Books Edited By Jude Dunn

Word Count: Click here to reveal80000 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealGay, Non Binary, Transgender (Click here to hide)

Summary: Beware the demon prince who's sick and tired of running. Federico Duomo is dead, to begin with. But this is only the first bit of Shax's problems resolved. Powerful crime lords and an obscenely wealthy oligarch are still determined to destroy him and his crew, and Fluffy's original owner may be coming after the Brimstone now, too. It would be splendid to be able to take on one thing at a time. Adding to the external conflicts, life on board the Brimstone has only grown increasingly stranger. Shax has no idea what to do with the seven partly human children that Heckle rescued from slavers. Heckle himself has grown short-tempered, even with Mac. Someone from Julian's past catches up to them on Barbary. It's enough to put a demon off his cinnamon buns. Shax isn't panicking, though. In fact he's had it up to his handsome royal nose with the people he loves having to live in constant fear. The fox has turned at bay and the Brimstone's enemies are in for a shock. The demon prince of thieves is coming for them.

Word Count: Click here to reveal76600 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealGay, Polyamorous (Click here to hide)

Summary: The Fredamine Project was just the beginning. Shadow dealings and conspiracies regarding variants intertwine until Damien and his cohorts can no longer tell who the bad guys are. Several months have passed since Blaze and the infamous Variant activist Shudder McKenzie helped Damien rescue the captives of the sinister Fredamine Project. Professionally, everything's great. He's back to working with Damien again and they have a new lead on the three kids who are still missing. Personally, not so much. Blaze has made his peace with Shudder, though nothing between them has even been easy, but his relationship with Damien has taken several steps back. Blaze no longer has any idea where he stands. Adding to the tense atmosphere are the anti-Variant members of legislature who have been slowly gaining popular approval, and the cryptic messages Damien receives from an unknown source. Shudder's back to his old haunts and his old tricks, trying to raise public awareness of imperiled Variant rights—such as the draconic Horace Act that strips due process during Variant trials—and to rescue Variant kids in trouble. His almost mythical luck runs out though when he's arrested for murder only three days after the passage of the Horace Act and a whirlwind trial and sentencing lands him in the most notorious maximum security facility for Variants—San Judas Tadeo. ​ With too many conspirators on both sides of the aisle, Damien, Blaze and Shudder no longer know whom to trust. Peeling through the layers of deceit and half-truths puts them on shakier ground with every discovery and in greater danger than ever before. Variant Configurations takes place in a future Earth where humanity is reclaiming its spot in a gradually healing world. This book contains mentions of past abuse, action-adventure style mayhem, and the sparks of a slow burn, series-spanning relationship.

Word Count: Click here to reveal24715 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealDemisexual, Lesbian (Click here to hide)

Summary: Offend the Frost King? Get kicked from the Court. Land in the jaws of a living dinosaur?   Ink, the black ice fairy, isn't shocked that his frostiness banished her, but she's shocked to find herself sent to a swamp. It's hot, sticky and mucky—an ice fae's worst nightmare. Banishment means she's stuck with the heat and the stupid, hungry alligators. She's gone from knowing all the rules of her world to knowing absolutely nothing about existing in her soggy new home. At least the draiad guardian's kinda nice, though what the hell is a draiad? A thunderous boom and an ice fae being dropped into her swamp interrupted Pickerel's quiet, contemplative day of preserving flowers. The fae is abrasive, just shy of rude, and apparently unable to leave. The last thing Pickerel needs this close to the winter solstice celebration is another responsibility. But she can't ignore her host obligations, nor can she deny the fae is rather attractive. When dangerously reckless human poachers invade the swamp, all other concerns evaporate. Ink and Pickerel must learn to work together, combining their knowledge and their wildly different talents to combat the threat to the wildlife and the peace of the swamp. And—oh no—they might even have to admit they like each other.   Ice + Alligators is a novella that contains talkative squirrels, a mischievous and overly opinionated alligator, and a shy but grumpy fae who might've found a caring nature spirit who is everything she needed.

Word Count: Click here to reveal68810 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealGay (Click here to hide)

Summary: Variant children are vanishing at an alarming rate. It will take a uniquely mismatched pair of trackers to untangle a web of conspiracy and misdirection to find them. In his isolated cabin, variant Damien Hazelwood avoids human contact as much as possible to prevent attacks of blind berserker panic. But his rare talent as a locator makes him the go-to contractor for tricky missing person's cases and when agents bring him a troubling contract involving missing variant children, he finds it impossible to refuse. Licensed tracker Blaze Emerson can't help being irritated when he's expected to follow the strange, twitchy locator's lead on his latest case. He works alone, he's damn good, and as a variant sparker, he has both the fire and the firepower to take on anything out there. Though he has to admit there's something intriguing about a man who can find people with his brain. ​ With vastly different temperaments and backgrounds, Damien and Blaze need to negotiate quickly how to work together if they're going to crack this case. Add in the sudden appearance of Blaze's outlaw ex, the perils of tracking in the wilds, and a maddening lack of discernible motive or method, and they soon find themselves in as much danger as the kids they're trying to rescue. Variant Configurations takes place in a future Earth where humanity is reclaiming its spot in a gradually healing world. This book contains mentions of past abuse, action-adventure style mayhem, and the beginning sparks of a slow burn, series-spanning relationship.

Word Count: Click here to reveal14000 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealBisexual, Lesbian (Click here to hide)

Summary: As a security officer on an interspecies ship, Growlan Raskli's experienced in heading off species-specific aberrant behaviors in order to keep the peace. But when her captain asks her to find out what's bothering their sole human crew member, Raskli's out of her depths. She hardly knows anything about humans and she's not a psych doctor. Something's definitely upset Human Jen, something to do with human holidays. The more time Raskli spends studying humans and interacting with the intriguing Human Jen, the more personal the assignment becomes. Determined to lift the dark cloud from Human Jen, Raskli will do whatever it takes—within safe parameters, of course.

Word Count: Click here to reveal9200 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealGay (Click here to hide)

Summary: A Secret Santa Gift Exchange offers more than gifts to two co-workers. It opens a path to talk, learn more about secrets, and deal with a bully. Quiet, strait-laced David Appleton thinks he’s going to have a problem at work. A new co-worker discovers his secret in the locker room. Unable to confront someone, David let him walk away. Now he worries everyone will know his deepest held secret. A secret hidden under his signature vest, tie, and trousers. Since walking in on his co-worker, CJ O’Connell tries to get a moment to speak with the shy David, but nothing works. His last hope – the Secret Santa Gift Exchange party. Perhaps a special gift can peel away the secrets.

Word Count: Click here to reveal22000 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealGay, Transgender (Click here to hide)

Summary: Javier Fernandez is a climate scientist living in a research station near the South Pole. Since his husband was killed in a car crash, he’s preferred to be alone, and is less than thrilled to have a junior scientist thrust upon him by his rich patron. Col Steele is a trans man fleeing a bad break-up. He is ready for the next step in his career, and eager to spend Christmas anywhere but at home. When a crack in the ice separates the two men from safety, they are forced to come to terms with their own losses and each other. About the Escape From the Holidays series: For the second year in a row, Mischief Corner Books is putting out a winter holiday collection – ten stories revolving around various December holidays: The end of year holidays can get overwhelming for anyone. Things to do. People to see. Last minute work obligations to take care of. Sometimes it’s just easier to escape from it all, running away from the responsibilities and expectations, or ignore the underlying disappointment from relatives who don’t see eye-to-eye with you. Because escaping the holiday grind can lead to new, unexpected paths, and breathe new life into one that’s been stuck in a rut. Giving something to run to instead. Sometimes, getting away from it all lets you know what you really have. Sometimes, taking a chance on the unknown leads to what you really want.

Word Count: Click here to reveal59337 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealGay, Transgender (Click here to hide)

Summary: The Brimstone. Demon owned and—mostly—demon operated. Shax, an exiled prince of Hell, has gathered only the best misfits for his motley crew. You've been with us from the rescue of a runaway angel in a psychedelic nightmare jungle to the house that Poe built. Now share some in-between moments with the Brimstone crew – flash fiction snippets plucked from various spots in each personal timeline, from Shax and Verin's youth in Hell to after the events of Beside a Black Tarn. The Brimstone Journals, Collection Two also includes an exclusive short story, never published as part of the blog series. Leopold meets his formidable grandmama, much to his father's dismay.

Word Count: Click here to reveal34000 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealGay (Click here to hide)

Summary: Dwyn is a young man in the small, isolated northern town of Manicouga, son of the Minstor, and betrothed to marry the beautiful Kessa in a few weeks. Mael is shepherding the remains of his own people from Land’s End, a village farther north, chased out by a terrible storm that destroyed the town. Both are trying to find their way in a post-apocalyptic world. When they meet, their love may change the course of history.

Word Count: Click here to reveal115000 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealBisexual, Gay, Straight, Transgender (Click here to hide)

Summary: A group of strangers meets at Ragazzi, an Italian restaurant, for a cooking lesson that will change them all. They quickly become intertwined in each other's lives, and a bit of magic touches each of them. Meet Dave, the consultant who lost his partner; Matteo and Diego, the couple who run the restaurant; recently-widowed Carmelina; Marcos, a web designer getting too old for hook-ups; Ben, a trans author writing the Great American Novel; teenager Marissa, kicked out for being bi; and Sam and Brad, a May-September couple who would never have gotten together without a little magic of their own. Everyone in the River City has a secret, and sooner or later secrets always come out.

Word Count: Click here to reveal115000 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealBisexual, Gay, Straight, Transgender (Click here to hide)

Summary: A group of strangers meets at Ragazzi, an Italian restaurant, for a cooking lesson that will change them all. They quickly become intertwined in each other's lives, and a bit of magic touches each of them. Meet Dave, the consultant who lost his partner; Matteo and Diego, the couple who run the restaurant; recently-widowed Carmelina; Marcos, a web designer getting too old for hook-ups; Ben, a trans author writing the Great American Novel; teenager Marissa, kicked out for being bi; and Sam and Brad, a May-September couple who would never have gotten together without a little magic of their own. Everyone in the River City has a secret, and sooner or later secrets always come out. Narrated by Michael Lysan.

Word Count: Click here to reveal35454 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealAce, Gay (Click here to hide)

Summary: A poltergeist haunts Taro, dogging his international travels. It washes glasses, puts dishes away, and even dusts. At least he hopes it's a cleaning-obsessed poltergeist and not his own anxieties burbling over into neat freak fits he doesn't remember. When his property manager suggests he call paranormal expert, Jack Montrose, Taro's skeptical but desperate enough to try even a ghost hunter. Jack's arrival crushes Taro's hopes of a dashing Van Helsing-style hero. Instead of an invincible hunter, he gets Ichabod Crane. As the paranormal puzzles multiply and Jack begins to suggest the entity might not be a ghostly one, Taro adds a budding friendship with Jack to his pile of anxieties. It's a race to see whether Taro's poltergeist or his relationship with the obviously-not-ace Jack will reach maximum strangeness first.