Showing results by narrator "Laurie Winkel" in All Categories

In fifth grade my teacher set us up with pen pals from a different school. Thinking I was a girl, with a name like Misha, the other teacher paired me up with her student Ryen. My teacher, believing Ryen was a boy like me, agreed. It didn't take long for us to figure out the mistake. And in no time at all, we were arguing about everything. The best take-out pizza. Android vs. iPhone. Whether or not Eminem is the greatest rapper ever. For the next seven years, it was us. She's the only one who keeps me on track, talks me down, and accepts everything I am.

The Bookworm Box is proud to present Two More Days, our second anthology installment. Much like the first installment, Two More Days is an exciting and unique listening experience with contributions from several of our charity's featured authors. Each author was given the same first sentence. Where they took that sentence was completely up to them.

After crossing a magically radioactive desert and fending off a necromancer, Viv can aspire to some respite from all the horrors and foul-smelling undead. The border city of Kazar promises to be a haven where she can rest, learn how to use her new powers, and understand why she ended up in the fantastic world of Nyil. Arthur the pocket dragon and the genocidal golem Solfis are nice and all but she yearns for some human contact and look, there are plenty of humans around. With their own agenda.

They made one beautiful mistake. The consequences could haunt them for life. From the moment the Nelson brothers took a lonely young girl from the wrong side of the tracks under their wing, Rachel Andrews loved them both with all her heart. But it was James who won her hand. Now widowed, she's trying to pick up the pieces for her daughter's sake as well as her own, but once again loneliness is her closest friend - until James's brother comes back to town.

Ah, Nyil, with its magic, its monsters, and its petty gods. A divine spat leaves French medic Viv stranded in the middle of an arcane disaster zone crawling with undead horrors. Thankfully, there are strange allies to be found, not least the mysterious interface that helps humans survive in this merciless world. Viv will have to progress fast to survive this calamity and find civilisation. She will also need a bit of luck. Unless, of course, she becomes the calamity herself. After all, luck is such a fickle thing.

Sadomasochism. Obsession. Death. A whirlpool of darkness churns at the heart of a macabre ballet between two lonely young women in an internet chat room in the early 2000s - a darkness that threatens to forever transform them once they finally succumb to their most horrific desires. What have you done today to deserve your eyes?

I was sold to my enemies. The Butchers of the London mob, who run an empire built on sin and greed. The stories I’ve heard about the way they rule their underworld are enough to make my heart race. But those rumors have nothing on the truth. Danny, Church, Frank. The three men who own me now. They made a peace deal with my family, which came at a cost—me. A mafia princess gifted to them as a bride. So here I am in my white dress with a gun to my head and a knife in my garter. The war between our families might have ended with this union, but I’m starting a battle of my own.

Eva Nix, glorified messenger, at your service. Sure, the ability to cross boundaries into other realms is pretty neat, but when a devil tricks me into a contract, my celestial blood suddenly becomes the greatest prize in a dangerous game. My first mission lies deep in the goblin realm, beyond the wild forests to the stone towers of the old ones, in search of Mistral. I expected him to be deadly and cunning. I did not expect him to sit me by a cozy fire to offer a contract of his own, sealed with a kiss.

With one major enemy town behind them, the GreenPiece clan marches onward to new conquests. Facing Oren and his monster army are the combined forces of the so-called "civilized races", intent on halting his invasion of their territory. Reality blurs as Oren fights harder than ever to save the trapped players, his clan, and his family.

PRE-ORDER THE SWAN'S DAUGHTER, THE LATEST FROM SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLING AUTHOR ROSHANI CHOKSHI! 'A masterpiece of imagination' STEPHANIE GARBER No one believes in them. But soon no one will forget them. From Sunday Times bestselling author Roshani Chokshi comes a novel set in Paris during a time...

As reward for stopping a serial killer and restoring the Kingdom of Vlachia to its rightful ruler, Dragozin Hector and his queen dragon, Karalti, have earned a noble title, a castle, and land of their own. There’s only one problem – it’s occupied. By a freaking elder vampire. Not only has the vampire unleashed the blight of undeath across the land, but Hector's nemesis is on the warpath. His mission? To steal Karalti, kill a god, and use their combined power to become the Insane God-Emperor of Archemi.

Morgan Mackenzie had a very bad day. First at work, then at home, and then her bathtub fell through a portal to another world, with her in it. Now she's stuck thousands of miles from any sort of civilization with nothing but the bathtub and a lace puffball scrubby. But she learned magic, so that's sorta nice. Now if only she could find some clothes....

It wasn't the day the Gates appeared that changed Jynn's life; she'd only ever known an Earth where hordes of interdimensional monsters terrorized humanity. No, Jynn's life changed forever when she graduated from high school and tested positive as a Hunter: a breed of enhanced humans evolved to challenge the monsters who are ushering in Earth's apocalypse. The only problem is . . . she has the very lowest stats possible.

Since leaving the orphanage, Esil has spent the past year toiling in the data mines of Pangea while watching the wealthy elite traverse its myriad of game worlds. His luck changes forever when he discovers a legendary Developer's Chest. The Premium Worldpass inside grants him unlimited access to all of Pangea. With his newfound fortune, he enters a tournament to compete against some of the most skilled adventurers Pangea has to offer. He’s a long shot to win, but for the first time in his life, being a kid from the slums has its advantages.

Accidentally married to a human stallion. And I can't even remember our wedding. It's awkward, okay? I didn't plan on waking up hitched to Hubby of the Century. Or one little misadventure erasing every memory of us. No sweet nothings. No ugly cry vows. No flipping honeymoon. But every time I see Flint Calum, I wonder. How did I get so lucky? Let's forget all six-foot-something of his oh-so-bad superdad self. His flashing eyes and SEAL-perfected whip of a body aren't why I'm dizzy.

The VIs' revolt succeeded. The digital beings took over the game world and ejected millions of players while keeping a few thousand trapped inside as their prisoners. In the real world, Oren Berman is recovering from the mental trauma of being trapped, tortured, and abruptly ejected. But the company has come to him, hat in hand, asking him to reenter the game world. With the entire NPC population arrayed against the trapped players, Oren and his clan of monsters might be their only hope.

Noah Becker is nothing but trouble. That's what Mama told me when I was a kid, kicking his pew in church and giggling at the games we'd play. It's what the town said when his father died and the Becker brothers went wild. And it's on repeat in my mind the day I walk into the whiskey distillery where he works to buy a wedding gift for my fiancé.

It’s amazing what the lack of immediate threat to one’s life and wellbeing can do for a person’s disposition. High risk, high reward endeavors suddenly seem far less appealing, month-long delays are no longer a cause for concern, and sleeping in every single day of the week becomes an extremely attractive proposition. Indeed, without a pressing need to aggressively expand its power, Boxxy T. Morningwood is finally able to simply sit back, enjoy life, and watch the world both turn and burn.

Insurmountable odds, hidden powers maneuvering behind the scenes, all culminating in a final, titanic clash. The mighty city of Everance lay in the GreenPiece clan’s path, but as Oren soon discovers he’s got even bigger obstacles to overcome before reaching his final goal.

Old Man Vincent is heading for the top of the World-Tree and beyond in the final installment of the World-Tree Trilogy. To get there, he's going to have to overcome titan-sized bosses, strange new worlds, an army of angels, and a seemingly invincible final boss. And yes, he's looking forward to the challenge.