Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Season 7-8 Series by Christopher Golden, Nancy Holder, Scott Ciencin, Denise Ciencin, Diana G. Gallagher, John Vornholt, Laura J. Burns, Melinda Metz

One crow sorrow, Two crows mirth, Three crows a wedding, Four crows a birth, Five crows silver, Six crows gold, Seven crows a secret, Which must never be told.... In a sleepy little town on the border between Arizona and Mexico, Agent Riley Finn and his operative wife, Sam, have tracked down an international smuggling ring involving vampires. Surprisingly the call for reinforcements is answered by Buffy Summers and the atoning vampire Angel... moreOne crow sorrow, Two crows mirth, Three crows a wedding, Four crows a birth, Five crows silver, Six crows gold, Seven crows a secret, Which must never be told.... In a sleepy little town on the border between Arizona and Mexico, Agent Riley Finn and his operative wife, Sam, have tracked down an international smuggling ring involving vampires. Surprisingly the call for reinforcements is answered by Buffy Summers and the atoning vampire Angel. Now tempers are flaring in the heat of the day -- and night -- as people are dying and locals are turning a blind eye to the deadly events. Bodies are turning up in the surrounding desert, some drained of blood, some having succumbed to another, fast-moving death. Riley Finn is noticing the arrival of more and more crows to this area, ominous portents of the events ahead. But even Mr. Secret Agent Man is distracted from his job when his wife goes undercover with Angel.... less

TIME'S UPWillow is back in Sunnydale, but she's terrified: She knows her powers will be needed soon, but she's afraid that if she uses them, it's back to being the Big Bad. She can feel something strange happening, but the other Scoobies don't seem to notice. Everybody's dealing with their own issues -- Buffy's got a new crush, Dawn and Buffy have been bickering, and Xander's intent on getting Willow to use her magicks again.Willow's instincts are right on... moreTIME'S UPWillow is back in Sunnydale, but she's terrified: She knows her powers will be needed soon, but she's afraid that if she uses them, it's back to being the Big Bad. She can feel something strange happening, but the other Scoobies don't seem to notice. Everybody's dealing with their own issues -- Buffy's got a new crush, Dawn and Buffy have been bickering, and Xander's intent on getting Willow to use her magicks again.Willow's instincts are right on. A wolf in sheep's clothing has set off a series of freakish events: rivers running with blood, flash storms, and the arrival of an unbelievable supernatural being. The apocalypse has begun. While the world falls to pieces around them, the Scoobies -- including Giles, back from England -- have to decide what is most important to them. There's one last hope: a secret spell with dangerous side effects. But is Willow ready to use her powers? less

Control Issues Buffy Summers is being run ragged all over Sunnydale these days. Working from clues some mysterious power is providing her with, the Slayer's chasing down different baddies to gather pieces of a soul sword before it can be reassembled and fall into the wrong hands. While she resents following someone else's orders, at the same time it is oddly comforting to her to have a clear goal, and someone else making all the plans... moreControl Issues Buffy Summers is being run ragged all over Sunnydale these days. Working from clues some mysterious power is providing her with, the Slayer's chasing down different baddies to gather pieces of a soul sword before it can be reassembled and fall into the wrong hands. While she resents following someone else's orders, at the same time it is oddly comforting to her to have a clear goal, and someone else making all the plans. Without Giles around, and with her relationships a mess, Buffy's at a point in her life where she could use some direction. Her friends are also searching for control in their lives, looking for areas they can excel in -- without magick or destruction. Xander and Willow figure there has to be a better way to get by, to get ahead for a change. But just when it seems as if their dreams are coming true, both are felled by a strange virus that has been sweeping through Sunnydale -- and thus "poisoning" the food supply for the local vamps. With lives at stake, Buffy must broker a truce with the vamps, find the rest of the sword, and locate her mysterious benefactor. All while fending off a rash of vicious attacks from the resident population -- and her friends and family! If Buffy was looking for a goal, she has one now: survival! less

What is the true measure of a champion?In the nineteenth century a boy named William was born. A sweet, gentle boy -- no one could have guessed the suffering he'd cause, the pain he'd inflict. When, as a young man, he meets a woman called Drusilla -- a strange woman, a woman unlike anyone William has ever known -- he is fundamentally changed. She has turned him. There will be no more William. He is Spike now.As Spike, he travels Europe with a band of vagabond vampires... moreWhat is the true measure of a champion?In the nineteenth century a boy named William was born. A sweet, gentle boy -- no one could have guessed the suffering he'd cause, the pain he'd inflict. When, as a young man, he meets a woman called Drusilla -- a strange woman, a woman unlike anyone William has ever known -- he is fundamentally changed. She has turned him. There will be no more William. He is Spike now.As Spike, he travels Europe with a band of vagabond vampires. Dru, Darla, and Angelus instruct him on his new nature, and from them he learns about that greatest of vampiric enemies, the girl who is chosen to stand up against them, trained to kill them, endowed with the strength it takes to defeat them: the Slayer. Then and there, Spike decides he'll hunt down those slayers. He'll see how many he can find.Who would have thought then that he'd fight on the Slayer's side? Who would have guessed that Spike, once William, would go out and seek his soul for a slayer? Who would have dared dream he'd fall in love with one? less

Buffy and Angel both battle the same ancient evil, a Possessor who was once Qin, First Emperor of China, and who is now attempting to usher in the Year of the Hot Devil and drive humans out of this dimension. Ages 10+.

No vacation. No benefits. And the only retirement is an early death.With the closing of the Hellmouth and the awakening of hundreds of potential slayers, Buffy Summers thought she had overturned the Slayer's self-sacrifice and earned herself a much-deserved break. But the thrill of victory is short-lived. The Forces of Darkness are not ones to graciously accept defeat, and the collective rage unites disparate and powerful parties more eager than ever to reclaim dominance... moreNo vacation. No benefits. And the only retirement is an early death.With the closing of the Hellmouth and the awakening of hundreds of potential slayers, Buffy Summers thought she had overturned the Slayer's self-sacrifice and earned herself a much-deserved break. But the thrill of victory is short-lived. The Forces of Darkness are not ones to graciously accept defeat, and the collective rage unites disparate and powerful parties more eager than ever to reclaim dominance.Willow's magickal distribution of the slayer essence left girls across the world discovering their latent power. Giles races to reorganize the now much-needed Watchers Council, and the Scoobies relocate to Europe. And there in Rome, Buffy is drawn to the Immortal -- a charismatic, if inscrutable, figure. But then comes word that a number of the fresh slayers are being coerced to join an army of slayers -- governed by the mysterious "Queen of the Slayers," an awesome evil determined to claim the intoxicating slayer essence for herself.Xander is sent to Africa to learn more about the origin of the slayer essence. Instead, he returns to report that, alarmingly, there's not enough good in the world to counteract the overabundance of evil, and that the deciding apocalypse is drawing much too near. Alliances are formed and loyalties betrayed as it comes down to slayer versus slayer, leading to an ultimate battle of champions -- from Buffy's past and present. And then an unimaginable gift arrives... less

Since the beginning of time, the demonic races have gathered every century to resolve conflicts among them and to determine the course of their future. This centennial event was called the Dark Congress. In the second century b.c., however, the Dark Congress failed to resolve their conflicts. Instead, the Congress ignited into a war that drove wedges between the various demon races from that time until now... moreSince the beginning of time, the demonic races have gathered every century to resolve conflicts among them and to determine the course of their future. This centennial event was called the Dark Congress. In the second century b.c., however, the Dark Congress failed to resolve their conflicts. Instead, the Congress ignited into a war that drove wedges between the various demon races from that time until now. And all of it began as a result of Kandida, the great North African river demon, being nearly killed by forces in the Congress and magically entombed in the riverbank. But now, Kandida is free, and for the first time in centuries, the Dark Congress is being called again. All demon races and other varieties of supernatural creatures have been called to gather at the Hellmouth in Providence, Rhode Island. Some gather in hopes of resolution, some in favor of war, and Kandida is tasked to broker a treaty and guide the Congress to peace, wherein everyone might simply agree to disagree. And so the demons gather under a banner of a truce. But the demons still harbor many bitter disagreements with one another. The Congress must have an arbiter of these conflicts, and that someone is Buffy Summers. Buffy is horrified and disgusted to be included. After all, she is not a demon...is she? She knows so little about her powers that she cannot say for certain where they truly spring from. How can she spend so much time wallowing in the darkness without becoming part of it? Can she possibly agree to a truce with all the horrors of the world, and allow them to come Providence without any attempt to stop them? And does she have a choice? less