Judith had neither. Her father had been a friend to Balthazar’s father. She was now an orphan, though she was no trembling waif-child. At twenty-two she was too old for such a designation. Nevertheless, the loss of her father and the subsequent funeral and the settling of his accounts had depleted their already meager purse. Judith’s father had gifted his only daughter fine frocks and hair combs, but that was years ago, before his luck turned, and the vast majority of such gifts had been sold.Judith found herself with a terribly small inheritance and no way to supplement this dismal income. That is, until she was summoned by Balthazar’s mother.

    Purchase includes a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Chapters: The Way of Cross and Dragon. Source: Wikipedia. Free updates online. Not illustrated. Excerpt: "The Way of Cross and Dragon" is a science fiction short story by George R. R. Martin. It involves a far-future priest of the One True Interstellar Catholic Church of Earth and the Thousand Worlds (with similarities to the Roman Catholic hierarchy) investigating a sect that reveres Judas Iscariot. The story deals with the nature and limitations of religious faith. The story originally appeared in the June 1979 issue of Omni. Damien Har Veris, a priest skilled in resolving heretical disputes efficiently, is sent as Knight Inquisitor, despite spiritual exhaustion, by his alien archbishop to deal with a particular cult that has made a saint of Judas Iscariot. The sect follows a religious text, The Way of Cross and Dragon, that describes the life of Iscariot, and revises his place in Christianity. The text describes how, born of a prostitute, Iscariot mastered the dark arts to become a tamer of dragons and the ruler of a great empire. After torturing Christ, Iscariot relinquished his empire to become the penitent Legs of Christ, the first and best-beloved of the Twelve Apostles. Returning from proselytising to find Christ crucified, an enraged Iscariot then destroyed the perpetrating empire and strangled St. Peter for renouncing Christ, only to discover, too late, Christ's Resurrection. Rejecting Judas' violence, Christ restored St. Peter to life and gave him the keys of the kingdom. St. Peter then suppressed the truth about Judas, villifying his name and exploits. Seeking redemption for his wrath, Iscariot became the thousand-year-old Wandering Ju, before finally rejoining Christ in the Kingdom of God. Perusing the materials of the sect, Har Veris finds hims...More: http: //booksllc.net/?id=230181

    You can read more about the cursed fairy-tale characters of Beau Rivage in my novel Kill Me Softly.

    With an important deadline looming, plus her dreaded Christmas Day birthday, Starr just wants the holiday to end. But when she wakes up Christmas Eve night to the ghost of Christmas Past, Present, and Future—all in the form of the super-hot Matt Landry, the new art director—she knows she’s in for a long night.Matt is the one person on Starr’s team she can’t boss around and the only one she doesn’t need to. He’s also her employee and totally off limits, even if he does seem interested. Though he’s seven years younger and all kinds of forbidden fruit, he’s the form the Powers That Be decided she’d be receptive to.Because they have a message for her: learn the true meaning of Christmas spirit or risk being alone for the rest of her life.

    This was published as a Clarkesworld audiobook podcast in 2020.

    Spinsterhood has never bothered or embarrassed the independent Emerence Ipsan, and the winter festival of Delyalda keeps her far too busy managing her father's shops to worry about matters as trivial as marriage.Until the arrival of a young Quereci warrior with old eyes and an admiring gaze makes her question that notion.

    The stunning transformation of a pumpkin into a magnificent coach, a rat into a coachman, and Cinderella into a beautiful princess is pure magic.

    

    Her stepmother wants to make sure Catherine doesn't win.Follow Catherine as she tries to outsmart her horrible stepmother and stepsisters. Will she win?A book for girls aged 8-11.

    It is with great effort that the busy twosome builds a relationship……and then the villain strikes*A shorter version of this story was published before in the anthology Matches Made in Heaven

    Because of his deep relationship with his sisters and mother, he knew all that it took to make a woman feel loved and appreciated. Because he watched heartbreak lead one of his sisters to kill herself with the use of drugs and alcohol, he knew all that it took to break a woman. Lianne Rodgers is the epitome of a gifted soul. Her love for music blessed her with a record deal at the age of seventeen, and since then she’s been traveling the world for years gracing stage after stage with her tremendous talent. As much as she loves what she does, she’s tired – mentally, physically, and emotionally. When Lianne returns to Memphis for a break, she falls in love with Jabari’s cooking after a visit to his restaurant. She ordered the food to go and ate it at home to avoid being seen and recognized, but the food was so good she made her way back to his restaurant to meet the man behind the best meal she’d ever had in her life. Jabari is used to people singing his praises for his food, but Lianne’s praises touch him in a different way. A different place. And when she asks him to be her personal chef during her stay in Memphis he happily agrees just for the chance to be near her. They say food nourishes the soul, and Jabari uses his culinary skills to reach Lianne in a way that no man ever has. There’s just one problem – she’s in a relationship with her manager. When her break is over, Lianne is committed to returning to her man, her life, and her career… but after waiting for a woman like Lianne for years… Jabari has no plans of letting her get away from Memphis or him that easily.

    But when neither of them can shake memories of their love together, that fight turns into an uninhibited passion that could ignite a fire and reunite them for a lifetime.

    It’s been a year since Layla became a vampire and she still hasn’t tapped into the raw power of her transformation. It’s a point of contention with some of the other, older vampire dancers at Blue Moon Entertainment. But there’s only one vampire’s opinion that matters…Sean O’Rourke, Layla’s maker, protector, husband, and dance partner suddenly seems to be keeping secrets about her true nature…and their future as a couple. But when a sadistic ex-lover appears in Rhodes to reclaim possession of Sean, Layla must finally harness her supernatural gifts and prove her strength…or lose him forever.Layla Steps Up is a brand new novella from Charlaine Harris, the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Sookie Stackhouse vampire series, as well as the Agatha Award-nominated Aurora Teagarden series.

    This beautifully illustrated padded storybook is a perfect way to share the true classic fairytale of Cinderella with your little princess! Plus with it's sparkly padded cover, this book is a wonderful companion to the Cinderella: Special Edition DVD.

    Nobody knows it’s really because her skating partner was also her lover — and that he broke her heart.Now, five years and thirty pounds later, she’s tired of journalists casting her as figure skating’s tragic princess. She’s ready to get back on the ice as a coach and prove her worth, and ready to date again using the Curve Connection app.But can she create the life she’s looking for, or will she end up with her heart broken all over again?