Bill W

As a lover of fantasy stories, I find this story intriguing. However, "it was the start of our adventure in the fantastical world of Sod", then why the hell did it end. This story was short and there's plenty of room to continue, so why stop there? I want to read much, much more.

The recent Secret Author contest is a farrago of different styles and author interpretations of the theme 'Hidden'.

Farrago comes from the Latin word 'far', which referred to spelt, a type of grain. That term then was used to form the word 'farrago', which meant mixed fodder, or cattle feed from a mixture of grains. It was then adop ted to Englished in the mid 17th century (1600s) to mean a mixture of different things or a powdery substance. The earliest evidence of the word farrago is from 1637, in the writings of Ben Jonson, a poet and playwright.

I don't know if any of you remember this, but it happened after Cllay dismissed Rachel. When Clay had heard all he could for one night, he decided to let Max outside for a run and do what dogs need to do after eating. Clay wanted and needed to calm down, and walking Max would help him do that. When Max began barking, Clay put it down to a reaction to local wildlife. He did not notice the very brief glimmer of a slither of light and took Max back inside. When I read this part about the "glimmer of a slither of light", I was thinking it was from a cell/mobile phone and Rachel had come back to get revenge. Now I know it was from the opening of a portal, but I was still waiting for Rachel to do something nasty before she returned with her solicitor. I enjoyed this story, but I was surprised it was taking Jack and Clay so long to figure things out, but I'm glad they final did and it turned out well. I'm glad Mags and Seb worked things out as well and all the Therans are safe and happy. I also hope Clay's idea about helping the planet fix the climate crisis works, not only in the story but with the planet now. I didn't think I'd be this hot until after I died. The devil made me say that! Congratulations, Secret Author, on an enjoyable tale, but as someone else recomment, it needs a follow up to let us know how things are working out.

Now I'm glad I didn't take up the piano.

From the Greek word datkylos, which means 'finger'. In biology, dactyly is the arrangement of fingers. The term dactyl is oft en used to refer to refer to a a single digit, such as a finger or toe.

Many people, especially younger people, are quick to display their dactylion for everyone to see.

An archaic meaning of ebullient is boiling or angry, such as in "misted and ebullient seas" or "ebullient lava steaming down the mountainside" or "the ebullient economy economic environment has given way to high inflation, increasing interest rates, and lower savings". The first known use of the word was in the 1590s.

No pic?

This would be my choice - Brody Malone.

If you buy and sell books and have that many, then you may be a bibliopole. If you merely enjoy books and collect them, that would make you a bibliophile.

Most murder mysteries leave you guessing who the murderer is, but this story lets you experience the crimes through the killer's eyes and even gives you a glimpse into their thought process. The mystery here is if the killer will be caught, and if they are caught if they'll be convicted and what their sentence might be. If you appreciate a different sort of murder mystery, I think you'll find this one right up your alley. Well done Secret Author.

There's always criminals that think they're so smart that they can get away with anything. There's a good chance that some do, and the number of innocent people in prisons can attest to that (especially those that have already been proven innocent or wrongly convicted), but this time the perpetrator didn't get away with the crime. It's not often that you find a transgender twin who's assuming a dual personality is the guilty party, but he proved he wasn't very smart when he failed to heed his lawyers advice to accept the plea deal. If he had, he might have been able to also get the court to agree to sentence him to a male facility (where he probably would have been frequently raped), but he may have also had the possibly of being paroled when he was old and gray. Since we were seeing the crimes through the killer's eyes, the mystery wasn't who the killer was, but if he'd be caught and the outcome of the trial. Well done, Secret Author, and although the warning at the beginning was probably appreciated by many, the story could have been much more gruesome and bloody, but I'm glad you didn't go that route.

Public defenders aren't the cream of the crop when it comes to attorneys, but he did have an impossible case with an even more impossible client.

Hmmm, someone keep their dictionary close by when writing responses. lol

A really fun Secret Santa Christmas party story with a lot of sexual innuendo. If you want to read a story that will make you smile and keep you interested, this is the one to read. Well done Secret Author.

You weren't the only one.

A really fun Christmas story with enough sexual innuendo to make your stomach flutter as you identify with or are attracted to one character or another after their discrete disclosures. But now I need a follow up to this story to see what happens between Jason and Stephen and Jason and Owen. Get the hint, Secret Author? Well done!

Yes, I remember the performers spinning plates on poles on the Ed Sullivan Show, and I'm sure it would have been funnier if they'd used books.

When I first saw this word, I immediately thought of bibliophile. And while it has the same root, the bibliophile would be the person who would buy books, because he has a great love of books and reading. And then there's biblioteca ISpanish for library), bibliotheca (Greek word for library), bibliotheque (French for library, and Bibliothek (German for library), and I'm sure there are many more which are all using the Latin root word for relating to books.

Yes, just as I comment to Danilo, Devin had a lot of choices in this situation, but what he did was probably the best. Changing into something smaller and letting the gator swallow him would have meant getting past those teeth, and then he would have transitioned into something with gills, both smaller and what he chose to transition into when he got larger. Otherwise he might have drowned. He could have still had his swimsuit, if he could have found it underwater, but then there would have been the messed of the exploding gator, and who knows, some of the blood and guts might have risen to the surface, where Mac's Mom was standing guard. I think Devin made the best choice possible, because even if they'just tried to get back on the boat, the gator might have attacked before they made it safely onboard.

Yes, there were a lot of different things that could have happened in that situation, but Devin obviously thought this was the best and safest option to protect everyone involved. Besides, transitioning into somet hing larger, like a larger gator, would have shredded his swimsuit and then how was he going to get back on the boat without a lot of embarrassment, seeing their were two couples on board - Mac's parents and the boat owner and his wife. I'm sure he considered all options quickly before he settled on doing what he did. I'm glad you enjoyed this chapter.

I'm glad you and drp agree with me. I was beginning to think I was more abnormal that I realized.

But I don't see the pole - the one you used for dancing.

Although a sperm whale's mouth and throat is large enough to swallow a person, research says most times they'll spit the human out, although it's an extremely rare occurrence and an unpleasant day for both parties involved.