In her final letter, Angie has charged her four closest friends with guiding Romany through her last year of school—but is there an ulterior motive to her unusual dying wish?Each of the four guardians possesses an outlook on life that Angie wants to give her daughter as a legacy. Three of them have known each other since university: the eternally nomadic and exotically named Tiger; the shy and practical Leon with his untapped musical genius; and Maggie, a brilliant lawyer who doesn’t know her own abilities. But the fourth guardian is a mystery to the others: they’ve never even heard of former model Hope before…As the guardians reflect on their friendship with Angie, it becomes apparent that this unusual arrangement is as much about them as it is about Romany. Navigating their grief individually and as a group, what will all five of them learn about themselves, their pasts—and the woman who’s brought them all together?

    There are monsters and beasts living among people, but he learned very early not to admit such things, not if he didn’t want people to think him crazy.It turns out that the supernatural is real, but at thirty Callum has no desire to be part of that secret. Not that he has a choice when it turns out he is a mage, albeit one that hasn’t cast any spells in all his life. There are requirements, duties, and education that the powers that be insist he be subject to.To hell with that.---An Urban Fantasy and Magical Realism story with a healthy dash of genre subversion.

    Maybe it was in a fragment of conversation overheard as she cleaned a sink? Before long (as she dusted a sitting room or defrosted a fridge) she noticed people were telling her their stories. Perhaps they always had done, but now it is different, now the stories are reaching out to her and she gathers them to her…Cleaner Janice knows that it is in people’s stories that you really get to know them. From recently-widowed Fiona and her son Adam; to opera-singing Geordie; and the awful Mrs ‘YeahYeahYeah’ and her fox terrier, Decius, Janice has a unique insight into the community around her.When Janice starts cleaning for Mrs B – a shrewd and tricky woman in her nineties – she finally meets someone who wants to hear her story. But Janice is clear: she is the keeper of stories, she doesn’t have a story to tell. At least, not one she can share.Mrs B is no fool and knows there is more to Janice than meets the eye. What is she hiding? After all, doesn’t everyone have a story to tell?

    One night after working late, he saves an injured cat from a speeding truck. The cat survives, but Eizo does not... Luckily, that cat turns out to be a god-like being who offers him a second chance in another world! Eizo decides that he wants a slower life, one where he can live off the things he creates with his own hands. So, why not become a blacksmith? He does have one other stipulation: a cat companion for his quiet life. These requests are granted, and Eizo is whisked away to a new world and imbued with blacksmithing knowledge. He soon finds out that his abilities are above average—in fact, his new skills are so overpowered that they’re like cheats. On top of that, his cat companion turns out to be a half-tiger girl! Eizo’s blades soon garner attention, and he realizes that he can turn the tides of battle with his forge and hammer. With so much commotion in store, will Eizo truly be able to enjoy a quiet life?

    

    “Kip will return when it’s time.”He wonders, though. He wonders if his errant grand-nephew was really as bright and as promising as they all thought he was. He wonders if Kip has forgotten the Lays, forgotten what it means to be an Islander, forgotten everything that Tovo taught him.Of course, the simplest solution to Tovo’s doubts is to go and see for himself.Someone always leaves, after all, even to the other side of the world.A companion novella to The Hands of the Emperor.

    Her desperate longing for a child compounds her grief, while endless fertility treatments weigh down her soul. Just when hope seems beyond her grasp, her dream of motherhood comes true. All Jillian’s pain is washed away and joy fills her heart.But when someone shows up threatening to take it all away, Jillian must chose between holding on to her newfound happiness or giving it all up for the sake of someone she loves.

    Was he addressing me directly? There could be no other explanation. After decades of silence and hurt; a life spent wondering who and where my father was. Could it be that he had been thinking about me the whole time too?Pearl Flowers lives in a fairytale cottage in the woods in France. Her life is small, strict and safe. Every day is planned: Mondays she takes the middle path through the trees, on Wednesday the right and on Fridays, her special day, she takes the long way into the village. If she makes sure to follow her routine, she can avoid thinking about the past.But then an unexpected phone call throws everything into chaos: Francis, Pearl’s estranged father, has died and left her a bequest. One she can only claim if she agrees to come to his funeral and see the family she’s been hiding from for so long. But when Pearl begins to read Francis’s diaries, his last gift, she realizes that the truth about her father couldn’t be further from what she expected. That each page is addressed to her, the daughter he loved, causes her to question everything she thought she knew about her past.Now Pearl must face the world for the first time in many years. Her father was the only person who knew her deepest secret. Is she ready to finally confront the truth of what happened, and take a second chance at happiness now that it is finally within reach?This emotional and heartwarming novel is for anyone who knows it’s never too late to look for happiness. Fans of Matt Haig, Mike Gayle and Camille Pagán will fall in love with this feel-good and moving story.

    He’s not ready to let go.Sixty-five years ago. Pushing aside drooping hollyhocks, Elin Jenkins tosses back her dark hair and runs up the familiar path to the tiny village of Capel Celyn, past the mossy graveyard with its crumbling stones, towards the farm that’s been in her family for generations. Laughing, Al catches her around the waist, squeezing her tight. ‘Marry me,’ he whispers. ‘I’ll use my Navy liberty leave, we’ll go ask your parents. I don’t want this to end.’ Tears prick her eyes as she smiles up at him.Three days later, Al is on his ship back to Pennsylvania. And in the months that follow, Elin’s frantic telegrams to him go unanswered. Then she receives the wedding invitation. Scribbled on the back are three words: No hard feelings.Present day. Al Locke, retired Navy Captain, smooths his silver hair and finishes up with a spritz of aftershave. With a spring in his step he hasn’t had for decades, he sets off up the well-worn track through the valley. As he rounds the last bend, his heart begins to race. He has no doubt he will meet her in the village today. He will at last hear the horrible truth of what happened to Elin after he left, and he’ll confess why he couldn’t face coming back… until now.As Al crests the final, familiar hill, a startling brightness draws him in like a vision. Before him, a glittering lake fills the entire valley. The pretty stone village of Capel Celyn, and all trace of Elin, are gone…A beautiful and heartbreaking story about lost love, forgiveness and family secrets. Fans of Fiona Valpy, Kate Morton and Kathleen McGurl will love this book.

    

    That is—until her boyfriend, Owen Malone, steps up to the challenge. Wanting to maintain her relationship with her boyfriend, Jules is torn. But while Owen is in her heart, football is in her blood.Once the idea takes root to quit her championship volleyball team and join the leagues of Iron Valley’s toughest teenage boys, there’s no stopping Jules from pursuing her dream. In her mind, expectations that the position will go to a male player have gone on long enough, and, even as her decision creates controversy among the booster parents, school coaches, family members, and team members themselves, Jules holds strong in her beliefs.Which is good—because when parents hear that Jules plans to participate in overnight pre-season camp with a staff of male coaches and eighty high school boys, her tryout is threatened more than ever before. Yet, nobody can deny Jules’ skills. As the youngest sister of three former high school quarterbacks, Jules knows the game. She knows what it takes to outsmart opponents, and she’s not about to let anyone count her out for being a girl.But as the competition intensifies, Jules must choose what she wants more—to embrace girl power and lead her team on the field, or be a girlfriend on the sidelines.Gridiron Girl will inspire you to follow your vision, instead of those dictated by others. Perfect for fans of Better than Perfect by Simone Elkeles and On the Fence by Kasie West.

    In art class, she meets two offbeat students, Oscar and April. The three bond through clandestine sleepovers, thrift store shopping, and zine publishing. Winifred is finally breaking out of her shell, but there’s one secret she can’t bear to admit to April and Oscar, or even to herself—and this lie is threatening to destroy her newfound friendships.With breathtaking art and honest storytelling, rising star Sarah Winifred Searle delivers a heartfelt story about love, friendship, and self-acceptance.

    Even her older brother Spencer says so, though he wouldn’t finish the thought with, “And I should have been a girl.” Though both feel awkward in their own skin, they have to face who they are—queers in the late 60s. When both are caught with gay partners, their lives and futures are endangered by their homophobic father as their mother struggles to defend them. While the Vietnam War threatens to take Spencer away, Tracy and her father wage a war of their own, each trying to save the sweet, talented pianist. At seventeen, Tracy dresses as a boy and leaves her parents in turmoil, with only the slimmest hope of finding peace within herself. She journeys to a girl with a guitar, calling to her from a photo, "Come to Alaska. We'd be great friends." Maybe even The MoonStone Girls.

    For two years she’s been playing open mic night at bars throughout the city, trying to catch a break. And it doesn’t help that she feels in direct competition with Kirsten Kavanaugh, another singer-songwriter who looks so similar to Winnie that the two are often confused for each other.While Winnie battles with her own wavering feelings of self-worth, Kirsten appears so confident and talented. Deep down, Kirsten is exactly who Winnie wishes she could be. But when these two young women are paired up for a songwriting event, Winnie must put aside her envy and work together with her musical rival.The stories that Winnie has let stew in her head don’t always reflect the reality that’s in front of her. As she grows closer to Kirsten and begins to open up, will Winnie’s dreams of getting noticed come to fruition alongside an unlikely romance?

    Who will have the courage, kindness and love to grant her last request? A compassionate and heart-felt story for readers of Jodi Picoult, Tricia Stringer and Fiona Lowe.Knowing she is sliding into dementia, Lily Harford is ready to give up her life ... but can she persuade someone to commit the illegal act of taking it from her?Lily has lived a joyful, independent life in a seaside town in Queensland, running her own business and raising a daughter as a single mother at a time when few women did so. Now health and circumstance have pushed her into a nursing home, and her memory is failing, although events of the past remain fresh. Like pulling back the layers of a Russian doll, Lily recalls the former selves - mother, professional woman, lover, daughter - who still exist inside her.Lily's daughter, Pauline, has been pushed to her limits by her demanding job, as well as the needs of her mother, husband, daughter and grandchildren. And now her mother is begging to die. Nurse aide Donna, still recovering from a dysfunctional childhood and the demise of her marriage, finds comfort in Lily's kindness and down to earth wisdom. As Lily fades, she asks Donna, too, to help her end her life.A thought-provoking, vivid and moving exploration of how we value a life well lived, and the decisions we make when that life is coming to an end.

    The world rights agreement was brokered between Joe Veltre at the Gersh Agency and FSG’s Trisha de Guzman. The agency said the coming-of-age story is about “a girl and her friends who wrestle their way through the summer, sometimes on the playgrounds of Coney Island, sometimes with their feelings.” The novel, which is based on Femia’s play of the same name, is set for winter 2022.

    Every day holds new surprises for best friends Manon, Erika, and Camille--after all, they have three rambunctious cats to look after! Join in on their adventures with this collection of short stories and get ready for some laugh-out-loud feline-filled fun!From author Frédéric Brrémaud (Love, Little Tails) and artist Paola Antista (Disney Frozen, Sorceline) comes an all-ages humorous collection of all the joys of being a cat owner.* Published for the first time in English, this vo