Contemporary Metaphysical

The circus arrives without warning. No announcements precede it. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not. Within the black-and-white striped canvas tents is an utterly unique experience full of breathtaking amazements. It is called Le Cirque des Rêves, and it is only open at night. But behind the scenes, a fierce competition is underway - a duel between two young magicians, Celia and Marco, who have been trained since childhood expressly for this purpose by their mercurial instructors.

When the beautiful and precocious sisters Sally and Gillian Owens are orphaned at a young age, they are taken to a small Massachusetts town to be raised by their eccentric aunts, who happen to dwell in the darkest, eeriest house in town. As they become more aware of their aunts' mysterious and sometimes frightening powers - and as their own powers begin to surface - the sisters grow determined to escape their strange upbringing by blending into "normal" society.

The best-selling author of Second Nature, Illumination Night and Turtle Moon now offers her most fascinating and tantalizingly accomplished novel yet -- a winning tale that amply confirms Alice Hoffman's reputation not only as a genius of the vivid scene and unforgettable character but as one of America's most captivating storytellers.

The award-winning poet Anne Carson reinvents a genre in Autobiography of Red, a stunning work that is both a novel and a poem, both an unconventional recreation of an ancient Greek myth and a wholly original coming-of-age story set in the present.

A community devoured by greed, cowardice, and fear. A man persecuted by his painful past. A woman searching for happiness. In one eventful week, each of them will face questions of life, death, and power, and each will choose their own path. Will they choose good or evil?

First we live. Then we die. And then...we get another try? Ten thousand tries, to be exact. Ten thousand lives to "get it right". Answer all the big questions. Achieve wisdom. And become one with everything. Milo has had 9,995 chances so far and has just five more lives to earn a place in the cosmic soul. If he doesn't make the cut, oblivion awaits. But all Milo really wants is to fall forever into the arms of Death. Or Suzie, as he calls her.

Many millennia after the fall of Eden, Adam, the first man in creation, still walks the Earth - exhausted by the endless death and destruction, he is a shadow of his former hope and glory. And he is not the only one. The Garden was deconstructed, its pieces scattered across the world and its inhabitants condemned to live out immortal lives, hiding in plain sight from generations of mankind.

Bridget Blade abruptly awakens from forced hibernation and is crushed to find that everything's changed: she's officially dead, and her husband, Jeremy, has given the government rights to her body. To make matters worse, he's moved on with another woman who's a better fit for him. But when Bridget, a reincarnated god, stumbles on a dangerous international scheme, she realizes that Jeremy's life is at risk. Bridget must now travel into the heart of Africa with no support but her own burgeoning powers to save the man who didn't choose her.

El autor presentaba la edición italiana de este libro, que tuvo un éxito extraordinario, con estas palabras: Ésta no es una novela. Ni siquiera es un cuento. Ésta es una historia. Empieza con un hombre que atraviesa el mundo, y acaba con un lago que permanece inmóvil, en una jornada de viento. El hombre se llama Hervé Joncour. El lago, no se sabe. Se podría decir que es una historia de amor. Pero si solamente fuera eso, no habría valido la pena contarla. En ella están entremezclados deseos, y dolores, que no tienen un nombre exacto que los designe. Esto es algo muy antiguo.

Rivals is the third book in The Cross-Worlds Coven Series, following both Witches and Earth Fire. Though a temporary truce remains in effect with their new found ruby rivals, the Haven Coven struggles to come up with a long-term response to the Zarth incursion. In an effort to secure alliances with powerful races around the universe, Tiffany Smith is sent as part of a delegation to the magical world of Peth. However, Tiffany soon comes into conflict with the Coven Elder leading the mission. Amid vicious werewolf and local crone attacks, she even comes to question the loyalty of those in ...

Earth Fire is the second book in The Cross-Worlds Coven series, the sequel to Witches and prequel to Rivals. Even though Lord Gensrow has been defeated, his long shadow continues to cast a pall over the Coven. Realizing their own insularity gave the madman an advantage, every young sorceress is now encouraged to freely cross between dimensions, exploring the universe at her leisure. Yet this additional freedom requires even greater discretion, which some magical operatives still find hard to accept. Indeed, many among the Coven ranks remain indifferent to the collateral damage they ...

Sheesh... Vampires can be like children sometimes. In our quest to unite the underworld against the coming flood of darkness, a visit to Darkeum Cove was first on the list. Although I would hardly call the Noctem island a popular vacation spot, it had to be done. Uniting the underworld meant uniting everyone, and that included the same vampires who would just assume I disappeared forever. It shouldn’t have mattered one way or the other, seeing as how full authority over the underground clan was Marco’s by right. At least, that was we assumed before an official challenge to his authority...

Bridget Blade survived an explosion and has absorbed radiation equivalent to a nuclear blast. Yet she survived and now her body has become an object of research interest to many international governments who seek its untold biological secrets. The truth is that Bridget is a reincarnated god with an insatiable desire for adoration. But she’s also human, plagued by a myriad of insecurities and anxieties, who just wants love and acceptance. As human or god, she relishes her life with the two men who love her. But the two men offer different things. If Bridget chooses her husband, then ...

A woman in her 30s begins to question the routine and predictability of her days. In everybody's eyes, she has a perfect life: happy marriage, children, and a career. Yet what she feels is an enormous apathy. All that changes when she encounters a successful politician who had, years earlier, been her high school boyfriend. As she rediscovers the passion missing from her life, she will face a life-altering choice.

Do what the Queen of the Fairies demands, or else . . . I was five years old when the Queen of the Fairies gifted me with elemental magic. She told me then that one day she would come for a favor and that I would grant that favor, no questions asked. Twenty-eight years later, that day has come, but the favor the queen asks is impossible for me to grant. She’s not the forgiving sort. The Queen demands I obey her or lose the gifts she gave me all those years ago. I’ve built my life on those gifts. Without them, I’ll be nothing. Not to mention that Lady Califia also wants something I ...

Bullied. Beaten. Betrayed. Jon Harper’s life is falling apart. Until he finds the serum. Until he meets Thorn. She's not just a vampire—she’s a weapon. And what she offers Jon is simple: one night of power and the chance to fight back. But the vampire formula doesn’t just change his body—it changes everything. Now, with a new hunger inside him and a growing darkness he can’t control, Jon must face a brutal truth: Some powers can’t be undone. And revenge costs more than blood. As he follows Thorn into her shadowed world, Jon realizes he’s fighting more than just his enemies. ...

In a world where light and darkness are locked in eternal dance, Kiara Elouise is the unexpected bridge between the two. Raised in a devout Christian household, she clings to the faith that shaped her, even as a deep, mystic pull awakens something ancient within her soul. Guided by spirits from both Heaven and Hell—including a sultry, rebellious Lilith and a commanding, enigmatic Lucifer—Kiara begins to uncover the secrets of her family’s past and the power she was destined to wield. When an ancient artifact tied to the balance of the universe is revealed to be at the center of a ...

Rescued from unscrupulous breeders who plan to destroy him because of his floppy ear, when the Queen’s littlest corgi arrives at Windsor Castle, he finds himself in a world of red carpets, gilded chambers - and not a pile of dirty laundry to be seen. Charming his way into the affections of the royal household, Nelson offers a dog’s-eye view of life with the Queen. He eavesdrops on her encounters with celebrities, philanthropists and advisers, catching rare insights into the secrets of a purposeful life.

Honest, disturbing, raw - and yet somehow still funny and strangely beautiful - Michelle Smith's collection of short stories, Stone Princess, is a revelation. This first work from a totally original and strongly compelling voice pulls the reader in quickly; you are grabbed by the throat and Smith simply does not let you go. As Kristin Brumm writes in her advance review, “Michelle's stories draw you in and place you immediately beside the protagonist as she moves swiftly towards the cliff’s edge.” In the title story, a rape and murder victim speaks to us from beyond the grave, and ...

One down...one to go. With the Noctem agreeing to aid us in our quest, it was time to pull the Sabbot in as well. Surely this would be an easy task, right? They were the good guys after all. That is, if a vampire clan could be considered good. But there was just one teensy weensy little problem. Isaac has a dark family secret he failed to mention. While trying to deal with his family, including an overly ambitious sister who valued power above all other things, an old friend from the past decided to waltz back into my life. A man I once trusted was now unrecognizable to me. Who are you ...