After being in a prison cell for two years, Hector hopes to get home and breathe easy. But he can't. His dead father's things wait for his attention, and his sister can't help with much of anything. Getting back to civilian life is always tough for ex-cons, and it's no different for Hector. Seems that he's boxed in. Again.Fans are calling this book the perfect blend of "The Lord of the Rings" and "Star Wars".Terrynmen was a once magnificent realm that was sadly devastated by a terrible war between the armies of the living and the forces of the undead. Their final battle ended in a heinous catastrophe, which stopped the world from rotating, cursing half the planet in endless darkness and the other in scorching daylight. The defeated blood demons and other creatures of the night, found refuge on the cold, sunless side of the planet, while the victorious, mortal beings were forced to rebuild their once great cities in the sweltering, sunlit lands.A millennium later, the forces of darkness have united under a mysterious leader and are preparing for the final annihilation of the mortal races. The only hope for the sunlit side of the planet is a young slave named Maxtix, who has been forced fight as a gladiator since childhood. Fortunately, Maxtix has a secret that has kept him alive through countless battles… but will it be enough to save the world? Views: 591
For small town girl, Abby Lynn McAllister, life is about following your heart. But what if your heart is leading you astray?One man holds the strings to her heart; one man hears the whispers of her heart. Which one is the right one?Follow Abby's journey as she spins it all the way down to the bittersweet end.For small town girl, Abby Lynn McAllister, life is about following your heart. But what happens when your heart leads you astray? She'll find out because her heart has been set on her best friend, Henry Newburn, since the fifth grade. A preacher's daughter and former tomboy, Abby discovers that life holds lots of secrets and things simply aren't always the way they seem. Luckily she has a confidant to help her navigate the serious twists life has to offer her. J.B. is Henry's solid and rugged younger brother. A cowboy by trade, J.B. stands ready to jump to the rescue whenever Henry seems to come up short. Set in the Oklahoma Panhandle, Whispers in the Wind is Abby's story and she spins it down to the bittersweet end. Views: 590
THE MAN WHO FLED
When Tralane, an itinerant bard, was captured by the dread Sorcerer King, his only hope lay in stealing the Eye of Wyden. With that powerful amulet, he was able to escape to another variant world.
But he could not so easily escape the destiny that seemed to pursue him. As he fled from world to world, each seemed to offer only greater misery and danger. And now he was stalked by the mocking figure of the Jade Warrior, a mysterious creature who waited patiently for his failure or death.
The final world was that of the Worm-God Wyden, from whom the Eye had been ripped, and the Man of a Thousand Faces, who sought to trap him into an eternity of futile degradation.
In the end, Tralane was forced to flee once more - back to face himself and his unknown beginnings.
SPECIAL BONUS - This digital edition includes the previously unpublished story GHOST SWORD OF THE HEART Views: 590
Dylan first discovered the beautiful Circle of Palms near the beach when he was 6 years old. His beloved grandmother would walk with him and teach him about the seasons and years of life by referring to the 88 palm trees that encircled the park as if they were friends at different stages in life. Dylan would never forget the Circle of Palms or the joy for life his grandmother so lovingly shared.Disillusionment can be a great motivator, and when the only way out is up Jet learns that friends can be found in the most unlikely of places: that a courier service is much more than delivering parcels and that diamonds are everyone's best friends.In the Company Wars Chronicles I have a character called Alan P. Ellis. Alan is portrayed as an arrogant and self-important writer, who is the author of a series of books about Jet Black. The idea was to depict Jet Black as a kind of Flash Gordon or Buck Rogers; the kind of over the top character that gets into fanciful and implausible situations. But as anyone who writes will know our characters sometimes refuse to act the way we intended them to, and it occurred to me long after I had introduced Alan that by making Jet into a far-fetched character gave me the opportunity to use a few what if situations I had at the back of my mind without taking the stories too seriously. Jet may have started as a joke, but it seems Alan has had the last laugh. Views: 590
The classic tale of the Ning and Rong families, Chinese aristocrats on the wrong side of the wheel of fate. Starring Baoyu, a character unique in literature, the young man who finds his own kind filthy, and seeks only the company of women. With characters high and low, corrupt and chaste, human and supernatural. Illustrated. Views: 590
Discover a world of fey magic and dark secrets . . . Zaria Tourmaline, a young fairy with exceptional magical strength, is on the run after escaping from the evil Lily Morganite, who will stop at nothing to gain control of Feyland and its people.
Since discovering that her parents might still be alive, Zaria, along with her friends, sets out on a quest to find them and free them from the dark enchantment that Lily has cast. Zaria is also in possession of a rare substance - an indigo bottle that contains a malevolent powder capable of destroying magic . . . But will she be able to keep it from falling into the hands of Lily Morganite? Views: 590
Tawana Saunders is writing the great American novel. Problem is, six months into the project, she’s only got a rough draft plus three lousy paragraphs.Last weekend I was looking through my computer. Over the years I've written short stories on whatever subject that interested me at the moment. Here is a sample for you to enjoy. In the properties of each file I found the earliest date recorded on my present computer and listed it. I included it for your information only. I only did minor editing to clean up the stories. I only ask one thing. After you read these stories, please go to the end of the book and click on the link and let me know how you liked each story. A simple GOOD, BAD, TERRIBLE, QUIT POLLUTING THE INTERNET WITH E-BOOKS, or any other comment will let me know which type of stories you like. I don't aim to please, because I write for my enjoyment, whether you like them or not. However, I do listen and sometimes change my mind.Back before I knew about e-books I took a writing course online. One of the questions asked was my goal to get published. Because I knew that the publishing houses controlled writers, I replied that I wanted to collect a thousand rejection slips. The instructor praised me for my attitude because she said that many aspiring writers gave up after rejections by the print publication houses. I failed because I only collected seven before I discovered online publishing at Smashwords. No use banging my head against a brick wall where someones else's preconceived ideas limit my freedom of expression. Views: 590
Bound by his promise to Glaeken, Jack has refrained from making any direct moves against Rasalom. But things have changed so there's nothing holding Jack in check any longer. Other changes are occurring as well. Jack is healing at an accelerated rate--much like Glaeken did when he was immortal. This can only mean that Glaeken's time is almost up and when he dies, Jack takes his place. Rasalom continues to plot against the Lady. Twice she has died and returned; a third time and she will be gone, leaving a clear path for the Otherness to infiltrate this reality. But Ernst Drexler, formerly Rasalom's go-to guy for logistical support, fears he will be left out in the cold when the Change comes. He forms an uneasy alliance with Jack, who is preparing to face their old enemy. Meanwhile, Dawn Pickering is searching for her supposedly dead baby. The trail leads her to a mansion in a remote Long Island coastal town, where she discovers a truth she could have never imagined. Now the stage is set for Jack's massive assault on Rasalom. Jack knows he's got just one shot. But it's not just a matter of taking out Rasalom: he also must safely retrieve Dawn's child and minimize collateral damage. So, he comes up with a foolproof plan. But fools are always with us…. Views: 590
Seven “masterfully told” stories of suspense and nightmarish drama from the National Book Award–winning author of Them (The Guardian).
With the novella and six stories collected here, Joyce Carol Oates reaffirms her singular reputation for portraying the dark complexities of the human psyche. The title novella tells the story of Marissa, an eleven-year-old girl with hair the color of corn silk. When she suddenly disappears, mounting evidence points to a local substitute teacher. Meanwhile, an older girl from Melissa’s school is giddy with her power to cause so much havoc unnoticed. And she intends to use that power to enact a terrifying ritual called The Corn Maiden.
In “Helping Hands,” published here for the first time, a widow meets an Iraq War veteran in a dingy charity shop, having no idea where the peculiar encounter is about to lead. In “Fossil-Figures,” a pair of twins—an artist and a congressman—never outgrow an ugly sibling rivalry. And in “A Hole in the Head,” a plastic surgeon gives in to an unusual and dangerous request.
Together, these seven tales offer “a virtuoso performance” of “probing, unsettling, intelligent” storytelling from one of the world’s greatest writers of suspense (The Guardian).
“The seven stories in this stellar collection from the prolific Oates may prompt the reader to turn on all the lights or jump at imagined noises. . . . This volume burnishes [her] reputation as a master of psychological dread.” —Publishers Weekly, starred review
“For horror stories to be truly horrific, the reader has to care. Oates feels this deeply in her writing, and delivers with style.” —The Independent
“Further confirmation of a unique writer’s restless, preternatural brilliance.” —The Guardian Views: 589
A revelatory, indispensable collection of poems from Jane Hirshfield that centers on beauty, time, and the full embrace of an existence that time cannot help but steal from our arms. Hirshfield is unsurpassed in her ability to sink into a moment's essence and exchange something of herself with its finite music--and then, in seemingly simple, inevitable words, to deliver that exchange to us in poems that vibrate with form and expression perfectly united. Hirshfield's poems of discovery, acknowledgment of the difficult, and praise turn always toward deepening comprehension. Here we encounter the stealth of feeling's arrival ("as some strings, untouched, / sound when a near one is speaking. / So it was when love slipped inside us"), an anatomy of solitude ("wrong solitude vinegars the soul, / right solitude oils it"), a reflection on perishability and the sweetness its acceptance invites into our midst ("How suddenly then / the strange happiness took me, / like a man with... Views: 589
The Men in Black were elevated to superstar status in 1997 in the hit movie of the same name. Although the Hollywood blockbuster was fiction, the real Men in Black have consistently attempted to silence the witnesses of UFO and paranormal phenomena since the 1950s.In The Real Men in Black, author Nick Redfern delves deep into the mysterious world of these mysterious operatives. He reveals their origins and discusses classic cases, previously unknown reports, secret government files, and the many theories that have been presented to explain the mystery.Highlights of The Real Men in Black include:The story of Albert Bender, the first man to claim an encounter with the Men in BlackThe involvement of the MIB in the Mothman saga that dominated the town of Point Pleasant, West Virginia in the 1960sEncounters with the MIB at the site of one of the world's most famous monsters: Loch NessExclusive interviews with leading researchers... Views: 589
Urthona's private world was a place of sudden land shifts...of mountains that sank into valleys, and plans that rose into peaks. Kickaha was trapped there with Anana and they were all in desperate straits. Because there was only one gate out of that world, located within Urthona's palace. And finding that palace, which moved as often as the landscape itself, was by no means a simple task. Views: 589
The sheriff investigates the town bum, known now as brother Ezra, who has found God and speaks in tongues.The sheriff investigates the town bum, now Brother Ezra, who has found God and speaks in tongues. The town is evenly divided. One half thinks he is a healer and the greatest thing to happen in their town. The other half thinks he is a drunken rapist and should be run out of town on a rail. The sheriff is in a quandary. He needs the votes of both sides. Views: 589
