It is 1946 and London is still reeling from the destruction and suffering of the Second World War. The formidable Letty Lackland helps to raise funds for Queen Eleanor's Hospital, destroyed in the Blitz. Dr Charlie Lucas helps Brin Lackland come to terms with a devastating wartime facial injury. Brin's sister, Kate is forging her way to success on stage and screen. Here, at the end of the vast and panoramic 'Performers' series we see the two formidable families united at last after more than a century. Views: 38
Matthew Hope was in bed with his ex-wife when Otto
Samalson met his violent end on a dark Florida highway. Samalson was
investigating a kinky case of adultery for attorney Hope, who then had to make
sure the case hadn't done the detective in. It hadn't. Instead, kindly,
bald-headed Otto Samalson had the misfortune of crossing paths with a beautiful
girl of many names, a high-priced hooker cutting a path of tricks through South
Florida. Now Hope has crossed her path, too. And whether he likes it or not, he
is going to find out why some very dangerous men, having once invited a
Cinderella to the ball, are now moving heaven and earth-and everyone in
between-to make sure they punch her ticket.
***
From Publishers Weekly
This is the sixth in McBain's series of fearful "fairy
tales" starring lawyer Matthew Hope of Calusa, Fla., as compelling a character
as those in the author's popular 87th Precinct novels. When Hope's friend,
private eye Otto Samalson, is killed while on an assignment for him, the lawyer
makes up his mind to find the murderer. The investigation leads Hope into the
affairs of several men involved with a gorgeous hooker known as Cinderella.
Hired thugs on her trail leave behind them the bloody bodies of people they
question, and the lawyer is in constant danger. Cleverly eluding pursuers,
Cinderella guards a fortune in stolen cocaine with which she expects to secure a
rosy future until time and her luck run out. This is a violent story, more
horrifying than its gory predecessors (Goldilocks; Beauty and the Beast),
but very well written and a natural attraction for McBain fans.
***
"It is hard to mink of anyone better at what he does. In
feet, ifs impossible."
-Robert B. Parker
"McBain has a great approach, great attitude, terrific
style, strong plots, excellent dialogue, sense of place, and sense of
reality."
-Elmore Leonard
"I prefer Ed McBain to Raymond Chandler and place him far
ahead of Dashiell Hammett"
-Roald Dahl
"The Matthew Hope novels do for the world of Florida
sleaze what the 87th Precinct books do for big-city vice. The reader is hooked
and given not a moment's letup."
-New York Times Book Review
"McBain is as convincing as Scott Throw or John Grisham
when he puts his lawyer, deadpan, before a judge and jury."
-TIME
"When McBain sets his tale to wagging, he commands close
attention."
-Los Angeles Times
"A master. He is a superior stylist, a spinner of
artfully designed and sometimes macabre plots."
-Newsweek
"Hope springs eternal, and hurrah for mat"
-New York Daily News
"You'll be engrossed by McBain's fast, lean prose."
-Chicago Tribune
"The best crime writer in the business."
-Houston Post
"The McBain stamp: sharp dialogue and crisp
plotting."
-Miami Herald
"McBain has stood the test of time. He remains one of the
very best"
-San Antonio Express-News
"McBain is the unquestioned king… light-years ahead of
anyone else in me field."
-San Diego Union Views: 37
At a lush villa on the sun-soaked island of Madeira, Martin Radford is given a second chance. His life ruined by scandal, Martin holds in his hands the leather-bound journal of another ruined man, former British cabinet minister Edwin Strafford. What’s more, Martin is being offered a job—to return to England and investigate the rise and fall of Strafford, an ambitious young politician whose downfall, in 1910, is as mysterious as the strange deaths that still haunt his family. Martin is intrigued by Strafford’ s story, by the man’s overwhelming love for a beautiful suffragette, by her inexplicable rejection of him and their love affair’s political repercussions. But as he retraces Strafford’s ruination, Martin realizes that Strafford did not fall by chance; he was pushed. Suddenly Martin, who has not cared for many people in his life, cares desperately—about a man’s mysterious death and a family’s terrible secret, about a love beyond reckoning and betrayal beyond imagining. Most of all Martin cares because the story he is uncovering is not yet over—and among the men and women still caught in its web, Martin himself may be the most vulnerable of all…. Views: 37
One of historys most complex and alluring women, Anne Boleyn captured the hearts of kings and commoners alike. She surpassed her familys highest expectations when Henry VIII risked his throne to wed her. But she would meet the cruelest of fates when she bore him no son.From the Inside FlapOne of history’s most complex and alluring women comes to life in this classic novel by the legendary Jean Plaidy.Young Anne Boleyn was not beautiful but she was irresistible, capturing the hearts of kings and commoners alike. Daughter of an ambitious country lord, Anne was sent to France to learn sophistication, and then to court to marry well and raise the family’s fortunes. She soon surpassed even their greatest expectations. Although his queen was loving and loyal, King Henry VIII swore he would put her aside and make Anne his wife. And so he did, though the divorce would tear apart the English church and inflict religious turmoil and bloodshed on his people for generations to come.Loathed by the English people, who called her “the King’s Great Whore,” Anne Boleyn was soon caught in the trap of her own ambition. Political rivals surrounded her at court and, when she failed to produce a much-desired male heir, they closed in, preying on the king’s well-known insecurity and volatile temper. Wrongfully accused of adultery and incest, Anne found herself imprisoned in the Tower of London, where she was at the mercy of her husband and of her enemies.From the Trade Paperback edition.Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.The PrisonerHERE I LIE IN MY DARK PRISON. I hear voices in the night--those who were here before me, those who had suffered as I am suffering now, numbed by fear, without hope, the prisoners of the King.They came for me yesterday, and we glided along the river to the great gray Tower. Many times had I seen it before but never with such fearful clarity. Once I came here in great pomp and glory--and that only three years ago--and never for one moment then would it have seemed possible that one day I should be brought here--a prisoner.It was May then as now and the people crowded the river banks to see me pass. I was proud, so confident, so sure of my power. At the prow of my state barge was the stem of gold with branches of red and white roses--symbolic of York and Lancaster, which the King displayed on every occasion to remind people that the Tudors had united the warring factions; and among those roses was my very own symbol, the White Falcon, with the motto "Me and Mine."How had I come to pass from such adulation to bitter rejection in three short years? Was it my fault? I must be in some measure to blame. When did I cease to be the adored one and become the outcast?The people had not cheered me even in my day of triumph. They did not like me. All their affection was for Queen Katharine. They did not accept me. "We will have none of her," they cried. "Queen Katharine is our true Queen." They would have abused me if they had dared. The people were my enemies, but I had greater and more powerful enemies than they were. Now they would be openly gathering against me; even during the days of my triumph they had sought to destroy me; how much more assiduously would they work against me now! And they had succeeded, for I was the King's prisoner.As I passed through the gate the clock was striking five, and each stroke was like a funeral knell.Sir William Kingston, the Lieutenant of the Tower, was waiting for me. I murmured to myself: "Oh, Lord help me, as I am guiltless of that wherefore I am accused."I turned to William Kingston and said: "Mr. Kingston, do I go into a dungeon?"And he replied: "No, Madam, to your lodging where you lay at your coronation."They took me there and I laughed. I could not stop laughing, for I, who had come in such pomp and glory just three years ago, now was here in the same apartment...a prisoner.Had they brought me here purposely to remind me? Was it a touch of that exquisite torture which so many of my enemies knew so well how to administer?My women tried to soothe me. They knew the nature of that wild laughter; and in time I was quiet.I thought: I will write to him, I will move him with my words. I will remind him of how it once was between us.I wrote and I destroyed what I wrote. Again and again I took up my pen and tried to appeal to him."Your Grace's displeasure and my imprisonment are things so strange unto me that what to write or what to excuse, I am altogether ignorant..."That was not true. I did know and I would not make it easy for him. I knew him well--his reasoning, his sanctimonious excuses, his mean, hypocritical nature, his passionate desires all cloaked in piety. No, I would not make it easy for him.My angry pen flew on. My lack of discretion had often turned people against me, but I was reckless. I was fighting for my life. I would let him know that I was aware of the real reason why he wanted to be rid of me."...that Your Grace may be at liberty, both before God and man, not only to execute worthy punishment on me as an unfaithful wife, but to follow your affections already settled on that party for whose sake I am now as I am..."Angrily I wrote--more vehement perhaps because I was now in the position of the discarded wife.He would be angry. He would try to pretend that it was not because he desired another woman that he wished to be rid of me. He was a past master--not of deceiving others, for those about him saw through his utterings and posturings as clearly as I did--but of deceiving himself.He was superstitious, fearful of ill luck; he committed his sins with one eye on Heaven, hoping to pull the wool over the eyes of God and His angels as he thought he did over those of his ministers and courtiers."But if you have already determined of me that not only my death but an infamous slander must bring you the joying of your desired happiness, then I desire of God that He will pardon your great sin herein and likewise my enemies, the instruments thereof and that He will not call you to a straight account of your unprincely and cruel usage of me..."I was again on the verge of hysterical laughter. I must calm myself. Others had suffered like this before me. This place was full of the ghosts of martyrs. What was so important about one more?I sealed the letter. I would send it to the King. I wrote on it "From the Lady in the Tower."It must give him twinges of conscience. His conscience was important to him. He referred to it constantly; and knowing him well, I believed that it did exist.I could see him in my mind's eye so clearly...those days at Hever and at Court...his little eyes alight with desire for me, his cruel mouth suddenly soft and tender...for me. How he had wanted me! He had fought for me with that tenacity which was a part of his nature; he had been determined to have me. For me he had shaken the foundations of the Church; and however much he declared he did it to satisfy his conscience, he knew...the whole world knew...that he had done it for me.So where did it change? There must have been some point where I started to go downhill. When? I could have stopped myself perhaps.I remembered early days at Blickling and Hever and later at Court where I was surrounded by those who loved me. My dearest brother George, my friends, Thomas and Mary Wyatt, Norris, Weston, Brereton--the wits and poets of the Court. We had talked of life and death, of ambition and achievement; we had come to the conclusion that we were all masters of our fate. The wise knew how to recognize danger before it reached them, to step aside and let it pass by. We were what we made ourselves.That was George's theory. Some of the others disputed it; and in a Court where living was precarious and once-great men could be brought low in the space of an hour it was a debatable conclusion.But in my heart I believed there was some truth in it, for if a man or woman did not wish to face danger he or she could stay away from where danger would most likely be--and nowhere in the country was that more than at Court.So where did I go wrong? Where was that moment when I could have averted the danger?I could have produced a son; but that was not in my power. I had my sweet daughter Elizabeth and I loved her dearly, though I did not want to think of her, for I greatly feared what would become of her. She had her governess, a good friend of mine. I trusted Lady Bryan for she loved the child well and her husband was a kinsman of my family. When the power had been mine I had always looked after my own family.But I must not think of Elizabeth now. It is too distressing and could do no good.But if I had had a son this would not have happened. Henry would have been unfaithful, but the ambitious Seymour brothers would not have been able to guide their silly sister; she would have become his mistress no doubt and I should have been expected to accept that. I should have raged against them; I should have been insulted and humiliated, but I should not be in this doleful prison in the Tower.No. I had taken a false step somewhere. All through the waiting years I had managed--with consummate skill, all would agree--to hold him at bay, to refuse him until I could take an honorable position beside him. Suppose I had not done this? Then I should now be a cast-off mistress instead of a Queen in a Tower.I put my fingers to my throat. It was long and slender. It added an elegance to my figure. I accentuated it as I did all my assets and I disguised my defects, with success, I believe. I could almost feel the sword there.All through the waiting years I had known I must hold him off. I knew him as the hunter and his delight in pursuit. As long as it remained the chase he was determined to succeed. But the joys of capture were brief.I should have known. I should have realized even as the crown was placed upon my head that it was there precariously.I knew well the man on whom my fate depended. None knew him better. I should have realized that my life depended on one who was not to be relied on. His fancies faded as quickly as they came. I had been bemused because he had pursued me so ardently and with such persistence. The years of the chase had been long; those of possession short. When had he begun to weary? When had he begun to realize all he had done for me and to ask himself whether it had been worthwhile? What did he think now of his public quarrel with the Pope and the power of Rome--all for a woman who had ceased to interest him?I should never have become involved with him. I should have escaped while there was time. I should have married Henry Percy. I should have died of the Sweat. Then this would never have come to pass.Somewhere along the years the fault lay with me. Where? I would seek it. It would occupy me in my prison. It would keep my thoughts in the past, away from contemplation of the fearful future.I would go back to those happy days at Blickling and Hever, to the glitter of the Court of France, my return to England--a young girl knowledgeable beyond her years, brought up in the most sophisticated and elegant Court in the world. That was what had made me what I was, and what I was had brought me to my present state. I wanted to recall it in detail...and while I waited here in my prison I would do so. Views: 37
On her thirteenth birthday, Rose had become a messenger of the splendid grey horse Favour, who had been coming and going on the earth for centuries, using human messengers who were this magic age to carry out his eternal crusade to rescue the victims of evil and unhappiness. Rose had already been sent twice by the horse into a tremendous adventure. His call to a new challenge might come at any time...It is October but, despite cold and rainy weather, life at the Wood Briar Hotel is busy. With school being in full swing and her weekends occupied by helping her parents at the guesthouse, Rose has her hands full. Things get even busier and Rose's life more exciting when a touring theatre group visits the area and decides to stay at the Wood Briar. Rose becomes friends with fascinating actors and dancers and for some time she forgets about the Great Gray Horse and his world.But Favour, the splendid ancient horse, summons her again for a new and enthralling mission. Rose must... Views: 37
Book DescriptionIn this land, the place you leave behind might not be there when you get back. At least not the way you knew it. Tack Gentry of the G Bar, Chat Lock of Dutchman’s Flat, and Ward McQueen of the Tumbling K knew how it felt to struggle against men who were trying to take from them what they believed in. For the bad rush in when the good leave, and men will choose to fight, not just over drunken threats, gambling losses, and honor, but for land, friendships, family, and even love—a struggle magnificently captured in these eleven great stories written and handpicked by the incomparable Louis L’Amour himself.From the Paperback edition.From The PublisherA collection of short frontier stories personally selected and introduced by the author. Views: 36
They were playing at time and magic, but time is tricky and magic is dangerous! When Farrell returned to Avicenna after years away, he found his oldest friend Ben living with an unattractive older woman named Sia. Ben and Farrell’s girlfriend, Julie, were also mixed up with the League for Archaic Pleasures—a group that playacted the events and manners of medieval chivalry, sometimes too seriously. Nothing was quite as it seemed. Sia’s ancient house developed rooms that impossibly appeared and disappeared. Apparently helpless, Sia still had enormous powers that no human could defy when she chose to exert her will. And some members of the League were not playacting—they were the medieval characters they portrayed. Even mild-mannered Ben was sometimes possessed by a Ninth Century viking, driven to madness by the modern world he could not understand. Attending a League revel with Julie, Farrell was amused by the claim of fifteen-year-old Aiffe that she was a witch. But later he saw her, attempting to summon a demon, conjure out of air the form of Nicholas Bonner, who had been sent to limbo five centuries before! With Bonner’s skills added to Aiffe’s talents, the pair soon made chaos of the League’s annual mock war. But Bonner’s real goal was the defeat of Sia, with whom he seemed to have a mysterious connection. Gradually, Farrell realized that Bonner represented a growing evil such as the Twentieth Century had never known. Only Sia’s powers stood against it. But Sia had retreated into a room that could not exist, hiding in illusion. Here in his first fantasy novel since The Last Unicorn was published in 1968, Peter Beagle again proves his mastery in a tale of magic, illusion, and delusion, mixed with a cast of human characters only he could create. Views: 36
John Truck was to outward appearances just another lowlife spaceship captain. But he was also the last of the Centaurans - or at least, half of him was - which meant that he was the only person who could operate the Centauri Device, a sentient bomb which might hold the key to settling a vicious space war. M. John Harrison's classic novel turns the conventions of space opera on their head, and is written with the precision and brilliance for which is famed. Views: 36
Bob Service, the protagonist of this deft and chilling novel of contemporary ambition and greed, is a thirty-two-year-old crack lawyer with blood as cold and clear as a five-dollar martini. Bob's god is power and his morals are ever tempered by expediency. His goals far exceed an imminent partnership in a big New York law firm.Bob's "perfect' marriage to the graceful and intelligent Alice is no match for the ardor of his corporate drive. And it certainly pales beside his explosive affair with Sylvia, whose naked ambition matches his own and whose social connections provide the ultimate bridge to the pinnacles of success.How Bob Service marches toward his fate while trampling on his associates and crippling his marriage forms the plot of this fast-paced novel about modern mores and life on the fast track of the big law firms. Office intrigue and duels for power rival anything that Machiavelli could have conjured up. And in Louis Auchincloss's hands, it all has an unnerv-ingly authentic ring.Louis Auchincloss began his law career at a Wall Street firm after attending Yale and the University of Virginia Law School. He is a member of the National Institute of Arts and Letters and president of the Museum of the City of New York. This is his thirty-eighth book, the most recent being The Book Class and Honorable Men.From Library Journal"You're only wrong if you get caught" is the credo of 32-year-old Bob Service, who handles corporate takeover cases for a large New York law firm. Thirty years ago, people would have called him a shyster. The finer side of his character (he reads Wordsworth and Walter Pater) is buried behind a warlike exteriorand it works for him. Despite rifts with his wife and his mentor, Service gets everything he wants. This brief contemporary novel explores the ethics of loyalty in business, love, and friendship. Auchincloss, a prolific novelist of manners, is also a Wall Street attorney, and his shallow, ambitious characters ring true. The title is unfortunate, but it may help increase the readership for this subtle, memorable book. Joyce Smothers, Ocean Cty. Lib., Toms River, N.J.Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc. Views: 35
Danger Swirled Around Him Like Demons in the Mist...And from the moment her eyes met his, Julie McLean knew Aleksei Rozonov was a hunter...and she was his prey.Instead of taking a safe trip home, she'd been assigned to track the killer of an embassy colleague. She followed a treacherous trail that time and again led her inexorably to the alluring Russian--and to an elusive secret agent called the Raven, who somehow held the answers she sought.Aleksei's moves made her feel like an amateur, his kisses made her feel like a virgin. And in the heat of the Spanish summer--in the heat of their passion--it was all too easy to forget that no matter what else Aleksei was, he was the enemy.... Views: 34
Three restoration novels in one set from best-selling author Robyn Carr. Fans of Virgin River are going to love these historical romances written with Robyn's trademark zest for life. In The Bellrose Bargain, the heiress to the Bellerose estate has gone missing and what a waste of a dowry it is! Enter Alicia, a tavern maid of uncertain parentage. No one at court has actually ever sees Lady Bellamy, and Alicia's beauty, poise, and bearing are enough to fool the king. At least, that's what Geoffrey hopes. Alicia charms King Charles II's court, but did her "business partner," have to be so dashing, tempestuous and irresistible? Worst of all, someone at court knows Charlotte Bellamy. The truth of Alicia's past and the lies of her present are about to collide.Orphaned and raised by her uncle, the feisty 16-year-old Chelynne shows her gratitude by marrying the man of his choice. Bracing herself for a sickly noble, the last man she expects for a husband is the... Views: 34
This acclaimed historical novel is based on two actual incidents: In 1829 in Kentucky, a pregnant black woman helped lead an uprising of a group of slaves headed to the market for sale. She was sentenced to death, but her hanging was delayed until after the birth of her baby. In North Carolina in 1830, a white woman living on an isolated farm was reported to have given sanctuary to runaway slaves. In Dessa Rose, the author asks the question: "What if these two women met?"From there the story unfolds: two strong women, one black, one white, form a forbidden and ambivalent alliance; a bold scheme is hatched to win freedom; trust is slowly extended and cautiously accepted as the two women unite and discover greater strength together than alone. United by fate but divided by prejudice, these two women are locked in a thrilling battle for freedom, sisterhood, friendship, and love. Views: 34
From Shanghai to WAke Island, the Corps was America's first line of defense as the winds of war exploded into the devastating surprise attack on Pearl Harbor. Now, the bestselling author of the acclaimed BROTHERHOOD OF WAR saga brings to life the men of the Marine Corps—their loves and their loyalties—as they steeled themselves for battle, and prepared to make the ultimate sacrifice... Views: 33
