palm springs (calif.)

"Ellie de Florent-Stinson is celebrating her fortieth birthday with a grand celebration in her fabulous house in Palm Springs. At forty, it appears Ellie has everything she ever wanted: a handsome husband; an accomplished, college-age stepdaughter; a beautiful ten-year-old girl; two adorable and rambunctious six-year-old twin boys; lush, well-appointed homes in Los Angeles, Park City, and Palm Springs; a thriving career as a well-known fashion designer of casual women's wear; and a glamorous circle of friends. Except everything is not quite as perfect as it looks on the outside--Ellie is keeping many secrets. This isn't the first birthday celebration that hasn't gone as planned. There's a certain sixteenth birthday that she's tried hard to forget. But hiding the skeletons of her past comes at a cost, and all of Ellie's secrets come to light on the night of her fabulous birthday party in the desert--where everyone who matters in her life shows up, invited or not"--Provided by publisher.

Struggling to maintain a boundary between her Alchemist teachings and the urgings of her heart, Sydney meets Marcus Finch, who pushes her to rebel, while Sydney's encounter with an evil magic user compels her to embrace her inner magic.

When alchemist Sydney is ordered into hiding to protect the life of Moroi princess Jill Dragomir, she is sent to a human private school in Palm Springs, California.

When Maya is involved in a fender bender with a man and his seemingly pregnant passenger, his suggestion to handle the situation without involving the police or insurance seems odd. But when Maya sees the woman later, clearly not pregnant, she begins to suspect she's a victim of a scam.

When Serena Charters inherits a centuries-old manuscript, she finds herself caught between two worlds who are fighting to keep the past a secret.

Struggling to maintain a boundary between her Alchemist teachings and the urgings of her heart, Sydney meets Marcus Finch, who pushes her to rebel, while Sydney's encounter with an evil magic user compels her to embrace her inner magic.

At a boarding school in Palm Springs, California, Sydney must protect the vampires-in-hiding from the threat of other humans, a task made harder by forbidden romances, spirit bonds, and the threat of Strigoi moving ever closer.

At a boarding school in glamorous Palm Springs, California, alchemist Sydney must protect the vampires-in-hiding from the threat of other humans, a task made harder by forbidden romances, unexpected spirit bonds, and the threat of Strigoi moving ever closer.

Sydney, an alchemist that bridges the world between humans and vampires, is called upon to protect Jill Dragomir, the sister of Moroi Queen Lissa Dragomir, who is in danger. Posing as her roommate at a boarding school in Palm Springs, Sydney tries to keep Jill safe but danger finds the two girls anyway.

Young alchemist Sydney Sage tracks down fugitive alchemist Marcus Finch, who urges her to rebel against those who raised her, telling Sydney they have more power over her than she thinks. Then, when an evil magic user starts targeting powerful young witches, Sydney is forced to embrace her magical blood and help them to avoid being a victim herself.