Stories by @penguininja

Master of the Grove

When his home is destroyed after an attack, Derin sets out to look for his missing father, captured by soldiers of the Citadel. But he is handicapped by his lameness and forced to use a crutch; his only companion on his quest are an old woman, Marna, and a raven which mysteriously attaches itself to him. Derin's people, upland farmers are caught up in a war between the people of the mountains; governed by the Sacred Circle of the Grove, and those of the plains, ruled by the Council of the Citadel. There should have been peace between them according to the formula devised by Wenborn the Wise. But Krob has seized power by murdering one of the ten members of the Circle, and with the aid of the magical staff of the Grove proceeds to unleash a terrible vengeance against the plains people.

The Keeper

Some believe Bedford, Maine, is cursed. Its bloody past, endless rain, and the decay of its downtown portend a hopeless future. With the death of its paper mill, Bedford's unemployed residents soon find themselves with far too much time to dwell on thoughts of Susan Marley. Once the local beauty, she's now the local whore. Silently prowling the muddy streets, she watches eerily from the shadows, waiting for . . . something. And haunting the sleep of everyone in town with monstrous visions of violence and horror. Those who are able will leave Bedford before the darkness fully ascends. But those who are trapped here-from Susan Marley's long-suffering mother and younger sister to her guilt-ridden, alcoholic ex-lover to the destitute and faithless with nowhere else to go-will soon know the fullest and most terrible meaning of nightmare.

The Wedding Day

For a frazzled, single mom, summer was to be a season of fun, sun, and planning her wedding to the perfect man. Soon her world is turned upside down as uninvited guests turn her summer hideaway into a madhouse.

The Memorist

As a child, Meer Logan was haunted by memories of another time and place, always accompanied by the faint strains of elusive music. Now the past has reached out again in the form of a strange letter that sets her on a journey to Vienna to unlock the mystery of who she once was. With each step, she comes closer to remembering connections between a clandestine reincarnationist society, a lost flute linked to Ludwig van Beethoven, and David Yalom, a journalist who understands all too well how the past affects the future. David knows loss first hand--terrorism is a reality that cost him his family. He's seen every solution promised by security experts around the world--and he's seen every solution fail. Now, in a concert hall in Vienna, he plans to force the world to understand the cost of those failures in a single, violent act.

Bad Boy

Tracie loves those musician types in leather jackets. She's got a weakness for classic bad boys who seem too good to be true ... and usually are. Jon, on the other hand, loves Tracie--and not "just as a friend." But Jon is no bad boy. He's about as good as they come: a khaki-clad tech whiz with stock options in the bank who visits not only his own mother on Mother's Day, but all his father's ex-wives, too. Then, fed up with his forlorn love life, he convinces a skeptical Tracie to teach him some tricks of the trade. With an artful makeover, she succeeds in turning him into a heartbreakingly hot bad boy, and soon it seems half of Seattle's women want Jon to themselves. Including Tracie...

Drop Dead Gorgeous

Laura McNaughton's life is almost perfect. She's young, pretty and she has a fabulous job on a glossy magazine, which involves interviewing celebrities (and air-brushing their personalities). But when she is offered a job presenting a trendy Friday night television show she can't resist the opportunity to experience fame first hand. Putting her puritanical Scottish upbringing, her intellectual boyfriend and her hippy best friend behind her, she soon hooks up with world-famous actress Lucy Lloyd and gorgeous, infamous rock god Ricky Jones, who introduce her to a hedonistic world of partying where appearance is everything and nothing really matters but sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll. But as the stories about her private life become front page news, Laura begins to doubt those closest to her, and her life starts to spiral dangerously out of control. Packed with passion, glamour and danger, DROP DEAD GORGEOUS is a unmissable glimpse into the fame game - and the price you have to pay to play it

A Bridge to Wiseman's Cove

Carl Matt – even his name mocks him. The people of Wattle Beach do their best to grind him under foot.Why are the Matts such pariahs? The answer lies in Wiseman's Cove, a short ride across the strait where Carl finds refuge in the most unlikely place. Wiseman's Cove has been waiting for Carl – waiting a long time.

The Vincent Boys

Ashton is getting tired of being good, of impressing her parents and playing ideal girlfriend to Sawyer Vincent. Sawyer is perfect, a regular Prince Charming, but when he leaves town for the summer, it’s his cousin Beau who catches Ashton’s eye. Beau is the sexiest guy she’s ever seen, and even though he’s dangerous, Ashton is drawn to him. Beau loves his cousin like a brother, so the last thing he wants to do is make a move on Sawyer’s girl. Ashton is off-limits, absolutely. That’s why he does his best to keep his distance, even though he’s been in love with her forever. When Ashton wants to rekindle their childhood friendship in Sawyer’s absence, Beau knows he should say no. Ashton and Beau don’t want to hurt Sawyer. But the more they try to stay away from each other, the more intense their urges become. It’s getting way too hard to resist...

Five Nights at Freddy's: The Silver Eyes

Based on the bestselling horror video game series, Five Nights at Freddy’s follows a young woman named Charlotte, who reunites with her childhood friends on the anniversary of the tragedy that ripped their town apart. It’s been exactly ten years since the murders at Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza, and Charlotte, who goes by the name Charlie, has spent the last ten years trying to forget. Her father had owned Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza and had built its four adult-sized animatronic animals. After meeting up with her friends, curiosity leads them back to the old pizza place, and they find it hidden, but still standing. They discover a way inside, but things are not as they used to be: the four mascots that delighted and entertained them as children have changed. The animatronic animals have a dark secret and a murderous agenda.

The Secret Keeper

During a summer party at the family farm in the English countryside, sixteen-year-old Laurel Nicolson has escaped to her childhood tree house and is happily dreaming of the future. She spies a stranger coming up the long road to the farm and watches as her mother speaks to him. Before the afternoon is over, Laurel will witness a shocking crime. A crime that challenges everything she knows about her family and especially her mother, Dorothy—her vivacious, loving, nearly perfect mother. Now, fifty years later, Laurel is a successful and well-regarded actress living in London. The family is gathering at Greenacres farm for Dorothy’s ninetieth birthday. Realizing that this may be her last chance, Laurel searches for answers to the questions that still haunt her from that long-ago day, answers that can only be found in Dorothy’s past. Dorothy’s story takes the reader from pre–WWII England through the blitz, to the ’60s and beyond. It is the secret history of three strangers from vastly different worlds—Dorothy, Vivien, and Jimmy—who meet by chance in wartime London and whose lives are forever entwined. The Secret Keeper explores longings and dreams and the unexpected consequences they sometimes bring. It is an unforgettable story of lovers and friends, deception and passion that is told—in Morton’s signature style—against a backdrop of events that changed the world.

Kissed by an Angel

Ivy and Tristan have the love of a lifetime--until Tristan dies in a car accident. Now Tristan returns as an angel, but Ivy is unable to feel his presence. He has learned that the person responsible for the car crash is after Ivy. Can he cross the boundaries of life and death to warn Ivy that she is in trouble? He knows he must rescue Ivy, but if he does so his mission will be finished and he will have to leave his true love forever.

Panic

Things are going well for young filmmaker Evan Casher -- until he receives an urgent phone call from his mother, summoning him home. He arrives to find her brutally murdered body on the kitchen floor and a hitman lying in wait for him. It is then he realises his whole life has been a lie. His parents are not who he thought they were, his girlfriend is not who thought she was, his entire existence has been an ingeniously constructed sham. And now that he knows it, he is in terrible danger. Evan's only hope for survival is to discover the truth behind his past