Showing results by narrator "Rachel Hirsch" in All Categories

Tales of guardian spirits and divine powers by Seanan McGuire, Ken Liu, Alethea Kontis, Laura Anne Gilman, Scott Edelman and more. Guardian spirits. Divine presences. Demonic powers. Ghosts. The concept of "genius loci" is indeed an ancient one, found in nearly every human mythology. Genius Loci is a huge anthology of 31 all-new fantasy and science fiction stories drawing on the rich tradition of place-as-person. In it, the authors present stories of sentient deserts, beneficent forests, lonely shrubs, and protective planetary spirits.

Sibilla Fenoglio wants nothing more than to live with her husband in this run-down, derelict watermill. Uninhabited since the Renaissance after a mysterious disaster befell the previous owners, the mill requires extensive repairs. But there is something frightening about the mill. Repairs are violently undone, half-seen figures begin stalking Sibilla through the grounds, and haunting echoes of the previous owners’ lives infiltrate the present. As the disturbances grow more vicious and her husband more secretive, she realizes that she and her child are in danger.

Darya does not remember how she came to be a slave or who she was before she was bought by an army captain for his motherless daughter in the ancient Persian city of Susa. Protected and nurtured by the housekeeper and her daughter, Darya has as good a life as a slave can have, even acquiring the rare skill of reading and writing, which she learns alongside her young mistress.

It is the summer of 1982, just before the fall. The political campaign ad of It’s Morning in America has not yet aired, but the present era of cultural hedonism and radical individualism has already dawned. Against this backdrop, Edward Bennett is the all-American son of a mother who emigrated from Italy and a first-generation Italian American father. Edward has it all: good looks, pedigree, and the financial fruits of his father’s business empire. As he readies for his junior year abroad in London, however, something feels amiss.

Virginia Collins is not what she appears to be. By all outward appearances the successful uptown psychiatrist is just another beautiful dame who hires a private investigator to find her missing husband: a weird little man who makes fancy umbrella drinks and dresses like something out of an old gangster movie. Collins hides her real motives, along with her tragic past, in order to win the affections of Raffy Rheinhardt, a cynical PI with an equally tragic history; a long forgotten shared incident resulting in damaged psyches and dead bodies.

What if the real you was the one person your husband couldn't ever meet? Jane Johansen has carefully crafted a seemingly perfect life. She's blessed with an adoring husband, Edward; two unwavering best friends; a powerful corporate job; and a high-security penthouse. Then one day Jane is unceremoniously fired, Edward's father abruptly dies, and Jane's painstakingly built world starts crashing down around her.

Set at first in late 19th century Eastern Europe, Fire in My Ears by Susan Schneider is a coming-of-age tale that begins with a beautiful young woman who makes a tragic far-reaching decision and the result is three generations of pain, disappointing and bitter struggle for happiness.

With just a touch, George experiences a person's future death. High school is hard enough, but sixteen-year-old death witch Georgiana “George” Colburn can’t seem to catch a break. Even Jen’s ghost, the recently deceased popular girl who ignored George in life, won’t leave her alone. George is convinced her life can’t get any worse. That is until she bumps into the new student and experiences his death at her hand. When a coven mate, Trixie, offers to help her with her magic, George finds herself with a new friend and crush.

Too many Jews have been told: "You don't look Jewish!" It begs the question, "What does Jewish look like?" Well, there are over fifteen million Jews in the world, which means there are more than fifteen million ways to look and be Jewish. It can look like setting out menorahs on tribal land, adding kimchi to the seder plate, organizing for change, and living out loud.