Contemporary Filipino fiction about family, grief, ambition and the quiet work of starting over.
Novel · New
Margot Chen goes to the neurologist expecting bad news and walks out unable to lie. No white lies, no "fine, thank you." It costs her the job, the marriage and the friends, then makes her famous, until her ex-husband uses her honesty against her in court.
Novel
A scholarship student with no room for failure and the student president nobody has ever told no. One public fight later, they're co-chairs of the biggest event of the year.
A story of home
Nine years of sending money home from Dubai, every peso in a spreadsheet. Then Nina comes home for her mother's 70th birthday, and the numbers don't add up.
A story
Five blockmates, one last semester, and a group chat renamed 340 times. When only one name makes the competition shortlist, the friendship cracks.
New and free
Five new short stories, illustrated and free to read: an island boy who gives away half, a jeepney fare for two, a mirror that talks back, a declined card and a family too perfect.
Read the storiesFree to read
Nine short stories about motherhood, grief, family secrets and hope. Read the opening pages free. The full stories are coming to Kindle.
Read the openingsBe the first to hear when a new book or free story goes up.
Novel · New
Margot Chen goes to the neurologist expecting bad news and walks out unable to lie. No white lies, no "fine, thank you." It costs her the job, the marriage and the friends, then makes her famous, until her ex-husband uses her honesty against her in court.
Novel
A scholarship student with no room for failure and the student president nobody has ever told no. One public fight later, they're co-chairs of the biggest event of the year.
A story of home
Nine years of sending money home from Dubai, every peso in a spreadsheet. Then Nina comes home for her mother's 70th birthday, and the numbers don't add up.
A story
Five blockmates, one last semester, and a group chat renamed 340 times. When only one name makes the competition shortlist, the friendship cracks.
No Kindle? Read on your phone with the free Kindle app.
Five new illustrated stories are free on the Free stories page, and you can read the opening pages of nine more in Maria's Archive.
Kindle.
Kindle.
All three books released together: Built, Not Given · The Legacy · The Coral and the Current.
For readers who want it on the shelf.
The Kindle edition is out now.
A novel about an employee carrying family, money, grief and more on her back, who keeps getting up anyway. Not the best, not number one, but with something to live for and glad to be alive.
Built on one idea: go where your chair is already waiting.
A full-length epic set in the Philippines before colonization, around the time of Lapu-Lapu. A love story, and a story about who we were before anyone came to name us.
Leave your email and you'll hear the day each new book comes out.
Maria Zafe writes contemporary Filipino fiction from the Philippines. Her stories follow ordinary people through the moments that change them: losing someone, holding a family together, chasing something bigger, and learning to start again.
Look closely and you'll find chairs in every book. They're there on purpose.
All stories are works of fiction. Names, characters and events are imagined, and any resemblance to real people is coincidental.
On Amazon Kindle. Links are on the Books page.
Yes. Download the free Kindle app on your phone, tablet or computer.
The opening pages of all nine are free on the Archive page, no sign-up needed. The full stories are coming to Kindle. If you want complete stories right now, the Free stories page has five.
English, with Filipino settings, characters and everyday Filipino words.
Teen and adult readers. Some stories deal with grief, illness, money problems and family conflict.
Start with the Free stories: five illustrated short stories, about eight minutes each. Stay In Your Lane also has chapters on Wattpad, with new ones every Monday, and the Archive has the opening pages of nine more.
Yes. A paperback of Stay In Your Lane is in the works, with paperback and audiobook editions of The Last Honest Woman planned.
Yes. See the For readers page for book club questions, or send a message about bulk orders.
No. Every story is fiction. Names, characters, companies and places are imagined, even when they feel familiar. Many readers say they recognize their own families in them, and that's the point, but no story is about a real person.
To protect the stories from being reposted without credit. They're free to read here, but they're still my work. If you want to share one, use the "Copy link to this story" button at the end, so your friends read it here.
Yes, please share the link. Each free story has its own link. You may also quote a few lines in a post or review, as long as you credit Maria Zafe and link back here. Please don't post the whole story, screenshots of full pages or the illustrations as your own.
Reading aloud to your family, class or book club is welcome. For anything recorded or posted online, like a TikTok, YouTube reading, audio version or translation, please ask first using the message form. I say yes more often than not.
Stories with especially difficult themes, like eating disorders or death, carry a content note at the top. If a story ever feels too close to home, please take care of yourself and talk to someone you trust.
Purchases, downloads and refunds are handled by Amazon. Open the Kindle app, pull down to sync your library, and if it's still missing, contact Amazon customer service from your account.
Reply to any alert email with "unsubscribe," or write to books@mariazafe.com. You'll be removed right away.
Here: Terms of Use and Privacy notice.
Last updated: October 15, 2026
This notice explains how Maria Zafe ("I", "me") handles personal information on books.mariazafe.com, in line with the Data Privacy Act of 2012 (Republic Act No. 10173).
Only what you type into a form on this site: your name and email address, and, if you send a message, the topic and message you write. I don't ask for anything else, and I don't use advertising trackers.
To send you new book and free story alerts if you signed up for them, and to reply to messages, book club requests, school orders and interview requests. I don't use it for anything else.
Form entries are saved to a private Google Sheet that only I can open, and a copy is emailed to my books@mariazafe.com inbox, hosted by Zoho Mail. These services store data on their own secure servers, which may be outside the Philippines.
Only me. I never sell, rent or share your information with anyone, and I don't add you to anyone else's mailing list.
Alert sign-ups are kept until you unsubscribe. Messages are kept only as long as needed to reply and follow up, then deleted. You can ask me to delete your details at any time.
Under the Data Privacy Act, you can ask to see the information I hold about you, correct it, object to its use, or have it deleted. Just email books@mariazafe.com. If you feel your data has been mishandled, you can also file a complaint with the National Privacy Commission.
Younger readers are welcome to read the free stories, which don't require any sign-up. If you're under 18, please ask a parent or guardian before filling in a form.
This site links to Amazon, Wattpad and other sites. When you visit them, their own privacy policies apply, not this one. This site is hosted on GitHub Pages and loads its fonts from Google Fonts, which may record basic technical details like your IP address, as most websites do.
If this notice changes, the new version will be posted here with a new date.
Last updated: October 15, 2026
By using books.mariazafe.com, you agree to these terms. They're written in plain language, and they exist mainly to protect the stories.
All stories, excerpts, book descriptions, illustrations and other content on this site are © 2026 Maria Zafe, unless stated otherwise. All rights are reserved under the Intellectual Property Code of the Philippines and international copyright law.
Read everything here for your own enjoyment. Share links to any page or story. Quote a few lines in a review, post or class discussion, with credit to Maria Zafe and a link back to this site. Read a story aloud to your family, class or book club.
Copying, reposting or republishing a full story or a large part of one, on any website, app, social media page or group. Recording or posting readings, audio or video versions. Translating, adapting or turning a story into a script, comic or other work. Using the illustrations anywhere else. Printing copies to hand out or sell. To ask, use the message form on the For readers page.
Selling any of this content, claiming it as your own, removing the author's name, or using the stories or illustrations to train artificial intelligence or machine learning systems.
All stories are works of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places and events are products of the author's imagination or used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.
Some stories deal with grief, illness, money trouble, family conflict, eating disorders and death. Content notes are given for stories with especially difficult themes. Reader discretion is advised, and the stories are intended for teen and adult readers.
Books are sold through Amazon Kindle and other stores. Payments, delivery and refunds are handled by those stores under their own terms, not by this site.
This site links to other websites that I don't control and am not responsible for. I try to keep the site accurate and running, but it's provided as is, and stories, prices and release dates may change without notice.
These terms are governed by the laws of the Republic of the Philippines.
Questions about these terms or permissions: books@mariazafe.com.
Thank you for being here.
Every story I write starts with an ordinary Filipino life: a mother counting money at the kitchen table, a student holding on to a scholarship, someone sending everything home from the other side of the world. If you have ever recognized your family, your barkada or yourself in one of my books, then you already know why I write.
This page is for you. Here you'll find where to start, how to talk about the books with friends, and how to reach me. I read every message that comes in.
Independent authors grow one reader at a time. If a story stayed with you, any of these makes a real difference:
Reading one of my books together? Start with these.
My books and free stories are written in English with Filipino settings and everyday Filipino words, which makes them easy to bring into a classroom. They open good conversations about family and responsibility, OFW life, friendship, grief, ambition and how people treat each other when no one is watching.
If you'd like to use a story in class or order copies for a group, send a message below and choose "Bulk or school order."
Book bloggers, BookTok and Bookstagram creators, podcasters and reading communities are always welcome. If you'd like a review copy, an interview or a reading with your group, write to me below and choose "Review or interview."
All my stories are fiction. Names, characters and places are imagined. Some of them deal with heavy things, like grief, money troubles, family secrets, illness and death, and stories with especially difficult themes carry a content note at the top. If a story ever feels too close to home, please take care of yourself and talk to someone you trust.