Showing results by author "R. L. King" in All Categories

Alastair Stone has just had a bombshell dropped on him about Aldwyn’s latest plans—but that particular problem will have to take a back seat to a more pressing one. Verity has disappeared. She never returned home following a weekend visit with her half-siblings in central California, and no one has any idea where she is.

It's been less than a month since Alastair Stone, Jason Thayer, and Jason's sister Verity discovered a monstrous conspiracy to take over our world one mind at a time. The battle in San Francisco struck a major blow - but it didn't eliminate the threat. Not even close.

When a friend asks Alastair Stone to question a disturbed child who's committed a horrific act, Stone has no idea what kind of rabbit hole he's starting down. His investigations uncover more instances of appalling crimes, all committed by people with no history of violence. And other people have turned up missing.

It's hard enough for Alastair Stone to keep his two lives - powerful mage and mundane Occult Studies professor - separate without an old friend asking him to take on a new apprentice. Especially after a university colleague wants him to investigate a massive old house for things that go bump in the night. Still, Stone figures it's an easy job: just turn up, put on a little show, and announce that the house is clean. Only it isn't. A malevolent spirit is reawakening in the basement.

When Alastair Stone’s former apprentice Verity approaches him with the story of a drugged and caged Changeling she spotted at a magical black market in Europe, Stone is quick to offer his aid to locate the victim. Once on the Changeling’s trail, though, Stone and Verity soon discover they have stumbled upon the tip of a horrific iceberg—a shadowy organization operating deep underground, kidnapping specifically-targeted Changelings for an unspeakable fate.

For the Sake of the Game is the latest volume in the award-winning series from New York Times best-selling editors Laurie R. King and Leslie S. Klinger, with stories of Sherlock Holmes, Dr. Watson, and friends in a variety of eras and forms. King and Klinger have a simple formula: Ask some of the world's greatest writers-regardless of genre - to be inspired by the stories of Arthur Conan Doyle. The results are surprising and joyous.

When a police detective approaches Alastair Stone to consult on a grisly occult-related murder, he initially considers it nothing more than an intriguing puzzle to fill a few dull late-summer hours. But then the detective becomes a victim, and the murderer begins taunting Stone, daring him to discover the truth before more of his friends join the list of targets. As he delves deeper into the case, Stone soon learns that the murderer isn't human - and has committed similar crimes in the past.

Alastair Stone knew it would take a big sacrifice to end the Evil's hold over our world. He was ready to make that sacrifice - but he expected it to be his life. Never in his worst nightmares did he think it would be his magic. Despairing and grief-stricken at the loss of the abilities that defined his existence, he's on the fast track to self-destruction when a dear friend convinces him to take a desperate last chance. He heads to Las Vegas to find the only man who might be able to help him, but instead finds some old allies in dire need of his own help with a deadly threat.

When his friend Jason Thayer disappears after heading to his home town to attend a wedding, the only clue Alastair Stone has to his whereabouts is a cryptic phone message about "something weird" Jason saw shortly before he vanished. Stone travels to the picturesque tourist town where Jason was last seen and is soon caught up in a horrific web of murder, malevolent magic, and a mysterious and ancient force that's resurfaced even more powerful than ever after a long dormancy.

With Jason and Verity in southern California, Alastair Stone quickly discovers he misses his best friends and favorite confidants far more than he expected to. It isn't long, though, before he's got some new matters to occupy his mind: a student who may have fallen under the influence of a magical cult leader, and a budding relationship with a sexy, intelligent, and stunningly beautiful woman who's everything he never dared to dream of.

Kira Talon has a secret. Raised since childhood among the nonmagical “Dim” when her expected magical birthright didn’t materialize, she barely remembers her early time in the opulent floating city high above the war-torn sprawl below. Years later, she’s made a life for herself among the nonmagical, discovering an affinity with machines, making good friends, and venturing carefully into the dangerous, clandestine resistance against the magical overlords.

Alastair Stone isn't proud of the dark deeds of his family's past, but he thought they were just that: past. But when a routine renovation of his ancestral home releases a horde of angry spirits bent on vengeance against anyone of his blood, he soon learns that his family's horrific acts were even worse than he ever could have imagined. Driven from his home, Stone must rally his most trusted friends and allies to discover the truth and find a way to exorcise the relentless spirits.

When Alastair Stone investigates a tale of odd events at an abandoned Midwestern paper mill, he figures it's just another hoax. After all, he's seen hundreds of them in his career. He soon discovers this one isn't a hoax, though - and neither is the backwoods hunter who's suddenly developed healing abilities in Pennsylvania...Stone knows he has to get to the bottom of this supernatural mystery - no matter how many enemies he has to make in the process. And when he finally does learn the truth, it comes with the horrifying revelation that he might already have made a terrible mistake.

A father's sins. A son's wrath. An enemy's revenge. When a shadowy, sinister organization begins killing apprentices, Alastair Stone is determined to track down the people pulling its strings. But Stone’s life quickly spirals into chaos when a young man contacts him - claiming to be his son.

Alastair Stone and fellow professor Edwina Mortenson go together like punk rock and patchouli. So when an unwilling Stone is "volunteered" to participate in a paranormal TV reality show with her, neither of them is thrilled about it - even if the ghost town they’ll be filming in is supposedly the site of a powerful curse. As if dealing with Mortenson, the show’s overbearing producer, and its prima-donna star weren’t bad enough, Stone soon uncovers evidence that the town’s curse is very real - and it’s resurfacing again, more deadly than ever.

The portals are closed. The Evil have lost their pathway between their home and ours. No longer does humanity need to worry about extradimensional bodysnatchers with a thirst for pain and terror pouring through to wreak destruction on Earth. So that means Stone, Jason, and Verity can rest for a while, right? Yeah, maybe not. The problem is, while there might not be any new Evil coming through, a whole lot of very powerful, very angry Evil are still stuck on our side.

Alastair Stone is surprised when a long-forgotten friend breaks his self-imposed silence to contact him. It seems that two other allies from his past have disappeared without a trace, and Stone's tracking magic might be the only way to find them. Should be simple. Right? But as Stone delves into the deepening mystery, he finds connections to unexpected avenues: old enemies, forbidden magic, and even Verity's group of San Francisco vigilantes.

Things are looking up for Alastair Stone. He's just moved into his new house, Jason's opening his investigation agency, and best of all, the university has finally hired a new professor for the occult studies department. Carefree days never last long for Stone, though. The smart, sexy new professor turns out to have secrets - dangerous secrets. When he agrees to help her track down a powerful, magical artifact, Stone is drawn into a deadly conspiracy involving a mysterious and reclusive clan, alchemical mayhem, and crimes even more horrific than either of them suspected.

Alastair Stone has barely begun to recover from the death of a friend when he’s rocked by yet another. It looks like natural causes, but a grief-stricken Stone isn’t convinced. As England’s magical community comes together to mourn the shocking loss, Verity meets a group of powerful female practitioners who offer to teach her potent new magical skills. Meanwhile, Stone’s shocks have only begun as new revelations come to light.

Alastair Stone, determined to harness enigmatic mage Trevor Harrison’s potent power source, takes a desperate chance - he travels to the dimension where it originates, hoping to convince Harrison to teach him its secrets. He should have expected things wouldn’t go as planned. Stranded without his power in an exotic, unfamiliar world rich in magic and ruled by tyrannical practitioners, Stone knows his only chance of getting his magic back is to find Harrison - a man who has good reasons for not wanting to be found.