Books published by publisher Black Owl Books

The year is 1716—the Golden Age of the Pirates. An orphan who sleeps in the dusty kitchens of a quayside brothel, Merrin Smith is desperate to unravel the secrets of her past and find the truth about the events that brought her to Isla Perla as a child. Disguised as a sailor, she joins the crew of the pirate ship Riptide, helmed by the notorious Captain Erik Winters. Tenacious and rumored to be a madman, Winters is known as much for his ruthlessness as for his connection to the enigmatic and beautiful proprietress of The Goodnight Mermaid, Evangeline Dahl, who vanished from the island two summers before.This book is an epic, emotional adventure of two women—one desperate to save herself, and the other determined to be rescued—and the secret which binds them together.

"A fantastical tale of magic and adventure; Stewart's writing hooked me completely."Hayden Fremont may have survived an attack of killer tarantula fairies, commanded a squadron of lava golems, and freed a fairy queen from her mystical emerald prison, but his journey has only just begun…Sera, Hayden’s spunky sister, is still imprisoned by someone willing to do almost anything for a bit of power, but before Hayden can rescue her, he must travel to the Azure Isle in search of a missing sapphire.Sound simple? Not so fast.President Altair craves Hayden's rare fire magic and has his gas-masked soldiers hunting all of Wayfair for him, but that’s the least of Hayden’s worries. Between the zombie mermaids, water dragons, and a cantankerous kraken, the Azure Isle is not for the faint of heart. When a demon offers Hayden everything he’s ever hoped for, will Hayden remain true to his chosen path? Or will he find the lure of the impossible too tempting to resist?Read the second installment in The Shadow Sovereign Series today!

Every fall the city of Invictus bustles with new students, and the classrooms reek of spent faez. This year it's true of every hall except one—Arcanium. While Semyon Grey, the Patron of Arcanium, slowly heals from his soul being torn, no one in the Hall can practice their craft, leaving them defenseless against the Cabal and faez madness. The Silverthorne sisters must find a way to speed up the healing, or the Hundred Halls won't survive the year. But everything they try only makes things worse, until they're left with an impossible decision that may cost the sisters their lives.

Book OneThere are exactly one hundred halls of magic to choose from. Ever since our parents were killed I knew exactly which hall was for me.Aurelia "Aurie" Silverthorne is one of the best and brightest to ever apply to the Hundred Halls, the only magical university in the world. To be accepted, she must pass grueling trials that claim the lives of aspirants every year. But more than her desire to practice magic is at stake.Aurie's little sister has been courting powerful forces in hopes of protecting herself from the beings that killed their parents, but alliances come with complications. As things spiral out of control, and dangerous foes arise at every turn, Aurie knows the only way to protect her sister is to pass the trials—even if it means making a terrible sacrifice.Book TwoWhoever controls the Hundred Halls, controls the world. Aurelia "Aurie" Silverthorne has high hopes for her second year in the Hundred Halls, the world's only magical university, but her expectations are destroyed when she accidentally unleashes a plague of faez-eating thralls and spends week after week getting killed in the Grand Contest.But none of this matters when Aurie learns that the Cabal searches for a powerful magic that will help them get control of the Hundred Halls. If Aurie can't stop them, then passing her classes will be the least of her worries.Book ThreeIn the Hundred Halls, students experiment with all manners of magic: catoptromancy, lexology, verumancy, rune spells, demonology, shape changing, and a thousand other arcane techniques. Every magic is encouraged. Every magic, except one—soul magic. As Aurie's third year begins, students are found without their souls, ripped from their bodies, leaving them empty husks. Someone, or something, is stealing them for a nefarious purpose. With that kind of power being collected, not even the professors are safe. If Aurie and her sister cannot stop the soul thief before the end of the year, the Hundred Halls will never be the same.

"IMAGINATIVE AND CAPTIVATING, I COULDN'T PUT IT DOWN!"Fourteen-year-old Hayden doesn't believe in magic. He's never been attacked by dragons, taken a ride on a taxi service staffed by man-eating pegasi, or battled a swarm of killer tarantula fairies. And he's certainly never owned a pair of ensorcelled underpants designed to make the wearer invisible—that would be ridiculous.All Hayden knows is a wretched life in the overcrowded Arizona foster care system where miles of red tape often keep him separated from his twelve-year-old sister Sera, the only family he has left.But that's about to change.When Sera is snatched by a bunch of sharp-toothed goblins, Hayden follows the kidnappers through a portal and into the magical world of Wayfair.In a place where carnivorous mushrooms lurk in dark forests and people in velvet waistcoats ride spider automatons, Hayden must solve the mystery behind Wayfair’s President and his secret source of power, or his sister may be lost forever.The Lost Emerald of Briarwood is the first book in Vona Stewart’s Shadow Sovereign series. If you like Harry Potter, Fablehaven, and Percy Jackson, you’ll love this imaginative and exciting magic portal fantasy.Get your copy of The Lost Emerald of Briarwood today!

Paul Wolfenthal is a peculiar thirteen-year-old kid grappling with the absurdities of his young Bronx life, circa 1960. He visits the dead, hears voices in his head, despises Richard Nixon, is infatuated with his Marilyn Monroe look-alike math teacher, and is a choice victim for the neighborhood’s sadistic bully. And then Paul really starts running into trouble.Paul is, in fact, a kid in search of heroes, alive and otherwise, and finds them in John Kennedy and Harry Houdini, both of whom cross into his life. But these are strange and even dangerous times. Hovering in the shadows are “the demons” that haunt Paul’s young childhood dreams, only to come alive and shatter his world. One steals away a neighborhood child. And then his president.Set against the turbulent history of the times, Bronxland tugs on a kaleidoscope of emotions as an uproarious and heartrending coming-of-age tale. It is also the story of a place, a Bronx long gone yet still vivid in the collective memory of those who once called these streets their home. A place of the heart known to each of us, with our own story to tell of growing up, of trying to make sense of our life, with everything that comes along.Welcome to Bronxland.

Felipe Navarra rises from poverty to conquer São Paulo, Brazil, the city he loves. He becomes a radio celebrity in the age of Bossa Nova, classic sambas, and radionovelas. On his way to fame and fortune, he falls into a heartbreaking love triangle with his childhood sweetheart and sells his soul to the dark dictatorship that took over Brazil from 1964 to 1985. His rise runs parallel with the city’s decent into crime, where the gap between rich and poor gets dangerously wide and no one is really safe…

On her own since Noah walked away, Laken finds her resistance to Xander crumbling. As she turns to him for comfort, the stranger in the woods reappears, threatening Xander and his father, Caleb.When Caleb reveals the secrets he and Xander have been protecting, Laken realizes she must stop at nothing to help them defeat the stranger. But Xander eludes him, and Laken is captured instead. Facing an unknown fate at the hands of a mad man driven by greed and jealousy, she resolves to fight to the bitter end for her life and her love.The stakes are high, and no one, including Dakota, is safe. Will Laken survive, or will the curse she tossed aside as a fairy tale prove to be true? (Twenty-five cents for every new print and ebook copy sold will be donated to the Ian Somerhalder Foundation.)

Someone comes to the party with murder in his heart and poison in his pocket…A powerful and rich playboy, a rare but naturally occurring poison, a newly divorced woman with an axe to grind, and pressure from the former President of the US—these are just a few of the challenges that African-American Detective Oliver Parrott faces when he answers a routine call for back-up and discovers someone died at a country estate the morning after an elaborate birthday party. When Parrott learns the deceased is the wealthy former US Secretary of the Treasury and just about everyone at the party had a motive to kill him, he realizes this will be the investigation to make—or break—his career.

"My parents had no ideas of what to do to raise a severely disabled child...the doctor told them to put mein an institution..." Kerri AdamicIn this book you will uncover answers to questions such as:​​Have you ever wondered what it feels like to be disabled? You will read how Kerri responds to this commonly asked question. Have you ever asked yourself, "Why me?" You will learn why Kerri responds, "Why not me"? Have you ever felt like turning a blind eye to your problems? You will learn how an attitude adjustment can make all the difference! Have you ever felt that, if there is a God, He doesn't hear your prayers? Kerri shares her belief in God and how He answers her prayers. Have you ever heard, "Don't worry, be happy" and think it can't apply to you?You will learn the power of positive thinking. Have you ever had a desire for a career helping people with special needs? You will be encouraged and inspired as you read the stories contained in this book Are you a parent, teacher, aide or friend feeling overwhelmed because you have a disabled child or friend in your life? You will learn to doubt your doubts and find strength in innovation.Are you an adult with disabilities, wanting to become more independent?You will learn how Kerri, with very little control over her own body, has learned to live independently. Do you sometimes feel lonely, and that you don't know where to find friends? Learn the importance of connecting with others and Kerri's top tips for finding friends. You will learn that no one is alone in their struggles. These pages include Kerri's tips and valuable resources as well as inspiration for anyone wanting to live life to its fullest! From the personal stories and insights of others you will learn the joy that comes from serving others! Kerri is a go-getter who always tries to make the best of situations. She loves her life, which is full of joy and happiness. She wants others to feel that same joy. Her hope and dream for this book is to have her readers feel that nothing is impossible! ​