"Showdown at the Cactus's Prick" is a short story written by David Reynolds. It was originally published in Late Night Dungeons. Sabaku has already left the oppressive land that was once his home. Now, he must resist capture at the Cactus's Prick, a tiny hovel beyond the borders of his homeland.The pain I've felt so longCould never have beenWithout reasonEvery bit of it could never be wrongBecause it's taught me whatTo really say and how to mean itYou're so good I can't believe my eyesI can't understand how you came to beYou've made me thankful for all the liesI ever had to believeAnd made me thank God you came to meEvery untruth I was toldHas given me strength to see what is goodAnd to know how to hold Onto what I should Views: 492
The TankTops are short stories or extracts from longer books where you can be introduced to the author’s writing style, and see if you are interested in reading more of his books. We call them TankTops because they’re smaller than normal books. And of course, when you go in the “think tank”, you can read them in one sitting without making people mad at you for taking too long.A young man lands himself in jail in an unfamiliar town only to find himself incarcerated with a mysterious woman and a whole lot of destiny. Views: 492
Walking the HoosacA five mile walk through a supposed haunted tunnel dubbed "The Bloody Pit" was more than I bargained for. Views: 492
Daria Wilkers appears to be a diligent, studious, high school student. However, no one would guess that her thoughts are clouded with infatuation. She appears to be taking notes in class, when she is only writing the name of her latest crush. Daria, is confronted by her Chemistry teacher, Mr. Beland, about her starry eyed gaze, as he is concerned she is failing his class...Most days start off as normal days. At least that’s what little Lenny Helzerman thinks. He thinks that there aren’t any good or bad days—it’s just the stuff that happens during the day that makes it good or bad or memorable or forgettable. Little Lenny Helzerman doesn’t expect anything more from one day than he does any other day and he doesn’t give anything more to one day than he does any other day. It is all the same. And this suits him just fine. Views: 492
Does plaid make your butt look big? Glory St. Clair knows that it does. But she'll even throw on a Campbell kilt if it will help her win her hunky Scottish lover back. She's risked everything to cross the Atlantic to confront him in Scotland. Now powerful forces are determined to keep them apart. An attack on Jeremiah Campbell leaves him with amnesia and he doesn't remember her or their centuries together. Glory must win her man back and prove to her nemesis that she's where she's always wanted to be, even if it means dragging Jerry back to Texas. Jeremiah doesn't remember the woman who claims they've been together so long but he's more than willing to take what she freely offers--her ancient blood and her voluptuous body. But when she tries to get him to travel to the New World in a flying machine and to work with his ancient enemy, he thinks she's cracked. In his mind, he's stuck in 1590. This modern world is almost too much for him. But there's something about this woman with the generous curves. . . Soon enough he finds himself risking death for her more than once. Who or what seems determined to keep them apart? The ancient warrior in him won't stand for it. And the fight is on. Views: 491
Welcome to Elephant Small Vol 2. This is the second in a series of five ebooks that cover five years of original verse previously published on my weblog 'Elephant Small'. Vol 2 covers edited highlights from the years 2008-2010Welcome to Elephant Small Vol 2. This is the second in a series of five ebooks that cover five years of original verse previously published on my weblog 'Elephant Small'. Vol 2 covers edited highlights from the years 2008-2010 Views: 491
A Short Story
Salem Grimes and her octogenarian friend Viv are back in this fun short story, this time kicking butt and rescuing kidnap victims. Well, this is actually a case of dognapping. At least the reward is real... but is it enough to face the gun-toting dognapper? Armed with the strongest weapon available, Salem and Viv save the day once again, using an age-old magnet that has an attraction few can resist, BACON! Views: 491
1 New York Times bestselling author and Queen of True Crime Ann Rule delivers another gripping true-crime story; this time a shattering case of Christmastime murder off the coast of Washington State, with a shocking amount of drama, greed, sex, and scandal and no shortage of suspects.
With more than 50 million copies of her thirty-four books in print, from The Stranger Beside Me, her chilling personal account of knowing Ted Bundy, to fourteen hardcover books, including Small Sacrifices; Green River, Running Red, Too Late to Say Goodbye and sixteen collections in her #1 bestselling Crime Files series, "Ann Rule is without a doubt America's best true-crime writer" (Kirkus Reviews). In Practice to Deceive, her first book-length investigative chronicle since In the Still of the Night, Rule unravels a shattering case of Christmastime murder off the coast of Washington State. presented with the clarity, authority, and emotional depth that Rule's readers expect. It's a case with enough drama, greed, sex, and scandal to be called "The Real Housewives of Whidbey Island"; but this was not reality television. This was murder: pure, cruel, ugly, and senseless. And someone had to pay the price.
Nestled in Puget Sound, Whidbey Island is a gem of the Pacific Northwest. Accessible only by ferry and the soaring Deception Pass Bridge, it is known for its artistic communities and stunning natural beauty. Life there is low-key, insular, and the island's year-round residents tend to know one another's business. But when the blood-drenched body of Russel Douglas was discovered the day after Christmas in his SUV in a hidden driveway near Whidbey's most exclusive mansions, the whole island was shocked. A single bullet between his eyes was the cause of death, but no one could imagine who among them could plot such a devious, cold-blooded crime. At first, police suspected suicide, tragically common at the height of the holiday season. But when they found no gun in or near the SUV, Russel's manner of death became homicide. Like a cast of characters from a classic mystery novel, a host of Whidbey residents fell under suspicion.
Brenna Douglas was Russel's estranged and soon-to-be-ex wife, who allowed him to come home for a Christmas visit with their children. The couple owned the popular Just B's salon. Brenna's good friend Peggy Sue Thomas worked there, and Brenna complained often to her that Russel was physically and emotionally abusive. Peggy Sue's own life has been one of extremes. Married three times, hers is a rags-to-riches-and-back-again tale in which she's played many roles: aircraft mechanic, basketball coach, the "drop-dead gorgeous vamp"; beauty queen as a former Ms. Washington, Las Vegas limousine driver, million-dollar horse breeder, wealthy divorcee. But in 2003, her love affair with married guitarist Jim Huden led the two Whidbey Island natives to pursue their ultimate dreams of wealth and privilege;even at the expense of human life.
Unravel the tangled web woven by Russel Douglas's murder in Practice to Deceive, the newest heart pounding true-crime tour de force from Ann Rule. Views: 491
The Bourbon Street Ripper is still at large. Three victims have met with horrific ends. With both of their partners out of commission, detectives Rodger Bergeron and Dixie Olivier must team up to track down the killer.Meanwhile, Sam Castille and Richie Fastellos try to clear Sam's name as the evidence mounts against her. With the mystery of the original killings starting to come full circle, the race is on to stop the copycat before another falls prey! Views: 491
National Book Award winner Kathryn Erskine delivers a powerful story of family, friendship, and race relations in the South.
Life will never be the same for Red Porter. He's a kid growing up around black car grease, white fence paint, and the backward attitudes of the folks who live in his hometown, Stony Gap, Virginia.
Red's daddy, his idol, has just died, leaving Red and Mama with some hard decisions and a whole lot of doubt. Should they sell the Porter family business, a gas station, repair shop, and convenience store rolled into one, where the slogan -- "Porter's: We Fix it Right!" -- has been shouting the family's pride for as long as anyone can remember?
With Daddy gone, everything's different. Through his friendship with Thomas, Beau, and Miss Georgia, Red starts to see there's a lot more than car motors and rusty fenders that need fixing in his world.
When Red discovers the injustices that have been happening in Stony Gap since before he was born, he's faced with unsettling questions about his family's legacy. Views: 491
"Luminous. . . . Each reading reveals the tug of opposites, and in this tension the poet shows her brilliance."—Library Journal, starred reviewRash yet tender, chastened yet lush, Headwaters is a book of opposites, a book of wild abandon by one of the most formally exacting poets of our time. Animals populate its pages—owl, groundhog, fox, each with its own inimitable survival skills—and the poet who so meticulously observes their behaviors has accumulated a lifetime's worth of skills herself: she too has survived. The power of these extraordinary poems lies in their recognition that all our experience is ultimately useless—that human beings are at every moment beginners, facing the earth as if for the first time. "Don't you think I'm doing better," asks the first poem. "You got sick you got well you got sick," says the last.Eschewing punctuation, forgoing every symmetry, the poems hurl themselves forward, driven by an urgent need to... Views: 491
My name is Gemma Lucas and everything in my life is falling apart. Lost Souls are roaming the world, possessing people and the fey have made it their mission to torture the innocent. Death and suffering is becoming a way of life and no matter what I do, things keep tearing Alex and me apart. What’s worse is that every time I look into the future, all I see is a nearing finality for us. And I’m worried that maybe this time I won’t be able to change it. Views: 491
