Cirrus@Austlit

'They said it wasn't a war.

'From where Bone Mage Gabriel is standing, up to his elbows in soldiers' blood and guts, it sure looks, smells and feels like a war. Sent to join the protective campaign as punishment for a controversial healing, Gabe's at odds with everything from his fellow military personnel to his own vow to save every life that passes through his hospital. Then he meets Rafe, a young man with dangerous knowledge about the war, and things go from bad to disastrous.

'War is nothing new to David. He's fought in a hundred, begun some of them, and ended them all. Cursed to fight wherever, however, whoever he's commanded to, David is the Immortal Soldier. A slave to the magic that keeps him alive and bound, David longs for the day he'll be free, but first, he has to bring Rafe home, and nothing, not even an argumentative Bone Mage, will stop him.

'Then there's Duke Sol. Intent on leading a quiet life with his family, Sol is reluctantly drawn into plots of betrayal, blackmail and treason, all in an effort to find his peace, and bring his friend, Gabe, home from war.

'From a bloody, war-ravaged desert to the pristine palaces and cathedrals of those running the war, three men will be tested to their limits . . . and if they break, their world might not survive. ' (Publication summary)

'A day in the life of Night Call—Matt Hawkins, vampire-slayer extraordinaire and Mercy Belique, vampire femme fatale. From the whacky, to the mundane and back again in twenty-four hours.

'After successfully completing one job—killing the angry, ugly rat thing was the aim after all, no matter what else may have gone wrong… er, happened—Matt Hawkins settles in for a nice, quiet day at home. If you ignore the neighbour trying to come to terms with his new boat. And the ringing phone. Matt does neither. The former brings him some satisfaction and the latter, a new job. Which is all well and good, until he actually gets to the local waterway and comes face to face with a creature he’s never seen before.

'Navigating between cranky scholars, moody vampires and a monster straight out of myth, Matt might just find himself in uncharted waters and “Here Be Dragons.'' (Publication summary)

'Sorcery, an arcane mystical power wielded by white-bearded old men with fancy sticks? Or just another pain in Matt Hawkins’ neck? Matt knows which he would prefer, which is more likely, and that they’re not the same thing…

'Life’s looking up for Brisbane’s only badarse, supernatural-battling warrior. There’s been a distinct lack of marauding Old World baddies and no noticeable interference from demons. Just a nice steady stream of ‘small’ jobs to keep Matt and the tame vampire, Mercy, in home, food and clothes. And when PI Erin McRea contracts them for a sting, Matt’s happy to oblige. It is, after all, easy money.

'Naturally, nothing goes according to plan. Erin’s mark dies in highly suspicious circumstances and Matt earns the ire of an ex-NRL player with a grudge and fists of stone. Then there’s Randy Devantier—Texan, sorcerer and all round badarse… er, badass. Dev’s looking for a rogue sorcerer, a stolen spell and a local guide. Between dodging rampaging footballers, a vampire with mood swings and a lonely PI making demands of his time, Matt also has to chauffeur Dev around a town that might not be big enough for two badasses on a mission.

'And in the middle of it all, Matt has one, burning question. How do you stop a monkey from stealing grapes out of your cereal bowl? ' (Publication summary)

'A cop, a physicist and… an angel (!?) walk into a bar…

'At first it all seems like a bad joke to Matt Hawkins, vampire slayer extraordinaire. After taking down a vampire Primal, he’s prepared for serious backlash from the supernatural community. A mob of vampires seeking vengeance or some other Old World nasty thinking to make a name for themselves by taking Matt out. Yeah, nothing of the sort happens. It seems, against the odds, Matt’s managed to scare the baddies into leaving town.

'But things are never that simple and Matt should know better than to think otherwise.

'When Matt gets a call from PI Erin McRea’s assistant, asking for his help in a personal matter, he knows he should turn it down. Erin doesn’t like him or his dark world of mythical monsters. Work, however, is scarce and Mercy’s getting lazy. So he throws himself, Mercy and Erin into a murder mystery with a suspect straight out of… Hell?

'And somehow, Matt has to find the time to help a guy with his not-properly-dead girlfriend…' (Publication summary)

'Matt Hawkins isn’t a wizard. He’s not a werewolf, either. He doesn’t talk to ghosts, though he thinks he might like to see one some day. Matt’s just an ordinary, everyday kind of guy. So why is the oldest and meanest vampire in town suddenly gunning—or should that be ‘fanging’?—for him?

'Maybe it’s his social skills, or lack thereof—but it wasn’t his fault he lost his pants in the middle of the mall. Perhaps it’s because he’s on nickname basis with the ghoul in a local cemetery. Then there’s the outside chance it’s the fact Matt’s one half of the vampire slaying team that is Night Call.

'His partner is Mercy, a pint sized fighting machine with a killer wardrobe—and she’s the only tame vampire in existence.

'Still, none of that explains why tenacious PI Erin McRea is digging through all the nastiest moments of his history in an effort to find him.

'And somehow Matt has to find the time to see his therapist about that little temper problem he has… ' (Publication summary)