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A podcast featuring short stories and news from the world of The Stranger Times - a newspaper based in Manchester reporting the weird and wonderful from around the world. Based on the novel The Stranger Times by C.K. McDonnell - out Jan 14th 2021.

When Ingram is forced by overwhelming poverty and spiritual exhaustion to walk away from his home, he leaves behind a neglectful childhood on a dirt farm on a dead-end road. With no family, no resources, and no practical understanding of the world, Ingram’s only compass is the daily fight to survive and the narrow dream of one day owning a truck.

Dive into the wondrous world of The Stranger Times with this carefully curated selection of short stories from C.K. McDonnell. Drawn from the award-winning The Stranger Times podcast, they are collected in print for the first time, along with the new novella ‘The Raven’. Experience the magical underworld of Manchester (and beyond) with stories featuring lovelorn trolls, blood-thirsty books and a constipated dog who may’ve accidentally consumed a portal to another dimension.

How do you run a big meeting? Help your employees meet their goals? Hire someone? Master these skills and more with this indispensable guide to the first 30, 60, and 90 days in your new management role. Jump into the job with confidence as you navigate the dos and don'ts of first-time managers, learn to communicate effectively, delegate responsibilities clearly, and build the 5 qualities all great bosses have.

Beth Brockington thought she had everything figured out—until her marriage fell apart just before the holidays. Now she’s struggling twin five-year-olds, a bustling family store, and trying not to think about the empty space where her husband used to be. The last thing she expects is to feel her heart skip when Brett shows up looking like the man she fell in love with instead of the stranger they’d both become.

As a 45-year-old single father, I never thought I’d ever have feelings for another man. When my business partner invited me to a support group for single dads, I was hesitant to go because I didn’t think I needed any help raising my boy. Little did I know, I’d meet someone named Jesse, who’d change my life forever.

The Civil War created countless spinsters and widows. Anna Olson was one of them. With no prospects for marriage and family, Anna pins her future on the frontier and heads west to stake a claim on the wide-open prairies.“Most women go from their father’s house to their husband’s house,” Anna said. “Here, I have my own house. I am my own person.” But the Dakota Plains are not empty. Anna’s new life collides with a Lakota warrior. Two Hawks MacKenzie, the son of a Scots fur trapper and a Lakota woman, takes an unusual interest in his new neighbor.

🎙️ DON’T BE A D!CK Hosted by Lindsay Matthes & Ivie Van Lent Welcome to DON’T BE A D!CK, the podcast that proves kindness isn’t just soft—it's strategic, powerful, and absolutely necessary in today’s homes, workplaces, and communities. Hosted by Lindsay Matthes, award-winning HR strategist, international speaker, TEDx powerhouse, and author of Don’t Be A D!ck: HR Advice for a Kinder, Healthier, More Successful Workplace, and her daughter Ivie Van Lent, a fierce queer leftist, community organizer, activist, and cat-mom extraordinaire—this show brings real talk, real stories, ...

A whip-smart and charming debut novel that brilliantly reimagines Pride and Prejudice, set in contemporary Chinatown, exploring contemporary issues of class divides, family ties, cultural identity, and the pleasures and frustrations that come with falling in love. When Elizabeth Chen’s...

I met Shawn Carter in my freshman year of college. As roommates and teammates on the varsity basketball team, we quickly became inseparable. But an incident happened in college tore us apart, and we haven't spoken in over two decades. After many years, Shawn has unexpectedly come back into my life, and we're no longer naive teenagers. My ex-wife divorced me, and I'm now a single father to my six-month-old son. Shawn has achieved his dream to become a superstar athlete.

As a 45-year-old divorced single dad, being the varsity hockey coach is the only thing that still brings me joy. When I’m on the ice, I feel so alive, and for those precious moments, I can forget about all my shortcomings. Because of my dedication to my players, we are the league’s reigning champions.

I’m just a nerd, he’s just a jock. Can I make it any more obvious? When a tall and handsome varsity hockey player moves into the apartment across the hall, I don’t expect us to become friends. Frankie’s a recently single dad with a newborn. I’m a virgin and a nerd who’s never truly felt like I fit in anywhere. The only thing we have in common is we’re both seniors in college. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to recognize that he’s definitely out of my league. But despite how popular Frankie is, he keeps me in his orbit for some reason.

She’s almost got the recipe for success, but love might be the missing ingredient. Callie Jones thought she had everything figured out with her booming bakery and close-knit friends in Peachwood Grove—until her first love, Macon Everette, rolls back into town. The surprise isn't just that he's back, but he's a father now, with an adorable daughter who's as charming as he is. Callie’s world starts to crumble faster than day-old scones. As Callie and Macon reignite a connection that's hotter than her ovens, they must navigate the surprises and secrets of their past.

In Ancient Greece, the goddess, Artemis, was venerated as a maiden huntress, swift with her bow and arrows and eternally chaste. But could there be more to her story? Perhaps Lady Artemis had envisioned quite a different destiny than the one her father, Zeus, had chosen for her. What if she hadn't merely pined after the giant huntsman, Orion, but had secretly partaken of a forbidden romance with him?

Christmas cookies, mistletoe kisses, and the friend zone—some traditions are meant to be broken. Dalton Grant is expecting this holiday season will be a quiet one—until his childhood best friend Savannah crashes back into town needing a fake boyfriend for the Christmas Hearts Festival. Dalton would do anything for Savvy, even risk the one thing that matters most: their friendship. When the town's self-appointed matchmaker signs them up for every romantic holiday activity—cookie contests, couples caroling, mistletoe challenges—fake kisses start feeling dangerously real.

Hätte er die Einladung ausschlagen sollen? Oder ist es die größte Chance seines Lebens? Dieser Auftrag könnte ihn alles kosten! "Alberner Aberglaube", denkt Robert Harrington, als der junge Anwalt einer rätselhaften Einladung nach Kenmare folgt. Dabei klingt der Auftrag an der stürmischen Südwestküste Irlands kinderleicht: Wenn er einen Hausverkauf verhindert, winkt ihm eine glänzende Zukunft. Doch Rob hat nicht mit Feen gerechnet, die einen Mord begangen haben sollen.

Stell dir vor, du bekommst ein Cottage an der wilden Küste Irlands und mit ihm ein Rätsel, das dein Leben für immer verändert. "5-Cottages – Das Dornenhäuschen" ist mehr als ein Psychothriller: Es ist der Beginn einer atmosphärischen Irland-Serie, die dich mit jeder Seite tiefer in ein Netz aus Geheimnissen, Mythen und Verrat zieht. Katie McSheeran hat sich nie getraut, allein zu leben. Jahrelang hielten Panikattacken die 38-Jährige gefangen. Nur das vertraute Zuhause bei ihrer Schwester Carol war ihr einziger sicherer Hafen.

Joy Jones grew up in the south, where she was no bigger than a minnow in a fishing pond overflowing with racism and sexism. She didn’t want to hush her mouth, give some sugar, or be pretty as a peach. She wanted justice to be attainable and to live out loud. Her journey to speak her truth, regardless of others’ opinions and forceful hands, is a true look into a story told honestly with tragedy and humor. A captivating memoir that will keep you listening as you immerse yourself in Joy’s struggles and triumphs.

Eric didn’t just kill to survive—he killed to build something darker. Something permanent. A twisted empire of control, silence, and loyalty. But behind every broken body and buried secret lies a truth he never outran: family. Now, for the first time, step inside the mind of a man who carved his name into history with a hook, a fedora, and a vow never to be forgotten. Witness how his sons—Alexander Clay Stephenson and Justin Shawn Smith—were shaped into shadows of their father.

Talking about sobriety, resilience, and being a mental badass! Friends will stop by to talk about their paths to sobriety. I will tell my story of what sobriety has done for myself and family!