Of Magic and Contempt Series by Jade Thorn

Dean, Ryan, Oz, Nick and Justin — The Apex. Five of the most sought after shifter-familiars in the country. They’re already an unconventional pack of their own. A lion, two wolves and two dragons; witches everywhere would have given their right arm to bond them. Held within the confines of the famed Adolphus Academy, where witches went to learn beast taming magic, their only hope of freedom was to challenge a witch strong enough to defeat their beasts... moreDean, Ryan, Oz, Nick and Justin — The Apex. Five of the most sought after shifter-familiars in the country. They’re already an unconventional pack of their own. A lion, two wolves and two dragons; witches everywhere would have given their right arm to bond them. Held within the confines of the famed Adolphus Academy, where witches went to learn beast taming magic, their only hope of freedom was to challenge a witch strong enough to defeat their beasts. Trapped until they are bonded, their future and sanity may just rest in the hands of a newly arrived first year student. As the strongest witch they’d seen in generations, Melody had been bound by her Aunt Georgia in their once prestigious coven, forced to bond and break every shifter they could find. Along with them, she was subjected to cruelty and neglect. Confined in abject misery, enslaved by a madwoman, Melody was unable to even imagine an end to their torture. Yet fate and her aunt had other plans. At twenty-five, she was just coming into her majority, and Melody would be sent to Adolphus Academy, where she had to find and bond the members of The Apex. If she failed to do so, she would die. If she succeeded — they did. How could Melody free these men, without enslaving them to another? **Warning, this is a dark reverse harem story with elements that may cause some readers distress, including but not limited to descriptions of physical abuse, neglect and death. Please consider carefully before purchasing. Not intended for readers under the age of 18. **. less

Melody needs to keep Dean and The Apex free from her aunt’s machinations, she simply must escape Coven Bestia. Her aunt is angered by Dean’s continuing absence and wants Melody to return to the compound as soon as possible. While she might be safer at Adolphus Academy, not everyone is happy to have her there - especially when she’s bonded to a much-desired member of The Apex... moreMelody needs to keep Dean and The Apex free from her aunt’s machinations, she simply must escape Coven Bestia. Her aunt is angered by Dean’s continuing absence and wants Melody to return to the compound as soon as possible. While she might be safer at Adolphus Academy, not everyone is happy to have her there - especially when she’s bonded to a much-desired member of The Apex. Now Melody must juggle the needs of her new familiar, along with the urgings of six more shifters who wish to bond to her, all while dodging the catty and immature classmates and whatever her aunt is planning. Then there is the new wolf who’s determined to have her at any cost. Yet another shifter she has to deny - without actually denying him. Her aunt’s punishments for disobedience are getting worse and there’s a good chance that she won’t survive the next one. Two dragons, three wolves and a very sweet fox are all focussed on becoming her familiars, but Melody is struggling to adjust to her bond with Dean. She’s never been allowed to keep a familiar before. Their beasts are urging them to claim her, to bond her, to possess her. How long can she resist these men? Freeing them from the academy means enslaving them to her aunt. There are simply no good choices and no easy solution. All Melody wants is a chance to breathe and be "normal". Is it too much to ask for? **Warning, this is a dark reverse harem story with elements that may cause some readers distress, including but not limited to descriptions of physical abuse, neglect and battle. Please consider carefully before purchasing. **. less

The amount of pressure on Melody is only increasing. The Apex want to mate with her, her new coven wants her to choose a suitable husband from within their ranks and the new Provost wants her out of there - to graduate as soon as possible. Everyone wants something from Melody, including her mad aunt and Coven Bestia... moreThe amount of pressure on Melody is only increasing. The Apex want to mate with her, her new coven wants her to choose a suitable husband from within their ranks and the new Provost wants her out of there - to graduate as soon as possible. Everyone wants something from Melody, including her mad aunt and Coven Bestia. When does she get to be herself? Melody must rush to graduate as soon as she can, she's not safe at the academy, but everything she hopes and dreams of, relies on her being strong enough to stand on her own two feet. If she's going to fight for her familiars, and for familiars everywhere, then she needs a good education as her foundation. If she's going to defeat her aunt once and for all, then she'll need to know how to weild her magic at its highest level. Time is running out. It may only be her second year, but Melody is going to need a crash course in everything, including coven politics if she's going to survive all of the machinations against her. **Warning, this is a dark reverse harem story with elements that may cause some readers distress, including but not limited to descriptions of physical abuse, neglect and battle. Please consider carefully before purchasing. **. less

Her coven wants her to choose a mate, her familiars want her to mate with them, and her aunt wants her womb to produce strong shifters to turn into monsters. Everyone is obsessed with who Melody will breed with. Frankly, it’s the last thing on her mind. How can she possibly relax, when so many are suffering? Her aunt continues to abuse and torture shifters, experimenting on them to create the ultimate hybrid army... moreHer coven wants her to choose a mate, her familiars want her to mate with them, and her aunt wants her womb to produce strong shifters to turn into monsters. Everyone is obsessed with who Melody will breed with. Frankly, it’s the last thing on her mind. How can she possibly relax, when so many are suffering? Her aunt continues to abuse and torture shifters, experimenting on them to create the ultimate hybrid army. Her peers want to enslave their own familiars, and the Provost - she wants to take Melody’s familiars away. Melody is being pulled in so many directions, but she’s struggling just to survive - not only her aunt’s machinations, but the persistent bullying by her fellow students. Things are only getting tougher at Adolphus Academy, and it’s becoming increasingly clear that she needs to get out of there as soon as she can. It’s obvious that she needs help from the US council, but the advent of the hybrid shifters means more questions for Melody. Questions she doesn’t have the answer to, no matter how many times they ask. If she can’t gain the trust of the council, then how on earth can she call on them for help? It seems her options are limited and her needs are great. It’s time for Melody to take her destiny in her own hands, and carve out the path that feels right to her. This is a Reverse Harem Romance where the female lead has more than one love interest and is not required to choose between them. This book is not suitable for readers under the age of 18, and has scenes that may be distressing for some readers including discussion of past physical abuse and mentioning the sexual abuse of another character. less

You would think that having her own coven meant Melody was safe, but all she'd done was graduate from a small pond to a larger one, and boy oh boy was she small fry. Yet she had people depending on her, which meant Melody had to put her personal concerns aside and move forward for the greater good. Her mates and familiars would understand, so would her friends and family... moreYou would think that having her own coven meant Melody was safe, but all she'd done was graduate from a small pond to a larger one, and boy oh boy was she small fry. Yet she had people depending on her, which meant Melody had to put her personal concerns aside and move forward for the greater good. Her mates and familiars would understand, so would her friends and family. Or would they? Could fighting for the very people who had saved her from harm, destroy the very relationships she was trying so hard to protect? One thing was certain, none of them were safe as long as the remnants of Bestia still walked free, and nothing, but nothing was more important than their destruction. Could Melody save them all once again, without losing herself in the process? ** Warning, this is a dark reverse harem story with elements that may cause some readers distress, including but not limited to descriptions of past physical and sexual abuse, neglect, torture and death. Please consider carefully before purchasing. Not intended for readers under the age of 18. **. less