The Neverending Story Leather Bound Book Romane & Geschichten

I had never been inside a room like this in my life. Stone City didn't have rooms like this. Stone City had shops with paperback novels piled outside for five naira each. Worn covers. Missing pages. Stories that other people had already touched and left behind. This was something else entirely. I moved to the nearest shelf. Ran my finger along the spines without pulling anything out. Just reading the titles. Feeling the texture of the bindings. I stopped at one. A thin volume. Dark blue cover. No image. Just a title in faded gold letters.

Naomi lifted a decorated gift box from the floor and handed it to Gwendolyn. Gwendolyn happily ripped the box open and brought out a book bound in thick leather. Her eyes lit up when she saw the title. «Legend Of The Demon Prince, Anubis» "You didn't." She gasped. Naomi laughed as Gwendolyn flew into her arms in a tight embrace. "Thank you, thank you, thank you." She gushed happily. She pulled back and stared at the book unbelievably, eagerly flipping through the pages. Ever since she turned sixteen, she had pestered both her parents for a copy of that book. It was her favourite story, a story that had been told for many generations.

The star pattern continued on the front, making up the border surrounding the exact same image in the middle engraved into the leather binding. I took a seat in a nearby armchair and opened the book. A little dust appeared as I did, along with a faint older text smell. I carefully turned to the first page which held the title: Ancient Curses. Oh, sh*t. Was this one of the books Ronan had used when looking for a cure for Leo's curse?

The book cover was made of thick leather with parchment pages tightly bound together with twine. With trembling hands, Anna opened the cover and began reading the first page, and the next, and the next. She was astonished to see the text was word-for-word the exact same as the manuscript her publishing company was about to release in a few days, plus several thousand years in the future.

Emma was sat in her flat, Having not long woken up; her hair was tied back and her legs tucked under her as she sat on the bed, with the sun streaming through the open window, she loved her small flat it wasn’t anything fancy, but she was on her own out in the world. She picked up My Bear, her Teddy.

I shove it back onto the shelf, the motion stirring a cloud of dust that stings my eyes. Finally, in the dimmest section of the floor, I spot it: A History of the Mate Bond. Its faded red leather cover is cracked with age, barely holding the book together. My heart sinks as I pull it free. The book is massive, easily over two thousand pages, the weight of it pulling at my arms.

His smile softened, “Leila’s story.” “Yep,” I looked at it, “The first of us.” I sighed. He walked over to me, “Did you finish it?” I nodded, “Have you read anyone else’s?” I shook my head softy, “No,” “Well,” He showed me the book in his hands, “Grandmother finished her,” It was a hardcover copy, “I got it from the printing press today.” He looked at the book rather fondly, “I’m here to put it in the collection.”

It’s an old leather-bound book, with a red leather cover and a gold emblem on the front, she turns it to read the spine, “The Parrot and the Hunter. Is this a children’s book or a weird shifter romance novel?” Morpheus laughs, and she sits down and opens it, “Ah, romance novel.” She taps it thoughtfully, “No pictures.” She smiles as Sol flushes and she curls up on the sofa to read, she flips through, “Oh, my apologies, there are pictures.” Sol groans as she takes in the etching of two people clearly fucking each other senseless. “Informative pictures.” Morpheus laughs hard,

“You do know what those are, right?” I glared at him, a little playfully. “I know what books are, Ronan. I just don’t understand why you’re giving them to me.” I said to him. He shrugged, leaning back in the chair. “You said you liked reading, didn’t you? I thought these might keep you entertained. I thought it would keep your mind active.” I picked up the top book. It was a leather-bound book that looked like it had seen better days. It was worn and the title was faded. But, I could still read the words. It was a collection of short stories.

Just sneakers and a light jacket. The city was unusually quiet. I ended up at a small antique bookstore tucked between a florist and a tailor. It had no flashy signage, just a brass bell on the door and a handwritten welcome note in cursive. Inside, the scent of old paper and cedar wrapped around me like a story waiting to be told. I let myself drift between the aisles until a book caught my eye—Letters Never Sent. It was a collection of real, unsent letters from women over the last century. To lost loves, estranged mothers, unborn children.