Vespertine · direct from the house
The sun is not dying of age. It is being paid out.
Five dark romances by A. M. Vespertine, set in a world where nothing taken by force will hold. Illustrated paperbacks and hardcovers, with colour covers and a pen-style drawing before every chapter.
Five complete love stories · One connected world · Adults 18+
A glimpse beyond the light
Before the first page.
Forty-six glimpses of the Long Dusk.
Five stories. A voice to lead you in.
Nocturnals 84 seconds · 46 images
Enter the duskExplore the world of Nocturnals
The world is waiting.Adults 18+
Narration · Gentle music · Scene sound effects · Subtitles available.
Read the trailer transcript
The Long Dusk
The sun isn't dying. It's being paid out. Welcome to Nocturnals. Five dark romances, in a world where what is taken poisons, and what is offered sustains.
The Tithe
In The Tithe, a woman takes her sister's place in a vampire court. The lord was not supposed to want her. He was not supposed to ask.
The Hunt
The Hunt takes us to Greywater. She came to count the border. The wolf who guards it won't let her file what she's found.
The Last Light
In The Last Light, a woman goes south to measure a reserve. She finds a queen surrounded by mirrors, who has never truly been seen.
The Sleep
The Sleep belongs to an archivist, and the stranger waiting in her dreams. In the waking world, she'll make him ask. Some doors have rules.
The Long Dawn
The Long Dawn brings the world's oldest debt to the door. It has an appointment. Five love stories. One reckoning. Begin with The Tithe.
Nocturnals · A glimpse into the dusk
- I The Tithe DR 312
- II The Hunt DR 313
- III The Last Light DR 317
- IV The Sleep DR 321
- V The Long Dawn DR 323
Dusk Reckoning. Year 1 is the year the dimming was confirmed.
The catalogue
Five books. One debt.
Each is a complete love story with its own couple, its own register, and its own instrument — the named thing that book is really about. Read them in order and a second story pays out underneath, settled in full in Book Five.
Select a cover to step inside.
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I · The Tithe
A Dark Vampire Romance
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II · The Hunt
A Dark Shifter Romance
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III · The Last Light
A Dark Fantasy Romance
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IV · The Sleep
A Dark Romantic Fantasy
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V · The Long Dawn
A Dark Fantasy Romance
Volume I · DR 312
The Tithe
She took her sister’s place in the Drawing. The lord of the dusk house was not supposed to want her. He was not supposed to ask.
- The couple
- Liora Vess, Corvain Duskmantle, and Rhen Marrow
- Register
- Control, restraint, the bite
- Its instrument
- the asking
- Length
- 102,179 words · 408 pp
Begin here. Read the complete opening chapter, with no account or sign-up.
Content notes and warnings →Volume II · DR 313
The Hunt
She came to count the border. The alpha of Greywater would not let her file what she found.
- The couple
- Maren Callow and Sarn Veilborn
- Register
- Primal, pursuit, claiming
- Its instrument
- the four clauses
- Length
- 99,370 words · 384 pp
This romance stands alone. For the story that connects them, begin with The Tithe.
Content notes and warnings →Volume III · DR 317
The Last Light
She went south to measure a reserve. The Queen of Solmere had been holding one note for a hundred and eleven years, and had never once been looked at.
- The couple
- Ivenne Duskmantle and Aurelisse of Solmere
- Register
- Worship, denial, display
- Its instrument
- the Articles of Audience
- Length
- 99,838 words · 370 pp
This romance stands alone. For the story that connects them, begin with The Tithe.
Content notes and warnings →Volume IV · DR 321
The Sleep
Something has been standing in Elise Vess’s sleep since she was eleven. It has never been given a name that would hold.
- The couple
- Elise Vess and Vael
- Register
- Obsession, dream/waking edge
- Its instrument
- the Waking Hour
- Length
- 105,979 words · 378 pp
This romance stands alone. For the story that connects them, begin with The Tithe.
Content notes and warnings →Volume V · DR 323
The Long Dawn
The debt that made this world is coming to the house. It has an appointment. It has never been paid in the currency it agreed.
- The couple
- the house of Vespertine
- Register
- All four, braided
- Its instrument
- the Renewal
- Length
- 106,292 words · 376 pp
The finale brings the connected story to its close. Read the preceding volumes first.
Content notes and warnings →Free to read
The first chapter of every one of them.
The whole opening chapter, not a teaser — 13,355 words across the five, with no sign-up and no email address. Each sits on its volume page under that book's content warning, so you know what you are walking into before the first line.
The editions
A place on your shelf.
Illustrated paperbacks and hardcovers, with matte colour covers and black-and-white pages on cream paper.
All prices are in USD. Shipping and tax are charged separately at checkout.
| Edition | Each · USD |
|---|---|
| Paperback | $18.99 |
| Hardcover | $29.99 |
Posted where a guest can read it
The law of this house
In the first book, the lord of Vespertine writes down what will not be taken in his rooms and hangs it where any guest can check it against his behaviour. These are ours.
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Five volumes to keep on your shelf. Every book has colour covers and a black-and-white illustrated interior.
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