Corporations control the world, portal technology allows instantaneous travel, and the ultimate in branded living has arrived: microchip implants for all. But the new era, while peaceful on the surface, comes with a staggering price – individual freedom – and not everyone is willing to pay. Views: 70
An artist sees beauty in Edward's twisted spine and begs him to pose for her. This tale of secrecy, love and understanding explores our preceptions of beauty and lust. Views: 70
The new Rona Parish mystery - Rona Parish is asked to write a biography of reclusive artist Ellie by her concerned sister. Ellie has seemingly disappeared, and the mystery surrounding her whereabouts has fuelled a new interest in her work. But when Rona discovers that Ellie's closest friend committed suicide, Rona wonders whether Ellie, wracked by guilt over her friend's death, could have been driven to do likewise . . . Views: 70
Jim Dawkins left home at the age of sixteen to pursue his dream of joining the army, and subsequently served with the Royal Green Jackets, including tours of Canada and Northern Ireland. During that time he learnt many important lessons in the ‘University of Life’ that would serve him well in the future, such as discipline, respect, pride and honour, but which, at the same time, would lead to insufferable stress as he constantly battled with his conscience and struggled to swim against the tide. Once back in Civvy Street, and with a new house and a baby to support, Jim decided to join the Prison Service. But what faced him in this new career, which centred on Wandsworth, Wormwood Scrubs and Belmarsh prisons, shocked him to the core. For this ex-squaddie, who believed in establishing good working relationships with inmates, including notorious long-termer, Charles Bronson, the cancerous environment of staff bully-boy tactics and prisoner victimization was sickening. Jim tells his story, which, although peppered with humorous anecdotes of often lager-induced incidents from both his army and prison days, bears witness to the stark reality of what actually goes on behind prison doors, and exposes both the glaring flaws in the prison system and the atrocities perpetrated in the name of justice, which ultimately forced his decision to leave the Prison Service seven years later. Views: 70
When a startling number of Americans prominent in the fields of science, math or technology mysteriously vanish, two NSA field agents, Ruthanne Carter and Larry Tracker, investigate the disappearances. Unknown to them, Caden Jordan, a highly competent detective, generates strong doubts that certain missing persons vanished of their own accord. The two agents and the detective compile an array of intriguing information that leads them, in company with other specialists within the NSA, to conclude that an alien “Entity,” for some enigmatic reason of his own, is surreptitiously abducting persons with certain abilities and transporting them to an alternate Earth in a parallel universe. When Ruthanne Carter vanishes, Larry realizes that she has been abducted by the Entity. Desperate, owing to his love for Ruthanne, he voluntarily puts himself in a position that increases his chance of being abducted himself. He becomes the next person to vanish. Ryan Bigelow, a geneticist who was the first person to disappear, awakens within a mysterious, shimmering dome. He emerges to find himself in a wild, unpopulated land that he suspects to be the American West, even though it contains an old, abandoned stone city that does not resemble any ancient site in America. Bigelow, who finds artifacts in the city that enable him to survive, exercises a remarkable talent for leadership as new arrivals emerge daily from the dome. When Ruthanne Carter appears, she finds that Dr. Saul Steiglitz, a renowned physicist, agrees with the NSA’s conclusion that an alien “Entity” has teleported the MPs to a parallel universe. Dr. Arthur McConnell, a youthful mathematical genius, concurs in that belief. The final abductee to emerge from the dome is Larry Tracker. When the Entity contacts the group, he succeeds in speaking through Ruthanne Carter, who alone of all those snatched has a mind that can withstand the trauma caused by the Entity’s invasion. The horrified listeners learn just what the Entity is and discover what he wants. Assuming right from the start that the Entity can’t be trusted, they assert themselves, despite knowing that the ruthless alien can kill them instantly. Refusing to let themselves be intimidated, they find weaknesses they can exploit in his mental makeup. The tension escalates as the abductees negotiate with the Entity, struggle against him, and finally devise a means by which they hope they can outwit the murderous alien. Views: 70
