Books like 'The Beginning Place'
Readers who enjoyed The Beginning Place by Ursula K. Le Guin also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.
historical fantasy urban fantasy 20th century action / adventure portal-travel magical-realism coming-of-age literary-fiction sword-sorcery
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4: Fantastic Novels by Daniel Pinkwater, Scott Simon
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsFour-fantastic-books-in-one by the popular author of The Hoboken Chicken Emergency: Borgel Yobgorgle The Worms of Kukumlima The Snarkout Boys & the Baconburg...Categorized as:
magical-realism 20th-century action-adventure anthologies children children-books comedy fiction -
![Proper Scoundrels by Allie Therin]()
Proper Scoundrels by Allie Therin
Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsDon’t miss this spin-off from Allie Therin's acclaimed Magic in Manhattan universe! Their scandalous pasts have left them wounded and unworthy—and hopelessly perfect together. London, 1925Sebastian de Leon is adjusting to life after three years spent enthralled by blood magic...Categorized as:
magical-realism 20th-century action-adventure adult alternate-history audiobook book cheerful-mc -
![Wild Seed by Octavia E. Butler]()
Wild Seed by Octavia E. Butler
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 38 ratingsDoro is an entity who changes bodies like clothes, killing his hosts by reflex--or design. He fears no one--until he meets Anyanwu. Anyanwu has also died many times. She can absorb bullets and make medicine with a kiss, give birth to tribes, nurture and heal, and savage anyone who threatens those she loves. She fears no one--until she meets Doro... -
![The Prisoner of Heaven by Carlos Ruiz Zafón]()
The Prisoner of Heaven by Carlos Ruiz Zafón
Rated: 4.11 of 5 stars · 40 ratingsBarcelona, 1957. It is Christmas, and Daniel Sempere and his wife Bea have much to celebrate. They have a beautiful new baby son named Julian, and their close friend Fermín Romero de Torres is about to be wed. But their joy is eclipsed when a mysterious stranger visits the Sempere bookshop and threatens to divulge a terrible secret that has been buried for two decades in the city's dark past...Categorized as:
literary-fiction magical-realism 20th-century 21st-century action-adventure audiobook book classics -
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![Carbonel: The King of the Cats by Barbara Sleigh]()
Carbonel: The King of the Cats by Barbara Sleigh
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsBack in print in the U.S. for the first time in over 30 years.Rosemary's plan to clean houses during her summer break and surprise her mother with the money hits a snag when an old lady at the market talks her into buying a second-rate broom and a cat she can't even afford to keep. But appearances can be deceiving...Categorized as:
magical-realism 20th-century action-adventure animals anthropomorphism book cats children -
![Wolf by Wolf by Ryan Graudin]()
Wolf by Wolf by Ryan Graudin
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 39 ratingsHer story begins on a train.The year is 1956, and the Axis powers of the Third Reich and Imperial Japan rule. To commemorate their Great Victory, Hitler and Emperor Hirohito host the Axis Tour: an annual motorcycle race across their conjoined continents. The victor is awarded an audience with the highly reclusive Adolf Hitler at the Victor’s Ball in Tokyo...Categorized as:
magical-realism 20th-century action-adventure alpha-mc alternate-history assassins audiobook book -
![Marina by Carlos Ruiz Zafón]()
Marina by Carlos Ruiz Zafón
Rated: 4.11 of 5 stars · 54 ratingsFifteen-year-old Oscar Drai meets the strange Marina while he's exploring an old quarter of Barcelona. She leads Oscar to a cemetery, where they watch a macabre ritual that occurs on the last Sunday of each month. At exactly ten o'clock in the morning, a woman shrouded in a black velvet cloak descends from her carriage to place a single rose on an unmarked grave... -
![The Hidden Palace by Helene Wecker]()
The Hidden Palace by Helene Wecker
Rated: 4.15 of 5 stars · 36 ratingsChava is a golem, a woman made of clay, able to hear the thoughts and longings of the people around her and compelled by her nature to help them. Ahmad is a jinni, a perpetually restless and free-spirited creature of fire, imprisoned in the shape of a man... -
![Tonight on the Titanic by Mary Pope Osborne]()
Tonight on the Titanic by Mary Pope Osborne
Rated: 4.08 of 5 stars · 25 ratingsJack and Annie are in for an exciting, scary, and sad adventure when the Magic Tree House whisks them back to the decks of the "Titanic...Categorized as:
magical-realism 20th-century action-adventure animals audiobook book children children-books -
![The Firebird by Susanna Kearsley]()
The Firebird by Susanna Kearsley
Rated: 4.08 of 5 stars · 26 ratingsNicola Marter was born with a gift. When she touches an object, she sometimes glimpses those who have owned it before. When a woman arrives with a small wooden carving at the gallery Nicola works at, she can see the object’s history and knows that it was named after the Firebird—the mythical creature from an old Russian fable...Categorized as:
literary-fiction magical-realism 20th-century 21st-century action-adventure audiobook book drama -
![A Swiftly Tilting Planet by Madeleine L'Engle]()
A Swiftly Tilting Planet by Madeleine L'Engle
Rated: 4.08 of 5 stars · 67 ratingsIn this companion volume to A Wrinkle In Time (Newbery Award winner) and A Wind In The Door fifteen-year-old Charles Wallace and the unicorn Gaudior undertake a perilous journey through time in a desperate attempt to stop the destruction of the world by the mad dictator Madog Branzillo. They are not alone in their quest...Categorized as:
coming-of-age magical-realism 20th-century action-adventure audiobook book children children-books -
![The Time Garden by Edward Eager]()
The Time Garden by Edward Eager
Rated: 4.14 of 5 stars · 29 ratings"Anything can happen when you have all the time in the world" says the frog-like Natterjack in old relative Mrs Whiton's thyme garden. Cousins Roger, Ann, Eliza and girl-crazy Jack ride for American rebels, bow to Queen Elizabeth I, and even rescue their own parents when they were children...Categorized as:
magical-realism 20th-century action-adventure book children children-books classics family -
![Seven-Day Magic by Edward Eager]()
Seven-Day Magic by Edward Eager
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 29 ratingsA seven-day book of magic proves to be fractious for five children, who must learn the book's rules and tame its magic...Categorized as:
portal-travel 20th-century action-adventure book children children-books classics dragons -
![The Mind's Eye by K.C. Finn]()
The Mind's Eye by K.C. Finn
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsA girl with a telepathic gift finds a boy clinging to his last hope during the war-torn climate of Europe, 1940. At fifteen, Kit Cavendish is one the oldest evacuees to escape London at the start of the Second World War due to a long term illness that sees her stuck in a wheelchair most of the time...Categorized as:
coming-of-age 20th-century action-adventure book disability fiction historical historical-fiction -
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![The Coldest War by Ian Tregillis]()
The Coldest War by Ian Tregillis
Rated: 4.06 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsSomeone is killing Britain's warlocks.Twenty-two years after the Second World War, a precarious balance of power maintains the peace between Great Britain and the USSR. For decades, the warlocks have been all that stand between the British Empire and the Soviet Union-- a vast domain stretching from the Pacific Ocean to the shores of the English Channel...Categorized as:
magical-realism 20th-century action-adventure adult alternate-history apocalyptic audiobook book -
![Mary Poppins in the Park by P.L. Travers]()
Mary Poppins in the Park by P.L. Travers
Rated: 4.06 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsBy P.L. Travers, the author featured in the major motion picture, Saving Mr. Banks. From the moment Mary Poppins arrives at Number Seventeen Cherry-Tree Lane, everyday life at the Banks house is forever changed. This classic series tells the story of the world's most beloved nanny, who brings enchantment and excitement with her everywhere she goes... -
![The Borrowers by Mary Norton]()
The Borrowers by Mary Norton
Rated: 4.03 of 5 stars · 65 ratingsBeneath the kitchen floor is the world of the Borrowers -- Pod and Homily Clock and their daughter, Arrietty. In their tiny home, matchboxes double as roomy dressers and postage stamps hang on the walls like paintings. Whatever the Clocks need they simply "borrow" from the "human beans" who live above them. It's a comfortable life, but boring if you're a kid... -
![Magic by the Lake by Edward Eager]()
Magic by the Lake by Edward Eager
Rated: 4.08 of 5 stars · 30 ratingsWhen wishing for magic, it's hard not to wish for too much.If Jane, Mark, Katharine, and Martha had stopped to think -- oh, if they had only stopped to think! -- they would have ordered magic by the pound, or by the day, or even by the halves as they had in Half Magic...Categorized as:
magical-realism 20th-century action-adventure animals book children children-books classics -
![Hollow City by Ransom Riggs]()
Hollow City by Ransom Riggs
Rated: 4.02 of 5 stars · 76 ratingsThis second novel begins in 1940, immediately after the first book ended. Having escaped Miss Peregrine’s island by the skin of their teeth, Jacob and his new friends must journey to London, the peculiar capital of the world. Along the way, they encounter new allies, a menagerie of peculiar animals, and other unexpected surprises...Categorized as:
coming-of-age magical-realism 20th-century action-adventure audiobook book children dark -
![The Apothecary by Maile Meloy]()
The Apothecary by Maile Meloy
Rated: 4.06 of 5 stars · 35 ratingsIt’s 1952 and the Scott family has just moved from Los Angeles to London. Here, fourteen-year-old Janie meets a mysterious apothecary and his son, Benjamin Burrows—a fascinating boy who’s not afraid to stand up to authority and dreams of becoming a spy...Categorized as:
coming-of-age magical-realism 20th-century action-adventure alchemy audiobook book children -
![The Plastic Magician by Charlie N. Holmberg]()
The Plastic Magician by Charlie N. Holmberg
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsWall Street Journal bestselling author Charlie N. Holmberg returns to the enchanting world of The Paper Magician.Alvie Brechenmacher has arrived in London to begin her training in Polymaking—the magical discipline of bespelling plastic. Polymaking is the newest form of magic, and in a field where there is so much left to learn, every Polymaker dreams of making the next big discovery...Categorized as:
coming-of-age magical-realism 20th-century action-adventure alternate-history audiobook book cozy -
![Duncton Wood by William Horwood]()
Duncton Wood by William Horwood
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsBracken was born on an April night in a warm dark burrow deep in the historic system of Duncton Wood, six moleyears after Rebecca. This is the story of their love, and their epic struggle to find it.The moles of Duncton Wood are a varied lot. There are the aggressive Westsiders, the secretive and sickly Marchenders and the independent Eastsiders... -
![Declare by Tim Powers]()
Declare by Tim Powers
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsAs a young double agent infiltrating the Soviet spy network in Nazi-occupied Paris, Andrew Hale finds himself caught up in a secret, even more ruthless war. Two decades later, in 1963, he will be forced to confront again the nightmare that has haunted his adult life: a lethal unfinished operation code-named Declare...Categorized as:
magical-realism 20th-century action-adventure adult alternate-history audiobook book cold-war -
![The Witch’s Lens by Luanne G. Smith]()
The Witch’s Lens by Luanne G. Smith
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 17 ratingsAs World War I rages, there are evils—both living and dead—that only a witch can see in a spellbinding novel by the Amazon Charts and Washington Post bestselling author of The Raven Spell.With her husband off fighting at World War I’s eastern front, Petra Kurková embraces her fleeting freedom, roaming the city at night with her camera...Categorized as:
magical-realism fantasy historical-fiction paranormal fiction witches-wizards historical magic -
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![The Book of Pearl by Timothée de Fombelle]()
The Book of Pearl by Timothée de Fombelle
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsIn prose as magical and intricate as the tale it tells, Timothée de Fombelle delivers an unforgettable story of a first love that defines a lifetime.Joshua Pearl comes from a world that we no longer believe in — a world of fairy tale...Categorized as:
magical-realism sword-sorcery 20th-century action-adventure book children drama epic -
![Sword and Sorceress IX by Marion Zimmer Bradley, David A. Cherry]()
Sword and Sorceress IX by Marion Zimmer Bradley, David A. Cherry
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsWITH BLADE HONED AND SPELLS BREWED - The defenders of the innocent and the makers of great enchantments prepare to face the many challenges of evil's forces. In all of fantasy's far-flung realms, women of power - whether trained in the ways of the warrior or in the deepest secrets of sorcery - rally against those who seek to conquer and enslave...Categorized as:
sword-sorcery 20th-century action-adventure adult anthologies epic female-author fiction -
![The Cursed by Dave Duncan]()
The Cursed by Dave Duncan
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsWar had killed Gwin's husband, and a plague of star sickness carried off her babies. Desolate, she nursed her stricken neighbors. But the few who would survive the sickness were doomed anyway. Every survivor would be cursed, and each would become outcast, for the curses were more deadly than the plague itself... -
![The Story of Doctor Dolittle by Hugh Lofting, Peter Glassman]()
The Story of Doctor Dolittle by Hugh Lofting, Peter Glassman
Rated: 3.97 of 5 stars · 30 ratingsDoctor John Dolittle loves animals. He loves them so much that his home and office overflow with animals of every description. When Polynesia the parrot teaches him the language of the animals, Doctor Dolittle becomes a world-famous doctor, traveling even as far away as Africa to help his friends... -
![Spellbound by Allie Therin]()
Spellbound by Allie Therin
Rated: 4.09 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsTo save Manhattan, they’ll have to save each other first… 1925New YorkArthur Kenzie’s life’s work is protecting the world from the supernatural relics that could destroy it. When an amulet with the power to control the tides is shipped to New York, he must intercept it before it can be used to devastating effects...Categorized as:
magical-realism 20th-century action-adventure adult age-gap alternate-history audiobook book -
![The Worst Witch by Jill Murphy]()
The Worst Witch by Jill Murphy
Rated: 3.96 of 5 stars · 26 ratingsMiss Cackle's Academy for Witches has never seen a worse pupil than Mildred Hubble. Her spells always backfire and her broomstick flights end in a crash. Now one of Mildred's spells has ruined things for Ethel Hallow . . . and that Perfect Witch is out for revenge! Black-and-white illustrations...Categorized as:
coming-of-age 20th-century action-adventure animals audiobook boarding-school book cats -
![Shoeless Joe by W.P. Kinsella]()
Shoeless Joe by W.P. Kinsella
Rated: 3.96 of 5 stars · 24 ratings“If you build it, he will come.” These mysterious words inspire Ray Kinsella to create a cornfield baseball diamond in honor of his hero, Shoeless Joe Jackson. What follows is a rich, nostalgic look at one of our most cherished national pastimes and a remarkable story about fathers and sons, love and family, and the inimitable joy of finding your way home...Categorized as:
literary-fiction magical-realism 20th-century action-adventure audiobook book children classics -
![The Toymakers by Robert Dinsdale]()
The Toymakers by Robert Dinsdale
Rated: 4.01 of 5 stars · 32 ratingsThe Emporium opens with the first sign of frost...It is 1917, and while war wages across Europe, in the heart of London, there is a place of hope and enchantment.The Emporium sells toys that capture the imagination of children and adults alike: patchwork dogs that seem alive, toy boxes that are bigger on the inside, soldiers that can fight battles on their own...Categorized as:
coming-of-age literary-fiction magical-realism 20th-century action-adventure audiobook book family -
![Tamsin by Peter S. Beagle]()
Tamsin by Peter S. Beagle
Rated: 4.02 of 5 stars · 27 ratingsArriving in the English countryside to live with her mother and new stepfather, Jenny has no interest in her surroundings, until she meets Tamsin. Since her death over 300 years ago, Tamsin has haunted the lonely estate without rest, trapped by a hidden trauma she can't remember, and a powerful evil even the spirits of night cannot name... -
![The Apprentices by Maile Meloy]()
The Apprentices by Maile Meloy
Rated: 4.02 of 5 stars · 26 ratingsTwo years have passed since Janie Scott last saw Benjamin Burrows, the mysterious apothecary’s defiant son who stole her heart. On the other side of the world, Benjamin and his father are treating the sick and wounded in the war-torn jungles of Vietnam. But Benjamin has also been experimenting with a magical new formula that allows him to communicate with Janie across the globe...Categorized as:
coming-of-age magical-realism 20th-century action-adventure alchemy audiobook boarding-school book -
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![Mary Poppins by P.L. Travers]()
Mary Poppins by P.L. Travers
Rated: 3.98 of 5 stars · 68 ratingsBy P.L. Travers, the author featured in the major motion picture, Saving Mr. Banks. From the moment Mary Poppins arrives at Number Seventeen Cherry-Tree Lane, everyday life at the Banks house is forever changed. It all starts when Mary Poppins is blown by the east wind onto the doorstep of the Banks house. She becomes a most unusual nanny to Jane, Michael, and the twins...Categorized as:
literary-fiction magical-realism 20th-century action-adventure animals audiobook book british-isles -
![Arcadia by Iain Pears]()
Arcadia by Iain Pears
Rated: 3.94 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsIn Cold War England, Professor Henry Lytten, having renounced a career in espionage, is writing a fantasy novel that dares to imagine a world less fraught than his own... -
![Paul Takes the Form of a Mortal Girl by Andrea Lawlor]()
Paul Takes the Form of a Mortal Girl by Andrea Lawlor
Rated: 3.94 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsIt’s 1993 and Paul Polydoris tends bar at the only gay club in a university town thrumming with politics and partying. He studies queer theory, has a dyke best friend, makes zines, and is a flâneur with a rich dating life. But Paul’s also got a secret: he’s a shapeshifter... -
![Silence for the Dead by Simone St. James]()
Silence for the Dead by Simone St. James
Rated: 3.94 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsIn 1919, Kitty Weekes, pretty, resourceful, and on the run, falsifies her background to obtain a nursing position at Portis House, a remote hospital for soldiers left shell-shocked by the horrors of the Great War. Hiding the shame of their mental instability in what was once a magnificent private estate, the patients suffer from nervous attacks and tormenting dreams... -
![Mairelon the Magician by Patricia C. Wrede]()
Mairelon the Magician by Patricia C. Wrede
Rated: 3.99 of 5 stars · 32 ratingsKim doesn't hesitate when a stranger offers her a small fortune to break into the travelling magician's wagon in search of a silver bowl. Kim isn't above a bit of breaking-and-entering. Having grown up a waif in the dirty streets of London-disguised as a boy!-has schooled her in one hard lesson: steal from them before they steal from you. But there is something odd about this magician... -
![The Secret Horses of Briar Hill by Megan Shepherd]()
The Secret Horses of Briar Hill by Megan Shepherd
Rated: 3.93 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsThere are winged horses that live in the mirrors of Briar Hill hospital. In the mirrors that line its grand hallways, which once belonged to a princess. In those that reflect the elegant rooms, now filled with sick children. It is her secret...Categorized as:
magical-realism sword-sorcery 20th-century action-adventure animals audiobook book children -
![Half Magic by Edward Eager]()
Half Magic by Edward Eager
Rated: 3.97 of 5 stars · 43 ratingsFour children wish on a Half Magic coin that gets their mother Alison half-way home, rescued by Mr Smith. Mark's wish zaps them to a desert without island, where half-talking cat Carrie gabbles to a camel. Romantic Katherine battles Launcelot. Eldest Jane rejects siblings for another family. Stubborn youngest, Martha, causes a riot downtown...Categorized as:
magical-realism 20th-century action-adventure audiobook book children children-books classics -
![The Woven Path by Robin Jarvis]()
The Woven Path by Robin Jarvis
Rated: 3.90 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsThe Woven Path is the first book in the compelling Wyrd Museum trilogy. All readers will be drawn in by the gripping storytelling of Robin Jarvis, where the fantastical elements combine with the seriously chilling. In a grimy alley in the East End of London stands the Wyrd Museum, cared for by the stranger Webster sisters -- and scene of even stranger events...Categorized as:
coming-of-age 20th-century action-adventure book children children-books fiction historical -
![The Spy with the Red Balloon by Katherine Locke]()
The Spy with the Red Balloon by Katherine Locke
Rated: 3.90 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsSiblings Ilse and Wolf hide a deep secret in their blood: with it, they can work magic. And the government just found out. Blackmailed into service during World War II, Ilse lends her magic to America's newest weapon, the atom bomb, while Wolf goes behind enemy lines to sabotage Germany’s nuclear program...Categorized as:
magical-realism historical-fiction fantasy young-adult lgbtq historical fiction magic -
![The Satanic Mill: Evil Lurks Within by Otfried Preußler]()
The Satanic Mill: Evil Lurks Within by Otfried Preußler
Rated: 3.97 of 5 stars · 35 ratingsIn seventeenth-century Germany, a boy desperately wants to escape from a school for Black Magic where he is held captive by demonic forces...Categorized as:
coming-of-age magical-realism 20th-century action-adventure audiobook book children classics -
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![Jovah's Angel by Sharon Shinn]()
Jovah's Angel by Sharon Shinn
Rated: 3.95 of 5 stars · 30 ratingsThis is a standalone sequel to Archangel, set 150 years later in proverbially interesting times. Samaria is industrialized; the Manadavvi and Jansai are wealthier; the Edori are marginalized, their roaming lifestyle disrupted; and Jovah seems to be turning a deaf ear to his angels' prayers for abatement of increasingly destructive storms... -
![Thus Were Their Faces by Silvina Ocampo, Helen Oyeyemi]()
Thus Were Their Faces by Silvina Ocampo, Helen Oyeyemi
Rated: 3.95 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsAn NYRB Classics OriginalSilvina Ocampo is undoubtedly one of the twentieth century’s great masters of the short story. Italo Calvino once said about her, “I don’t know another writer who better captures the magic inside everyday rituals, the forbidden or hidden face that our mirrors don’t show us... -
![The Drawing of the Dark by Tim Powers]()
The Drawing of the Dark by Tim Powers
Rated: 3.92 of 5 stars · 30 ratings'The Drawing of the Dark is not only one of my favourite Tim Powers novels, it's simply one of my favourite novels. The seamless and seemingly effortless blend of action and humour, the wonderful characters, the rich settings, the brilliant plot - all of it is perfect' James P...Categorized as:
magical-realism 20th-century action-adventure adult alternate-history arthurian book classics -
![The Glass Magician by Charlie N. Holmberg]()
The Glass Magician by Charlie N. Holmberg
Rated: 3.91 of 5 stars · 44 ratingsThree months after returning Magician Emery Thane’s heart to his body, Ceony Twill is well on her way to becoming a Folder. Unfortunately, not all of Ceony’s thoughts have been focused on paper magic. Though she was promised romance by a fortuity box, Ceony still hasn’t broken the teacher-student barrier with Emery, despite their growing closeness... -
![The Left-Handed Booksellers of London by Garth Nix]()
The Left-Handed Booksellers of London by Garth Nix
Rated: 3.90 of 5 stars · 36 ratingsA girl’s quest to find her father leads her to an extended family of magical fighting booksellers who police the mythical Old World of England when it intrudes on the modern world. From the bestselling master of teen fantasy, Garth Nix.In a slightly alternate London in 1983, Susan Arkshaw is looking for her father, a man she has never met...Categorized as:
magical-realism 20th-century action-adventure alternate-history audiobook book children fae -
![The Shape of Water by Guillermo del Toro, Daniel Kraus]()
The Shape of Water by Guillermo del Toro, Daniel Kraus
Rated: 3.89 of 5 stars · 35 ratingsIt is 1962, and Elisa Esposito—mute her whole life, orphaned as a child—is struggling with her humdrum existence as a janitor working the graveyard shift at Baltimore’s Occam Aerospace Research Center. Were it not for Zelda, a protective coworker, and Giles, her loving neighbor, she doesn’t know how she’d make it through the day...
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