Showing results by author "Matthew S. Cox" in All Categories

Mina Barrett is the CIA’s best defense against the Dominion. She’s young, charming, intelligent, motivated… and she’s a vampire. Twenty years ago, vampires revealed themselves to the world. Society hadn’t expected them to be real at all, much less a species entirely separate from humans. The government feared hostile foreign powers would also seek to exploit their psychic talents, and put out a call for recruitment. After a childhood spent in isolation, Mina saw a chance for adventure and signed on the dotted line. Unlike the Dominion, she doesn’t feel humans are inferior ...

Allison Lopez has almost got her life back to something resembling normal. The radio station survived the wrath of the Jaguar God, so she at least has a steady job. Being a nighttime psychic radio host is a fun gig, even if the marketing people make it cheesy sometimes. But hey, the ‘Hump or Dump’ segment pays the bills. With the trifecta down to two, her witchy powers aren’t exactly at full strength, making it risky to challenge anything too dangerous. Millicent thinks the Universe will provide a third... but when? When a call-in guest seeks help against a spirit trying to kill him, ...

As a graduation present for her daughter, Tammy, Samantha Moon and the gang head down to South America for the vacation of all vacations. Next stop: Xibalba—the Mayan Underworld Fresh from a harrowing trip into a very different underworld, Sam is about to discover Xibalba is just as harrowing—only this time, she has Allison, Tammy, and Paxton with her to worry about. It all begins when Sam and the gang arrive on a sightseeing tour in Guatemala. Immediately, Sam senses something is off. In particular, that someone needs help. Sure enough, a young mother runs up to Sam, desperate for help...

As a graduation present for her daughter, Tammy, Samantha Moon and the gang head down to South America for the vacation of all vacations. Next stop: El Dorado—The Lost City of Gold It all begins shortly after Sam and company arrive in Colombia, when a disembodied head awakens them in the middle of the night. Turns out, the head belongs to the famous explorer, Sir Walter Raleigh, who lost it to an executioner’s ax 400 years earlier. The very essence of determination, the intrepid explorer isn’t about to let a little thing like death stop his search for the legendary City of Gold. And ...

As a graduation present for her daughter, Tammy, Samantha Moon and the gang head down to South America for the vacation of all vacations. Next stop: Peru and the Nazca Lines The massive hieroglyphs carved into the soil of the Nazca desert in Peru have perplexed archaeologists for decades; after all, the glyphs can only be truly appreciated from high above. When Sam and her magical crew arrive in the desert for a sightseeing trip, they have every intention of exploring the famous animal figures etched into the sand. But when a little bit of magic is used by Tammy, the spell sets off a ...

As a private investigator in uber creepy Shadow Pines, Max Long had no shortage of missing person cases. Unfortunately, they all ended the same way...with dead bodies. Whenever someone vanished, the official cause always said the same thing: animal attack. Shadow Pines always bristled with paranormal rumors and wild conspiracy theories. However, the truth is far more terrifying than rumors: vampires made the scenic mountain town their personal feeding ground. Nature abhorrs a vacuum, but it also seeks balance. When someone dear to Max becomes a missing person case, he faces the most ...

In 2411, overpopulation has spread a plaque of filthy, congested city to the corners of the Earth. Government has raised corruption to an art form, and no one hears the cries of those left to die in the dark passageways of civilization. Following the End of Nations, people cling to the only division left: social status. Since running away from home four years ago, Sima has managed to stay a step ahead of death - or worse. At 16, she’s getting too old to survive from begging, despite her best effort to pretend she’s younger.

As if learning vampires truly existed didn’t shock him to his core already, Max grapples with the reality that he’s been given real magic. Indeed, he has the power of all four elements literally at his fingertips. They say every good private eye story starts with a crying girl walking through the door. Crystal hadn’t been the first upset woman to ask Max for help, not in a town with a murder rate far worse than any big city. Unfortunately, he’d made the biggest rookie mistake of all...falling in love with a client. As if becoming romantically entangled didn’t complicate matters ...

Something stirs in the murk of the Volga River, something big, emerging at night to sow mayhem and death along the banks. And Since Solstice Winters is already stranded at ground zero, she agrees to help, even though coping with giant lizards is far from her skill set as an intrepid reporter for a paranormal tabloid. Yay for being the only elf in the world. After narrowly escaping the Ordo Sanguinem Aeternam, she winds up sharing a flat halfway across the world from home with the enigmatic Cristiano, an agent of the secretive organization she may have obligated herself to join.

At 22, she's still slinging coffee at an Amazon Cafe despite having a degree in programming. It's not because she's unlucky, unmotivated, or even that she fancies herself an underground activist crusading against evil corporations. Hunting for a real job would take time away from her game. Axillon99 is the world's most popular multiplayer online experience, with a universe containing billions of planets to explore. Ever since video games broke the screen barrier, plunging players fully into their characters, reality just can't compete.

Six months ago, Harper Cody stressed out over finding the right college. Now, she’ll be thrilled if she makes it to her 18th birthday. Unexpected nuclear war destroyed the world she knew, along with her dreams for a future. Violent thugs took away her parents and home, sending her fleeing into the ashes with her traumatized little sister. Following her best hope for survival, she chased a rumor of safety in the mountains.

Deputy Marshal Zebadiah Clemens can't die. After the Civil War came to a close, Zeb decided to head west to raise cattle and a family. No sooner did he step off the train in Texas, a stray bullet knocked him senseless. Believing he'd somehow cheated death, he gave up on his peaceful plans and became a lawman. After migrating farther west into New Mexico, he expected to find the usual run-of-the-mill outlaws - not a strange woman watching him from the edge of his dreams. He might be imagining it all - or still unconscious with a head wound - but with his luck, it's probably real.

Sarah Wright woke up a few times after parties in strange places - but the morgue's a first. At 18, she's eager for a taste of independence, moving out of state to attend college. A change of scenery is extra-needed due to a bad breakup with her boyfriend, Scott. However, soon after escaping the body cooler, she makes two startling realizations: vampires are real and she is one. There's nothing quite like an untimely death to ruin plans. California's sunny beaches aren't the best place for vampires to chill, and worse, she winds up stuck in Seattle, living with her parents.

Sophie lives in a most peculiar cottage at the center of the Forgotten Forest, its inside much larger than its outside. You see, the house must be large, for it holds a great troll as well as a little girl. As one might expect, working for such a creature is rather frightening to a seven-year-old, but the endless expanse of black trees outside is even scarier. She’s afraid to make even the slightest sound, for the troll abhors loud children. He’s not terribly fond of quiet children either - unless they’re in his stew. Sophie’s precious light offers comfort in her darkest moments.

No longer a small child, Wisp accompanies Dad on one of his treks, her first time more than a few steps away from the cabin. A day exploring with him is the happiest time of her life, but joy is short-lived. A monster follows them home. Safe in her haven, she hides while Dad goes outside to confront the beast. She wakes alone the next morning and waits. Alas, her hope of his return fades with the daylight. Afraid but determined, Wisp sets off on her own into the Endless Forest to find Dad - before the Tree Walkers catch her.

The universe holds various immutable constants: death, gravity, taxes...and the Wright family road trip. Every summer, Dad plans a vacation-by-car somewhere across the country. Lameness has increased each year, but Sarah blames that on growing older. She thought dying might get her out of going, but her father’s not about to let something that trivial put an end to the tradition. Of course, as a vampire, Sarah can’t seem to go anywhere without attracting the weird...and the deadly.

Sarah Wright has experienced no shortage of stressful situations since becoming a vampire, but she’s about to face the most terrifying one yet - being the adult in the room. Nine months into undeath, Sarah’s found her stride. She’s comfortable in her fangs, managing family and school, and relatively content. Treating her parents to a weeklong vacation in Iceland sounded like an awesome idea back in December, but the reality of being responsible for her siblings while they’re away is terrifying.

Sarah has finally adjusted to unlife, at last comfortable with herself. Her college classes are going well even if she isn’t fully committed to her current major. Her one frustration is her boyfriend always being too busy to spend time with her, but college is temporary. Love is forever. Or, so they say - her definition of "forever" is a little different now. Worry about her love life pales next to the constant paranormal weirdness invading her personal space.

Two weeks after waking up as a vampire, Sarah Wright is starting to feel comfortable in her fangs. She’s doing okay, if you don’t count wicked mood swings, crushing guilt, and a pervasive sense of existential dread. On the upside, her family is adjusting to the new normal of supernatural in stride, and she’s even testing the waters with a new guy.

Five months after becoming a Vampire, Sarah Wright’s unlife has gone back to relative normal - until demons start coming out of the woodwork. Before graduating high school last June, she never imagined she’d wind up staying at home with her parents and siblings. Now she savors every minute she has with them. Her friends juggle school and jobs, leaving precious little time to hang out with her mostly nocturnal schedule. A vampire’s hours aren’t exactly awesome for spending time with tween-age siblings either, but the family has adjusted to her undeath.