"Thirty years ago my older brother, who was ten years old at the time, was trying to get a report on birds written that he'd had three months to write. It was due the next day. We were out at our family cabin in Bolinas, and he was at the kitchen table close to tears, surrounded by binder paper and pencils and unopened books on birds, immobilized by the hugeness of the task ahead. Then my father sat down beside him, put his arm around my brother's shoulder, and said, 'Bird by bird, buddy. Just take it bird by bird.'"From the Trade Paperback edition. Views: 13
Bestselling author Sandra Brown is the master of the knife-edge thriller. Her latest and most powerful novel to date, Hello, Darkness, is the gripping story of a woman haunted by her past and caught in a nightmare that threatens to destroy her future. It's a brilliant, fast-paced tale, electric with sexual tension, by one of America's most popular authors of sophisticated suspense.For Paris Gibson, her popular late-night radio show is both an escape and her one real contact with the outside world.Since moving to Austin to ease the pain of past, tragic mistakes, she has led a life of virtual solitude, coming alive only when she hosts her show. To her loyal listeners, she is a wise and trusted friend who not only takes their music requests but listens to their problems and occasionally dispenses advice. Paris's world of isolation is brutally threatened, however, when one listener -- a man who identifies himself only as "Valentino" -- tells her that her on-air advice... Views: 13
Her faith had always been strong enough to see her through tragedy--until Kate Wheeler's world turned deadly. Her husband had been murdered, and the discovery of his double life sent her on the run... into the protective custody of Sheriff Brody McClain. Brody vowed to help Kate uncover the truth about her husband's death. As Kate and Brody tried to outwit her enemies on a cross-country chase, the couple found themselves drawn to each other by more than mere circumstance. But the unmasking of the criminal mastermind might just be the thing that destroys Kate's trust--and faith--forever. Views: 12
- N. Lee Wood is the author of "Looking for the Mahdi (Ace, 1996), "Faraday's Orphans (Ace, 1997), and "Bloodrights (Ace, 1999). "Looking for the Mahdi was selected as a "New York Times Notable Book and was also short listed for the Arthur C. Clarke Award.- The author's blend of sociology, feminism, and science fiction is reminiscent of such classics as Margaret Atwood's "The Handmaid's Tale (Houghton Mifflin, 1986), Ursula K. Le Guin's "The Left Hand of Darkness (Ace, 1969), and Sheri S. Tepper's "The Gate to Women's Country (Doubleday, 1988). Views: 12
When the Timberwolves get a new coach, they also get the coach's son. The only problem is that Eldridge Elwell is a terrible hockey player. The team is on the hunt to make the playoffs, and every time Eldridge plays a shift, it hurts the team more. Johnny Maverick is just as angry about it as anyone on the team, until he learns something important about the coach's son. Views: 12
100 writers – including Neal Asher, Elizabeth Bear, Gregory Benford, Tobias Buckell, Brenda Cooper, Kathryn Cramer, David Langford, Tanith Lee, Ken Liu, Nick Mamatas, Norman Spinrad, Ian Stewart, Rachel Swirsky, Adrian Tchaikovsky and Ian Watson – offer their take on what the future will look like in this anthology of sci-fi short stories from the award-winning Futures column in the science journal Nature. Views: 12
'Some people tread water all their lives. Not me - I'm gonna make a big splash. I could see myself living the good life, chasing the sun . . . feet up, glass in hand, no worries. Sweet. After a short stay at Her Majesty's pleasure, Maria Sweet, aka Sugar, is back. Her husband may have done a runner, taking their daughter with them, but at least she has a plan: get a job, get some cash and get the h*ll out of Brighton. And somewhere out there in the big bad world is Kim Lewis, who might just be the Love of Sugar's Life after all. Course, Sugar's not about to settle for a soul-sucking McJob, instead she's landed a stint as a model for local fashion designers Agnew & Bagshawe. But when she discovers they've used her not so much as a muse but to amuse, she's hell-bent on vengeance and that can only lead to chaos . . . Sugar is as defiant and outrageous as ever in this riotous sequel to Sugar Rush, Burchill's bestselling teen novel. Julie Burchill is famed for her controversial and acerbic journalism. She began her career at the New Musical Express when she was seventeen, later moving to The Face and the Sunday Times. She has written for many magazines and newspapers and now writes a weekly column in The Times. She is also the author of twelve books, including her biography I KNEW I WAS RIGHT, and BURCHILL ON BECKHAM. SUGAR RUSH is her first novel for teenagers, and has been made into a critically and commercially acclaimed Channel 4 series. She is currently writing her second teen novel, guaranteed to be full of her trademark fresh, funny and sharp writing. Views: 12
SUMMARY: Joe DeMarco, a political gunslinger and trouble-shooter for John Mahoney, the conniving Speaker of the House, is asked to investigate what appears to be a minor case of fraud at a U.S. naval base. DeMarco discovers instead that an Asian espionage ring is stealing top secret data on nuclear submarines and that their leader, a deadly female spy, has a personal vendetta against DeMarco’s friend and advisor, Emma, a retired DIA agent. DeMarco is in over his head, outwitted at every turn by people more lethal than any he’s ever encountered, and he doubts that he’ll be able to protect America’s secrets or keep himself and his friend alive. Views: 12
When Dominic's children are kidnapped by raiding pirates, Gabrielle and Feolan find themselves drawn into their most frightening adventure yet, a sea journey into unknown lands. The adventure takes a deadly turn when the Gray Veil, a plague that slowly chokes its victims, strikes the harbor town where the children have been taken. Gabrielle's healing powers are needed as never before, and in the end, it seems, she must choose: She can only save one, her husband or her niece. Views: 12
As the most celebrated European to explore Asia, Marco Polo was the original global traveler and the earliest bridge between East and West. A universal icon of adventure and discovery, he has inspired six centuries of popular fascination and spurious mythology. Now, from the acclaimed author of Over the Edge of the World: Magellan’s Terrifying Circumnavigation of the Globe (“Superb . . . A first-rate historical page turner”—The New York Times)—comes the first fully authoritative biography of one of the most enchanting figures in world history. In this masterly work, Marco Polo’s incredible odyssey—along the Silk Road and through all the fantastic circumstances of his life—is chronicled in sumptuous and illuminating detail.We meet him as a callow young man, the scion of a wealthy Venetian merchant family, only seventeen when he sets out in 1271 with his father and uncle on their journey to Asia. We see him gain the confidence of Kublai Khan, the world’s most feared and powerful leader, and watch him become a trusted diplomat and intelligence agent in the ruler’s inner circle. We are privy to his far-flung adventures on behalf of the Khan, living among the Mongols and other tribes, and traveling to magical cities, some far advanced over the West. We learn the customs of the Khan’s court, both erotic and mercantile, and Polo’s uncanny ability to adapt to them. We follow him on his journey back to Venice, laden with riches, the latest inventions, and twenty-four years’ worth of extraordinary tales.And we see his collaboration with the famed writer Rustichello of Pisa, who immediately saw in Polo the story of a lifetime; enlivened by his genius for observation, Polo’s tales needed little embellishment. Recorded by Rustichello as the two languished as prisoners of war in a Genoese jail, the Travels would explode the notion of non-Europeans as untutored savages and stand as the definitive description of China until the nineteenth century.Drawing on original sources in more than half a dozen languages, and on his own travels along Polo’s route in China and Mongolia, Bergreen explores the lingering controversies surrounding Polo’s legend, settling age-old questions and testing others for significance. Synthesizing history, biography, and travelogue, this is the timely chronicle of a man who extended the boundaries of human knowledge and imagination. Destined to be the definitive account of its subject for decades to come, Marco Polo takes us on a journey to the limits of history—and beyond. Views: 12
