2005 is the bicentenary of Hans Christian Andersen's birth. His stories have timeless themes - love, death, coming to terms with all that life offers. This collection of ten stories weaves those essential themes of beauty and cruelty into contemporary takes on life. "The Steadfast Tin Solder" becomes "The Flames of Love", "The Ugly Duckling" is retold as "Swan" and "The Emperor's New Clothes", retold as "The King of Cool", has new relevance as the story of a boy obsessed with branded clothing. All are memorable for the shock value of many of Andersen's most painful images: the shards of a broken mirror; the piercing of a broken heart. "The Swineherd" ("Princess), "The Snow Queen" ("The Shattered Mirror"), "The Wild Swans"("The Wild Swanns"), "The Princess and the Pea" ("Mother Knows Best"), "The Little Match Girl" ("A Little Flame"), "The Ugly Duckling" ("Swan) and "The Little Mermaid" ("Coming Up for Air") are all also recast for the 21st century.

If you’re excited about the upcoming Disney film Beauty and the Beast, starring Emma Watson, don’t miss Cruel Beauty. The romance of Beauty and the Beast meets the adventure of Graceling in this dazzling fantasy novel about our deepest desires and their power to change our destiny. Perfect for fans of bestselling An Ember in the Ashes and A Court of Thorns and Roses, this gorgeously written debut infuses the classic fairy tale with glittering magic, a feisty heroine, and a romance sure to take your breath away. Betrothed to the evil ruler of her kingdom, Nyx has always known that her fate was to marry him, kill him, and free her people from his tyranny. But on her seventeenth birthday when she moves into his castle high on the kingdom's mountaintop, nothing is what she expected—particularly her charming and beguiling new husband. Nyx knows she must save her homeland at all costs, yet she can't resist the pull of her sworn enemy—who's gotten in her way by stealing her heart.

Filled with magic and fierce emotion, Lisa Jensen's multilayered novel will make you question all you think you know about beauty, beastliness, and happily ever after. They say Château Beaumont is cursed. But servant-girl Lucie can’t believe such foolishness about handsome Jean-Loup Christian Henri LeNoir, Chevalier de Beaumont, master of the estate. But when the chevalier's cruelty is revealed, Lucie vows to see him suffer. A wisewoman grants her wish, with a spell that transforms Jean-Loup into monstrous-looking Beast, reflecting the monster he is inside. But Beast is nothing like the chevalier. Jean-Loup would never patiently tend his roses; Jean-Loup would never attempt poetry; Jean-Loup would never express remorse for the wrong done to Lucie. Gradually, Lucie realizes that Beast is an entirely different creature from the handsome chevalier, with a heart more human than Jean-Loup’s ever was. Lucie dares to hope that noble Beast has permanently replaced the cruel Jean-Loup — until an innocent beauty arrives at Beast’s château with the power to break the spell.

Cruelty, once an evil fairy and now working in fast food, comes home one day to find the lazy, drooling King of Cats on her doorstep. Worse, he comes bearing news Cruelty would be happier not hearing: Sleeping Beauty has gotten tired of lying around and is trying to save the world Cruelty left long ago. Any respectable Archetype knows it's a waste of time; their chances of survival are much better if they can hide in the human world. But since nobody sent her an invitation to the world-saving, she's practically obligated to interfere.

PERFECT for fans of Roald Dahl. Think you know Dahl? Think again. There's still a whole world of Dahl to discover in a newly collected book of his deliciously dark tales for adults . . . 'Cruelty has a human heart . . .' Even when we mean to be kind we can sometimes be cruel. We each have a streak of nastiness inside us. In these ten tales of cruelty master storyteller Roald Dahl explores how and why it is we make others suffer. Among others, you'll read the story of two young bullies and the boy they torment, the adulterous wife who uncovers her husband's secret, the man with a painting tattooed on his back whose value he doesn't appreciate and the butler and chef who run rings around their obnoxious employer. Roald Dahl reveals even more about the darker side of human nature in seven other centenary editions: Lust, Madness, Deception, Innocence, Trickery, War and Fear.

Experience the world's most enchanting and timeless love story-retold with a dark and realistic twist. A BEAST LIVING IN THE SHADOW OF HIS PAST Reclusive and severely scarred Prince Adam Delacroix has remained hidden inside a secluded, decrepit castle ever since he witnessed his family's brutal massacre. Cloaked in shadow, with only the lamentations of past ghosts for company, he has abandoned all hope, allowing the world to believe he died on that tragic eve twenty-five years ago. A BEAUTY IN PURSUIT OF A BETTER FUTURE Caught in a fierce snowstorm, beautiful and strong-willed Isabelle Rose seeks shelter at a castle-unaware that its beastly and disfigured master is much more than he appears to be. When he imprisons her gravely ill and blind father, she bravely offers herself in his place. BEAUTY AND THE BEAST Stripped of his emotional defenses, Adam's humanity reawakens as he encounters a kindred soul in Isabelle. Together they will wade through darkness and discover beauty and passion in the most unlikely of places. But when a monster from Isabelle's former life threatens their new love, Demrov's forgotten prince must emerge from his shadows and face the world once more... Perfect for fans of Beauty and the Beast and The Phantom of the Opera, Beauty of the Beast brings a familiar and well-loved fairy tale to life with a rich setting in the kingdom of Demrov and a captivating, Gothic voice. * * * Beauty of the Beast is the first standalone installment in a series of classic fairy tales reimagined with a dark and realistic twist. Disclaimer: This is an edgy, historical romance retelling of the classic fairy tale. Due to strong sexual content, profanity, and dark subject matter, including an instance of sexual assault committed by the villain, Beauty of the Beast is not intended for readers under the age of 18.

I was a beauty who witnessed a murder and the beast took me as his hostage. Amazon Bestseller in Fairytales and Top 50 in Gothic Romance and Vigilante Justice. Once upon a time... A Don by the name of Vlad Vitalli ruled New York. He's a mafia man. The leader of one of the five ruling families, La Cosa Nostra. He's a monster. A trained killer and a cold-blooded murderer. He's tall, mysterious, with icy gray eyes, and he rarely smiles. He's a criminal. Ruthless, cold, dangerous, and he is going to kill me. I was the wrong person at the wrong time. An innocent at the masquerade ball but I witnessed a murder. I become a target to the mafia who have a rule of no witnesses left behind. To save my life, I made a deal with the ruthless beast. I handed myself to the cruelest man in the kingdom. Just as Don Vlad was about to order the hit, I threw off my masquerade mask, revealing my face, and offered myself to him. One look and I was doomed. He took me as his hostage. His captive. He didn't know that by taking me, Dahlia Hadid, he sealed his own fate. Welcome to New York's Underworld. Loosely based on the Beauty & the Beast fairytale. A Gothic Romance of an notorious gangster and the woman who will bring him to his knees. It is not a standalone and part of a duet.