Although he is best known for his exquisite novels, E.M. Forster also wrote remarkable short stories. He referred to his stories as ‘fantasies’ and his attraction to myth and magic is apparent in many of them. Like his novels, the stories – whether they are set in Italy, Greece, India, and other places Forster visited, or in England itself – contrast the freedom of paganism with the restraints of English civilization, the personal, sensual delights of the body with the impersonal, inhibiting rules imposed by society. Rich in irony and alive with sharp observations on the surprises life holds, the stories often feature violent events, discomforting coincidences, and other disruptive happenings that throw the characters’ perceptions and beliefs off balance. This volume includes all twelve stories published during Forster’s lifetime.

From the New York Times bestselling author of Bared to You... Adrian Mitchell is a powerful angel leading an elite Special Ops unit of Seraphim. His task is to punish the Fallen-angels who have become vampires-and command a restless pack of indentured lycans. But Adrian has suffered his own punishment for becoming involved with mortals- losing the woman he loves again and again. Now, after nearly two hundred years, he has found her-Shadoe-her soul once more inhabiting a new body, with no memory of him. And this time, he won't let her go.

Several years ago, Christian Huxley's father, George, obsessively documented the strange phenomena emanating from Ryhope Wood at the edge of their property. He watched the ancient heroes emerge, shouting both incomprehensible warnings and unmistakable invitations. Recklessly, George followed them inot the mysterious sylvan shadows that changed him forever. Christian himself was not untouched by these living dreams. A childhood encounter with a phantom from another time draws him to the Wood as an adult. Deep in Ryhope, Christian uncovers the lie that permeates his worst nightmares. And like his father, he will be consumed with the mythagoes of Ryhope, especially a young Celtic warrior called Guiwenneth. She is the key to the mystery of the universe, an ancient heroine caught in a timeless tale of bravery and sacrifice. Now, together with a band of crusaders from a world long gone, Christian and Guiwenneth become part of the unfolding stories both remembered and forgotten. They meet sorcerers in battle and giants who can travel miles in one step. And they discover the meaning of the two gates, Ivory and Horn - one the lie, the other the truth.

An unexpected turn of events for a young mischief maker, forces him to take a different view of his best friendWith a nod to Roald Dahl's Tales of the Unexpected, Baggy is the story of a boy's playful pranks and the price he must pay for his fun.

In the future, those who score high in polls, the High-Opps, live in plush apartments, with comfortable jobs, every possible convenience. But those who are low-opped, find themselves crowded in Warrens, with harsh lives and brutal conditions. When a former High-Opp finds himself fighting for survival in the city’s underworld, it is time for a revolution. And every revolution needs a leader.

Five inter-connected stories set in a mythical past focus on the experiences of the slave Gorgik and deal with aspects of the beginning of civilization. Contents: "The Tale of Gorgik" "The Tale of Old Venn" "The Tale of Small Sarg" "The Tale of Potters and Dragons" "The Tale of Dragons and Dreamers."

Adderand has lost his friend, his money, and his sight. Only thing he has left is his sword and somebody just made it on to his death list.POWERS SPLICED TOGETHER LIKE SCIONS TO STOCKTHIS IS THE FIRST MISSIONAfter years of training among splicers—a secluded community of people able to make auras of energy surround their bodies and burst into concussive blasts—Sophie is ready to run away.She has failed to become a successful splicer at every attempt while it comes so naturally to other students. Their power comes from their communion with one another, which troubles Sophie who is an outsider among a close-knit population and is prone to be alone.But on the eve of her escape, her instructor pairs her with Logan, the best splicer among her peers, in a mission to escort a group of visitors back to their village. They have made a recent pilgrimage to the tower where the splicers live and they are coming back home through a countryside riddled with bandits and an unforgiving wilderness.With the perfect opportunity to escape, Sophie must decide between her responsibilities and her true desires. Can she bring herself to risk Logan’s life and the lives of innocent visitors in order to escape?If you wish to read more, download now!BONUS FOR YOU AT THE END OF THE BOOK!EXCERPTThe sun was beginning to set and they wouldn’t be able to see the trail for much longer, especially once they reached the nearby woods.“We should stop for the night,” she said.Immediately, Logan removed his rucksack from his shoulder and set it amid the grass along the road. He extended an arm behind himself and plopped down on his haunches.Sophie tilted her head towards him. “Wow. That was easier than I expected,” she said.“What?” Logan asked, looking curious.“I just thought you would want to push onward, you know? I mean, you’re the gold standard of splicer students, right? So, I just expected more determination — not that I’m complaining. That’s all.”Logan rested his arms on his knees with a blade of grass in his fingers. He ripped it apart and then doubled the segments over and did it again until he had to grab more grass and restart the cycle.“It’s the smart decision,” he said, distracted by the grass.“Okay. Well, I’m going to go gather some firewood.”Sophie walked away, considering the option of just running away now and saving herself the effort of actually going through with the mission.“Whatever. Don’t let me stop you,” Logan said. And Sophie was glad that he could not see her growing so angry with his rude attitude again that she imagined herself with a fierce red aura.Soon, she disappeared into the woods, mumbling to herself; deciding that, yes, she would leave now and find a new home.Preferably somewhere far from the splicers, please.Download and discover why readers are raving about Elena Snowfield.Scroll up and get the book now!

Deren the squire and his Master Sir Bron have been selected for a mission behind enemy lines. The mysterious Baron Adderand will lead the mission. The Baron's reputation for brutality and sword skill proceeds him. Where would the enigmatic baron take them? What lay ahead, adventure, wealth, intrigue or death?Two scientists pull an all-nighter, desperate to complete their work before the project is terminated.Garrett was just reaching for the keyboard when the office door flew open and Harris burst in."I've got something!" shouted the scientist, his face flushed. "Quick. Come and see!"Garrett jumped up and ran for the door. Harris was already half-way down the corridor, running flat-out with his white lab coat flapping behind him like a sail in a hurricane.A 2000-word short story by Simon Haynes, author of the Hal Spacejock series.

The tempest was only beginning to boil up. Few could see what it would engulf before exhausting itself upon a ruined land. And a ruined land it was to be…millions of lives snuffed out with countless cities buried in smoldering rubble. Yet it was going to happen, causing those involved to release a collective sigh, for the day had come at last.As if groggily rising from some drunken stupor, the whole universe was waking to reality, shaking off its former illusions of complacency and indifference. The realization of who the oldest child had really become was beginning to sink in. To publicly attempt the destruction of an innocent mind for no reason other than selfish desire had pushed their limits of tolerance beyond the breaking point. No honest person could find an excuse for Asotos’ actions. There was no longer any defense for the man’s violence committed against his brothers and sisters.A new energy filled the hearts of Lowenah’s children. War was coming. And if Asotos was not defeated, everyone surviving would be enslaved for as long as the universe remained. Freedom would disappear forever. Preventing such a thing from happening rested on their shoulders. The fate of all future history and all past life lay in their hands. The tempest was only beginning to boil up. Few could see what it would engulf before exhausting itself upon a ruined land. And a ruined land it was to be…millions of lives snuffed out with countless cities buried in smoldering rubble. Yet it was going to happen, causing those involved to release a collective sigh, for the day had come at last. Most had never lifted a hand in anger against another, and now they were prepared to kill or be killed. Billions were gathering to this coming day of slaughter, one that was to make the Great War appear as though but a small skirmish.Their waiting in suspense was over. Now duty begged them on to whatever destiny awaited them. A blood moon was rising - an omen of a savage, sanguine struggle leading to the obliteration of either the Children’s Empire or the League of Brothers.So unfolds Book III of “The Chronicles of Heaven’s War: Blood Moon Rising”, as the epic tale of mankind’s history is further revealed...that which has been hid in secrecy for millennia now coming to light. Follow those who stand as our silent sentinels as they engage in all-out warfare to eradicate evil from their Realm as well as ours, fighting to pave the way for lasting peace, where love and freedom will reign supreme.

Short story about a teen and how he became the leader of his gang.How do you catch a killer who is already dead?One year ago, the Bluebell Killer killed his last victim. He was shot and killed, leaving behind a legacy of twenty corpses and a name that people will fear for years to come…A year later, a man is shot in the back of the head and left in a field of bluebells. Is it a mugging gone wrong? A copycat killer? Or is the Bluebell Killer still out there, waiting to pounce on his next victim?For DS Evelyn Giles the solution is simple – it’s just another dirty politician caught committing an unforgiveable crime. But with the evidence stacking up against him, Giles’ suspect has one more surprise in store for her…And his words will throw everything she knows into question…‘It’s not over yet.’The past is coming back to haunt DS Giles. She’s already sacrificed much for the lie. The only question is how much more will she suffer for the truth?An ingeniously, gripping thriller, The Bluebell Informant is a dark, unexpected and emotionally charged debut.

A love like no other... When Abbey's best friend, Kristen, vanishes at the bridge near Sleepy Hollow Cemetery, everyone else is all too quick to accept that Kristen is dead...and rumors fly that her death was no accident. Abbey goes through the motions of mourning her best friend, but privately, she refuses to believe that Kristen is really gone. Then she meets Caspian, the gorgeous and mysterious boy who shows up out of nowhere at Kristen's funeral and keeps reappearing in Abbey's life. Caspian clearly has secrets of his own, but he's the only person who makes Abbey feel normal again...but also special. Just when Abbey starts to feel that she might survive all this, she learns a secret that makes her question everything she thought she knew about her best friend. How could Kristen have kept silent about so much? And could this secret have led to her death? As Abbey struggles to understand Kristen's betrayal, she uncovers a frightening truth that nearly unravels her - one that will challenge her emerging love for Caspian, as well as her own sanity.

HE SAYS . . . I, Aidan the Divine, am, well divine. My name was given to me by the Dragon Queen herself! I’m a delight! Cheerful. Charming. And a mighty warrior who is extremely handsome with a very large and well-hidden hoard of gold. I am also royal born, despite the fact that most in my family are horrendous beings that don’t deserve to live. And yet, Branwen the Awful—a low-born, no less—either tells me to shut up or, worse, ignores me completely. SHE SAYS . . . I’ll admit, I ignore Aidan the Divine because it annoys him. A lot. But, we have so much to do right now, I can’t worry about why he keeps staring at me, or why he always sits so close, or why he keeps looking at me like he’s thinking about kissing me. We have our nations to save and no time for such bloody foolishness . . . no matter how good Aidan looks or how long his spiked tail is. Because if we’re going to win this war before it destroys everything we love, we’ll have to face our enemies together, side by side and without distractions. But if we make it out alive, who knows what the future will hold . . .

Cassandra’s dark mood is interrupted when she is kidnapped by a community of fairies – not the sweet creatures of her imagination, but a powerful, intelligent species who view humans as dishonest mercenaries. As she struggles to find a way to return to the mediocrity of her human world, she is changed by her experiences and the relationships she forms until she is no longer sure where she belongs.If you could view humanity through the eyes of another intelligent species, would you like what you see?Cassandra’s fate is sealed when she accidentally discovers a village of fairies in the bush behind her boatshed. To prevent her from divulging the secret of their existence, the fairies – or fae, as they prefer to be called – shrink her and hold her captive. Although she is adopted into a fae family with a mother who wants only to make her happy, Cassandra refuses to accept her new life. Her one source of joy is the blossoming relationship with her adopted brother, but what hope does a human-fae relationship have when humans are hated by the fae as destructive idiots whose extinction would be a relief to every other species on the planet?Attempting to escape only serves to teach Cassandra that she has insufficient knowledge and skills for surviving in the natural environment, especially when she is less than ten centimetres tall. Acceptance of her situation and taking responsibility for her own happiness seems to be the only way forward, but it is difficult to do when she feels like an ungainly misfit amongst the beautiful and talented fae.As time passes, Cassandra finds happiness and a sense of purpose that causes her to question her place in the world.Will Cassandra be able to prove herself worthy to be returned to the human world, and if that time comes, will she even want to?The Fae of Gillwillan is set in Australia, on the idyllic Mornington Peninsula. It is the story of the search for purpose and belonging.

NOT a typical fantasy... - At the top of the world, two unlikely participants are drawn into an ancient conflict that will ultimately determine the future of mankind... --Marcus is venturing out of his permanent shelter to check the day's traps and possibly hunt seals on the ice, when he discovers a nearly dead, young female whale researcher out on the ice alone and unconscious. After bringing her back from the frozen brink, she reveals some disturbing details of an armed takeover of her research facility, sounding like the earmarks of a terrorist attack, though nothing in the area is of any strategic or political value. Upon inspecting the scene for himself, Marcus uncovers an ongoing struggle that has lasted for thousands of years, much worse than any terror plot, holding mankind's future in the balance. With time running out, limited resources and only a frozen stranger to help, he must stop a terrible bloodline of ancient tyrants and evil men bent on world domination and total destruction, before they kill the last magical creatures on Earth.-

Zaine's world is one of drudgery and work. Dumped on a farm as a baby, it will take him years to pay off the jar of silver that his 'aunt' claims that he owes them.One day he meets a mysterious old man, the herbmaster, and it changes his life forever!This is a SHORT STORY prequel for the CIRCLE OF DREAMS trilogy.Roam the streets of Ottawa with Charlie, a third year university student bent on recapturing the essence of his first love, all the while doing everything he can to destroy his relationship with his current girlfriend, Natasha. Explore the seedy underworld of Ottawa as Charlie's increasingly manic quest for self-validation quickly leads him down dark and dangerous roads. In his attempts to prove his own morality, Charlie will finally see just how dark the inner-self has become in an increasingly apathetic and superficial world.