Amazon Best Books of the Month, February 2011There may be no one more qualified than Frank Brady to write the definitive biography of Bobby Fischer. Brady's Profile of a Prodigy (originally published in 1969) chronicled the chess icon's early years, a selection of 90 games, and (in later editions) his 1972 World Championship match with Boris Spassky. With Endgame, published two years after Fischer's death, Brady's on-and-off proximity to Fischer lends new depth to the latter's full and twisted life story. Though Fischer's pinnacle artistry on the chessboard may often be discussed in the same breath with his eventual paranoia and outspoken anti-Semitism, the particular turns and travels of his post-World Championship years (half his life) lend his story most of its vexing oddity: the niggling insistence on seemingly arbitrary conditions for his matches, the years on the lam after flagrantly disregarding U.S. economic sanctions, his incarceration in Japan, his eventual citizenship and quiet demise in Iceland. All told, Fischer's life was like none other, and told through the lens of Brady's personal familiarity and access to new source material, results in an utterly engaging read. Views: 15
Scotland Yard's Ian Rutledge must contend with two dangerous enemies in this latest complex mystery in the New York Times bestselling series London, summer 1920. An unidentified body appears to have been run down by a motorcar and Ian Rutledge is leading the investigation to uncover what happened. While the signs point to murder, vital questions remain: Who is the victim? And where, exactly, was he killed? One small clue leads Rutledge to a firm built by two families, famous for producing and selling the world's best Madeira wine. Lewis French, the current head of the English enterprise, is missing. But is he the dead man? And does either his fiancée or his jilted former lover have anything to do with his disappearance—or possible death? What about his sister? Or the London office clerk? Is Matthew Traynor, French's cousin and partner who heads the Madeira office, somehow involved? The experienced Rutledge knows that suspicion and circumstantial evidence are not proof of guilt, and he's going to keep digging for answers. But that perseverance will pit him against his supervisor, the new acting chief superintendent. When Rutledge discovers a link to an incident in the French family's past, the superintendent dismisses it, claiming the information isn't vital. He's determined to place the blame on one of French's women despite Rutledge's objections. Alone in a no-man's-land rife with mystery and danger, Rutledge must tread very carefully, for someone has decided that he, too, must die so that cruel justice can take its course. About the AuthorCharles Todd is the New York Times bestselling author of the Inspector Ian Rutledge mysteries, the Bess Crawford mysteries, and two stand-alone novels. A mother-and-son writing team, they live in Delaware and North Carolina, respectively. Views: 15
Fantasy Masterworks Volume 10This is an omnibus edition of the Harold Shea tales, being The Incomplete Enchanter (1941), The Castle of Iron (1941), The Wall of Serpents (1953) and The Green Magician (1954). "The Mathematics of Magic: the greatest discovery of the ages... at least, that's what Professor Harold Shea thought. With the proper equations he could instantly transport himself and his friend Reed Chalmers to other times, to visit the wondrous lands of ancient legend. But Shea's magic did not always work -- at least, not quite as he expected." Views: 15
An unscrupulous manor lord has reneged on his promise to hand over a priceless ornate cross stolen from the Templars during the Crusades. Furthermore, he has massacred as heretics fourteen members of a religious order. The King sends Hugh Corbett, devoted emissary of King Edward I to Mistleham in his stead... Views: 15
Forber isn't a mad scientist, he's a tectonic technician with a touch for terror who goes by the name "Dr. Quake". California's touchy San Andreas Fault is in danger of being professionally provoked. But it's not Dr. Quake's fault, for someone has split with his earthquake machine. If this dastardly deviant doesn't get a million dollars in cold hard cash he is going to shake down Southern California for a whole lot more. Luckily, shakedowns and natural disasters are just what the doctor ordered for Remo Williams, Korean death master Chiun's trained killing machine, because when it comes to finding weapons of mass destruction, it takes one to find one. After our Destroyer sifts through the blackmail and terror it's the pompous perpetrator who won't be left standing. Views: 15
A novella of 13k words.Emily Dontal is the godborn daughter of The Mother—one of the only godborn children allowed to live in the Barony of Breton. One dark night, she prays to her mother for a child—a godborn child, a sister—to train and teach so that the Church might continue in her absence.But the child she is given in answer to her prayers is not godborn; she comes not from the goddess but from the household of the man who rules the Barony—a man who is hated and feared by all of his citizens, especially Emily Dontal herself.This is a story about the founding of the Empire of Essalieyan. Views: 15
It was a beautiful, warm summer day, the day Danny died. Suddenly Wren was alone and shattered. In a heartbroken fury, armed with dark incantations and a secret power, Wren decides that what she wants—what she must do—is to bring Danny back. But the Danny who returns is just a shell of the boy Wren fell in love with. His touch is icy; his skin, smooth and stiff as marble; his chest, cruelly silent when Wren rests her head against it. Wren must keep Danny a secret, hiding him away, visiting him at night, while her life slowly unravels around her. Then Gabriel DeMarnes transfers to her school, and Wren realizes that somehow, inexplicably, he can sense the powers that lie within her—and that he knows what she has done. And now Gabriel wants to help make things right. But Wren alone has to undo what she has wrought—even if it means breaking her heart all over again. Views: 15
New England is rich in history and mystery. Numerous sleepy little towns and farming communities distinguish the region's scenic tranquility. But not long ago, New Englanders lived in fear of spectral ghouls believed to rise from their graves and visit family members in the night to suck their lives away. Although the word "vampire" was never spoken, scores of families disinterred loved ones during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries searching for telltale signs that one of them might be what is now referred to as the New England vampire. Views: 15
A drug bust gone wrong brings D.E.A. agent Orlando Trip Spencer back to his hometown of Atlanta after being gone for years and he s not the only one unhappy about the return. Idalis Arrington and Trip have been best friends since they were little and or nobody could come between them, that s until she meets Lincoln Briscoe. With Trip back in town Idalis perfect world starts to get messy as she finds herself praying that her best friend s visit is a short one. But the question is can she hold it together or will the sound of the skeletons in her own closet drown out what she s convinced herself has been the truth all these years? Lincoln Linc Briscoe, a Lieutenant with the Atlanta Police Department, knows he has a lot at stake and his girl s best friend or not he refuses to let anyone, especially Trip Spencer, jeopardize what he s worked so hard to gain. Will Trip and Lincoln be able to avoid the collision course they ve been on all these years or will they collide and explode, taking down everyone, including their careers, in their wake? Can Idalis handle the pressure brought on by Trip and Lincoln s animosity or will she crack revealing her own shortcomings? There is no telling what can happen when the truth is revealed: BETWEEN FRIENDS. Views: 15
Book Two of Krishna Coriolis Series. Views: 15
