The McKay family gathers for a week-long holiday at a rambling old house to celebrate the fiftieth wedding anniversary of Robert and Mary. In recent years only funerals and sudden, severe illnesses have been able to draw them together and as they gather in the splendid rooms of Hunting Manor, their differences are soon uncomfortably apparent. For all their history, their traditions, the connective strands of DNA, they are relative strangers. There are truths unspoken, but the question is: how much truth can a family really stand? The family holiday mushrooms, drawing in sundry relatives both estranged and deranged. The machinations of an appalling, uninvited aunt threaten the holiday – and the family – with irreparable damage. This book will make you question your own family situation. What does it really mean to be 'family'?

    Through hard work and perseverance, she has accomplished a major goal, being accepted to her college of choice on a full athletic scholarship. A night that was supposed to be a celebration turns into one of the most detrimental nights of her life. Will she be able to move past the hurt of that night to one day love and trust? Adonis Mercer is the epitome of his name with is remarkable looks. A Star College Athlete with a street edge from Richmond, Virginia, he is what all of the women on NCA&T campus want. What happens when his academic world collides him with a stilled beauty. Will she allow him to show her a love that she never knew existed or will other factors deter her from accepting a love that may be enough to heal her blemished heart? Will love prove to be strong enough to bind these two together or will a secret so large be the boulder needed to sever the bond of young love? Find out in this Novella, His Love is More Than Enough.

    They pine for lost loves and pop music romances, Hollywood heartthrobs, and sunnier towns. They flee from failed relationships and looming violence, adulthood and other deaths. Written with dark humor and incisive, voice-driven prose, Kara Vernor's stories will stick in your head like a song. "Kara Vernor's "Because I Wanted To Write You A Pop Song" is hilarious, dark, and beguiling. These wonderful stories crackle with hard-earned wisdom and wit and will, like all the very best songs, become forever etched on your heart." --John Jodzio, author of Knockout "Reading Kara Vernor is like being in a fast car that reveals the deepest secrets of its passerby. You rubberneck and yearn for more. You're spinning, you're flying, you're exhilarated and sad and brimming with thrill. Hail this book and hold on tight." --Lindsay Hunter, author of Ugly Girls "Kara Vernor says so much in so few words with these stories that I felt myself becoming a better reader as I read them. Her writing feels like a knife, cutting through so many of the falsehoods of American life and leaving only the truth, somehow leaving it both gently and determinedly at the same time. The stories in Because I Wanted to Write You a Pop Song do not flinch and do not seem to even remember how." --Siamak Vossoughi, author of Better Than War (winner of the Flannery O'Connor Award for Short Fiction) "The stories in "Because I Wanted to Write You a Pop Song" dazzle and tenderize. They are strange little worlds that invite you in...Kara Vernor writes with gut, heart, and striking beauty." --Jensen Beach, author of Swallowed by the Cold "If I could leave a few things in a capsule for the civilization coming next, I think I’d maybe pick Kara Vernor’s stories. Beings of the future might know us that way: how we thought; how our words arranged themselves on our tongues when we were only half thinking; what we were after, and how messed up that all was, but how vital in a deeper way. Like some of my favorite writers, Vernor is able to bring to the page a voice you’re shocked to recognize, for it seems so totally new. All of the stars, is what I’m trying to say. All of the hearts and cherries."--Scott Garson, author of Is That You, John Wayne?

    And after one disastrous morning, she wishes that her life was like those portrayed in her favorite channel's Christmas romances. A place where everything and everyone is perfect. But Mary soon learns that she needs to be careful of what she wishes for.

    Her character is similar to that of many women we see in our lives. But what is different is the dramatic twist in the tale, which you won’t see coming. The protagonist Gauri is patient and persistent, with an undying love and affection for her husband, much like many women in the country. Indeed, Gauri’s story is the tale of many women in India, who sacrifice their needs, desires and dreams for the sake of people dear to them. This work of fiction is a tribute to every unsung woman in every household. A big salute to these strong women, without whom society will perish.

    Ever since her father left them with a precarious debt, her mother has been pushing her to secure a good marriage. Yet, when her close cousin invites her to the Duke of Tutlidge's marriage market ball, the first look between Mary and the Duke is enough to stimulate the spark of desire. Even though the sinful rumours of the rakish Duke overwhelm her, when she finds herself accidentally isolated with this dangerous, seductive man, a scandal is about to begin... Will Mary accept a forced marriage with a man she cannot trust, in order to save her reputation?Henry Poldern, the wild Duke of Tutlidge, is a vigorous man, who once had his naive young heart shattered to a million pieces by a cruel woman that deceived him. Ever since, he has become a stone-hearted rake determined to repel any eligible Lady of high society. However, even though he promised himself never to get married, an unfortunate event between him and Miss Brooke will force him to do the one thing he kept avoiding all these years. Yet, surprisingly, he will soon find himself longing for her touch, as her vulnerability below her cold facade makes him want her even more... Will Mary be the one to conquer his heart and make him leave his sinful past behind?An incidental encounter of fate intertwined Mary and Henry's lives leading them to unexpected consequences. Suddenly, both are forced into an engagement neither of them wanted and the last thing they expected was to end up in a flaming affair. Being under the same roof makes it impossible for them to tame their feelings... Yet soon, resisting their passion will not be their only struggle, as the sudden arrival of a notorious lady from Henry's past will turn their lives upside down. Will this cunning woman manage to tear their growing love apart, forever? In the end, will Mary and Henry conquer the demons of the past and surrender to their tempting lust?

    She is obsessed. She can't sleep. She sits on the porch all night lying in wait. Then she throws bricks, bowling balls, cans of paint. She loves the sound as they connect, meeting metal and glass.

    For after winning acclaim with this novel—awarded the Robert Walser Prize in 1978—she embarked on a 10,000-page literary project called “The Fortress,” creating over her lifetime elaborate colorful diagrams and typescripts so complicated that her publisher had to print them straight from her original documents. A project as brilliant as it is ambitious and as bizarre as it is brilliant, it earned her cult status, comparisons to James Joyce no less than Henry Darger, and admirers including Elfriede Jelinek and W. G. Sebald.Yet in this, her first novel, we discover not an eccentric fluke of literary nature but rather a brilliant and masterful satirist, philosophically minded yet raging with anger and wit, who under the guise of a domestic horror story manages to expose the hypocrisy and deep abiding cruelties running parallel, over time, through the society and the individual minds of a century.

    A deft, masterful mix of both bizarro and horror."--Brian Keene, author of The Rising and Ghoul"Dark and grim and surreal." --Electric LiteratureMondays suck. You get mugged, your car won't start, you miss the bus, and your stylist burns a bald spot into your head. Suddenly you're single and unemployed, and the only friend you have left is a cat. By Tuesday, you've been murdered. But death isn't the end. You find yourself on an odyssey between weird worlds, reborn each time you die, stalked obsessively by the man who killed you.Even in death, you just can't seem to catch a break. Call it Mercury in retrograde, call it Murphy's law, call it . . .SHIT LUCK

    Chip Taylor’s girlfriend Liza had the perfect plan to rip off her rich sugar daddy. It should have been an easy in and out kind of deal. Nobody would get hurt and they would come out of it with enough loot to solve their problems. But things started going wrong as soon as they were inside the rich man’s house, and for Chip it was only the beginning of the longest, most terrifying ride of his life.

    She has never wished to become a lady, but rather enjoys being different... In fact, what keeps her happy is being outdoors and caring for her father, as well as spending most of her time with Patience, her horse. Little did she know her serenity would be disturbed for good when a runaway horse would appear at the bottom of the cliffside along the ocean. Her heart skips a beat though, when she sees its charming owner, Duke Owen Ellis of Blackmoor Manor. In her experience, all dukes are callous and deplorable examples of human beings, but upon first impressions of him, Laura is left feeling rather enchanted and therefore confused. Will Laura overcome her fascination caused by his enigmatic but warm presence, or will she allow her overwhelming feelings to blossom?Lord Owen is the only heir of the Ellis name and Blackmore Manor following his father's death. As for his mother, it was expected that her wish for him to marry Lady Marjorie Fielding, a spoiled London heiress, would be fulfilled. Life has other plans for Owen's heart though, as when Laura is brought on as an equestrian trainer and tamer, he encounters warmth and affection for the first time. However, how could he betray his family's expectation of marrying Lady Marjorie, who despite appearing pretty on the outside, is rather cruel on the inside? A dilemma awaits him, as the journey of becoming the man his father always wanted, would inevitably involve hurting the first woman he ever loved... In the end, which path will he choose?Forced to choose between love and duty, the future is foreshadowed uninviting, unless Laura and Owen can find a way to overpower whoever tries to keep them apart. Will their love and devotion prove that their romance is unassailable? Most importantly, how could they both find the courage to ignore tradition, and not dismiss their hearts' one true calling?

    But when Mia starts shaking up the department and making enemies on day one, it looks like flying under the radar won’t be an option.Ryan Maddison is all too aware of the rumours that hiring his friend’s sister could spark. But as soon as he meets Mia, he can’t control his growing attraction for her – even if an office romance risks creating a massive scandal. Mia and Ryan are determined not to let their blossoming desire get in the way of work. But when a business trip puts them alone together and away from the public eye, who knows what could happen between them…After Ryan’s attention-seeking ex gets her hands on incriminating evidence and threatens to make it public, can Ryan and Mia hope to sweep this story under the rug? Or is their relationship over before it even had a chance?Perfect for fans of steamy romances which are filled to the brim with tantalizing sexual tension, the first book in the Secret Favor series won’t disappoint. Scroll up and grab your copy now, because this wild ride has only just begun.Recommended Reading Order For Secret Favor Series by Avery North:1. Instant Attraction2. Forbidden Affair3. Hard Choice4. Unwelcome Revelation5. Just Exoneration6. Sweet Freedom

    She recycles, obeys the water restrictions, she is even polite to telemarketers. as a mother, wife, daughter and nurse, Helen is used to putting everyone's needs before her own. But it only takes one momentary lapse of concentration to shatter her life forever.There was no momentary lapse for Gemma. Her customary recklessness leaves her pregnant, alone and estranged from her family with her one-promising advertising career in tatters.So when Gemma barges unceremoniously into Helen's life, things will never be the same again for either of them. Two very different women who have one thing in common - their lives have fallen short of their expectations. But is fate offering them a second chance?

    Awarded the prestigious Prix des cinq continents upon publication as the best book written in French outside of France, Eve Out of her Ruins is a harrowing account of the violent reality of life in her native country by the figurehead of Mauritian literature.The book featurues an original introduction by Nobel Prize winner J.M.G. Le Clézio, who declares Devi "a truly great writer."Ananda Devi (b. 1957, Trois-Boutiques, Mauritius) is a novelist and scholar. She has published eight novels as well as short stories and poetry, and was featured at the PEN World Voices Festival in New York in 2015. She was made a Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres by the French Government in 2010.

    That changed on the day a tragic accident ripped her husband away from her - and shattered everything.