Some Gods of El Paso by Maria Dahvana Headley is a short fantasy story of a couple on the run from the law for stealing and illegally trading in strong emotions in 1920s US. Views: 65
This hilarious peek into the early years of the hair-band era reveals the hierarchy of fishnets, bustiers, and chicks with the Holy Grail—a backstage pass. After college, Anne Thomas Soffee journeyed to Los Angeles to start a career as a rock journalist and small-time heavy-metal flack. A taste for other people’s prescriptions and too much beer edges her freelance journalism work right off her schedule. She struggles with not being thin enough, pretty enough, or cool enough when, in the midst of the L.A. riots, Soffee is offered a coveted slot in Virginia Commonwealth University’s MFA writing program. Determined to pull herself out of current habits, Soffee starts turning her life around, making a stop at rehab before she heads off to graduate school. Her quarter-life crisis is packed with offbeat characters that prove that fact is often funnier than fiction. Views: 64
Coldbrook is a secret laboratory located deep in Appalachian Mountains. Its scientists had achieved the impossible: a gateway to a new world. Theirs was to be the greatest discovery in the history of mankind, but they had no idea what they were about to unleash.With their breakthrough comes disease and now it is out and ravaging the human population. The only hope is a cure and the only cure is genetic resistance: an uninfected person amongst the billions dead.In the chaos of destruction there is only one person that can save the human race.But will they find her in time? Views: 64
The mechanical men in these stories—Industrial Age holdovers, outsiders wanting for relevance and respect, or overwhelmed people who confuse the certainties of one reality with the doubts of another—are cut off in some way from contemporary culture.Sometimes in these stories, which Randy F. Nelson calls "thought experiments about values in conflict," the characters are like the Native American prison guard in "Escape": Rifkin thinks that atonement is possible even for fugitive killers. Others are less sanguine. In "Breakers," a corporate hitman arrives on a forgettable island off the African coast. His mission: to shut down a hellish, polluting, ship-demolition business. His nemesis: a lawyer, now gone Heart-of-Darkness crazy, who preceded him years earlier for the same purpose. The bottom drops out in other stories, rearranging all reference points to good and bad, true and false. In "Abduction," for instance, a distraught young woman summons a tabloid reporter to a grubby hotel room, where the now-lifeless alien who had invaded her body lies wrapped in a sheet.Nelson once explained his motivations by alluding to a line in a Gabriel García Márquez story. A crowd of villagers are gazing upon a man, "but even though they were looking at him, there was no room for him in their imagination." "Stories and characters and situations that ask the imagination to accommodate something bigger, further, deeper—that's what I'm after," said Nelson. Views: 64
Brady Garrett is back on Earth. He's living with his partner Cam and they're raising his sister Lucy together. Life is better than some feral reffo from Kopa has any right to hope, and Brady knows it. He's even grateful for it, most of the time. He loves Cam, even though he's afraid that he's not good enough for him, and he's still having nightmares about the alien Faceless.Cameron Rushton loved being a pilot once, and he still feels the pull of the starlight. He's building a life with Brady now, and with Lucy. Life is good, even if it's not without its complications. Both Brady and Cam are dealing with the endless cycle of interviews, tests, and questions that the military hierarchy hopes will reveal the secrets of the aliens who could very easily destroy humanity. They have each other though, and together they're making it work.But from out in the black, Kai-Ren is still watching and everything Brady and Cam think they've won, they stand to lose all over again. Views: 64
Declaring the Steel Wolves mercenaries, Anastasia plans to sell the Clan's skills to the highest bidders. Fighting wars for wealth and continuous supplies of upgraded equipment will provide her elite troops an autonomy and strength that almost no other MechWarrior battalion can match. But her decision divides the Steel Wolves, with many veterans striking off on their own. Reduced to a mere fraction of their original strength, Anastasia's newly rechristened Wolf Hunters seek worthy warriors to refill their ranks. Star Colonel Varnoff Fetladral, one of Kerensky's most vocal opponents, believes Anastasia has betrayed the founding principles of the Clan. With his own faction of loyal Steel Wolves by his side, he sets out to hunt down and destroy every member of the Wolves Hunters - and to restore MachWarrior honor... Views: 64
When Cathy Bennett agrees to attend an important party as a favor for her boss, she knows she won't enjoy it. But she doesn't expect to end up holding a dying man in her arms and becoming the recipient of his last message. The killer has seen her talking with him and knows she's heard where the victim hid some damning evidence. Now she needs to find that evidence before the killer finds her! Views: 64
SUMMARY:Armies and empires, statesmen and tyrants--the acclaimed historian Robin Lane Fox vividly recounts the history of two great civilizations and one thousand years that forged the Western world The classical civilizations of Greece and Rome once dominated the world, and they continue to fascinate and inspire us. Classical art and architecture, drama and epic, philosophy and politics--these are the foundations of Western civilization. In The Classical World, eminent classicist Robin Lane Fox brilliantly chronicles this vast sweep of history from Homer to the reign of Augustus. From the Peloponnesian War through the creation of Athenian democracy, from the turbulent empire of Alexander the Great to the creation of the Roman Empire and the emergence of Christianity, Robin Lane Fox serves as our witty and trenchant guide. He introduces us to extraordinary heroes and horrific villains, great thinkers and blood-thirsty tyrants. Throughout this vivid tour of two of the greatest civilizations the world has ever known, we remain in the hands of a great master. Views: 64
Til Death Do Us PartWhen her DEA agent husband's plane went down, Zoey Witherspoon thought her life was over. But with two kids to care for, and another on the way, she moved back home to Sweetwater to be closer to friends and family. Two years later, her world is turned upside down: her husband is alive! Amnesia-stricken Dane isn't exactly the same person he'd been, but neither is Zoey. She refuses to return to the fractured marriage they'd shared, yet moving forward is a scary prospect. Will a second chance at happiness make all her dreams come true?Originally published in 2006 Views: 64
For thousands of years, parents around the world have been telling their children stories; at bedtime, over the dinner table, and around the fire. Each country has its own set of fascinating tales, which are especially enjoyable for children to discover. Asian Children's Favorite Stories is a marvelous collection of 13 beautifully told folktales from eight major countries in Asia-China, Japan, Korea, India, the Philippines, Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia. Open the pages of this fascinating storybook to introduce your child to the wonders of Asia-and the joy of finding new favorites to read over and over again. Views: 64
