Lilith Bresson, an independent, successful young artist, is forced to travel from her home in Spain to the wild borderlands of northern England, to repay her feckless father’s latest debt by painting a portrait of the enigmatic Lady Blaine Albermarle. On her first night at Albermarle Hall she meets Finn Strachan, Blaine’s ‘companion’, a cultured and hauntingly beautiful young man who seems to have it all. But Lilith has an artist’s eye, and a gift for seeing what lies beneath the skin. She soon discovers that Blaine is more gaoler than lover, and if the price is right, depravity has no limits. As the weeks pass, Lilith finds that she too is drawn into the malign web that her patron has spun, yet against the odds she forges a strong friendship with the damaged, dysfunctional Finn. In a dark, modern twist to an age-old story, Lilith Bresson proves that sometimes it’s the princess who needs to become the rescuer. Please note that this storyline contains depictions of drug abuse, violence and non-consensual sexual activity.

The book that made Jackie Collins one of America’s favorite authors sweeps you from the sophisticated playgrounds of Europe to the glittering gambling palaces of Las Vegas. It plunges you into the reckless, dangerous world of the Santangelo crime family. It introduces you to Gino Santangelo, the street kid who makes it all the way to the top. And then brings you Lucky—his sensual, stunningly beautiful, and passionate daughter; a woman who dares to win her father’s empire for herself; a woman unafraid of taking...CHANCES.

Sound is an abstract concept for most people. We spend our lives blocking out the static in order to focus on what we believe is important. But what if, when the clarity fades into silence, it's the obscure background noise that you would give anything to hold on to? I've always been a fighter. With parents who barely managed to stay out of jail and two little brothers who narrowly avoided foster care, I became skilled at dodging the punches life threw at me. Growing up, I didn’t have anything I could call my own, but from the moment I met Eliza Reynolds, she was always mine. I became utterly addicted to her and the escape from reality we provided each other. Throughout the years, she had boyfriends and I had girlfriends, but there wasn't a single night that I didn’t hear her voice. You see, meeting the love of my life at age thirteen was never part of my plan. However, neither was gradually going deaf at the age of twenty-one. They both happened anyway. Now, I'm on the ropes during the toughest battles of my life. Fighting for my career. Fighting the impending silence. Fighting for her. Every night, just before falling asleep, she sighs as a final conscious breath leaves her. I think that's the sound I'll miss the most.

My lifetime of rhymes: my ups and downs and special moments.When you were younger, did you ever think it would be cool to control an element? Despite what you thought, this was based off of fact. The Poweras are a different "Ethnic" group of people, hailing from the planet Powiera. This particular group of Poweras are on a journey to where? Los Angeles,California. There, they must save their friend. On the way, they meet a lovely duo of gentlemen who promise that they will be friends till their destination. Lies. They want simply to have them killed by none other than the most feared man in Powera history. In short, Aqua is an adventure story with a dash of romance, a modern twist on our childhood games.

“Fang sneezed and if you've ever heard a batsneeze you'll know it sounds a bit like a Chihuahuabarking. Atlas and Thor’s enormous framesshuddered in a vain attempt to keep in the gigglesbefore they erupted into full blown belly laughs..”Izzy Boone thought about a lot of things while navigating the streets of Chicago as a bike messenger –What should I have for dinner? Don’t hit that tourist. Should I try online dating? Watch out for that car. Will this time of year ever get easier? Someone waited too long to throw that out.One thought that never crossed her mind, though, was just how much a single package could change her life and turn her world upside down.Looking back, she really wished she had considered it. With her well-documented overactive imagination, she just might be better prepared for the hostile new world before her. Instead, her best friend blindsides her with who he really is; she’s running for her life from an organization bent on destroying the world; and she’s having horrible visions offering more questions than answers.Suddenly thrown into a world that contradicts everything she’s ever known, Izzy must come to terms with her new reality – fast – as she joins the ranks of Seers and Guardians to fulfill her destiny in the fight to save the world.Book One: See How She RunsBook Two: See How She FightsBook Three: See How She FallsBook Four: See How She AwakensAlso available: The Chronicles of Izzy, The Complete Series

In this fantasy short story, a Highlands wise-woman must pit her craft against a wayward noblewoman and her fairy lover.In this fantasy short story, a Highlands wise-woman must pit her craft against a wayward noblewoman and her fairy lover.Excerpt:"I know a good position when I see one, which doesn't explain how I ended up with Laird Rheagel of Roch Shan, he so tight with the Church and all. Indeed I was surprised that he accepted me. Not that I consider myself impious, mind you. I say the chants regularly and properly, and I wear the Sign. Actually, I am familiar with many signs, which is the problem. These young priests are so uppity. Their knowledge can't simply be best, but it must be only—and whoosh! a thousand years of learning dumped out the window with the bath water."But I say a girl has to be careful, especially when she's seen as many winters as I have and is no longer often called a girl. So I try to keep on the good side of all the heavens, although some are more easily satisfied than others. I won't say I was driven out of my previous home, but when the eggs are rotten, I don't stay for the omelet: and when the local priest denounced me as a witch, I left."Although as far as that goes, he was right."(Originally published in Dragon #207, reprinted by permission of the author.)

"Think I can turn that boy bad?" 17-year-old Jen turns her life upside down when, out of boredom, she makes a bet that she can turn school geek Trevor into someone like her. Instead, the goth girl finds herself sucked into his world of sci-fi movies, charity work, and even -ugh!- bowling. To truly belong with him -and with her new foster family- she must first come to terms with her violent past.

If you're the person who murdered my wife and think you've gotten away with it, think again. I'm looking for you, and I'll eventually find you.Is someone watching you through your webcam right now? No? Are you sure? Jim and his team of computer hackers are searching for a killer. They know they're invading your privacy and it's illegal, but they don't care.If you're the person who murdered my wife and think you've gotten away with it, think again. I'm looking for you, and I'll eventually find you.Is someone watching you through your webcam right now? No? Are you sure? Jim and his team of computer hackers are searching for a killer. They know they're invading your privacy and it's illegal, but they don't care. If you've got nothing to hide don't worry, they'll move on soon enough. Unless you're doing something that interests them. Then they might come to your house to have a talk with you.Reviewed by Jack Magnus for Readers' FavoriteThis remarkable collection of tales and vignettes grab you and don't let go until the end. Some are reminiscent of Rod Serling's Twilight Zone; a mix of horror, fantasy and the absurd. Others, like Invasion of Privacy, are engrossing adventures spiced with a bit of mystery. They all share a few attributes: amazing characters whom you quickly come to know and care about, and story-lines that catch you up in the action with the first few words. Jim Liston's stories are great reading and highly entertaining.

When the invincibility of youth collides with the unexpected during a sunny wake-boarding Saturday morning, a family is catapulted into the grief of a bedside vigil, willing their son and brother back to the living.A perfect day for wake-boarding on the lake turns into a nightmare for four friends and one family when Justin miscalculates during an adventurous manoeuvre. His grief-stricken family keeps a bedside vigil, waiting anxiously for Justin to regain consciousness. His mother, who refuses to leave his bedside, recounts for him, the big and small moments of his life, those special events, the funny and sad, that have formed him into the fun-loving, optimistic young man that he has become. She is convinced that this is what it will take to bring him back to her - a mother's love.

At some point in the continuum of life comes the realization that one is indeed mortal. The phrase, “today is the first day of the rest of your life”, slowly becomes more poignant. Finally, the concept of one’s days being numbered becomes a constant companion. This story relates an experience of a man caught up in the end-game.At some point in the continuum of life comes the realization that one is indeed mortal. The phrase, “today is the first day of the rest of your life”, slowly becomes more poignant. Finally, the concept of one’s days being numbered becomes a constant companion. This story relates an experience of a man caught up in the end-game. Present day demographics would suggest that a number of readers would have more than a passing interest.William Gardner is proving himself to be a wordsmith of some note. THE QUESTIONER is an easy read with bountiful and beautifully manicured dialogue. He is also the author of the well-received fictional novella, A TALE OF TWO LEGACIES. It too is available on Smashwords.

A hilarious adventure tale about one boy’s determination to conquer the biggest computer game contest at school and the hilarious disasters and obstacles he encounters, while learning a few important life lessons along the way.Game on Boys" is a hilarious adventure story for boys and girls that will get you laughing hysterically until your guts explode. Just make sure your Mom doesn't have to clean it up and keep the dog away. It follows the adventures of 10 year old cool gamer Ryan and his cool school, cool teacher and very uncool sister 'Loom Band Lisa' who does everything in her pink power to ruin his fun. It's all about boys that love computer games,pea shoot in class, catch flies in their mouth and make fart sounds under their arms. It's also about playing computer games at school. When the teacher with the unfortunate name (Mr Higginbottom) introduces a Play Station competition at school, everyone goes into a crazy frenzy as they battle their way to win the prize. With Ryan's cool gaming record he's sure to win until something disastrously ugly happens to cause his plans of victory to come tumbling to the ground faster than super sonic radar doing a bungee jump with a triple somersault back flip on the way. SPLAT! Will it all end badly, and will Ryan's reputation change from being the coolest gamer to the biggest loser wearing splatted egg on his face or can super dooper good things come out of really horrid bad things? With heaps of school yard humor and funny illustrations, this book is sure to get you away from your consoles for awhile.

Jenna's Journey is a brief but exciting tale about a young mother and her two children who are sent halfway across the country on a journey to a new life by the leading of the Holy Spirit. Through her journey you will see demonstrated the power of faith, prayer, and the hand of God in the midst of the seemingly everyday events of our lives.A healer’s duty is to sustain life, not take it. It seems a fact irrefutable. But when a dark prophecy seems ripe to unfold, She will become His Instrument of Death.After the Wrongful Execution of her father, the Healer takes the young girl in, intent on Raising her in Five Virtues, Squelching thoughts of Revenge, Training her to take her place among the Elite Guard that protects him from the Tyrannical King who has sworn to rid the world of Magic, but when that King brutally murders one of the healer's own and a Dark Prophecy seems ripe to unfold, he will go from forbidding revenge to laying the way for her. His Sanctuary of Healing will birth an Assassin.

Issue #37, Neon's first issue of 2014, features the work of Paul Bavister, Shanalee Smith, Noel Williams, Christopher Owen, Tracey S Rosenberg, Erric Emerson, Meg Eden, and Joe Evans. The cover image is by Timur Cetintas. In its pages you will find guns and knives, nightmarish exam days, a story about Facebook friends and some excellent concrete poetry.Bullies, the bullied, and the bystander can all learn from this modern day fable about flying insects who bully crawling bugs.Bullies Bee Buggin’! is an anti-bullying children's book series written to teach children that no one and no thing is here by accident, that everyone has something uniquely important to offer the world, and we all deserve respect based on that alone.The characters in this three part series symbolize three groups found in every schoolyard, in every neighborhood, in every country. They are: The Flyers, who represent the bullies;The Crawlers, who represent the bullied; andThe Hoppers, who represent the bystanders (Introduced in Book Three).Through the Flyers, the Crawlers, and the Hoppers, children will learn how to interact effectively with the people in the world around them.