I’m lost...” Nine year old Trisha McFarland becomes lost in the forest while hiking with her mother and brother along the Appalachian Trail in Maine. As Trisha starts to cry, she remembers Tom Gordon. Tom Gordon is a professional baseball player. He has never met Trisha McFarland. This is the story of Trisha McFarland and Tom Gordon, and how a man she never met, saved her life.

    In the centerpiece story, an eighteenth-century Eno Indian tells of the fiery fate of his adopted father, English explorer John Lawson. In the surrounding stories, the age-old conflicts between newcomer and old-timer play out as twenty-first century retirees, carnies, runaways, heartbroken women, and farmers stumble into new lives and new insights in Ambler County, North Carolina. "Hudson's prose is pure as birdsong," says novelist Doris Betts. "These fine stories of change and discovery are a field guide to the human species in transition."

    His wife has left him. He thinks his father won't notice if he doesn't arrive. Waiting for the last train, alone on the platform, a chance encounter with a stranger changes his life forever. Intended for those seeking a traditional short ghost story to read, or to be read to, by the fire on those dark winter nights.

    The story unfolds in the weeks following Andaris’ seventeenth name day: Desperate to escape a life of meaningless drudgery behind the plow, he leaves the safety of his secluded valley town and ventures alone into the uncharted depths of an ancient forest, the heart of which is said to be twisted and black. Choosing to ignore the counsel of his more sensible nature, he is drawn ever onward, lured by the tantalizing splendor of distant mountains, the sheer peaks of which purportedly stand sentinel over a land long steeped in mystery. What ensues is more remarkable than anything even he could have envisioned. Andaris goes looking for adventure.... What he finds is a world in the midst of tidal change, an extraordinary place where he encounters all manner of extraordinary things—vast landscapes teeming with flora and fauna capable of firing the most malnourished of imaginations. To be sure, danger lurks around every bend, a heady amalgam of sword and sorcery which threaten to bring his young life to an abrupt end. Indeed, if not for a very fortuitous encounter, namely the crossing of paths with a band of travelers who turn out to be much more than meets the eye, it surely would have. Gaven, Ashel, and Trilla seem fated to become fast friends, the sort of companions he’d always wanted, but never thought he’d have. The Lost One and his army of shapelings are preparing to march against Rogar’s western border—the only thing standing between them and the green, fertile lands to the East. The balance of power is shifting. Despite the debt of blood owed them by their Sokerran neighbors, the Alderi Shune fear they will be made to stand alone. No one speaks of defeat, but it is on the tip of every tongue. For the first time since they were erected, more than a thousand years ago, the impossible is about to happen: The Eight Walls of Rogar are about to fall. The scales could tip in either direction, depending, oddly enough, on the choices of a rather bookish young man named Andaris Rocaren. You will forgive me, intrepid reader, if I now take the opportunity to formally invite you to join in the fun, to accompany young Andaris and his fellows into and out of the kingdoms of Nelvin, Mindere, Sokerra, and Rogar. Over hill, dell, and stream you shall go, hiking through rugged mountain ranges heavy with snow, into subterranean catacombs whose unplumbed fathoms are illumined by naught but the guttering flames of your makeshift torch, until you reach, at long last, and in just the nick of time, the battered gates of a once great civilization on the brink of war.

    Yes, she’s thirty-three, single, and has had to work as a waitress and children’s party entertainer since her social worker salary suffered from budget cuts, but she stays positive and manages to pay the mortgage on her flat. Her home is her sanctuary – until Tom moves in downstairs. Lucy and Tom quickly fall in love and into a serious relationship, which is complicated by Tom’s recent separation from his wife, who he has two young sons with. Lucy is heartbroken when Tom breaks up with her, saying that something has to give in his busy life. Encouraged/coerced/badgered by her friends into getting ‘back on that horse’, Lucy finds herself at a tacky Singles Night; dating Danny, a Justin Timberlake impersonator; and attempting a rendezvous with her ‘special friend’. Lucy’s quest to move on from Tom would be a whole lot easier if she didn’t have to hear everything he does. After all, how on earth do you get over someone when you can hear them peeing? Him Downstairs is relatable Chick Lit for readers 18+ who have dipped their toe into the world of modern dating and relationships. It contains adult language and humour, and is written in ‘British English’.

    

    Every game played with your child has the potential to become a lifelong memory.The Rookie is a flash fiction piece (just over 500 words) based on a childhood memory.

    A sparkling short story from the bestselling author of The Oyster Catcher, available exclusively in ebook.

    However, he remains single, childless, and subsists in cramped apartments. She harbors guilt for her supposed failure until she discovers a sketch-book he’d made of his life, which prompts her own journey to live authentically.While this textured story combines serious issues such as alcoholism, death, and family conflict, it’s balanced with wit and humor and is filled with endearing, unforgettable characters. The story spans decades, beginning in 1970 and ending in the present. Readers will be immersed in this tale as it poses an intriguing question: “What pictures will you have of yourself by the end of your life?”“hugely moving, beautifully rendered, and brilliant,” Lidia Yucknavitch

    

    Not being happy all the time makes them stressed out of their tights. Carol practises uninhibited sex which ends with her panty liner stuck to the bottom of someone's shoe. Donnie, after a mystery bite in a third world country, thinks he's incubating a nest of spiders up his bum. Daphne gets fat. She makes soup all the time and wonders if Woolworth's sell a hose pipe to fit a Vauxhall Vectra. Pierce is a poet; a fat balding womaniser who's only steady relationship is with a cup at the sperm bank. He's the only one not on anti-depressants, and he's the hero.

    Join the O'Reilly family once again as they meet around the Jack O'Lantern on Halloween night and share ghost stories that will make you shiver and have you looking over your shoulder to see if there is "a little something extra" wandering through your home tonight.

    On the run, she sheds her rich identity and navigates life without servants or money. When she chooses undercover FBI agent Frank Bachman's car to hide in, she begins the wildest journey of her life. When her husband is found murdered by her knitting needle, Imogene enlists Frank's help to find the true killer and recover her stolen money. Imogene and Frank must sidestep their growing attraction in order to unwind the web of deceit that surrounds her. As the truth unravels, Imogene learns the truth about her life, her marriage and why more than one person wants her dead.

    The FBI and city police call her the Yarn Woman. She's their textile forensics expert.In her first recorded case, 'Ghosts of the Albert Townsend, ' Ruth has only a blood-soaked nineteenth century shawl to unravel the link between the resurfacing of a ghostly schooner just offshore and the severe wounds on young Hauper Brown's body. A nearby fatal animal mauling only adds to her worry. In her second case in this first Yarn Woman mysteries book, 'The Fisherman's Wife, ' Ruth must decipher the meaning behind a dead man's hand-knit sweater while racing against time to save his otherworldly widow. Finally, Ruth helps identify the body of a playwright by the handwork in his shirt, and finds not only a young friend in Gabriel, a curly-haired boy with unusual abilities, she unearths a network of beggar-masters and their slaves deep in San Francisco's seamy underside.This first book, a trilogy of dramatic novellas, introduces a cast of characters who will recur as the Yarn Woman mystery series continues in 'Wailing Wood' and 'The Rusalka Wheel, ' with more cases on the horiz

    Donald Trump. Ivanka Trump. Hillary Clinton. Oprah. Barack Obama. Paul Ryan. Joe Biden. John Kerry. And a cast of thousands as the story behind the headlines you can't believe is exposed. Part political thriller, part soap opera, partially insane. The Deepest State was a viral hit - and this edition has the EXCLUSIVE, never before seen short story, "Enter the Bidenverse." Here's what they're saying about The Deepest State: "One of the greatest threads in Twitter history" – Richard Metzger "An amazing read" – A. Whitney Brown "Just keeps getting more amazing" – Jon Cryer "Amazing well written and riveting" – Merrill Markoe "This… is glorious" – Joy Reid "Epic, epic thread" – Jill Lawrence "A Twitter thread for the ages" – Marsha Warfield "Fucking brilliant" – Jeff Jarvis "Fantastic." – Steven Boyer "The most gorgeous thing I have read in a long time" – Penelope Patsuris "Good times" – Eliza Skinner "Comedy gold" – PJ Manney