Grownupreads Stories

"Bridget Jones with a lot more wine! This story is hilarious, feel-good and relatable in all the best ways!" - Grace K @ HQ. She's just quit her high-flying job, and her marriage is coasting on fumes. Can Alice find a sense of purpose in the wreckage? ***** Alice's life isn't going to plan. She's tied to her phone, pointlessly managing PR for a sinking corporate megalith. She's become a bit player in her kids' lives, and her marriage is coasting on fumes. Forcing herself into action with a rash resignation, Alice sets out to make a positive impact on the world around her. But how? Meditation leads to napping, and her attempts to get closer to her teenage daughter result in the discovery of a secret that leaves her at a loss. As the months tick by and a sense of purpose continues to elude her, Alice finds herself forming bonds with the most unlikely characters: the young woman who panhandles outside her old office; the homeless boy who sits cross-legged outside the liquor store with his ginger cat; her own dog walker who, it turns out, knows a thing or two about developing a good crema. Testing the limits of marriage, motherhood and the Toronto subway system -- can Alice find her way into a purpose-driven life? Or will it all be one giant hangover? [*Wattpad Editor's Pick 2018*] [[word count: 70,000-80,000 words]] Readers say: "This had me laughing so loud that my sister came to check up on me to see if I'm OK!!!" "...the new Bridget Jones, a working woman's take on the digital age." About the Author: Working mother and red wine enthusiast, Renee lives in Toronto with her flawed but wonderful family (seriously, who left socks on the kitchen counter?) in a flawed but wonderful house (what *is* that smell in the basement?) where she writes flawed but wonderful stories about what it is to be a woman today.

Using powers can age you, kill you...or drive you mad. Ian Sharp knows none of this when his destructive powers wreck his house near Denver and nearly kill his sister...because no one knows powers exist. He's forced on the run the day before graduation as the ruthless Hunters of a vicious shadow government track him down. Soon, he finds himself in a hidden, underground city built by giants before the great flood. A city full of people with special abilities. But Ian is drawn to the only one without powers-Abby Pierce. Just when the two are growing closer, a Hunter spy frames Ian for murder, getting him exiled. Ian must risk his sanity and depend on an insane teleporting monk to help him find the city again before Abby falls victim to cold-blooded murder. ----- The science, archaeology, theology, and history in the Winter's Edge series are real, except in regard to the direct backstory of the two fictitious underground city. Little-known truths about the world are exposed in the book series with solid, irrefutable evidence from mainstream scientific researchers. Book one gives the readers one large dose of this, but the future novels in the series will truly leave the readers speechless. Told through the eyes of Ian Sharp and Abby Pierce, Winter's Edge is an action adventure urban fantasy for teens and adults alike. Whether it's mystery, twists, a love story, deep philosophical discussion, humor, or loads of tension you're seeking, Winter's Edge delivers it all in a serious yet sometimes hilarious package. ----- [#152 Highest rank in Adventure] [Winter's Edge Series Book 1: This book is fully written, but only one chapter a week will be posted on Fridays and a bonus chapter from time to time, as well.] I'm very responsive to comments, so let me know what you think! #Badassreads #InToAction #grownupreads #teenreads #rebelwars #EWA2018 #YourTrulyAwards

Hank was just a teen when his father committed suicide under a cloud of scandal. The disgrace forced him to grow up within the cold shadow of his once-promising life. Twenty years later, Hank is content with the safety of his solitude. Still, Josie arrives knowing more about the secrets of the surrounding society than an outsider should and forces him to face the ghosts of his former life.

||2019 ONC Ambassador Picks Reading List Selection|| Orphaned as an infant and raised by a troupe of Renaissance Faire actors, Quadir Janszoon is haunted by the past. Six days before his 25th birthday, spectral riders of the Bás Anáil gallop into Central Park in an attempt to murder him and claim the moire, a divine essence in his blood. Born to an ancient line of guardians, warriors known as the Dakaari, Quadir is thrust into a world of magic, prejudice, and political intrigue. With only his wits and his mother's ith'nael sword, he must fight for his life against a powerful, hidden foe sworn to kill him, ending the sacred bloodline of his family forever. <<<WINNER-BEST FANTASY-The Novella Awards 2020>>>

Myth and reality are one. Conspiracies, ancient and modern alike, manipulate every aspect of life, every interaction. Everyone lives blind to secret masters and secret dangers, but it's easy when the monsters look human, or worse, are human. In this world, in a nameless American metropolis, Uaine Dupree leads a desultory life as a penniless club promoter on the fringe of an already fringe society. When he receives a mysterious e-mail from a wealthy recluse, Uaine embarks on a nightlong odyssey of horrors, both new and old. [Formerly Wattpad Featured Paranormal Story from November 2016 until July 2017.]

October 2017, the world has come to an end. Unknown, viral disease ravages the earth, killing its victims and rendering them into aggressive flesh-eating feral ghouls, empty shells of their former selves. Group of survivors found themselves stuck in the large coastal city of Charleston. The remainder of the city population succumbed to the disease, they must fight their way out. The story follows a group of survivors as they struggle to survive in this new brutal and merciless world. Fending of starvation, diseases and betrayal. When the civilization falls, it's not the monsters you should be afraid of. Exploring the last remnants of the humanity, the story delves deeper into the best and the absolute worst of the human nature. Rated Mature for language and violence!

Set in the rough terrains of Africa, this is a story of the two flyers of Indian Air Force, who had been far from their country in war ridden Congo as a part of their mission, to demolish the miscreants and spread a ray of hope among distressed. They were Wing Commander Sanskar Shergill and Flight lieutenant Swara Harold Raichand, two alpha personalities. They were headstrong, stubborn and ambitious. They both had their own ego, insecurities and inner battles to fight with. This is a story of vicious rebellion groups, poachers, human traffickers, corrupted lawmen and politicians. This is a story of deep rain forests and barren deserts.This is a story of a plane crash and two estranged people who discover themselves on the course of an adventurous ride. This is a story of falling in love; a tale of two fallen phoenixes. ☆Highest rank: #78 on 31.01.18 (adventure) =============================== Disclaimer: This story is purely for entertainment purpose. Not every information mentioned here is accurate to the point. The plot, character and scenarios are result of writer's imagination and not meant to offend anyone. Different news articles and websites have been taken as reference as the writer is not from aviation or military background . Therefore any correction will be welcomed with gratitude. ===============================

When Rachel McKenna uncovers a Japanese katana her first day on the job at the Jade Dragon antique shop, she awakens an ancient spirit and two souls become one.... Rachel McKenna is a college student flunking her pre-law courses, with dreams of making it big on the local art scene. A closet bookworm with an overbearing mother, and no social life, she's just one step away from becoming a college dropout. Atsuhiko Abe is a former samurai from the golden age of a feudal Japan turned modern day art dealer. The victim of a four centuries old curse he is in search of his ancestral sword to atone for the sins of his past, and avenge the death of his beloved wife. When Atsuhiko answers the call of his familial sword, he is brought face to face with an ancient enemy, the spirit of his late wife Haruko, newly resurrected from the dead, and Rachel McKenna- the innocent young woman Haruko has taken as host. Duty bound, Atsuhiko vows to protect Rachel from the reach of their shared enemy while seeking forgiveness from the ghost of his beloved. As fate draws them closer together in heart, body, mind and soul- Atsuhiko and Rachel must learn to live with their new found connection and emergent love, while unraveling the secrets of a long-forgotten tragedy before history repeats itself.

After putting her dreams on hold, Layla gets the opportunity of a lifetime will this be Layla's greatest success or her biggest Regret.

The newest, the brightest, the loudest; compilation of extraordinary written pieces in which we shine a light on the most empowering voices of our world-wide community! Keep on reading and let their voices be heard! | Anthology of winning entries compiled by WattpadEmpowered with the help of our wonderful Wattpad community.

Gerry, I love you. There. It's out, in the open between us. After all my soul searching it was easy to say. Especially easy as there is no chance that you will ever receive this letter...

Welcome, Keeping the Light On productions invites you to take part in a perhaps short-lived drama... Dependent entirely on the writers whim on whether his characters live or die.... So dim the lights.... grab your coffee... and...... action!

Minerva takes a nighttime flight with an old lover. Written for the 2023 Ladies of HP Monthly Minifest.

Do we ever realize, at the moment that it is happening, that what is unfolding is to become the defining and pivotal moment of our life? Or does this realization only come years later, when we reflect and, given the wisdom of time, understand how a single event changed two people's lives forever? And how a cooler of beer, a Ford Econoline van, and eight high school friends on a road trip to a Prince concert might have changed everything. "Purple Rain" by BG Davies was first published in The Sun-kissed Summer Romance Anthology.

Please fasten your seatbelts. As this century draws to a close, a new epoch in air travel is dawning. Jets are being replaced by high-tech airships known as arrowheads. Noah Drake, captain of the airship Albatross, is expecting his next flight to be a typically humdrum Atlantic crossing. Little does he realise how wrong he is... A 30,000 word novella.

On every timeline but one, Eliot Waugh is a brilliant but troubled magician. On that one he is the noble King of Filory. How can he be protected from the Beast? (Fanfiction based on Syfy's TV series "The Magicians")

When a replacement crew fails to arrive and he loses communication with mission control, an astronaut on the International Space Station finds himself alone, completely alone. This is a SHORT story, split into five parts. (Originally started with the title "Left Behind" but decided to change it - sorry!)

A lonely divorcee in her 50s finds happiness, unlikely friendship ... and love at the place she hates the most: the beach. ☀️ According to Google, it takes an average of one to two years to recover from a divorce, regardless of who wanted to end the marriage. Marcie Jacobs is nearing the 2.5 years mark. She didn't want it and certainly hasn't recovered, especially now that her ex-husband, Nick, is dating Allyse, a beautiful thirty-year-old who is everything she's not: Thin, young, adventurous, and a total beach lover. When Nick suggests they sell their shared beach house and spend their summer vacation together fixing it up ... just the two of them, Marcie-a total beach hater, agrees, feeling a glimmer of reconciliation hope. To her shock and horror, however, it's not Nick who shows up. It's Allyse. Despite their differences , the two women make a friendship pact for the next two weeks while they fix up the beach house and Marcie discovers what she's really been missing: Friendship. And somewhere along the way, she also finds love. ☀️ ©2021 by Sidney Brooks/Laura Bowers. All rights reserved. Plagiarism is illegal and punishable by law.

Kalei hates touching. Especially if it is a hug. After all, her mother was killed by one. Kalei was born and raised in Celan, the first city to have an Estranged problem. It was seventeen years ago when they appeared, and the citizens learned the hard truth: that it only takes a bit of skin-on-skin contact to turn their loved ones into corpses, or Estranged. No one really knows why some people turn and some people die, they just know that anyone touched is gone. And Kalei wants them to stay gone. But, being a police officer in the city, she witnesses every day the damage done by Estranged. Black nails mark these harbingers of death. Seeking the high they get from every piece of skin they touch, the Estranged crush the lives of Celan's citizens with alarming ease. They killed her mother for a high, and now Kalei wants to wipe them out of existence before they can seek another. But she can't. Only the Wardens are equipped to do so, and she will do anything to be inducted into their ranks. But will they accept her now that she has turned Estranged? ___ Side notes: While the characters and the story are under a normal copyright, feel free to use the world of Estranged in your own stories. If I come across anything I deem cannon, I will list them here and/or on my website: www.alexfedyr.com (You can also email me if you want to see the world map or learn more about the world behind Estranged.) If you want your own copy of Estranged, you can find it on Amazon and other major retailers. Book two is in the works, but it may not be published. Check out my Patreon for full details and sneak-peek access to the story: patreon.com/alexfedyr