A new novel from the winner of the Wole Soyinka Prize for African LiteratureAt thirty-nine, Deola Bello, a Nigerian expatriate in London, is dissatisfied with being single and working overseas. Deola works as a financial reviewer for an international charity, and when her job takes her back to Nigeria in time for her father’s five-year memorial service, she finds herself turning her scrutiny inward. In Nigeria, Deola encounters changes in her family and in the urban landscape of her home, and new acquaintances who offer unexpected possibilities. Deola’s journey is as much about evading others’ expectations to get to the heart of her frustration as it is about exposing the differences between foreign images of Africa and the realities of contemporary Nigerian life. Deola’s urgent, incisive voice captivates and guides us through the intricate layers and vivid scenes of a life lived across continents. With Sefi Atta’s characteristic boldness and... Views: 68
When a Turkish bandit holds engineers building the Baghdad Railway to ransom, Britain is secretly relieved as the Railway threatens the Persian Gulf oil-fields. Feigning help, the Foreign Office sends the notorious Lady Kelso, once lover of the bandit chief, with Captain Matthew Ranklin and Conall O'Gilroy of the fledgling Secret Service Bureau as 'diplomatic protection'. A journey by the Kaiser's private train to the bandit stronghold leads through ambush, betrayal, murder and bombardment. For there are others - German, Turkish and French - honourably putting their countries' interests above everything. In the misty Turkish mountains, all of Ranklin's military experience and O'Gilroy's back-streets savvy are tested to the full Views: 68
Flora was raised at gloomy Gossinger Hall because her grandfather, Hutchins, was the butler there. When Sir Henry announced that he was changing his will to leave the Hall to Hutchins, he upset several people. But then Hutchins was found dead under curious circumstances. Coping with her loss, Flora moved to London, followed by Vivian Gossinger, the heir apparent. Was he trying to protect her—and from what? British Cozy Mystery by Dorothy Cannell; originally published by Bantam Views: 68
Nothing ventured, nothing banged.AshI still don’t know how it happened. One minute I was arguing with my arrogant competitor—our usual trash-talk over who deserves the larger commission. But somehow I went from throwing down to kneeling down... It can never happen again. I don’t even like Braht. He's too slick. He's a manipulating mansplaining party boy in preppy clothes.So why can't I get him out of my head? BrahtThere are two things I know without question. One: Ash and I are destined for each other. Two: never trust a man with a unibrow.Ash is my missing my piece. She’s the sweet cream to my gourmet espresso. And nothing gets me going faster than her contempt for me. They don't call her the Ashkicker for nothing. Eventually I’ll win her over…if my past doesn’t ruin everything first.PRAISE FOR THE... Views: 67
From Romantic Times Career Achievement Award Winner and New York Times bestseller Victoria Thompson, a magnificent historical romance set on a Texas plantation during the Civil War. It is an unforgettable tale of two men and one woman...of honor lost and won...of a love that will steal your heart...A fateful night during the Yankee's invasion of Texas changes young Lori McClintock's life forever, her innocence stolen and a baby on the way...while the unknowing father, Eric Ross, is off fighting with the Cavalry of the West.When Eric's older brother offers to marry her, Lori is stunned. She's fantasized about Adam Ross noticing her, of living on his beautiful estate and of being adored by a man she's adored her whole life. But Lori, with a baby to think of, has to be more realistic—Adam is a Southern gentleman who will take care of any child with his family's name.Now a battle has been ignited between brothers—careening toward an explosive... Views: 67
Hailey Heartstone did not have an ordinary childhood. The only daughter of a merchant sailor, she grew up climbing ship's rigging, balancing high above decks, but lately Hailey struggles to find the balance in her life. She fears that her days on the sea are coming to an end and that a course has been plotted for her that will end in a stifling arranged marriage. But all that is about to change.In one fateful moment, Hailey's life is ripped from its safe and predictable course and thrust into a storm of peril. She stumbles upon an ancient book and unlocks a dangerous power that thrusts her into a world full of deadly mists and phantom pirates intent on recovering what once was theirs. Kidnapped from her family, Hailey must face true fear as she is forced into a journey to protect the power that she found and seek out those willing to help her save all that she loves before it is too late.In this thrilling fantasy adventure, a young girl gifted with untapped abilities unlocks a... Views: 67
Her mother's violent death left Marcelle at the mercy of her lecherous stepfather, until Thomas Mayhew, King's Messenger and attendant to the flamboyant court favourite Robert Carr, offers her protection, freedom ...and love. But such perfect happiness is brittle, vulnerable. A mysterious royal lover, tawny-haired and passionate, leaves Marcelle with child. Kidnapped by the powerful Howard family, the baby is an innocent pawn in a deadly political game and Marcelle's desperate search for her son threatens her reconciliation with Thomas, her health, and her very sanity ...ReviewLena Kennedy is the genuine article -- Sunday Express About the AuthorLena Kennedy lived all her life in the East End of London and wrote with great energy about the people and times she knew there. She was 67 before her first novel, MAGGIE, was accepted for publication. Since then her bestselling novels have shown her to be among the finest and best loved of contemporary novelists. She died in August 1986. Views: 67
Lady Clara Huckabee stows away by accident. But she's not sorry to sail aboard HMS Topaze, leaving England behind. It's a chance to search for her charming French suitor from the Amiens peace, the man she's determined to marry despite the war and her dominating uncle's disapproval. All she has to do is convince the Topaze's handsome captain to see things her way, and everything will be perfect. Views: 67
Sandra Brannan has once again masterfully delivered on her latest compelling installment in the Liv Bergen Mystery Series. Liv has recently returned to work at the FBI from a forced leave of absence after witnessing the brutal murder of her boyfriend, Jack Linwood. As she painfully emerges from her grief, Liv comes face-to-face with two facts: She did not truly love Jack, and she does love her long-time colleague and mentor Streeter Pierce. But she wonders if she can find the courage to let him know or just how much longer she can hide her feelings. As Streeter and Liv are drawn together and a tender relationship begins, a gritty and often shocking set of events is unraveling around them. And while fans of the series have long waited to know the truth about his past, Streeter's honest revelations lead to nothing but fear and his worst nightmare—where Liv is put within inches of losing her life. The title of the book, an evil twist referencing admonitions from the Bible's Book of Jer Views: 67
In Restless Empire, award-winning historian Odd Arne Westad presents a history of China's relationship with the rest of the world for the last 250 years. Westad shows that, for most of its recent past, China has been an open society with an unrivalled capacity to reinvent itself. China's permeability has enabled it to compete and engage with other powers, but it has also contributed to the instability that has marked the country for much of its recent history—and which will pose a serious challenge in the future.Westad traces China's history from the Qing Empire in the 18th century to the People's Republic in the 21st, showing how the nation's worldview and foreign relations have been determined by both its receptiveness and its resistance to outside influence. Encroachment by foreign, often imperial powers—specifically Western nations and Japan—have only reinforced many of China's traditional mores: inherited notions of justice, hierarchy, cultural... Views: 67
