Critical Review Brown University Novels & Stories

“You’re useless to me, Carmen. A barren Luna is no Luna at all.” Those were the last words Alpha Silas Knowles spat at his wife before he orchestrated the car accident that took her life. He wanted her dead so he could marry her sister, Chloe, and finally claim the heir he believed Carmen could never give him. What Silas didn’t know was that Carmen was already six months pregnant with a miracle child. What he didn’t know was that he was the sterile one, and the child Chloe carried was not his. When the Moon Goddess grants Carmen a second chance, she wakes up three months before her murder. But the woman who returns isn't the submissive, fat wife Silas used to mock. She is cold, calculating, and ready for war. While Silas is busy with his mistress, Carmen is busy siphoning his millions, dismantling his pack’s assets, and planning her disappearance. To survive, she must strike a deal with the Alpja of Nightshade, Cayden Viner. Cayden is a lethal Alpha and Silas’s most feared rival who has never let a woman close—until he meets the transformed Carmen. He’s suspicious of her motives, but he’s captivated by the fire in her eyes and the secrets she’s hiding. As Silas’s empire begins to crumble, he realizes too late that he threw away a Queen for a parasite. He wants Carmen back. He wants his heir. But Carmen is no longer a broken woman. She has a new King, a new empire, and a revenge that is only just beginning.

ACADEMY OF THE DAMNED: BRIDE TO THE ABYSS. When I died, I did not expect to be haunted and chased by a group of people that called themselves the school for the dead. Wait? I died??? I do not think I am dead, but I had a NDE. Unfortunately, that means I belonged to the school of the damned now, a school where supernatural beings like fae, demons and witches attended and guess where it was located. In hell. So when I, Alexandria Nicole Thompson wound up in this school, I was an anomaly. Human. A human never became part of the damned, and the demons made it clear to me that I wasn't welcomed. I had to fight for my life every minute, from being spell bound, to being bitten by a raging vampire with a hard-on for me, and the fallen angel, cold and bitter, angry at everything in the world, yet I was drawn to him, and finally, there was Cassiel, next in line to be herald of a plane, a ruler of demons who hated me with every breath and declared me unwanted from the school. I had to grow a tough hide....or skin

“I reject you!” After being rejected by 4 mates, my father forces me to substitute my half-sister as a virgin sacrificed to the bloodthirsty, ruthless Lycan King. --- I’m Harper, an alpha, but the weakest alpha. My power is weaker than an omega, and I can’t even distinguish who is my mate. Every year, each pack needs to sacrifice a 20-year-old virgin to the Lycan King Dean Tullus. Years ago, the King had said that he would choose his bride from the virgins. However, Dean is a notorious tyrant. Rumor has it that he killed his parents and brother in order to take the throne. He always wears a mask, and they all say it’s because he’s ugly and facially distorted. Most importantly, the four previously chosen brides all died before the wedding. I pray not to be chosen by the King, but he kisses me in front of all the sacrificed virgins! Will I be his 5th bride? Can I survive? --- I’m Dean, the most powerful Lycan King. But I have a secret, I will die soon because of my curse. I’ve been searching for my virgin bride all the time, the one who can cure my curse in the prophecy. What?! My mate is such a weak she-wolf! Strong as I am, I totally can’t accept it. Want to be my bride? Huh, absolutely impossible! But why is she able to summon me? Why will I even lose my power if I refuse her request? Is she really the one I’m fated to be with?

    "This marriage has been fixed and it must hold."  That was the rigid statement of Charlotte's father.      A wedding day was supposed to be a lady's happiest day, but in the case of Charlotte, it was her saddest day. Her parents were about to force her to marry Ethan, a person known to be ruthless. Charlotte's marriage was a pivot of financial benefits for her family, but her happiness and career was at stake.     Will she bend to her parents' wishes? She was at the point of breaking ties what her parents when her aunty said the following words,     "Do you really want to let your parents down? I will teach you how to display an irk attitude, after you get married to him, and in a very short time, Ethan will divorce you." Is this a trap? Will her aunty show her the easiest way out of this ruthless marriage? Her entire hope lies on herself to display an irk attitude to a man who has started loving her.

I’m Ellie, an orphan. I fall in love with my daddy’s friend, Austin. He’s the Alpha King. He’s my adoptive father. And he’s twice my age. --- Ellie accidentally has a one-night stand with a stranger the day her adoptive father returns from war. Wow, this stranger is so hot and good in bed! He’s much better than her scary guardian, only the room is too dark to see his face. --- When bloodthirsty, ruthless Alpha Austin learns his little Ellie had a one-night stand with a man, he is furious. "Who is that guy?" "You have no right to know who he is!" "If I find out who that stupid male dog is, I'll make him regret doing this to you!" "He isn't a stupid male dog. He’s the best man I've ever met. He's sexy, he's strong and he makes me happy!" Until one day, Austin finds that stupid male dog is him…

Ever since he was born, it was clear to Alan Hedger, an undercover spy, that he desired absolute solitude. As a complete workaholic, he made it abundantly clear to himself, and everyone around him, that there was no room for romantic pursuits in his life. Fully dedicated to his job, he did everything in his power to achieve his goal. That was until it demanded something else of him. Put in an impossible situation, an honourable man like himself was forced to deceitfully seek a young doctor's hand in marriage. Hence met the two. When their paths collided, none of them had foreseen that they would fall in love with each other in the near future. But when they did, their worst nightmare came chasing behind them.

  "It’s just for a year. I promise to remain chaste..." Ami assured her fiancé, unaware those words would shatter her world.   Two days before her wedding, her uncle offers her a chance to transform her family’s future, an overseas trip to secure their survival after her father’s death. Torn between love and duty, and pressured by her grieving mother, Ami agrees, believing it to be a temporary sacrifice.   But what if it was all a trap? What if Ami found herself trapped in a dilemma, forced to choose between surrendering her virginity or fulfilling her family’s dream? As her world crumbles around her, can she hold onto her vow of chastity? Will her fiancé wait for her or has her promise and sacrifice already cost her everything?

I met Oleg in junior school, and we clicked right away. Despite our fathers being rival mafia bosses, we never fell apart. But my feelings for Oleg changed with age. I felt frightened because I was torn between the comforts of friendship and the thrill of something more. My dad was very homophobic, so it was even more difficult to express how I felt. I was faced with wanting to be truthful but endangering our families’ fragile peace So, my feelings stayed hidden, and I was just happy to be with Oleg. Yet I couldn’t help but hope that Oleg would feel the same. Perhaps he was too scared to say anything. That hint of hope was what gave me the courage to take action. And I did but things went terribly wrong. our worlds collided and exploded. It left us with nothing but hatred and resentment between our families. If I could turn back time, I would be content with the friendship we once shared, not the hurt and anger which we now have. We parted ways with hatred in our hearts,a wound that never healed,years later,our path crossed again......

Kasey always found herself outside the social order; her only friend being a ghost. A friend who has a dark and dangerous secret, one that threatens to kill her. After being forced into the realm of hell and attacked by a demonic creature, Kasey has to adapt as she fights with herself and the demons she found herself surrounded with. The powers that are awakening within her have the potential to make her all-powerful but can also render her insane. The question now lies within which side is stronger: Her will to keep her humanity or the will of her inner-darkness to dominate the battlefield...

“At least my books can distract me from remembering what you did to me last night.” “A distraction?” His lips ghosted over my ear. “Then I'll have to be more memorable. I'll take you on every surface of this library until the only story you know…is ours.” When Mirabelle witnesses mafia don,Theo Gaspard commit a murder, her life is his to command. To save her family, she must play the part of the ruthless billionaire's beloved girlfriend, living in his luxury mansion and warming his bed. Theo is a man of ice and control, but the defiant, soft-hearted server ignites a fire in him he can't extinguish. Their forced proximity is a battlefield of whispered threats and stolen, scorching touches which he tells himself it's all to protect his empire. As a deadly betrayal closes in from the heart of his own organization, their dangerous lie becomes the only truth holding them together. But when a secret from the past surfaces, Mirabelle discovers the man who holds her captive is hiding the one truth that could shatter them both.