Books with author Alexander Cruden

Logicide! Heretic!Behold, the city of Laburnum, where all the gods are dead.The all-seeing Academy has outlawed faith and superstition. Those caught whispering about unreasonable things quickly disappear.But in this cruel city dripping with lies and conspiracy, an aristocrat and a slum boy are about to have their fates wound together by a mysterious cat. They will soon discover the dark underworld behind their city's curtain — and that evil has more than one face.Pure Dickensian Voodoo.Widdershins is a dystopian thrill-ride of top hats, politics, misfits and blood magic, from a striking new voice in fantasy.

Laburnum is a city of two moons and one faith: Logic. It’s also a city of rat empires, criminal gangs, slum boys, plotting politicians, curious princesses, the crimson men, drunkards and a talking cat. And there’s a bit of witchcraft going on, but we’re not allowed to talk about that.******************************************The Boy with Absolutely No Talents is part 1 of 6 from Alex Alexander’s debut novel Widdershins. In the Neo-Victorian city of Laburnum, the Academy have outlawed irrational thought. Religion, mysticism and magic have been forgotten and replaced with the Laws of Logic. The Academy’s Inquisitors police these laws and to break them is to commit the ultimate crime: Logicide. Niclas, The Boy with Absolutely No Talents, has made a promise to the talking cat Balthazar – a promise he intends to keep. But there is a dark side to his new master and the boy is about to find himself pulled into the underworld of the Black Science.“…”“…”“…The Whisperer whispers…”

Desi is a witch. And she knows she could be a great witch—if only her mom would teach her any spells. Unfortunately, Desi’s mom is more concerned with keeping them safe and their abilities hidden.When her mom leaves town under mysterious circumstances, it should be Desi’s perfect opportunity to explore magic on her own. But Desi has been left in the care of the most unusual babysitter of all time: her pet cat—also her mom’s familiar—now transformed into a teenage girl named Cat. And Cat has only three goals: Learn how to eat sushi with her new hairless monkey paws, get the awkward boy next door to pay for her sushi, and keep Desi out of trouble. And that means no magic.Yeah, right!This hilarious and high-spirited fantasy is perfect for cat lovers, embattled siblings, and anyone who yearns to find the magic in everyday life.

Dillon Carmichael was the most popular guy in school. He was an awesome skateboard maniac and he could go steady with any girl he wanted. No one knew he was tired of dating the popular girls and wanted to go out with Megan Cartwright, the school's biggest nerd. Dillon was afraid that if word got out about his secret crush, he could lose his popularity. And seeing first hand how the unpopular kids are pushed around Dillon didn't want to go down that road. So will he chose his secret crush or his friends?

Winters in Bern are long and cold and deep. On winter nights, when the snow is falling, Pippa goes to sleep knowing she’ll wake up to tracks in front of her farmhouse. The tracks are small, and they come from the woods—those same woods that her mother says are full of witches and elves and trolls, and her father says are full of wolves and bears and demons. But these tracks are the Tompte’s, and he is a friendly creature. Or at least that’s what Pippa hopes. . . The Tompte borrows and mends things, he takes and he sometimes leaves things, and such is life on a farm at the edge of the realm. Her mother calls it tradition. Her father calls it a curse. And when things start going missing and trouble comes their way, Pippa’s not sure what to believe. Soon enough, she'll have no choice but to go into the woods to find out. . . Winter comes and north wind blows,And with it comes the winter snow. Through the pines, he leaves his track,Over hill and here and back.The Tompte he looks after land,With quiet feet and silent hand. He comes from woods, alone and weary,On winter nights, dark and dreary.Through the farm, he peeks about, Checking in, and on and out. Taking gifts and leaving tokens, Mending bits that have been broken. His beard is long, his feet are small, He’s like a child, about as tall, But Tompte is old and wise as well, And deep in forest is his dell.So, on winter nights when you’re asleep, Along comes Tompte in silence deep, On quiet feet, with food to share, With quiet hands, and traded fare. Winters come and Autumns go, And with it comes the Tompte through snow.Always watching, never seenLeaving tracks of where he’s been.

"Couples therapy sessions slowly morphed into solitary therapy sessions. My therapist kept coming back to the question of my passions, and where I was headed. I knew it was writing. So I wrote. I wrote my pain of loss. I wrote my confusion about the existential questions that plagued me as someone who grew up in the bible belt, but had a hard time swallowing the bigotry I saw. I wrote my struggle through heartbreak and single life. I wrote my triumphs in self-confidence, and ultimately I wrote a new love story, with a new person. Ultimately, it's not about meeting the right person; instead, it is about finding out that you are quite capable of loving yourself, and anyone else loving you is just a wonderful sprinkle on top."

Desi is a witch. And she knows she could be a great witch—if only her mom would teach her any spells. Unfortunately, Desi’s mom is more concerned with keeping them safe and their abilities hidden.When her mom leaves town under mysterious circumstances, it should be Desi’s perfect opportunity to explore magic on her own. But Desi has been left in the care of the most unusual babysitter of all time: her pet cat—also her mom’s familiar—now transformed into a teenage girl named Cat. And Cat has only three goals: Learn how to eat sushi with her new hairless monkey paws, get the awkward boy next door to pay for her sushi, and keep Desi out of trouble. And that means no magic.Yeah, right!This hilarious and high-spirited fantasy is perfect for cat lovers, embattled siblings, and anyone who yearns to find the magic in everyday life.

Sometimes, I dream that I'm someone else. A girl with dark hair who doesn't worry about hunger or thirst or running from flesh-eaters. In her world, those sorts of things don't exist…. Since the spring of 2036, when the world changed forever, Claudia and a small clan of survivors have roamed the streets of a very altered Nashville—polluted and desolate, except for the ever-present threat of cannibals. Together they must undergo punishing tests of endurance and psychological challenge—sometimes with devastating consequences—all just to live another day. With food and water in dwindling supply, and with danger lurking around every corner, no one can be trusted. And as her world starts to make less and less sense, Claudia begins to realize something terrifying: she is just a pawn in some sort of game, and all of her actions are being controlled from afar by a mysterious gamer. So when she meets a maddening and fascinating outsider named Declan, who claims to be a game moderator, she must decide whether to join him in exchange for protection and access to the border. If they play the game right, they are each other's best hope for survival—and a life beyond the only world Claudia's ever known: the terrifying live-action game known as The Aftermath.