❝o god, the son of peleus is indeed a fury; his grief is rolling off in waves of sweat and blood as he brings countless ills upon the achaeans.❞ a rendition of the trojan war in verse [© afterwords 2016] poetry #367

They wanted to make A Christmas Carol of their own. So they did.

Sydney Rowe's life has taken a turn for the worst. A recent graduate with no dream job on the horizon, she has no choice but to move back to Walden-on-Sea, the sleepy seaside hometown she's spent the last three years avoiding. Her part-time job at the local arcade isn't terrible, but it's hard to return to the past after spending so long dreaming of bigger and better things. Unfortunately, Sydney's not the only graduate back in Walden, and she's soon forced to come face-to-face with a decision made three years ago. It's awkward enough to face an ex - let alone the long-term relationship you ended in pursuit of freedom right before university. And back in Walden's temperamental sunshine, Sydney's about to realise how easy it is to get burned.

Peryn Foster loves cheerleading, America's Next Top Model and camping. So, when her best friend suggests a camping trip, she eagerly accepts the offer because it's a chance to get away from her younger sisters and her mother's plans for the upcoming wedding. Ignoring the fact that her ex-boyfriend and his goofy best friend are coming along, Peryn is looking forward to the trip. What could possibly go wrong?

January Winter's hopes of entering one of her homemade ice cream flavors into New England's 1st Annual Contest are dashed when she realizes she has no way of getting there - until she convinces her stoic coworker, Wyatt, to teach her how to drive.

"Remind me again why I thought spending six weeks with a bunch of hyperactive, sweaty and supposedly 'musically gifted' kids was a good idea?" Bailey Cunningham has gone and taken the plunge - she's not only signed up for the job of a camp counselor at Triple Lakes Camp for Musically Gifted Children, but she's roped her best friend, Savannah, into it too. However, the pair really get more than they bargained for when they discover they'll be sharing their summer with not only the kids, but the guy who looks as if he's stepped out of an Abercrombie and Fitch catalog, the quirky brother, and the sugar-coated flautist who's way too sweet for her own good. In the midst of the madness, only one thing's for sure: Bailey knows absolutely nothing about music.

[This story will become free on June 4, 2025] Jace Hamilton is Reese Burnett's sworn enemy, the culprit who made her high school life hell. But what if this taboo existence returns for the summer and brings back more than just painful memories of yesterday? Suddenly, Reese isn't too sure who or what to trust--or if she can even trust herself. *** For Reese, the day Jace Hamilton--the guy who ruined her entire high school experience--left was the happiest day of her life. No more humiliation and embarrassing moments. But what if she finds out that he's coming back? And what if it's not just the moments that are catching up with her? What if yesterday is also making its comeback? And what if... there's more to the story than what she knew? Can yesterday be rewritten--from love to hate and hate to love, making memories like those of yesterday's?

"Being reunited with your childhood best friend after eight years apart? Sounds like a heart-warming story. Finding out that said best friend is now a complete jerk who's determined to make your life hell? Not so much." Georgie and Connor were once inseparable. Best friends from birth, they did everything together - well, that was until Connor's dad got a once-in-a-lifetime job opportunity and the family was forced to relocate to New York. At age sixteen, Georgie's life is totally different - her main goal being to keep her head down and escape the brutalities of high school with as little emotional scarring as possible. Balancing school, work and her dwindling social life is enough of a challenge, but it's about to get a bit more complicated when her conceited ex-best friend gets thrown into the mix. Maybe friendship should come with an instruction booklet.

They met in December.

"Not just a flavour, but a way of life." When seventeen-year-old Flo Kennedy is forced to up sticks and trade her life in London for a sleepy seaside town on the south coast, she's anything but excited. Walden-on-Sea could win awards for being Britain's dullest town, and with a population consisting almost entirely of over sixties, teenagers are an endangered species. Silently struggling with her parents' death and separation from her sister, Flo's convinced she's in for the worst summer of her life. But when she meets the guy in the ice cream shop, things start to change. It's not long before she lands herself a job, a new set of friends and maybe even the beginnings of first romance. For the first time in several years, she's happy. But Flo knows all too well that things can't stay perfect forever, and after all, being on top of the world only gives you further to fall.