The essential annual guide to the newest voices in short fiction selected by Danielle Evans, Alice Sola Kim, and Carmen Maria Machado "Prominent issues of social justice and cultural strife are woven thematically throughout 12 stories. Stories of prison reform, the immigrant experience, and the aftermath of sexual assault make the book a vivid time capsule that will guide readers back into the ethos of 2019 for generations to come . . . Each story displays a mastery of the form, sure to inspire readers to seek out further writing from these adept authors and publications." —Booklist Who are the most promising short story writers working today? Where do we look to discover the future stars of literary fiction? This book offers a dozen compelling answers to these questions. The stories collected here represent the most recent winners of the PEN/Robert J. Dau Short Story Prize for Emerging Writers, which recognizes twelve writers who... Views: 99
Sleeping with the boss wasn't meant to be part of the promotion.People think I’m a suave businessman but they couldn’t be more wrong. The expensive suit is just covering the ugly scars of my past.I have no interest in love or making promises that I can’t keep.Until I find her in my hotel suite.She’s a broken mess and everything in me wants to protect her. To make her mine.I’m falling for my employee and she should be running far away from me.Will I let her?No chance. Views: 98
Modeled on the classic 18th-century picaresques like Fielding’s The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling and Defoe’s Moll Flanders, The Life and Adventures of Lyle Clemens is the modern-day bildungsroman of a prodigiously attractive young Texan named Lyle Clemens. Lyle is kind of a holy fool who, like Chance in Being There, illuminates the actions, motivations, and prejudices of others through his lack of cynicism. He is a simple babe, in the woods of Texas and Los Angeles.Lyle’s mother, Sylvia, is a beautiful woman who was raised Pentecostal and rebelled against her mother through sexualitybut her dreams to become Miss America were dashed by her mother in a particularly traumatic way, and Lyle’s father (Lyle the First, a dashing cowboy), who consoled her in her time of need, left her when she became pregnant, leaving only money for an abortion Sylvia never got. Sylvia never talks about her own childhood or Lyle I, and takes refuge in alcohol; an... Views: 95
My name is Alix and I am addicted to sex. Had been for years. I thought I learned how to live a normal life, but that’s the thing about addiction, it creeps back up when you least expect it. There is no one there for me, no one I can turn to for help. Until I’m given a chance to explore a side of myself I’d always kept locked away. I was lost…until him. I can’t tell you who he is, or why he does the things he’s done. All I can say is I hope one day I behave well enough to take off the blindfold and see the man who controls my addiction. My Master. My name is John and I am addicted to control. I tried to deny the dominate side of my personality. I didn’t want to admit how much I enjoyed the power, how much I enjoyed causing pain. That is until the woman I’d been secretly been stalking waltzed into a BDSM club right in front of me. All bets are off. She will be mine. Together our addictions feed off each other, fueling the fire that burns within. Until suddenly the fire is too hot to handle, burning everything in its path. The pain and scars we’d both come into our fragile relationship with are split wide open, exposing more than either of us can handle, possibly leaving nothing behind to salvage from the ashes. Views: 94
Ace has been ignoring Adam. Adam is determined to force him to show his hand by hitting on Alicia, the bartender Ace can't keep his eyes off. When Ace finds out Adam is interested in Alicia on his own, he is ever the more determined to make their threesome work. Views: 93
The first of a trio of trilogies by three amazing romance writers. These stories all have two things in common: magic and romance!"When Demigods Court Death" by Wendy Sparrow:As the demigod of fertility, Aster Slone has a thriving doctor's practice. In fact, the incidence of triplets has made it too thriving. He needs more time with his neighbor the demigoddess of death to dampen his powers. Chandra Linton being gorgeous and sweet makes his task less of a hardship. Hitting the zenith of heretofore-unknown powers without enough exposure to her match is killing Chandra. Accepting all that her crazy, but hot neighbor says is her destiny…well, it muddles her convictions, but her real concern is: does Aster want Chandra because she's the woman he desires or because she's Death?"These Roots Run Deep" by Em Shotwell:Spitfire, New Orleans weather girl, Cheyanne Murphey has everything, and that is exactly how she likes it. When she... Views: 91
Erotica/Romance. 10867 words long. First published in www.torquerepress.com, 2008 Views: 90
