A new title from the author of The Flea Palace, shortlisted for the Independent Prize for Foreign Fiction and chosen for Waterstone’s 2005 Summer Reading promotion.
In her prize-wining novel, The Gaze, Shafak explores the subject of body image and desirability. An overweight woman and her lover, a dwarf, are sick of being stared at wherever they go, and decide to reverse roles. The man goes out wearing make up, and the woman draws a moustache on her face.
The couple deal with the gaze of passers by in different ways. The woman wants to hide away from the world, while the man meets them head on, even compiling his own ‘Dictionary of the Gaze’ to show the powerful effects a simple look can have.
The narrative of The Gaze is intertwined with the dwarf’s dictionary entries and the story of a bizarre freak-show organized in Istanbul in the 1880s as Shafak explores the damage which can be done by our simple desire to look at other people. Views: 713
BREATHING FIRE & OTHER STORIES by Courtney Wallace is a collection of three short stories that show you the darker side of the human creed. A darkness abounds within each story, taking viewers through gut-wrenching history and into the dystopia future. Humans can truly be terrifying little creatures.“Breathing Fire” How do you explain war to a child? Annie doesn’t need it explained, she’s grown up in it for as long as she can remember. Set in London, during the German Blitz attacks in World War II, Annie watches her home being threatened every night. The great German dragons come to blow fire down on the Englishmen as they run for the shelters. It never seems to end and Annie is often found wondering what life looks like without the threat of death. Without the threat of gas chambers and extinction. “The High Card” Doug was never a fast learner. It took him years to learn to read and even longer to perform any basic math but there are some things in life that are, unfortunately, very obvious. Like, when the sun sets the moon rises, or if you stand out in the rain you will get wet, and especially that if your wife becomes distant and leaves at odd hours she’s probably cheating. Doug was slow but he wasn’t stupid, he saw the looks and caresses between his wife and best friend. He thinks, it’s about time he did something about it. “Genticae Experimenta” In the future germs, infections, and bacteria rule over all. Antibiotics and immunizations have failed us and the entire human population is being picked off. The Abbott Organization has come to the rescue, hiring the best scientists from across the globe to find cures to these superbugs, by any means necessary. Quickly, the project takes a darker turn. Humans and animals are brutally experimented on, leaving physical and emotional scars. But who is to blame? The desperate scientists or the ambitious and ruthless CEO who created the project? Views: 713
Do you desire to see more of Christ in your assembly and less of men and tedious program? Consider the experience of a couple of spirit-hungry churches. They could be like the ones just around your corner, with the Lord, in his sovereign will, about to break something open. Something like revival.The following Companion outlines in some detail the works collected together as The Ostraka Plays, together with some observations behind the writing process and a larger overview of the theatre these plays occupy. Each play is discussed in some detail and all are grouped together under the rubric of the ostracised: those people and characters who are ejected or abandoned from the social body. Views: 713
Juniper Hill is a short story of a young woman named Catherine and her brief relationship with John, a farmer's son, in a rural New England town.In the far future, humans have abandoned a dying Earth and colonised planets on the edge of another galaxy. Once there, they discover this galaxy is teeming with various species of alien life that have created a huge galactic network of planets which the humans become part of. This is the story of a human who journeys from the outer colonies to the bustling, cosmopolitan centre of the galaxy to start a new life. After befriending a cheeky alien, he unwittingly becomes entangled in a web of crime and adventure far beyond his wildest imagination. Can he stay ahead of the people who are determined to hunt him down? Views: 711
(Short Story, just over 2,000 words) A war in the future. Heavy AI and self replicating machines.(Short Story, just over 2,000 words) A war in the future. Heavy AI and self replicating machines.Personally, I think there could be a plot here. So ya never know, maybe this will be the one I go back to in a few years and mine it for a novel or six. As always, I would love to get feedback and constructive criticism of all types. Views: 711
From Bill Russo, the author of The Creature From the Bridgewater Triangle, comes new tales from the 200 square mile area that is sometimes called 'America's Bermuda Triangle'. This time the stories are fiction - and yet these yarns come from a place where 'real' and 'unreal' collide and exist in an uneasy truce in the same space.From Bill Russo, the author of The Creature From the Bridgewater Triangle, comes new tales from the 200 square mile area that is sometimes called 'America's Bermuda Triangle'. This time the stories are fiction - and yet these yarns come from a place where 'real' and 'unreal' collide and exist in an uneasy truce in the same space. Four young friends gather at a summer camp near the eerie Hockomock Swamp. They spin a few campfire yarns. The oldest of the group tells a story that could be called The Cold Fingers of Death. His narrative is derided by his companions so he offers them a far darker scenario when he relates the bizarre life of Jimmy Catfish of the devilish body of disparate waters called Codfresh Lake. As the last hushed words of the story fade away, more firewood is piled on the campfire and an unforeseen event ratchets the mood of the friends from jocular to tense as they contemplate a new horror - a reanimated warrior from a hundred years ago who wears a string of scalps around his neck and head - some of which are fresh with blood from the newly dead. Views: 710
This fast paced short story follows an ex chemist in a zombie infested post apocalyptic world. The challenges are many as he faces not only the undead, but also the National Guard, the painful memory of his lost lover, and most of all, his obsession with making nitroglycerin.The Anomaly Hunters saga begins here!When high school seniors Cynthia Crow and Calvin Beckerman set out to investigate the disappearance of Cynthia’s little sister Emily, they aren’t prepared for the surprising twists and turns that await them. They soon find themselves under the tutelage of Robert May, an elderly anomaly investigator who believes that Emily’s disappearance is connected with a string of bizarre and possibly paranormal tragedies stretching back two hundred years. The group’s dogged pursuit of the truth uncovers shocking secrets and terrible crimes, and brings them face-to-face with a mysterious force that will change their lives—and the world—forever.A 98,000-word novel. Views: 710
What if someone tells you that you can actually play games on LOVE? What if True Love is just a fantasy and a fairy tale? I bet this is one of the most controversial book ever. You're truly going to find crazy philosophies here. Enjoy!Dana Bowman’s ex-husband, Colby, comes across a form Dana filled out for a contest. The phenomena/psychic society showcases any aspiring psychics who care to predict events in the coming year. Colby knows Dana won’t remember to send in the form, she never does. He reads her answers, laughs at the predictions, and figures her answers are as good as anyone else’s at guessing what will happen in the coming year. One year later, surprise! Dana wins prizes amounting to a whopping $50,000. To collect, she must appear in Los Angeles with the well-known psychics who sponsored the contest. Adam Knight, a publicist from LA, is elected to meet Dana, take her to all required appearances, including a television show. At home, Colby and their daughters, Mitzi and Kayci, watch their now-famous mother and wonder who will accompany her to Paris. Jealousy colors Colby's thoughts and actions, at least initially. Perhaps Colby can convince her to re-marry so he can accompany her to Paris and start winning back her love. Will he get to Dana in time before she invites someone else…say, Adam Knight?(Contains sexual love scenes) Views: 710
Being a teenager is never easy. It's even harder when you've been dead for over 250 years and your family are Death Omens. Famine is about to find out that his new world is filled with All matter of death, adventure, and even new friends. But there is an enemy waiting in the darkness. Famine's first foray into soul collection may be his lastThe animal kingdom needs to outdoor its princess; she must wear a new smock, but they need Ananse—the banished weaver.... Inspired by Ghanaian folktale... Views: 709
The Colours of Schizophrenia is a life journey with insights into the mind of a man with mental illness. The book describes the nature of paranoid schizophrenia, written with a fresh and balanced viewpoint. The poems are uplifting and sentimental, describing love, delusions, depression, recovery, and much more.The Colours of Schizophrenia is a reflection of a life journey through mental illness. These poems navigate through the mind, emotional state of recovery with a fresh vision of the soul. The poems depict the rage between reality, and the savage character of paranoid schizophrenia. Written in partnership with SEPT (NHS). Views: 709
Drew, a neurotic college graduate, tutors a remarkable high school boy while he waits to hear about an engineering job.This is a selection of OMR - One Minute Reads. Each week when I attended Pomona Writers Group 2012 the facilitator gave us homework to write no more than five hundred words on the title he chose.Hope you indeed enjoy reading these OMR - One Minute Reads as I have had in writing and publishing them. Views: 709
Michael's in his final year at High School: last thing he wants is to spend Saturday helping his snobby mother on her charity market stall. But maybe this could be the smartest move he'll ever make!Michael's still uncertain about his sexuality, surrounded at school by unfeasibly confident girls and bullying macho boys he feels utterly alone. When, helping his mother on her charity stall, he spots a young Romanian busker, he's struck by someone who appears even worse off, or is he? Could it be that this enigmatic young musician holds the key to Michael's future? Views: 709
They say when you lose someone you love, you can wish them back in another person… This was the case for me. My name is Cody and this is my story about a wish for love to find me. My story takes place in a small ranching town in North Dakota called Twin Rivers where ever body knows everybody. One day when I was least expecting it a special girl walked into my life.On the surface, the galaxy seems peaceful. Humankind prospers from the Capital World to the far reaches of The Corridor. But to those who can see the signs, it's clear something is wrong. Long, dark fingers are pulling strings inside the military, making clandestine deals with enemy states, and fulfilling some dark design.Calvin is an intelligence agent working for the Imperial government. He's young, his methods are unorthodox, but he gets results. So when a former military hero steals a warship and goes rogue--threatening to start a war, Calvin is sent to eliminate him.But as he chases his prey across the stars, he realizes they are both pawns in a shadowy chess game that shakes kingdoms, divides empires, and threatens civilization everywhere. And if he is to uncover the mystery and expose the conspiracy he must confront--and embrace--the darkest elements of the galaxy and throw himself, his career, and everyone he loves into the line of fire. Views: 707
'Tis done.
The world is a most confused and unsteady place -- especially London, center of finance, innovation, and conspiracy -- in the year 1714, when Daniel Waterhouse makes his less-than-triumphant return to England's shores. Aging Puritan and Natural Philosopher, confidant of the high and mighty and contemporary of the most brilliant minds of the age, he has braved the merciless sea and an assault by the infamous pirate Blackbeard to help mend the rift between two adversarial geniuses at a princess's behest. But while much has changed outwardly, the duplicity and danger that once drove Daniel to the American Colonies is still coin of the British realm.
No sooner has Daniel set foot on his homeland when he is embroiled in a dark conflict that has been raging in the shadows for decades. It is a secret war between the brilliant, enigmatic Master of the Mint and closet alchemist Isaac Newton and his archnemesis, the insidious counterfeiter Jack the Coiner, a.k.a. Jack Shaftoe, King of the Vagabonds. Hostilities are suddenly moving to a new and more volatile level, as Half-Cocked Jack plots a daring assault on the Tower itself, aiming for nothing less than the total corruption of Britain's newborn monetary system.
Unbeknownst to all, it is love that set the Coiner on his traitorous course; the desperate need to protect the woman of his heart -- the remarkable Eliza, Duchess of Arcachon-Qwghlm -- from those who would destroy her should he fail. Meanwhile, Daniel Waterhouse and his Clubb of unlikely cronies comb city and country for clues to the identity of the blackguard who is attempting to blow up Natural Philosophers with Infernal Devices -- as political factions jockey for position while awaiting the impending death of the ailing queen; as the "holy grail" of alchemy, the key to life eternal, tantalizes and continues to elude Isaac Newton, yet is closer than he ever imagined; as the greatest technological innovation in history slowly takes shape in Waterhouse's manufactory.
Everything that was will be changed forever ...
The System of the World is the concluding volume in Neal Stephenson's Baroque Cycle, begun with Quicksilver and continued in The Confusion.
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Two new, original novellas—Donaldson's first publication since finishing the Thomas Covenant series—are a sure cause for celebration among his many fans.
In The King's Justice, a stranger dressed in black arrives in the village of Settle's Crossways, following the scent of a terrible crime. He even calls himself "Black," though almost certainly that is not his name. The people of the village discover that they have a surprising urge to cooperate with this stranger, though the desire of inhabitants of quiet villages to cooperate with strangers is not common in their land, or most lands. But this gift will not save him as he discovers the nature of the evil concealed in Settle's Crossways.
The "Augur's Gambit" is a daring plan created by Mayhew Gordian, Hieronomer to the Queen of Indemnie, a plan to save his Queen and his country. Gordian is a reader of entrails. In the bodies of chickens, lambs, piglets, and one stillborn infant he sees the same message: the island nation of Indemnie is doomed. But even in the face of certain destruction a man may fight, and the Hieronomer is utterly loyal to his beautiful Queen--and to her only daughter. The "Augur's Gambit" is his mad attempt to save a kingdom. Views: 705
