Wicked as They Come

Authors: Delilah S Dawson

BOOK: Wicked as They Come

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Have you ever heard of a Bludman? They’re rather like you and me—only more fabulous, immortal, and mostly indestructible. (They’re also very good kissers.)

Delilah S. Dawson’s darkly tempting debut drops her unsuspecting heroine into a strange faraway land for a romantic adventure that’s part paranormal, part steampunk . . . and completely irresistible.

When Tish Everett forces open the ruby locket she finds at an estate sale, she has no idea that a deliciously rakish Bludman has cast a spell just for her. She wakes up in a surreal world, where Criminy Stain, the dashing proprietor of a magical traveling circus, curiously awaits. At Criminy’s electric touch, Tish glimpses a tantalizing future, but she also foresees her ultimate doom. Before she can decide whether to risk her fate with the charming daredevil, the locket disappears, and with it, her only chance to return home. Tish and Criminy battle roaring sea monsters and thundering bludmares, vengeful ghosts and crooked Coppers in a treacherous race to recover the necklace from the evil Blud-hating Magistrate. But if they succeed, will Tish forsake her fanged suitor and return to her normal life, or will she take a chance on an unpredictable but dangerous destiny with the Bludman she’s coming to love?

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“You don’t feel safe anymore, do you?” Criminy asked.

“Don’t worry, Letitia. Nothing can harm you so long as you’re with me.”

“But what happens when I leave you?” I asked him. “You can’t spend all your time following me around and strangling bludbunnies.”

“Don’t tempt me,” he said.

I watched him playing with the long blades of grass, weaving them into patterns as he hummed an unfamiliar song, a waltz.

“What are you doing?” I asked him.

“I’m letting you get used to the idea of me,” he said idly. “I’m pretending to be harmless. Is it working?”

“Until you smile,” I said weakly, and he smiled again, his face radiant.

“Can’t help that, love,” he said. “Not around you.”

“Just so you know,” I said, “I just ended a bad relationship, and I’m not really looking for another.”

“You may not be looking for it,” he said. “But maybe it’s come looking for you.”

“
WICKED AS THEY COME
is as good as it gets!”

—New York Times
bestselling author Nancy Holder

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This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

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First Pocket Books paperback edition April 2012

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ISBN 978-1-4516-5788-3 (print)
ISBN 978-1-4516-5789-0 (eBook)

To my husband, Craig.
The first one was always for you. Only you.

Thank you for purchasing this Pocket Books eBook.

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