Or do we?As rumors about the cruel upbringing of beautiful newlywed Princess Cinderella roil the kingdom, her stepmother, Agnes, a woman who knows all too well about hardship, privately records the true story. But what unfolds is not the princess's history. The tale Agnes recounts is her own.A peasant born into serfdom, Agnes is separated from her family and forced into servitude as a laundress’s apprentice at Aviceford Manor when she is just ten years old. Alone, friendless, and burdened with a grueling workload, Agnes carves a place for herself in this cold place that is home to Sir Emont Vis-de-Loup, a melancholic and capricious drunkard. Using her wits and ingenuity, Agnes eventually escapes and makes her way toward a hopeful future, serving as a housemaid for the powerful Abbess Elfilda. But life once again holds unexpected, sometimes heartbreaking twists that lead Agnes back to Aviceford Manor, where she becomes nursemaid to Ella, Emont's sensitive, otherworldly daughter. Though she cares for Ella, Agnes struggles to love this child, who in time becomes her stepdaughter and, ultimately, the celebrated princess who embodies all our unattainable fantasies. Familiar yet fresh, tender as well as bittersweet, the story of Agnes and Ella's relationship reveals that beauty is not always desirable, that love may take on many guises, and that freedom is not always something we can choose.Danielle Teller's All the Ever Afters challenges our assumptions and forces us to reevaluate what we think we know. Exploring the hidden complexities that lie beneath classic tales of good and evil, this lyrically told, emotionally evocative, and brilliantly perceptive novel shows us that how we confront adversity reveals a more profound—and ultimately more precious—truth about our lives than the ideal of “happily ever after.”

    Then it all blows up in her face—literally.A violent, anonymous force has been targeting commoners in horrifying attacks. Now they’ve set their sights on Cinderella. Either that, or she’s losing her mind. It doesn’t help that she’s falling for a mage who’s way out of her league.Just as she manages to recover from the attack that left her scarred and traumatized, the city’s mysterious enemy destroys what’s left of her future. But when they go after her family, they cross the line. The whole city is in danger now.How much is Cinderella willing to risk to save the city that has always hated her?—Fated: Cinderella’s Story is a magical fairy tale retelling filled with hope, sacrifice, and sweet romance. It’s the first book in the planned Destined series, a collection of overlapping fairy tale retellings all set in the same magical world.

    Before Midnight revisits Cinderella's story in France, Golden puts a new spin on Rapunzel's romance, and Wild Orchid reimagines the Chinese tale of Mulan. With so much real-life drama in today's busy world, Once allows readers to escape into whimsical realms where every story has a happily ever after.

    Warty, buck-toothed, crooked-lipped, long-nosed. Plump, squinty, thin-haired, or squat...So what was Jode? Not beautiful. Not plain; no, plain would have been a mercy, a boon. A mere pity is plain for one as young and poor as he....Homely, awkward farmboy Jode Lintwich has always longed for adventure and greatness: two things which can't be had in his humble village and which don't happen often to anyone like himself. But desperation can change anyone's destiny–and Jode is desperate enough to try. A visit to a local witch, a few coins, and an inadvertent promise transforms Jode into something beyond his wildest imaginings; and also causes him to be cast out of his own village for good. A wanderer turned loose in the world, Jode must learn the truth about the magic upon him and embrace a destiny greater than any ever before conceived by his mind. If he wants to survive, he must find the one key to his ultimate happiness and escape the danger inflicted upon him by the two-sided coin of the witch's magic.From a pirate ship to the sands of the desert, from a mercenary knight to a monarch's deceptive pawn, the adventures of Jode-turned-Handsome-Jack are as a varied as his namesake's tales ... and as far from his true fate as he could possibly imagine.Book One of Hawthorne and Ander's retelling of CINDERELLA spins a tale of multiple threads as varied as their characters' fates: an awkward boy spun into a hero by magic, an unhappy orphan girl languishing in a house filled with secrets, a homely witch of unexpected powers and a coldblooded noblewoman of mysterious past. A tale of magic makers and fortune tellers, of con artists and criminals, bandits and sultans, artists and peasants, servants and monarchs, all bound by the common thread of one boy's existence.Other Books in The Dark Woods Series:Cindermaid First Bite: The Wicked Queen's TaleGingerbread HouseSnow White's Knight and Magic MirrorThorns

    I'm not sure I can trust anything in this bizarre, intoxicating place. But the three enticing men I’ve just met might need me even more than anyone back home ever has—and somehow I feel like I belong in this strange world.I’m connected to the powers here in ways I barely understand. Too bad the Queen of Hearts won’t give me time to unearth my hidden magic. She’s coming for all our heads, and she’s particularly eager to claim mine. How can I save my new lovers and their rebellion before everything I counted on turns completely upside down?*The Looking-Glass Curse is a medium-burn reverse harem series that reimagines Alice in Wonderland. If you love spirited heroines, hot men with secrets to spare, and worlds full of unexpected delights and horrors, step through the looking-glass today!*This complete series set contains all three books in the Looking-Glass Curse Trilogy—Wicked Wonderland, Wrathful Wonderland, and Wanton Wonderland—as well as three exclusive bonus scenes!

    Geek girl Elle Wittimer lives and breathes Starfield, the classic sci-fi series she grew up watching with her late father. So when she sees a cosplay contest for a new Starfield movie, she has to enter. The prize? An invitation to the ExcelsiCon Cosplay Ball, and a meet-and-greet with the actor slated to play Federation Prince Carmindor in the reboot. With savings from her gig at the Magic Pumpkin food truck (and her dad’s old costume), Elle’s determined to win…unless her stepsisters get there first. Teen actor Darien Freeman used to live for cons—before he was famous. Now they’re nothing but autographs and awkward meet-and-greets. Playing Carmindor is all he’s ever wanted, but the Starfield fandom has written him off as just another dumb heartthrob. As ExcelsiCon draws near, Darien feels more and more like a fake—until he meets a girl who shows him otherwise.

    Candace finds herself cast out of her home by jealous older sisters, but with the help of a witch woman and a magical moss gown, she captures the heart of the young plantation owner.

     Armed with a magical staff, she must reach the safety of the Anti-Magic Capital’s city walls before her murderous betrothed and his henchmen catch her. But getting there means braving the badlands of the United Kingdom of Seven, a land teeming with trolls, bandits, swindlers and magical foes. If you like damsels who defy distress, you’ll love the Magestaff. Perfect for fans of Xena The Warrior Princess, Brienne of Tarth, and Celaena Sardothien! Previously published as Cendrilla; lengthened and revamped for 2018.

    The Department of Justice’s endeavors to capture him on video surveillance likewise came up empty, because he rarely left his modest row house at 2230 Ocean Pkwy., in Brooklyn, New York. He was silent and reclusive to a fault. And by the time the public got their first look at him in 1970 (following an arrest on a trumped-up charge that was never prosecuted) he was already the most powerful mafia boss in the country, controlling a crew of 800 mafiosi, who oversaw nearly 50 criminal and legitimate businesses, which netted his crime family over $1 billion in annual revenue. Yet few even knew his name, let alone his story. Now, for the first time ever, the true story of Carlo Gambino is told in full, gory detail. Gambino: The Rise, A Novel Based on a True Story, unveils the intricate machinations of Gambino’s ascent, from poor, immigrant stowaway, to billionaire boss of America’s most deadly and elite crime family. On this journey, we meet such celebrity hoods as Charlie “Lucky” Luciano, Al “Scarface” Capone, Meyer Lansky, Vito Genovese, and Albert “The Mad Hatter” Anastasia… all of whom became pawns on Gambino’s Machiavellian chess set. Gambino’s story is a rags to riches tail of the bloodiest kind, which explores the dichotomies of family, wealth, and power within the mafia environment. With its careful scrutiny of mob business and brutality, Gambino: The Rise will undoubtedly draw comparisons to Mario Puzo’s timeless classic, The Godfather. But this is to be expected, especially when Puzo’s fictional crime patriarch, Vito Corleone, was based on none other than Carlo Gambino. Gambino: The Rise is a historical novel for the ages that will leave readers shell-shocked with every flip of the page, until its earth-shattering and climactic end.

    Despite her harsh and abusive upbringing, she worked hard and studied harder. With an IQ of 252. she's a certified genius and is working towards her Masters's Degree in Computer Engineering and Computer Science at Stanford University.When tough times hit and she's desperate for money, she steals $5 Million from an offshore bank account. Little did she know she was stealing from the most ruthless Mafia Boss in the world: Dante Vino.

    But the cosmos has something different in store... From Chapter One: THE ARRIVAL "I didn’t even really see it. I felt it and there was a flash of brilliant green and blue light. But I had no idea what was going on. All I knew was that something had entered my room before I could get the window closed, the force of it knocking me to the floor." "It was standing there, no taller than my knee. It was green, with little pointy ears and a little face. I didn’t even know whether it was a he or a she. It just stood there, shaking its head back and forth and examining the wreckage that must’ve been a spaceship of sorts, though it looked no bigger than a toy truck." This is book one in this serialized story that’s ideal for kids ages 9-12. These books are the perfect thing to listen to and read right before bedtime, or when you just have a few spare moments. Each book will be approximately 7500 words, with the audiobook clocking in at about 35 - 40 minutes. Audiobooks, used in tandem with a text, are a great way to increase your child’s reading fluency, vocabulary and word acquisition, and comprehension! Book Tags: Fantasy stories for kids 4-8, bedtime stories children’s values books, Bedtime stories for kids ages 4-8, Bedtime stories for kids ages 3-8, stories for girls ages 4-8, short books for kids 4-8, short books for girls 4-8, Kindle Unlimited Books For Kids, kids books, children's books bedtime stories for kids, bedtime storybook collection, bedtime storybook, kids stories, bedtime stories for children, bedtime reading, free childrens books, Children's books, short stories, kids stories, stories for kids, stories for children, kids ebooks, short stories, bedtime stories, kids stories, stories for kids, short stories for kids, short stories, stories for kids, jokes, kids stories, childrens stories, kids books, childrens books, books for kids, bedtime stories, kids books, ebooks, books for kids, jokes, kids, hilarious, children, kid, kids books, childrens books, childrens book, kids book about animals, elementary, kids book, books for kids, childrens book, book, kindle book, kindle ebook, comedy, kindle unlimited, kindle unlimited books for kids, kindle unlimited books for children, humor, early reader, beginning reader, kids comedy, bedtime stories, free ebooks, ebooks free, stories for kids, preschool, ages 3-5, ages 6-8, ages 9-12, preteen, beginning readers, beginner reading, kids stories, children stories

    They've come up with a plan to lure the criminal out of hiding, but everything goes terribly wrong during the mission when each agent becomes compromised and sent to the principal's office. The worst part is that Nolan himself has been labeled as the cheater! Now the only way he can clear his name is to find the real cheater, but with the entire school hunting after him, it's not going to be so easy. Join Nolan as he unravels the mystery with a jaw dropping twist at the end.6th Grade Spy is a 7500 word exciting mystery that's entertaining for kids and adults (who never grew up).

    Unfortunately, Prince Charming has a loose grip on his temper, a looser grip on his marriage vows, and a tight grip on the bottle. Eight years of mistreatment, isolation and clandestine book learning hardly prepare Eleanor for life at Eclatant Palace, where women are seen, not heard. According to Eleanor’s eavesdropping parrot, no one at court appreciates her unladylike tendency to voice her opinion. To make matter worse, her royal fiancé spends his last night of bachelorhood on a drunken whoring spree. Before the ink dries on her marriage proclamation Eleanor realizes that she loves her husband's best friend, former soldier Dorian Finley.Eleanor can’t resist Dorian’s honesty, or his unusual admiration for her intelligence, and soon both are caught in a dangerous obsession. She drowns her confusion in charitable endeavors, but the people’s love can’t protect her from her feelings. When a magical crime endangers the bond between unicorns, dragons, and the royal family, a falsely accused Eleanor must clear her own name to save her life. The road toward vindication will force a choice between hard-won security and an impossible love.The Cracked Slipper is a book club friendly fairytale retelling in the vein of Gregory Maguire, with a dash of romance. Set in a pseudo-renaissance, corset-and-petticoats enchanted kingdom, The Cracked Slipper brings a magical twist to women’s fiction.

    . . but on the wrong girl? What happens when Cinderella is determined to oust an imposter prince from her rightful throne? Or when she is a cendrillon miner working from a space station orbiting a cthonian planet? What happens when Cinderella, a humble housemaid, is sent with a message for a prisoner trapped in a frightening fairy circus?Here is Cinderella as you have never met her before, wearing glass slippers and off on unforgettable adventures!WHAT EYES CAN SEE ~ BROKEN GLASS ~ THE WINDY SIDE OF CARE ~ A CINDER’S TALE ~ THE MOON MASTER’S BALL

    And what's standing in the way of Ashley's romantic success? A stepmother who yells "Yoo-hoo!" to all Ashley's friends, and twin stepsisters who think there's nothing more fun than listening in on Ashley's phone conversations. At first, Ashley's stepmother, Phyllis, says that she needs a night out and so Ashley must baby-sit the twins. But then Phyllis has the bright idea of calling the mother of one of the party-throwers to get the twins invited, too! So worse than having to baby-sit, she'll have the twins at the party with her. Now Ashley isn't sure it's worth showing up to the country club at all -- never mind what she's going to wear. As the seconds tick down to the year 2000, will some fairy godmother appear to save the night so that Ashley can dance with her Prince Charming and welcome the new millennium?