The Price of Salt (Warbler Classics Annotated Edition)
Patricia Highsmith published The Price of Salt in 1952 under a pseudonym. At a time when love between women was either hidden or portrayed as shameful or doomed, Highsmith dared to imagine another scenario. The Price of Salt-now a major film, Carol, starring Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara-tells the story of Therese, a young woman starting out in New York City, and Carol, a suburban wife facing divorce, whose chance meeting sparks an unexpected and life-changing connection. With extraordinary acuity and burning tenderness, Highsmith depicts the evolution of their relationship in powerfully resonant terms.Highsmith, rightly famous for psychological thrillers including Strangers on a Train and The Talented Mr. Ripley, here focuses her singular powers of observation on the nature of desire, intimacy, and freedom. The Price of Salt, one of the great novels of the twentieth-century, is a deeply moving love story and a gripping work of art that dramatizes an ethical path toward human happiness. This Warbler Classics edition includes a new introduction by pathbreaking literary scholar Catharine R. Stimpson.
Eyes of Water & Stone
Eyes of Water & Stone chronicles the relationship between two black men, a Cuban and a Californian, across a blockade. How will they navigate the cultural and economic gaps that separate them? Where are the borderlines between desire and sensibility, help and exploration? Eyes of Water & Stone is a compelling read for anyone interested in the ongoing dramatic relationship between the United States and Cuba; it is a draw for readers who believe that love need not be confined by national boundaries. It challenges us to consider how love is expressed and interpreted.
The Inverted Pyramid
A hidden masterpiece returns: The Inverted Pyramid grips the heart and the conscience from its very first line. Bertrand W. Sinclair s The Inverted Pyramid is an evocative, character-driven narrative of early 20th-century fiction that slices through the comforts of society to expose a tense moral core. Set against a vividly realized historical backdrop, this social commentary novel follows flawed, unforgettable characters whose choices illuminate timeless themes of ambition, loyalty, and the cost of progress. Sinclair s keen eye for societal detail transforms personal drama into a broader societal critique, making this work as relevant to readers today as when it first appeared. This Alpha Editions release restores a rare work by a significant Canadian author out of print for decades and lovingly republished for today s and future generations. More than a reprint, this edition is a collector s item and a cultural treasure: carefully edited, historically annotated, and presented for modern readers and classic literature collectors alike. Whether you seek a compelling social commentary novel, wish to explore historical fiction with depth, or pursue literary analysis of early 20th-century fiction, this restored volume delivers. Drawn from the Gutenberg Project s archival text and enhanced for readability and preservation, this edition of The Inverted Pyramid invites both casual readers and scholars into a haunting, humane story that rewards reflection. Rediscover Bertrand W. Sinclair where timeless themes meet incisive societal critique.
Rebels & Rainbows
Rebels & Rainbows is a collection of speculative fiction tales which celebrates the amazing and diverse Australasian LGBTIQA+ community. From old ghosts to bartenders to androids, from small outback towns to realms of fantasy to the far future, this anthology has it all!Authors include Eugen Bacon, Rowan Dale, Matthew R. Davis, Aaron Dries, A. Henderson, Frank Lee Howe, C.H. Pearce, Leanbh Pearson, Kell Shaw, J.M. Voss and Kaaron Warren.
To Wrap Yourself in Light
This collection of J. Marshall Freeman's short fiction, including two award-winning short stories, takes the readers from the edge of the galaxy to the house next door, from fantastic fables to political cautionary tales. Queer fiction, Science Fiction, Literary Fiction, Fable-in its pages, readers will find laughter and love and sex and tragedy: A brilliant artist in a war-torn solar system fights for his life with ferocious talent and weaponized sexuality.A beloved children's entertainer unleashes his dark side when he is elected the nation's new leader.Two queer men from different generations meet at a luxurious garden party where the line between myth and reality blurs as the night wears on.A brave soldier battles alone against an immortal tyrant, but the soldier's fate is not one she could ever have anticipated.The son of a fortune teller seeks in silk and ashes the answers to his own future.
We Could Be Rats
A "one-sitting-read" (Laurie Frankel, New York Times bestselling author) about two very different sisters, and a love letter to childhood, growing up, and the power of imagination--from the bestselling author of Everyone in This Room Will Someday Be Dead and Interesting Facts About Space. Sigrid hates working at the Dollar Pal but having always resisted the idea of growing up into the trappings of adulthood, she did not graduate high school, preferring to roam the streets of her small town with her best friend Greta, the only person in the world who ever understood her. Her older sister Margit is baffled and frustrated by Sigrid's inability to conform to the expectations of polite society. But Sigrid's detachment veils a deeper turmoil and sensitivity. She's haunted by the pains of her past--from pretending her parents were swamp monsters when they shook the floorboards with their violent arguments to grappling with losing Greta's friendship to the opioid epidemic ravaging their town. As Margit sets out to understand Sigrid and the secrets she has hidden, both sisters, in their own time and way, discover that reigniting their shared childhood imagination is the only way forward. "A must read" (Haley Jakobson, New York Times Editor's Choice author), We Could Be Rats is an unforgettable story of two sisters finding their way back to each other, and a celebration of that transcendent, unshakable bond.
As a Lover
London. 1928. For centuries, the establishment has suppressed public knowledge of lesbian love. Now, a celebrated writer is set to fight back.Award-winning author, Radclyffe Hall, hopes her new novel, The Well of Loneliness, will transform attitudes to same-sex relationships. It soon comes under attack from the right-wing press, concerned about its potential impact on readers. One such reader is Maggie Dillon, a young trainee firefighter, who has been struggling with fears that she is an abomination after kissing another woman at a party. Can The Well transform Maggie's views about herself and help her to find love? And will Radclyffe Hall keep her book in print long enough to radically change the views of society?
Cinders of Yesterday
Dani Black-smart mouthed, pie loving, monster hunter-wants revenge.A year ago the rogue Necromancer, Spectre, killed her partner. She's been looking for a way to kill him-and keep him dead-ever since. So when rumors surface of a weapon capable of killing anything, she sets off for Dawson Maryland. The only problem? Dawson Maryland might be home to more than just the ever enchanting daughter of a prominent magical family, Emilie Lockgrove. It might also hold clues to Dani's past.Dani plans to kill Spectre, or die trying. Emilie Lockgrove-book lover, powerless, nomal-wants answers.Ten years ago, she survived the fire that killed her mother. Now Emilie has returned to Dawson expecting to confront the trauma of her past, and find peace. What she finds instead? A power she never knew she had and enough family secrets to drown in.Emilie just wants to reclaim the life stolen from her after the fire.To survive, each must confront her past, and maybe find hope for the future.
Minor Black Figures
NAMED A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR BY NPR! From "literary superstar" (The Boston Globe) and Booker Prize finalist Brandon Taylor, his "most accomplished novel" (The New York Times): the story of a gay Black painter navigating the worlds of art, desire, and creativity New York simmers with heat and unrest as Wyeth, a painter, finds himself at an impasse in his own work. After attending a dubious show put on by a collective of careerist artists, he retreats to a bar in the West Village where he meets Keating, a former seminarian. Over the long summer, as the two get to know each another, they talk and argue about God, sex, and art. Meanwhile, at his job working for an art restorer, Wyeth begins to investigate the life and career of a forgotten, minor black artist. His search yields potential answers to questions that Wyeth is only now beginning to ask about what it means to be a black artist making black art amid the mess and beauty of life itself. As he did so brilliantly in the Booker Prize finalist Real Life and the bestselling The Late Americans, Brandon Taylor brings alive a captivating set of characters, this time at work and at play in the competitive art world. Minor Black Figures is a vividly etched portrait, both sweeping and tender, of friendship, creativity, belief, and the deep connections among them.
Punk-In
BrodieMy rock band has reached the pinnacle of success but fame has its price. Sooner or later, people let you down or sell you out. Except Ivan Cross. My manager, my muse, my obsession. There's nothing in this world that I want more than Van. And I always get what I want.VanFour years ago, I was selected to manage a hot new band called Wayward Lane. I knew I was in for an exciting ride - and a world of trouble - and it's all because of their lead singer, the provocative Brodie James. We've always butted heads but lately, that tension is higher. When Brodie insists on an impromptu concert in New Orleans at Halloween, I make it happen. The city, the food, the music, it's intoxicating. So is Brodie, and I'm not sure I can resist his pull any longer. Even though Brodie could have anyone he wants, all wants is me.Punk-In is a bi awakening, age gap, friends to lovers MM romance filled with sizzling chemistry, an unforgettable Halloween concert, and a HEA fit for a rockstar.
The Alpha and Omega of All Viruses
The digital entity Odyssey is on the ultimate journey where he must look inwards to explore his own mind before taking a mind expanding journey to find himself in the cosmos, while still watching over his human friends who are doing everything they can to protect his identity from overreaching politicians who only view him as a threat to their way of life.
A Forbidden Love
In the shadow of Langley Hall, young Thomas Cooper navigates the complexities of friendship, duty and love in Edwardian England. As the son of a tenant farmer, Thomas forms an unlikely bond with Lord John Langley and Prince Christian, two boys from vastly different worlds. Their shared adventures and deepening connections are tested by the rigid boundaries of class and the looming threat of war in the summer of 1914. When tragedy strikes, Thomas is thrust into a role that demands unwavering loyalty and discretion. As he rises through the ranks of service, he must confront his own desires and the painful secrets that haunt him. "Thomas' Tale", is a poignant exploration of love, loss and the enduring power of friendship in the face of society's constraints. Spanning seven decades of British history, Thomas' story chronicles his life from the fields of Norfolk, to a post-war life that includes a liberating road trip across the United States, and also reflects the many changes in social attitudes towards the LBGTQ+ communities.
Cloven
Erica and Lauren love each other. But this is not a love story.The couple should've broken up years ago-and they have, multiple times. But no matter how many times they call it quits, they can't let go. And it's slowly unraveling them both.For Erica, every breakup is a fresh wound, leaving a gaping hole where only anxiety spirals. She needs Lauren to choose her, fully and finally. But Lauren would rather escape into her video games than rehash past arguments. And the mystical, magical world of The Witches of Endor is more enticing than reality.Two witches, Tasin and Seadah, share a love that feels effortless and fated. Tasin's consumed with having her first vision while all of the wizards and fairies are more concerned with Seadah's glowing, green-eyed temper. But their connection is undeniable and the romance that surges between them is something out of a fairytale.Why can't Erica and Lauren's relationship be that easy?Or maybe the better question is: In an unmagical world, can love ever be enough?
Prince of Lies
Rowe Prince is many things.Gorgeous? Yes.Unintentionally hilarious? Absolutely.The hottest, sunshiniest virgin to ever set foot in Manhattan? Oh, yeah.One thing he's not, though, is a reclusive billionaire named Sterling Chase who supposedly founded my company. So when the man (literally) stumbles into a charity gala saying precisely that, I do what anyone would: I set out to prove he's a liar.Except it turns out Rowe's ridiculous falsehoods are surprisingly... enchanting. The heart of gold beneath his borrowed tux makes even a jaded businessman like me start to believe in fairy tales. And there's no faking the heat between us when the man's in my bed.But when it turns out Rowe's lies conceal a secret that threatens the company I've spent years building, I have to choose: say goodbye to the sweet pretender I'm falling for, or risk everything for a man who just might be... the prince of lies.
Finding Lord Landry
When a secret enemies-with-benefits situation turns into the world's most public fake marriage...The world knows me as Landry Davis, supermodel. A beautiful face and killer abs that have spawned a hundred fantasies. To my friends, I'm simply Landry, the snarkiest (read: most fun) member of our billionaire brotherhood.But to Kenji Toma, the gorgeous and oh-so-capable personal assistant I've been in love with for years, I'm "effing Landry," the charming slacker who disappears for weeks only to resurface in trouble. His favorite enemy-with benefits. A man he refuses to fall in love with (though I've tried) and also can't resist managing (a fact I'm not too proud to take advantage of). What none of them know is that I have another title-in fact, a whole other life. One I was born into. One that comes with sprawling estates, a coronet, and a metric ton of familial and political expectations. A life I've kept secret for way too long... and hope to keep secret for just a little while longer. At least until I learn Kenji is in danger. When all my money and fame can't save the man I love, I don't hesitate to use long-hidden political power to whisk him to safety, even though it means outing myself as Viscount Hawling, the elusive heir to the Davencourt earldom... And pretending the man who loves to hate me is actually my doting husband.
Inheriting Miss Fortune
I was a man without a family... or so I thought.I came to tiny Majestic, Wyoming, to escape misfortune: the loss of my brother; my parents' blame for it; the billion-dollar secret that caused it all.I find peace in my horses, in my friends, in quiet nights alone... and sometimes in remembering a scorching-hot one-night-stand from two years ago.But everything changes when Tully Bowman, the man behind that unforgettable encounter, turns up in Majestic bringing me the daughter I've inherited (along with her multi-million-dollar trust fund).Just like that, my peace becomes chaos, my quiet nights are filled with little Lellie's cries for "Daddy," and the heat between Tully and me becomes more than just a memory.Because it seems Tully's planning to stick around... at least until I prove I'm a "suitable father" and not the fortune-hunter Lellie's grandparents think I am. And the longer we spend together-the more he challenges and provokes me, comforts and calms me-the harder it is to remember why I ever thought one night would be enough.I'm a bad bet for fatherhood, but if I choose to keep Lellie and raise her as my own, it won't be for her money. It will be because this precious girl and the man who brought her to me might be the fresh start and new family my heart has been looking for.And because the best thing that ever happened to me might just be... Inheriting Miss Fortune.
Marrying Mr. Majestic
I've made myself into many things over the years. A Yale graduate. A brilliant corporate strategist. A city boy. And, though no one outside my inner circle knows it, a billionaire.One thing I never expected to be? Accidentally married to a straight, small-town cowboy named Waylon, the pride and joy of... *checks notes*... Majestic, Wyoming.Sadly, what happens in Vegas does not, in fact, stay in Vegas, and before I know it, I'm trying to track my erstwhile husband down, divorce papers in hand and thrift store clothes on my back, desperately hoping the stranger I married won't realize he's suddenly entitled to a lot more than that shiny gold ring on his finger. Unfortunately, Way has other plans. His town is counting on him as mayor to bring the lucrative AdventureSmash wilderness race to Majestic, and he refuses to sign my papers until the deal is done... which means me and my second-hand blue jeans will be hanging around a lot longer than I'd imagined, pretending our one-night whatever-it-was was a love match for the ages. As it turns out, Majestic is more charming than I'd expected, and Way... is not entirely without charms himself. It also turns out he's, ahem, not as straight as he thought he was.Before I know it, dusty boots feel more comfortable than my shiny wingtips, coffee at the Love Muffin tastes better than Starbucks, and being the First Husband of Majestic starts to seem as important as any corporate merger I've ever negotiated. But for a man with secrets to keep and a whole life waiting for him back in Manhattan, the only thing worse than Marrying Mr. Majestic... would be falling in love with him for real.
Machines of Consent
Dr. Jess Stockton is a scientist with high goals and even higher ambitions. Through her efforts, she has created a device based around consent which has revolutionised society and drawn no small amount of attention both good and bad.Roh is a freerunning messenger for the underground with the solitary goal of survival. When tested in the lab for the consent device, she displays a very odd set of biometrics which should be impossible in humans.Machines of Consent follows two trans lesbians in a sci-fi adventure as they find each other and try to escape an oppressive force bent to use them for nefarious ends. Both cyberpunk and spicy blockbuster, it's a thrill ride from start to finish.Do you consent to the heat?
Living Tuesday 17th
Tuesday 17th is the first volume of a vast multi-part work, Living. The extant manuscript consists of more than a million words intended to evoke the chaotic and unstructured narrative of a whole life, as lived.In this first volume, fiercely reclusive writer C. Farr addresses Tuesday 17th of an unspecified month and year. This is the date of a lovers' lunchtime rendezvous, long anticipated, predicted, written about before and after the event.And I tell you I have been writing here. I don't explain everything. I don't explain that I've already written out our futures for us; that this is to be life from writing rather than writing from life.With an introduction and notes by Dr Aleksandra Pogosskaia.
Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit
"To read Jeanette Winterson is to love her."--O, the Oprah MagazineThe 40th anniversary edition of a beloved modern classic and pioneering work of autofiction--a funny, poignant exploration of a young girl's quirky passage into adulthoodWith a new introduction and afterword by the authorJeanette Winterson's extraordinary career began at the age of twenty-five with the publication of Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit. An international bestseller and winner of the prestigious Whitbread Award for Best First Fiction, it is considered a classic of contemporary literature and taught widely around the world, in courses ranging from core undergraduate classes to women's studies and queer studies.Jeanette is a bright and rebellious orphan who is adopted into an evangelical household in the dour, industrial north of England. Her youth is spent embroidering grim religious mottoes and shaking her little tambourine for Jesus. But as this budding missionary comes of age and comes to terms with her unorthodox sexuality, the peculiar balance of her God-fearing household collapses. Jeanette's insistence on listening to truths of her own heart and mind--and on reporting them with wit and passion--makes for an unforgettable chronicle of an extraordinary passage into adulthood.
Any Girl But You
Quinn Lee is a walking disaster with perfect hair, zero filter, and an alarming caffeine addiction who's just ploughed her life savings into rescuing her family's failing Christmas tree farm. She's got one shot to pull off a Christmas miracle, so when an important promotional cookie order goes wrong, it understandably leads to a spectacular meltdown in front of cute-as-a-button bakery owner, Zoey.Zoey bakes like an angel, thinks "drat" is a swear word, and is wholly unprepared for the opinionated, red-headed hurricane who storms into her shop competing for "world's worst customer". But she's equally unprepared to discover that you don't have to like someone to find them irresistible.When both their businesses are threatened, a reluctant partnership becomes their only solution. But somewhere between Zoey's killer dance moves and Quinn's Chuck Norris puns, incompatible starts looking a lot like inevitable. As Christmas approaches, can these polar opposites navigate unexpected feelings, and the terrifying possibility that sometimes the person you clash with most is exactly the one you need?The perfect queer romance for fans of Alexandria Bellefleur and Casey McQuiston who crave a side of holiday magic, small-town charm, and enough steam to melt even the biggest snowstorm.
Love Beneath The Guillotine
'Desperate men have no morals...'L矇on Lyon: beautiful, beloved, broken. As premier executioner of Reims, he's desired and feared in equal measure, a celebrity of the most dangerous kind, a symbol of justice and good citizenship in the explosive era of the French Revolution. But L矇on has a secret. Each head he takes brings him one day closer to escape. He's been saving every franc he's ever earned, and any day now, he'll leave town and rescue his little brother ?mile from the same gruesome fate that has befallen him.But all L矇on's plans are thrown into disarray when ?mile is kidnapped by the dashing, dangerous, and despicable Henri De Villiers. At the mercy of a cruel and calculating (if handsome) blackmailer, L矇on's only chance to save his brother is to play the man's wicked game.Yet, as L矇on is drawn deeper into Henri's world, he begins to see a different side of him. Idealistic, passionate, willing to kill or die for those he loves, Henri might just be the escape L矇on's been searching for all these years.But can L矇on ever forgive Henri for what he's done? And can either of them survive the mysterious supernatural force that seems to haunt their every move?Love Beneath the Guillotine is the spicy, swashbuckling, slow-burn, enemies-to-lovers MM adventure-romance novel that your bookshelf has been bleeding for. It's time to strap on your swords and load those duelling pistols. France will never be the same again.
Falling-3
The young Ye Qin relied on a touch of charm, a measure of good looks, and a sliver of luck he'd never own up to, to recklessly pull Cheng Feichi into his world.Naively, he believed that desire alone was enough, that willfulness could bind someone to him for a lifetime.Yet it never occurred to him that a day would come when Cheng Feichi would soar far beyond his reach, flying away without a single glance back, leaving him behind in a small, stagnant pond, circling with no way out.
Falling-4
The young Ye Qin relied on a touch of charm, a measure of good looks, and a sliver of luck he'd never own up to, to recklessly pull Cheng Feichi into his world.Naively, he believed that desire alone was enough, that willfulness could bind someone to him for a lifetime.Yet it never occurred to him that a day would come when Cheng Feichi would soar far beyond his reach, flying away without a single glance back, leaving him behind in a small, stagnant pond, circling with no way out.
Falling-1
The young Ye Qin relied on a touch of charm, a measure of good looks, and a sliver of luck he'd never own up to, to recklessly pull Cheng Feichi into his world.Naively, he believed that desire alone was enough, that willfulness could bind someone to him for a lifetime.Yet it never occurred to him that a day would come when Cheng Feichi would soar far beyond his reach, flying away without a single glance back, leaving him behind in a small, stagnant pond, circling with no way out.
Falling-2
The young Ye Qin relied on a touch of charm, a measure of good looks, and a sliver of luck he'd never own up to, to recklessly pull Cheng Feichi into his world.Naively, he believed that desire alone was enough, that willfulness could bind someone to him for a lifetime.Yet it never occurred to him that a day would come when Cheng Feichi would soar far beyond his reach, flying away without a single glance back, leaving him behind in a small, stagnant pond, circling with no way out.
Burden of Proof
LINCOLNMy best friend fell in love, and it ruined my life. I'd never tell him that, so I'm trying to make the best of my new living situation, but it's lonely, and I'm lonely, and it's the need to be held that drives me to search out a partner who will let me submit for the night. Going to my knees for another man brings up more feelings than I bargained for, and the complications that arise afterward only make things worse. Running to Silas and Marshall for help brings me right into the sights of the man I was trying to get away from.Hunter Covington, Marshall's younger-but equally dominant-brother. HUNTERAccepting a one-night stand kind of proposition was supposed to be my last hurrah, but when the broken man I can't stop thinking about turns out to be the best friend of my brother's boyfriend, there's no chance I'm walking away. Lincoln is scared, but he's brave. He's messy, but he's perfect.I convince Lincoln to give me a chance, and being with him changes everything. I've played with power exchange before, but the circular nature of our dynamic feels special and new. The need to take care of Lincoln and keep him safe is visceral, but the pleasure I find when I sink down to my knees in front of him is indisputable.The closer we get, the more Lincoln wants to run. I can give him a home, but I can't make him stay. The only thing I can do now is hope our love is strong enough to prove Lincoln deserves the life we both want...and more.
The Weeping
Twenty-five years ago, Catherine Whitley was betrayed by her peers and left to die when the Rock Harbor Opera House went up in flames. The fire consumed her body, but not her wrath.Twenty-year-old Heath Ingram comes to Rock Harbor seeking refuge from his own tragedy, but the town offers no peace. The streets whisper. Shadows linger. And inside the restored Opera House, something waits.A girl in a ruined white dress. A secret that never died. A hunger for revenge that has only grown stronger with time.Heath thought he had already lost everything.Rock Harbor is about to prove him wrong.This edition is a revised version of a novel first published in 2012. It has been updated and expanded to reflect the author's original vision.
The Weeping
Twenty-five years ago, Catherine Whitley was betrayed by her peers and left to die when the Rock Harbor Opera House went up in flames. The fire consumed her body, but not her wrath.Twenty-year-old Heath Ingram comes to Rock Harbor seeking refuge from his own tragedy, but the town offers no peace. The streets whisper. Shadows linger. And inside the restored Opera House, something waits.A girl in a ruined white dress. A secret that never died. A hunger for revenge that has only grown stronger with time.Heath thought he had already lost everything. Rock Harbor is about to prove him wrong.
A Hunter's Dream
Hunters have one mission: to discover the evils of the world and eliminate them.Basti獺n, born into the storied Asturias family and a member of a prestigious guild, holds his responsibilities in the highest regard. When tasked with investigating the rumor of an oni infiltrating the royal family of Yasunai, he must journey to a foreign land filled with unknown demons and trickster spirits. But an untrustworthy crew, a hostile nation, and his own internalmonsters may prove more difficult than anything he's ever experienced.His travels bring him face to face with the frail, enigmatic Prince Eisuke, which causes him to question his long-held beliefs. With the full moon drawing ever closer, Basti獺n is facedwith a choice: fulfill his responsibility as a hunter or risk everything for a burgeoning love.A Hunter's Dream explores the boundaries between duty and desire, love and destiny, and the power of embracing one's true self.
Gaywyck
Sensitive, blond, emerald-eyed Robert Whyte is seventeen, living in a small town where his father is schoolmaster and his mother quite mad. When the local parish Father arranges an introduction to Donough Gaylord, the young, gorgeous, sophisticated (and fabulously wealthy) lord of the manor of Gaywyck, a Long Island estate, a deal is struck: Robert will become the librarian and move into Gaywyck forthwith.Donough's eye-popping New York digs at Gramercy Park, with displays of Van Goghs, C矇zannes and Monets, pales in comparison to the riches found at Gaywyck. Donough's part-time mentoring leaves Robert much time to explore the estate, its secrets and physicalities (a waterfall, gardens, beaches, riding trails, a cave of paintings, hidden closets), and the dark past shared by the inhabitants. His coming of age is bombarded by sexual desires, lies, betrayal, journals full of secrets everyone reads, suicide and murders, erotic encounters, and the sea, always the sea, tranquil or agitated .... Robert, smitten from first meeting, yearns for Donough as a lover. The older man, haunted by guilt from childhood secrets, fights his intense, growing passion even as hidden evil rushes to destroy them both. A cherished classic for almost 50 years. This new edition features a foreword by Damon Suede and an afterword by the author."Gaywyck is the very definition of classic. Using gothic romance to explore the love that once "dared not speak its name," Gaywyck proves compelling fiction and love are truly timeless." - Rick R. Reed"A fascinating mixture of Wilde, the gothic, and, above all, the souls laid to rest in New York." - Angus Wilson"A groundbreaking romance classic by a trailblazing author, Gaywyck blew open the doors of romance, proving what Vincent Virga has said for years: Genre has no gender. Merging the lushness of the best gothics with the big emotions of modern historicals, this is a story that transforms the way you think of the romance novel." - Sarah MacLean"As of 2024, Mr. Virga is one of the only surviving members of a pantheon of gay novelists who changed the way queer stories got told, forever. Suckled on pulps, they wrote books that escaped the camp gulag by sheer force of will via humor and hubris, poesy and porn ... entire subgenres of pop-culture redefined by brilliant queers writing against the grain." - Damon Suede
We Are All of Us Left Behind
A queer coming-of-age story about a young man's journey from Canada to Serbia in search of his roots, about the power of truth and lies, and about the persistence of hope when there's nothing else left. Garrett is orphaned and stuck in a one-traffic-light prairie oil town. He yearns for a family to belong to and sets out to find his last known living relative, his grandfather, the Serbian author Milos Milic. Armed with nothing but his wit and resourcefulness, Garrett starts his trek, from his hometown on the Canadian plains, across continents and countries, in search of acceptance and family, which he finds, but in the most unexpected people. We Are All of Us Left Behind is a queer coming-of-age story about the powers of truth and lies, of what a family really is, and the persistence of hope when there's nothing else left. Told in compelling, spare prose, We Are All of Us Left Behind is written in the spirit of The Beach meets The Goldfinch.
Curses & Cold Brew
A witch makes a deal with an irresistible demon, but when souls go missing, all Hell breaks loose . . .Maple Hollow is known for its endless October charm, gossiping ghosts, and pumpkin spice everything. Not the sort of town you'd imagine a designer suit-wearing demon to call home. But when Ramona Henry's souls start to go missing, she sets out to find the thief, and that means reluctantly calling in the help of a certain apothecary witch who bears her mark.Iris Stonewood is more than Maple Hollow's most flirtatious witch-she's also a thrill-seeking thorn in Ramona's side. Bored out of her mind being the third wheel to her two best friends, Iris decides she's going to be the Watson to Ramona's Sherlock.Their banter is sharper than a vampire's grin-and twice as deadly. Now that souls are vanishing faster than candy on Halloween night, will Iris and Ramona be able to catch the culprit before it turns its ghoulish gaze on Iris? Everyone's a suspect, from the broomstick busybodies to the vampire knitting club. With the mystery unfolding, Iris and Ramona hunt through the shadows to unmask the villain while trying to ignore their sizzling chemistry that burns hotter than a Halloween bonfire.It's tricks, treats, and just a touch of damnation in this cozy sapphic paranormal rom-com. Expect a hellishly good time in the second installment of the international best-selling Maple Hollow series.
The Butcher's Son
Dick Hardesty, working for a public relations firm, is assigned the task of helping elect a rabidly homophobic police chief governor. Dick's being gay himself, coupled with rumors that the chief had one of his identical twin sons murdered for being gay doesn't make Dick's job easier. He soon finds himself caught up in a whirlwind of politics, drag clubs, a do-good reverend's homeless shelter, and an arsonist torching the city's gay bars.
The Ninth Man
Dick Hardesty is hired to investigate the mysterious death of a client's lover. The police assume the death is drug related. In the course of his investigation Dick learns of eight similar deaths, all seemingly unrelated. The victims had nothing in common other than being gay, and all dying the same way. The police, to whom the deaths of "perverts" means very little, conclude that a serial killer is randomly killing gays, but Dick disagrees and believes that what tied the men together will lead to their killer.
The Bar Watcher
When the obnoxious owner of a gay bathhouse begins receiving threatening messages accusing him of not admitting people inside that he doesn't deem "hot" enough, he enlists the services of private detective Dick Hardesty to find the person behind the notes. When the owner is murdered following a heated argument with Dick, Hardesty becomes a suspect. Following a succession of other seemingly unrelated deaths -- all involving individuals noted for their cruelty to other gays -- Hardesty begins to suspect the actions are of someone who is looking to "take out the garbage" of the gay community. Can he solve the case and clear his name before the body count rises even further?
The Hired Man
When private investigator Dick Hardesty is hired by businessman Stuart Anderson to conduct routine background checks on potential store managers, he becomes reacquainted with a former trick, Phil Stark, who has undergone an amazing transformation from bar hustler to professional escort. When Anderson is murdered, Hardesty is hired by the escort services owners, Arnold and Iris Glick, to keep Phil and the agency away from police scrutiny. Two subsequent murders make this impossible, and Hardesty embarks on a mission to find the identity of the killer.
Tangled Webs
Karen Cappelletti, a gritty, battle-tested, battle-scarred middle-aged detective in a small town outside of Philadelphia, finds herself immersed in another dysfunctional relationship. While she has an issue persevering in unhealthy relationships, bigger problems loom. She learns the man she arrested for a brutal felony assault, imprisoned ten years ago, is scheduled to be released on parole the next day. To make matters worse, the ex-con's daughter, Tam, is publicly expressing her attraction to Karen. When the ex-con's daughter reports a dead body on her driveway, a week after her father's release, things take a bizarre turn. As the lonely detective professionally dives into an investigation with few clues, she struggles to understand the unexpected twists and emotional turns in her empty personal life. With the town's safety and her love life on the brink of disaster, Karen finds herself entangled in both a personal betrayal and the cunning brilliance of a sociopath. She must sift through a tangled web of lies to save her town from a heartless killer and save herself from becoming the next victim.
No One is Looking at You
What happens when no one is watching-or when you think no one is?In this razor-sharp, tenderly comic collection, James Magruder charts the evolving landscape of queer identity with heartbreaking honesty and wicked charm. The first half, Origin Stories, follows a group of closeted young men fumbling toward self-knowledge at Cornell University in the late '70s and early '80s-when disco was dying, Reagan was rising, and love still had to hide in the shadows.Fast forward forty years to Parting Shots, where Roger Hauf, a tenured professor of dramatic literature and full-time observer of human folly, offers up the hard-won wisdom of a man who's seen it all-and admits he still doesn't have it figured out. Roger knows his students tune him out, but maybe you'll listen when he tells you: everyone should chase love across an ocean at least once, the right dance belt changes everything, and-spoiler alert-high school never really ends.Smart, sexy, and unafraid to look longing in the eye, No One Is Looking at You is a glorious reminder that while we're all just trying to make it through the scene, the performance is always personal.
Marked by Instinct
Summer break for Erin Storm involves photography, hanging out with friends, and cramming as much partying as he can into three months before the final year of university starts. However, meeting Black Hill's mysterious and handsome newcomer, Victor Lovelace, at a party throws a wrench in those plans as Erin is introduced to a supernatural world driven by two things - fate and instinct.Secrets are threatened.Wars are waged.The Moon weeps.How much is Victor willing to sacrifice to be with Erin?Will Erin be able to overlook the absurdity of werewolves being real?Fate and Instinct play a dangerous game, lurking beneath the surface of the boys' relationship as they take bets on which side will win the brewing battle ... again.
Closer
"The last literary outlaw in mainstream American fiction."--Bret Easton EllisWinner of the Ferro-Grumley Award for LGBTQ FictionFrom "the most dangerous writer in America" (Village Voice), Dennis Cooper's Closer is the controversial first novel in the award-winning George Miles Cycle--a haunting exploration of 1980s middle America, alienation, and the very limits of experience, now featuring an introduction by cultural critic Lynne TillmanPhysically beautiful and strangely passive, George Miles becomes the object of his fellow students' passions. One after another, his teenage friends rifle through George, ransacking him for love, secrets, or anything else they can plausibly extract.Closer follows the subterranean connections that drag George into the arms of men like John, an artist who drains his portraits of humanity in order to find what lies beneath; Alex, fascinated by splatter films and pornography; and Steve, an underground entrepreneur who turns his parents garage into a nightclub. Boys and men pass George from hand to hand, fascinated by the nightmarish intensity of his detachment, but soon he will be confronted by desires he may find harder to endure.An unflinching dissection of the horrors of middle America, Closer lays bare a world where pain is an undeniable reality, the inevitable companion of truth, and a test of our commitment to life. Nearly four decades since its original publication, Dennis Cooper's brutally frank and provocative cult classic remains unmatched, continuing to push the limits of our minds and sharpen our understanding of the life around us.
Chasm
From the abandoned streets and back alleys of a post-apocalyptic world, to the expansive reaches of our darkest nightmares, Chasm is a look at the horrors of our present and our future through a queer femme lens.This poetry and short story collection is a companion to Respirator, and the second in a three-part trilogy.
Like People In History
Solid, cautious Roger Sansarc and flamboyant, mercurial Alistair Dodge are second cousins who become lifelong friends when they first meet as nine-year-old boys in 1954. Their lives constantly intersect at crucial moments in their personal histories as each discovers his own unique - and uniquely gay - identity. Their complex, tumultuous, and madcap relationship endures against 40 years of history and their involvement with the handsome model, poet, and decorated Vietnam vet Matt Loguidice, whom they both love. Picano chronicles and celebrates gay life and subculture over the last half of the twentieth century: from the legendary 1969 gathering at Woodstock to the legendary parties at Fire Island Pines in the 1970s, from Malibu Beach in its palmiest surfer days to San Francisco during its gayest era, from the cities and jungles of South Vietnam during the war to Manhattan's Greenwich Village and Upper East Side during the 1990s AIDS war.In a book that could have been written only by one who lived it and survived to tell, Picano weaves a powerful saga of four decades in the lives of two men and their lovers, relatives, friends, and enemies. Tragic, comic, sexy, and romantic, filled with varied and colorful characters, Like People in History is both extraordinarily moving and supremely entertaining.First published to acclaim in 1995, winner of the Ferro-Grumley Award for Best Novel, Gay Times Best Novel of the Year and Finalist for Lambda Literary Award Best Gay Fiction, this edition features a new foreword by Richard Bugs Burnett and an afterword by the author."This is the big novel we've all been waiting for - the gay Gone with the Wind. It's the heroic and funny saga of the last three decades by someone who saw everything and forgot nothing." - Edmund White"A gay classic. Read it when I was in college and it helped shape my perception of myself as a gay man." - Christopher Rice"Survivors of extraordinary times sometimes write extraordinary books. Like People in History is one such book: an epic tale of gay lives, American lives, interweaving and colliding through many modern decades. Like any great tale, it's written with a dedicated passion, knowledge, truth, and wit, full of comedy as well as real heartbreak." - Jenifer Levin"Harrowing and sad, and very funny, Like People in History manages to bridge the unnerving chasm between the queer present and the gay past. This heartfelt memorial to a vanished time sees whole, perhaps for the first time, what till now has induced only a tragic sense of disconnection." - Andrew Holleran
Let's Get Criminal
A Nick Hoffman / Academic Mystery, Book 1 - Nick Hoffman has everything he's ever wanted: a good teaching job, a beautiful house, and a solid relationship with his lover, Stefan Borowski, a brilliant novelist and writer-in-residence at the State University of Michigan. But when Perry Cross shows up, Nick's peace of mind is shattered. Not only does he have to share his office with the nefarious Perry, who managed to weasel his way into a tenured position without the right qualifications, he also discovers that Perry played a destructive role in Stefan's past. When Perry turns up dead, Nick wonders if Stefan might be involved, while the campus police force is wondering the same about Nick.Originally published in 1996, this first book in the Nick Hoffman Academic Mystery series includes a new foreword by the author."Deliciously wicked... The perfect book to take away for a weekend in the country... a genuinely funny modern comedy of manners." - Washington Post Book World"The Borgias would not be bored at the State University of Michigan, that snake pit of academic politics." - New York Times Book Review"Clever and sharp social satire." - Los Angeles Times"Lev Raphael skewers academic pretensions with wicked glee [and] Dickensian flair." - Chicago Sun-TimesLev Raphael offers "a delightful take on death in academe." - San Francisco ChronicleA "witty and devastating backstage view of college life." - San Diego Union-Tribune"Some of the most pointed and funny put-downs of academics in my memory." - Detroit Free PressRaphael "elegantly skewers ivory-tower pretensions, petty politics, incompetencies and hypocrisies." - BooklistLev Raphael combines "stylish literary mystery with an intimate look at the jungle of academia... witty, impeccably written." - The Mystery Review"Marvelous humor and satisfying mystery... wickedly fun." - Drood Review of Mystery"Bright, breezy, and laugh-aloud funny." - Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine
Forever Magical
In the third and final book in The Witches of Prosperity series, readers may wonder if El (freelance attendant and male witch in training) and Anthony (aka The Prince) and their friends, Sebastian and Reginald, will EVER find their happy ending. Well, quite frankly, so are they...It's been a long road to finding love and happiness, and they have overcome a lot, including a cruel step-mother, a beastly curse that makes Reginald not your average guy, a wicked witch on the loose, and an intolerant kingdom that doesn't accept same-sex relationships-or magic, for that matter. Yet despite all this, Elister Hesta and Prince Anthony Enchanting remain deeply in love and committed to each other. Likewise, Lord Sebastian Withers and Duke Reginald Drake-although slower out of the block to confess their feelings for each other and believe they are each worthy of love-are finally on their way to couplehood. But relationships are hard to grow when they must be kept secret, and the Prince is supposed to be looking for a royal lady to be his wife. Not to mention that malicious magic is threatening members of the Court, involving the whole kingdom as things spiral out of their control. Before each of our two couples can even think about a future together, they must stop a powerful witch, break several enchantments, and face various magical foes. Yet all this pales next to their greatest challenge: They must also change their society's opinion about who it is okay to love...Touching, funny, unconventional, romantic, and sometimes steamy, Forever Magical is a story about fighting for who and what is important.
