Quote-Tastic: I can't compete with that.

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Fairies in My Fireplace by R.L. Naquin


“Who would tranq a thunderbird?” I smoothed my hand across the bird’s back, thinking. “If someone shot at him, he probably took flight to get away. I wonder if it was dumb luck that brought him or if he came here for sanctuary.” I glanced around at the menagerie gathered in my yard, answering my own question.

Andrew laughed. “My darling, dumb luck has nothing to do with it. You’re the go-to girl for all things that go bump in the night.”

Edgar fell asleep while we checked him over for more darts. Without a chemistry lab, we couldn’t find out what he’d been juiced with, but we had to assume it was something pretty standard. We agreed it probably wouldn’t do any lasting damage and dragged a big plastic storage bin near him so he’d have water when he woke. Not much else we could do.

Meanwhile, Vi and Kam had Lulu clean, dry, dressed and settled on a blanket in the garage. They sat near her while Kam combed out the knots in Vi’s hair.

The harpy was covered, at least. To my great sadness, they’d confiscated my favorite tie-dyed shirt for the cause. They’d ripped the back to fit it around where her human waist widened and turned bird, then tied the ends in a knot in the front. I sighed. I’d BeDazzled the Scooby-Doo graphic myself.

I’d staged the puppywash along the side of the house, so our privacy would be protected from passing cars. The snoring thunderbird, the mangy hellhound and the sparkling harpy were out of sight from the road.

The front half of the driveway was another matter.

The sound of tires crunching on gravel sent me running to intercept an unknown visitor from getting within visual range.

“Crap crap crap,” I said, jogging around to the front of the house.

My heart raced. These creatures as a group were called the Hidden for a reason. Regular humans shouldn’t see them. They came to me for help. Only a few non-Hidden people in my life knew what was going on, and one of them was already here. I had to intercept whoever was out there before they saw something I couldn’t explain.

When I saw the familiar blue sedan pull in behind Andrew’s beat-up station wagon, my heart thudded harder, and my jog turned into a sprint.

“Riley!” As he climbed out of the car, I slammed into him, knocking him backward.

He laughed and caught me, wrapping his arms around me. I buried my face in his neck and inhaled the scent of spices and citrus and ocean, a combination that filled my head with naughty thoughts and my heart with calm and safety.

Riley pulled back and looked down at me with his laughing gray eyes. “You’re all wet. Why are you all wet? Not that I mind.” He grinned and waggled his eyebrows. I glanced down at my soaked white tee, my lime-green bra flashing through it like a traffic light.

I shrugged. “You’ve been gone for two weeks. I figured a wet T-shirt contest might drum up some attention.”

“Oh, I see.” He pretended to be put out. “I leave you alone for five minutes and you try to replace me. Did you at least win the contest?”

I released a melodramatic sigh and shook my head. “No. The harpy won. She didn’t have a shirt on at all. I can’t compete with that.”



This is the third book in the Monster Haven series and Zoey continues to delight me with her eccentric fashion choices and her optimistic attitude. This book completes the story arc that has been going on concerning the missing Aegis in general and Zoey's missing mother in particular.  Once again, solving the problems they face is a team effort, with Zoey taking the lead.  There are some new characters introduced that I think we will be seeing more of in later books. Overall this was a great addition to the series and I love learning more and more about Zoey's world.

A migration of mythical creatures has begun, and more and more of them are landing on Zoey Donovan's doorstep. As the only Aegis left in the country, it falls to her to protect the Hidden and keep them safe—and her house has become a sanctuary for water sprites, goblins, harpies, djinn and more.

Keeping track of her boarders is a full-time job, and Zoey's already got her hands full trying to run her wedding planning business. Good thing she has a resident closet monster to keep her organized, and a hot Reaper boyfriend to help her relax every once in a while.

But she can't keep up monster-triage indefinitely, and as more Hidden arrive, it becomes clear that someone—or something—is hunting them. In the midst of planning an event for a notoriously difficult client, Zoey's got to figure out who's behind the hunt…and she's got to stop them before there are no Hidden left.

Available at the following retailers:
Amazon     BN    Kobo     OmniLit