Bücher veröffentlicht von Bywater Books

Salem West and Christel Cogneau have assembled a powerhouse lineup of Bywater Books and Amble Press authors to explore, subvert, and reinvigorate the bountiful feast of All Hallows phantasmagoria in this stunning collection.To the living, "soul food" has a specific meaning, history, and flavor. But what does "soul food" mean to the demon, ghost, fiend, witch, spirit, or vampire? How does their ingenuity and wit rise and fall in the taking, baking, erasing, embracing, and defacing of sustenance?West and Cogneau have challenged their authors to explore these and other questions in surprising and fascinating ways. Sometimes sweet and other times terrifying, sometimes warm or otherwise demented, these stories set the table for an otherworldly feast of delight and intrigue.Let the banquet begin . . .Soul Food Stories is packed with literary confections by award-winning authors, Anna Burke, Jenn Alexander, Jacob Budenz, Virginia Black, Cathy Pegau, and Ann McMan.Featured stories include: "The Five Year Revenge Agency" by Anna Burke"Tilly's Tarts" by Jenn Alexander"Of the Air and Land" by Jacob Budenz"Ravenous" by Virginia Black"In Speary Wood" by Cathy Pegau"Perhaps You Missed My Signs" by Anna Burke"Ghost Writer" by Ann McMan

Virginia Black's No Shelter But The Stars is the space opera you've been waiting for--packed with warring worlds, romantic adventure, and larger-than-life characters. Kyran Loyal is the last heir to the lost throne of a forgotten planet, the figurehead of a nomadic people fleeing the galactic tyranny of a brutal regime. Davia Sifane is the unrecognized daughter of an imperial despot. When happenstance pits them against each other in battle, neither expects the outcome: they are the only two people to survive. Marooned on a barren moon, their only hope of survival is to rely on each other, but what they learn will either kill them or change the galaxy forever.

Award-winning author and journalist Penny Mickelbury returns to pre-Civil War Philadelphia to continue the powerful saga of Genie Oliver and Abigail Read.In 1857 the US Supreme Court ruled that Blacks were not--and could never be citizens. Black lives were already in peril from the hooligans who would capture and sell them South under the protection of the Runaway Slave Act, even if they weren't runaway slaves. By 1861 Southern states spoke openly of seceding from the Union to form the Confederate States and protect what they believed was their right to own slaves. If the South were to win, slavery would become the law of the land. So for many Blacks, leaving was the only option.Genie Oliver, who frequently dresses as a man to move about the city, is no longer safe in her disguise. White people find themselves just as imperiled for providing any assistance to Blacks--which means that the former Pinkerton's agent Ezra MacKaye, his fiancé Ada Lawrence, and heiress Abigail Read, are in as much danger as Genie and her friends, the Juniper family.Not knowing what to expect, Ezra, Ada, and the Juniper family join Genie and Abigail as they pack up their lives and head to Canada. Their goal is to stay at least one step ahead of the brutalities of the uncivil war, but can they outpace the dangers that cross their paths every step of the way?

Years after a fractured teenage romance, an up-and-coming musician and a youth counselor team up on a project that rocks everything they thought they knew about themselves and each other.Spencer Adams was never expected to be anything more than a high school dropout. She'd been a troubled teen, spending more time at the skate park than in school, at least until her music teacher introduced her to the guitar, and music class became her lifeline. Ten years later, she is the guitarist in a band that has become a breakout success, and she wants to use that success to help other teens who have had the same rough start as her. She takes on a volunteer project with local youth as a way of honoring her past, not knowing that it will force her to revisit the one part of her past that she'd hoped to forget.Faith Siebert has always had high expectations to live up to, and she has tried her best to fulfill those expectations, to be a good daughter, a good student, and a good friend. When she fell for Spencer in high school, she knew her family and friends would never approve. Scared of their reactions, Faith ended things with Spencer, following the path her parents wanted for her, even at the immense personal cost. Of course, it had only been a high school romance, destined for brevity anyway. At least, that's what she told herself. But when Spencer shows up in her life once again, partnered with Faith on a youth music project, her world is rocked and she is forced to re-examine everything she knows about relationships and herself.Live It Out is a second-chance romance about forgiveness and finding one's authentic self.

Award-winning author Anna Burke delivers the shivers in this daring queer dark fantasy romance teeming with sensuous vampires, dark academia, plant horrors, and terrifying fungal fae.When Clara Eden is offered a job as an archivist working for eccentric estate owner Agatha Montague, she thinks her prayers have been answered. Soon, she finds herself sucked into her research world, captivated by a romantic correspondence thousands of years old. But as her feelings for her employer's assistant, Fiadh, deepen, so does her suspicion that something about Agatha Montague isn't right. Unfortunately for Clara, it is far too late to run by the time her suspicions are confirmed.

Lambda Literary Award-winning author introduces readers to the crime-fighting duo of Fin Donner and Devorah Longstreet--Lovers. Investigators. Women ahead of their time.New York City, 1899--a city on the cusp of a new century. A city growing taller, faster, a city of new inventions, new ideas--and old dangers on its shadowy streets where crime, misery, and murder lurk.When Pauline Godfrey, a young woman embodying the coming modern age, is viciously murdered, her throat cut, private inquiry agents Finola "Fin" Donner and Devorah Longstreet must navigate a world of violence and passion, lust and betrayal, where duty is twisted into bitter obedience and love is soiled.Fin, a tough survivor of the dockside slums, and her beloved companion, the elegant, intellectual socialite Devorah, probe deep into the festering secrets of a family, the rot and corruption of the police department, and the sinister world of the city's thieves, whores, and thugs to find the killer.

When a vile, hate-spewing thug attacks the people she loves, trans woman Nikki Finch knows what she must do to protect them.Nikki Finch is a successful transgender woman with a thriving Beatnik cafe and a comfortable life until the first summer of the Trump presidency sets off a wave of violence against minorities. Nikki's carefully curated world is shattered when a neo-Nazi thug attacks her business partner. She comes to his rescue, but her efforts launch a chain of events that imperil her and everyone she loves, especially her angst-ridden daughter, Morgan. Nikki will do everything she can to keep her loved ones safe, but as her civilized options begin to evaporate, she is left with no choice but to go places she's never gone before. Kill or be killed. It should be a simple choice. But it's not that simple for Nikki Finch--it would have to be a cold-blooded murder and she'd have to get away with it. It could work, but what kind of example would she set for her daughter?

Samara Breger's A Long Time Dead is a lush, Victorian romance, drenched in blood and drama, about the lengths two women will go to secure a love that cannot die. Somewhere foggy, 1837 . . .Poppy had always loved the night, which is why it wasn't too much of a bother to wake one evening in an unfamiliar home far from London, weak and confused and plagued with a terrible thirst for blood, to learn that she could no longer step out into the day. And while vampirism presented several disadvantages, it more than made up for those in its benefits: immortality, a body that could run at speed for hours without tiring, the thrill of becoming a predator, the thing that pulls rabbits from bushes and tears through their fur and flesh with the sharp point of a white fang.And, of course, Roisin. The mysterious woman who has lived for centuries, who held Poppy through her painful transformation, and who, for some reason, is now teaching her how to adjust to her new, endless life. A tight, lonely, buttoned-up woman, with kindness and care pressed up behind her teeth. The time they spend together is as transformative to Poppy as the changes in her body, and soon, she finds herself hopelessly, overwhelmingly attached. But Roisin has secrets of her own, and can't make any promises; not when vengeance must be served.Soon, their little world explodes. Together and apart, they encounter scores of vampires, shifty pirates, conniving opera singers, ancient nobles, glamorous French women, and a found family that throws a very particular sort of party. But overhead, threat looms--one woman who is capable of destroying everything Poppy and Roisin hold dear.

Consecrated Ground is a multiracial lesbian paranormal tour de force that will leave you wary of the shadows and absolutely breathless.Like her father before her, Joan Matthews is a witch. For generations, their family of binder witches has protected Calvert, Oregon from vampires by strengthening the land with spellcraft. Pushing back against tradition, Joan defied her father and left town to become a war witch, one who fights the monsters hand-to-hand. But when her father dies, Joan returns to find her hometown assailed by a vampire lord's endless attacks--and the answers lie with the one woman who chose a rival over Joan.Leigh Phan once believed her heart was safe and her future was set. When Joan left town, Leigh's choices led to ruin and unintended consequences. Now Leigh harbors a dark secret forcing her to live a moment-to-moment existence. Her only hope of survival lies in trusting the war witch who left her behind.Now it's up to Joan to fight for a town she left behind, while Leigh faces a destiny she never imagined was possible. With Calvert on the brink of total destruction, Joan and Leigh join forces and face inconvenient truths in order to save their town--and each other.

Attorney and recovering cocaineaddict Sam DiCiccio didnt think she was ever going to see her ex-wife Amy Igarashi again, much less wind up defending her against felony insider trading charges.But Amys been falsely accused, and Sam, whos still in love with her, cant bear to watch her take the fall for a crime she didnt commit. Amy is holding on to resentment from their broken relationship and is hesitant to let Sam back into her life. But that all changes when her assets are frozen by a judge, and Sam is the best and only lawyer she can afford.As Sam and Amy pull the threads of the alleged crime, they begin to unravel a mysterious corporate conspiracy that runs deep and wide. But as the clock ticks faster each day, the chance to prove Amy's innocence and keep her out of jail begins to slip away.Sam and Amy keep inching closer to the truth, but each step draws them closer to shadowy enemies and amplifies the heat between them.

The third book in Marie Santora's search for true love finds her big Italian family still serving the up the fun, Italian style: Loud, lusty, and volatile-overflowing with lots of love and laughter.What's funny about losing everything you love? Plenty, if you're a member of the Santora family.Marie Santora has always suffered from an enormous case of good luck/bad luck when it comes to women, and the past six years have been no exception. When Marie's love life hits the skids-again-her irrepressible sister Lisa begins to wonder if this is the time that her sister's loss is too great for even their eccentric Italian family to heal.To help Marie escape the painful memories, Lisa ditches her gay campground for a family lake house, and Marie vows to be done with straight girls once and for all. But just as the Santora clan descends upon Marie to "e;help"e;, a surprise house call changes her good luck to bad luck once again, putting Mari's willpower to the ultimate test.The family motto has always been "e;Either you're IN, or you're OUT!"e; and this newest family crisis means the Santora's are ALL IN-even though Marie wants them out!

Lambda Literary Award-winning author returns with a stunning mystery proving that Noir is the new black.A golden city of prosperity, energy, the exciting engine of the American Dream. Just underneath, though, is a dark city, with darker ambitions. This is the world of Cantor Gold, dapper art thief and smuggler, who has her own way of securing the rewards of the American Dream. In the conformist 1950s, when same-sex romance was illegal, Cantor decides that any Law that condemns her as a criminal just for her love of women is not a Law she owes any allegiance to. As an outlaw, she thrives earning fistfuls of cash and living life on her own terms. But someone wants to take it all away. Someone wants to rob Cantor of everything: her success in the underworld, her freedom, her life.Predators are out to destroy Cantor: the cops who violently raid the Green Door Club, Cantor's favorite watering hole, where the lights are low and the women are willing; and worse, an unknown predator who threatens to destroy Cantor's life, even destroy the lives of people close to her.Murder is one of the weapons in the hunter's arsenal, involving Cantor in the dangerous fate of each corpse. Another is the taunting, threatening notes that turn up on the corpses or at Cantor's door or at the door of people she visits. And then there are the phone calls and a disguised voice. Someone is invading every minute of Cantor Gold's life.

Two-time Lambda Literary Award-winning author Ann McMan introduces readers to a spinster postal investigator for the Winston-Salem Dead Letter Office who finds herself enmeshed in the mystery of solving who is sending undeliverable love letters to the towns 18th-century hortus medicus.The year is 1960, and Gunsmoke is the most popular show on TV. Elvis Presley tops the Billboard charts, and a charismatic young senator named John F. Kennedy is running for president. And, in North Carolina, four young Black men sit down at a Woolworths lunch counter and demand service.Enter Esther Jane (EJ) Cloud, a forty-something spinster who manages the Dead Letter Office at the Winston-Salem post office. EJ leads a quiet life in her Old Salem ancestral home and spends her free time volunteering in the towns 18th-century medicinal garden.One sunny Spring morning, EJs world is turned upside down when she is handed a stack of handwritten letters that have all been addressed to a nonexistent person at the garden. This simple act sets in motion a chain of events that will lead EJ on a life-altering quest to uncover the identity of the mysterious letter writerand into a surprising, head-on confrontation with the harsh realities of the racial injustice that is as deeply rooted in the life of her community as the ancient herbs cultivated in the Moravian garden.When EJ is forced to read the letters to look for clues about the anonymous sender, what she discovers are lyrical tales of a forbidden passion that threaten to unravel the simple contours of her unexamined life. EJs official quest soon morphs into a journey of self-discovery. Her surprising accomplice on this quest becomes a savvy, street-smart ten-year-old wielding an eye patch and a limitless supply of aphorisms. Together, the unlikely duo makes pilgrimages to a tiny town called Paradise to try and crack the casewhile ultimately learning better ways to navigate the changing world around them.Dead Letters from Paradise was named one of Shelf Unbound's 100 Top Notable Indie Titles of 2022.