Belea T. Keeney

This book was inspired by my visit to a big cat refuge (long, long before The Tiger King) and the visceral realization that I wasn't at the top of the food chain. Humans really aren't, biologically. No speed, no strength, no claws, teeth, or horns. We're just a buncha primates with cell phones... And the tigers know it.

What would you do if you found a werewolf in your azaleas?

Werewolves are controlled in Vivian's time: coded, chipped, herded, and monitored by the authorities. But when she encounters one who seems to have left his pack, she has questions. Why is he here? Where did he come from? And, most importantly, is he dangerous?

For Vivian, a lifetime of being the good sister, the good employee, and the good neighbor aren't enough any longer. She's found that the Lure of the Wolf may be too strong.

Frank Hazelton is an ex-con who has managed to create a nice life for himself on a Tampa horse rescue farm. He has his horses to heal and boys that he teaches to do the same. Until one day, a rap star with an attitude creates havoc on the farm. Frank went into prison because of his violent side; will it take over again?

When you're a middle-aged farmer's wife looking at the handsome younger man your son has brought home for Christmas, it's harmless, isn't it? No flirting, no innuendo, just keeping an eye on him. It doesn't mean anything, right?

Sara wouldn't dream of cheating on her husband, but when David brings home a friend from college, she's faced with a hundred questions she doesn't have the answers to. And it all leaves her feeling Off Balance.

This story also appears in the author's print collection, Out of Joint.

"...the story goes into uncomfortable places and never flinches. Its characters are as vivid as its details and I believed every word." Tom Franklin, author, The Poachers and Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter.

Mitchell Tanner is trying to live the straight life. Three years out of prison, he's working a regular job, living in his sister's basement, and doing the occasional side job for some connected guys up in Chicago. But he's flailing in a relationship he can't quite figure out. Paul's a cute kid, right? A college guy so he's smart, but if he's so smart, what's he doing with Tanner in the first place?

An afternoon at the lake turns into a chilly confrontation, and Tanner struggles to get the whole human relationship thing. Can he figure it out before Paul gives up in disgust? Or will he go stag the rest of his life?

Trapper Tommy works the woods of Florida, trapping all kinds of wildlife for his customers who don't want raccoons, possums, squirrels, or skunks near them. But after finding some mangled carcasses, Tommy comes to realize there's something much bigger and much scarier out there than anything he's ever faced before.

On the night of a full moon, Trapper Tommy gets trapped himself, and what he finds will change his life forever.