"Solana's excellent novel, set in the streets and parlors of Barcelona, offers probing social commentary and an excellent crime story."—BooklistTwo detectives, brothers Borja and Eduard, are contracted by best-selling author Teresa Solana to research the world of so-called alternative therapies. They enroll for a course at Zen Moments, an exclusive meditation center in the ritziest part of Barcelona, only to discover the director murdered, whacked in the head with a statuette of the Buddha. The violent death of a neighbor—who happens to be a CIA agent—simultaneously drags them into an international conspiracy complicated by Borja's attempt to smuggle a priceless Assyrian figurine, the Lioness of Baghdad.In this, the third in her satirical series, Catalan "noir" novelist Teresa Solana mercilessly punctures the pretensions of New Age quacks who promote pseudo-science and pseudo-spirituality. At the same time, Solana draws compassionate portraits of characters trying to live "ordinary" lives in circumstances that have ceased to be normal, yet still cope with such everyday issues as adultery, menopause, and simply surviving to the end of the month.Born in 1962, Teresa Solana lives in Barcelona, Spain. She has written several novels, some kept quietly in her drawer, others highly acclaimed. A Not So Perfect Crime, the first in this series, won the 2007 Brigada 21 Prize for the best Catalan mystery novel.Peter Bush is the well known translator of Leonardo Padura and Juan Goytisolo.Review'There's no better way to find your way around both sides of the social Diagonal bisecting Barcelona than by pursuing the criminal habits of those who profiteer from even the most acute of recessions. While the digressions on culinary specialities are worthy of Catalan crime writer Manuel Vázquez Montalbán, those on Hippocrates and the Elamite Empire will delight readers who like their fictional rapids alternated with pools of Zen contemplation.’ Independent'An enjoyable, light-hearted read in which homeopathy gets a skewering along the way. The boys do do some detecting, mostly at the unexpected request of the police, all against the backdrop of Barcelona. THE SOUND OF ONE HAND KILLING deliberately leaves some loose ends to be followed up in another book and I look forward to it.’ EuroCrimeThe Sound of One Hand Killing is Barcelona-based Teresa Solano’s third satirical crime novel to feature her twin brother detectives Borja and Eduard and once again people will be calling her ‘the Queen of Catalan Noir’. If they are not, they should.' Getting Away with MurderAbout the AuthorAuthor: Teresa Solana lives in Barcelona. She was born there in 1962, studied philosophy at the University of Barcelona and worked as a literary translator and essayist. She has written several novels kept quietly in her drawer. The first novel in this series, A Not So Perfect Crime, won the 2007 Brigada 21 Prize for the best crime novel written in Catalan.Translator: Peter Bush is a prize-winning translator from the Spanish and Catalan known for his translations of novels of such authors as Juan Goytisolo, Leonardo Padura and Daniel Chavarria. Views: 11
A hilarious short story about a woman who decides to buy New ZealandStuck in the dry desert of Single Tree Gully, Australia, in 1840, Mrs C Wentworth dreams of a place deluged with rain. An island to own, and rain. The pigeon post brings word from her husband that he has negotiated with some Maori chiefs to purchase the isle on which she has set her heart. However, politics intervene . . . Views: 11
Along time ago, a young prince, the heir to a great South-Asian kingdom, wielded Siva's mighty bow and won the heart of a brave princess. The story of what happened next to the married couple-the Ramayana-told and re-told countless times over the centuries, begins where most stories end. The twenty-five stories in Breaking the Bow take a similar courageous leap into the unknown. Inspired by the Ramayana and its cultural importance, the anthology dares to imagine new worlds. Stories by some of the best writers in contemporary south-Asian fiction, including Abha Dawesar, Rana Dasgupta, Priya Sarukkai Chabria, Tabish Khair, Kuzhali Manickavel, Mary Anne Mohanraj and Manjula Padmanabhan. Stories from India, Sri Lanka and Thailand, but also Holland, Israel, the United Kingdom and the United States. Views: 11
"A sexy, hot romantic rendezvous!"New Adult Contemporary/Erotic Romance: For Adults 18+Short Story (6,000 words)*Exposed....As if life isn't complicated enough for Holly Jackson. First, she's struggling to finish college on limited funds. Then, her former guardian, Aunt Petra, is calling her bluff on having a boyfriend. So Holly needs a pretend boyfriend by the weekend. In her aunt's opinion, single girls are single because something is wrong with them. Period.The proposal...Ethan Rockwell cannot believe his luck when the cute neighbor from down the hall asks him to pretend to be her boyfriend--just for the weekend. Trouble is--there's nothing pretence about his hot feelings for her. When Holly tells him she'll return a favor to him, his mind is set on having a night of mind-blowing unforgettable passion. Will his sizzling attraction be too hot for her to handle?* Views: 11
Another moving and heart-warming tale set in Merseyside from the author of Twopence to Cross the Mersey. In the early years of this century, many Basques left their homeland in the Pyrenees, between France and Spain, to seek a better life in the New World. Most passed through the great port of Liverpool on their way. The family of little Manuel Echaniz stayed. The Liverpool Basque is the story of Manuel’s childhood and coming of age in the teeming streets of the Mersey docklands. It is a story of poverty, comradeship, hardship and generosity. Brought up by women while the men are at sea, Manuel grows up with a fierce pride in his heritage and a powerful will to survive in an era of deprivation and unemployment. Against all odds, he gets himself an education of sorts and sets off on the long voyage of his life. Views: 11
Fifteen-year-old Aaron lives and works amid the garbage piles of Cairo.His job?To collect broken glass.His hope?To find a future he can believe in.Today in Cairo, Egypt, there is a city within a city: a city filled with garbage—literally. As one of the Zabbaleen people, Aaron makes his living sorting through the waste. When his family kicks him out, his only alternatives are to steal, beg, or take the most nightmarish garbage-collecting job of all.Anna Perera's richly detailed second young adult novel transports readers to the heartbreaking world of the Zabbaleen. Views: 11
FB2Library.Elements.CiteItem In A VOW OF GLORY (Book #5 in the Sorcerer’s Ring), Thor embarks with his Legion friends on an epic quest into the vast wilds of the Empire to try to find the ancient Destiny Sword and save the Ring. Thor’s friendships deepen, as they journey to new places, face unexpected monsters and fight side by side in unimaginable battle. They encounter exotic lands, creatures and peoples beyond which they could have ever imagined, each step of their journey fraught with increasing danger. They will have to summon all their skills if they are to survive as they follow the trail of the thieves, deeper and deeper into the Empire. Their quest will bring them all the way into the heart of the Underworld, one of the seven realms of hell, where the undead rule and fields are lined with bones. As Thor must summon his powers, more than ever, he struggles to understand the nature of who he is. Back in the Ring, Gwendolyn must lead half of King’s Court to the Western stronghold of Silesia, an ancient city perched on the edge of the Canyon that has stood for one thousand years. Silesia’s fortifications have allowed it to survive every attack throughout every century—but it has never been faced with an assault by a leader like Andronicus, by an army like his million men. Gwendolyn learns what it means to be queen as she takes on a leadership role, Srog, Kolk, Brom, Steffen, Kendrick and Godfrey by her side, preparing to defend the city for the massive war to come. Meanwhile, Gareth is descending deeper into madness, trying to fend off a coup that would have him assassinated in King’s Court, while Erec fights for his life to save his love, Alistair and the Duke’s city of Savaria as the downed shield enables the wild creatures to invade. And Godfrey, wallowing in drink, will have to decide if he is ready to cast off his past and become the man his family expects him to be. As they all fight for their lives and as things seem as if they can’t get any worse, the story ends with two shocking twists. Will Gwendolyn survive the assault? Will Thor survive the Empire? Will the Destiny Sword be found? With its sophisticated world-building and characterization, A VOW OF GLORY is an epic tale of friends and lovers, of rivals and suitors, of knights and dragons, of intrigues and political machinations, of coming of age, of broken hearts, of deception, ambition and betrayal. It is a tale of honor and courage, of fate and destiny, of sorcery. It is a fantasy that brings us into a world we will never forget, and which will appeal to all ages and genders. It is 75,000 words. Views: 11
Itinerant lawmen Virgil Cole and Everett Hitch return in a brilliant new addition to the New York Times-bestselling series.For years, Virgil Cole and Everett Hitch have ridden roughshod over rabble-rousers and gun hands in troubled towns like Appaloosa, Resolution, and Brimstone. Now, newly appointed as Territorial Marshalls, they find themselves traveling by train through the Indian Territories. Their first marshaling duty starts out as a simple mission to escort Mexican prisoners to the border, but when the Governor of Texas, his wife and daughters climb aboard with their bodyguards and $500,000 in tow, their journey suddenly becomes a lot more complicated.The problem is Bloody Bob Brandice. He and Virgil have had it out before, an encounter that left Brandice face-down in the street with two .44 slugs lodged in him. Now, twelve years later on a night train struggling uphill in a thunderstorm, Brandice is back — and he's not alone. Cole and Hitch find themselves in the midst of a heist with a horde of very bad men, two beautiful young hostages, and a man with a vendetta he's determined to carry out. Views: 11
Anna Davis has accepted that her four-year battle with cancer is finally over. With only weeks to live, she makes peace with her life and makes arrangements for her death. Twenty years ago, Anna fell in love with Conor Evans at the wrong place and in the wrong time. She’d had to make the toughest decision she’d ever faced—and let him go. Now at the end of her life, he’s offering her a chance to finally follow her heart. He has invited her to the cull—a tradition of transformation from human into a lycanosapien by “bite and blood.” Anna has her reasons for refusing Conor, even if it means only living another month, but Conor refuses to give up on the only woman he’s ever loved—not without a fight. Anna has another tough choice—go back to her frail humanity or accept Conor’s invitation and…claim. Views: 11
