Telling Tales is John Wheatcroft’s latest collection of ten stories that explore the human condition as well as (in the first and last work) the nature of fiction itself. The stories exemply the same qualities that led Jay Neugeboren in a New York Times Book Review to say of an earlier collection, “Mr. Wheatcroft ... gives us tales that are stark and memorable.”Kara has one burning desire. To free her mother from slavery. But after Kara's father spurns her from his estate, brutally thrusting her into a world rife with creeping evil and dark magic, she must find a new home for safety. And she does.At a traveling carnival, where the only work she can get is as a pickpocket, luring crowds into shows and then stealing from them. But under the bright lights and gaudy masks hide dangers far worse than Kara ever thought possible. How will she free her mother and keep herself alive?Spurned is the first book in 'The Hither and Nigh Carnival' series. It is written by R. Moses, author of 'The Last Savior Trilogy.'