Stories by @thyralibre

When the Night is Over

Are the bonds of our first true love as strong as they feel when we’re young, innocent and consumed with the promise of forever? The last time Charlotte Mason saw Simon Wade, he was shoving a paper bag from the pharmacy into her hands with a morning-after pill inside. Even though he literally left her holding the bag, when love is true it’s limitless, and Charlotte wants more for Simon than the ties that bind him to their dead-end town. He has one shot at a better life, and she’ll stand aside so he can take it. Nearly four years later Charlotte is still nowhere to be found, and it’s not as if Simon hasn’t been looking. How can he forget the girl who still haunts his dreams?

Out on a Limb

Winnifred "Win" McNulty has always been wildly independent. Not one to be coddled for her limb difference, Win has spent most of her life trying to prove that she can do it all on her own. And, with some minor adjustments, she's done just fine. That is until she has a one-night stand with the incredibly charming Bo, a perfect stranger. And that one night changes everything. While Bo is surprisingly elated to step up to the plate, Win finds herself unsure of whether she can handle this new challenge on her own or if she’ll need a helping hand. Together, Win and Bo decide to get to know one another as friends and nothing more. But, as they both should know by now, life rarely goes according to plan.

Once Upon a Broken Heart

For as long as she can remember, Evangeline Fox has believed in true love and happy endings... until she learns that the love of her life will marry another. Desperate to stop the wedding and to heal her wounded heart, Evangeline strikes a deal with the charismatic but wicked Prince of Hearts. In exchange for his help, he asks for three kisses, to be given at the time and place of his choosing. But after Evangeline’s first promised kiss, she learns that bargaining with an immortal is a dangerous game—and that the Prince of Hearts wants far more from her than she’d pledged. He has plans for Evangeline, plans that will either end in the greatest happily ever after or the most exquisite tragedy...

Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine

Meet Eleanor Oliphant: She struggles with appropriate social skills and tends to say exactly what she’s thinking. Nothing is missing in her carefully timetabled life of avoiding social interactions, where weekends are punctuated by frozen pizza, vodka, and phone chats with Mummy.

Never Lie

Newlyweds Tricia and Ethan are searching for the house of their dreams. But when they visit the remote manor that once belonged to Dr. Adrienne Hale, a renowned psychiatrist who vanished without a trace four years earlier, a violent winter storm traps them at the estate… with no chance of escape until the blizzard comes to an end. In search of a book to keep her entertained until the snow abates, Tricia happens upon a secret room. One that contains audio transcripts from every single patient Dr. Hale has ever interviewed. As Tricia listens to the cassette tapes, she learns about the terrifying chain of events leading up to Dr. Hale’s mysterious disappearance. Tricia plays the tapes one by one, late into the night. With each one, another shocking piece of the puzzle falls into place, and Dr. Adrienne Hale’s web of lies slowly unravels. And then Tricia reaches the final cassette. The one that reveals the entire horrifying truth.

Does It Hurt?

Who am I? I've forgotten the answer to that question long ago. Ever since I ran from that house, so desperate to escape, I left with only the clothes on my back and socks on my feet. After that day, I've only ever walked in stolen shoes. Could I be a girl who is searching for the meaning of life in faceless men? They were all so forgettable. Until he came along. He took me under a waterfall and made me forget my name, and in return, I took his instead. Enzo Vitale. An enigmatic man that will only ever love the deep sea. Or rather the predators that inhabit it. Turns out, he's not so different than the monsters he feeds. He lured me onto his boat like a fish in the ocean, seeking vengeance for my crime. Had I realized his intentions, and that a massive storm would leave us shipwrecked, I would've ran. Now, I'm a girl who's seeking refuge in a decrepit lighthouse with a man who loathes me almost as much as he craves me. He wants to hurt me, but the old caretaker of the abandoned island may have intentions far more sinister. It's no longer a question of who I am, but rather, will I survive?

The Nanny

fter losing her job and being on the brink of eviction, Cassie Evans finds herself with two choices: get a new job (and fast) or fire up her long-untouched OnlyFans account. But there are no jobs to be found, and as for OnlyFans. . . . Well, there are reasons she can’t go back. Just when all hope seems lost, an ad for a live-in nanny position seems the solution to all her problems. It’s almost too perfect—until she meets her would-be employer. Aiden Reid, executive chef and DILF extraordinaire is far from the stuffy single dad Cassie was imagining. She is shocked when he tells her she’s the most qualified applicant he’s met in weeks, practically begging her to take the job. With hands that make her hindbrain howl and eyes that scream sex, the idea of living under the same roof as Aiden feels dangerous, but with no other option, she decides to stay with him and his adorably tenacious daughter, Sophie. Cassie soon discovers that Aiden is not a stranger at all, but instead someone who is very familiar with her—or at least, her body. She finds herself at a loss for what to do, given that he doesn’t remember her. As their relationship heats to temperatures hotter than any kitchen Aiden has ever worked in, Cassie struggles with telling Aiden the truth, and the more terrifying possibility—losing the best chance at happiness she’s ever had.

The Beauty of Perhaps

Teacher required. Must have boat. Molly is a predictable, no surprises, plan ahead kind of girl, and the last person who should answer the ad for a teaching job on the remote Scottish island of Lilliebrae. She’s never been the type of adventurous spirit that would even consider such a radical change. And truthfully, she only took the job after her life in America went from bad to worse. From day one on the island, Molly’s sure she’s not meant to stay. When a rugged journeyman arrives, things get even more complicated and she’s pushed even further outside her comfort zone. With his help, Molly works on finding the beauty of perhaps. In this snapshot of modern day Scotland, Eryn Scott weaves one woman’s journey of self discovery with Scottish tradition and a sprinkling of windswept love.

Yellowface

Athena Liu is a literary darling and June Hayward is literally nobody. White lies When Athena dies in a freak accident, June steals her unpublished manuscript and publishes it as her own under the ambiguous name Juniper Song. Dark humour But as evidence threatens June’s stolen success, she will discover exactly how far she will go to keep what she thinks she deserves. Deadly consequences… What happens next is entirely everyone else’s fault. With its totally immersive first-person voice, Yellowface grapples with questions of diversity, racism, and cultural appropriation, as well as the terrifying alienation of social media. R.F. Kuang’s novel is timely, razor-sharp, and eminently readable.

Red & White

Retelling of Snow-White and Rose-Red All that art student Scarlett wants to do is wait out a howling snowstorm and kiss her best friend senseless, but all her careful plans fall apart the minute a near-frozen bear stumbles through the door. Except he's not a bear—he's very much a man—and there's only one way to warm him up from the cold...

Midnight Mass

We are told that God will punish the wicked. That sinful men will reap what they sow. We are told to scourge our souls with prayer and pain to become clean once again. Well, here I am. Wicked and sinful. Desperate to become clean…even though it feels so good to be dirty. But even I never expected what came next. Even I never expected my punishment to come so soon.

Priest

There are many rules a priest can't break: A priest cannot marry. A priest cannot abandon his flock. A priest cannot forsake his God. I've always been good at following rules. Until she came. My name is Tyler Anselm Bell. I'm twenty-nine years old. Six months ago, I broke my vow of celibacy on the altar of my own church, and God help me, I would do it again. I am a priest and this is my confession. Priest is a standalone, full-length novel with an HEA. For mature audiences only

Dreamland Billionaires Series

The Fine Print I’m in the business of creating fairy tales. Theme parks. Production companies. Five-star hotels. Everything could be all mine if I renovated Dreamland. My initial idea of hiring Zahra was good in theory, but then I kissed her. Things spiraled out of control once I texted her using an alias. Terms and Conditions I’m destined to become the next CEO of my family’s media empire. The only problem? My grandfather’s inheritance clause. Fulfilling his dying wish of getting married and having an heir seemed impossible until my assistant volunteers for the job. Our marriage was supposed to be the perfect solution to my biggest problem. Final From TikTok sensation Lauren Asher comes the final book in the Dreamland Billionaires series. Callahan I'm the Kane brother everyone gossips about behind closed doors. Trust fund brat. Washed-up athlete. High-functioning alcoholic. No one knows the real me but her.

The Wish

1996 was the year that changed everything for Maggie Dawes. Sent away at sixteen to live with an aunt she barely knew in Ocracoke, a remote village on North Carolina’s Outer Banks, she could think only of the friends and family she left behind . . . until she met Bryce Trickett, one of the few teenagers on the island. Handsome, genuine, and newly admitted to West Point, Bryce showed her how much there was to love about the wind-swept beach town—and introduced her to photography, a passion that would define the rest of her life. By 2019, Maggie is a renowned travel photographer. She splits her time between running a successful gallery in New York and photographing remote locations around the world. But this year she is unexpectedly grounded over Christmas, struggling to come to terms with a sobering medical diagnosis. Increasingly dependent on a young assistant, she finds herself becoming close to him. As they count down the last days of the season together, she begins to tell him the story of another Christmas, decades earlier—and the love that set her on a course she never could have imagined.

Wicked Idol

The new girl doesn’t belong here. So why can’t I stop thinking about her? The daughter of the headmaster wants to ruin my school year before it’s even begun. Iris Briggs gets under my skin. With her demure skirts and braided hair, she flits around the periphery until she runs right into me, hot coffee soaking me as she looks up with wide, innocent eyes. We start off scalding. In the library, we reach lava levels. And then in the city? She burns me to the ground. I’m Keaton Constantine. My duty is to my family. At least, it was until I started unbraiding the good girl and realizing there’s more to life than duty.

The Arranged Marriage Trilogy

"You're engaged to be married." My father didn't ask for my permission. He told me that I would marry a man I've never met. Wealthy. Powerful. And a complete stranger. Perry Constantine is known as the life of the party. And yet he presents a very different face to me behind closed doors. He's hiding a secret darkness. "As your future husband, I have every right to tell you what to do whenever I want." I'm the good, dutiful daughter, so I'll follow my father's commands. But my husband's? Absolutely not. Not even in the bedroom. No matter how much he makes me ache.

All Roads Lead to Here

A Bonus Chapter, sent out in Abby Jimenez newsletter, set before Part of Your World

The Seven Year Slip

Sometimes, the worst day of your life happens, and you have to figure out how to live after it. So Clementine forms a plan to keep her heart safe: stay busy, work hard, find someone decent to love, and try to remember to chase the moon. The last one is silly and obviously metaphorical, but her aunt always told her that you needed at least one big dream to keep going. And for the last year, that plan has gone off without a hitch. Mostly. The love part is hard because she doesn’t want to get too close to anyone—she isn’t sure her heart can take it. And then she finds a strange man standing in the kitchen of her late aunt’s apartment. A man with kind eyes and a Southern drawl and a taste for lemon pies. The kind of man that, before it all, she would’ve fallen head-over-heels for. And she might again. Except, he exists in the past. Seven years ago, to be exact. And she, quite literally, lives seven years in his future. Her aunt always said the apartment was a pinch in time, a place where moments blended together like watercolors. And Clementine knows that if she lets her heart fall, she’ll be doomed. After all, love is never a matter of time—but a matter of timing.

Birthday Kisses

'Tis the season and things are a little stressful for our fave couple. There's a lot going on in their lives, and Wren is feeling out of sorts. Crew just wants his girl happy, so when an unexpected Scrooge (aka his big brother Grant) reaches out with an offer they can't refuse, Crew and Wren realize they can actually enjoy some alone time together right before the holiday — and Wren's birthday.

A Million Kisses in Your Lifetime

Wren Beaumont is many things. Beautiful. Smart. Sweet. Innocent. At Lancaster Prep, the girls love her. They all want to be her friend. Only I see Wren for who she really is. A repressed little virgin who keeps her feelings locked up so tight she’s probably close to bursting. She thinks she’s above us all. Even me. I shouldn’t be drawn to her. She’s not my type. Until we’re forced to work together in class and realize we might have more things in common than we originally thought. Soon enough I find myself completely obsessed. I will do anything for this girl to make her fall in love with me. Anything.