Showing results by narrator "Lyssa Browne" in All Categories

American author Kate Chopin's "The Story of an Hour" was written in April of 1894 and originally published in Vogue in December of that year. The title refers to the time elapsed between the moments at which the protagonist, Louise Mallard, hears that her husband is dead, then discovers that he is alive after all. The short story is a mainstay of feminist literary study.

Eleven-year-old Lydia Green doesn’t want anything to change. She lives happily in Mulberry Glen with her mismatched family of a fairy guardian, a philosopher, and twin troublemakers known as the Zs. But now, rumors swirl about The Darkness, a powerful force that dwells in the forest Tenebrae. Lydia knows The Darkness is nothing to be trifled with, but when a foolish choice by the Zs puts her family in danger, she must leave home and face the strange magical world of The Valleylands.

Vacations can be murder, especially when you're Mercy Watts. She's trying to get away from it all, including her godmother's lawsuit and a certain situation with the mafia. So she heads to Roatan, Honduras, a place known for scuba diving and lawlessness. Mercy's on the island less than 24 hours when she discovers that she hasn't gotten away from anything. Her problems hitched a ride and increased tenfold. The deeper she dives, the more dangerous her vacation becomes.

Do you feel like you are the only one struggling while raising your teenager? Academic stress, mental health, tech usage, competitive athletics, self-esteem issues, adolescent apathy, disrespectful behavior—it's tough to be a teen these days, and just as tough to parent one. If you're in the thick of it with your adolescent—or if you're getting a jumpstart on this difficult time—this book can help you untangle the complex challenges and improve your relationship with your kids.

Ten years ago, in the pine-shaded town of Savage Ridge, Nick, Emmy, and Pete murder their high school classmate, Sammy Saint John. His body is never found, and no arrests are made. The three friends make a pact to leave Savage Ridge and never return. Now, each is drawn home, seemingly by chance or fate. But it's neither: Private Investigator Sloane Yo has brought them back to finally answer for their crime.

After a harrowing Tracker assignment in Scotland, Jess Ballard is finally home and ready to celebrate her twin sister Hannah’s long-awaited wedding—and with Milo at the helm, it promises to be the event of the Durupinen season. But even as they turn their attention to dress fittings, tastings, and last-minute preparations, a cloud looms over them. Tensions in the upper ranks of the Durupinen are coming to a boiling point, and it becomes clear that the wedding itself could well be the crucible in which it all comes to a head.

"A Hunger Artist" is a short story by Franz Kafka first published in 1922. The protagonist, a hunger artist who experiences the decline in appreciation of his craft, is typically Kafkaesque: an individual marginalized and victimized by society at large. "A Hunger Artist" explores themes such as death, art, isolation, asceticism, spiritual poverty, futility, personal failure, and the corruption of human relationships.

In a small religious community rocked by a spree of shocking murders, Detectives Salvi Brentt and Mitch Grenville find themselves surrounded by suspects. The Children of Christ have a tight grip on their people, and the Solme Complex neurally edit violent criminals - Subjugates - into placid servants called Serenes. In a town where purity and sin, temptation and repression live side by side, everyone has a motive. But as the bodies mount up, the frustrated detectives begin to crack under the pressure.

Folly Beach, South Carolina, has survived despite hurricanes and war. But it's the personal battles of Folly Beach's residents that have left the most scars, and they are why a young widow has been beckoned there to heal her own. To most people, Folly Beach is simply the last barrier island before reaching the great Atlantic. To some, it's a sanctuary for lost souls, which is why Emmy Hamilton's mother encourages her to buy a local bookstore, Folly's Finds, hoping it will distract Emmy from the loss of her husband.

There’s something about Meredith.... Meredith is a young underachiever, living in a squalid apartment, struggling to stay one step ahead of her landlord and the law when she meets a man from her past who offers her a way out and a chance to start over. Having worked her way into the lives of the rich and privileged, Meredith will do just about anything to preserve her new lifestyle. But just how far is she prepared to go?

An on-stage attack left Honor Blackwood with more scars than just the one on her face. It’s been 10 years since she left her spot as Nashville’s brightest country music star. Is now the time to return? And is she brave enough to do it? Country rebel and rock star Jared ‘Jed’ Marshall is hot property on the Tennessee music scene in more ways than one. But when he sets his sights on Honor, is it pure attraction or just distraction on his mind?

Nemo Frisby used to be a detective. Now he drives an Uber between billionaire mansions in California. But he never lost the nose for the case - and when his housecleaner, Trinity Fox, discovers a young woman lying dead in her neighbourhood, she persuades him to help her prove it wasn't suicide. Their investigation leads them to the Bel Air home of a wealthy movie producer, who built his mansion over a Native American burial site. Ancient mythology tells of a demon who, if unearthed, can imbue evil men with terrible power.

Event planner Lexi Mannis has a busy life in Chicago - too busy to have a boyfriend. For special occasions, she has her stand-in boyfriend, Mac Northrop. Mac offers (almost) all the perks of a real boyfriend - furniture assembly, a date to big events, and someone to cook for. But they've never been "with benefits"...until one wickedly hot night crosses the line.

When Tessie King inherited the Royal Palace Hotel, Lake Tahoe's biggest resort, she inherited a cranky board of directors along with it. A board that is demanding higher revenues, or Tessie's out. Faced with the possibility of losing her father's legacy, Tessie turns to her staff to help her come up with a plan: film the season finale of Battle Buffet, the hottest cooking competition show on TV, at the resort. It's a scheme sure to bring in the big bucks. But is also brings big trouble.

Three Wise Cats is an inspirational tale about three cats and their journey to witness the first Christmas. The old Siamese Ptolemy was alongside his master when a star of unusual brightness was seen in the heavens, indicating an event of momentous significance, and leading to a great place and fulfill the prophecy: The three shall find the one.

It's summer in St. Louis and Mercy Watts is on vacation from her parents. The great detective and his nosy wife are on a cruise and Mercy thinks she's off the hook for doing any investigating for them. But when a family friend has a fatal heart attack, Dad has one of his famous feelings and orders Mercy to look into it. Mercy tries not to get sucked in. She really does, but she's her father's daughter. Soon Gavin's death leads to a more grisly one, the death of a bride on her wedding day. Can the two be connected?

A series of brutal murders has the homicide division of San Francisco's Hub 9 working overtime. But as the bodies mount, they begin to question whether the attacks are random or somehow connected. When one of their own falls victim, Detective Salvi Brentt and her homicide team join forces with the narcotics and cyber divisions to track down those responsible. They soon discover that a volatile new drug-tech experience, involving black market neural implants, has hit the streets, causing the epidemic of violence and missing persons.

What causes a woman to murder her family? Jo's idyllic life would make most people jealous. Until one day her daughter is abducted, and the only way to find her is to unravel her dark past. Ellie is a devoted wife...until she discovers the pain of betrayal. Now vengeance is all she can think about. Party girl Shayla knows how to hide her demons. But when she's confronted with a life-shattering choice, it will cost her everything. June knows suffering intimately, though the smile she wears keeps it hidden. Soon, the lives of these four women intersect, and one of them is about to snap.

Louisa May Alcott's short story "The Brothers" is set during the Civil War. Narrated by a wartime nurse, the story tells of one white brother and the other, who is half black, who meet in a hospital. Due to a previous grudge between them, the black brother tries to kill the white brother. Preaching the religion of humanity and kindness, she draws from her personal experiences to create this amazing work. This piece first appeared in The Atlantic Monthly in November 1863.

A Modern Cinderella is a collection of four short stories by Louisa May Alcott, the author of Little Women. Like her more famous novels, Alcott tells stories of young women interacting with people and events from the late 1800s. Louisa May Alcott bestows a truly amusing and thoroughly modern retelling of The Brothers Grimm's Cinderella. Alcott pokes fun throughout, describing a "cool blonde" as "having many cares those happy little housewives never know."