Norton Critical Editions Novels & Stories

What do you do when you’re in love with your childhood best friend, but the words to tell him stay locked inside? For Elle, confessing her feelings to Jack, the boy who’s also her brother’s closest friend feels like risking everything. So she stays silent, wrestling with her heart while navigating the chaos of young adulthood. But as time slips away, new faces enter their lives, and growth pulls them in different directions, Elle learns the hard way that waiting might cost her the chance to ever speak her truth. Her soul ached for him, her one true love, even if confessing meant risking her heart to break she was going to do it. She just doesn’t know it yet, but Jack has been keeping a lot of secrets of his own.

Janice thought she had found her fairytale ending when she married Layden, the man who had captured her heart at first sight. She devoted herself entirely to their love, investing her dreams, time, and emotions into building a life with him. But soon after their wedding, the warmth in Layden's eyes began to fade. His once-loving words grew scarce, his touch distant. Late nights turned into entire nights away, always excused by work, until Janice found herself married to a ghost of the man she once adored. The man who once whispered sweet promises now blames her for everything wrong in their marriage. And when his frustrations turn into abuse, Janice realizes she is trapped in a love that is nothing but an illusion. At Layden’s promotion party, fate throws her into the path of Icarus Adonis Sebastian—his dangerously charming and ruthless boss. Icarus is no stranger to Janice; they share a past from college, where Layden had been the quiet, bookish type, and Icarus the untamed bad boy. Time has only refined his allure, and the moment their eyes meet, old embers ignite. But this time, Icarus isn’t just looking—he’s claiming. As Layden spirals deeper into cruelty, Janice finds herself drawn into Icarus’s orbit, where passion burns hotter than reason. But Icarus isn’t the kind of man who plays fair—when he wants something, he takes it. And he wants Janice. When love turns to torment and desire becomes a battleground, Janice must decide: does she fight for the marriage she once believed in, or does she let herself be consumed by the fire of a man who has never played by the rules? Because Icarus doesn’t just want her—he’s ready to burn down her entire world to have her.

On my wedding day, Levi Robbins' "close friend" Gina Fields suddenly fainted. Without hesitation, he dropped everything and rushed to the hospital, leaving me at the altar. My mother, witnessing this humiliating scene from her seat, suffered a heart attack. Yet, none of the guests bothered to help as they were too busy gossiping and laughing at my misfortune. By the time I managed to get her to the hospital, we had missed the critical window for treatment. Just then, Levi finally called, his voice urgent and demanding. "Caitlyn, where are you? Gina's condition is critical, and she needs your bone marrow!" "Levi, we're done," I said firmly, hanging up and walking away. This time, I would not look back.

My ex-wife, Erica Scarver, who's the head nurse of the hospital, devotes her efforts into saving an ICU patient. Meanwhile, I, the hospital dean, just start a livestream calmly. A few minutes later, the patient is out of the critical state. But Erica collapses instantly because she contracts the virus instead. "Hurry up and save your ex-wife! She's now infected because there's a hole in her protective suit! She's in a critical condition right now!" The medical staff looks at me worriedly. After all, I'm the most renowned medical expert in the entire hospital. But I remain unmoved. "Why should I save her? Don't you know that I've just wrapped up a surgery, so I can't enter the quarantine zone at all?"

Dra. Zee Katie Liu Zamora finally meets the man she's been waiting for but in critical condition. As she tries to save him, memories kept flashing back. Will she be able to find the right playlist to tune or will she repeat the same playlist again?

Leia Welsh, the ex-ice hockey pro turned college student overnight, is faced with a life-altering decision after a career-ending injury, or so everyone thinks. Offered the chance to coach the men's hockey team, Leia must prove herself to a bunch of rowdy childish men who probably only listen to Taylor Swift. Especially Kohl Warren, the junior player with a major sexual issues with her. Amidst the chaos of college hormones and hockey sticks flying everywhere, Leia and Kohl form an unlikely bond. Can they put aside their differences and win the big game? Or will their egos clash and ruin it all?

The good girl, do no wrong employee who always plays by the rules finds herself in a place she never imagined. Life goes from simple to complicated in the blink of an eye. The new handsome, ruthless, demanding boss catches everyone's eye. But could he really be attracted to her. Could she allow herself to break the rules and risk it all? Or could his secrets threaten to end everything before it ever starts?

Vincent Isabella was offered a contract marriage worth 5 million dollars by a cold and ruthless billionaire given 30 days to marry or lose his Empire to his corrupt brother. She agreed only for her sick sister and her parents’ debt. “One year of contract marriage. No attachment. No feelings. No sex. Just public appearances.” But when Alexander Lucas demanded a child, she refused, and said “It wasn’t part of the deal”. Yet, she later agreed to help him secure the Empire. During childbirth, the baby died, and Mr. Alexander, the real owner of the Empire, rewarded Isabella by bequeathing the entire Empire to her. The Empire meant for Lucas or William now belonged to Isabella. Will the Alexander family watch as Isabella controls them?

After a devastating fire ends her career and fractures her memory, famed concert pianist Mila Renard retreats to the Halden Institute, a luxurious psychiatric clinic hidden in the Swiss Alps. Her goal is simple: disappear into silence, avoid the past, and never ask questions. But Halden is not the safe haven it pretends to be. Files vanish. Patients whisper. And her assigned psychiatrist, Dr. Adrien Kael, is as enigmatic as he is unorthodox. Drawn to Mila’s haunting music and unreadable silence, Adrien begins to suspect her amnesia is no accident. When strange accidents start to occur and fragments of that lost night resurface, Mila realizes she didn’t come to Halden by chance—she was brought here. Now, every answer uncovers a new danger. Because some memories were buried for a reason. And someone is watching, waiting, and willing to do anything to make sure the truth stays dead.

After five years of marriage, Vanya thought she knew her husband Bernard until a near-fatal car accident opened her eyes to a devastating betrayal that shattered everything she believed about love and loyalty. When an ancient family heirloom suddenly awakens with mysterious power, Vanya finds herself with the resources and strength to fight back against those who destroyed her life. She meets Richmond, a humble restaurant owner who offers her a chance at a fresh start, but in a world where everyone has been lying to her, can she trust that he's really who he claims to be? Just when Vanya thinks she's finally taking control of her destiny, someone from her past returns with information that could destroy everything and the man she's falling for might not be the person she thinks he is.