected, she is forced to witness endless suffering. What''s worse, strange things are happening to the remains of the dead, and by the time she befriends Ben Archer, she''s beginning to wonder if a global pandemic is the least of her problems…. Thistle & Thorne by Ann Aguirre After a catastrophic spill turns the country into a vast chemical wasteland, those who could afford it retreated to fortresses, self-contained communities run by powerful corporations. But for Mari Thistle, life on the outside—in the Red Zone—is a constant struggle. To protect her family, Mari teams up with the mysterious Thorne Goodman. Together, they''ll face an evil plot in both the underworld of the Red Zone and the society inside the fortresses that could destroy those on the outside…for good. Sun Storm by Karen Duvall Sarah Daggot has been chasing storms since she was a child. But after the biggest solar flares in history nearly destroy the planet, she becomes a Kinetic, endowed by her exposure to extreme radiation with the power to sense coming storms—in the cosmos and beyond. And she''s not the only one. Sarah believes the Kinetics are destined to join forces and halt the final onslaught of the sun. She''ll vow to keep trying to convince the one missing link in their chain of defense, the enigmatic Ian Matthews, up until the world ends.

Imagine what it takes to survive in a world where everything you know— and love—is about to disappear...forever. DAWN OF EDEN BY JULIE KAGAWA

Proud. Imperious. Impassioned. Until three years ago, those words applied to Dominic Asher, the leader of Ash Valley. His family has ruled the feline branch of the Animari for hundreds of years, guiding the pride through perilous times. Unspeakable loss drove him into seclusion, a feral beast nobody can tame. Now he''s wrecked, a leopard king in exile, and he wants nothing more than to die. Fierce. Loyal. Determined. Fortunately for Dom, those words still apply to Pru Bristow, his dead mate''s best friend. She''s had her heart broken too, but she never quits. With the conclave approaching, alliances with the Pine Ridge pack and Burnt Amber clans on the verge of collapse, she''s prepared to do whatever it takes to drag their leader back, before his second can start a war. At best theirs seems like a desperate alliance, but when their mate bond turns hot and fierce, there''s no end to the questions and the doubts. Neither of them expects to fall in love. But sometimes people don''t know what they''re looking for until they find it.

Galaxy Quest meets Roswell in this quirky sci-fi rom-com from New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Ann Aguirre. When alien-enthusiast Jennette Hammond meets her internet friend Seeker at the long-awaited Space Con, little does she know she''s meeting a real alien who''s been stranded on Earth.

Bitter. Broken. Brutal.Molded since childhood to be the perfect weapon, Gavriel d''Alana (also known as Death''s Shadow) has devoted himself to serving Thalia Talfayen. The life of a Noxblade is lethal and lonely, and since the princess has no need of him, he secretly believes there''s no reason for him to live-and he should seek a glorious death-but that''s before he tangles with a tiger woman who unleashes his darkest desires.Tough. Tenacious. Trustworthy.Magda Versai has a reputation for being unattainable-no deep attachments, only discreet amusements. If she has her way, the pride will never learn of her private heartbreak, as she accepted her curse years ago. Now, she focuses on work, which is why she''s acting as Raff''s bodyguard while secretly hunting for Slay. The search leads Mags to team up with a Noxblade so belligerent that she can''t resisting baiting him.She''s the steel, he''s the flint, and the sparks they strike together might kindle a fire that could warm them for a lifetime, if they don''t kill each other first...

Danger stalks the city of steam and shadows. Janus Mikani and Celeste Ritsuko work all hours in the Criminal Investigation Division, keeping citizens safe. He’s a charming rogue with an uncanny sixth sense; she’s all logic—and the division’s first female inspector. Between his instincts and her brains, they collar more criminals than any other partnership in the CID. Then they’re assigned a potentially volatile case in which one misstep could end their careers. At first, the search for a missing heiress seems straightforward, but when the girl is found murdered—her body charred to cinders—Mikani and Ritsuko’s modus operandi is challenged as never before. It soon becomes clear the bogeyman has stepped out of nightmares to stalk gaslit streets, and it’s up to them to hunt him down. There’s a madman on the loose, weaving blood and magic in an intricate, lethal ritual that could mean the end of everything…

\"Ambrose \"Slay\" Slater never thought he''d end up this way. His lover left him for his best friend and while he was distracted, grieving that loss, the Gols captured him, dragged him off to their infernal underground city, where he''s been a prisoner ever since. At first he imagined Ash Valley would immediately mount a rescue, but he might rot in this dungeon before that happens. If need be, he''ll reduce Golgerra to rubble himself because he''s got anger to burn. Rowena has no last name, though she dubbed herself Van Alastor, bound by her promise to the prince who saved her from the pits and earned her loyalty. Born of a forced union between an Eldritch prisoner and a Golgoth guard, she is the only winged Golgoth, unique among her kind. She knew little more than the dungeons and torment until Alastor bought her freedom and added her to his retinue. Desperation drove her to return to the city that tried to destroy her in chains. Knight, meet queen. He is fury. She is vengeance. They will bury Tycho Vega in the rubble, but with both their hearts aching from loss, they never, ever expected to fall in love....\"--Publisher.

He''s heroic. He''s selfless. He''s trying to save everyone. E''nosience has spent a lifetime trying (and failing) to please his progenitor, who is a high-ranking admiral in the Coalition. When they made first-contact on a planet called Earth, he didn''t expect to fall for the ambassador assigned to his delegation. And he never expected to lose her, either. But thanks to a rag-tag group of humans who can play the long odds, he has a second chance with Maddy. And to break free from the admiral''s influence. She''s smart. She''s loyal. She''s trying not to lose everything. Maddy has forgotten more about xeno-studies than others will ever know. She loved being an ambassador, but the diplomatic corp crashed and burned, leaving her jobless. When E''no vowed eternal devotion, then disappeared, she cursed his name. She can fire a weapon or pilot a shuttle, at least in theory, but suddenly, her life is a lot more edge-of-your-seat action than theoretical knowledge. But maybe there''s more to the story. There''s certainly a whole lot of danger in the form of the flagship in low orbit. When very civilized aliens try to enlist a crew of con artists to destroy the world, it''s bound to be a stellar adventure...