The Druid Next Door

The Druid Next Door
Author: E.J. Russell
Publisher: Reality Optional Press
Total Pages: 308
Release: 2017-08-21
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 1947033611

The cranky exiled fae and the unawakened druid are out to save the world—right after they sort the recycling. Professor Bryce MacLeod has devoted his entire life to environmentalism. But how effective can he be in saving the planet when he can’t even get his surly neighbor to separate glass from paper? Former Queen’s Enforcer Mal Kendrick doesn’t think his life could get any worse: he’s been exiled from Faerie with a cursed and useless right hand. When he’s not dodging random fae assassins in the Outer World, he’s going toe-to-toe with his tree-hugging neighbor. And when he discovers that the tree hugger is really a druid, he’s certain the gods have it in for him—after all, there’s always a catch with druids. Then he’s magically shackled to the man and expected to instruct him in Supernatural 101. All right, now things couldn’t possibly get worse. Until a mysterious stranger offers a drunken Mal the chance to gain back all he’s lost—for a price. After Mal accepts, he discovers the real catch: an ancient secret that will change his and Bryce’s life forever. Ah, what the hells. Odds are they won’t survive the week anyway. The story text of this second edition of The Druid Next Door is identical to the first edition.

The Druid

The Druid
Author: Sam Stewart
Publisher: Authors On Line Ltd
Total Pages: 268
Release: 2003-09
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 9780755200948

The British were indeed worried. An extraordinary number of prominent British citizens were dying around the world in appalling and intriguing circumstances. Of greater concern was the tightly guarded knowledge that they were all latent or overt homosexuals. While evidence of this was bound to come to light in each individual case, no one outside the highest government, intelligence and police circles in London knew that each murder could be linked by a common thread... one man's campaign for revenge.

The Boyfriend Algorithm

The Boyfriend Algorithm
Author: E.J. Russell
Publisher: Reality Optional Press
Total Pages: 252
Release: 2015-09-28
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 1947033050

Technology is easy. Relationships? Not so much. When introverted computer engineer Charlie Forrester developed a passive matchmaking model for her doctoral dissertation, she never expected it to go beyond theoretical. Now, with her dream job on the line, she has thirty days to prove her program’s accuracy. The only problem? She’s the test subject, and her stupid algorithm has chosen watchdog reporter Daniel Shawn, her childhood best friend-turned-nemesis, as her perfect partner. Notorious for his relentless pursuit of technology fraud, Daniel’s reputation tanked when he fell victim to an online matchmaking con. When he discovers evidence of a scam reboot, he’s convinced it’s the perfect story to redeem his career. Charlie has awkwardness down to a science, but a relationship with Daniel could mean more than simple humiliation. If he discovers her algorithm uses the same concepts as the sting that ruined him, he could destroy her professional credibility forever. But as Charlie gradually emerges from her techno-cave, she realizes that being outed as the “Love Programmer” might be less devastating than actual love. (The Boyfriend Algorithm is a retitled and slightly expanded edition of Lost in Geeklandia.)

Stumptown Spirits

Stumptown Spirits
Author: E.J. Russell
Publisher: Reality Optional Press
Total Pages: 238
Release: 2016-05-16
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 1947033522

A life in hock. Seven years ago, Logan Conner and his legend tripper college roommate stumbled into the middle of a ghost war. Logan escaped. Trent did not. Guilt has driven Logan to hunt for answers ever since—not only for why Trent was trapped, but how to return and save him. On the verge of abandoning the search as hopeless, Logan discovers the solution at last thanks to folklorist Riley Morrel, the man he never expected to fall in love with, and the man he’d do anything to keep safe, including leaving him behind. A life on hold. When Logan disappeared in a puff of motorcycle exhaust, Riley’s life took a nosedive. After dropping out of school, he’s not entirely sure it’s not still diving. Sure, he has a job—one that’d send his thesis advisor screaming. Still, there are perks to his gig as the researcher for paranormal investigation show Haunted to the Max: He’s in the ideal position to propose projects for the team to tackle. Like their latest episode in Portland, for instance, where Logan just happens to be bartending. If nothing else, confronting the big jerk will give Riley some closure. A life’s last hour. But as the two men take tentative steps toward each other again, they begin to realize that their relationship, the shoot, and Logan’s quest to free Trent are hopelessly entangled with one tragic day at the riverside, over a century and a half in the past. And when the smoke finally clears? Not everyone will walk away. Stumptown Spirits is a second-chance, opposites-attract, supernatural suspense romance featuring a TV show one step past jumping the shark, a narcissistic TV personality, a craven ex-ghost, annoying bosses, interfering (but well-meaning) friends, personal redemption, and, of course, an HEA. Note: This book was previously published. It has been lightly revised and re-edited, but the story remains the same.

Witch Under Wraps

Witch Under Wraps
Author: E.J. Russell
Publisher: Riptide Publishing
Total Pages: 291
Release: 2020-10-26
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 1626499381

When supernatural secrets collide, it’ll take more than coffee to brew the perfect love. When Ky Hernández bonded with his familiar, Zuri, his life changed forever. Their connection turned him into a practicing witch and led him to his calling as a medimagical professional. However, it totally tanked his love life—what guy would settle for eternal second place behind a parrot? So Ky keeps his witchy nature under wraps and sticks to hookups with humans, which can never go anywhere. But the mouthwatering barista at the coffee shop next door makes him thirst for more than a caffeine fix. The charms Ewan Jones uses to appear human are inconvenient, disorienting, and . . . necessary. Ewan and his siblings are achubyddion, metaphysical healers whose powers are coveted by unscrupulous supernatural beings. And let’s face it: all supes are unscrupulous, given the right incentive. He’s grateful for the protections that hide his little family, and for the barista job that keeps them housed and fed. He’s just so lonely. And his regular, Ky, the super-hot, commitment-averse EMT, seems like the perfect candidate for a one-night shot at intimacy. After all, humans are no threat. It takes a clumsy coffee shop intern, a mysterious werewolf epidemic, and one snarky parrot to unravel their pasts—and give them a chance at a future.

Vampire with Benefits

Vampire with Benefits
Author: E.J. Russell
Publisher: Reality Optional Press
Total Pages: 264
Release: 2018-11-16
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 1947033751

At Odds with the Gods

At Odds with the Gods
Author: E.J. Russell
Publisher: Reality Optional Press
Total Pages: 128
Release: 2023-11-05
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 1947033697

The road to redemption is long, rough, and steep. Bring snacks. Finn Lassiter is a werewolf without a pack. Or a roof over his head. Or more than five bucks to his name. He’s exhausted every lifeline except the one that makes him want to howl: begging his cousin, the supreme alpha, for charity. After the way Finn behaved for their entire lives, it’s entirely possible he’ll be turned down flat or banished forever when he makes that call tomorrow. So today he’s blowing his last dollar at Nectar & Ambrosia—he needs one more smile from the bakery’s beautiful owner to weather the bleak years ahead. Ganymede, former cup bearer to the Greek gods, is reveling in his new life as a restaurateur in Portland, Oregon. He’s finally free of the Olympians and their extremely tedious menu options. Finn, the cute customer who’s haunted the corner table in his bakery since opening day, is just icing on the cake. When the gods stage an encore, however, attempting to weasel out of their Fates-mandated atonement labors, Gany’s new livelihood isn’t the only thing at stake—Finn’s safety and freedom are at risk, too. Of course Gany invites Finn to stay with him until the danger passes! It would be irresponsible not to. Right? Although with all the baggage he’s carrying from his past, that idea just might be only half-baked… At Odds with the Gods is a friends-to-lovers Mythmatched/Purgatory Playhouse crossover featuring secrets on all sides, empowered former victims, misbehaving deities, three large, rambunctious pups, and cake. Lots and lots of cake.

The Skinny on Djinni

The Skinny on Djinni
Author: E.J. Russell
Publisher: Reality Optional Press
Total Pages: 185
Release: 2022-05-18
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 194703345X

Being in tech time-out totally sucks. Hector Gonzales knew the danger when he hacked the magic grid to marry it with human technology. He’d never imagined this system crash: A total tech suspension while the tradition-bound supe council reviews his case. He’s reduced to running errands for his friends, and seriously? How had people survived before GPS? Then several wrong turns—thank you so much, stupid paper map—lead him to a remote burger joint. And when he spots the cute guy behind the counter? His wolf wakes up and howls You have arrived at your destination. Getting fired—again—totally sucks. Rafi Abbas tries to give customers what they want, he really does. However, when he gets distracted by the lovely man with the gorgeous brown skin, he screws up another customer’s order and his boss fires him on the spot. With no money, no job, and soon nowhere to live, Rafi has no business saying yes when the lovely man asks him out. But something about Hector whispers home. Obeying the Secrecy Pact totally sucks. To keep the supe community safe, werewolves cannot partner romantically with humans. That rule has been programmed into Hector since he was a pup. But as the day slides from bad to worse to are-you-freaking-kidding-me, Hector sees the moratorium for what it is: ridiculous and outdated. For Rafi, he’s willing to challenge the status quo. After all, things can’t very well get worse than worst. Right? The Skinny on Djinni is a M/M paranormal romance set in E.J. Russell’s popular Mythmatched story universe. While it features instinctual attraction, fated mates are not a thing. You’ll recognize some familiar faces from other Mythmatched tales, and although the romance—complete with HEA—stands alone, the story answers a couple of long-standing questions!

Death on Denial

Death on Denial
Author: E.J. Russell
Publisher: Reality Optional Press
Total Pages: 197
Release: 2022-03-27
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 1947033387

DOA becomes BRB when this client goes MIA… When I agreed to accompany my selkie boyfriend on a private boat trip, I didn’t realize the invitation included a swim. In the Pacific. In November. Naked. And I certainly didn’t expect to have our swim derailed the instant I got in the water—holy crap, that’s c-c-cold—by a literal boatload of selkie clan leaders. Climbing out of the water in front of them—did I mention naked? Yeah, way to make a brilliant first impression. Then things get worse: I get served. Not in the metaphorical sense, either. Nope, I’m being sued. By Death. Well, not Death precisely, but an Ankou—a Celtic psychopomp who escorts the departed to their final destinations. This guy is miffed that his workload has increased exponentially, which he blames on my actions in Sheol on an earlier case. I’m not about to take the heat when eons of shady demon shenanigans finally come home to roost, but here at Quest Investigations, we aid any and all supernatural folk in need—especially if they’ll drop their specious lawsuits against the agency’s lone human. When the Ankou skips out on us, though, all hell breaks loose. Because without anyone to lead them on, the dearly departed become nearly departed and stick around to party hearty. Now it’s not just the selkie leaders complicating my love life—it’s the ex-living as well. And when one of the ex-living decides not to remain ex? Things get really complicated, not to mention deadly. Dammit. Death on Denial is the fourth in the Quest Investigations M/M mystery series, a spinoff of E.J. Russell’s Mythmatched paranormal rom-com story world. It contains no on-page sex or violence, and although there is a romantic subplot, it is not a romance. The series is best read in order.