Michael is just an ordinary, average, normal, every day middle schooler in the perfect town of Lincolnshire, a town that happens to have more superheroes per square mile than anywhere else on the planet. What could possibly go wrong, surrounded by so many people who could destroy the town with a snap of their fingers? Views: 60
Miranda Fairchild has always blended into the background. But she still dreams of finding her fairy-tale prince… At first glance, her new boss – dangerously charismatic Rafe Knighton – does not fit the bill. Rafe is beginning to see that there's more to Miranda than meets the eye. Will he give this stubborn Cinderella the happy ending she deserves? Views: 59
A collection of 29 short stories from Jon F. Merz, spanning the years 1994-2002. A motley assortment of horror, action, crime, and the bizarre, THIS TIME OF NIGHT features many stories not seen since their original publication in the early years of multimedia web publishing, small press magazines, and even a few that have never been seen before at all. Views: 59
Ex-Marine Chase Malone has sworn never to take orders from anyone again. Now a famous artist, he has built a new, isolated life, and spends his days painting. But this idyllic existence is disrupted when billionaire arms merchant Derek Bellasar offers a huge commission for two portraits of his wife, Sienna. Malone has never accepted a commission, refusing to paint to another's dictates, and will make no exceptions. But Bellasar won't take no for an answer. Before long, Malone's beach has been bulldozed, his favourite restaurant closed, and the gallery displaying his works taken over. Confused and angry, Malone vows to get revenge. Then an old friend from the Marines asks him to take the commission. Jeb, now a CIA agent fighting Bellasar's ever-increasing power, sees this as his one chance to get close to him. It is also Sienna's one chance for survival. She doesn't know she is Bellasar's fourth wife, and that each of the other three died mysteriously in an accident immediately after her beauty had been immortalized by a renowned artist. Malone is quickly overwhelmed by Sienna. Saving her life and keeping her with him soon become his only goals. Once on the run, however, he finds that a woman as beautiful as Sienna is impossible to hide... Views: 59
Russian terrorists kidnap a man suspected of Nazi war crimes--and get the wrong man. The rebels threaten to kill their captive unless ten million dollars and the real war criminal are delivered to them within 72 hours. Only the KGB's newest secret weapon could possibly stop their plan--Comrade James Bond.
From Kirkus Reviews Gardner rouses himself for more elaborate plotting than usual in his tenth stint as Ian Fleming's stand-in, but Gardner's James Bond, on loan to the KGB for some antiterrorist housecleaning, has aged a lot less gracefully than Sean Connery. A dissident Russian cabal calling itself The Scales of Justice (SoJ) has kidnapped somebody it claims is Josif Vorontsov, notorious second-in-command at Babi Yar, from his home in New Jersey and threatened to assassinate high-level brass hats until the government takes Vorontsov off their hands and places him on trial for war crimes. When the Kremlin denies that SoJ has the real Vorontsov and refuses to recognize his extradition, SoJ begins taking out high-level brass hats, and the KGB asks British Intelligence to let them have somebody--guess who--able to infiltrate SoJ by substituting for two English-speaking recruits. Gardner lays some promising trails--Bond working for the KGB, Bond partnered by Mossad agent Pete Natkowitz, two interloping French agents (one a natural bedmate), the news that SoJ intends to videotape its own free-lance war-crimes trial, and all the usual seductions, killings, double-crosses, flashbacks, and intimations of The End (this time by hard-liners bombing Washington while the US is busy bombing Baghdad)--but the going keeps getting muddier, as if somebody else had finished the book over a third martini (shaken, not stirred). Bond saves the world, gets the woman and the Order of Lenin, and turns in a less muffled performance than in last year's Brokenclaw, though still below average for Gardner's series. Let's not talk about how far below Fleming's average. Views: 59
"Just when you think that you can't be surprised anymore, a writer like Wallace Stroby ups the ante."—-Laura Lippman, author of I'd Know You AnywhereCrissa Stone is a career criminal. A complete pro, she never works too close to her New York City home, rarely signs on with the same crew, and never rushes a job. These are the rules that have kept her from getting caught, from doing time. They're the rules her mentor and lover taught her, rules he didn't follow as closely as he should've. Now he's up for parole, and Crissa needs to come up with some real money real fast to help grease the wheels.Word is that there's an illegal card game set for less than a week from now. The take? As much as seven figures. Desperate, Crissa slaps a plan and a crew together.It's robbery, not murder. But when one of her crew loses his cool and they have to abandon the plan, she catches the... Views: 59
Fifteen-year-old Matthew Cassidy is an up-and-coming rugby league star. The talent scouts are circling him, his school team has reached the finals for the first time ever and he's determined to one day play professional. It's not bad for a down-to-earth guy from the poor side of town who lives with his mum above a fish 'n' chip shop. But despite being the team captain, his prowess and the embarrassing popularity among his mates, Matt really only wants one thing in life - a Dad. All his mates have one, so why can't he? His Mum had fallen pregnant at 14 at a drunken party and never heard from his Dad again. However, the old adage 'Be careful of what you wish for' comes true. Matt receives an anonymous card on his 15th birthday. It's not from his Mum, his grandmother or one of his mates. The only clue is handwriting that matches a dozen letters he accidentally finds in his mother's bedroom - threatening letters about him. Matt tracks down the mysterious writer and discovers he had... Views: 59
Set against the historical reign of the Golden and Iron King, Bohemian Gospel is the remarkable tale of a bold and unusual girl on a quest to uncover her past and define her destiny.Thirteenth-century Bohemia is a dangerous place for a girl, especially one as odd as Mouse, born with unnatural senses and an uncanny intellect. Some call her a witch. Others call her an angel. Even Mouse doesn't know who—or what—she is. But she means to find out.When young King Ottakar shows up at the Abbey wounded by a traitor's arrow, Mouse breaks church law to save him and then agrees to accompany him back to Prague as his personal healer. Caught in the undertow of court politics at the castle, Ottakar and Mouse find themselves drawn to each other as they work to uncover the threat against him and to unravel the mystery of her past. But when Mouse's unusual gifts give rise to a violence and strength that surprise everyone—especially herself—she is forced... Views: 59
From the author of Hip to Be Square comes an urban tale of Libby Marshall, whose life seems to be going the wrong direction. She creates trip itineraries but never travels. She wants to attend church but winds up at a bookstore on Sundays. She longs for a love attraction yet settles for a "like" distraction.But when Libby receives a demotion instead of her overdue promotion, she vows to start living intentionally. Yet just when she is trying to be authentic, she is asked to keep a huge secret to redeem her career. Will a genuine life ever be within reach? And will Libby ever have enough faith to believe that happiness can be found in the detours. Views: 59
