Painted Devils

Let's get one thing straight - Vanja Schmidt wasn't trying to start a cult. A scrappy former maid and jewel thief must outwit gods, injustice, and her own past in this sequel to Little Thieves by Margaret Owen. After taking down a corrupt margrave, breaking a deadly curse, and finding romance with the vexingly scrupulous junior prefect Emeric Conrad, Vanja had one great mystery left: her long-lost birth family . . . and whether they would welcome a thief. But in her search for an honest trade, she hit trouble and invented a god, the Scarlet Maiden, to scam her way out. Now that lie is growing out of control - especially when Emeric arrives to investigate and the Scarlet Maiden manifests to claim him as a virgin sacrifice. For his final test to become a prefect, Emeric must determine whether Vanja is guilty of serious fraud or if the Scarlet Maiden - and her claim to him - is genuine. Meanwhile, Vanja is chasing an alternative sacrifice that could be their way out. The hunt leads her not only into the lairs of monsters and the paths of gods, but the ties of her past. And with what should be the simplest way to save Emeric hanging over their heads, he and Vanja must face a more dangerous question: Is there a future for a thief and a prefect, and at what price?

An Instant New York Times Bestseller! An Instant Indies Bestseller! A scrappy former maid and jewel thief must outwit gods, injustice, and her own past in this sequel to the Indie Next Pick, Little Thieves by Margaret Owen. Let's get one thing straight - Vanja Schmidt wasn't trying to start a cult. After taking down a corrupt margrave, breaking a deadly curse, and finding romance with the vexingly scrupulous junior prefect Emeric Conrad, Vanja had one great mystery left: her long-lost birth family . . . and whether they would welcome a thief. But in her search for an honest trade, she hit trouble and invented a god, the Scarlet Maiden, to scam her way out. Now that lie is growing out of control—especially when Emeric arrives to investigate and the Scarlet Maiden manifests to claim him as a virgin sacrifice. For his final test to become a prefect, Emeric must determine if Vanja is guilty of serious fraud or if the Scarlet Maiden—and her claim to him—is genuine. Meanwhile, Vanja is chasing an alternative sacrifice that could be their way out. The hunt leads her not only into the lairs of monsters and the paths of gods, but also the ties of her past. And with what should be the simplest way to save Emeric hanging over their heads, he and Vanja must face a more dangerous question: Is there a future for a thief and a prefect, and at what price? From the indie bestselling author Margaret Owen comes the thrilling next installment in the Little Thieves trilogy with all new interior illustrations from the author.

TALES OF HORROR FROM ENGLAND.

"Gorgeous prose, delicious magic." - V.E. Schwab YALSA Best Fiction for Young Adults Selection Kids' Indie Next Pick Amazon Best Book A scrappy maid must outsmart both palace nobles and Low Gods in a new YA fantasy by Margaret Owen, author of the Merciful Crow series. Once upon a time, there was a horrible girl... Vanja Schmidt knows that no gift is freely given, not even a mother’s love—and she’s on the hook for one hell of a debt. Vanja, the adopted goddaughter of Death and Fortune, was Princess Gisele's dutiful servant up until a year ago. That was when Vanja’s otherworldly mothers demanded a terrible price for their care, and Vanja decided to steal her future back... by stealing Gisele’s life for herself. The real Gisele is left a penniless nobody while Vanja uses an enchanted string of pearls to take her place. Now, Vanja leads a lonely but lucrative double life as princess and jewel thief, charming nobility while emptying their coffers to fund her great escape. Then, one heist away from freedom, Vanja crosses the wrong god and is cursed to an untimely end: turning into jewels, stone by stone, for her greed. Vanja has just two weeks to figure out how to break her curse and make her getaway. And with a feral guardian half-god, Gisele’s sinister fiancé, and an overeager junior detective on Vanja’s tail, she’ll have to pull the biggest grift yet to save her own life. Margaret Owen, author of The Merciful Crow series, crafts a delightfully irreverent retelling of “The Goose Girl” about stolen lives, thorny truths, and the wicked girls at the heart of both.

"Adraa and Jatin are royal heirs of their respective kingdoms, masterful with magic, and their arranged marriage will unite two of Wickery's most powerful territories--except, they don't get along. Now, with the criminal underbelly suddenly making a move for control, the pair must learn to put their trust in the other if either is to uncover the real threat"--]cProvided by publisher.

A Tor.com Best of 2019 Pick A 2020 YALSA Best Fiction for Young Adults Pick Debut author Margaret Owen crafts a powerful saga of vengeance, survival, and sacrifice—perfect for fans of Leigh Bardugo and Kendare Blake—in The Merciful Crow. "Packed to the teeth with fresh worldbuilding and righteous fury...It's a ride that is wildly fun."—Emily A. Duncan, New York Times-bestselling author of Wicked Saints "Rich, harrowing, and unafraid to tackle discrimination—perfect for fans of Leigh Bardugo and Tomi Adeyemi."—Kirkus, Starred Review One way or another, we always feed the crows. A future chieftain Fie abides by one rule: look after your own. Her Crow caste of undertakers and mercy-killers takes more abuse than coin, but when they’re called to collect royal dead, she’s hoping they’ll find the payout of a lifetime. A fugitive prince When Crown Prince Jasimir turns out to have faked his death, Fie’s ready to cut her losses—and perhaps his throat. But he offers a wager that she can’t refuse: protect him from a ruthless queen, and he’ll protect the Crows when he reigns. A too-cunning bodyguard Hawk warrior Tavin has always put Jas’s life before his, magically assuming the prince’s appearance and shadowing his every step. But what happens when Tavin begins to want something to call his own?

In the sequel to A Darker Magic, a grown-up Emily and her niece, Alice, return to Caledon to confront the dark forces of an evil magic. Facing pressures at home and the expectations of her pregnant mom, Alice can’t accept a summer job staging a Punch-and-Judy show at the library fast enough. As the show draws nearer, mysterious and frightening events take place and Alice’s strange Aunt Emily suspects that the truth might lie buried in the past. Will she and Alice be able to discover the dreadful secret that is sabotaging the puppet show in enough time to save themselves?

Unsealing the hatch of a rusty old WWII tank will unleash a demonic nightmare in this novel by “the master of modern horror” (Library Journal). Thirty-five years have passed since the Allied invasion of Normandy on D-Day turned the tide of World War II against Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Reich, and it’s been more than three decades since the residents of the tiny French village of Le Vey witnessed the horrific slaughter of hundreds of German soldiers by thirteen black tanks. One of the tanks remains on the outskirts of town—its hatch mysteriously sealed, trapping its controller inside—only to be discovered by American surveyor and cartographer Dan McCook. Driven by curiosity and an inexplicable compulsion, McCook is about to do the unthinkable and release what lives within the tank upon an unsuspecting world. And once the monstrous occupant reunites with others of its demonic kind, a new world war will begin, one that threatens to wash the earth in blood and drag every man, woman, and child through the fiery gates of hell. A chilling and ingeniously original tale of demonic possession and apocalyptic possibilities, The Devils of D-Day is classic horror at its best, from the award-winning author of The Manitou.