When talented ballet dancer Isla MacLeod accepts a mysterious invitation to perform at the remote Dunbrae Castle, she never imagines she'll be stepping into a centuries-old curse. Caught between the enigmatic Laird Malcolm MacKenzie and his charming rival Edward Blackwood, Isla must unravel the secrets of the past to forge her own destiny. As ancient prophecies collide with modern love, Isla discovers that only through the power of forgiveness and the courage to choose a new path can she break the cycle of tragedy that has haunted Dunbrae for generations. In this spellbinding tale of passion, betrayal, and redemption, Isla must dance not just for her heart, but for the very souls trapped in time. Scottish romance, Highland curse, historical fiction, paranormal romance, ballet dancer, laird, forbidden love, ancient prophecy, time-spanning romance, Gothic mystery

An opportunity to serve on board the Santa Maria on Columbus's voyage to locate the Indies begins a life of danger and self-discovery for fifteen-year-old Pedro, who has always dreamed of going to sea.

Leaving behind a shadowy past marred by a drug-addicted mother, her mother’s abusive drug dealer boyfriend, and the torment of a truck driver exploiter named Rick. Isla Frank is bound for the vibrant lights of New York City as a new fashion design school student with the love and support of her adopted dads. Fate intervenes when her roommate persuades her to attend an off-Broadway audition. Little does Isla know that this single decision will alter the trajectory of her life. Caught in the crosshairs of the captivating and eccentric playwright Travis Jackson, she becomes the subject of his intense fascination. Drawn to her petite frame, the soft hues of her eyes, and her demure presence, Travis yearns to sculpt her into his next Broadway star and lover. The enchantment of her playwright boyfriend’s affection and the whirlwind success of her breakout role in his latest theatrical masterpiece is an intoxicating spell. Bliss reigns until an ominous night shatters the facade. In the midst of a drunken rage, Travis's hand strikes her delicate cheek, leaving a mark not just on her skin but on their relationship. Amid apologies and forgiveness, a pattern emerges — a relentless cycle of abuse that threatens to eclipse her newfound radiance and evokes the haunting memories of her difficult childhood. A twist of fate intervenes when an ardent patron of the arts happens upon Isla's poignant performance in Jackson's ill-fated Broadway play. Captivated by her soul-stirring portrayal and oblivious to the torment she silently bears, Gabe Gannon discovers the truth backstage. Telltale bruises mar her body, hidden behind the heavy stage make-up and costumes, that he cannot ignore. He’s driven to help, even though his intentions might not be as noble as they should be. Isla is a single POV, age-gap, damsel-in-distress, forbidden love, enemies-to-lovers, romance containing dark themes. Content warnings are available on the author’s website. Keywords: interracial couple, enemies-to-lovers, damsel-in-distress, forbidden love, workplace romance, troubled past, drug addiction, family drama, abusive relationships, Broadway romance, playwright and muse love story, Age-gap romance, single POV, trigger and content warnings, domestic violence survivor, exploited minor, cycle of abuse, rising star actress, Off-Broadway theater drama, adoptive family, emotional healing fiction, new beginnings after abuse, inspirational women’s fiction, love and betrayal, actress and playwright romance, contemporary romance, female empowerment fiction, strong female protagonist romance, toxic men and relationships, pursuing dreams against odds, dark past to bright future story, breaking free from toxic love, Parson fashion school, New York City setting, finding true love after abuse You’ll enjoy this series if you like these authors: Colleen Hoover, Tarryn Fisher, Christina Lauren, Penelope Douglas, L.J. Shen, Sylvia Day, K.A. Tucker, Anna Todd, Pepper Winters, Vi Keeland, Jodi Ellen Malpas, Anna Huang, Sierra Simone, A.L. Jackson, R.K. Lilley, Mia Sheridan, Brittainy C. Cherry, Tillie Cole, K. Bromberg, Jay Crownover, Samantha Young, Helena Hunting, Elle Kennedy, Meghan March, Mariana Zapata, and Laurelin Paige.

Full-length Celtic fantasy romance novel -- 85K words (340 pages if released in print) Blurb: He, Arthur, is a reflection of luck, an abomination. He can feel the love, the pain, the sorrow, and the joy of all the ages. If he doesn't save the Druid he is sent to find, all known history could change. Some things are worth dying for. But first a man must live. Arthur didn't count on becoming human. And now the fairies want him to break dragon law... He never expected his charge to push him to the edge of reason. But a man must live before becoming king. Fear not. The fairies have a plan. Trust not the fairies. Druids wed one soul for eternity to protect the integrity of the timeline. Druid Solas’s soul mate was taken from her. Now, an 11th Century Irish bishop stalks her to serve as his mistress. She has nothing left yet everything to live for in creating the historical maps she was sent through time to make. She will break time-travel Code if she submits to another man by allowing even one paradoxical child to muddy history. Then Arthur arrives to save her. He is anything but a time guardian. And a fairy tells her to help him. To ignore a god’s instruction could prove detrimental. Yet, every time guardian knows believing the Gods is wielding a double-edged sword. Since it is forbidden for Druids to wield weapons, her future relies on He of the Fiery Sword. King Arthur is born.

How do the islands and archipelagos of the New World figure in Latin American cinema? Comprising 15 essays and a critical introduction, The Film Archipelago: Islands in Latin American Cinema addresses this question by examining a series of intersections between insular spaces and filmmaking in Latin America. The volume brings together international scholars and filmmakers to consider a diverse corpus of films about islands, films that take place on islands, films produced in islands, and films that problematise islands. The book explores a diverse range of films that extend from the Chilean documentaries of Patricio Guzmán to work on the Malvinas/Falkland Islands, and films by Argentine directors Gustavo Fontán and Lucrecia Martel. Chapters focus on Rapa Nui (Easter Island), the Mexican Islas Marías, and the Panamanian Caribbean; on ecocritical, environmental and film historical aspects of Brazilian and Argentine river islands; and on Cuban, Guadeloupean, Haitian, and Puerto Rican contexts. The Film Archipelago argues that the islands and archipelagos of Latin American cinema constitute a critically interesting, analytically complex, and historically suggestive angle to explore issues of marginality and peripherality, remoteness and isolation, and fragility and dependency. As a whole, the collection demonstrates to what extent the combined insular and archipelagic lens can re-frame and re-figure both longstanding and recent discussions on the spaces of Latin American cinema.

Isla Smith is a novel of English consists of about 200000 words. Isla Smith is a an educational novel that follows the experiences of its eponymous heroine, including her growth to adulthood and her love for Mr. Avneet, the brooding master of Thornfield Hall.The novel revolutionized prose fiction by being the first to focus on the moral and spiritual development of its protagonist through an intimate first-person narrative in which actions and events are coloured by a psychological intensity.Isla, a seemingly simple girl as she struggles through the struggles of life. Isla has many obstacles in her life - her cruel and abusive aunt Reed, the grim conditions at Lowood School, her love for Avneet and Avneet's marriage to Bertha.The book contains elements of social criticism with a strong sense of Christian morality at its core, and it is considered by many to be ahead of its time because Islas's individualistic character and how the novel approaches the themes of class, sexuality, religion and feminism.

“Blazes a new trail in Africana literary criticism by providing an insight into the soul and spirit of Africana womanhood.” --Anthonia Kalu, The Ohio State University, author of Women, Literature, and Development in Africa This is the revised and expanded edition of Teresa N. Washington's groundbreaking book Our Mothers, Our Powers, Our Texts: Manifestations of Aje in Africana Literature. In Yoruba language and culture, Aje signifies both a phenomenal spiritual power and the human beings who exercise that power. Aje is the birthright of Africana women who are revered as the Gods of Society. While Africana men can have Aje, its owners and controllers are Africana women. Because it is an African female power, and due to its invisibility, ubiquity, and profundity, Aje is often maligned as witchcraft. However, as Teresa N. Washington reveals in Our Mothers, Our Powers, Our Texts, Aje is central to the Yoruba ethos, worldview, and cosmology. Not only is it essential to human creation and artistic creativity, but as a force of justice and retribution, Aje is vital to social harmony and balance. Washington analyzes forms, figures, and forces of Aje in the Yoruba world, in the Caribbean Islands, in Latin America, and in African America. Washington's research reveals that with the exile and enslavement of millions of Africans, Aje became a global force and an essential ally in organizing insurrections, soothing shattered souls, and reminding the dispossessed of their inherent divinity. From her in-depth exploration of Aje in Pan-African history and orature, Washington guides readers through rich analyses of the symbolic, methodological, and spiritual manifestations of Aje that are central to important works by Africana writers but are rarely elucidated by Western criticism. Our Mothers, Our Powers, Our Texts includes innovative readings of works by many Africana writers, including Zora Neale Hurston, Toni Morrison, Ben Okri, Wole Soyinka, Jamaica Kincaid, and Ntozake Shange. This revised and expanded edition of Our Mothers, Our Powers, Our Texts will appeal to scholars of Africana literature, African religion and philosophy, gender studies, and comparative literature. Devotees of Africana spiritual systems will find this book to be indispensable.

A sci-fi fantasy in the Fremont’s Children series, “intense and increasingly complex” depicting “interpersonal relationships in considerable depth” (Booklist). From the Endeavor Award–winning author of The Silver Ship and The Sea Joseph has succeeded in rescuing his sister, Chelo, from a pitched battle on the colony planet Fremont. Now he and Chelo—and the love of his life, Alicia, and all of their extended family—are finally returning home. Halfway there, a probe intercepts them, sending them new coordinates and a message from Joseph’s enigmatic supporter and teacher, Marcus. War is brewing. Joseph is wanted for escaping to save Chelo. To stay safe, Joseph must bring his family and friends to the renowned planet of Lopali, where men and women can fly, and peace and freedom abound. Or do they? Alicia has always wanted to fly, but the modifications that give humans wings kill as often as they work. Joseph must learn to actually change humans, to free the fliers of a tyranny that has enslaved them, since their species was born. If he can do this, the fliers have agreed to help him stop the war. But it’s not as easy as it seems. Praise for The Silver Ship and the Sea: “An engrossing tale of six young outsiders growing up on a colony planet . . . This is an adventure story . . . But it is also a story about the relationships between insiders and outsiders . . . between people who need each other in order to survive.” —School Library Journal “Fast-paced and full-bodied, The Silver Ship and the Sea is character-driven hard SF at its best.” —The Seattle Times

From New York Times Bestselling Author Joanne Wadsworth comes the first three books in The Matheson Brothers series. Includes #1 bestselling Highlander’s Desire, Highlander’s Passion, and Highlander’s Seduction. Expect passionate happily-ever-afters, no cliffhangers, and a series that can be enjoyed in any order. Highlander’s Desire ~ In this delicious historical time travel, Isla has long fought to escape the prophecy about her fated mate. But as Isla hurtles through time, Highlander Iain Matheson is determined to find the woman he loves… Highlander’s Passion ~ Scared that her deadly ability will harm Finlay, Arabel has him compelled to forget her every time they part ways. But Finlay will travel across land and time to be with his one true love. An addictive adventure! Highlander’s Seduction ~ As a skilled time-walker, Cherub is responsible for her faerie people, including her warrior shifter mate from the future. But when she’s forced to accept Kirk’s aid in a battle against their enemy far in the past, she soon learns that the future isn’t always guaranteed. A magical-mystical romance. Each book in this series is standalone, and can be enjoyed out of sequence. THE MATHESON BROTHERS SERIES Highlander’s Desire, #1 Highlander’s Passion, #2 Highlander’s Seduction, #3 Highlander's Kiss, #4 Highlander's Heart, #5 Highlander's Sword, #6 Highlander's Bride, #7 Highlander's Caress, #8 Highlander's Touch, #9 Highlander's Shifter, #10 Highlander's Claim, #11 Highlander's Courage, #12 Highlander’s Mermaid, #13