“You’ll call this sentimental–perhaps–but then a dog somehow represents the private side of life, the play side,” Virginia Woolf confessed to a friend. And it is this private, playful side, the richness and power of the bond between five great women writers and their dogs, that Maureen Adams celebrates in this deeply engaging book. In Shaggy Muses, we visit Elizabeth Barrett Browning and Flush, the golden Cocker Spaniel who danced the poet away from death, back to life and human love. We roam the wild Yorkshire moors with Emily Brontë, whose fierce Mastiff mix, Keeper, provided a safe and loving outlet for the writer’s equally fierce spirit. We enter the creative sanctum of Emily Dickinson, which she shared only with Carlo, the gentle, giant Newfoundland who soothed her emotional terrors. We mingle with Edith Wharton, whose ever-faithful Pekes warmed her lonely heart during her restless travels among Europe and America’ s social and intellectual elite. We are privileged guests in the fragile universe of Virginia Woolf, who depended for emotional support and sanity not only on her human loved ones but also on her dogs, especially Pinka–a gift from her lover, Vita Sackville-West–a black Cocker Spaniel who became a strong, bright thread in the fabric of Virginia and Leonard Woolf’s life together. Based on diaries, letters, and other contemporary accounts–and featuring many illustrations of the writers and their dogs– these five miniature biographies allow us unparalleled intimacy with women of genius in their hours of domestic ease and inner vulnerability. Shaggy Muses also enchants us with a pack of new friends: Flush, Keeper, Carlo, Foxy, Linky, Grizzle, Pinka, and all the other devoted canines who loved and served these great writers.

She Muses is a fearless and fascinating look from Danielle Sainte-Marie--as is her style--at the world we are on, and the cosmos around us. She explores a wide range of topics, from killing god to falling in love--with even a recipe or two thrown in for good measure! This book is a joyous read, but also a difficult one for the weak minded. So, if you are weak-minded, BUY IT and grow! If you are strong and open-minded, buy it and enjoy the deep, philosophical thoughts presented.

The first four books in the Helicon Muses series, bundled at a discounted price When Nora Sparrow was a little girl and Owen Asher told her she was special, she believed him. But Nora’s fifteen now, and she’s too old to believe in magical happily-ever-afters or mystical otherworlds where she can create all day long and do what she likes. Sure, there are inexplicable things about her and Owen, like that trick he can do with his eyes that bends people to his will or the fact that storm clouds gather if she ever does one creative thing, but… Special? Her? She doesn’t even want to be special. She only wants to be like everyone else. When he begs her to try another ritual to open the dimensions, she agrees mostly to humor him. Owen’s rituals never work. Except this one does, and it’s all real. She’s a muse, not a human, and this world is Helicon—a bohemian world where the muses play hard, drink hard, throw parties, and create constantly. It’s Woodstock with magic, and here everyone is like her. She finally belongs. But Owen was right after all. Half-god Owen, the son of Dionysus, the powerful and single-minded boy whose little eye trick doesn’t work on her anymore? He was right, because she is special. She’s the only one Owen is obsessed with. And he’ll do anything to have her, to keep her, anything at all. Even tear Helicon apart at the seams. The Helicon series is a soapy, irreverent portal fantasy wherein the drama of teen relationships tends to overshadow whatever magical threat they’re trying to fight. Lots of drinking, swearing, inappropriate sexual decisions, grappling with sexual orientation and gender, and random appearances by mythological figures thrown in for good measure. It’s genre-bending, impossible to categorize, and for everyone out there who equally loves Gossip Girl, Rocky Horror, and Narnia.

Something strange is going on with the Muses. They can't write. They can't sing. They can't dance. They can't do anything right. They say Muses inspire the greatest of artists, artisans, thinkers, and poets, but what will inspire them? Zeus sees his nine daughters struggling with their talents, so he orders them to go to a mortal high school. Perhaps, he reasons, they will find inspiration there under the careful guidance and tutelage of Headmistress Ehtel. Zeus hopes his idea works... that the visit sparks his daughters' interests again or this will be the end of creativity, as we know it. The muses are not amused. Thalia, the muse of Comedy, proclaims that 'High school is where creativity goes to die'. With the headmistress, and their father, dead set against anything remotely fun, her sisters agree. In the mortal world, the humans meet the Muses for the first time but the nine sisters have biases against them. Calliope, the leader, vows to turn anyone who annoys her into a bird. Her sight is set on Henry, the insufferable human with the cute smile. Can the mortals survive the feisty nine daughters of Zeus, or will they fall victims to their immortal prejudices? Despite all their efforts, things go from bad to worse. Even with their lessons, the muses are forgetting their talents. But when they start disappearing, one by one, perhaps there is actually something or someone behind it all? Is there a dark and sinister nemesis they are unaware of? Can they find out who it is before they all disappear? Don't miss this fun new release! Topics: urban fantasy, comedy, humorous fantasy, discworld, good omens, fantasy books, fantasy novel, funny urban fantasy, best urban fantasy, best fantasy, cozy mystery, cosy mystery, greek mythology, percy jackson, harry potter Perfect for fans of J.R.R. Tolkien, Brandon Sanderson, P.G. Wodehouse, A. Lee Martinez, Robert Rankin, Douglas Adams, Eoin Colfer, Christopher Moore, Robert Asprin, Ben Aaronovitch, Tom Holt, Terry Pratchett, J.K. Rowling, Jasper Fforde, Neil Gaiman, piers anthony, Rick Riordan