Fresh and funny. I found my self warming to the well crafted characters and laughing out loud at the unique perspective Alix has as a young woman in an unusual situation. I'd almost forgotten what it is like to be a young adult, this story helped me to remember, I'm so glad I made it out alive.

No one ever notices the bartender.

Shea O'Ryan reflects on the place that was her whole life: her father's bar. You get to meet the people that made up her daily custom and through her eyes peek into the existence of each of them.

It's a very short story yet it covers a great deal of ground, the character studies alone make it worth the read. ...oh and someone does notice the bartender.

In All the Way to Heaven S.Berry takes a not-so-typical college party, idealizes it and makes it cuter than a whole shopping cart full of beagle puppies. It begins with a little gathering, continues with some swell parlor games and concludes with a sweet little love connection. All the makings of a very entertaining read.

An Amazon chooses to leave the land of her birth to follow her lover, a crusader captured on Amazon lands, when he is freed to return to his home. Their Daughter stands at the portal of two worlds not willing to step fully into either one until a dark assassin comes calling. And the rest, at least in Dawn Lamanne's "Amazon Awakenings," is history.

You feel every word with such passion it makes your mouth dry. We can all only hope that one day we can love and be loved as expressed by the words in this lustful loving tale.

Romantic? This is way beyond that, right to where your skin tingles. Out of all the FF around, to me this is the most arousing one out there. It's done so tastefully as well. Huge THUD for this. Read, but sadly this is one bard one you cannot feed any longer. This writer left us long ago, such a shame it is too.

I recommend a cup of tea (or the comfort beverage of your choice) and box of tissues when you read this one, a sad, feel-good story. Despite the relative briefness, the reader is left with a feeling of closure that denotes a truly well written short.

As in her other tales, Barbara Davies addresses her subject matter with an easy, understated style that's a pleasure to read. This piece manages to capture the magic of what may be the favorite X&G episode of all time.

Appetite is an emotionally evocative piece that will wrench at your heart, for what is said and even more so for what is left unsaid. Read this and then be certain to give this bard her rightful due.

The story picks up at the funeral pyre scene in MATERNAL INSTINCTS and gives us an alternate story line, bypassing the infamous Gab drag and THE BITTER SUITE all together. Instead, Gabrielle makes that dramatic walk, in the opposite direction of Xena, and keeps on walking. Despondent over the deaths of their children and feeling responsible for Solon's death, the bard makes a deal that changes her and Xena's fate.....forever?

Written in a realistic tone, even though part of it takes place in the surreal setting of Charon's Dock, it has a gritty feel that makes the characters flesh and bone. It's appropriately, and honestly, dark at times but never relinquishes the deep love between the two characters. I hate to give too much away but I need to say how much I adored the use of the dead hearing another's loving thoughts of them-it has always been a simply breathtaking notion, and here it is beautifully executed.

Fate has it's hand in all the lives of the characters in SX Meagher's successful "I Found My Heart in San Francisco" series, and Book 11, "Karma" is yet another example of fine writing, of which the author is in a class all her own.The continuing adventures of Ryan O'Flaherty, her partner Jamie Evans, and a cast of parents, siblings, cousins and friends combine to make this installment literally, one hell of a ride. Ryan finds that playing sports isn't always fun, while Jamie deals with trouble between her parents. Love blossoms between old friends, while others are afraid to admit their true feelings towards one another. Will Ryan sacrifice all, for a chance at a long forgotten dream? How will Jamie be able to balance school, golf, and a relationship?? And lastly, I guarantee the finale of this installment will have you on the edge of your seat. Reading anything that SX puts out makes me aware that I have been witness to greatness, to something that comes along but once in a lifetime. The words, images, flow movie-like into your consciousness, and I have found myself affected by them long after "The End." There is enough going on in this book to curb your appetite until Book 12, of which I know I can hardly wait. So I suggest you get comfy, and have a truly mesmerizing read with "Karma."

The setting is imaginative, bestowing a brilliant, glittering wealth of the customs, dress code and intrigue of palace politics in a society so rigid it has no choice but to be rotten inside. Subterfuge and lust reign in a court where one snide word, one wrong alliance can mean anything from loss of mien to loss of internal organs. The language is rich, the dialogue following the intricate twists and turns of formal parlance of the feudal period, adding yet another touch of authenticity. All I can say is, for a dose of fascinating history and a rollicky exciting story, this is one of the best, most promising new series to see the light of day.