Kissing the Virgin's Mouth


Book Description

Guadalupe Magdalena Molina Vásquez -- wife, scoundrel, courtesan, mother -- is full of contradictions: she believes in love but is suspicious of men; she rejects religion but admires the Virgin Mary; she respects tradition while breaking all the rules. Here, in the Golden Zone of Teatán, Mexico, Magda tells her extraordinary life story -- from a poor Mexican barrio to American affluence, from wide-eyed childhood to worldly courtesan life, from full-blooded youth to oncoming blindness -- and bewitchingly imparts the hard-earned wisdom she has gained through the years.










Virgin and Other Stories


Book Description

"Plimpton Prize winner April Ayers Lawson's debut collection, Virgin and Other Stories, set in the South at the crossroads of a world both secular and devoutly Christian, evoking the inner lives of young women and men navigating sexual, emotional, and spiritual awakenings"--




The Kiss Sacred and Profane


Book Description

This title is part of UC Press's Voices Revived program, which commemorates University of California Press’s mission to seek out and cultivate the brightest minds and give them voice, reach, and impact. Drawing on a backlist dating to 1893, Voices Revived makes high-quality, peer-reviewed scholarship accessible once again using print-on-demand technology. This title was originally published in 1969.




The Science of Kissing


Book Description

From a noted science journalist comes a wonderfully witty and fascinating exploration of how and why we kiss. When did humans begin to kiss? Why is kissing integral to some cultures and alien to others? Do good kissers make the best lovers? And is that expensive lip-plumping gloss worth it? Sheril Kirshenbaum, a biologist and science journalist, tackles these questions and more in The Science of a Kiss. It's everything you always wanted to know about kissing but either haven't asked, couldn't find out, or didn't realize you should understand. The book is informed by the latest studies and theories, but Kirshenbaum's engaging voice gives the information a light touch. Topics range from the kind of kissing men like to do (as distinct from women) to what animals can teach us about the kiss to whether or not the true art of kissing was lost sometime in the Dark Ages. Drawing upon classical history, evolutionary biology, psychology, popular culture, and more, Kirshenbaum's winning book will appeal to romantics and armchair scientists alike.




With This Kiss


Book Description

He's known for his womanizing. She's known for her brains. One thoughtless kiss changes everything. A Gilded Age novella series from Constance Kent: Jane Silver has always relied on her intelligence to insulate her from feeling anything. But when she is kissed by a stranger in the street, her intelligence fails her spectacularly. Hawksley Welland is a New York gilt-edged playboy and a drunk. A man careening on the edge of disaster, he’s burning bridges faster than he can run. Kissing a young woman in the street is the last straw for Great Aunt Agnes who is in charge of his trust. He will marry the girl or he will lose everything. Jane can't be forced into marriage over something as trivial as her reputation. But with a rare book in her possession, she decides to take the risk, intending to cloister herself in the Welland library, safely removed from feeling. She didn't realize a mere kiss from a dissolute but gorgeous stranger would have the power to break down her walls and upend her very soul.







A Convenient Bride for the Soldier


Book Description

In this Regency Era romance, a nobleman rescues a lady from disgrace by purchasing her at an auction, then is forced to marry her to avoid a scandal. Bought for Ten Thousand Pounds! Ex-soldier Frederick Challenger may own a share of London’s most secret gentlemen’s club, but he has long since stopped sampling its delights . . . until a beautiful woman auctions her innocence. Georgiana Knight’s plan had been to lure in a villain, but instead she’s trapped the devil himself. And now, to protect her reputation, she must marry him! But if Frederick has hopes of taming this temptress, he’ll have to think again . . .




Hopeless


Book Description

From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of It Ends With Us comes the beginning of Sky and Dean’s passionate love story – where well-kept secrets threaten to open wounds of a dark past. Would you rather know a truth that makes you feel hopeless, or keep believing the lies? Beloved and bestselling author Colleen Hoover returns with the spellbinding story of two young people with devastating pasts who embark on a passionate, intriguing journey to discover the lessons of life, love, trust – and above all, the healing power that only truth can bring. Sky, a senior in high school, meets Dean Holder, a guy with a promiscuous reputation that rivals her own. From their very first encounter, he terrifies and captivates her. Something about him sparks memories of her deeply troubled past, a time she’s tried so hard to bury. Though Sky is determined to stay far away from him, his unwavering pursuit and enigmatic smile break down her defenses and the intensity of the bond between them grows. But the mysterious Holder has been keeping secrets of his own, and once they are revealed, Sky is changed forever and her ability to trust may be a casualty of the truth. Only by courageously facing the stark revelations can Sky and Holder hope to heal their emotional scars and find a way to live and love without boundaries. Hopeless is a novel that will leave you breathless, entranced, and remembering your own first love.