Cover Spotlight:Fantasy and Paranormal in 2009

I guess I was bored, and this is what you find when you’re bored, hopefully – things of interest (And then I just couldn’t stop searching, when I really needed to be reading). Check out some hot-looking and sounding paranormal and fantasy books coming in 2009.

I blogged before about this new series, the Marked series, a while back. S.J. Day is another name for historical romance and erotic romance writer Sylvia Day. The first book in her newest series above releases April 28, 2009, with the following two books, Eve of Destruction and Eve of Chaos, releasing in June of 2009. From the back cover:

Cursed by God, hunted by demons, desired by Cain and Abel… All in a day’s work.

For Evangeline Hollis, a long-ago fling with a bad boy from the wrong side of the tracks just became a disaster of biblical proportions. One night with a leather-clad man of mystery has led to a divine punishment: the Mark of Cain.

Thrust into a world where sinners are drafted to kill demons, Eve knows her learning curve must be short. A longtime agnostic, she begrudgingly maneuvers through a celestial bureaucracy where she is a valuable but ill-treated pawn. She’s also become the latest point of contention in the oldest case of sibling rivalry in history…

But she’ll worry about all that later. Right now she’s more concerned with learning to kill while staying alive. And saving the soul she’d never quite believed she had.

A really good, recent hit with me, I’m already craving this second in Devon Monk’s wonderful urban fantasy series set in Portland, Oregon. Magic in the Blood releases May 5, 2009. No cover blurb yet, but check out the author’s site for future info.

I’ve been struck by the cover gods! What a gorgeous, lovely eye catcher of a cover. And the story doesn’t sound half bad either. First in a new series (I believe) by erotic romance writer Jory Strong, this particular offering is pure fantasy (I think?? Might be erotic? Dunno.) from Berkley Trade. Releases April 7, 2009. From the back cover:

In a post-Apocalyptic world where supernaturals have emerged from hiding, wealthy humans delight in decadence while the religious gain power through temptation. For the masses, fear reigns from birth to death, and the afterlife holds beings that only the bravest can summon—or dare to desire…

Taken from her home and family, shamaness Aisling McConaughey has no choice except to enter the “ghostlands” in order to learn the fate of a wealthy man’s mistress. But there is always a price to pay for the use of her power. To save the woman’s life she must summon the Djinn prince Zurael en Caym—and yield to his savage, sensual rage.

Zurael fears nothing except being called and bound to a human’s will. He intends to kill Aisling after she’s served as bait to find an enemy in possession of an ancient tablet. But the more he tastes of her innocent spirit, the more he’ll use his fiery touch and seductive whispers to keep her hungry for his mercy—even as they weave an erotic spell that he cannot escape…

Powerful forces threaten both their worlds, leaving Aisling and Zurael with an unbearable choice. Follow their hearts…or stay true to their honor and risk losing an eternity of pleasure.

I have this one’s predecessor in my TBR pile, and apparently I really need to get on it! This second in the Cin Craven series releases on February 3, 2009.  No cover blurb yet, but check out the author’s site for future info.

Annaliese Evans appears to be a newbie with this very decent entry into the world of covers. Releases on March 31, 2009, published by Tor, it’s described as a paranormal romance on Amazon.com. From the back cover:

For nearly one hundred years, Rosemarie Edenberg has worked tirelessly to wipe the dreaded ogre tribe from the earth. Now the tribe has gathered in London to work a spell that will destroy the scourge of their kind, the one they call the Briar Rose.

Two magnetic men will unite to aid Rose–her mysterious fey advisor, Ambrose, and the vampire Lord Shenley, an earl of scandalous reputation and even more scandalous appetites. One will save her, one will betray her, and both will challenge her to face the past that haunts her.

Once upon a time, she was ensnared in the mists of enchantment, cursed to sleep one hundred years. But this beauty wasn’t awakened with a kiss and has never known happily ever after. But with the help of her handsome allies, Rose may find it yet.

Silouhette Nocturne is releasing an anthology of shifter/were stories by Michele Hauf, Karen Whiddon, Lori Devoti, Anna Leonard, and Vivi Anna. Release Arpril 1, 2009. Back cover blurb (as seen on Whiddon’s site):

Under the cover of night exists the dark and sensuous world of Midnight Cravings–a world conjured up in six seductive tales of paranormal passion.  Follow some of the genre’s best writers, including Michele Hauf, Karen Whiddon and Lori Devoti, on a mesmerizing journey where the extraordinary comes breathtakingly close with every turn of the page.

So, please, come on in.  The first bite won’t hurt, and it’s likely that you will crave another…and another…and…

Nocturne Bites offers eBooks of dark & sexy short stories to satisfy paranormal cravings.  Ready to sink your teeth into more?

This one reminds me of the P.C. and Kristen Cast covers, a good thing as they’re pretty dang cool. Appears to be another new author, urban fantasy maybe? Releases June 23, 2009. From the back cover:

When Homicide Detective Kara Gillian finds traces of arcane power on a body, she quickly realizes that this is no ordinary murder. The serial killer known as the Symbol Man is a nightmare that Beaulac, Louisiana thought had ended three years ago, but now he’s back for an encore and leaving every indication on the flesh of his victims that he is well-versed in demonic lore.

However, Kara is a Summoner of Demons, and may be the only cop on the city’s small force who can stop the killer. Able to see and interact with a world most people can’t, Kara soon discovers that the Symbol Man is also a summoner, one who seeks to gather enough arcane potential to summon a Demonic Lord–a potent entity who, if bound, would give the killer nearly unlimited power.

But Kara has encountered this Demonic Lord before and has been unwillingly marked as the Lord’s own. With the aid of an FBI agent who may be more than he seems, Kara must stop the killer and keep the Lord from being summoned, all while defying the same Lord’s demands that she call him to her–an action that could bring new and terrible meaning to the phrase “Hell on Earth.”

Alison Sinclair is no newbie, but she’s releasing a new fantasy novel for the first time in almost a decade. Published by Roc, there’s no blurb yet (that I can find), but it releases May 5, 2009. The author doesn’t appear to have a website, but perhaps she will update her blog in the future. I hope so! The book looks and sounds good from what little I can find out. Not to mention a beautiful cover has once again snagged my attention.

ETA: Found a blurb via Amazon finally -

For the Darkborn, sunlight kills. For the Lightborn, darkness is fatal. Living under a centuries-old curse, the Darkborn and the Lightborn share the city of Minhorne, coexisting in an uneasy equilibrium but never interacting. When Darkborn physician Balthasar Hearne finds a pregnant fugitive on his doorstep just before sunrise, he has no choice but to take her in. Tercelle Amberley’s betrothed is a powerful Darkborn nobleman, but her illicit lover came to her through the daytime. When she gives birth to twin boys, they can see, something unheard of among the Darkborn. When men come for the boys, Balthasar is saved by the intervention of his Lightborn neighbor—and healed by the hands of his wife, Telmaine. Soon he finds himself drawn deeper into political intrigue and magical attacks, while Telmaine must confront a power she can no longer keep sheathed in gloves, a power she neither wants nor can control.

That’s all for now. Any other new or interesting paranormal/fantasy reads releasing soon that you’re interested in?