She has been called “an American virtuoso of the short story form” (Salon) and “one of the quiet giants . . . of American fiction” (Los Angeles Times Book Review). Now, for the first time, Davis’s short stories will be collected in one volume, from the groundbreaking Break It Down (1986) to the 2007 National Book Award nominee Varieties of Disturbance. The Collected Stories of Lydia Davis is an event in American letters.

    As they gather year after year, their stories, their wisdom, their lives, form the pattern from which all of us draw warmth and comfort for ourselves.A MAJOR MOTION PICTURE COMING OUT FALL 1995-- with Maya Angelou, Winona Ryder, and Rip Torn

    The one her mother calls difficult and her father calls remarkable. On Sarah's eleventh birthday, Hetty 'Handful' Grimké is taken from the slave quarters she shares with her mother, wrapped in lavender ribbons, and presented to Sarah as a gift. Sarah knows what she does next will unleash a world of trouble. She also knows that she cannot accept. And so, indeed, the trouble begins ... A powerful, sweeping novel, inspired by real events, and set in the American Deep South in the nineteenth century, THE INVENTION OF WINGS evokes a world of shocking contrasts, of beauty and ugliness, of righteous people living daily with cruelty they fail to recognise; and celebrates the power of friendship and sisterhood against all the odds.

    The original volume of the bestselling women's erotica series

    Kareka, daughter of the begh of the Kirshat, hunts to take a man's head. It is her last opportunity to prove herself as a man or else she will find herself restricted to the role of woman and wife in the clan forever. Robin Hobb revisits her Farseer world in "Words Like Coins." Mirrifen, a failed hedge-witch's apprentice who has married to find security finds that threatened by a severe drought and the appearance of a pregnant female pecksie. C.E. Murphy takes us to frozen Moscow in "From Russia, with Love." Baba Yaga's daughter is a barmaid at a dive when Janx and Eliseo Daisani walk in. They discover, as they compete for the girl's affections, that Baba Yaga has plans for Janx and that her beautiful daughter had merely been the bait.

    Penned by New York Times and award winning authors, some stories in this exclusive collection will make you laugh out loud while others will force you to sleep with the lights on.Dead Flowers by Lori Armstrong Cynical, bad girl PI Julie Collins isn’t the hearts and flowers type, especially not after she’s spent the last few weeks spying on cheating spouses. So when Julie suspects her man, Martinez, may be stepping out on her, she sees red and decides to take matters into her own hands. Let’s just hope Cupid’s Bow gets to Martinez before Julie does.Above Reproach by Allison BrennanSex crimes detective Selena Black knows high-powered government attorney Greg Keller is the River City Rapist; proving it is another matter. Keller enjoys the cat and mouse game with the blonde detective, and makes sure she knows she’s exactly his type. As every possible avenue of investigation is shut down by the courts or her boss, Selena realizes that if someone doesn’t do something to stop Keller, more women will suffer–and she may be next.The Housewife Assassin’s Bloody Valentine by Josie BrownWhat is CIA contract assassin Donna Stone’s idea of a Valentine’s Day getaway? Certainly not orchestrating a jailbreak out of a Mexican prison for a notorious drug lord. But because he has intel as to the whereabouts of an international terrorist organization planning a Valentine’s massacre, there will be no intimate dinner for two or couples massage for Donna and her ops leader, Jack Craig. Just plenty of sun, surf, submarines, sharks… oh yeah, and sex.Bobbie Faye’s Whacked Out, No Good, Really Sucky, Hot Mess of a Wedding by Toni McGee CauseyBobbie Faye Sumrall, Cajun Contraband Days Queen, gun expert, and ultimate professional in being in the wrong place at the wrong time, absolutely positively does not want to go through with the ridiculous wedding that Trevor’s forcing her to agree to, but she soon finds out she has more important things to worry about–like surviving the plot to make her disappear when she’s set up as a fall guy for the theft of a priceless religious icon. And that’s the good news.Blood and Roses by Sylvia DayWhen insurance investigator Anastasia Miller sets out to retrieve the rose-hued pink diamonds stolen in a recent heist, she finds herself working alongside former flame, deputy U.S. Marshal Jake Monroe — the man she loved enough to leave behind.Nightfall by Laura GriffinStranded on an icy road as darkness falls, Holly Henriksen knows she is in trouble. A charming stranger stops to help and Holly decides to trust him, but soon finds out he is harboring a deadly secret.King of Hearts (A Rough Rider Short Story) by Lorelei JamesDeputy Cam McKay is devastated after dealing with a Valentine’s Day murder/suicide in his small county. Will allowing his family to see the dark past that haunts him, help heal him?A Punishing Night by Sophie LittlefieldDetective Joe Bashir returns to his alma mater to investigate the stabbing death of a male college student. Rumors of date rape and fraternity hazing complicate a sensitive case as Joe tries to balance the demands of the investigation with caring for his elderly father. Help – and possibly romance – come from an unexpected source.Pick Your Poison (A Bullet Catchers Novella) by Roxanne St. ClaireBenjamin Youngblood’s only chance to prove he’s worthy of being a Bullet Catcher is to find and stop an assassin. On probation from the elite security force, Ben has to rely on instinct and brains…and one feisty flower farmer. When Callie Parrish discovers her entire crop of rare black roses has been stolen, she’d partner with the devil himself to recoup her loss. It doesn’t take her long to realize she’s done just that…and the road to hell is paved with poisonous petals and deadly kisses.Rebel Rose by Karin TabkeFor Detective Cash Cantrell, hunting down a University serial killer is as routine as strapping on his gun each morning. Until he comes face to face with meddlesome coed, Rebel Yell Culpepper. He doesn’t know if he should arrest her or kiss her, but one thing Cash knows for sure, Rebel is key to finding the murderer, and the killer knows it too…

    They share their knitting triumphs and disasters as well as their life triumphs and disasters…These essays will break your heart. They will have you laughing out loud." —Ann Hood, from the introductionWhy does knitting occupy a place in the hearts of so many writers? What’s so magical and transformative about yarn and needles? How does knitting help us get through life-changing events and inspire joy? In Knitting Yarns, twenty-seven writers tell stories about how knitting healed, challenged, or helped them to grow. Barbara Kingsolver describes sheering a sheep for yarn. Elizabeth Berg writes about her frustration at failing to knit. Ann Patchett traces her life through her knitting, writing about the scarf that knits together the women she’s loved and lost. Knitting a Christmas gift for his blind aunt helped Andre Dubus III knit an understanding with his girlfriend. Kaylie Jones finds the woman who used knitting to help raise her in France and heals old wounds. Sue Grafton writes about her passion for knitting. Also included are five original knitting patterns created by Helen Bingham.Poignant, funny, and moving, Knitting Yarns is sure to delight knitting enthusiasts and lovers of literature alike.

    1880 South Africa is a country torn apart by greed. In this remote and inhospitable land she becomes entangled with two very different men—one driven by ambition, the other by his ideals. Only when the rumor of a smallpox epidemic takes her into the dark heart of the diamond mines does she see her path to happiness.But this is a ruthless world of avarice and exploitation, where the spoils of the rich come at a terrible human cost and powerful men will go to any lengths to keep the mines in operation. Removed from civilization and disillusioned by her isolation, Frances must choose between passion and integrity, a decision that has devastating consequences.

    In these ten bracingly transgressive tales, all her gifts of characterisation and observation are fully engaged, ushering concealed horrors into the light. Childhood cruelty is played out behind the bushes in 'Comma'; nurses clash in 'Harley Street' over something more than professional differences; and in the title story, staying in for the plumber turns into an ambiguous and potentially deadly waiting game.Whether set in a claustrophobic Saudi Arabian flat or on a precarious mountain road on a Greek island, these stories share an insight into the darkest recesses of the spirit. Displaying all of Mantel's unmistakable style and wit, they reveal a great writer at the peak of her powers.

    This is the brilliant short story that featured in the back of the special edition ebook of CONN IGGULDEN’S bestselling novel EMPEROR: BLOOD OF GODS.As the effects of age creep up on Augustus Caesar, he is left with the whispers of his wife Livia in one ear and the echoes of his youthful dreams in the other, as he tries to come to the rescue of his beloved grandson, Marcus.

    Angela Carter takes real people and literary legends - most often women - who have been mythologized or marginalized and recasts them in a new light. In a style that is sensual, cerebral, almost hypnotic, "The Fall River Axe-Murders" portrays the last hours before Lizzie Borden's infamous act: the sweltering heat, the weight of flannel and corsets, the clanging of the factory bells, the food reheated and reserved despite the lack of adequate refrigeration, the house "full of locked doors that open only into other rooms with other locked doors." In "Our Lady of the Massacre" the no-nonsense voice of an eighteenth-century prostitute/runaway slave questions who is civilized - the Indians or the white men? "Black Venus" gives voice to Charles Baudelaire's Creole mistress, Jeanne Duval: "you could say, not so much that Jeanne did not understand the lapidary, troubled serenity of her lover's poetry but, that it was a perpetual affront to her. He recited it to her by the hour and she ached, raged and chafed under it because his eloquence denied her language." "The Kiss" takes the traditional story of Tamburlaine's wife and gives it a new and refreshing ending. Sometimes disquieting, sometimes funny, always thought-provoking, Angela Carter's stories offer a feminist revision of images that lie deep in the public psyche.

    In"Bog Girl", a revelatory story about first love, a young man falls in love with a two thousand year old girl that he's extracted from a mass of peat in a Northern European bog. In "The Prospectors," two opportunistic young women fleeing the depression strike out for new territory, and find themselves fighting for their lives. In the brilliant, hilarious title story, a new mother desperate to ensure her infant's safety strikes a diabolical deal, agreeing to breastfeed the devil in exchange for his protection. The landscape in which these stories unfold is a feral, slippery, purgatorial space, bracketed by the void--yet within it Russell captures the exquisite beauty and tenderness of ordinary life. Orange World is a miracle of storytelling from a true modern master.

    Lieske. Readers will love this collection of six novellas—three contemporary and three historical—all with one thing in common: Romance.Three Historical Romance Novellas:THE PROMISE THAT KATY DID, by Annette Lyon: After the death of Sue Ellen, the closest thing she has to family, Katy knows it’s time to leave the house she’s lived in as a guest and start over in the city. She quickly secures a job, but before leaving, she must honor the unusual promise she made to Sue Ellen on her deathbed: meet with Mr. Balmer. The elderly gentleman arranges for his grandson Barrett to escort her to a town dance. That evening, shy Katy quickly feels at ease with her partner. If her new position weren’t taking her from town morning after next, perhaps something could develop between them. But Barrett may not feel the same about her, and besides, they don't have enough time to find out.A LADY OF SENSE, by Sarah M. Eden: Eleanor Sherwood has lived her entire life under her parents’ thumb with little hope of escape. When they choose the unbearable Mr. Broadstead to be her future husband, she begs her father for another option. He arranges for her to meet Peter Havensham, who quickly proves himself a good and kindhearted gentleman, completely different from Mr. Broadstead, and utterly undeserving of a forced engagement. Eleanor cannot bring herself to prey upon Peter’s honor, but neither can she imagine a life with Mr. Broadstead. What is a lady to do when faced with such an impossible choice?A SECOND CHANCE, by Heather B. Moore: Virginia needs a new start in order to recover from her broken marriage and vicious gossips of her neighborhood in Boston, so when her best friend Millie invites Virginia to Chicago, she goes to live with her friend’s family. But when Millie asked Virginia to participate in a double-date, Virginia knows she’s not ready to start dating again. Reluctantly she agrees, only to find out that Max might just be the man who can repair the cracks in her heart.Three Contemporary Romance Novellas:BRAELYNN’S BLIND DATE, by Victorine E. Lieske. When Braelynn agrees to go on a blind date, she thinks she’s hit the jackpot. Tyler is gorgeous and the perfect gentleman. Of course she should have known it was too good to be true. It turns out that Tyler really wasn’t Tyler, but a random stranger who went along with Braelynn’s mistaken assumption. So, she chalks it up to a dumb mistake until she gets to work Monday morning and discovers that her gorgeous blind date is now her new boss.BIANCA’S HOPE, by Rachel Branton: A blind-date-gone-wrong is not the way Bianca would have chosen to celebrate the news that she might be losing her business, but saying no to the sister who took care of her after their mother’s death proves impossible. So for one date, one torturous evening, she’ll endure the company of an infuriating, heartless man she has no intention of ever seeing again. She doesn’t expect her heart to have other plans. Bianca soon learns that sometimes the unexpected is not only what you need, it’s exactly what you’ve been waiting for all along.BLIND SPOT, by Sariah Wilson: Ria has prepared most of her life to meet her prince, trouble is, her mother keeps yanking her back to reality. So when Ria reads about a country teeming with princes, she drops everything and applies to grad school. But every blind date goes wrong, and while Ria commiserates with her roommate Tessa and Tessa’s totally un-prince-like brother Paolo, Ria discovers that all the things she thought she wanted in a man are far from what she really needs.

    There he is struck by the dark beauty of a young American woman, Vanessa Stewart, a 27-year-old glass designer from New York.Unhappily married, she welcomes a no-strings friendship with Bill. Soon they embark on an illicit affair and find themselves desperately in love. They vow to see each other whenever and wherever they can. But on their third meeting, one of them does not show up.Once again, Barbara Taylor Bradford weaves a love story of uncompromising ardor, this time taking readers through secret trysts in Venice, Manhattan and Southampton. In A Secret Affair, she touches on subjects that will stir the hearts and minds of her readers -- unconditional love and devotion, loyalty and loss.

    A weekend that will change her life…When actress Avery Scott’s assistant goes missing researching a role for Avery at an exclusive adults-only resort, Avery finds herself with only one choice: travel to the resort herself and look for clues. She hires an elite operative from Aegis Security to accompany her. She just doesn’t expect to get former undercover FBI agent Cade Blackwell—the man who ripped out her teenage heart twelve years before. One weekend at the sexiest resort in the world with the only man she’s ever loved will expose her to more than just a kinky new lifestyle. It’ll expose her to numerous wicked firsts that will test every ounce of her self-control. And if she’s not careful, she could lose her heart—and her life—in the process.First Rapture by Alexandra IvyMadison Philips has only one reason to return to Las Vegas: Luc Angeli. The tall, dark bad boy took her virginity on her eighteenth birthday and then walked away, now she’s back, and ready for revenge. Luc Angeli spent his youth trying to earn the approval of his philandering father. Now he’s his own man, but there’s still something missing from his life. He doesn’t know what it is until he catches sight of Madison across a balcony. Suddenly he knows this woman is what he’s been searching for, and this time he’s not walking away.First Taste of Darkness by Cynthia EdenHot sex. No regrets. Jess Delaney has spent her life playing the role of the good-girl. On a trip to Vegas, she decides to walk on the wild side when she meets mysterious Blake Landon. Rich, powerful, and carrying plenty of secrets, Blake is unlike any man she has ever met before. But as the passion burns between them, danger waits in the darkness…a danger that may just claim Jess’s life…First Ink by Laura WrightRush... Women in his bed, celebs and rockers in his chair, life is pretty freaking swell. Then she walks back into it again. Not for pleasure, but for pain. For Ink. A bleeding heart to match the one she left him with five years ago.Addison... She can’t forget him or the pain she caused him. All she has is a hope for redemption. But it’ll only work if he lets her inside his exclusive world, under his famous artist’s needle and into his bed—once again.First Surrender by Katie ReusHe’s dangerous, sexy, and everything she wants. And he’s about to make his claim…Hayden, the dangerously sexy, tattooed ex-SEAL is one of the best friends Sierra has ever had—and the main star in her wildest fantasies. But he doesn’t see her that way. And she’d die of embarrassment if he found out she was still a virgin.Hayden’s struggled to keep his attraction to the beautiful, dark haired casino chef a secret. But when an attacker targets Sierra, Hayden’s protective instincts go into overdrive. With the attraction between them burning out of control, he’ll do whatever it takes to protect her and make her his.First Temptation by Joan SwanCounterterrorist agent Taft Walker is up for the challenge of posing as an adult store owner with a new female undercover partner who is also a sex-toy virgin. At least until he sees the real woman beneath her tough façade.Border Patrol Agent Zoe Brooks is ready to get off the front lines. She’s willing to tolerate a swaggering partner like Taft for a new opportunity. But she’s not prepared for the way he understands her deepest, sexiest desires.