Emphasis on hidden. If anyone from school finds out, she’ll be abandoned to her haters. Facing a long and lonely summer, Mattie finally seeks out Miyu, the reclusive daughter of a world-renowned escape artist. Following in Houdini’s footsteps, Miyu helps Mattie secretly transform herself into an escapologist and performance artist.When Will, a popular athlete from school, discovers Mattie’s act at an underground venue, Mattie fears her secret persona will be exposed. Instead of outing her, Will tells Mattie a secret not even his girlfriend knows. Through a blossoming friendship, the two must find a way to express their authentic selves. Told through the perspectives of the witty main characters, this funny and fresh debut explores the power of stage personas and secret spaces, and speaks to the uncanny ways in which friendships transform us.

    Adolescent longing. Adult passion. Is their timing finally right?Preston Fawkes is ten the first time he meets Konrad Schnell, the fifteen-year-old rising star of the San Antonio Polo Club. Captivated, Pres vows to learn the game at the hands of his newly acquired friend and mentor, even though his rancher father disapproves. Konrad Schnell is also a rancher’s son, but his parents see their son’s full potential as a high goal polo player and do their best to give him every advantage. But Konrad has a secret that could jeopardize everything. He’s a gay man living in the heart of Texas and his parents—and everyone in his world—would disown him if he were to come out. Preston’s hero worship soon grows into something deeper, but the friends are separated when thirteen-year-old Preston goes off to boarding school in England. When they reconnect three years later, they finally get to explore their true feelings. As adolescent passion turns to adult realities, they face new consequences at every turn. When the stars seem about to align and they’re ready to begin their lives together, fate alters their plans. Will they remain star-crossed forever or will destiny bring them back together?

    He is a little disappointed by the facilities on the Border, but he gets to meet Serene-Heart-In-The-Chaos-Of-Battle, an elf warrior, and Luke Sunborn, an annoyingly brave human warrior native to the magical land he’s crossed into. There are also mermaids, unicorns, harpies and assorted battles and political issues, with Elliot alternating between diplomatic genius and saying the completely wrong thing.Rees Brennan is an expert storyteller than can have you laughing out loud one moment and in tears the next. Her characters are tridimensional and varied and nobody is without good reason to do good and terrible things. "The Turn of the Story" was inspired in the magical worlds of Tamora Pierce, Diana Wynne Jones’s Witch Week, Harry Potter, Neil Gaiman’s The Books of Magic, Eva Ibbotson’s Which Witch? and Jill Murphy's Worst Witch but it's an original piece which awknowledges and comments in its influences, engaging with its predecessors both with the joy of a reader and the critical self awareness of a writer. Elliot is marked by SRB's distinctive voice and the reader is constantly delighted by his referencing of a world that, accross the Border, it's as fictional as the Border is for us, creating a metafictional loop in which the reader and Elliot are the only ones aware of the implications of the plot in its context in our reality. So far magic school was total rubbish.Elliot sat on the fence bisecting two fields and brooded tragically over his wrongs.He had been taken away from geography class, one of his most interesting classes, to take some kind of scholarship test out in the wild. A woman in odd clothing had ‘tested’ him by asking him if he could see a wall standing in the middle of a field. When he told her “Obviously, because it’s a wall. Walls tend to be obvious” she had pointed out other people blithely walking through the wall as if it was not there, and told him that he was one of the chosen few with the sight.“Are you telling me that I have magical powers?” Elliot had asked, extremely excited for a moment, and then he added: “… because I can’t walk through walls? That doesn’t seem right.”

    Falling in love with his roommate was certainly not on the agenda, but fear and shame force him to hide his love and true self.Back home, weighed down by the expectations of their wealthy and powerful family, the love of Oto's twin sister wavers and, as their world begins to crumble around them, Oto must make drastic choices that will alter the family's lives for ever.Richly imagined with art, proverbs and folk tales, this moving and modern novel follows Oto through life at home and at boarding school in Nigeria, through the heartbreak of living as a boy despite their profound belief they are a girl, and through a hunger for freedom that only a new life in the United States can offer.An Ordinary Wonder is a powerful coming-of-age story that explores complex desires as well as challenges of family, identity, gender and culture, and what it means to feel whole.

    With those words, two men began a journey of love and invited us to ride along. TJ and Eric have shared so much with us: their wonderful books, their smiles, their humor, their lives, and their inspiring devotion to each other. In December of 2013, their journey took a detour when Eric was taken to the emergency room. He survived the surgery to remove a cavernous hemangioma from his brain stem, but the challenges TJ and Eric face are far from over.The authors in this anthology donated their talent as a way to support Eric's continued recovery, to help bring strength to TJ, and to show both of them just how much love surrounds them. Grand Adventures is a diverse range of stories about the journey of love. We’re going on some grand adventures for a great cause. Thank you for joining us.One hundred percent of the income from this volume goes directly to TJ and Eric.Foreword by S.A. McAuleyAn Unexpected Thing by John AmoryThe Twinkie Ignition by J.E. BirkWhen Friendship Becomes More by Sophie BonasteIsle of Waiting by Sue BrownThe Jogger by KC BurnHolding Court by Cardeno C.For Dear Life by Mary CalmesUnder the Full Moon by Ellis CarringtonStripped by Shae Connor (2nd Edition)That Place Across the Hall by C.C. DadoMistaken MD by Phoenix EmrysCops and Comix by Rhys FordLast First Kiss by LE FranksTomorrow by John GoodeFrom Fantasy to Friends by CR GuilianoWitness Protected by Dawn Kimberly JohnsonWater Under the Bridge by Mia KerickA Gentle Shove of Human Kindness by Amy LaneAir (Roads #1.75 million) by Garrett LeighAn Atheist and a Yoga Instructor Walk into a Bar by Rowan McAllisterStalking 101 by Moria McCainSimple Desires by Tempeste O'RileyObject of Care by Zahra OwensKid Confusion by Madison ParkerFall Train by Jaime SammsThe Exhibition by Andrea SpeedWhat You Will by TinneanPrologue by Brandon Witt

    He recovers from bitter disappointment and gradually life returns to a regular rhythm. Safe and predictable. Every day he gains confidence, but with health comes boredom. From the window ledge, he watches people outside and wishes he could be like them. There's another side to Luke. Underneath his bed are five hidden pairs of jeans with matching Dr Martens: yellow, purple, striped, green and tartan. Some days he feels the itch to get them out. Nope. Those days are gone. One day, an amazing thing happens. Dynamic blog artist Formaldehyde Bob comes to town with an exhibition of light and dark! Luke has crushed on him since being fifteen, idolising the man and his unusual creations. Something about the art calls to Luke like nothing else, makes him believe there might after all be someone out there who thinks in the same way. A soul mate. A bird with a similar song. No. Luke isn't going to go and see Formaldehyde Bob. He isn't. Because he's happy with his monotonous lot and doesn't want to see hope sliding down a mountain of sand. Will Luke take a chance and visit Formaldehyde Bob? Can the jeans ever be worn again? Does grumpy Barbara ever smile? And the most important question: is there any magic left in the world? Find out in this snowy tale of young love in the most unexpected places. Content warning: references to self-harm, mental illness.

    For Melanie, it's the loss of her larger-than-life artist mother, taken by cancer well before her time. For Damon, it’s the loss of his best friend, Carlos, who took his own life. As they struggle to fill the empty spaces their loved ones left behind, fate conspires to bring them together. Damon takes pictures with Carlos’s camera to try to understand his choices, and Melanie begins painting as a way of feeling closer to her mother. But when the two join their school’s production of Othello, the play they both hoped would be a distraction becomes a test of who they truly are, both together and on their own. And more than anything else, they discover that it just might be possible to live their lives without completely letting go of their sadness.

    To escape the pressure, he imagines the woods and marshes around his home to be an independent country, Wallaçonia, where he is accepted and recognized as the "upright and sterling" young man people expect him to be. And he may make it yet: this could be the week he and his girlfriend Liz finally have sex, putting to rest any lingering doubts Jim has about what kind of guy he really is. But then Pat Baxter, a neighbor, asks him to help out in his bookstore during the holiday rush, and Jim starts making new connections - and rediscovering an old one. Will Jim leave the sanctuary of his imaginary Wallaçonia for the real world? And which real world will it be, the one with Liz or the one that beckons from the bookstore?

    Life is just tedious for Tory...until the day an attractive but secretive boy his own age moves in across the street. Tory becomes obsessed by his mysterious new neighbor and begins documenting his every move. But this pursuit of friendship--and possibly something more--leads Tory to the one thing he wasn't expecting to discover.Jen Lee Quick has crafted a wildly imaginative romantic drama, filled with all the hopes, dreams and anxiety of a teenager trying to make sense of his place in the world.

    When Skyler finally reaches his breaking point, he finds himself homeless and in desperate need of his brother’s help.Donovan Badger is living his dream with his best friend, Charlie, by his side. When Charlie’s younger brother shows up after three years, Van is immediately drawn to Skyler in a way that goes well beyond their past friendship, and is definitely against Charlie’s wishes.Will Skyler and Van allow themselves to be kept apart? Or will they embrace what they’ve found with each other and let love win?*Let Love Win is a steamy, friends-to-lovers, M/M romance featuring best friend’s brother, a penchant for silk, and a threesome fantasy longing to be brought to life.*

    Eat, sleep, draw, and geek out over anime and manga with his small circle of friends. So when one of those friends suggested engaging in some cosplay for an upcoming Comicon as some of their favorite anime characters, it sounded like the perfect summer activity. That was until he found out just which character he was supposed to be. What started as a fun idea quickly turned into a mixture of inner conflict and self-discovery that Ray had never known even existed and served as the root for one of the most dramatic and uncertain changes in his young life. The question was, would this rollercoaster be a fun-filled thrill-ride, or a complete derailment of everything in his life.

    Budding Navajo cartoonist Lorenzo Maryboy is a hard-working former Marine: staunch, brave, and honorable. Chance brings them together on the road to Marathon, Texas, and passion flares.Just as always, Jesse puts his art ahead of everything. He betrays their growing trust, and that Lorenzo can’t forgive. But Jesse’s found something he loves more than his art, and what he does to win Lorenzo’s forgiveness is far more dangerous than either man understands.

    Maybe there’s something—or someone, missing. But dating is hard enough for vanilla people. Emile doesn’t just have to find someone he wants to date—he has to find someone he wants to kneel for.Jay likes playing soccer, reading poetry, and handsome men in tweed vests. Men like Emile, who Jay can’t forget after they connected on a rainy July night. Their encounter awoke a powerful urge in Jay to take, command, and control that has haunted him ever since. Jay had hoped that starting college would distract him, but that hope died when he showed up for the first day of his literature class and discovered Emile was his professor.When Emile tells Jay they can’t be together, Jay is still determined to figure out a way for the two of them to explore what they share. And Emile craves Jay’s gentle dominance too much to resist him. Jaywalking includes an age gap, a professor-student relationship, BDSM, a very polite dog, explicit sex, and a happy ending.

    CioranIf chaos theory applied to anyone, it’s Will and Tom. Best friends since childhood, life takes very different courses for them until they’re thrown back together in the middle of their own individual chaos. Surviving the terrors of war in Northern Ireland and the heartbreak of childlessness and a broken marriage, Tom learns that bravery isn’t about daring death, it’s about facing life. For Will, it’s about being yourself – or in his case, herself, as he starts an unusual journey towards being just that; the woman, Billie.Chained Melodies is the extraordinary story of how two men find not just courage, but self-belief and the true nature of love."Touching and almost heart-breaking, this is a novel to tickle your heart strings."“...breath-taking and intriguing...”“...a 'must read" novel.'”“..quite beautiful, with a certain poetry in the tone."

    His alcoholism caught up with him, landing him in jail with a DUI. After facing his demons in rehab, he’s ready to get back in the pool. He stuns everyone at the US Olympic Trials, and now he’s back at his fourth Olympics with something to prove.Diver Tim Swan made headlines for snatching a surprise gold medal four years ago, and then making a viral coming-out video with his actor boyfriend, the subject of splashy tabloid headlines. Now his relationship is over and Tim just wants to focus on winning gold again, but reporters in Madrid threaten to overshadow Tim’s skill on the platform.When Isaac and Tim meet, they recognize each other as kindred spirits—they are both dodging media pressure while devoting their lives to the sports they love. As they get to know each other—and try to one-up each other with their respective medal counts—they realize they’re becoming more than friends. But will the relationship burn bright for just sixteen days, or can it last past the Closing Ceremony?