"Casa Tomada" (English: "House Taken Over") is a 1946 short story by Argentine writer Julio Cortázar. It was originally published in Los anales de Buenos Aires, a literary magazine edited by Jorge Luis Borges, and later included in his volume of stories, Bestiario. It tells the story of a brother and sister living together in their ancestral home which is being "taken over" by unknown entities. The mystery that revolves around what those entities are is largely left up to interpretation, allowing the genre of the story to vary from fantasy to psychological fiction to magic realism to political fiction, among others.

A slow burn, enemies-to-lovers romance featuring a scholarly healer and a gentleman assassin, set in an exquisite fantasy world. Osric Mordaunt, member of the Fyren Order of assassins, finds himself in dire need of an expert healer. As fate would have it, that very healer is Aurienne Fairhrim, a member of his enemy Order, the Haelen. Aurienne is desperate for funding to heal the sick, so desperate that when Osric breaks into her office to offer her a bribe for her healing services, she must accept. Even if she loathes him. A forced collaboration ensues: the brilliant Woman in STEM is coerced into working with the PhD in Murders - much to Aurienne's disgust. Despite being enemies thrown together, as Osric and Aurienne work together to solve not only his illness, but the mysterious reoccurrence of a deadly Pox, they find themselves ardently denying their attraction which seems to only fuel the heat between them. Romance tropes include: Enemies to lovers High interaction slow burn Hypercompetent idiots He falls first and harder Evisceration as a love language

They tried to break us.They almost did.But we're not going anywhere.The Celestial Heirs think the stars are on their side. But they don't know what's coming. Fighting them one on one isn't an option so we have to be stealthy. Remaining under the radar won't be easy, but if we pull it off, they'll never suspect our involvement when their lives start falling apart.Besides, they've already taken us to the brink of hell, what more can they really do?

By the Colombian author of The Bitch, a 2020 National Book Award Finalist and PEN Awards Winner Claudia is an impressionable eight-year-old girl, trying to understand the world through the eyes of the adults around her. But her hardworking father hardly speaks a word, while her unhappy mother spends her days reading celebrity lifestyle magazines, tending to her enormous collection of plants, and filling Claudia’s head with stories about women who end their lives in tragic ways. Then an interloper arrives, disturbing the delicate balance of family life, and Claudia’s world starts falling apart. In this strikingly vivid portrait of Cali, Colombia, Claudia’s acute observations remind us that children are capable of discerning extremely complex realities even if they cannot fully understand them. In Abyss, Quintana leads us brilliantly into the lonely heart of the child we have all once been, driven by fear of abandonment.

Six tales of a dark beauty that throb with disturbing themes: the legitimacy of revenge, incest as survival, indigenous witchcraft versus Japanese wisdom, the body as a corpse we inhabit. Rivero's stories pierce the reader like a wound, but in the end also offer possibilities of love, justice and hope. Told with a fierce and fragile lyricism that probes the abysses of the human soul, in [I]Fresh Dirt From the Grave[/I] Giovanna Rivero reworks the boundaries of the gothic to engage with pre-Columbian ritual, folk tales, sci-fi and eroticism.

Welcome to Phantasma. There are only two rules to the game. Stay alive. And don’t fall in love. When Ophelia’s sister disappears, there is only one way to save her. Ophelia must enter Phantasma, a deadly contest inside a haunted mansion, and claim its prize—a single wish. Phantasma is a maze of twisting corridors and lavish ballrooms, of demons and temptations. Ophelia will face nine challenges, each more dangerous than the last. There can only be one winner, and the other contestants will stop at nothing to eliminate their rivals. Every day the house creates new monsters. But just as Ophelia’s fears threaten to overwhelm her, a mysterious stranger offers her a bargain. Charming, arrogant and infuriatingly attractive, Blackwell claims he can guide her through the lethal trials ahead. All he asks in return is ten years of her life. Ophelia knows she shouldn’t trust him. Blackwell doesn’t seem dangerous, but appearances can be deceptive. Worse still, she feels a dark and irresistible attraction drawing them closer and closer. Her life is on the line. But in Phantasma, the only thing deadlier than losing the game is losing your heart… A Court of Thorns and Roses meets Caraval in this seductive fantasy adventure. With steamy romance, a sexy morally gray love interest, OCD rep and jaw-dropping twists, Phantasma is perfect for fans of Rebecca Yarros, Nisha J. Tuli and Carissa Broadbent. See why readers love Kaylie Smith’s romantic “I ABSOLUTELY ADORED IT. I AM OBSESSED WITH IT… I was completely HOOKED from the very first chapters… The characters are absolutely amazing… The embodiment of the perfect fantasy story for me… You will LOVE this.” Goodreads reviewer ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ “A MILLION STARS! I don’t think I’ve had this much fun reading a book in a while. I fell in love with this cast of characters so fast. I loved all the banter, tension and friendships… I can’t wait for the next book!” Goodreads reviewer ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ “Absolutely stunning… The characters—my god these characters… I loved every single one of them… Had my mind going a million places at once, and I still didn’t see how this was going to end. I’m still not over it… wonderful.” Goodreads reviewer ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ “Wow. What a wild ride!... So entertaining! Exciting, dangerous, twisty, fast-paced, and so intriguing… gripped me from the beginning. I loved the characters and the angst, and the found family is the best.” Goodreads reviewer ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ “Made me laugh, made me squeal, and made me cry. And the characters stuck with me even after I closed the last chapter.” Goodreads reviewer ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ “Brimming with adventure, romance, and loveable characters you’ll gladly follow into the shadows of their vivid world." — Alexandra Bracken, NYT Bestselling author of Lore

A legendary competition. A mesmerizing romance. An unbreakable bond between two sisters. Scarlett Dragna has never left the tiny island where she and her sister, Tella, live with their powerful, and cruel, father. Now Scarlett’s father has arranged a marriage for her, and Scarlett thinks her dreams of seeing Caraval—the faraway, once-a-year performance where the audience participates in the show—are over. But this year, Scarlett’s long-dreamt-of invitation finally arrives. With the help of a mysterious sailor, Tella whisks Scarlett away to the show. Only, as soon as they arrive, Tella is kidnapped by Caraval’s mastermind organizer, Legend. It turns out that this season’s Caraval revolves around Tella, and whoever finds her first is the winner. Scarlett has been told that everything that happens during Caraval is only an elaborate performance. Nevertheless she becomes enmeshed in a game of love, heartbreak, and magic. And whether Caraval is real or not, Scarlett must find Tella before the five nights of the game are over or a dangerous domino effect of consequences will be set off, and her beloved sister will disappear forever. Welcome, welcome to Caraval . . . beware of getting swept too far away.

Welcome to Phantasma. There are only two rules to the game. Stay alive. And don’t fall in love. When Ophelia’s sister disappears, there is only one way to save her. Ophelia must enter Phantasma, a deadly contest inside a haunted mansion, and claim its prize—a single wish. Phantasma is a maze of twisting corridors and lavish ballrooms, of demons and temptations. Ophelia will face nine challenges, each more dangerous than the last. There can only be one winner, and the other contestants will stop at nothing to eliminate their rivals. Every day the house creates new monsters. But just as Ophelia’s fears threaten to overwhelm her, a mysterious stranger offers her a bargain. Charming, arrogant and infuriatingly attractive, Blackwell claims he can guide her through the lethal trials ahead. All he asks in return is ten years of her life. Ophelia knows she shouldn’t trust him. Blackwell doesn’t seem dangerous, but appearances can be deceptive. Worse still, she feels a dark and irresistible attraction drawing them closer and closer. Her life is on the line. But in Phantasma, the only thing deadlier than losing the game is losing your heart… A Court of Thorns and Roses meets Caraval in this seductive fantasy adventure. With steamy romance, a sexy morally gray love interest, OCD rep and jaw-dropping twists, Phantasma is perfect for fans of Rebecca Yarros, Nisha J. Tuli and Carissa Broadbent. See why readers love Kaylie Smith’s romantic “I ABSOLUTELY ADORED IT. I AM OBSESSED WITH IT… I was completely HOOKED from the very first chapters… The characters are absolutely amazing… The embodiment of the perfect fantasy story for me… You will LOVE this.” Goodreads reviewer ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ “A MILLION STARS! I don’t think I’ve had this much fun reading a book in a while. I fell in love with this cast of characters so fast. I loved all the banter, tension and friendships… I can’t wait for the next book!” Goodreads reviewer ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ “Absolutely stunning… The characters—my god these characters… I loved every single one of them… Had my mind going a million places at once, and I still didn’t see how this was going to end. I’m still not over it… wonderful.” Goodreads reviewer ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ “Wow. What a wild ride!... So entertaining! Exciting, dangerous, twisty, fast-paced, and so intriguing… gripped me from the beginning. I loved the characters and the angst, and the found family is the best.” Goodreads reviewer ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ “Made me laugh, made me squeal, and made me cry. And the characters stuck with me even after I closed the last chapter.” Goodreads reviewer ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ “Brimming with adventure, romance, and loveable characters you’ll gladly follow into the shadows of their vivid world." — Alexandra Bracken, NYT Bestselling author of Lore

From New York Times bestselling author Rachel Gillig comes a sensational romantasy, a gothic, mist-cloaked tale of a young prophetess forced on an impossible quest with the one knight whose future is beyond her sight. Sybil Delling has spent nine years dreaming of having no dreams at all. Like the other foundling girls who traded a decade of service for a home in the great cathedral, Sybil is a Diviner. In her dreams she receives visions from six unearthly figures known as Omens. From them, she can predict terrible things before they occur, and lords and common folk alike travel across the kingdom of Traum’s windswept moors to learn their futures by her dreams. Just as she and her sister Diviners near the end of their service, a mysterious knight arrives at the cathedral. Rude, heretical, and devilishly handsome, the knight Rodrick has no respect for Sybil’s visions. But when Sybil’s fellow Diviners begin to vanish one by one, she has no choice but to seek his help in finding them. For the world outside the cathedral’s cloister is wrought with peril. Only the gods have the answers she is seeking, and as much as she’d rather avoid Rodrick’s dark eyes and sharp tongue, only a heretic can defeat a god.

All Reyna and Kianthe want is to open a bookshop that serves tea. Worn wooden floors, plants on every table, firelight drifting between the rafters… all complemented by love and good company. Thing is, Reyna works as one of the Queen’s private guards, and Kianthe is the most powerful mage in existence. Leaving their lives isn’t so easy. But after an assassin takes Reyna hostage, she decides she’s thoroughly done risking her life for a self-centered queen. Meanwhile, Kianthe has been waiting for a chance to flee responsibility–all the better that her girlfriend is on board. Together, they settle in Tawney, a town that boasts more dragons than people, and open the shop of their dreams. What follows is a cozy tale of mishaps, mysteries, and a murderous queen throwing the realm’s biggest temper tantrum. In a story brimming with hurt/comfort and quiet fireside conversations, these two women will discover just what they mean to each other… and the world.

Welcome to Evergreen Academy, the secret college for Magical Botanists. I’d always sensed something peculiar about the reclusive Evergreen Academy, tucked deep in the woods of my hometown. But I never could have imagined it was a college for magical botanists–and that I am one of them. An invitation to the academy opens up a whole new world of wonder, yet my plant affinity powers remain elusive, and my scientific training is far behind that of my peers. When I’m assigned a tutor, Callan Rhodes, a powerful descendant of the academy’s founders, I’m baffled by his willingness to help me. Despite my challenges, I’m enchanted by the academy’s glass schoolhouse, its grounds which are overflowing with plants that defy the climate, and the quirky festivals held each equinox and solstice. But disaster looms as the verdant shield that protects the academy from the prying eyes of nonmagical people begins to falter. Can Callan and the other founder’s descendants sustain the magic on their own, or will the clock finally start to tick on figuring out my powers? Elements you'll find in this story: Magical academy Plant magic Small town setting Cozy fantasy Light academia Science-based magic system Slow burn romance (no spice) First person POV An enchanting world And so much more