Family Secrets by Ellie Jay

'The discovery was a complete accident, of course. Nadezhda never set out to make an enemy of the woman she believed to be her adoptive mother.' When Nadezhda Moroz finds a photo of her adoptive mother and realises she's been living a lie, she ignores all warnings from her family and sets out to discover the grisly secret that killed her father just days after his wedding...What she finds reveals just how twisted her family's history is. Her search for the truth pushes her into the arms of the mysterious Vasily Volkov, who promises he knows her story... And his strange, sinister family, who seem to have other secrets on their minds. The family seems to operate like a mafia group, and before long, Nadezhda is helplessly entangled with them, trapped in the town they appear to control. She meets old and new allies while in their clutches and escapes with her allies to bring them to justice, risking her life to fight them.

Kingdom of Embers by Tricia Copeland

Her pale skin and weird diet make her a target at school. If only they knew the truth about her feeding habits… Seventeen-year-old Alena Scott is tired of pretending to be something she’s not. As an outlawed vampire-witch hybrid, she’s forced to abide by the oppressive secrecy imposed by her Vampire Chancellor mother. But she’ll have to ignore the rules when she comes face-to-face with a handsome, full-grown version of her childhood imaginary friend. Shocked that he recognizes her as his own pretend play pal, the two embark on a quest to solve the mystery of their fantasized companionship. And as they unravel their entwined destinies, Alena realizes she holds the key to a curse which could free them all—or condemn witchkind to eternal suffering. Can Alena and her impossibly familiar partner reverse an ancient spell before they’re sent to a mortal grave? Kingdom of Embers is the first book in the enthralling Kingdom Journals YA urban fantasy series. If you like intriguing characters, shadowy magic, and a fresh twist on modern vampire storylines, then you’ll love Tricia Copeland’s heart-stopping tale.

Effigest by Amy Campbell

When the sins of the past demand payment, his magic is the price. ​Blaise Hawthorne never wanted to hurt anyone, and he certainly didn’t want to become a weapon. When using his dangerous magic to free his outlaw friends destroys an enemy fortress, the young mage is imprisoned for his crimes. Abused and at the mercy of his tormenters, Blaise’s only ally is a duplicitous man he’s not sure he can trust. ​After escaping his cruel upbringing, politician Malcolm Wells had everything—or so he thought. He didn’t count on falling for Breaker Blaise Hawthorne. And it’s all his fault that Blaise has been captured as a war criminal. The Breaker is running out of time, and Malcolm’s money, power, and influence have proven useless to win his freedom. ​When a magic-slinging outlaw storms into town, Malcolm seizes the opportunity to form an uneasy alliance. The pair hatch a bold gambit to free Blaise, but their enemy is one step ahead. At the mercy of Malcolm’s dark past, everything they fought for unravels. All the magic in the world may not be enough to save any of them from the nightmare to come.