Ends and Odds brings together nine short dramatic works by the Nobel Prize-winning author of Waiting for Godot.

From bestselling author Christina Dodd comes The Listener, a story of mystery and intrigue in which misfit and computer security expert Cornelia Markum hacks into a text conversation between unidentified Virtue Falls residents ... and realizes she's stumbled into a murder plot.

Amy was done with men. All of them. That was until Chris Armstrong showed up to help mend her broken heart. Sure, he might be ridiculously handsome with those piercing green eyes and that cute dimple on his chin, but they were only friends. Now, he's blurring the lines and she's not sure how to respond. Can Amy resist his charming advances or will she take a chance on a sizzling summer romance?Amy was done with men. All of them. That was until Chris Armstrong showed up to help mend her broken heart. Sure, he might be ridiculously handsome with those piercing green eyes and that cute dimple on his chin, but they were only friends. Now, he's blurring the lines and she's not sure how to respond. Can Amy resist his charming advances or will she take a chance on a sizzling summer romance?*This short story (over 6,800 words) is part of the Summer Passions Series 2013.

British intelligence wants her spying skills, a vampiric warlock wants to steal her powers. The Master Wizards who trained her want her dead...The Nazis have unleashed occult forces throughout Europe and the Allies are forced to recruit and employ wizards to counter their attacks. Among them is battle weary spy, Isabella George, an alchemist trained by the Gray Tower.British intelligence wants her spying skills, a vampiric warlock wants to steal her powers. The Master Wizards who trained her want her dead...The Nazis have unleashed occult forces throughout Europe and the Allies are forced to recruit and employ wizards to counter their attacks. Among them is the battle weary spy, Isabella George, a Gray Tower dropout trained in Alchemy. Longing for retirement and a life of peace, she accepts one final job-extract a deadly warlock from Nazi occupied France and prevent him from unleashing an alchemical weapon that will devour the continent.But France is crawling with the Cruenti, vampiric warlocks who feed off other wizards. When things don't go according to plan, one Cruenti sets his deadly eyes on her.Betrayal is everywhere. Even some of her closest allies cannot be fully trusted. Worse still, she finds, she can't even trust herself. She becomes a woman torn between her charismatic spy lover who offers her what she desires most, and one of her closest confidants, whose soft seductive eyes hold deadly secrets about her past, and the Gray Tower itself.Plans within plans. Plots versus counter plots. Heists gone wrong, sword-wielding Catholic priests, and the greatest manipulation of history that has ever been seen, is just a taste of what Isabella George is in for, in her final mission.

An exclusive prep school in Connecticut. Four young, rich and beautiful friends. The usual teenage hopes and hormones, plus a trendy French movie director and $15,000 worth of high-grade Ecstasy. A racy satire for young adults.When Jasper Genovese and his three best friends head back to their exclusive Connecticut boarding school for the start of sophomore year, they carry with them their individual hopes, fears, and raging hormones. But Jas is carrying something else, too: $15,000 worth of high-grade Ecstasy. While he scrambles to extricate himself from a crisis, wannabe starlet Tibby is being pursued by a famous French director, geeky Brand is obsessed with Tibby, and beautiful, troubled Mills can’t wait to get into bed with Jas.DAYS OF ST CROIX is a fast-paced, intricate Young Adult novel set in a secluded private school, where wealth, privilege, beauty and fame only get you so far. A bright satire with a warm heart, Days Of St Croix introduces four remarkable young characters, and invites readers to experience a few days in their exclusive world.

Grace is in love with pink guitars, Harry Styles, dark-chocolate Tunnock's teacakes, Audrey Hepburn and a boy called Jack (well, maybe not quite in love) . . . Whether you've read Sarra Manning's acclaimed Diary of a Crush series or not, you'll fall for Grace as - on Edie's advice - she writes a diary of her own to deal with all the confusing and awkward situations she finds herself in.

For too long Hiro lived alone. With a curse that killed anyone whose name he learned he had a good reason for solitude. His life had become plain, but that was before a piece of paper threw his world out of balance. Now, the mystery of Hiroshima threatens to reveal itself as Hiro struggles to keep it hidden and keep safe a young girl desperate to befriend him.Hiroshima, Golden Messenger, is the first book in a collection of short stories. The adventure begins with an unfortunate meeting that forces Hiro to face his long forgotten past. The dark mystery is a torment to Hiro who wants nothing more than to forget his past completely and live a normal life. Things go amiss when a girl begins leaving him messages on a bench beneath a golden paperweight in the shape of a waving cat. Hiro was afraid to read the notes at first. If he learned the girl's name it would not be long before she died a terrible death. Such is the curse that forced Hiro into a life of solitude. However fate had decided time was no longer on his side.Hiro's past was catching up with him. All he had run away from was returning with a vengeance, but he was not the only point of attack. The note-leaving girl was now tangled in the madness as well and Hiro realizes her future had been thrust into his hands. His past and present collide and endanger not only Hiro, but Castroph City and the girl as well. He tries to hold on and fight for the life outside his dark secrets, but once evil seeps in it cannot be easily removed.

It's just one of those days... Magicians, phoenix eggs and hot chocolate with a guardian angel. Here is a collection of short stories for the everyday, twisted with fantasy and intrigue... but mind where you step, for here lie domestic dragons, hidden treasures and the dark underside of the suburbs. These short stories mirror everyone's day to day struggles, from grief to first love, from growingIt's just one of those days... Magicians, phoenix eggs and hot chocolate with a guardian angel. Here is a collection of short stories for the everyday, twisted with fantasy and intrigue... but mind where you step, for here lie domestic dragons, hidden treasures and the dark underside of the suburbs. These short stories mirror everyone's day to day struggles, from grief to first love, from growing up to growing apart. Full of heart and a dash of adventure, 'Short Lived' is a collection of tales like no other.

Nedward Simmons is living a regular Earth life when he stumbles across an artifact from an alien civilization. Its protective powers are more intriguing than useful to him, until the aliens themselves arrive. Unable to hand over the power he has unwittingly acquired, Ned decides instead to travel with them in an attempt to master his power and defeat the Anacron army.Nedward Simmons is living a regular Earth life when he stumbles across an artifact from an alien civilization. Its protective powers are more intriguing than useful to him, until the aliens themselves arrive. Unable to hand over the power he has unwittingly acquired, Ned decides instead to travel with them in an attempt to defeat the Anacron army, which threatens their freedom. But Ned soon learns that his Plasma Crystal is not the only source of mysterious power in the galaxy. Ned and his comrades must deal with a vast space armada, enemy Plasma Masters, and even a monster or two as they search for a way to penetrate the enemy fortress of Venom and restore peace to their empire.

A continuation of the saga of the von Trotta family from The Radetzky March, it is both a powerful and moving look at a decaying society and its journey through the War and its devastating aftermath, and the story of the erosion of one man's desperate faith in the virtues of a simple life.

A Christmas gift to my readers and colleagues here at Smashwords. May the joy of His Nativity illuminate your Christmas season and be yours throughout the coming New Year.There stood atop a desolated hilltop a funeral parlor by the name of Sunny Hills Funeral Parlor with some terrifying tales from the dead. Jeramiah Hill the owner of Sunny Hills Funeral Parlor would invite some of his closest friends in town to come and hear how people that were brought to his funeral parlor died. Sunny Hills Funeral Parlor was built in 1816 by the Hills family. Soon after construction was complete on the funeral parlor bad things started happening. One of the Hill's brothers got into a fight with the other brother over a girl and in a jealous rage Jim Hill fell out of the two story window in the funeral parlor to his death. Since there were no witnesses, Jim's death was declared an accident. Just weeks after Jim's death, his brother Daryl was found dead in one of the coffins in the funeral parlor. Daryl's father Jeramiah told the lawmen that from the look on his son's face he was frightened to death. Just as if he saw something so terrible he thought hiding in the coffin would keep him safe. After Sunny Hills Funeral Parlor changed hands because of its haunted past the name was changed to Haunted Hills Funeral Parlor and that's when more bad things started to happen that would cause the town to be haunted forever even burning the place to the ground didn't stop the all the haunting.

Legends come and legends go and sometimes, they return. When The Fat Man and his Dog return to the world, they are met with joy and confusion as well as worry over what their arrival foretells.When Rod and Marge Applewhite decide to expand their horizons by joining the Mahjong Club at the community centre, nothing can prepare them, or their new acquaintances, for the avalanche of social disgraces which follow!This fourth short story from Brian Parker looks at what can happen when a young woman with healthy cleavage and a low cut dress sits opposite a man who can't keep his focus on the job at hand!

A power-hungry demon. An experiment gone wrong. Sometimes surviving is all that matters.A power-hungry demon. An experiment gone wrong. Sometimes surviving is all that matters.The demon Azazel will stop at nothing to collect more souls, but his greed results in an abomination more powerful than he imagined: The Unnamed. Now he must survive their wrath or be permanently eliminated.Haedyn has always known she was different, and not just because she’s blind and an orphan. Her pale skin and deep red eyes make her an outcast. But when the orphanage is attacked, she discovers the truth – she’s the last Unnamed, an abomination marked for death. Now, she must find a way to survive in a world where she doesn’t belong.The Unnamed is a short story prequel to The Haedyn Chronicles. If you like your urban fantasy on the dark side and filled with edge-of-your-seat suspense, then you’ll love The Unnamed.Download The Unnamed and start reading The Haedyn Chronicles today!

Detective MacFarland -- "Mac" to his friends -- was kicked off the Denver police force for a variety of reasons, most of which came out of the mistrial of the man who murdered his wife. While getting back on his feet by operating a small hot dog cart, MarFarland is approached by a high-priced lawyer to help prove a woman innocent. Can MacFarland find the real killer and free the innocent woman?Detective MacFarland -- "Mac" to his friends -- was kicked off the Denver police force for a variety of reasons, most of which came out of the mistrial of the man who murdered his wife. After a couple of years on the streets, MacFarland is getting back on his feet by operating a small hot dog cart. He doesn’t make much money, gives a lot of his product to his former homeless friends, and studies language CDs in his spare time. He's put his detective days behind him, and he's happy that way.But then MarFarland is approached by a high-priced lawyer to help prove a woman innocent. A fishing buff has been found murdered and the wife is the prime suspect. With the evidence stacked against her, and someone destroying evidence, can MacFarland find the real killer and free the innocent woman?This is a cozy mystery with amateur sleuth. This is a 70,000 words novel.

This is one recipe for leaving a violent relationship--what worked for one single mother of three, who escaped abuse and successfully delivered her children to adulthood.This is one recipe for leaving a violent relationship--what worked for one single mother of three, who escaped abuse and successfully delivered her children to adulthood. Despite their experiences, this displaced homemaker turned waitress is the proud mother of a nuclear engineer, a computer engineer and a psychologist. Read what she did and how she did it. This recipe can be changed and adapted. If she can do it, you can too.

In Sir’s Arms: Brie’s Submission #16 (A Novel)