The Long Shadow Review Novels & Stories

I've accidentally worn a dress belonging to my deceased older sister, Gwendolyn Stokes, to a family banquet. Because of that, my husband, Thomas Torres, goes quiet with fury. He then sentences me to a punishment of kneeling in the snow for three long hours. The blizzard chills me to the bone. My son, Robin Torres, makes fun of me while hurling snowballs at me. "No matter how much you dress up, you'll always be a phony! Don't think you can go around replacing my mommy just because you've changed into her dress!" As I stare at Robin's face, which bears some resemblance with mine, I feel my heart breaking. He has no idea that I'm his actual mother. On the year Gwendolyn passed away, Thomas, who drank himself into a stupor, mistook me for her. That night, he kept moaning Gwendolyn's name and whispering sweet nothings to me. That was how I got pregnant with Robin. Thomas has forbidden me from telling anyone the truth. On the other hand, I can't bear to leave my own child alone. So, I beg Thomas repeatedly to let me stay in the Torres residence. During my stay here, Thomas gives me the cold shoulder all the time. Only when he needs to vent his desire does he seek me out. What I didn't expect is that Robin hates my guts as well. Not only does he keep pulling pranks on me from time to time, but he also curses at me. "Shameless women like you have no right to stay in my home! Once I grow up, I'll definitely kick you out!" Now, I can finally respond to him. "Oh, I don't have to wait for you to grow up at all." Tomorrow, I'll pack my things and leave. I no longer want to remain as someone else's replacement and continue living a life of humiliation. This time, I'm going to pursue a life of my own.

In the ruthless underworld of Los Angeles, an ancient feud between the Moretti and Volkov mafia families has simmered for decades. After a fragile truce is established, Alessia Moretti, a headstrong university student, believes she can escape the criminal life that has defined her family. But when her reckless brother, Lucas, accumulates a five-million-dollar debt with the infamous Nikolai Volkov, everything changes. To settle the debt, Nikolai demands Alessia’s hand in marriage. Forced into a union with the enemy, Alessia finds herself trapped in a dangerous game of power, deception, and forbidden desire. Nikolai has harbored an obsession for her since childhood, and now that she is his, he refuses to let her go. As secrets unravel and long-buried betrayals come to light, Alessia must decide where her loyalties lie. Will she fight for the family that raised her, or will she surrender to the man who has vowed to claim her as his own?

Book 2 of "The Ceo's Secretary The priest who have been smiling since morning joined our hands together and asked Jason "Do you take Lexi Tyler as your lawful wife, to have to hold, from this day forward, for better or worse, for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and cherish until death do you part?" I and Jason's eyes met and he sighed heavily "Yes I do" he answered and everybody clapped The priest faced me and asked me the same question "Do you take Jason Stokes as your lawful husband, to have to hold, from this day forward, for better or worse, for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and cherish until death do you part?" I looked at Jason, he was a little bit scared "Yes, I do" I replied ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Those were our words to each other on our wedding day but Jason didn't keep to them. Jason is a liar and a cheater!

He owns her body. She owns his secret. Only one can break first. From children to lovers. From lovers to people separated by hierarchies and bound by oaths. Daya and Night rule as Alpha and Shadow of the most feared pack in all of Eyriena. But beneath the throne lies a dangerous obsession neither of them can fully escape. "Let me go, Night," I met his gaze, forcing my voice to remain calm despite the urgency rising within me. His hand cradled my cheek with deceptive gentleness, but his grip around my waist was like iron — unmovable. The raw power of a hybrid radiated from him. “No.” His voice was low and commanding. “I’ll say when you can leave. And right now, I need you here.” His lips trailed heat down my neck, my pulse betraying me. His hands slid expertly down, finding the buttons of my shirt. His fingers worked skillfully, undoing them one after another, revealing my bra — barely holding in my full, straining breasts. “Mine," he murmured possessively, eyes locked on the soft mounds rising beneath... As ancient secrets unravel and a deadly curse tightens its hold, Daya must choose either to betray the only man she's ever loved — or lose herself completely to his dark side. In this world, love demands blood.

The ER had taken in over a dozen patients on New Year's Eve. Yet, my widowed sister-in-law had called my husband into the on-call room to breastfeed him. When I caught them in the act, Diana hurriedly straightened her rumpled top, her face flushed with embarrassment. "Amber, please don't get the wrong idea. I was treating Elliot! He thinks I'm his late mother. He comes to me to relive his childhood every night. I've gotten used to it." Elliot Cladwell showed no trace of guilt as he remarked, "Diana has been doing everything she can to help me with my adult attachment disorder. As a doctor, you of all people should understand." I smiled and quietly stepped aside, giving them space. What I didn't say was that I had just activated the system's wish-granting function. Since Diana wanted so badly to be his dead mother, I might as well help her fulfill that wish.

There are a few things that you need to know about Christine Gyamfi. She is a Christian, a famous writer in Canada, and has parents who are from Ethiopia that moved to North America when she was a child. She also has an older brother that lives in the United States. She and her parents want her to get married, have kids, and be a mother. However, Christine isn't interested in that kind of thing yet. So she is going to spend time having fun while she has the chance. Christine is a very smart woman. But she has a tendency to trust people way too quickly. And this will turn soon be her greatest weakness. Her best friends are an amazing nurse that works in a psychiatric Ward and a party girl that lives in the moment. A plan to hang out with her friends gets her webbed in secrets and lies. But that doesn't matter, it made her stronger and wiser.

Felix and I had been inseparable for ten years, and everyone thought we would end up married. When he got into fights at school, I took the blame and got expelled in his place. When he slept with countless women, I delivered birth control pills and breakup money in his place. I had always played the part of the shameless doormat, and everyone believed I loved him more than life itself. But the moment he took over as the heir to his family's fortune, he dumped me. He looked at me with scorn and disdain. "Kathy, maybe once upon a time we were in love, but it's been too long. You're dull, and you've drained away every ounce of my affection. I don't want to spend the rest of my life with you, so get out of my sight. I'm going to marry someone I truly love." Everyone was waiting to watch me fall apart. But when I saw the hospital's proof that my mother had been cured, and the extra hundred million dollars in my bank account, I genuinely smiled. "Fine. I'll leave," I said. The truth was, I had stayed with a player like him only because of a business deal. Now that I had the money, it was time for me to walk away.

When a mysterious voice calls out during the night young Nova can’t help but to follow it deep into the dark woods surrounding campus. All the training she had received from her mother and grandmother couldn’t have prepared her for the dark stranger she finds locked away in a long forgotten locket. She soon finds out that her family holds more secrets than she imagined and they are all wrapped up in this mysterious man. What will she do when given the chance to uncover the answers she’s desperate to learn?

Damien Voss catches the hacker tearing his empire apart and forces a brutal deal: one year as his live-in shadow, total obedience, including his bed, or Riven’s little sister loses the treatment keeping her alive. Riven signs because he has no choice, even though the man he’s sworn to destroy is the same one who’s secretly paid for that treatment for years. What starts as cold revenge turns vicious the moment they touch. Damien’s hidden condition triggers a vision of his own murder — with Riven holding the gun. Now the contract that was supposed to give Damien control has become a cage neither man can escape. Every kiss, every night in the same bed, brings the death prophecy closer and sharper. Riven keeps telling himself he still wants Damien dead, but the longer he stays, the harder it gets to remember why. Damien watches the man he’s forcing to submit and realizes he’s falling for the only person fate keeps showing him as his killer. In the end they don’t break the prophecy by fighting it. They break it by choosing each other anyway — knowing one of them might still have to die for the other to live. Some contracts can only be paid in blood or in surrender, and Damien and Riven are running out of time to decide which one they’re willing to give.

The moment our magic touched, something shifted. My shadows didn’t fight his light this time. They reached for it instead, curling around the gold like they belonged there. “Lyra,” Kaelen said quietly, closer than I expected, “don’t force it.” “I’m not,” I whispered. That was the problem. I wasn’t controlling it at all. The connection deepened—raw, seamless, alive—threading through me like it had always been there. No resistance, balance. Just power. His gaze locked on mine, sharp with something I couldn’t ignore. “You feel that too,” I said. “Yes.” The answer came instantly. And it unsettled me. Because if he felt it too… then this wasn’t just my power. It was something else. Something neither of us understood. And for the first time since my magic awakened—I wasn’t sure if it made me stronger… or more dangerous. ---- Lyra Vale never asked for power. But when the crystal chose her, something ancient awakened—shadow magic thought to be dead for centuries. Feared. Forbidden. Alive inside her. Sent to the Royal Magic Academy under strict control, Lyra is told to suppress it. To become safe. But her magic refuses to be controlled. It grows. Prince Kaelen is the only one strong enough to counter it—his light magic the perfect balance to her shadows. He was meant to contain her. Instead, he becomes the only thing keeping her grounded. But something is wrong inside the Academy. Students are losing control. Hidden forces are moving beneath the surface. And someone is always watching Lyra. The truth is worse than rebellion or dark magic. Lyra was never meant to control the shadows. She was meant to awaken them. And when the truth comes out, she won’t just choose between light and darkness— She’ll decide who she becomes.