From Publishers WeeklyFrench-Canadian Courtemanche opens his flawed second novel (after Sunday at the Pool in Kigali) with a vivid portrait of the narrator's father at dinner with his large family on Christmas Eve struck dumb and feeble by rigid Parkinson's and stuffing himself with food. André, the narrator and eldest child, confesses he has never loved his father, a tyrant he unabashedly compares to Stalin. Flashbacks reveal a violent and domineering but insecure man who jealously once claimed the prize-winning walleye André caught in a fishing competition. As the evening progresses, André concludes that his father is better off dead, but it is impossible to tell whether the idea of patricide by gourmandism, proposed as a joke that ultimately becomes part of a plan, springs from a benevolent change of heart or from Oedipal rage. The story plays out mostly in André's head, through summary and analysis rather than drama, and the lusty, repellent father is the only character who truly comes alive on the page as the novel heads toward its shocking conclusion. (Sept.) Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. Product DescriptionOn Christmas Eve, a family has gathered around the table for the obligatory dinner. The father, once an imposing figure who terrorized his children, has suddenly fallen prey to Parkinson’s. Yesterday’s tyrant is now trapped inside a disintegrating body. André, the eldest child, is nearing 60. He has never loved the father who lied too much, abused too much, manipulated too much. But still, this holiday week, André cannot help but be moved. How should he behave toward a parent to whom all pleasures are forbidden? Should he struggle to prolong the old man’s life, or help him end it? Around the dinner table, opinions are divided. At once intimate and universal, A Good Death is a deeply moving voyage into the essence of humanity. In it, Gil Courtemanche once again asks readers to confront the question that lay at the heart of his first novel: Why live? Why die? Views: 25
Review"Jackson triumphs . . . If I were Conn Iggulden or Simon Scarrow, I'd be rather worried by the new Scottish kid on the block." —Scotsman"What stands out are Jackson’s superb battle scenes. I lost myself in the riveting depictions of combat . . . I was gripped from start to finish." —Ben Kane, author, The Forgotten Legion"A master of his discipline rightly hailed as one of the best historical novelists writing today." —Daily ExpressProduct Description43 AD: The Roman legions are coming. In Southern Britain, Caratacus, chief of the Britons, watches from a hilltop as the scarlet cloaks of a Roman army spread across his land like blood. Among them is Rufus, keeper of the Emperor’s elephant, an unwilling participant in the invasion of Britain. The Roman legions smash into the British forces, but just as victory seems at hand, they wait. Reinforcements are coming, led by Emperor Claudius himself. And Rufus will have a very special part to play in the coming battle. From the Trade Paperback edition. Views: 25
Winter. Crime scene: a London park at dusk. DS Stella Mooney stares down at the brutalised body of a young woman.From the shelter of nearby trees Martin Kimber is watching events ...watching Stella. Next morning he walks into a Notting Hill police station and confesses to the murder. It's a fast clear-up - just what the AMIP 5 squad wants this close to Christmas. But Stella has her doubts about Kimber's guilt.So if Kimber didn't commit the murder, who did? Someone without conscience or pity. Someone who will tap into Kimber's disturbed mind. Someone with a dark plan ... Views: 25
The new Inspector Sam Blackstone mystery...France, World War One. Inspector Blackstone thought he was done with army, but when a general he served with requests he investigate the brutal murder of his grandson—a young British officer in the trenches—Blackstone feels he can't say no. Surrounded by young men over half his age, Blackstone must face the horror of modern warfare, and the prejudices of the officer class, if he is to gain justice for the murdered man. Views: 25
Seven-year-old David Glum watches as his grandfather is abducted by a legendary herd of elephants. Twenty years later, David returns to his parents' home to focus on growing a beard, a goal he feels sure he can accomplish. Hilarity ensues. Views: 25
In Book 5 of The Housewife Assassin series: An NSA scientist has disappeared with a deadly plague virus. Donna and Jack must find him before it is unleashed on Fantasy island. But first they'll have to deal with a nude sunbathing serial killer, a Lord of the Flies 'tween takeover, poison dart-throwing pygmies, and a hunt club with the most unusual prey. And you call this a vacation? Views: 25
In chapters with titles like "Swollen Expectations" and "A Rash of Bankruptcies, " "Affluenza" uses the whimsical metaphor of a disease to tackle a very serious subject: the damage done—to our health, our families, our communities, and our environment—by the obsessive quest for material gain. Views: 25
SUMMARY:REMEMBRANCE DAY:Con Lindow, a brilliant young scientist, is waiting for his brother, Eamonn, when a bus turns into the street - and explodes. Lindow is arrested as the prime suspect and pitched into a web of intrigue. Caught between the British Security Service, New Scotland Yard's anti-terrorist squad and the cold-eyed killers from his brother's past, Lindow must find the bomber to prove his own innocence.A SPY'S LIFE:When Robert Harland's career as a British spy came to a brutal end he rebuilt his life, working with the Red Cross and the United Nations. Twelve years later, he was the only survivor of a horrific plane crash. Was it sabotage and, if so, was Harland the target? He realises that the answers are linked to a past he has tried hard to forget. And the crash has thrown him back into a world of relentless intrigue and mistrust, to his youth, and a life-changing love affair...EMPIRE STATE:The head of the US National Security Agency is assassinated at Heathrow...A family are found murdered in their home...A group of migrant workers are brutally gunned down...And in New York , an osteopath receives two postcards of the Empire State Building which convinces him a friend is in terrible danger. This series of apparently random events catapults Robert Harland back to the UN and MI6 - and a life he hoped he had left behind for good... Views: 25
Urbino Macintyre fights to protect the safety of his closest friend Centuries ago, Venice celebrated the Day of All Souls by building a bridge of boats across the canal to the cemetery island of San Michele. As the tourist season winds down, the Contessa da Capo-Zendrini decides it's time to revive the tradition, organizing a fleet so the city can mourn once more as it did in ancient times. Her plans are upended, however, when her latest fascination, a rakish playwright named Bobo, begins receiving anonymous threats. She begs her friend, the amateur sleuth Urbino Macintyre, to find out who has been sending the letters, a thankless chore that becomes rather more interesting when Bobo is implicated in a grisly murder. As the day of the contessa's black bridge draws closer, Macintyre scrambles to discover the true killer and keep his friend safe. If he doesn't act quickly, the contessa's journey to the cemetery may be a one-way trip. Views: 25
