If anyone told notorious thief Megan that she'd one day live in a royal palace with endless servants catering to her every need, she'd say he was crazy. But when this clever expert thief tries to liberate an expensive watch from a certain gentleman, she gets more than she bargained for.

"Imperial Masquerade: The Legend of Princess Der Ling, the first biography of one of the twentieth century's most intriguing cross-cultural personalities, traces not only the life of Princess Der Ling, in all its various transformations, but offers a fresh look at the woman she lionized and, ultimately, betrayed - the Empress Dowager Cixi, to whom, like Der Ling, many legends have been affixed over the past century. The book also depicts the changing worlds of Paris, Tokyo and the other international stages of Der Ling's development as woman and as mystery, and deals with the many teachers who made her who she was." --Book Jacket.

A princess and a servant unite and switch identities in order to prevent a war between neighboring kingdoms.

Vannevar Thomas is an astute Virginia gentleman and sophisticated vampire living in 19th century San Francisco. In the midst of the California Goldrush, Vannevar faces the conflicts and corruption associated with a rapidly growing vampire society. Prince of the City depicts Nob Hill mansions and balls, a World Fair, and the great San Francisco Earthquake from a vampire's point of view.

The apocalypse will be televised! Welcome to the first book in the wildly popular and addictive Dungeon Crawler Carl series by Matt Dinniman—now with bonus material exclusive to this print edition. You know what’s worse than breaking up with your girlfriend? Being stuck with her prize-winning show cat. And you know what’s worse than that? An alien invasion, the destruction of all man-made structures on Earth, and the systematic exploitation of all the survivors for a sadistic intergalactic game show. That’s what. Join Coast Guard vet Carl and his ex-girlfriend’s cat, Princess Donut, as they try to survive the end of the world—or just get to the next level—in a video game–like, trap-filled fantasy dungeon. A dungeon that’s actually the set of a reality television show with countless viewers across the galaxy. Exploding goblins. Magical potions. Deadly, drug-dealing llamas. This ain’t your ordinary game show. Welcome, Crawler. Welcome to the Dungeon. Survival is optional. Keeping the viewers entertained is not. Includes part one of the exclusive bonus story “Backstage at the Pineapple Cabaret.”

Canterwood Crest Academy cordially invites you to a costume party—with a special sweetheart surprise. Canterwood is known for its fabulous parties, and Halloween is no exception. Lauren Towers is especially excited for the big day. Not only is it her favorite holiday, it’s also her birthday! And this year, she and her friends will celebrate in style—by attending Canterwood’s first-ever masquerade ball. What Lauren doesn’t know is that there’s a special someone behind a mask, just waiting to be revealed. Will this mysterious guest make this masquerade magnifique, or will her perfect birthday bash become a bummer?

Disney Princesses and Tween Identity: The Franchise in Illiberal Hungary examines how tweens in illiberal Hungary construct verbal and visual identities through engagement with Disney princess animations. Presenting and analyzing ethnographic research in the form of interviews with Hungarian tweens around the time of the populist government’s winning the general elections in 2018, Anna Zsubori reveals the importance of social and cultural context in establishing the Disney princess phenomenon as a heterogeneous cultural force. The ambivalent and sometimes even contradictory ideas of identity expressed by the tweens highlight the role that diverse audiences, local negotiations, and dynamic discourses play in the reception of the Disney princess animations. Combining thematic and semiotic textual analyses of the conversations, tweens’ drawings and building blocks, and broader contextual examinations of the sessions with Hungarian children, this book offers original contributions on both theoretical and methodological levels.