NOCTURNAL is a collection of paranormal romance short stories. For readers looking for a new series or author to try out, collections or anthologies such as NOCTURNAL are a great place to test the waters without a full commitment to a complete book by one author.

The Phoenix Project by Jacquelyn Frank -- Amara and Nick are paired up in a human DNA altering project, the results of which are quite intense. These two find an animalistic need for each other that they cannot turn off. Can they find a balance that includes their humanity while attempting to free themselves and the other captives? Frank takes your basic experimentation story and crafts it into a very intense and sexy interaction between the characters.

Crystal Dreams by Kate Douglas -- Lemurian guard Darius follows demon spirits through a portal to Earth where they have targeted the beautiful human Mari. Mari had come back home to Evergreen, California to run her parents' crystal store. She expected the hippie like atmosphere but did not expect the shadowy demons or the handsome protector. Darius and Mari must discover why the demons are targeting her while trying to manage the rising passion between them. With fun hippie references, interesting demons, and Lemurian links to Earth, this story is from her Demonslayer series.

Spark of Temptation by Jess Haines -- P.I. Sara Halloway takes a job working for vampires to keep her sister out of their hands, only to be thrust into the middle of a dangerous war between them and a violent group out to destroy them, no matter the human cost. Paired up with a geekish mage named Arnold, Sara discovers the dangers this group poses to both the vampires and innocent humans alike. She also discovers a certain spark between herself and Arnold, which they won't deny. This story is a nice stepping stone between Hunted by the Others and Taken by the Others.

My Soul to Take by Clare Willis -- Dr. Maggie Dillon relies on science to assist her patients, until she receives a suicide attempt that swears he is possessed by a demon. For some reason, Maggie is drawn into the handsome and talented Derek Fielding's situation, and begins to believe him. Now, in order to save the one man she could possibly love, she must call in help from home- the magical kind she ran away from. This story grew on me, and by the end I was very drawn to it and rooting for our heroes.