A Knight Well Spent

Scotland, 1141. A Norman king's attempts to rule the Highland clans is making his favorite knight's job difficult, indeed--and that is before a woman of mystery lays siege to the warrior's heart. . . She Lives To Heal. . . He's a giant of a man; what's more, he's the enemy. These truths should be enough to send Aislynn running far and fast from the wounded stranger in the woods. But he needs her help--and the reward he bestows changes her forever. . . He Fights To Kill. . . Formidable knight Rhoenne Guy de Ramhurst has been "gifted" with a fiefdom--and the unenviable task of taming the rebellious Highlanders that populate it. He also has a castle full of dissidents, led by his own half brother. Yet these challenges pale in comparison with attempts to forget the healer who saved his life and captured his heart. . . And One Love Rules Them Both. . . Rhoenne believes a family curse places any woman he loves in mortal danger. When Aislynn is abducted by his profligate sibling, Rhoenne becomes her protector--even as he tries to resist her. But Aislynn has secrets of her own--and as deception and danger swirl ever closer around them, the truth may be their only salvation. . . "[A] sexy, lively take. . .romantic and complex." --Library Journal on The Knight Before Christmas "Wonderful. . .with a heroine every woman will admire." --Heather Graham on Lady of The Knight

Collects three tales set in the Scottish Highlands, including Hannah Howell's "Dark Embrace" in which Raibeart MacNachton discovers that he shares a powerful connection with the ethereal beauty he just rescued.

The mysterious and haunting Grail makes its first appearance in literature in Chrétien de Troyes' Perceval at the end of the twelfth century. But Chrétien never finished his poem, leaving an unresolved story and an incomplete picture of the Grail. It was, however, far too attractive an idea to leave. Not only did it inspire quite separate works; his own unfinished poem was continued and finally completed by no fewer than four other writers. The Complete Story of the Grail is the first ever translation of the whole of the rich and compelling body of tales contained in Chrétien's poem and its four Continuations, which are finally attracting the scholarly attention they deserve. Besides Chrétien's original text, there are the anonymous First Continuation (translated here in its fullest version), the Second Continuation attributed to Wauchier de Denain, and the intriguing Third and Fourth Continuations - probably written simultaneously, with no knowledge of each other's work - by Manessier and Gerbert de Montreuil. Two other poets were drawn to create preludes explaining the background to Chrétien's story, and translated here also are their works: The Elucidation Prologue and Bliocadran. Only in this, The Story of the Grail's complete form, can the reader appreciate the narrative skill and invention of the medieval poets and their surprising responses to Chrétien's theme - not least their crucial focus on the knight as a crusader. Equally, Chrétien's original poem was almost always copied in conjunction withone or more of the Continuations, so this translation represents how most medieval readers would have encountered it. Nigel Bryant's previous translations from Medieval French include Perlesvaus - the High Bookof the Grail, Robert de Boron's trilogy Merlin and the Grail, the Medieval Romance of Alexander, The True Chronicles of Jean le Bel and Perceforest.

A comprehensive guide that defines the literature and the outlines the best-selling genre of all time: romance fiction. More than 2,000 romances are published annually, making it difficult for fans and the librarians who advise them to keep pace with new titles, emerging authors, and constant evolution of this dynamic genre. Fortunately, romance expert and librarian Kristin Ramsdell provides a definitive guide to this fiction genre that serves as an indispensible resource for those interested in it—including fans searching for reading material—as well as for library staff, scholars, and romance writers themselves. This title updates the last edition of Romance Fiction: A Guide to the Genre, published in 1999.While the emphasis is on newer titles, many of the important older classics are retained, keeping the focus of the book on the entire genre, instead of only those titles published during the last decade. Specific changes include new chapters on linked and continuing romances, a new section on "Chick Lit" in the Contemporary Romance chapter, an expansion of coverage on the alternative reality subset. This is THE romance genre guide to have.

MEN IN BLACK AT THE REN FAIRE! John Rast went to the Ren Faire looking for a fight. Well, a simulated fight, with blunt swords and safety equipment. But when his final opponent turns into a living, fire-breathing dragon, John finds himself in the fight of his life. It’s John or nothing stopping a disaster in its tracks—and the only real weapon at hand is his mom’s Volvo. So John decides to let it roll . . . And that's when destiny comes to call. John is spirited away to the well-hidden base of Knight Watch, the organization that stands between humanity and the real nasties the rest of the world doesn’t know about. Knight Watch would be John’s dream job—except for the storm goddess that destroys his parents’ house, the abandoned mall replete with too much dead, and the Fetch that aims to make John’s domain a final resting place. All this has John’s putative allies in the Knight Watch worried that John is the one bringing bad things into multiple worlds. John and his reluctant teammates have to figure out who, or what, is pulling the strings before all of Knight Watch falls prey to a well-concealed puppetmaster and far worse things enter this world. About Knight's Watch: “Buckle up and get ready for a fun ride. Tim Akers delivers an epic story about weekend ren fair warriors versus actual monsters. Best fictional use of a Volvo station wagon ever.”—Larry Correia About Tim Akers: “A must for all epic fantasy fans.”—Starburst “Full of strong world building, cinematic and frequent battle scenes, high adventure, great characters, suspense, and dramatic plot shifts, this is an engaging, fast-paced entry in a popular subgenre."—Booklist (starred review) “Take a bit of fantasy, mix in the horror of the demonic, and put in some top-notch writing and you’ll have Akers’ latest novel.”—Hellnotes “Fast-paced . . . an epic fantasy story with action, intrigue and a good story.” —RPG “Delivers enough twists and surprises to keep readers fascinated...contains action, grittiness, magic, intrigue and well created characters.”—Rising Shadow “An extremely well-developed secondary world.”—SF Signal

Ser Genevieve, lady knight and heir to the Duchy of Teagan, has been chosen as part of the prince’s honor guard at his coming out ball - a high honor for a woman who’s only been a full fledged knight for a year. The ball is an opportunity for Genevieve to make a name for herself with a functional chainmail dress of her own design, and maybe a chance for her to properly get to know Duke Avery of Wolvington, a man she’s had a quiet crush on for years. The paths of a gentle blacksmith, a know-it-all nonbinary tailor, and Genevieve’s talented witch of a younger sister cross in their determination to make Ser Genevieve a knight to remember.