This is what happens when a powerful princess falls in love with a woman and God sits in the grass to count stars. Princes, birds, and glass bottle labyrinths wrap around a spiral of Roman numerals.

Lively and experimental, Swans in Half-Mourning is a modern retelling of the Grimm fairytale, "The Six Swans." Written in language that is lush, erotic and playful, this novella brings the classic fairytale to fresh, startling life.

Praise for Vi Khi Nao: "Here I was allowed to forget for a while that that is what books aspire to tell, so taken was I by more enthralling and mysterious pleasures." —Carole Maso How do you bear the death of a child? With fishtanks and jellyfish burials, Persephone's pomegranate seeds, and affairs with the neighbors. Fish in Exile spins unimaginable loss through classical and magical tumblers, distorting our view so that we can see the contours of a parent's grief all the more clearly. Vi Khi Nao was born in Long Khanh, Vietnam. Vi's work includes poetry, fiction, film and cross-genre collaboration. Her poetry collection, The Old Philosopher, was the winner of 2014 Nightboat Poetry Prize. Her novel, Fish In Exile, will make its first appearance in Fall 2016 from Coffee House Press. She holds an MFA in fiction from Brown University.

ROSE PETALS: --- My pretty little Liz with your blue eyes, And your soft little hands holding the rose; Red, velvety and sweetly scented it may be, Beware though of its prickly little thorns. --- Mummy told me that holding the stem tight And looking at the petals I can make wishes, Thirty of them, and for every wish I pull one And in time, all of my wishes become true. --- My lovely, adorable and innocent small Liz Hold the rose tight, and keep your wishes secret, If that is what mummy said, that is what you do, Your mummy was right, wishes do come true. --- I picked and chose my first petal and wished For the angels not to come and take you away, As they called on my mum and took her away, My next wish is for us to stay together, for ever. --- My sweet and delightful Liz, this is my pledge, Always to be near you, and help you grow up Into a pretty, an attractive lady as your mum was So hold onto that rose, pick a petal a day and wish.

"The Sin of Abbé Mouret tells the compelling story of the young priest Serge Mouret. Striving after spiritual purity and sanctity, he lives a life of constant prayer, but his neglect of all physical needs leads to serious illness, followed by amnesia. No longer knowing he is a priest, he falls in love with his nurse Albine. Together, like a latter-day Adam and Eve, they roam through an Eden-like garden called the 'Paradou', seeking a forbidden tree in whose shade they will make love. Zola memorably shows their gradual awakening to sexuality, and his poetic descriptions of the luxuriant and beautiful Paradou create a lyrical celebration of Nature. When Serge regains his memory and recalls his priestly vows, anguish inevitably follows. The whole story, with its numerous biblical parallels, becomes a poetic reworking of the Fall of Man and a questioning of the very meaning of innocence and sin. Zola explores the conflict between Church and Nature, the sterility of the Church and the fertility of Nature. The edition includes a wide-ranging and helpful introduction and explanatory notes."--Page [4] of cover.