Lori Gottlieb Illness Novels & Stories

When my wife, Rosalie Wood, had her first meal after she regained consciousness, the attending doctor, Ethan Joeman, took my seat. He cut the steak while he pointed at her rosy face and looked at me with open defiance. “Do you know how medical miracles happen? It is not because of your constant presence. It is because of my in‑depth treatment.” My fingers that held the knife and fork turned pale. Ethan grew even more brazen. His feet rubbed against my wife's calves under the table. “A person in a vegetative state can still feel things. Every night after you left, I did awakening therapy for her. She said her body could not move, yet the sense of being conquered made her feel as though her soul left her body. She woke up because she wanted to feel it again. Last night, she said she wanted to thank her savior and asked me to check her firmness after recovery. She did not disappoint me.” I looked at Rosalie, who stared at the doctor with admiration, and my chest tightened. To pay for her treatment, I sold my house and car. I slept on a folding bed in this hospital for three years. I bathed her and turned her over every day. It turned out that my three years of round‑the‑clock care meant nothing compared to a few acts of harassment committed while she was vulnerable. I took a drug from my bag and smiled as I poured Ethan a glass of wine. I thought, ‘You went through a lot, yet her awakening was only a brief moment of clarity before death. She has super‑drug‑resistant syphilis. Congratulations. You caught it too.’

When Tessa Shoreman read Henry Jennings' cancer report, she immediately paid her hard-earned money of sixty thousand to the hospital. She had saved the money from working part-time while she was in university. However, she was worried the money was not enough, so she held back her fear as she sold a kidney to the black market to get more. As she walked to the ward door with a heavy bag filled with cash, she heard shrill laughter coming from inside. "That cheap woman, Tessa Shoreman, got tricked by us again. Haha!" Tessa's hand gave pause right when she was about to push the door open. What did he mean by saying she was tricked? Tessa looked through the glass on the door to see inside the ward. When she left, the man looked extremely weak, but he was now sitting up lazily in bed. Henry had a cigarette in his mouth, and he was blowing smoke rings nonchalantly. He did not look like a cancer patient at all. "It's been two years, and that woman still has no idea." "If she hadn't beaten Serene to first place, Henry would never have left behind his life as a rich heir and planned such an elaborate scheme to become a working-class man living in a cheap rental home. The way that cheap, penniless woman looks at Henry is so amusing." "We agreed that the punishment ends when Henry and Serene get engaged. It looks like time is almost up. We've probably punished her 108 times in the past two years." "The first time was lying to her that Henry didn't have a suit for a job interview. She worked tirelessly for 72 hours straight before she earned enough money for one, but that suit was given to the domestic help to use as a cleaning cloth. The second time was tricking her into believing Henry had a high fever. She forfeited during the finals of a scientific research competition to race home and take care of Henry in the hospital…" "Sigh. Too bad it's coming to an end. I'm going to miss entertaining myself with her."

Born of Magic. Marked by Darkness. Bound for a Fate No One Understands. Elarion Valtor is no ordinary student. Raised in the Tower by the most powerful mage of the Human Kingdom, he carries within him a forbidden sigil—an ancient mark that whispers in his mind and glows with power he barely understands. When he's forced to attend the Kingdom’s most prestigious magic academy, he enters a world of politics, legacy, and hidden daggers behind noble smiles. The royal heirs are watching. The professors are testing. And something buried deep within the academy begins to stir when Elarion walks through its halls. Whispers of an ancient prophecy resurface. A statue cracks. A crystal shatters. As the line between destiny and manipulation blurs, Elarion must decide: will he forge his own path—or become the weapon they fear he already is?

My mom is a retired supermodel. She's added a monitor to the weight scales at home so that she can monitor my and my sister, Abigail Teller's perfect body weight. If my data goes up by 0.1%, Mom will ban me from eating for the next three days. But the thing is, Abigail keeps eating fried chicken every day, yet her monitor's light is always green. Mom claims that Abigail's still going through puberty. I defend myself, saying that I've gained weight because of the bloating caused by my period. As Mom points at the red light emitted by my monitor, she exclaims, "The data is never wrong! If you've gained weight, that means you've been snacking far too much!" After getting punished many times, I begin believing that being fat is a sin. On the night of my 20th birthday, the long-term diet I've been placed on has triggered my kidney failure, which causes me to bloat up everywhere. I kneel on the floor and plead to Mom that I'm seriously ill. But that's when the monitor lets out a shrill alarm. When Mom sees the 5% increase in my body fat data, she puts me through a devillish punishment. I can feel the electric currents jolting through my body. "It's bad enough that you've secretly snacked on cake, but to even lie in my face about your illness? I'd like to see how long you can stay stubborn for!" Having said her piece, Mom locks the door and takes Abigail out to celebrate her birthday. I guess Mom is correct. Monitors never lie. I'm the one who's at the wrong for being a glutton. That's why I've transformed into a monster who doesn't deserve any love at all. I'm sorry, Mom. I'll only drink water in my next life.

Iris, her unborn child and husband were murdered by her family on the night of here coronation as the heiress to Vanchez Empire, unknown to her enemies Irish and her husband was given a second chance to live again, six months later she's not only returning as an heiress but her husband who was regarded as a poor dog was a secret heir to a trillion dollar group the most influential company in south Korea the Kuwaiti Group.

On the same day we were registering our marriage, my boyfriend, Levi Salfolk, had someone throw me out of the clerk's office while he led his childhood sweetheart inside. He looked at me nonchalantly. "Rosalie's child can't be illegitimate. I'll marry you once we get divorced." Everyone thought that the lovestruck me would wait for him for another month. After all, I had already waited for him for seven years. However, I went overseas that night, accepting the arranged marriage my family had set up for me and disappearing from his world. Three years later, I accompanied my husband back home to pay our respects to his ancestors. Something came up, and my husband sent someone from the local branch office to pick me up. Unexpectedly, I met Levi, whom I had not seen since I left. "Enough with the fooling around. Come back. Rosalie's child is starting preschool soon. You're in charge of picking up and dropping off the child."

What if the life you built was rooted in a past you can’t remember and the truth could burn it all to the ground? Isabella thought she had finally escaped her past. With a steady life, a loyal husband, and dreams of forever, she believed the fire inside her had gone cold. But everything shatters when betrayal cuts deep and a chilling message arrives one that unlocks memories she never knew were missing. Suddenly, the cracks in her perfect world grow wider, and questions she can’t answer begin to haunt her. Who was she before the fire? Why can’t she remember? And what truth has been hidden from her all this time? Now, alone and uncertain of who she truly is, Isabella must confront the ghosts of a life long forgotten. As secrets unravel and danger creeps closer, she realizes that some truths are better left buried and that some loves are far darker than they seem. But the past has found her. And it won’t let go. Will she uncover her true identity before the fire she tried to forget consumes everything she has left?

Lorcé Callora, An eighteen-year old, aiming to go to college. Of course to study hard and become successful someday. Mysteriously, the academic girl who always pass gets rejected by every school she applied in. She was devastated until she received an unexpected admission email that changed the direction of the life she thought she would pursue.

Yasmin has survived five years of Cole Martinez’s cruelty—his icy contempt, his mother’s vicious words, and the humiliation of watching him parade his mistress around town. She’s learned to stay quiet, stay small, and never fight back. But two pink lines on a pregnancy test change everything. Cole made it clear he never wants children. If he finds out about the baby, Yasmin knows exactly what he’ll demand. Yet for the first time in years, she feels something stirring inside her that’s stronger than fear—a fierce, desperate love for the tiny life growing within her. Now she faces an impossible choice: stay silent and risk everything when her secret shows, or find the courage to run from the only life she’s known. In Cole’s world, defiance comes with a price. But some things are worth fighting for, even if it means losing everything else. Can Yasmin break free before it’s too late, or will her secret become the final chain that binds her forever?

Trina is a melodious singer and is crazily in love with her crush Jake who makes her join his band. She has got an annoying brother and she is bullied by her course mates Mandy and Mckayla who try to disband her and Jake. Trina falls out of love discovering Jake's motives. Trina meets with the Mayor's son, Brad and she hates him at first sight finding him rude and arrogant and she is surprised to learn that he will be the judge to will decide on her music performance.