A crash a week before Christmas thrusts these two lonely people back into each other's lives Jayne must learn to trust Chris, a man who disappeared with her heart. Views: 51
1. How does Nicholas Morath's experience as a cavalry officer in World War I affect his behavior in this book? 2. During many of Morath's assignments, he acts with very limited knowledge--he knows what he is to do, but not why, or who is involved. His uncle, a diplomat at the Hungarian legation, does not tell him the full story. Why? Is his uncle morally right to do this? Is he right in any sense? How is this used as a plot device? 3. The first verse of the Hungarian national anthem, quotes in the epigraph of Kingdom of Shadows , speaks of a people 'torn by misfortune,' a nation that has 'already paid for its sins.' How is the tone of this national anthem different from that of other patriotic songs? What can you infer about the history of Hungary from its national anthem? 4. Critics praise Furst's ability to re-create the atmosphere of World War II-era Europe with great accuracy. What elements of description make the setting come alive? How can you account for the fact that the settings seem authentic even though you probably have no first-hand knowledge of the times and places he writes about? 5. Furst's novels have been described as 'historical novels' and as 'spy novels'. He call them 'historical spy novels.' Some critics have insisted they are, simply, novels. How does his work compare with other spy novels you've read? What does he do that is the same? Different? If you owned a bookstore, in what section would you display his books? 6. Furst is often praised for his minor characters, which have been described as 'sketched out in a few strokes.' Do you have a favorite in this book? Characters in Furst's books often take part in the action for a few pages and then disappear. What do you think becomes of them? And, if you know, how do you know? What in the book is guiding you toward that opinion? 7. At the end of an Alan Furst novel, the hero is always still alive. What becomes of Furst's heroes? Will they survive the war? Does Furst know what becomes of them? Would it be better if they were somewhere safe and sound, to live out the end of the war in comfort? If not, why not? 8. Love affairs are always prominent in Furst's novels, and 'love in a time of war' is a recurring theme. Do you think these affairs might last, and lead to marriage and domesticity? 9. How do the notions of good and evil work in Kingdom of Shadows ? Would you prefer a confrontation between villian and hero at the end of the book? Do you like Furst's use of realism in the novel? Views: 51
When a federal drug bust goes awry, Luke Garrison must investigate a baffling government cover-upIn a remote region of the California hills, Mexican drug lord Reynaldo Juarez has built a fortress, complete with a landing strip long enough for a Boeing 737. He has planned the biggest deal of his long and dangerous career: a $100 million cocaine buy that will make him a legend. With the DEA waiting in the hills, the Feds storm the Juarez compound. Four agents end up dead and the drug lord is shot through the skull. In the aftermath of the disastrous raid, former Santa Barbara District Attorney Luke Garrison is tasked with finding the shooter who killed Reynaldo. He will discover that a strange conspiracy, replete with a sinister cover-up, lies behind the assault on the kingpin’s compound. Going up against the DEA is a fearsome prospect, but fearlessness is all that Luke has left. Views: 51
Ellie's thrilled to be doing work experience at teen magazine, Heart, even though life isn't all celebrity chat and fashion makeovers for the wannabe journalist. She's given the job of walking the Editor's pampered pooch, when she really wants to track down a famous author for an exclusive interview. But could the little dog help lead her to the star? Views: 51
‘If they existed, they would be here’ ENRICO FERMI. In the second volume in Stephen Baxter's epic Manifold Series Reid Malenfant inhabits the universe Malenfant kick-started in TIME (‘science fiction at its best’ FHM) — and ‘they’ are here. When Nemoto, a Japanese researcher on the Moon, discovers evidence of extraterrestrial intelligence in the solar system, the Fermi Paradox provokes both Malenfant and Nemoto to question why now? Because, suddenly, there are signs of intelligent life in deep space in all directions. Deeper layers of Fermi’s paradox unravel as robot-like aliens, the Gaijin, seem to be e-mailing themselves from star to star, and wherever telescopes point, far away, other alien races are destroying worlds! Views: 51
"A bracing and no-nonsense memoir, infused with fresh takes on love, death, and human nature." — Kirkus Reviews, starred reviewAs with many of us, the life of acclaimed novelist Howard Norman has had its share of incidents of "arresting strangeness." Yet few of us connect these moments, as Norman has done in this spellbinding memoir, to show how life tangles with the psyche to become art. Norman's story begins with a portrait, both harrowing and hilarious, of a Midwest boyhood summer working in a bookmobile, in the shadow of a grifter father and under the erotic tutelage of his brother's girlfriend. His life story continues in places as far-flung as the Arctic, where he spends part of a decade as a translator of Inuit tales—including the story of a soapstone carver turned into a goose whose migration-time lament is "I hate to leave this beautiful place"—and in his beloved Point Reyes, California, as a student of birds. In the Arctic, he receives news... Views: 51
Peter Steiner has thoroughly impressed sophisticated thriller mavens everywhere with his critically acclaimed novels featuring ex-CIA operative Louis Morgon.St. John Larrimer was a well known Wall Street investment banker who had earned returns for his wealthy clients that exceeded even their fondest hopes. But it turns out that the returns existed only in St. John's imagination. By the time his staff and associates were detained and questioned, St. John had disappeared. Louis Morgon, a long retired CIA operative now living in France, had a little money invested with a money manager who was also taken in by Larrimer. Louis thinks that he can figure out a way to bring Larrimer to account. Of course, some of Larrimer's victims were themselves villains, for instance the Russian mobsters whose wealth constituted the main holdings of the Swiss Eisener Bank. So Louis, with a motley band of helpers and the Russian mob on his tail, sets out to find Larrimer and... Views: 51
SUMMARY: Malcolm le Farouche felt his blood race at the thought. Yet, was rage or passion the reason? He knew only that though Elinore of Evenbough would share his bed by royal command, the warrior-trained beauty was not to be trusted...with his life or his heart!Le Farouche—"the Fierce." The epithet added luster to Sir Malcolm's dark reputation as the greatest knight in the land. But how would Elinore refute his deep suspicions of an alliance with her treacherous father? For her soul called out that this man was her true mate born! Views: 50
Mark Pritchard is known for his intelligent, complex, and uncompromisingly graphic explorations of sexual taboos from incest and drugs to S/M and sex among youth. How I Adore You, Pritchard’s new collection of stories, spans the erotic spectrum, with "riveting first-person views between the legs" (Good Vibrations) of men and women of all sexualities, in all possible combinations and compromising positions. Views: 50
