Whether married or looking for another chance at romance, love is always in the air for these couples… Twin Flames: Will twins Ray and Raelee MacFarland get a second chance at love after her husband runs off with his wife? Like a Rock: Will Macey and Jerry’s love survive midlife crisis and empty nest syndrome? The Big Catch: Will Karla come to love fishing as much as Jeff or will his passion for a rod and reel tangle up their relationship? A Hero for Jessica: Will a “champion” lawyer and the author of romantic suspense find love written in their future? In His Sight: Can the relationship between a teacher with the gift of prophecy and a single mother on the run from her deranged ex-husband withstand the tragedy lurking on the horizon? Review of Love: Can two people who clash over what each perceives as professional writing suspend their judgmental attitudes and find true love? Paper Roses: Will a homecoming tradition give Patti Howard a chance at love with her son’s football coach? Journey’s End: Will Ellie’s dream of seeing the world come true with a new man or will she be resigned to staying put and living vicariously through her granddaughter? Soul Mates: Will Jolie and her soul mate reconnect once again, or will she live another lifetime without him? *Note: Some of these stories were previously published by White Rose Publishing/Pelican Book Group - All Rights Reverted to Author. Some were published in personal newsletter to a limited audience. Others have never been published.*

Collects more than one hundred short stories, each with no more than twenty-five words.

‘A sizzling summer read! – Sarah Morgan Is home always where the heart is?

One Night Stand Romance is a seductive compilation of over 20 romantic short stories taking peeks into the lives of a vivid cast of characters. One Night Stand is only a delightful play on the short nature of the stories and not the depth of the romance and love contained throughout the narratives of everyday men and women. Individuals seeking love, affection and many times fighting stigmas and harsh realities life sometimes delivers. -A Busy professional formulates an inventive way to keep the spark in his marriage. -A plus-sized wife struggles with insecurities about her husband's happiness. -A wife and her soldier love from different sides of the world. -East Indian lovers avoid arranged marriage for true love.

Shortlisted for the National Book Award: "Joan Silber writes with wisdom, humor, grace, and wry intelligence. Her characters bear welcome news of how we will survive."—Andrea Barrett Intense in subject yet restrained in tone, these stories are about longings—often held for years—and the ways in which sex and religion can become parallel forms of dedication and comfort. Though the stories stand alone, a minor element in one becomes major in the next. In "My Shape", a woman is taunted by her dance coach, who later suffers his own heartache. A Venetian poet of the 1500s, another storyteller, is introduced to a modern traveler reading Rilke. His story precedes a mesmerizing narrative of missionaries in China. In the final story, Giles, born to a priesthood family, leans toward Buddhism after a grievous loss, and in time falls in love with the dancer of the first story. So deft and subtle is Joan Silber with these various perspectives that we come full circle surprised and enchanted by her myriad worlds. National Book Award finalist. Reading group guide included.

"More engaging than any new fiction in years." —Chuck Palahniuk An unforgettable work of fiction that peers into the soul of a tough Midwestern American town to reveal the sad, stunted but resilient lives of its residents. Knockemstiff is a genuine entry into the literature of place. Spanning a period from the mid-sixties to the late nineties, the linked stories that comprise Knockemstiff feature a cast of recurring characters who are irresistibly, undeniably real. A father pumps his son full of steroids so he can vicariously relive his days as a perpetual runner-up body builder. A psychotic rural recluse comes upon two siblings committing incest and feels compelled to take action. Donald Ray Pollock presents his characters and the sordid goings-on with a stern intelligence, a bracing absence of value judgments, and a refreshingly dark sense of bottom-dog humor.

Award-winning and best-selling author Junot Díaz guest edits this year's The Best American Short Stories, the premier annual showcase for the country's finest short fiction.

"Short stories are tiny windows into other worlds and other minds and other dreams. They are journeys you can make to the far side of the universe and still be back in time for dinner."The short story is one of the finest forms of writing. As short as a paragraph at times, or as lengthy as a novel, short stories are widely read and immensely lauded. Some of the most exceptional writers have dabbled in this form penning beautiful, unforgettable stories.This storybook is especially great for traveling, bedtime, and reading aloud at home. Also available in paperback format!-Great bedtime stories -Excellent for beginning and early readers-short stories that are great for a quick bedtime story

What makes a romance novel a romance? How do you write a kissing book?Writing a well-structured romance isn't the same as writing any other genre-something the popular novel and screenwriting guides don't address. The romance arc is made up of its own story beats, and the external plot and theme need to be braided to the romance arc-not the other way around.Told in conversational (and often irreverent) prose, Romancing the Beat can be read like you are sitting down to coffee with romance editor and author Gwen Hayes while she explains story structure. The way she does with her clients. Some of whom are regular inhabitants of the New York Times and USA Today bestseller lists.Romancing the Beat is a recipe, not a rigid system. The beats don't care if you plot or outline before you write, or if you pants your way through the drafts and do a "beat check" when you're revising. Pantsers and plotters are both welcome. So sit down, grab a cuppa, and let's talk about kissing books.

This ultimate insider's guide reveals the secrets that none dare admit, told by a show biz veteran who's proven that you can sell your script if you can save the cat!