House of Earth and Blood (Winner of the Goodreads Choice Best Fantasy 2020)

01The Unseen Loss

Bryce Quinlan was a creature of the night, a half-human, half-fae who thrived in the pulsating energy of Crescent City's nightlife. Her laughter was infectious, her spirit untamed, and her friends were her world. They were a motley crew of supernaturals and humans, bound together by shared laughter, shared secrets, and shared dreams. Their nights were a riot of colors, a symphony of sounds, a celebration of life in a city where the ordinary and extraordinary coexisted. But then, the unthinkable happened. Her friends were murdered, their lives snuffed out in a brutal, inexplicable act of violence. The laughter died, the music faded, and the vibrant colors of their world turned to shades of grey. Bryce was left alone, her heart aching with a grief so profound it threatened to consume her. The tragedy revealed a side of Crescent City that Bryce had never seen before. Beneath the glittering facade, there was a world of darkness, a world where danger lurked in every shadow, where violence was a currency, and where life was as fragile as a dewdrop on a leaf. Bryce retreated into herself, seeking refuge in the mundane routine of her job at Griffin Antiquities. The store, with its dusty shelves and ancient artifacts, was a far cry from the vibrant nightlife she once reveled in. But it was safe, it was quiet, and it was devoid of the painful memories that haunted her. Her apartment, once a place of laughter and camaraderie, was now a sanctuary of solitude. She avoided the clubs, the parties, the places where her friends' laughter still echoed in her ears. She buried herself in her work, losing herself in the intricate details of the artifacts, in the silent stories they whispered. But the past was a ghost that refused to be exorcised. The unsolved murders of her friends were a wound that refused to heal, a puzzle that demanded to be solved. And so, Bryce found herself drawn into a web of intrigue and danger, forced to confront the harsh realities of her world. As she delved deeper into the mystery, she began to uncover truths that were as shocking as they were revealing. Truths about the murders, about Crescent City, and about herself. And with each truth, she found a piece of herself that she had lost, a piece of her spirit that had been buried under the weight of her grief. And slowly, she began to realize that even in the darkest of nights, there was always a glimmer of light, a spark of hope.