"No world is like the other in The End and Other Beginnings. Within this masterful collection, each setting is more strange and wonderful than the last, brimming with new technologies and beings. And yet, for all the advances in these futuristic lands, the people still must confront deeply human problems. In six stories, Veronica Roth reaches into the unknown and draws forth something startlingly familiar and profoundly beautiful. With tale of friendship...

"Soldier. Summoner. Saint. Orphaned and expendable, Alina Starkov is a soldier who knows she may not survive her first trek across the Shadow Fold--a swath of unnatural darkness crawling with monsters. But when her regiment is attacked, Alina unleashes dormant magic not even she knew she possessed. Now Alina will enter a lavish world of royalty and intrigue as she trains with the Grisha, her country's magical military elite--and falls under the spell...

Sixteen-year-old Jennifer Strange faces the impossible when the mighty Shandar emerges from his preserved state and presents her with a task that sends her and her companions on a journey from which they may never return.

"In a medieval world where the ruling houses are based on the constellations, betrayal, intrigue, and a king's murder force the royal sisters of the Bear House on the run"--

"In the tower of Count Stelli in the ancient city-state of Agora, two children meet, apparently by chance. Mark has escaped the plague ravaging the city's slums. Lily is the servant who cares for him. At first, their only goal is survival: In Agora, everything can be bought and sold, debt is death, and Mark and Lily must barter their labor for their lives. Then comes an opportunity for them to exchange destinies: for Lily to escape the tower for the...

"Three years ago, Ash's mom left home and never returned, leaving behind a husband and child and a shed full of mystical curiosities related to the all-girl fantasy world she'd created as a child -- Koretris. One day Ash invites a new group of friends from Pride Club over, and they try one of the spells to enter Koretris. To their amazement, they're all transported to a magical realm filled with human-sized talking animals who are fiercely protective...

"Everyone knows the rumors--if you gather the right things and say the right words, you'll be taken to Malice, a world that exists within a terrifying comic book. Seth managed to escape from Malice, but it meant leaving his best friend, Kady, trapped there. And he's not sure whether he should try to take down the Malice comic from his own world or go back with an artifact he thinks can help from within. He is sure that he's desperate to save Kady....

For Lance and his online friend, "MrsKeller," life's a battle and then you die. At least that's how it is in Discordia, the addictive online game that makes real life seem dreary in comparison. At his new school Lance feels weird and out of place, but in beautiful and complex Discordia, his zombie sorcerer is leveling fast, learning new skills, and making friends. After a level 60 toon, TheGreatOne, recruits Lance and MrsKeller into his guild, Lance...