Touched by the Fae

The fae are real. I just pretend they're not. Black Pine Facility for Wayward Juveniles. The asylum. It's a place where they stick troubled cases like me until we age out or they think they've fixed us. Newsflash: You can't fix what's not broken. And I may have been thrown into Black Pine when I was barely 15, but I'm not crazy. I'm cursed. Because the fae? They're real. Gorgeous, ethereal, mythical creatures who can't lie but are experts at twisting the truth. Just one touch, that's all it takes. Just one touch and the fae have power over you. Just one touch and your whole world can go up in flames. I was warned. He called himself the Shadow Man. With his raven hair and glowing silver eyes, he looked the part, too. He's the one who told me about the fae, who made me promise not to be tricked into giving up everything I have with the single touch of my hand. I'm...I'm not so good at keeping promises. Now I'm just about to turn 21. I've kept my head down, constantly wearing my leather gloves as if that's not too little too late. At least they're finally letting me out of the asylum. I've done my time inside here, went through therapy, worked with my psychologists. I'm supposed to be released in two weeks. That's when Nine, the Shadow Man who once haunted my childhood, returns for the first time in six years with another warning - plus one hell of a surprise. There's a prophecy. The Fae Queen wants to get her hands on me because of it, and she has the power of the whole Seelie Court behind her. I'm screwed - unless I can hook up with the dark mate mentioned in the prophecy. Too bad I'd rather die than let another fae male touch me again. For fans of Holly Black, C. N. Crawford, and the film classic, Labyrinth, Asylum is the first book in a planned trilogy featuring a wary and independent half-fae heroine, the Dark Fae who has shadowed her her entire life, and her quest to learn about who she really is and why the powerful Fae Queen wants her dead.

The prophecy is coming true. It's either the Fae queen dies or I do - and, for the first time ever, I have something to live for. My parents are alive. Melisandre, the cruel Fae queen, is holding them hostage. She thinks that they're all the leverage she needs to lure me into her clutches. She isn't wrong. But Nine, the Dark Fae who has looked out for me since I was a kid, won't let me sacrifice myself. The Shadow Prophecy says that only I can defeat the Fae Queen and end the Reign of the Damned. Then again, it also says that I'm gonna need the help of my fated mate. Who, I just discovered when he gave up his freedom in my place, is Nine. Whoa. I didn't want to do this. I didn't want to have anything to do with the fae. Too bad I don't have a choice. Okay. Okay. One step at at a time. Step one: Save Nine. Step two: Get to know my parents. Step three: Defeat the Fae queen and save Faerie. When I discover that there's a way to do all three of those, I'm game...until I find out that it requires me to do something I swore I wouldn't. I have to go back to Black Pine. I have to go back to the asylum. Then, if I survive the confrontation with the Fae queen, I can finally - finally - put this whole shadow crap behind me. No biggie. With my Shadow Man at my side and my newfound powers, I know I can do this. And all it will cost me is one last touch. Touch is the third and final full-length book in a trilogy featuring a wary and independent half-fae heroine, the Dark Fae who has shadowed her her entire life, and her quest to learn about who she really is and why the powerful Fae Queen wants her dead.