From Paulette Jiles, the acclaimed New York Times bestselling author of Enemy Women, comes a poignant and unforgettable story of hardship, sacrifice, and strength in a tragic time-and of a desperate dream born of an undying faith in the arrival of a better day. Oil is king of East Texas during the darkest years of the Great Depression. The Stoddard girls-responsible Mayme, whip-smart tomboy Jeanine, and bookish Bea-know no life but an itinerant one, trailing their father from town to town as he searches for work on the pipelines and derricks; that is, when he's not spending his meager earnings at gambling joints, race tracks, and dance halls. And in every small town in which the windblown family settles, mother Elizabeth does her level best to make each sparse, temporary house they inhabit a home. But the fall of 1937 ushers in a year of devastating drought and dust storms, and the family's fortunes sink further than they ever anticipated when a questionable "accident" leaves Elizabeth and her girls alone to confront the cruelest hardships of these hardest of times. With no choice left to them, they return to the abandoned family farm. It is Jeanine, proud and stubborn, who single-mindedly devotes herself to rebuilding the farm and their lives. But hard work and good intentions won't make ends meet or pay the back taxes they owe on their land. In desperation, the Stoddard women place their last hopes for salvation in a wildcat oil well that eats up what little they have left… and on the back of late patriarch Jack's one true legacy, a dangerous racehorse named Smoky Joe. And Jeanine, the fatherless "daddy's girl," must decide if she will gamble it all… on love. Views: 47
It's only a trip to the movies but it turns into Marty's worst nightmare when she sees the guy behind her in the audience. Willy. The man who burst into her house and raped her ten years ago. Now he's out of jail and back in town - and looking for Marty. Marty's date says he's going to fix the creep. And the way he goes about it makes Marty sick. But when it comes to sick, there's no one to match Willy. He's a fiend... FIENDS is the lead-off novella in this collection of horror stores by Richard Laymon, "one of the best writers working in the genre today" - Cemetery Dance "Laymon has established a style that has often been imitated but never equalled: plunging, pull-out-the-stops, no-limits, in-your-face, shock-packed, take-off-the-top-of-your-head, gonzo suspense and horror that will appal some people and exhilarate others...I hope that you enjoy this collection of stories as much as I do" - from the Introduction by Dean Koontz. The collection's stories: Fiends, Kitty Litter, The Bleeder, Desert Pickup, The Mask, Eats, The Hunt, Slit, Out of the Woods, Stiff Intruders, Special, Joyce, A Good Secret Place. Views: 47
Get all three novels in Neal Stephenson's New York Times bestselling "Baroque Cycle" in one e-book, including: Quicksilver, The Confusion, and The System of the World. This three-volume historical epic delivers intrigue, adventure, and excitement set against the political upheaval of the early 18th century. Views: 47
The summer of 1957 is the happiest of times for Clare Hamilton, despite a recent loss. She will shortly embark on her final year at Queens University, Belfast, and she is engaged to marry Andrew Richardson, the young man she has known and loved throughout her teenage years. Together they plan for a future which will take them far beyond the green hills of Ulster. Andrew has always wanted to farm and Clare is happy to find a teaching job wherever they can find land to develop. But when their hopes and dreams are shattered by a family tragedy, Clare finds herself taking the Liverpool boat alone, to a new destination in Paris, and to a life of glamour, travel and excitement that the orphan Clare, growing up in a house by the forge, surrounded by orchards, damp meadows and low green hills, could never have imagined. Yet there is a part of Clare that will never forget Andrew, nor the beloved landscape of her childhood. Views: 47
Karen Donahue is intimidating, but she has to be. The youngest CEO of a Fortune 500 company, her job is stress personified. She's used to being in charge and if she doesn't always like it, well, it's part of the job. And if she's a little bit of a brat, it's just because she works so hard. An excuse that is not good enough for Brandon Fuller. After Karen's car breaks down, he comes to the rescue only to be chewed out by the fiery, hot- tempered brat. He informs her that he won't fix her car unless she accepts a spanking for her behavior and having broken her phone during her last tantrum, she has little choice but to accept. What she's not prepared for is how much she'll enjoy discovering the pain that often accompanies pleasure. Views: 47
