Nebula Award WinnerFeaturing a new afterword from the author"Burn is James Patrick Kelly at his best, and there's nothing better."—Connie Willis, author of Doomsday BookThe tiny planet Morobe's Pea has been sold and renamed Walden. The new owner has some interesting ideas. Voluntary simplicity will rule in the Transcendent State; Walden is destined to become a paradise covered in lush new forests. But even believers find temptations in the black markets; non-believers are willing to defend their ideals with fire. Walden's only hope may lie with a third option: a very unlikely alien intervention.In Burn, James Patrick Kelly (Think Like a Dinosaur) delivers an innovative, entertaining, and morally-complex vision of the perils of idealism. Views: 68
Product DescriptionWho was this solitary man? Duncan Hennessey had chosen the wild isolation of the Rocky Mountains. Mistrusting and stubborn, he was better off alone. But this cynical man couldn’t leave a lady in danger, even if it meant risking his own life! Wounded, there was no way he could prevent Betsy from nursing him back to health... Sheltered, innocent Betsy couldn’t have been more different from Duncan. Her sweet nature and sunny smiles made him wild with irritation – and maybe something more! But a man as tough as the mountain granite wouldn’t let a slip of a girl get to him...surely? Views: 68
Tory Harris and Junior Davis were in love -- a fierce, drunk barracks love that finally exploded in deception and betrayal. When their paths cross again it is the opening days of the U.S. invasion of Haiti -- the strangest of America's "little wars" of the 1990s. Rooted in the inner struggles of its characters and the weight of their secrets, Voodoo Lounge is the story of addiction in a triangle: Harris, a young, driven sergeant, the only female in her detachment; Davis, the disgraced former soldier whose tragedy burns all it touches; and Marc Hall, a Haitian-American intelligence officer sent to occupy his mother's homeland. In living, detailed portraits, the novel segues through an army boat, an old missionary ship, the depths of a Haitian prison, and a squatters' camp in the shadow of an HIV hospital. Voodoo Lounge emerges as a novel of longing and love, of excess and bareness, of betrayal flowing in the blood, and the cold, blind passion for redemption. Views: 68
Miranda still loves her estranged husband, Count Dante Severini, and she would do anything to be with him and their son. But Dante clearly hates her—treating her like an unfaithful gold digger...Much as it pains him to do so, Dante has had no choice but to believe the evidence against his wife. He had wanted nothing more to do with Miranda—but their son has been missing his mother. So he issues her a dramatic command: Miranda must come to live with him in his Italian palazzo. In exchange for a life of unparalleled luxury she must pretend that they are happily married...that she is his loving, willing wife.... Views: 68
The bones lead to ancient mysteries and present-day terror . . . To follow them means death.During a crowded service at a cathedral in Germany, armed intruders in monks' robes unleash a nightmare of blood and destruction. But the killers have not come for gold; they seek a more valuable prize: the bones of the Magi who once paid homage to a newborn savior . . . a treasure that could reshape the world.With the Vatican in turmoil, Sigma Force under the command of Grayson Pierce leaps into action, pursuing a deadly mystery that weaves through sites of the Seven Wonders of the World and ends at the doorstep of an ancient, mystical, and terrifying secret order. For there are those with dark plans for the stolen sacred remains that will alter the future of humankind . . . when science and religion unite to unleash a horror not seen since the beginning of time.From Publishers WeeklyA mysterious biblical object, nefarious Vatican spies and a deadly centuries-old religious cabal—sound familiar? Sacramento veterinarian Rollins offers more Da Vinci Code–style thrills for the seriously addicted. In this seventh outing, hooded men invade midnight mass at the Cologne Cathedral and slaughter almost everyone present, then break open a gold sarcophagus and steal... the bones of the Three Wise Men. Grayson Pierce, top agent in the Department of Defense's covert Sigma Force, takes a team to Rome, joins up with love-interest Rachel Verona, a carabinieri corps lieutenant, and her Vatican official uncle, Vigot. It seems that the Dragon Court, a medieval alchemical cult-cell that still operates within the Catholic Church, is to blame, and it also seems that the bones of the Magi aren't really bones, but the highly reactive Monatomic gold that the group plans to use to accomplish its ultimate goal—Armegeddon. Rollins has few peers in the research department, which makes the historical material fascinating, and he keeps the dialogue believably colloquial and the incidental elements motivated—and plausible for at least short stretches. Clumsy romance is mostly overcome by lots of action. Dan Brown-ers looking for methadone will add to Rollins's usual solid numbers. (June) Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. From BooklistThis novel about an ancient secret society and the race to find priceless antiquities is sure to be compared to Dan Brown's Da Vinci Code, but, in every way, it's a much better book. Where Brown's best-seller was predictable despite its compelling premise, this tale is clever and suspenseful. Where Code featured ropey dialogue and assembly-line characters, this one offers (mostly) real people engaging in (mostly) real discourse. Like Brown, Rollins makes the most of a moderately implausible premise, this one requiring that the reader accept the literal truth of a certain allegorical aspect of the Bible. But, as both books prove, a thriller can be as implausible as it likes as long as it is entertainingly developed. Fans of The Da Vinci Code will obviously want to read Map of Bones, but even those who found Brown's opus unpalatable will thoroughly enjoy the taste of this one. David PittCopyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved Views: 68
AN ATTRACTIVE WOMAN UNDER HIS ROOF...!Left orphaned and destitute, Miss Sophie Langford had no choice but to throw herself on the mercy of her mother's family, namely the Duke of Belfont. But instead of the elderly gentleman she had envisaged, she was confronted by the fifth duke, James, a most eligible bachelor.The presence of Sophie's widowed sister enabled James to take Sophie into his household, although he little guessed what he had let himself in for. Sophie was quite unlike any other lady of his acquaintance--she certainly had no hesitation about speaking her mind! So why did he find her so damnably attractive? Views: 68
