After learning they’ve inherited property from reclusive grandparents he hardly knew, Steve and Sarah Miller decide to take a few days off to investigate their newfound fortune in the quiet Idaho resort town of Coeur d’Alene. The inheritance turns out to be beyond their wildest dreams, a vast mansion with lovely gardens. While exploring, they discover a unique set of carved doors on the top floor of their new home. Disguised as a simple door, a portal is accidentally activated and Steve and Sarah find themselves staring at the amazing sight of a lush forest beyond. It’s a tantalizing decision: to check it out or to run. Curiosity getting the better of them, they step through, the portal disappears, and they are on a one-way journey to a land where people have strange powers and where mythical creatures abound. Too late, they discover that they are confronted by dragons, griffins, and bugs of nightmarish proportions. To get home they decide to enlist the aid of the local king and queen. Oddly, they are expected at the castle, and it is revealed their arrival had long been foretold by an ancient prophecy which bestows upon them the status of Royal Bodyguards to the young crown prince. Now, they are stuck on a foreign world where danger lurks everywhere, and the newly appointed bodyguards must find a way to return home and to keep the young prince safe. Praise for The Prophecy and the Bakkian Chronicles trilogy: “I loved this book. It had so much imagination to it. Great for young and old.” - D. Estrada “There's adventure & a little humor and all the characters are just right. “ - Happy2Day “I especially liked that this story revolved around a husband and wife team, rather than being the typical “hero's journey” of an adolescent boy.” - M.L. “… plenty of action, adventure, and romance, but is harmless enough for pre-teens to read; it is a well-told tale.” – 5 stars on Amazon “If you love wizards, dragons, griffins & such, you have got to read the Bakkian Chronicles!” – 5 stars online review

Hunter, Morgan, and Alisa. Together the three worked to defeat the most unspeakable evil known to witches. Now the danger they face is just as deadly. But to vanquish their new foe, they must first defeat the weaknesses within themselves.

IMPLIED SECRETS: Poetry slides an incisor behind our addiction to living, rips essence from its bones and grinds us chunk to paste, half sustenance, the rest, waste. Verses are beds for the senseless masturbated to perfect sense. Sentiments and sympathies in micro-doses of self-psychoanalytics affixed to symptoms, ticks, and epiphanies. Come inside, we have odes to sing. *** Joey comes out swinging at past traumas with moments of grieving, healing, and loving in this collection of (mostly) free verse poems and original doodle artwork.

Shards are the chipped-off pieces and eroded grains of myself that I collected from my mid-20s, when I was almost homeless again (yes, again), through my 30s, when I fought through that poverty, depression, and grief to find myself as a survivor. A poet doesn't just love you for a moment. She lets you puncture her skin with the way you feel, lets it heal, and then rubs it now and then to feel you again. This debut collection of poetry and hand-drawn artwork by a Cleveland, Ohio artist tells stories of traumas, breaking cycles, sexy romances, and the bond between the poet and reader.

The troubling message from Serena Charters's late grandmother appears in a package containing four pages of a centuries-old illuminated manuscript -- a strange inheritance that hides many secrets...and has already cost many lives. Seeking answers, Serena turns to Erik North of Rarities Unlimited, a reclusive manuscript appraiser with a passion for the past. Without warning, they are thrust together into the center of a lethal firestorm that rages between two worlds -- one long dead, yet living on in an ancient text, the other chillingly alive and fraught with peril. In the blink of an eye, Serena and Erik have become targets of an unseen and determined stalker as they get closer to shocking revelations about Serena's legacy, the cold murder of an eccentric old woman in the heat of the Mojave Desert...and just how far a remorseless killer is willing to go. And now their only slim hope of survival is to keep moving.

This lovely family-orientated illustrated story book makes the friendly animal characters come alive as they aim to teach children moral values for everyday issues of life. It is a great tool for parents or teachers of young children to teach a valuable lesson in character building and to share those intimate moments with the children they love as they read these exciting animal stories together. The fun animal character stories compiled in this book aim to bring about change in the lives of children through character building and valuable moral lessons taught. The whole writing and illustrating of this book was a true family effort, which in itself encapsulates the essence of the aim for which the stories have been written. I, the author, would like to thank my mother Bernadette and two of my sisters, Jean and Ronl, for illustrating the stories and giving the characters in this book faces and making them come alive. The approval and encouragement of my nephews and nieces, Josua, Kina, Miz and Mattias, throughout made the whole writing and illustrating process an enjoyable experience. Great gratitude goes to my parents, John and Bernadette, for loving me and doing an excellent job in raising me my siblings by setting an example with a good foundation of moral values. A big thank you goes to my husband, whom I love dearly, for his unconditional love for me and support in everything I do. And to my two children, Kristen and William, who give me inspiration through the joy they bring and the great love I have for them.

A “darkly comic, wise and irresistible” novel of friendship, romance, and the chaos in between, from one of Britain’s bestselling authors (Publishers Weekly). When Henry Tillotson comes back from the war with a mysterious new bride from Egypt, everyone is intrigued. But intrigue turns to outright confusion when his new wife retreats to her room and refuses to leave her bed, much less the house, stranding poor Henry in a loveless marriage. Antonia and Barbara are captivated by Henry and his lavish country estate, Cotteshaw, from the very first time they are asked to visit for a dinner party with their boyfriends. Drawn by his charm, his wife’s madness and beauty, and his unusual lifestyle, they cannot help but be intrigued by their host. But as time passes, their relationships grow and change, bringing weddings, engagements, children, and even the occasional illicit liaison—as the strange heritage of Cotteshaw begins to affect all who pass through its doors. Wesley once again proves herself a master of the modern novel of manners in this energetic tale that is simultaneously laugh-out-loud funny, outrageously irreverent, and poignant. “As always, the dialogue snaps with vigor. . . . Another bright and biting novel.” —Kirkus Reviews

As this enthralling epic nears its climax, the young heroine’s brother discovers his own hidden gift — and the role he must play in battling the Dark. Hem is a weary orphan whose struggle for survival ends when he is reunited with his lost sister, Maerad. But Maerad has a destiny to fulfill, and Hem is sent to the golden city of Turbansk, where he learns the ways of the Bards and befriends a mysterious white crow. When the forces of the Dark threaten, Hem flees with his protector, Saliman, and an orphan girl named Zelika to join the Light’s resistance forces. It is there that Hem has a vision and learns that he, too, has a part to play in Maerad’s quest to solve the Riddle of the Treesong. As The Crow continues the epic tale begun with The Naming and The Riddle, Alison Croggon creates a world of astounding beauty overshadowed by a terrifying darkness, a world where Maerad and Hem must prepare to wage their final battle for the Light.