Romantik & erotik

The savvy, sharp and steamy rom-com inspired by Pretty Woman from bestselling author Meghan Quinn that you won't want to miss!'PERFECT ROMCOM' 5* Reader Review'THE BOOK THAT MADE ME FALL IN LOVE WITH READING' 5* Reader Review'ABSOLUTELY HILARIOUS' 5* Reader Review'Don't let that cute cover fool you- this is SMOKIN' HOT, with sexual tension dripping from every page. I was HOOKED from the start, and I devoured it at an alarming rate' Jeeves Reads Romance'I loved this book. It was without a doubt, the funniest book I've ever read' TaylorsReadThat'The sexual tension between Hux and Lottie was fan-my-face fantastic' LA. Readsromance_______'How did you two meet?'It's the question I dread.Because my (not so) meet cute was unexpected to say the least. I was in Beverly Hills, searching for someone to take me on as their bride, you know, as you do.He was striding around the block, mumbling about a business deal gone wrong.That's when we bumped into each other . . . And there were no sparks. Not even a hint of blossoming love.But next thing I knew, he'd convinced me to pretend to be his girlfriend so he could get his deal back on track. Suddenly, I find myself living in a mansion, enjoying swanky business lunches, and pretending we're head over heels in love . . .My one big mistake, though . . . big . . . HUGE . . .I might accidentally be falling for Huxley Cane._______Praise for Meghan Quinn:'I can't get enough of her writing. Her books are my romantic comedy happy place' A Novel Glimpse'Meghan is an absolute QUEEN when it comes to writing stories that are not only funny but have a lot of heart in them too' Elle's Book BlogMeghan Quinn, USA Today bestselling author, April 2024

THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER As seen on The Joe Rogan Experience!A groundbreaking dive into the role psychedelics have played in the origins of Western civilization, and a real-life quest for the Holy Grail.The most influential religious historian of the twentieth century, Huston Smith, once referred to it as the "best-kept secret" in history. Did the Ancient Greeks use drugs to find God? And did the earliest Christians inherit the same, secret tradition? A profound knowledge of visionary plants, herbs and fungi passed from one generation to the next, ever since the Stone Age?There is zero archaeological evidence for the original Eucharist - the sacred wine said to guarantee life after death for those who drink the blood of Jesus. The Holy Grail and its miraculous contents have never been found. In the absence of any hard data, whatever happened at the Last Supper remains an article of faith for today's 2.5 billion Christians. In an unprecedented search for real answers, The Immortality Key examines the archaic roots of the ritual that is performed every Sunday for nearly one third of the planet. Religion and science converge to paint a radical picture of Christianity's founding event...and, after centuries of debate, to solve history's greatest puzzle once and for all.Before the birth of Jesus, the Ancient Greeks found salvation in their own sacraments. Sacred beverages were routinely consumed as part of the so-called Ancient Mysteries - elaborate rites that led initiates to the brink of death. The best and brightest from Athens and Rome flocked to the spiritual capital of Eleusis, where a holy beer unleashed heavenly visions for two thousand years. Others drank the holy wine of Dionysus to become one with the god. In the 1970s, renegade scholars claimed this beer and wine - the original sacraments of Western civilization - were spiked with mind-altering drugs. In recent years, vindication for the disgraced theory has been quietly mounting in the laboratory. The constantly advancing fields of archaeobotany and archaeochemistry have hinted at the enduring use of hallucinogenic drinks in antiquity. And with a single dose of psilocybin, the psychopharmacologists at Johns Hopkins and NYU are now turning self-proclaimed atheists into instant believers. But the smoking gun remains elusive.If these sacraments survived for thousands of years in our remote prehistory, from the Stone Age to the Ancient Greeks, did they also survive into the age of Jesus? Was the Eucharist of the earliest Christians, in fact, a psychedelic Eucharist?With an unquenchable thirst for evidence, Brian C. Muraresku takes the reader on his twelve-year global hunt for proof. He tours the ruins of Greece with its government archaeologists. He gains access to the hidden collections of the Louvre Museum to show the continuity from pagan to Christian wine. He unravels the Ancient Greek of the New Testament with a Catholic priest. He spelunks into the catacombs under the streets of Rome to decipher the lost symbols of Christianity's oldest monuments. He breaches the secret archives of the Vatican to unearth manuscripts never before translated into English. And with leads from the archaeological chemists at the University of Pennsylvania and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, he unveils the first scientific data for the ritual use of psychedelic drugs in classical antiquity.The Immortality Key reconstructs the suppressed history of women consecrating a forbidden, drugged Eucharist that was later banned by the Church Fathers. Women who were then targeted as witches during the Inquisition, when Europe's sacred pharmacology largely disappeared. Have the scientists of today resurrected this lost technology? Is Christianity capable of returning to its roots?Featuring a Foreword by Graham Hancock, the New York Times bestselling author of America Before: The Key to Earth's Lost Civilization.

PRE-ORDER THE NEW ALI HAZELWOOD NOVEL NOW!From the author of tiktok sensations and global bestsellers The Love Hypothesis and Love on the BrainRival physicists collide in a vortex of academic feuds and fake dating shenanigans in this delightfully STEMinist romcom. The many lives of theoretical physicist Elsie Hannaway have finally caught up with her. By day, she's an adjunct professor, toiling away at grading labs and teaching thermodynamics in the hopes of landing tenure. By other day, Elsie makes up for her non-existent paycheck by offering her services as a fake girlfriend, tapping into her expertly honed people-pleasing skills to embody whichever version of herself the client needs. Honestly, it's a pretty sweet gig - until her carefully constructed Elsie-verse comes crashing down. Because Jack Smith, the annoyingly attractive and arrogant older brother of her favourite client, turns out to be the cold-hearted experimental physicist who ruined her mentor's career and undermined the reputation of theorists everywhere. And he's the same Jack Smith who rules over the physics department at MIT, standing right between Elsie and her dream job. Elsie is prepared for an all-out war of scholarly sabotage but... those long, penetrating looks? Not having to be anything other than her true self when she's with him? Will falling into an experimentalist's orbit finally tempt her to put her most guarded theories on love into practice? Praise for Ali Hazelwood and her novels:'Ali Hazelwood proves that science is sexy as hell, and that love can 'STEM' from the most unlikely places. She's my newest must-buy author.' Jodi Picoult'I cannot get enough of her brand of brainy romance! Writing with an emotionally brilliant and witty pen, Hazelwood is an absolute romance powerhouse.' Christina Lauren, author of The Unhoneymooners'Gloriously nerdy and sexy, with on-point commentary about women in STEM.' Helen Hoang, author of The Heart Principle'Proves that STEM can be sexy!' RedReaders love The Love Hypothesis:'Did I read this in 24 hours? Yes.''Funny. Snarky. Intelligent. Real.''If you're even slightly thinking about getting this book to read, just go a head and do it''Ali Hazelwood has made herself an auto-buy author''It was just... perfect.''A heroine you will instantly fall in love with'The Love Hypothesis was on the Sunday Times and New York Times bestseller lists in January 2022, Love on the Brain was also on the Sunday Times and New York Times bestseller list in August 2022.

1814 promises to be another eventful season, but not, This Author believes, for Anthony Bridgerton, London''s most elusive bachelor, who has shown no indication that he plans to marry. And in all truth, why should he? When it comes to playing the consummate rake, nobody does it better...--Lady Whistledown''s Society Papers, April 1814But this time the gossip columnists have it wrong. Anthony Bridgerton hasn''t just decided to marry--he''s even chosen a wife! The only obstacle is his intended''s older sister, Kate Sheffield--the most meddlesome woman ever to grace a London ballroom. The spirited schemer is driving Anthony mad with her determination to stop the betrothal, but when he closes his eyes at night, Kate''s the woman haunting his increasingly erotic dreams...Contrary to popular belief, Kate is quite sure that reformed rakes to not make the best husbands--and Anthony Bridgerton is the most wicked rogue of them all. Kate''s determined to protect her sister--but she fears her own heart is vulnerable. And when Anthony''s lips touch hers, she''s suddenly afraid she might not be able to resist the reprehensible rake herself...

He's equally smitten, and after a whirlwind, intoxicating affair, they pledge their love without even knowing each other's real names.But when they return home, reality hits. As disaster follows disaster, it seems that while they love each other, they just can't love each other's lives.

Yet as she reconnects with her past and begins to feel at home in Westport, Piper starts to wonder if the cold, glamorous life she knew is what she truly wants.

Tessa has everything to lose. Hardin has nothing to lose...except her. AFTER WE COLLIDED...Life will never be the same. #HESSA

Escape to the cosiest little lodge in Iceland for love, log fires and the Northern Lights...With a shattered heart and her career completely in tatters, Lucy needs to get away from her life in the UK. But, when she takes a job as hotel manager of the Northern Lights Lodge, she doesn't quite expect to find herself in a land of bubbling hot springs and snowflake-dusted glaciers - and in the company of gorgeous Scottish barman, Alex.Determined to turn her life around, Lucy sets about making the lodge the number one romantic destination in Iceland - even though romance is the last thing she wants. However, as Alex and Lucy grow closer under the dancing lights of the aurora, Lucy might just learn how to fall in love again...Readers love Julie Caplin!'The creme de la creme of rom-com confection' Mrs W Reviews'I have found a little piece of myself in the story...a joy to read' Kate McLaughlin Reviewer'I loved this book...the slow building romance, the descriptions of the shop as it comes to life. When I finished it, I had an incredible urge to go bake something' Sharon Redfern, Librarian'Simply brilliant' Nicola, Goodreads'Another gem in this series' Rachel's Random Reads

'De Botton is a national treasure.' - Susan Hill, author of The Woman in BlackWith an introduction by Sheila HetiA unique love story and a classic work of philosophy, rooted in the mysterious workings of the human heart and mind.Perhaps it is true that we do not really exist until there is someone there to see us existing, we cannot properly speak until there is someone who can understand what we are saying in essence, we are not wholly alive until we are loved.A man and a woman meet over casual conversation on a flight from Paris to London, and so begins a love story - from first kiss to first argument, elation to heartbreak, and everything in between. Each stage of the relationship is illuminated with startling clarity, as de Botton explores emotions often felt but rarely understood.With the verve of a novelist and the insight of a philosopher, Alain de Botton uncovers the mysteries of the human heart. Essays In Love is an iconic book - one that should be read by anyone who has ever fallen in love.

'Irresistible' Sunday Times bestseller Katie FfordeTake a trip to the best little bakery in Brooklyn, where there's more than a sprinkle of romance and a slice of pie makes it feel like home!When Sophie Bennings arrives in New York, love is the last thing on her mind. Still reeling from a painful break up, she throws herself into her work as a food editor on a top-notch magazine.Columnist Todd McLennan is everything that Sophie wishes she didn't want. Like the gorgeous bakery below her Brooklyn apartment, he's as tempting as the delicious cupcakes on display. Surely a little of what you fancy can do you good?As Sophie and Todd get to know one another, a love of food isn't the only passion they share. In the city that never sleeps, has Sophie finally met the man of her dreams...?

DISCOVER THE FIRST BOOK IN THE DARKLY SENSUAL CROSSFIRE SERIES THAT HAS CAPTURED MILLIONS OF HEARTS AROUND THE WORLD - PERFECT FOR FANS OF FIFTY SHADES OF GREYOvercoming her past made Eva strong. She's in control and she knows what she wants. When a seductive, powerful man enters her life, she won't back down easily . . . Gideon Cross came into my life like lightning in the darkness - beautiful and brilliant, jagged and white hot. I was drawn to him as I'd never been to anything or anyone in my life. I craved his touch like a drug, even knowing it would weaken me. I was flawed and damaged, and he opened those cracks in me so easily . . .Gideon knew. He had demons of his own. And we would become the mirrors that reflected each other's most private wounds . . . and desires.The bonds of his love transformed me, even as I prayed that the torment of our pasts didn't tear us apart . . .Intensely romantic, darkly sensual and completely addictive, Bared to You will take you to the very limits of obsession - and beyond.

Shocking, banned and the subject of obscenity trials, Henry Miller's first novel Tropic of Cancer is one of the most scandalous and influential books of the twentieth centuryTropic of Cancer redefined the novel. Set in Paris in the 1930s, it features a starving American writer who lives a bohemian life among prostitutes, pimps, and artists. Banned in the US and the UK for more than thirty years because it was considered pornographic, Tropic of Cancer continued to be distributed in France and smuggled into other countries. When it was first published in the US in 1961, it led to more than 60 obscenity trials until a historic ruling by the Supreme Court defined it as a work of literature. Long hailed as a truly liberating book, daring and uncompromising, Tropic of Cancer is a cornerstone of modern literature that asks us to reconsider everything we know about art, freedom, and morality.'At last an unprintable book that is fit to read' Ezra Pound 'A momentous event in the history of modern writing' Samuel Beckett 'The book that forever changed the way American literature would be written' Erica Jong Henry Miller (1891-1980) is one of the most important American writers of the 20th century. His best-known novels include Tropic of Cancer (1934), Tropic of Capricorn (1939), and the Rosy Crucifixion trilogy (Sexus, 1949, Plexus, 1953, and Nexus, 1959), all published in France and banned in the US and the UK until 1964. He is widely recognised as an irreverent, risk-taking writer who redefined the novel and made the link between the European avant-garde and the American Beat generation.

From the USA TODAY bestselling author of Sweet Thing and Nowhere But Here comes a love story about a Craigslist missed connection post that gives two people a second chance at love fifteen years after they were separated in New York City.To the Green-eyed Lovebird: We met fifteen years ago, almost to the day, when I moved my stuff into the NYU dorm room next to yours at Senior House. You called us fast friends. I like to think it was more. We lived on nothing but the excitement of finding ourselves through music (you were obsessed with Jeff Buckley), photography (I couldnt stop taking pictures of you), hanging out in Washington Square Park, and all the weird things we did to make money. I learned more about myself that year than any other. Yet, somehow, it all fell apart. We lost touch the summer after graduation when I went to South America to work for National Geographic. When I came back, you were gone. A part of me still wonders if I pushed you too hard after the wedding I didnt see you again until a month ago. It was a Wednesday. You were rocking back on your heels, balancing on that thick yellow line that runs along the subway platform, waiting for the F train. I didnt know it was you until it was too late, and then you were gone. Again. You said my name; I saw it on your lips. I tried to will the train to stop, just so I could say hello. After seeing you, all of the youthful feelings and memories came flooding back to me, and now Ive spent the better part of a month wondering what your life is like. I might be totally out of my mind, but would you like to get a drink with me and catch up on the last decade and a half? M

Hardin has nothing to lose...except her. After We Collided Life will never be the same. After a tumultuous beginning to their relationship, Tessa and Hardin were on the path to making things work. Tessa knew Hardin could be cruel, but when a bombshell revelation is dropped about the origins of their relationship - and Hardin´s mysterious past - Tessa is beside herself. Hardin will always be...Hardin. But is he really the deep, thoughtful guy Tessa fell madly in love with, despite his angry exterior, or has he been a stranger all along? She wishes she could just walk away, but it just isn´t that easy. Not with the memory of passionate nights wrapped in his arms...his electric touch...his hungry kisses...Still, Tessa´s not sure she can endure one more broken promise. She put so much on hold for Hardin - University, friends, her relationship with her mother, a loving boyfriend, even her fledgling career. She needs to move on. Hardin knows he made a mistake, possibly the biggest one of his life, but he won´t be going down without a fight! But can he change...will he change...for love?

Little treasures, the FLAME TREE COLLECTABLE CLASSICS are chosen to create a delightful and timeless home library. Each stunning, gift edition features deluxe cover treatments, ribbon markers, luxury endpapers and gilded edges. The unabridged text is accompanied by a Glossary of Victorian and Literary terms produced for the modern reader.

A beautiful box set of the works of Jane Austen, containing some of literature's greatest love stories

Days after their wedding, Blake and Erica Landon embark on their honeymoon-a journey that deepens their bond and promises to fade the scars of their past. Back home, Blake finds himself at the centre of the controversy, haunted by the transgressions of his hacker past that he has no wish to relive.

The classic French erotic bestseller that preceded Fifty Shades of GreyA beautiful young French woman, known only as 'O', is taken by her lover Rene to a splendid mansion near Paris. Here, she is initiated into an elite secret society, where she must learn to serve the sexual fantasies of Rene and his fellow members.

DAWN OF A NEW ERAWith the Wolf King in the north defeated, Great Liang turns its full attention to the war’s southern front, where the Westerners have occupied the fertile land of Jiangnan. Gu Yun races south to lead Great Liang’s fledgling navy, while Chang Geng is recalled to the capital to solve the pressing matter of funding the war effort.Yet the imperial court is no less treacherous than the battlefield. As Chang Geng walks a precarious path where one misstep could brand him a traitor or worse, he begins to suspect that Gu Yun is in more danger than he lets on. Chang Geng will stop at nothing to bring an end to the war and build a nation where his beloved can lay down his armor and live, at long last, in peace.This final volume includes 2-page foldout illustration bound into the book and a hidden back flap illustration, both by special guest artists!The final volume!

#1 BESTSELLER IN THE ENTIRE KINDLE STOREFrom USA Today bestselling author Rina Kent comes a new STANDALONE MM college romance.I'm not attracted to men.Or so I thought before I slammed into Nikolai Sokolov.A mafia heir, a notorious bastard, and a violent monster.An ill-fated meeting puts me in his path.And just like that, he has his sights set on me.A quiet artist, a golden boy, and his enemy's twin brother.He doesn't seem to care that the odds are stacked against us.In fact, he sets out to break my steel-like control and blur my limits.I thought my biggest worry was being noticed by Nikolai.I'm learning the hard way that being wanted by this beautiful nightmare is much worse.This book can be read on its own, but for a better understanding of the world, you might want to start with God of Malice.

From USA Today bestselling author Rina Kent comes a new standalone enemies-to-lovers, marriage of convenience romance.I fell for the villain.It happened back when I was a clueless girl.But he ruthlessly broke my heart and trapped it in a jar.Since then, I've sworn to hate him to the end of my days.Eli King might be a savage devil, but I'm out of his way. And league.That is until I wake up in a hospital and find him holding my hand.He tells me the words that change my life forever."We got married two years ago, Mrs. King."So I set out to investigate how I landed myself into this marriage.Turns out, my memories are darker than my present.I thought I was ready for the hurricane.I thought I could handle his soulless eyes and cold shoulder.I thought wrong.Nothing can stop my husband.Not the secrets surrounding us.Not the hatred between us.Not even me.This book can be read on its own, but for a better understanding of the world, you might want to start with God of Malice.

** THE INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER ** A WATERSTONES BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR **'Visionary ... buy or borrow this book, read it, take it to heart' OBSERVER'Everyone who cares about freedom should read this book' ANNE APPLEBAUM'Passionate, intimate, compelling - a clarion call' PHILIPPE SANDSA brilliant exploration of freedom - what it is, how it's been misunderstood, and why it's our only chance for survival from the acclaimed, bestselling author of On Tyranny Freedom is our great commitment, but we have lost sight of what it means - leading us into crisis. Too many of us look at freedom as the absence of state power: we think we're free if we can do and say as we please. But true freedom isn't so much freedom from, as freedom to - the freedom to thrive, to take risks for futures we choose by working together. Freedom is the value that makes all other values possible.Drawing on the work of philosophers and political dissidents, conversations with contemporary thinkers and his own experiences, Snyder identifies the practices and attitudes that will allow us to design a government in which we and future generations can flourish. Intimate yet ambitious, this book forges a new consensus rooted in a politics of abundance, generosity and grace.On Tyranny inspired millions around the world to fight for freedom; On Freedom helps us see exactly what we're fighting for. It is a thrilling intellectual journey and a tour de force of political philosophy.'In these hard times for liberty, On Freedom makes the case that freedom, once explored and understood, is the way forward' PRESIDENT ZELENSKY*New York Times bestseller list, 6 Oct 24*.