Church, school then a little more church was her life. She wasn’t the girl to get asked on dates or even have a lot of friends. She mainly kept to herself until she was noticed by the one guy she had been dreaming about since she hit puberty. Deon was a force that Jess had no choice but to allow to come in and sweep her away. He was too charming, too handsome, and too tempting. He didn’t have rules and he didn’t let Jess’ young age stop him from getting what he wanted, which was her. Jess fought him off for as long as she could but finally gave in. Her life seemed to change overnight. She became confident. She was able to get the clothes that she wanted and be the girl that other guys liked and females wanted to befriend. Deon was her king and she just wanted to make him happy. She went against her parents’ wishes and everything she believed in to be with him and she would have taken on the world for him if she had to. He gave her everything she ever wanted and she found herself so wrapped up in him that she could see nothing else. Her fairytale soon turned into a nightmare once she learned she wasn’t the only girl he was loving. Next were the fights and the drama. Trying to leave Deon became a war that she wasn’t prepared to fight. What do you do when someone you love so much hurts you? How can you leave them when you can’t even go a day without them? Love is many things but it should never hurt. For Jessenia her life was nice until it wasn’t. She fell in love with a man that really didn’t love her at all and the battle to get back to herself wasn’t going to be an easy one. He said he loved her and she believed him. His type of love was pain most of the time and she started to bleed his love right out of her until one day she noticed the love was gone. To leave Deon, Jess has to find herself and find her strength. Will she succeed or will she forever be wrapped up in a man that really loves no one but himself? Heart of Stone by Mz. Lady P Heart of Stone is a short story that digs into the mind frame of Stone Williams. A heartless, ruthless, and abusive womanizer.K'Yonnah Kyles is his much younger girlfriend who thought she had met her Knight in Shining Armor, but in reality she was dancing with the devil and sleeping with the enemy.Not being able to take it anymore, K'Yonnah decides to do what's best for her. In the process, she'll find out secrets that Stone has been keeping from her. She will have to come to grips and face the fact that Stone never had any good intentions for her or her heart. Will she be able to get out of his clutches or is it too late for her to save her life from the heartless nigga known as Stone.Love Don't Have to Hurt by Lucinda John Aimee's dreams of a professional dancer had to be placed on hold when her father died of cancer. Living paycheck to paycheck, Aimee works to help her mother pay off her debts, take care of her brother, and attend a few classes at a community college. When Aimee's best friend, Shanice presents her with the idea of dancing at a strip club for extra money, she meets Lucas. A punch, slap, and a few kicks is how Aimee can explain her abusive relationship with Lucas. The guy that is suppose to be her safe haven, is the one that is causing her the most pain; physically and emotionally. Aimee feels obligated to stay with Lucas because of how he changed her and her family's lives, but when things turn fatal, will Aimee learns that love is not suppose to hurt? Or will it be too late?Fatal Attraction: The Love I Once RememberedHave you ever been deeply in love? Enduring so much because you thought things would get better? Or because you felt your good days, outweighed your bad? Well here's a story about a young lady dealing

    When they arrive, Georgie discovers that a group of survivalists have already erected a camp there, and her father is nowhere to be found. As she adjusts to her new normal, she has trouble adhering to the survivalists’ rules. Can she fit in at the camp and find out what happened to her father?

    She was given an explanation. Nevertheless, she persisted.Three short lines, fired over social media in response to questions of why Senator Elizabeth Warren was silenced on the floor of the United States Senate, for daring to read aloud the words of Coretta Scott King. As this message was transmitted across the globe, it has become a galvanizing cry for people of all genders in recognition of the struggles that women have faced throughout history.Three short lines, which read as if they are the opening passage to an epic and ageless tale.We have assembled this flash fiction collection featuring several of the best writers in SF/F today, including Seanan McGuire, Charlie Jane Anders, Maria Dahvana Headley, Jo Walton, Amal El-Mohtar, Catherynne M. Valente, Brooke Bolander, Alyssa Wong, Kameron Hurley, Nisi Shawl and Carrie Vaughn. Together these authors share unique visions of women inventing, playing, loving, surviving, and – of course – dreaming of themselves beyond their circumstances.At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

    Authors who have appeared within the pages of Sword and Sorceress represent the full spectrum of some of the brightest talent working today -- from C.J. Cherryh, Charles de Lint, and Emma Bull . . . to Deborah J. Ross, Diana L. Paxson, and Laurell K. Hamilton.We are proud to continue the classic and vibrant feminist tradition with this twenty-fourth volume of new magical adventures edited by Elisabeth Waters, secretary and co-editor to Mrs. Bradley.Here are seventeen original stories of remarkable women of power, swashbuckling and magic, spells and duels, arcane sorcery and fabled heroism, written by familiar word-weavers of excitement and adventure, and bright newcomers who are sure to become favorites.Enter a wondrous universe . . .Marion Zimmer Bradley's Sword and SorceressSword and Sorceress 24 includes stories by Deborah J. Ross, Helen E. Davis, Elisabeth Waters & Michael Spence, Brenta Blevins, K.D. Wentworth, Teresa Howard, Catherine Soto, Josepha Sherman, Cate McBride, Cynthia Ward, Jonathan Moeller, Dave Smeds, Therese Arkenberg, Michael H. Payne, Annclaire Livoti, Julia H. West, and Melissa Mead.

    Martin is a giant in the field of fantasy literature and one of the most exciting storytellers of our time. Now he delivers a rare treat for readers: a compendium of his shorter works, collected into two stunning volumes, that offer fascinating insight into his journey from young writer to award-winning master.Gathered here in Volume I are the very best of George R.R. Martin's early works, including never-before-published fan pieces, his Hugo, Nebula, and Bram Stoker Award-winning stories plus the original novella The Ice Dragon, from which Martin's New York Times bestselling children's book of the same title originated. A dazzling array that features extensive author commentary, Dreamsongs, Volume I, is the perfect collection for both Martin devotees and a new generation of fans.Contents:- Introduction by Gardner Dozois One: A Four-Color Fanboy (2003)- Only Kids Are Afraid of the Dark (1967)- The Fortress (2003)- And Death His Legacy (2003)Two: The Filthy Pro (2003)- The Hero (1971)- The Exit to San Breta (1972)- The Second Kind of Loneliness (1972)- With Morning Comes Mistfall (1973)Three: The Light of Distant Stars (2003)- A Song for Lya (1974)- The Stone City (1977)- This Tower of Ashes (1976)- And Seven Times Never Kill Man (1975)- Bitterblooms (1977)- The Way of Cross and Dragon (1979)Four: The Heirs of Turtle Castle (2003)- The Lonely Songs of Laren Dorr (1976)- The Ice Dragon (1980)- In the Lost Lands (1982)Five: Hybrids and Horrors (2003)- Meathouse Man (1976)- Remembering Melody (1981)- Sandkings (1979)- Nightflyers (1980)- The Monkey Treatment (1983)- The Pear-Shaped Man (1987)

    An embittered mother cares for her dying son who is trapped in a thicket that guards a sleeping beauty... In a bleak and desolate industrial wasteland, a group of violent outcasts lays the tattered myths of one Millenium to rest, and gives terrifying birth to those of the next.Erotic, compelling, witty, and altogether extraordinary, these stories lay bare our innermost demons and desires--imaginatively transforming our youthful fantasies into things darker, slyer, and more delightfully subversive. The "Snow White, Blood Red" Collection #1. Snow White, Blood Red #2. Black Thorn, White Rose #3. Ruby Slippers, Golden Tears #4. Black Swan, White Raven #5. Silver Birch, Blood Moon #6. Black Heart, Ivory Bones

    How it happens is still up in the air.Every god has a nanoverse, but only one will give its wielder the ability to end the world. After years of searching, it has finally been found, with the power to kick start the apocalypse.They never thought to look in a gift store's box of Knick-knacks. Ryan Smith didn't expect anything interesting to happen to him. He was a boring guy. The only remotely interesting thing about him was the man in a suit that no one else could see. Always watching, always taking notes. Ryan didn't know it meant he was one of the candidates to find the last nanoverse. Now that he has it, he has the power of a god, and it’s up to Ryan to try and save humanity, even though he can’t save the world. At least things have stopped being boring.Now Ryan finds himself in a fast paced adventure, caught in the power struggle between gods as he is forced to battle for his life against forces he can barely comprehend as gods try to stop him from fulfilling his duty. Foremost among them is Enki, a villain so terrible he...wants to save the world.A high octane battle between good and evil ensues, where the heroes’ best hope is a kinder, gentler Armageddon.

    In his singular universe, televisions talk (and sometimes sing), animals live in small apartments where their nephews visit from the sea, and men and women and boys and girls fall down wells and fly through space and find love on Ferris wheels. In a voice full of fable, myth, and dream, Stories for Nighttime and Some for the Day draws us into a world of delightfully wicked recognitions, and introduces us to a writer of uncommon talent and imagination.Contains 40 stories, including "The Duck," "The Man and the Moose," and "Death and the Fruits of the Tree," as heard on NPR's This American Life, "The Book," as heard on Selected Shorts, and "The TV," as found in The New Yorker.A selection of the Barnes & Noble Discover Great New Writers Program and the Starbucks Coffee Bookish Reading Club.Winner of the 2011 Nobbie Award for Best Book of the Year."This guy can write!" –Ray Bradbury, author of Fahrenheit 451

    A mage cop on his first assignment learns the world isn't as black and white as hopedA jump mage and a starship with matching needs turn out to be a magnet for troubleDigging in 1940s New York City awakens a monster--and brings in the elite of the FaeThe protected heir of an interstellar dictatorship is called to a battle no one expected him to fightAn explosive collection of four novellas from science fiction and fantasy author Glynn Stewart, spanning his ONSET, Starship's Mage, Changeling Blood and Exile universes, including two brand new urban fantasy novellas.  Includes:ONSET: Murder by MagicStarship's Mage: Episode 1Fae, Flames and FedorasAshen Stars

    Ringmaster and internationally bestselling author Jane Yolen (Briar Rose, Sister Emily’s Lightship) spins modern fantasy classics in tales that go well beyond Wonderland and Oz, down the rabbit hole and back again.Where is Wendy? Leading a labor strike against the Lost Boys, of course!It’s time to go back to—and beyond—the treasured tales you thought you knew: The Wizard of Oz, Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan and many more. Ringmaster and internationally bestselling author Jane Yolen (Briar Rose, Sister Emily’s Lightship) spins modern fantasy classics for delighted readers. A girl blown away from Kansas returns as a sophisticate with unusual gymnastic abilities. A talented apprentice, forging her first sword, is suddenly left to the mercies of Merlin. Alice’s infamous nemesis has jaws and claws, but also lacks the essential: a sense of humor.Witty and bold, and unexpected, these tales go well beyond the rabbit hole and back again.Table of ContentsAndersen’s WitchLost GirlsTough AliceBlown AwayA Knot of ToadsThe Quiet MonkThe BirdBelle Bloody Merciless DameJewel in the Toad Queen’s CrownA Gift of MagiciansRabbit HoleOur Lady of the GreenwoodThe Confession of Brother BlaiseWonder LandEvian SteelSister Emily’s Lightship

    Did you ever wonder how the dwarves felt after Snow White ditched them for the prince? Do you sometimes wish Cinderella hadn't been so helpless and petite? Prepare to see fairy tales from a completely new angle!

    This collection of short stories is our gift to bring you something positive and joyful with which to end the year.Soldiers stumbling upon mercy and miracles; children sharing gifts of friendship and love; romance finding its way into lonely, war-weary hearts; resistance fighters; spies; families on the home front—all bringing their own ray of hope in the darkest of times.For this holiday season, we offer you this collection of short stories to lift your spirit, and to remember a time when love and the strength of human spirit prevailed.We hope you will enjoy stepping back into the wartime Christmases in these stories with us.

    These stories visit undiscovered countries and shadowy avenues of the heart, lands and times where night never ends and matter doesn't matter. Features the six-story Aeropagan cycle where time is literally money. Includes an afterword and Nicholson's first-ever published story.

    From The Wizard of Oz to The Dark Tower, from Philip Pullman's The Golden Compass to C. S. Lewis's The Chronicles of Narnia, there is a rich tradition of this kind of fiction, but never before have the best parallel world stories and portal fantasies been collected in a single volume—until now.

    . . .So begins this dark, unusual retelling of the story of Snow White by the writer reviewers have called “the Angela Carter of the fantasy field”—a whole novel based on a beloved story, turning it into a dark and sensual drama full of myth and magic.Arpazia is the aging queen who paces the halls of a warlord’s palace. Cold as winter, she has only one passion—for the mysterious hunter who courts the outlawed old gods of the woodland. Coira is the princess raised in the shadow of her mother’s hatred. Avoided by both her parents and half forgotten by her father’s court, she grows into womanhood alone . . . until the mirror speaks, and blood is spilled, and the forest claims her.The tragic myth of the goddess Demeter and her daughter, Persephone, stolen by the king of the underworld, is woven together with the tale of Snow White to create a powerful story of mothers and daughters and the blood that binds them together, for good or ill. Black queen. White maid. Royal huntsman. Seven little folk who live in the forest. Come inside, sit by the fire, and listen to this fairy tale as you’ve never heard it told before. Once upon a time there was a mirror, and a girl as white as snow. . . .