Showing results by narrator "Shen Li" in All Categories

Aidan Thomas is a hardworking family man and a respected member of his community. He's also a kidnapper and serial killer who has murdered eight women. And there's a ninth, a woman he's renamed Rachel, imprisoned in a backyard shed where she fears for her life. When Aidan's wife dies, he and his thirteen-year-old daughter, Cecilia, are forced to move. Aidan brings Rachel along, introducing her to Cecilia as a family friend who needs a place to stay. After five years of captivity, surely Rachel is too brainwashed to attempt to escape.

The notion that everyone wants sex—and that we all have to have it—is false. It’s intertwined with our ideas about capitalism, race, gender, and queerness. And it impacts the most marginalized among us. For asexual folks, it means that ace and A-spec identity is often defined by a queerness that’s not queer enough, seen through a lens of perceived lack: lack of pleasure, connection, joy, maturity, and even humanity. In this exploration of what it means to be Black and asexual in America today, Sherronda J. Brown offers new perspectives on asexuality.

Jane is unhappy. She’s a struggling writer trapped in an underwhelming marriage with husband Ted, scraping by to pay for a mortgage for a house and a life that she’s never really wanted. There’s only ever been one person she cared about, one person who truly understood her: Thalia. Jane’s best and only friend nearly a decade ago during their time together at Oxford. But then the night of the formal which should have bound them together for good, drove them apart. Until now.

Leaving behind the people she loves most in the world, Ashen sets off into the wilderness in hopes of finding the elusive group of rebels know as the "Consortium". But, when she finds herself among strangers in the former ski town locals have named the "Bastille", secrets begin to reveal themselves, friendships prove as fragile as glass, and Ashen begins to understand just how powerful her enemy really is. When her brother, Kel, goes missing, Ashen is forced to return to the place she despises...where she's faced with a cruel and brutal choice that will break her heart.

On her 17th birthday, Ashen Spencer is blindfolded and escorted to the massive, mysterious building known as the Arc to begin her year of training and testing in hopes that she can earn the Cure - a powerful drug given only to those deemed worthy to survive beyond their 18th birthday. Ashen has a chance to rise up from her former life of squalor and be granted a place in society, if the Panel - the mysterious group of powerful men and women in charge of the Arc - deems her year a success.

Maizy has never been to Last Chance, Minnesota . . . until now. Her mom’s plan is just to stay for a couple weeks, until her grandfather gets better. But plans change, and as Maizy spends more time in Last Chance and at the Golden Palace—the restaurant that’s been in her family for generations—she makes some discoveries. But the more Maizy discovers, the more questions she has.

Planets in our solar system have so many cool facts about them that scientists have made very complicated to understand. This book has taken some of the most amazing facts and repackaged them in a way that makes it easy for kids to understand. From the most basic facts right through to some of the most amazing and not well know ones, this book covers everything a child would love to know.

When Ashen heads east to New York City to find Finn's brother, she finds herself confronted by an entirely new set of problems. The city is a war zone overshadowed by the Behemoth, the largest arcology in existence. Few are allowed entry and those who go in never leave. She soon discovers that the power in New York is held entirely by one young man. Known only as the Bishop, he's mysterious, unnervingly handsome, and smooth-voiced. His allure is undeniable, despite his tendency toward cruelty. Who is the Bishop really? What exactly goes on inside the Behemoth?

Brought down by the trauma of recent events, Ashen Spencer resolves to step up the fight against her enemies in the Directorate. With the help of an unlikely friend, she infiltrates the Palace Grounds to steal a priceless object...only to find something even more valuable.

A fox making a name for herself in a wolf's world. I'm Kira Fairwood - fox shifter, bane of the werewolves, and also their employee. My job isn't just a paycheck. It's a way to ensure my unborn niece's heritage won't work against her when she grows up. So I dive right into bag a hot alpha werewolf who's using his bar as a front to murder human women. Unfortunately, I soon discover Thom is being framed. Then the true murderer begins to hunt the hunters. Can I keep my family safe by continuing to follow orders like a wolf?

After barely escaping with her life, Ashen finds her way home to the Arc thanks to the help of an old friend. After a long absence, Ash isn’t sure what she’s about to find. The Bishop’s deception and cruelty have turned her world upside down. As she fights an impossible uphill battle, she must confront betrayal, lies, and heartbreaking loss that will either lead to her vindication or her ultimate downfall....

Space is such an amazing part of our worlds existence, but it can seem complicated to explain to adults, let alone kids! This book will trigger the natural curiosity within young children with amazing facts about the mysteries of space. From the very basics of what the galaxy is, right through to the name of the first man on the moon, this book relays the complexity of space into really easy and understandable explanations.

A thousand years ago, the mortal realms of Kalemnar were separated from the land of the Fae by a dark, poisonous mist that takes lives with all the cruelty of the sharpest blade. Lyrinn Martel has been told all her life that the Fae deserted their lands long ago, leaving them to decay and ruin. Rumors still swirl to this day that the Immortals were malevolent creatures, bent on destroying the realms of humans, and that their departure was a welcome blessing.

I'm Kira Fairwood—fox shifter, bane of the werewolves, and also their employee. My job isn't just a paycheck. It's a way to ensure my unborn niece's heritage won't work against her when she grows up. So I dive right in to bag a hot alpha werewolf who's reported to be using his bar as a front to murder human women. Unfortunately, I soon discover Thom is being framed.

Taken captive by a Fae whose cruelty is legendary throughout the realms of Kalemnar, Lyrinn must find a way to escape and get back to the High Lord she loves. But when she finds herself a prisoner in a distant realm, she quickly discovers that not all is as it seems. Torn between two lands and two lives, she learns of the Elar—an Immortal imbued with lethal powers whose shadow casts an ominous threat on all the realms of the world.

I'm Kira Fairwood, rogue kitsune and couch-surfer extraordinaire. Three months after disowning my pack, I'm still trying to find a way home. Then a way home finds me. All I have to do is follow the advice of a murderer, trespass on an enemy alpha's territory, and nab a stranger who shares my fox heritage. Thom thinks it's a terrible idea, but he puts his not-quite-pack on the line to help anyway. Now, if I fail, I'll drag my new friends down with me. What could possibly go wrong?

When a young girl's life is torn apart by the terror and fear of a new communist government, she has to learn to survive within its harsh confines. As she grows, so does her understanding and her hatred of the political situation, and she becomes determined to escape its confines. Can Suk Hing survive the arduous journey that is fraught with danger, or will she be captured and have to suffer the consequences of being branded a traitor? This is a novelization of a true story of one young woman's struggle, an epic journey - the story of the Freedom Swimmers.

Seventeen-year-old Lulu Li has her last summer before college all planned out. But her plans go awry when she learns that Kite Xu, her old next-door neighbor and childhood friend, will be returning home from South Korea.

Therapy fails sex workers. Despite the wide range of sex work—from street-based to OnlyFans—clinicians too often focus on what they think sex workers need, instead of building trust, developing rapport, and really doing the work to understand the unique stressors that make quality mental health care essential for sex worker communities. Sex-positive therapists Theo Burnes and Jamila Dawson break down everything that mental health providers need to know to work effectively with sex workers, while dispeling the tired, pervasive myths that continue to impact treatment today.

Samantha Barnes is ready to break out of her comfort zone. After a disastrous fling with a frat brother, she leaves for a semester abroad in Japan in hopes of an international adventure. But even when she meets a charming Scottish rugby player who feels like her soulmate, she allows her former mistakes to keep him at arm's length. Taking the time to find herself in the Land of the Rising Sun, Samantha starts to fall for the sexy university athlete. But when tragedy strikes back at home, she fears unresolved trauma will prevent her from chasing the happiness she deserves.