Thirty Knights. Five Events. One Determined Princess.
In order to avoid a loveless arranged marriage to a man she cannot stand, eighteen-year-old Princess Pippa of Lauramore makes a bold move: she begs her father to hold a marriage tournament.
Knights travel from far and wide for a chance to win the princess's hand, but she immediately sets her sights on one—Galinor of Glendon. He's strong. He's handsome. He's a girl's dream come true.
But as the events progress, Pippa learns her valiant knight is prettier than he is capable. Left with no other choice, the princess enlists the help of the one man with the power to shatter the fragile balance of the tournament—a man she should keep at arm's length.
A man who calls her like a moth to a flame.
Pippa knows she plays a dangerous game, but when the stakes are this high, she's not sure if she can afford to walk away...
Set in a rich fantasy world, Pippa of Lauramore is a take-your-breath-away fairy tale romance with unforgettable characters, humor, and heart. Views: 600
Retired spy Franco Tira saves an old Englishman, Charlie Dunpy, from poison meant for himself. Charlie has dementia, but also unusual powers that Franco wants to harness to protect himself against killers seeking revenge for his own past misdeeds. Will Charlie help him? Will his powers keep them both alive?In a nursing home in the hills above Rome, former spy Franco Tira saves an English fellow patient, Charlie Dunpy, from poison meant for himself. As a result they become friends. Charlie has dementia, but he also seems to possess unusual powers that Franco wants to harness to protect himself against killers seeking revenge for his own past misdeeds. Will Charlie help him? Will his powers keep them both alive? Dark future, good reading. Views: 600
On the isle of Crete, a renowned physicist experiments with the nature of reality in this enthralling novel from the author of Broken Symmetries. Secret Passages follows the life of mathematics prodigy Manolis Minakis from the quiet hills of Crete to the lofty chambers of Cambridge University. Upon his retirement, Minakis returns to his Greek island home a renowned physicist and successful industrialist—and ready to embark on his true life's work. Using a cache of Minoan treasures, Minakis lures photographer Anne-Marie Brand and her husband, theoretician Peter Slater, to aid in his attempts to recover the past and understand the true nature of reality. Set against the colorful Mediterranian backdrop, the legendary home of a once-great civilization, this enigmatic novel resonates deeply with both the brain and heart. Admired by legendary science fiction author Roger Zelazny for "his knowledge and artistry," Paul Preuss returns... Views: 600
This is a fictional short story about actual events. It recounts the final emotional changes a man goes through after realizing that everything he’s believed in is just a web weaved from the beginning by men of power that reached the top by deceiving and forging.This is a fictional short story about actual events. It recounts the final emotional changes a man goes through after realizing that everything he’s believed in is just a web weaved from the beginning by men of power that reached the top by deceiving and forging. The unbearable washout he has supported, and the lies he has helped to sponsor fusion in a desperate heart. Views: 600
An ancient, dormant evil returns to haunt the spectrum. Threatening everything. And as chaos stirs, Ion, a young man with a scarred past must put away his inner woes and give himself to a greater cause ... and confront the demons of his past along the way.CRANSOF, STAR CLUSTER 24:A top secret techno facility falls prey to a sudden terrorist attack. But the attackers are no ordinary ones.The spectrum’s worst fear has been realised: this is the return of its most ancient, deadly threat … a threat that has lain suppressed for millennia. The return of the ones they call as mystics.FARNOR, THE OUTER SPECTRUM:Elderly master Mantra feels a sudden disturbance within him. One that signals towards a grave threat ahead for their entire realm… SACROGON, STAR CLUSTER 32:For two years now, Ion has lived a reclusive existence, keeping to himself … carrying the scars of a greatly dark past. But now, as chaos begins to stir in the spectrum, Ion’s life twists overnight, and he is thrust into a perilous new world. A world where good and evil clash with catastrophic proportions … while the fate of the entire realm hangs in the balance.As his life changes overnight in the face of this grave new threat, Ion must muster the courage to put away his inner woes and give himself over to a greater cause … and confront the demons of his past along the way. Views: 600
After 17 year old Ellasis' village was attacked she thought the impending war was the worst of her worries. However, when she's marked for death by an ancient people with the ability to control the elements, she must choose between her life or her kingdom's.Jojo was tripping through life, quite literally, gathering flowers and bruises on her knees.One day, she gets a message from beyond. It’s a call from Angel Central. They want her to enrol in angel bootcamp.Apparently the planet is doomed and it’s all up to Jojo to save it and stuff. Which is fine. She’ll get to it right after Friends. Maybe.Then along comes Michael. Gorgeous, funny, charming and like, a BOY, he reckons he’s here to help her.Well, that makes it a tad more interesting… Eh, maybe she’ll save the planet after all. Views: 600
Jackson doesn’t know the legends of the loons. When the mists fade, when the mighty loons zoom across Achilles Lake, when the male loon seeks its mate, the romance begins. What mysteries lie in loon magic? Believe. A short story of passion, mystery, and magic, with the flavors of “fabulism” of folklore, from the author of the best-selling, award-winning novel The Dazzling Darkness.Jackson doesn’t know the legends of the loons. When the mists fade, when the mighty loons zoom across Achilles Lake, when the male loon seeks its mate, the romance begins. Jackson has a secret rendezvous with Kai, his Loon Woman. She calls him her ‘birdman.’ Their heated lovemaking on the cabin floor is interrupted by an intruder. Jackson doesn’t believe the loons’ calls can evoke magical powers, or that their great wings might bring him beyond his ordinary world. Listen for the hot laughing song of the loon. What mysteries lie in loon magic? Believe. A short story of passion, mystery, and magic, with the flavors of “fabulism” of folklore, from the author of the best-selling, award-winning novel The Dazzling Darkness. Magic of the Loons was originally published at Dark Gothic Resurrected Magazine, Fall Issue 2014."Magic of the Loons" by Paula Cappa is a lyrical gem of a story, a love triangle set against the haunting atmosphere of a lake that is home to a raft of loons. With lush prose and an evocative setting, Cappa interweaves temptress Kai's seductive and sensuous nature and the fate of the two men who have fallen under her mysterious spell." Award-winning author Lucy Taylor of Fatal Journeys, a collection of short stories.Paula Cappa is the recipient of an Eric Hoffer Book Award, Readers' Favorite International Bronze Medal for supernatural suspense, and a Gothic Readers Book Club Award Winner. Views: 600
Harlan Ellison has been compared to an annoying gnat, a no-see ’em buzzing in your peripheral vision till you try to swat him, and he’s gone.
The great English writer Michael Moorcock—and if his name does not leave you dumbstruck with awe, you should move on—called Ellison a “fox in the sf hen-coop” whose presence will “produce a brighter, faster hen, with improved survival characteristics, laying a tastier, more nourishing egg” and went on to say Ellison was “a brave and lively little beast, who makes a great show of himself to the hounds, but remains too wary ever to lead them to his lair.”
The brilliant novelist Joanna Russ, in admiring frustration, opined that Ellison’s stories “have an assault on you,” but complained that “they’re not like a piece of sculpture that you can stop and walk around and look at from all sides.” Ellison’s reply: “Absolutely not; I want them to grab you by the throat and tear off parts of your body.”
Ellison’s a double agent who lures you into the bush, and when you blink, he’s gone; you don’t know whether to turn left or right, or just dig a hole. He crafts enigmas set to entrap you. When Ellison sees where a story is going, he figures—since he’s writing for the smartest readers alive—you do, too. So he stops and turns left. Or right. Or widdershins. Or digs a cave with 200 tunnels.
Can & Can’tankerous gathers ten previously uncollected tales from the fifth and sixth decades of Harlan Ellison’s professional writing career: a written-in-the-window endeavor that invites re-reading from the start before you’ve even finished it; a second entry in his (now) ongoing abcedarian sequence; a “lost” pulp tale re-cast as a retro-fable; a melancholy meditation for departed friend and fellow legend, Ray Bradbury; a 2001 revision of a 1956 original; an absurdist ascent toward enlightenment (or its gluten-free substitute); a 200-word exercise in not following the directions as written (with a special introduction by Neil Gaiman that weighs in at four times the word count of its subject); a fantastical lament for a bottom-line world; the 2011 Nebula Award-winning short story; and Ellison’s most recent offering, a fusion of fact and fiction that calls to mind Russ’s frustration and Moorcock’s metaphor while offering a solution to the story’s enigma in plain view.
Strokes be damned! Ellison’s still here! HE’s still writing! And with more new books published in the last ten years than any preceding decade of his career, his third act is proving to be the kind other living legends envy. Views: 600
Mike Walton had experienced terrorism from every angle. As a covert field operations officer, he thought he'd seen it all. But that was before terrorism struck him directly at home. Suffering devastating physical injury and unthinkable personal loss, Mike had one of two choices: give up or fight back. And giving up wasn't in his constitution. Mike and his wife Lisa – a medical doctor and fellow counter-terrorism expert – are recruited by the International Market Stabilization Institute, a privately funded organization operating outside official channels to protect North America's financial interests. The strikes that destroyed Mike and Lisa's household – the work of Sheik Al-Assad – are bringing the Western economy to its knees. And they are only the beginning. If the Sheik succeeds, the world will change forever, and the next attack is just around the corner. Mike and Lisa must lead a hastily assembled team to Europe to stop the madness before time runs out. Rippling with... Views: 600
Over the last little while I've felt rather lost, so I decided to document it in poetic form. Which includes:A Chance To Look Back - it'll give you a glimpse into my past in my personal lifeI Use To - it'll give you a glimpse into my past in my poetic lifeWish I Could Find A Home - inspired by Insane Clown Posse & Sugar Slam track titled "Take Me Home"A group of high school students are invited into a secret society to assist with a covert mission to expose the evils at the very core of our society. They risk their lives and the lives of their loved ones as they reach out to others, trying to awaken them to the truth; the truth that requires no proof.The team members form a band and go undercover at a three day festival at the city fairgrounds where they come in contact with a coven of witches bent on their destruction. They befriend one of the witches and with a twist of events none of their lives will ever be the same again. Views: 599
In Brighton, the undead come alive when the sun goes down. Can a vampire and a werewolf put their differences aside and join a human in the ultimate threesome? Angelique is not like other burlesque dancers. For one thing, she's been a vampire for over two hundred years. Her rule has always been 'look but don't touch', until she meets hot young sculptor Tom. But she's also attracted to his friend, Lucas, even though she knows him to be a lycan—the last creature she'd ever want to get involved with. Desire and distrust mix in an explosive combination as Angelique is drawn closer to both Tom and Lucas. Tom Lawless is a star on the rise about to exhibit his sculptures at the Cities After Dark show at Brighton Pavilion. When he sees beautiful dancer Angelique, it's lust at first sight and his need for her doesn't fade, even when he learns she's one of the undead. If only he could make her realise that his best friend Lucas is a cool guy and not a threat,... Views: 599
