776 Results in the "Literary Fiction" category


    • Chapter IX – The witch and other Stories Cover
      by LovelyMay Chapter IX begins at a moment of quiet devastation, as the household feasts carelessly after young Nikifor’s funeral. The mourners partake in food and chatter as though the grief in the room is no more than background noise. Lipa, whose sorrow is raw and consuming, finally breaks down, only to be dismissed by Aksinya with cold indifference. Her pain is not welcome. The house, once shared in name, now feels entirely alien. Lipa makes her decision to leave for Torguevo, returning to her mother with nothing…
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      The Huntsman

      The Huntsman Cover
      by LovelyMay The Huntsman opens beneath a scorching sky, where the heat clings to every surface, and not even a whisper of breeze disturbs the forest edge. Yegor Vlassitch walks with a leisurely stride, dressed in a worn red shirt and patched trousers, his rifle slung across one shoulder. His presence, however casual, holds a weight that disturbs the stillness. From a nearby thicket, Pelagea appears—her frame slight, her face flushed from labor, and her voice timid but tinged with longing. Their meeting feels more…
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      Happiness

      Happiness Cover
      by LovelyMay Happiness begins beneath a quiet sky as vast as the hopes harbored by men living far from cities. The two shepherds, one old and nearly toothless, the other young and alert, sit by their flock through the night, joined by an estate overseer. Together they trade tales—not of sheep or work—but of fortunes hidden in the earth, of magic, curses, and long-forgotten men who once brushed shoulders with the supernatural. These stories, while half-believed, offer more than entertainment; they serve as emotional…
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      A Malefactor

      A Malefactor Cover
      by LovelyMay A Malefactor opens with a quiet, almost comical tension as Denis Grigoryev stands before a magistrate, unaware that his everyday action has landed him in legal trouble. Thin, poorly dressed, and confused by the setting, Denis is a figure straight from the Russian countryside—someone who sees the world through the lens of survival rather than law. His crime? Removing a nut from a railway track to use as a fishing weight. To Denis, this is no more criminal than picking a stone from the roadside. His…
    • Chapter I – The Witchand Other Stories Cover
      by LovelyMay Chapter I begins with a quiet but heavy journey as Nikolay Tchikildyeev returns to his childhood village of Zhukovo, no longer the man full of ambition he once was. Once a waiter in Moscow, he is now frail and financially defeated, clinging to a thin hope that the village may offer healing or, at least, shelter. With his wife, Olga, and their daughter, Sasha, beside him, the scene they encounter is bleak—crumbling buildings, barefoot children, and a home stripped of dignity. The interior is dark,…
    • Chapter II – The Witchand Other Stories Cover
      by LovelyMay Chapter II opens as the evening quiet settles over the humble home, where each member of the family finds a place to rest. Nikolay, frail and bound by illness, lies atop the warm stove with his aging father beside him, seeking comfort in the heat radiating from the bricks. Sasha, younger and still filled with energy despite the day’s fatigue, stretches out on the floor without complaint. In a separate space, Olga and the women retreat to the barn, the soft rustle of hay beneath them offering a cushion…
    • Chapter III – The Witchand Other Stories Cover
      by LovelyMay Chapter III begins with the quiet stir of morning settling over the village, where golden sunlight softens the outlines of hardship. Marya, wrapped in her usual silence, walks to church alongside others, their heavy steps and heavy thoughts barely stirred by the soft rustle of dew-laced grass. As the service unfolds, their poverty remains invisible to the finely dressed newcomers from the grand house, whose presence only sharpens the line between privilege and necessity. Marya watches them without…
    • Chapter IV – The Witchand Other Stories Cover
      by LovelyMay Chapter IV opens with the intense heat of August weighing down on the village, pressing even the air into silence. Sasha, a young girl full of restless energy, is given the simple task of guarding the geese from the kitchen-garden. Her grandmother’s trust rests on thin ice, for Sasha’s sense of duty is often overpowered by curiosity. Just as expected, she soon slips away, unable to resist the pull of something more engaging than shooing birds. Her wandering feet carry her to the edge of a ravine, a…
    • Chapter V – The Witchand Other Stories Cover
      by LovelyMay Chapter V begins on a quiet evening during the Fast of the Assumption, where the small, cramped hut seems to shrink under the weight of hunger and silence. Marya moves about slowly, her hands steady but tired, portioning out what little food they have. Granny mutters disapprovingly as she breaks the fast early, too weak to care, while the children watch with a strange mix of curiosity and quiet judgment. Sasha and Motka don’t fully understand the spiritual meaning of fasting, but they’ve absorbed…
    • Chapter VI – The Witchand Other Stories Cover
      by LovelyMay Chapter VI draws a sharp emotional divide between two women sharing the same bleak home—Marya and Fyokla. Marya, worn down by years of hardship, speaks openly of her longing for death, as if only the end could offer relief. She carries her sadness like a weight, rarely raising her voice, but her presence is heavy with quiet despair. In stark contrast, Fyokla embraces the filth and disarray, clinging to her routine with pride, almost as if disorder is a form of control. Her scorn toward others, especially…
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