When a girl walks into a monastery, she disrupts all order. But when she’s visited by an angel, it’s pure chaos.A girl walks into a monastery and disrupts all order. Everything is havoc for a few days--maybe a week. Maybe two. But monks are resilient, aren’t they? They are, they are. Yes they are. The persevere--they endure. They get used to her. They even try to incorporate her.But then one day, she’s visited by an angel. An actual angel! After that, it’s beyond “disrupting all order.” It’s pure chaos. Part-play, part-picture book. The pictures are included to help those of you with wee-little imaginations visualize the scenes. Or perhaps the pictures are included to help my wee-little imagination convey the message: in the presence of an angel, be a saint; don’t try to turn the Celestial into man.But enough with all of this maundering chatter. The devil is loquacious. Or, at least, every single bore is. So let’s shush up. Shh. Silence is divine. “God? Are you there God? If you are, please answer me!” It’s why he’s always so quiet. So damn quiet.

On the island of Friday Harbor, magic is in the air—and destiny is a force too powerful to defy… As the proprietor of a successful boutique hotel, Justine Hoffman has the life she has always wanted. But there is still something missing: Love. A spell was cast on Justine when she was born, with the result that she will never find her soul mate. But she is nothing if not determined and eventually Justine finds a way to break the enchantment—never dreaming of the dangerous complications that will follow…

From fantasy and SF master Piers Anthony, a collection of controversial stories and essays that fearlessly push the boundaries and then shamelessly step over them  Readers, beware: The stories, essays, reflections, opinions, and wildly imaginative flights of fancy contained herein may shock, rattle, delight, and surprise you. Piers Anthony—multiple New York Times–bestselling author, much-beloved creator of the popular Xanth universe, and one of the most unabashedly original writers currently operating in the science fiction and fantasy arena—now offers up a one-of-a-kind collection of his most fearless writings, for the pleasure of those unafraid to enter where angels fear to tread. Tackling unusual subjects and challenging social and religious mores, Anthony refuses to be restrained as he explores the strange and the taboo. From the May–December romance of a damaged Romeo and his shockingly young Juliet (though she is no younger than Shakespeare’s) to a woman’s valiant struggle against a grossly aberrant sexual demon, these cautionary tales are not for the faint of heart. They can be troubling, startling, and disturbing, but they are never dull. And readers, be further warned: In the uniquely inventive mind of Piers Anthony, absolutely nothing is sacred—not childhood, marriage, love, religion, sex . . . not even Xanth.

The classic fantasy trilogy of Elmer Elevator and the flying baby dragon has delighted children and their parents for generations. Now, on the occasion of their fiftieth anniversary, Random House is proud to bring the three timeless tales together in one beautiful commemorative edition, complete with the original delightful illustrations.  A Newbery Honor Book and an ALA Notable Book, My Father's Dragon is followed by Elmer and the Dragon ("rich, humorous, and thoroughly satisfying") and The Dragons of Blueland ("ingenious and plausible, the fantasy well-sustained").  Each story stands alone, but read in succession, they are an unforgettable experience.*Library Journal, starred review             From the Hardcover edition.

Will the perfect senior prank turn out to be Emlyn’s last? Emlyn is a good girl. She is the perfect studious and athletic daughter and sister. She studies hard, paints watercolors, and especially loves rowing crew. She doesn’t gossip. She is every parent and teacher’s dream. But Emlyn has a secret. She has an entire library in her head filled with terrifically terrible plots and schemes: jewel heists, corporate espionage, and other mischief. She successfully hides her desire to be bad from the world. That is, until Jack, Mavis, Lovell, and Donovan approach her with their idea for a senior class prank: to steal the famous mummy, Amaral-Re, from their local museum. Now Emlyn’s “mental library of Bad” will come in handy. But when the harmless heist turns out to be filled with real-life danger, will Emlyn’s mental bag of tricks be enough to save the mummy . . . and herself? This ebook features an illustrated biography of Caroline B. Cooney including rare images and never-before-seen documents from the author’s personal collection.

Breea Banea is poised to become the youngest female scholar in a thousand years, but before her testing can begin, she finds herself hunted by a beast of elemental malice in the shape of a white wolf. When she learns that her entire life has been planned to enable her to survive this battle, she sets out to find the priest who called at her birth, "A Warrior is Born."Breea Banea is poised to become the youngest female scholar in a thousand years, but before her testing can begin, she finds herself hunted by a beast of elemental malice in the shape of a white wolf. When she learns that her entire life has been planned to enable her to survive this battle, she sets out to find the priest who called at her birth, "A Warrior is Born." From Kirkus ReviewsA smashing series opener for fans of literary fantasy.Edlund’s fantasy stars a capable young warrior who seeks more knowledge about a ruinous prophecy she herself is destined to fulfill. In the kingdom of Limtir lives 19-year-old Breea Banea, the youngest female applicant to the Library in 1,000 years. She’s an expert in woodland survival, hunting, and combat. Breea still has much to learn, however, including the potent magic of weaving and why a priest said that her birth signaled the destruction of Yash, the religious capital city of the distant realm of Yasharn. In the forest, Breea encounters the violent Lupazg, a being out of the Legend Time who can change from a man to a giant white wolf. Lupazg strikes at the Library, placing Breea’s friend and mentor, Ajalay, (and most of the Tomeguard soldiers) in mortal danger. During the chaos, a guard named SaKlu performs a coup at the Library that’s tied to the religious upheaval sweeping nearby lands. He rules in the name of Yash, proclaiming those who stand against him vile Dauthaz. Will Breea survive long enough to discover the truth about her role in the Yasharn prophecies? This first volume in author Edlund’s ambitious new series drops readers into a grandiose realm, filled with forest cats who speak the secret Breowic language and lovers who have “caught the moonstone” for each other. The prose is dense and lyrical, reminiscent of high-fantasy masterminds like M. John Harrison: “The spark hovering above her palm,” we read of Ajalay in battle, “shone like a star brought to ground.” Edlund’s cinematic action scenes feature magic that whips and writhes like a living thing (“Lupazg snarled, and frost rimed her clothing and hair”). Though many of the set pieces are standard fantasy fare—the sea battle and the bustling city—audiences will likely follow the complex Breea anywhere after Edlund’s astonishing cliffhanger.

A dynasty stands at the brink of annihilation. Its fate lies within the hands of one kunoichi, but not in the matter anyone suspects...The Madness is Back!The third annual "Days of Madness" short story anthology is back with twenty new short-short tales that explore the extremes of the human condition, and beyond!Ride shotgun with a distraught father as he floors it down the highway in pursuit of justice.Answer the "Babysitters wanted" ad in your local paper, but be ready for the game of your life.When frogs scream like crickets and mermaids become reality, you've in for a wild ride through ten days of madness.Features new stories from the pens of: Richard Godwin, Benjamin Sobieck, Anthony Cowin, Angel Zapata, J.J. Steinfeld, L.W. Salinas, Matthew Wilson, Jack Horne, Donald J. Uitvlugt, and Chris Allinotte.

Everything strange always centers around Amy Saunders. She hears voices in the air, saying things that only she can hear.But she has no one to turn to.Then she meets Zane. His twin brother is evil, and Zane must do everything he can to protect her.Come on. Come on, I thought to myself. I'd just lost him. I'd gotten so close, but then he vanished!I rushed over to the school. I knew Amelia Saunders was attending class today, and I had to make sure she was safe.That was when I saw him in the classroom.He was sitting in the seat next to her. His human form had been perfected, so I knew he would be able to be around her for hours, like at school.I saw red with fury.Well, not literally, but close enough.Andrew looked right at me and smirked, mouthing, "I've got her now."I knew I couldn't do anything with him in a room full of witnesses, but I had to think of something.Then I realized something. I only had permission to speak with Amy if Andrew did something first. I couldn't appear to her unless he did, and I couldn't communicate with her unless Andrew had done something threatening.That was when the bell rang, and I saw Amy slowly gather her stuff so she would be out last and not be crushed in the crowd of leaving students.I wasted no time. I had to warn her.

a novella set after book 2, Horsethief, this novella is about Rhymer's experiences in the Goblin Market, the garage sale/meet & greet of Faerie. It has a flying horse, a werespider, a child-stealing Fae, magic, and the partial unveiling of the meaning behind Rhymer's tile of 'Unbinder'.Did a killer named Johnny the Hangman once lurk in the small-town cemetery?Do cultists plan to sacrifice a trick-or-treater on Halloween night?Are their parents witches?It’s all pretty unlikely, but between the kids at the playground, and her cynical big sister's way with a scary story, Jessy doesn't know what to believe. Fortunately, it’s the spookier the better for her and her best friend Karma, as they get ready for their favorite night of the year, in this nostalgic but clear-eyed look at a small-town Halloween.

(Feedback and suggestions welcome!) A man escapes from the clutches of the arena just to find himself in the beginning of a great and terrible war.An unnamed man escapes from a seemingly endless life of killing. But, after a series of injuries as well as the destruction of an old friend's home, he finds himself at the start of a war that expands throughout time and space.(An old, abandoned short story... and possibly a prequel). = )

After years spent fighting in interplanetary war theaters, two young graduates of Erenarch Academy are reunited. But just as it appears that peace across Dragon Stead is finally within reach, a startling discovery takes them to the remote moon of Daris.Juliana Rew's Dragon Stead series is set in the solar system of Sigma Draconis300 years in the future. Ashley Emerson and Andrew Kennedy grew up together as students atErenarch Academy, but their friendship ended when Ashley's boyfriendenlisted in the war against Farana and was killed. Ashley has crusadedagainst the war, while Andrew has become a hero. The appearance of astrange alien presence on a remote moon of Daris brings uncertainty,and Ashley and Andrew find themselves together once again on a missionto save humanity.

Odin falls in battle as predicted, but it isn't the end.The Ragnarok has come to the Gods of Asgard. As predicted, Odin has fallen in battle to Fenris, the great wolf son of Loki, and he believes he will never awaken again. Yet, he is conscious of a change, of a place and a time he'd believed to be gone beyond the reaches of time.A new Ragnarok follows him, a new battle that he must win, lest the cycle be broken.Permanently.

The tale of The Wolf Gift continues . . . In Anne Rice’s surprising and compelling best-selling novel, the first of her strange and mythic imagining of the world of wolfen powers (“I devoured these pages . . . As solid and engaging as anything she has written since her early Vampire Chronicles fiction”—Alan Cheuse, The Boston Globe; “A delectable cocktail of old-fashioned lost-race adventure, shape-shifting, and suspense”—Elizabeth Hand, The Washington Post), readers were spellbound as Rice conjured up a daring new world set against the wild and beckoning California coast. Now in her new novel, as lush and romantic in detail and atmosphere as it is sleek and steely in storytelling, Anne Rice takes us once again to the rugged coastline of Northern California, to the grand mansion at Nideck Point, and further explores the unearthly education of her transformed Man Wolf. The novel opens on a cold, gray landscape. It is the beginning of December. Oak fires are burning in the stately flickering hearths of Nideck Point. It is Yuletide. For Reuben Golding, now infused with the Wolf Gift and under the loving tutelage of the Morphenkinder, this promises to be a Christmas like no other . . . The Yuletide season, sacred to much of the human race, has been equally sacred to the Man Wolves, and Reuben soon becomes aware that they, too, steeped in their own profound rituals, will celebrate the ancient Midwinter festival deep within the verdant richness of Nideck forest. From out of the shadows of Nideck comes a ghost—tormented, imploring, unable to speak yet able to embrace and desire with desperate affection . . . As Reuben finds himself caught up with—and drawn to—the passions and yearnings of this spectral presence, and as the swirl of preparations reaches a fever pitch for the Nideck town Christmas festival of music and pageantry, astonishing secrets are revealed; secrets that tell of a strange netherworld, of spirits other than the Morphenkinder, centuries old, who inhabit the dense stretches of redwood and oak that surround the magnificent house at Nideck Point, “ageless ones” who possess their own fantastical ancient histories and who taunt with their dark magical powers . . .

In the latest story of the Elder Races, two mates face their deadliest challenge yet—each other… Pia and Dragos’s magical young son Liam (the Peanut), is growing at an unprecedented rate, and if that isn’t enough, he is also exhibiting new, and unpredictable, magical gifts. To protect him, the concerned parents decide to move to upstate New York. Both Dragos and Pia relish the idea of leaving behind the city. They finally have the space to indulge their Wyr side, and Liam can grow in safety. It’s a breath of fresh air—literally—but their idyllic situation is shattered when Dragos is injured in a freak accident. Stripped of his memory and bereft of Pia’s taming influence, there’s nothing holding back Dragos’s darkest side. And in order to restore her family and save her mate, Pia must confront the most powerful menace in Elder Races history. It’s going to take more than a penny to fix this…