Blood of Zeus Series by Meredith Wild, Angel Payne

An ancient grudge. A forbidden love. The only thing worse than being a demon is being a Valari. As an undergraduate at Los Angeles’s Alameda University, Kara Valari can sometimes succeed at forgetting she’s both. Lost between the pages of the classics and tucked into the shadows of lecture halls, she can dodge the paparazzi’s lenses as well as her family’s publicized dramas—not to mention their private expectations. She has one more year to feed her true passions... moreAn ancient grudge. A forbidden love. The only thing worse than being a demon is being a Valari. As an undergraduate at Los Angeles’s Alameda University, Kara Valari can sometimes succeed at forgetting she’s both. Lost between the pages of the classics and tucked into the shadows of lecture halls, she can dodge the paparazzi’s lenses as well as her family’s publicized dramas—not to mention their private expectations. She has one more year to feed her true passions. Then she’ll be expected to fulfill a much darker destiny. Cursed with inexplicable strength and god-like stature, literature professor Maximus Kane knows all about darkness. Every day he’s reminded of the missteps of his childhood and the devastating consequences they’ve had on those dearest to him. To atone, Maximus spends his nights alone and his days submerged in the quiet life of academia. His existence has become a study in control, and he’s become a master at it—until Kara Valari walks into his toughest course. Viscerally, Kara’s everything he craves. Logically, she’s everything he rejects. She’s a starlet of privilege. She’s also a student. And after one touch, he can’t deny that she’s awakened something in him that may never go dormant. Nothing about her makes sense, but everything about her feels right. Especially in the deepest strands of his DNA, which are still shadows of mystery to him—a mystery Kara seems determined to uncover. She’s Hollywood royalty. She’s forbidden fruit. And he’s pretty sure she could be the answer to everything. less

He’s forged from heaven. She’s promised to hell.Professor Maximus Kane can no longer deny his passion for his stunning yet mysterious student, Kara Valari. But surrendering to their desires carries more consequences than just violating the Alameda University conduct codes. Kara has defied her destiny. Higher directives have been violated. Now there’s hell to pay.It’s a crisis for which there seems no solution, until the explosive secrets of Maximus’s bloodline are exposed... moreHe’s forged from heaven. She’s promised to hell.Professor Maximus Kane can no longer deny his passion for his stunning yet mysterious student, Kara Valari. But surrendering to their desires carries more consequences than just violating the Alameda University conduct codes. Kara has defied her destiny. Higher directives have been violated. Now there’s hell to pay.It’s a crisis for which there seems no solution, until the explosive secrets of Maximus’s bloodline are exposed. Despite all his doubts and fears, Maximus has no choice but to accept help from his enigmatic father, which means coming to terms with his heritage and embracing a bizarre new world of gods and demons. Because somewhere in that world—in the strange and sordid secrets surrounding his past—is the key to protecting Kara’s future. Nothing has ever meant more to him than saving the treasure of her life and the fire of her heart.While earth’s lower realms seek payback for Kara’s transgressions, Kara finds a new ally in a surprising place: the Valari matriarch herself. Beneath the scrutiny of the world press, Veronica orchestrates a plan to protect her daughter by doing what she does best—shining the spotlight on her. But by her side, Maximus can’t escape the glare of the paparazzi.Can they buy time and blind their enemies with Kara’s fame? Or will Hollywood’s new “it” couple and their forbidden love incite more vengeance than they’d ever bargained for? less

A stolen destiny. An impossible quest.Kara Valari has broken one of the underworld’s highest laws and is serving the ultimate sentence. But nothing—not even the impossible quest of breaching the boundaries of hell and facing off with Hades himself—will keep Maximus Kane from rescuing her. The journey will demand all of Maximus’s courage…and help from an unlikely guide. Driven by love, he sets off into a dark realm he only knows from the tattered pages of Dante’s Comedy... moreA stolen destiny. An impossible quest.Kara Valari has broken one of the underworld’s highest laws and is serving the ultimate sentence. But nothing—not even the impossible quest of breaching the boundaries of hell and facing off with Hades himself—will keep Maximus Kane from rescuing her. The journey will demand all of Maximus’s courage…and help from an unlikely guide. Driven by love, he sets off into a dark realm he only knows from the tattered pages of Dante’s Comedy.In hell’s bleak world, every part of Kara’s soul is subjected to Hades’s morbid fascination and merciless assault. Giving in to his demands means sharing the intimate details of why she dared to disobey him—a love for Maximus that, even now, burns on in her heart. Just when Kara resolves herself to an eternity of her nightmare, she discovers a glimmer of hope…a way to glimpse her beloved. Could her visions of Maximus unite them once more, or are they just another twisted punishment for her in a kingdom designed for agony?In those fleeting moments of light and passion, Kara rekindles her fight to survive. Darkness may still separate her from Maximus, but they’re connected by fate. But can their love survive this storm? less

A stolen destiny. An impossible quest. They survived the dark. But can they trust the light? Kara Valari and Maximus Kane have been to hell and back, fighting for their love and their lives. But the path back to normal isn’t as easy as they hoped. A dormant secret in Kara’s blood has been awakened, and she needs the help of a goddess to learn its full potential—but also its hidden dangers... moreA stolen destiny. An impossible quest. They survived the dark. But can they trust the light? Kara Valari and Maximus Kane have been to hell and back, fighting for their love and their lives. But the path back to normal isn’t as easy as they hoped. A dormant secret in Kara’s blood has been awakened, and she needs the help of a goddess to learn its full potential—but also its hidden dangers. Shielded from the world in the magical enclave of Iremia, the lovers reunite with all the fires of their first passion. But as they bond tighter to each other, Kara learns that the underworld has targeted her family in terrifying ways, and the safe world around them starts to splinter. Unenamored by Iremia’s promises of enlightenment, Maximus unravels more of the mysteries—and the powers—that are lurking behind the scenes. But to find his and Kara’s true allies, he is forced to seek out his enemies and rewrite his thinking on good and evil. Caught in a web of gods, demons, and magic, Maximus and Kara must build stronger bridges to each other and, as a wave of deeper truths heads their way, have faith that the ramparts of their love will hold. less

Their ultimate gift. A hope for peace?Being rich and famous isn’t the most bizarre life can get . Kara Valari has learned that in the most intense ways since falling in love with her gorgeous literature professor from their first fevered touch. Maximus Kane’s demigod blood has connected with her half - demon spirit, and the result is a passion that’s altered the stars themselves.Still, Kara battles to shield Maximus from the freakish fallout due simply to her existence... moreTheir ultimate gift. A hope for peace?Being rich and famous isn’t the most bizarre life can get . Kara Valari has learned that in the most intense ways since falling in love with her gorgeous literature professor from their first fevered touch. Maximus Kane’s demigod blood has connected with her half - demon spirit, and the result is a passion that’s altered the stars themselves.Still, Kara battles to shield Maximus from the freakish fallout due simply to her existence. Living in debt to the underworld is hard enough without the Hollywood celebrity machine as extra baggage.But it’s a losing quest, as she learns in all the hard ways. After surviving a visit to hell, a catastrophe that’s crippled Los Angeles , and the sinister secrets of a sorceress’s ashram, Kara and Maximus discover that their toughest trials are still ahead. Twisted forces are plotting against Olympus, but at the risk of tearing apart the realms forever.It’s a fate they must prevent at every cost — except one. In the name of that small hope, Maximus and Kara must join with allies they never anticipated and bond their love in ways they never expected. less

A star-crossed love. A dangerous destiny.Maximus Kane and Kara Valari have defied demonic laws, human expectations, and otherworldly enemies to be together. From the depths of hell to the jungle of Hollywood, and all the terrifying places in between, the lovers have fought for a destiny that wasn’t supposed to exist—until the stars had something to say about it.But the cosmos can only help to a point. The greatest challenge of Maximus and Kara’s journey still lies ahead. Their wedding day... moreA star-crossed love. A dangerous destiny.Maximus Kane and Kara Valari have defied demonic laws, human expectations, and otherworldly enemies to be together. From the depths of hell to the jungle of Hollywood, and all the terrifying places in between, the lovers have fought for a destiny that wasn’t supposed to exist—until the stars had something to say about it.But the cosmos can only help to a point. The greatest challenge of Maximus and Kara’s journey still lies ahead. Their wedding day. With the future of the mortal realm at stake, Maximus and Kara enlist the help of their closest friends to facilitate a peace talk with the gods instead of champagne and cake. But the plan is thwarted, and the newlyweds are forced to flee Los Angeles.Crete, the birthplace of Zeus himself, is a perfect place to seal their new bond as man and wife, though passion alone won’t be enough for the forces that will hunt them all the way to the Island of Heroes. In ways they never imagined, the demigod and his supernatural beauty must embrace the most human sides of themselves to fully realize the stars that wrote their everlasting love. less