A sapphic rivals to lovers rom com for fans of Ted Lasso and A League of Their Own, where two soccer teammates are at odds before falling in love as their team gears up for the World Cup.Grace Henderson has been a star of the US Women’s National Team for ten years, even though she’s only 26. But when she’s sidelined with an injury, a bold new upstart, Phoebe Matthews, takes her spot. Phoebe is everything Grace isn’t—a gregarious jokester who plays with a joy that Grace lost somewhere along the way. The last thing Grace expects is to become friends with benefits with this class clown she sees as her rival.Phoebe Matthews has always admired Grace’s skill and was star struck to be training alongside her idol. But she quickly finds herself looking at Grace as more than a mere teammate. After one daring kiss, she’s hooked. Grace is everything she has been waiting to find.As the World Cup approaches, and Grace works her way back from injury, the women decide to find a way they can play together instead of vying for the same position. Except, when they are off the field, Grace is worried she’s catching feelings while Phoebe thinks they are dating. As the tension between them grows, will both players realize they care more about their relationship than making the roster?

Eine scharfsinnige und humorvolle Analyse unserer Entschuldigungskultur von Bestseller-Autorin Tara-Louise Wittwer alias @ wastarasagt Wir entschuldigen uns stä »Sorry, dass ich störe «, »sorry, ich muss mal durch«, aber ist das wirklich notwendig? »sorry, aber...« Bestseller-Autorin Tara-Louise Wittwer (Drama Queen) nervt es, dass ihr eine schnelle Entschuldigung oft so viel leichter über die Lippen geht als für sich einzustehen. Und dass sie sich so oft schuldig fühlt, obwohl es keinen Grund dazu gibt. Warum ist es überhaupt wichtig, sich zu entschuldigen – und was bedeutet eine Entschuldigung, wenn sie nicht ernst gemeint ist? Entschuldigen wir uns, um die Schuld abzuladen? Entschuldigen wir uns für andere, damit sie sich besser fühlen? Kann man sich überhaupt aktiv entschuldigen, oder muss man um Entschuldigung bitten? Entschuldigen sich Frauen mehr als Männer? Hat sich die Art und Weise, wie wir uns entschuldigen, im Laufe der Zeit verändert? Welchen Einfluss haben die sozialen Netzwerke auf unsere Fehlerkultur? In ihrem neuen Sachhörbuch Sorry, aber... hält Tara-Louise Wittwer unserer Gesellschaft erneut den Spiegel vor – und natürlich auch sich selbst.

"Abenteuer kann man doch nicht planen wie Ballett oder so was. Die warten um die Ecke und - zack! - plötzlich sind sie da!", erklärt Sprotte ihren Freundinnen. Tatsächlich lässt das erste Abenteuer für ihre Mädchenbande DIE WILDEN HÜHNER nicht lange auf sich warten. Denn DIE PYGMÄEN, vier Jungs aus ihrer Klasse, lassen nach einem Streit die Hühner von Sprottes Oma frei. Das schreit natürlich nach Rache.

Mexican Gothic meets Everything I Never Told You in Christina Li’s haunting novel about the secrets that lie in wait in the crumbling mansion of a former Hollywood starlet, and the intertwined fates of the two Chinese American families fighting to inherit it.They say what you don’t know can’t hurt you. But silence can be deadly. Vivian Yin is dead. The first Chinese actress to win an Oscar, the trailblazing ingénue rose to fame in the eighties, only to disappear from the spotlight at the height of her career and live out the rest of her life as a recluse. Now her remaining family members are gathered for the reading of her will and her daughters expect to inherit their childhood Vivian’s grand, sprawling Southern California garden estate. But due to a last-minute change to the will, the house is passed on to another family instead—one that has suddenly returned after decades of estrangement. In hopes of staking their claim, both families move into the mansion. Amidst the grief and paranoia of the families’ unhappy reunion, Vivian’s daughters race to piece together what happened in the last weeks of their mother’s life, only to realize they are being haunted by something much more sinister and vengeful than their regrets. After so many years of silence, will the families finally confront the painful truth about the last fateful summer they spent in the house, or will they cling to their secrets until it’s too late? Told in dual timelines, spanning three generations, and brimming with romance, betrayal, ambition and sacrifice, The Manor of Dreams is a thrilling family gothic that examines the true cost of the American dream—and what happens when the roots we set down in this country turn to rot.

Six hundred years of immortal friendship. One bite that changes everything. Ancient vampires Aster Castelmar and Sylvia Maroven have been inseparable for six centuries. They’ve survived inquisitions, wars, collapsing empires, the industrial revolution… but now, they face their most challenging obstacle New York City rental prices. After decades of spending, they’re broke, unemployed, and they need money fast. So they do what any sensible immortal criminals would do, and pivot to white collar crime. Their plan is embed themselves in a tech startup, manipulate a billionaire oil heir, take his money, and vanish. It’s a great scheme, fullproof like all of their previous adventures. Well, it would have been foolproof, if Sylvia hadn't bitten her. The bite should have been meaningless. A joke between lifelong friends. Instead, it triggers an ancient vampire bond meant for lifelong partners, leaving Aster unraveling… and begging for more.

Eine scharfsinnige und humorvolle Analyse unserer Entschuldigungskultur von Bestseller-Autorin Tara-Louise Wittwer alias @ wastarasagt Wir entschuldigen uns stä »Sorry, dass ich störe «, »sorry, ich muss mal durch«, aber ist das wirklich notwendig? »sorry, aber...« Bestseller-Autorin Tara-Louise Wittwer (Drama Queen) nervt es, dass ihr eine schnelle Entschuldigung oft so viel leichter über die Lippen geht als für sich einzustehen. Und dass sie sich so oft schuldig fühlt, obwohl es keinen Grund dazu gibt. Warum ist es überhaupt wichtig, sich zu entschuldigen – und was bedeutet eine Entschuldigung, wenn sie nicht ernst gemeint ist? Entschuldigen wir uns, um die Schuld abzuladen? Entschuldigen wir uns für andere, damit sie sich besser fühlen? Kann man sich überhaupt aktiv entschuldigen, oder muss man um Entschuldigung bitten? Entschuldigen sich Frauen mehr als Männer? Hat sich die Art und Weise, wie wir uns entschuldigen, im Laufe der Zeit verändert? Welchen Einfluss haben die sozialen Netzwerke auf unsere Fehlerkultur? In ihrem neuen Sachhörbuch Sorry, aber... hält Tara-Louise Wittwer unserer Gesellschaft erneut den Spiegel vor – und natürlich auch sich selbst.

From the #1 bestselling author comes an epic story of love and war as two opposing deities find themselves drawn to each other against all odds. Because when Aphrodite and Ares fall in love, sparks are bound to fly.What would happen if the goddess of love fell for the god of war? Two opposites drawn together against all odds . . .Aphrodite, Goddess of Love, wields unparalleled power over every divine and mortal heart. Mistaken to be all beauty, no brains, she is in fact the most dangerous of all, driven by passion regardless of the consequences.While on the surface, Ares, God of War, is her opposite –disliked by everyone and devoted to stirring up conflict – the two are more alike than they realise, each causing havoc for gods and mortals as they rule their primal realms.These gods are no more immune to the dizzying highs and lows of love and loss than anyone else and before long, they are irresistibly drawn to one another. But there’s only so much room for fire and passion in Zeus’ kingdom, and whilst the God of War may be capable of greater love than anyone else, so may the Goddess of Love be capable of the gravest mistakes.

A reclusive witch who fled the burden of her bloodline rises to be the greatest among them in this lush and haunting fantasy debut. For New Orleans witchkin, there is no greater honor than to become the Prime—chosen to rule. But the title is meant to pass between two rival Houses of magic. Not to the prodigal daughter of the former Prime who died under mysterious circumstances. As a girl, Seraphine Barreau was dubbed the Tick Witch for her ability to feed on magic and make it her own. Even among those who alter fate and manipulate reality, she was a powerful outcast feared and misunderstood by her people. Now dragged back to continue the legacy that nearly destroyed her, Phine has her work cut out for her. She must earn the respect of her people, navigate the politics of the paranormal communities residing in her city, and heal a broken heart all the while battling a parasitic curse poisoning witchkin. Between her werewolf ex, power-hungry vampires, and the skeletons in her family’s closet, Phine must learn to make peace with her past to save her—and all of witchkin’s—future.

With her country's future and her own life at stake, an orphaned duchess must journey into a world of myth and there discover a power that may be her salvation—or her demise—in this enchanting new novel from the New York Times bestselling author of the Winternight Trilogy and The Warm Hands of Ghosts. Anne of Brittany was a child when her realm was invaded, her home besieged, and her royal father driven to his death. Now her treasury is empty, her land occupied by her enemies, and she is ordered, under threat of renewed war, to become queen of her conquerors and marry the King of France. This marriage means her country’s annexation. But Anne promised her father that Brittany would never be conquered. Defiantly, she betroths herself in secret to France’s greatest enemy. But in a world where courts may spy on each other by magic, there is only one way to solemnize this illicit union. Anne takes her court deep into a legendary forest, where the court diviners’ skill cannot reach. The world thinks they are only a hunting party, coursing after unicorns. But that is a lie, a trick, a feint. No one in living memory has seen a unicorn. All Anne wants is this secret wedding, which is her only hope of salvation. But when against all hope a unicorn appears and a stranger out of legend stumbles from the trees and falls at her feet, Anne is plunged into a world of enchantment where a doomed sovereign might find the power to change her own and her country’s destiny—or be lost in the shadows forever.

Shannon Chakraborty, the bestselling author of The City of Brass, spins a new trilogy of magic and mayhem on the high seas in this tale of pirates and sorcerers, forbidden artifacts and ancient mysteries, in one woman’s determined quest to seize a final chance at glory—and write her own legend. Amina al-Sirafi should be content. After a storied and scandalous career as one of the Indian Ocean’s most notorious pirates, she’s survived backstabbing rogues, vengeful merchant princes, several husbands, and one actual demon to retire peacefully with her family to a life of piety, motherhood, and absolutely nothing that hints of the supernatural. But when she’s tracked down by the obscenely wealthy mother of a former crewman, she’s offered a job no bandit could refuse: retrieve her comrade’s kidnapped daughter for a kingly sum. The chance to have one last adventure with her crew, do right by an old friend, and win a fortune that will secure her family’s future forever? It seems like such an obvious choice that it must be God’s will. Yet the deeper Amina dives, the more it becomes alarmingly clear there’s more to this job, and the girl’s disappearance, than she was led to believe. For there’s always risk in wanting to become a legend, to seize one last chance at glory, to savor just a bit more power…and the price might be your very soul.

All strays are welcome here.From Sunday Times and New York Times bestselling author Heather Fawcett comes a healing and heart-warming fantasy with magic shops, rescue cats and a second chance at love.Agnes Aubert is very fond of making lists. These lists kept her afloat when she lost her husband two years ago. And now, as the founder of a cat rescue charity, her meticulous organization skills feel like the only thing standing between her beloved cats - His Majesty, Banshee and sweet elderly Thoreau, to name a few - and utter disaster.But when Agnes is forced to move the charity, she soon discovers that her new shop is being used as a front; right under her feet is the lair of the decidedly disorganised - not to mention self-absorbed and infuriatingly handsome - Havelock Renard.Havelock is everything Agnes doesn't want in her chaos, mischief, and a little too much adventure. But as she gets to know him, she discovers he's more than the dark magician of legend, and that she may be ready for a little intrigue, perhaps even romance. After all, second chances aren't just for rescue cats. . . Praise for the Emily Wilde 'Forget dark give me instead this kind of winter-sunshined, sharp-tongued and footnoted academia, full of field trips and grumpy romance' Freya Marske, author of A Marvellous Light'Enchanting in every sense of the word. . . This book is real magic' H. G. Parry, author of The Unlikely Escape of Uriah Heep'A book so vividly, endlessly enchanting, so crisply assured, so rich and complete and wise and far-reaching in its worldbuilding that you'll walk away half ensorcelled, sure Fawcett found Emily Wilde's journal in some sea-stained trunk' Melissa Albert'The ideal book to curl up with on a chilly winter's evening. . . this book is an absolute delight.' Megan Bannen, author of The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy'A charmingly whimsical delight. . . Five dazzling, gladdening stars' India Holton, author of The Wisteria Society of Lady Scoundrels'I enjoyed every word of this gorgeously written fairy tale featuring a grumpy heroine and an utterly charming love interest' Isabel Ibañez, author of Woven In Moonlight

From the bestselling author of Cultish and host of the podcast Sounds Like a Cult, a delicious blend of cultural criticism and personal narrative that explores our cognitive biases and the power, disadvantages, and highlights of magical thinking. Utilizing the linguistic insights of her “witty and brilliant” first book Wordslut and the sociological explorations of her breakout hit Cultish, Amanda Montell now turns her erudite eye to the inner workings of the human mind and its biases in her most personal and electrifying work yet. “Magical thinking” can be broadly defined as the belief that one’s internal thoughts can affect unrelated events in the external Think of the conviction that one can manifest their way out of poverty, stave off cancer with positive vibes, thwart the apocalypse by learning to can their own peaches, or transform an unhealthy relationship to a glorious one with loyalty alone. In all its forms, magical thinking works in service of restoring agency amid chaos, but in The Age of Magical Overthinking, Montell argues that in the modern information age, our brain’s coping mechanisms have been overloaded, and our irrationality turned up to an eleven. In a series of razor sharp, deeply funny chapters, Montell delves into a cornucopia of the cognitive biases that run rampant in our brains, from how the “Halo effect” cultivates worship (and hatred) of larger than life celebrities, to how the “Sunk Cost Fallacy” can keep us in detrimental relationships long after we’ve realized they’re not serving us. As she illuminates these concepts with her signature brilliance and wit, Montell’s prevailing message is one of hope, empathy, and ultimately forgiveness for our anxiety-addled human selves. If you have all but lost faith in our ability to reason, Montell aims to make some sense of the senseless. To crack open a window in our minds, and let a warm breeze in. To help quiet the cacophony for a while, or even hear a melody in it.