Showing results by narrator "Shiromi Arserio" in All Categories

It's a prick of blood, the bite of an apple, the evil eye, a wedding ring, or a pair of red shoes. Curses come in all shapes and sizes, and they can happen to anyone, not just those of us with unpopular step-parents.... Here you'll find unique twists on curses, from fairy tale classics to brand-new hexes of the modern world - expect new monsters and mythologies as well as twists on well-loved fables. Stories to shock and stories of warning, stories of monsters and stories of magic.

In The Ape's Wife and Other Stories - Kiernan's 12th collection of short fiction since 2001 - she displays the impressive range that characterizes her work. With her usual disregard for genre boundaries, she masterfully navigates the territories that have traditionally been labeled dark fantasy, sword and sorcery, science fiction, steampunk, and neo-noir.

The daughter of Cambodian refugees, Ai grew up in the small Australian town of Whitlam populated by Asian immigrants who once fled war-torn countries to rebuild their shattered lives. It is now the late 90s and despite their parents' harrowing past, Ai and her tightknit group of school friends lead seemingly ordinary lives, far removed from the unimaginable horrors suffered by their parents. But that carefree innocence is shattered in their last year of school when an incident involving Ai and her friends spirals into senseless violence, leaving behind a trail of unresolved trauma.

Once, a shadow dragon ravaged the Island-World. Insatiable. Unstoppable. A dragon-killer. Now the shadow dragon has reappeared, on a collision course with Aranya and King Beran's campaign to liberate the islands from the scourge of Sylakian tyranny. He is dark, beautiful and deadly, a predator of untold power.

When Rebecca Giggs encountered a humpback whale stranded on her local beach in Australia, she began to wonder how the lives of whales might shed light on the condition of our seas. How do whales experience environmental change? Has our connection to these fabled animals been transformed by technology? What future awaits us, and them? And what does it mean to write about nature in the midst of an ecological crisis? In Fathoms, Giggs blends natural history, philosophy and science to explore these questions with clarity and hope.

Siriaa, already in its death throes, is further damaged by a ruthless politician and a rogue wizard. Quin needs powerful help to save it.

Everyone's convinced the hottest guy in school's going to ask me out - that Mason and I would be the perfect couple, that he's my John Cusack. Except, he hasn't. On holidays, I find myself hanging out with the resident underachiever, and he surprises me. With Roman, I don't have to pretend that little Piper Barlow is perfect; even if we're both in a foul mood, just sitting in silence together is perfectly enough. Until it becomes more. But, Roman doesn't do more...does he? What do you do when you accidentally find perfection with the wrong guy? You fight for it.

I make magic dresses for a living. I'm not rich or pretty enough to wear them, but I love what I do, working out of my family's shop on Carnaby Street in London - until the fae show up. It's a straight-up kidnapping, and before I know it, I'm brought to this wintry place of cold hearts and beautiful nightmares, but that's not the worst part.

A couple of weeks ago, I was stolen from my home and forced to take part in an ancient fae ceremony; only someone made a mistake because I'm not fae, and if Winter's prince finds out, I'm dead. When an unexpected twist suddenly narrows the Royal Selection to a razor's edge, the best that I can do is put my head down and try to survive, but the prince has other plans. Part of me screams for me to keep him at arm's length, but the other part draws me closer to the brutally gorgeous fae, and it's going to get me killed.

In the frigid woods at the edge of a storm, I'm going to find myself or die trying. I'm a fugitive of the fae city of Windhelm, framed for a murder I didn't commit. I only made it out of their dungeons by luck, and now I'm on the run - but so is the Prince.

Siriaa is dying. A poison is spreading throughout the planet and none know how to neutralize it. Finder, working in King Tamblin's castle kitchen most of her life, has never spoken. A child of questionable parentage, Finder is an orphan assigned to perform duties nobody else wants.

As the daughter of shopkeepers, Elena has always known that the mysteries of reading and writing are closed to her. Only the mageborn can risk harnessing the power unleashed from putting pen to paper. Until Elena discovers an impossible new ability and joins the elite ranks of the mages. But with the kingdom at war, the authorities can't agree if Elena is an asset, or a threat they need to eliminate. Thrust into the unknown world of the Royal Academy without friends or experience, Elena will need all of her wits, strength, and new power to carve a place for herself.

Only days after a corrupt election and brutal street war, one last bloodthirsty game has begun. The players? The 22 most powerful, notorious people in New Reynes. After realizing they have no choice but to play, Enne Scordata and Levi Glaisyer are desperate to forge new alliances and bargain for their safety. But while Levi offers false smiles and an even falser peace to the city’s politicians, Enne must face a world where her true Mizer identity has been revealed...and any misstep could turn deadly.

There's a prophecy that the white wolf will save Arcadia from the clutches of a terrible storm. I am the white wolf, but even I'm having trouble believing the prophecy. The former Prince Radulf is meant to be dead, but he's not. His spirit has taken possession of Prince Cillian's body, and if that wasn't bad enough, whatever soul bond the Prince and I had is gone.

Tommy Beresford and Prudence “Tuppence” Cowley are broke. What are two young people in post-WWI London to do in such a situation except start up a new and exciting business: Young Adventurer’s Ltd. Almost as soon as they make the leap into self-employment a case falls into their lap. A mysterious man wishes to hire Tuppence for a job. All she has to do is impersonate a young American woman in Paris. Easy!

Chained to a rock and tossed off a cliff by her boyfriend, Aranya is executed for high treason against the Sylakian Empire. Falling a league into the deadly Cloudlands is not a fate she ever envisaged. But what if she did not die? What if she could spread her wings and fly?

When Maren runs away from the threat of a forced marriage, the last place she expects to end up is the Malvagarian Palace, home to the enchanted gardens, a cursed prince, and a magical rose that traps her there. Crown Prince Briar isn’t pleased to be stuck with a troublesome guest, especially one as mischievous and curious as Maren. She, on the other hand, is determined to escape, but instead finds herself inconveniently falling in love with him. Despite her lack of beauty, feelings steadily blossom between her and the prince.

What do you do when you find your best friend/crush kissing your other best friend on the day you were going to declare your feelings for him? You only agree to fake date your crush's rival. The King of the Bows, popular golden (play)boy, and all around douche, Xander wouldn't be my last choice for a boyfriend. Across the school, battlelines are drawn, and sides are taken between the new "it" couple of my former best friends and the excitingly scandalous pairing of me and King Douche.

Princess Seren has always expected her life to be one of duty and order, and her upcoming marriage alliance is no exception: She’ll sail to Bytamia to marry the crown prince as expected. But what she doesn’t expect is for the voyage to her new life to be delayed by the whims of an enchanted map and an adventure to a mystical island rumored to contain a legendary treasure.

Who was the real George Eliot? In Love with George Eliot is a glorious debut novel which tells the compelling story of England’s greatest woman novelist as you’ve never heard it before.