We are shown the matriarchs around whom their families spin; but whether they direct their children gently or forcefully, in the end they have to accept them as they are.

    At least that's how it is in my wolf pack, has been since high school. There's only two problems with that: one, I'm a man, and two, I'm human. Back from college and armed with my teaching certificate all I want is to quietly teach chemistry to the kids of my hometown, wolf and human alike, but its never that easy in Silver Branch. Weird things start to happen, a hot guy shows up, and suddenly I'm mixed into affairs probably better left to wizards and shifters. Nick Duval My family sucks, my pack sucks and all I've ever wanted was to get break free and leave to live life on my own terms. But I can't risk the danger that would put my Mom and little brothers in so I'm trapped pretending to be the perfect son and Alpha heir. My overbearing father has finally set his ultimatum, marry the adopted human son of his dead best friend or the woman of his choosing. I'm gay, so neither option is particularly appealing to me. However, when I meet this human I know he's the one for me, all I have to do is convince him. All hell breaks loose and I start to find that the biggest challenge might not be convincing my Mate, but rather keeping him. Can Nick, Billy, and the other residents of Silver Branch band together to stop the monster someone is trying to summon in their midst? Can they keep their hands off each other long enough to save the world? Beginnings is an M/M non-mpreg shifter romance intended for adults only. It contains swear words, some violence, and sexy times.

    The scarred veteran Mr. Tiller, left disfigured by an impossible accident on the battlefields of France, brings with him a message: part prophecy, part warning.As Shirley's village prepares for the annual May Day celebrations, where a new queen will be crowned and the future reborn, she must choose between change and renewal - will the missives Mr. Tiller brings prevent her mastering her destiny?Exploring complex ideas of fate and power, and questioning the authority of those who write our cultural narratives, The Arrival of Missives is a unique work, deftly marrying literary and genre influences. It heralds the arrival of a major new voice in speculative fiction.

    Crowds gather in the public marketplace to listen, paying them with coins, with food, with lodging, whatever they can offer. For a woman who calls herself Teller, storytelling is her life. She travels the many oceans of Thalassa with her harsel, the great sea-beast to whom she is telepathically bonded. At her side is a young street boy named Samad, whom she reluctantly took as an apprentice. He will grow up under her care--both delighting and disappointing her with the choices he makes along the way. And he will eventually discover the secret at the heart of Teller's life--a discovery that will change him profoundly...

    He works for an engineer, a maker of the eccentric, loyal and totally individual mechanicals who are Christopher's best friends. But after a devastating accident, a secret is revealed and Christopher's world is changed for ever... What follows is a remarkable adventure, as Christopher discovers who he really is, and what it means to be human.

    “If there is a bleaker, funnier or more desperate play in Edinburgh this year, I’ll eat my hat.”—GuardianA brilliant new play by the author of Disco Pigs and this year’s winner of the Edinburgh First Fringe Award for Outstanding New Writing.

    The sovereign, Mearlan IV, wants him to Walk back fourteen years, to prevent a devastating war which will destroy all of Islevale. Even though the journey will double Tobias' age, he agrees. But he arrives to discover Mearlan has already been assassinated, and his court destroyed. The only survivor is the infant princess, Sofya. Still a boy inside his newly adult body, Tobias must find a way to protect the princess from assassins, and build himself a future... in the past.File Under: Fantasy [ Time Demons They See Me Walkin' Young Inside Disturbing Allies ]

    But when Mark goes to college in California rather than following Daniel to New York, he embarks on a decade-long search for independence, sexual confidence and love.When Mark lands a job in New York and crosses Daniel’s path, they slowly rebuild their fractured friendship through texts and emails. If they finally agree to see each other, will they be able to keep it platonic? Or will the spark of a long-lost love reignite just as Daniel accepts a job overseas?Platonic is a story of trials, growth, and knowing how to learn lessons from the past to build a future.

    Unfortunately, when he encounters long time ex Jackson Brooks, things start taking a turn for the worse and Liam finds himself getting stuck in a spiral again. Will he ever be able to leave?

    He's finally pissed off Jonah, the sweet, patient, funny boyfriend he's loved as long as he can remember, to the point that Jonah isn't even speaking to him. Emerson hasn’t felt this awful since the summer after graduation when Jonah ruined their college plans by running off on a cross-country trip without even saying goodbye. Jonah isn't just angry. He's furious and hurt. Devastated, even, because he's completely in love with Emerson, but although they've been together for a year, Emerson still doesn't trust him. The full weight of their past mistakes drags Jonah and Emerson into memories of happier—and lonelier—times, but wallowing in their guilt isn't solving the problems. The only way to move forward is to learn from the past… but someone still has to be the first to apologize.

    Auschwitz survivor Simon Mendelevski, penniless and unkempt, returns to Amsterdam in a desperate search for his family, friends and neighbours. Simon meets two Dutch women, both of whom have also suffered. One, known to him before the war, is anxious to make amends for what she perceives as a failure by her fellow citizens to protect the Jewish population while easing the pain of her own loss. The other arrived in the city after the bombing of Rotterdam in May 1940 during which she lost a limb.He searches for the address where he and his Jewish family were hidden prior to their arrest by the Nazis for anything tangible connected to his family, and for whoever betrayed them. Only after finding answers can he start to rebuild his life. Scroll up and grab a copy today

    A defiant space pilot cadet determined to save the ones she loves. The adventure of a lifetime.Oz like you have never seen before.Space Academy prodigy Dorothy Hanson doesn’t have time for love nonsense. She has one goal, complete the mission her parents started before their untimely death.When a cosmic disturbance hits the Kansas Space Station, Dorothy seizes that opportunity to go on her first space voyage. She didn’t expect to be sucked into a vortex nor land on a strange planet ravaged by war.Stranded, she must embark on a perilous mission to the Land of Oz, the only nation that possesses the technology to send her home. Three strangers join Dorothy in her quest, all carrying reasons of their own for reaching Emerald City. A man without memories marked with a strange symbol on his face. A cyborg with a chip on his shoulder and a mysterious past. And a scarred hellioncat plagued by nightmares in the dark.Dorothy doesn’t know if she can trust them, but as their journey progresses, their bond becomes stronger and Dorothy’s feelings evolve from suspicion to caring too much. Torn between contradicting emotions, she must find the strength to fight the evil forces that stack up against them along the way. Surviving the trip on the yellow road is priority number one, but can she survive losing her heart?Disclaimer: Lost Horizon is space fantasy slow burn reverse harem romance. It's not a standalone novel.

    For example, in "Rebel Airplanes," an L.A. engineer works by day on city sewers and by night on R-C planes that she yearns to launch into the cosmos. The character-driven stories in Meet Behind Mars offer beautiful insight into the emotional lives of caretakers, auto workers, dancers, and pawn shop employees. In "High Country," a frustrated would-be novelist considers ditching her family in the middle of the desert. In "Dive," an adoptee returns to her adoptive home, still haunted by histories she does not know. Simms writes from the voice of women and girls who struggle under structural oppression and draws from the storytelling tradition best represented by writers like Edward P. Jones, whose characters have experiences that are specific to black Americans living in the late twentieth and twenty-first centuries. One instance of this is in "The Art of Heroine Worship," in which black families integrate into a white suburb of Detroit in the 1970s.The stories in this collection span forty years and two continents and range in structure from epistolary to traditionally structured realism, with touches of absurdity, humor, and magic. Meet Behind Mars will appeal to readers interested in contemporary literary fiction.

    A heart warming, slow burn, late in life, friends to lovers story.Georgina owns an independent coffeehouse. Her co-owner, ex lover and sometime friend with benefits, has recently died in a car accident. Grieving, and trying to keep the business going, she finds out the half share has been willed to a complete stranger.Catherine has flitted from job to job, always searching for an important missing piece in her life. Dumped by her boyfriend, jobless, single, penniless and soon to be homeless, Catherine receives a letter which could solve all her problems.Georgina has said she would never again date a straight woman. So why is Catherine continually invading her thoughts? Catherine knows she isn’t gay. So why is she feeling something more than friendship towards Georgina? Will Georgina let her past control her future? Will Catherine acknowledge a future different to her past?Set in a coffeehouse on a busy, bustling main thoroughfare into Bristol. The Perfect Blend introduces us to the owners and characters who frequent the establishment.

    Although they are powerful and politically connected, the D’Vaires stick to their mansion in Arizona. For one of their High Kings, his desire to stay home is visceral. High King Aleksander D’Vairedraconis is a dragon shifter who suffers from agoraphobia. His mate is a recent addition to the household, and when High King Rafe D’Vairedraconis receives an invitation to the annual dragon fair, he is encouraged to do more than throw it in the trash. He would never do anything to hurt his other half, but Rafe can see the possibilities for fun and adventure. After some consideration—and tantalizing daydreams about the D’Vaires crafting their masquerade costumes—Rafe finds the perfect solution and charges forward with his plans while simultaneously protecting Aleksander. Soon, the D’Vaires are whisked away to an event where they can pretend everyone is a dragon, and when it’s over the entire family vows they will never miss it again.