Newly available as an ebook, from the Booker prize-winning author of 'Offshore' comes this Booker prize-shortlisted tale of a troubled Moscow printworks. Frank Reid had been born and brought up in Moscow. His father had emigrated there in the 1870s and started a print-works which, by 1913, had shrunk from what it was when Frank inherited it. In that same year, to add to his troubles, Frank's wife Nellie caught the train back home to England, without explanation. How is a reasonable man like Frank to cope? How should he keep his house running? Should he consult the Anglican chaplain's wife? Should he listen to the Tolstoyan advice of his chief book-keeper? How do people live together, and what happens when, sometimes, they don't? Views: 10
Fierce competition from rival companies, uncertain financial backing, and an increasingly hard to please consumer market: and against it all is one beautiful, perfect doll.In the midst of this is Ann Lesage, who overcame the poverty and uncertainty of her youth through a stroke of luck: the kindness of a stranger, Felicia Morhardt.Now as the newly instated president of Felicia's company, Hart Toy, Ann must battle the suspicion of Felicia's sons. Will Patrick's determination to dethrone Ann bring Hart Toy crashing down with it? Are Ann's feelings for Jonathan turning from hatred to passion? And who is the mysterious man from Ann's past, bent on exacting revenge?The Doll Brokers is a thrilling novel about competition, jealousy, and the bitter battle for success. Views: 10
A vivid cross-section of what makes us human. Based on half a decade of groundbreaking research, We Are Our Brains is a sweeping biography of the human brain, from infancy to adulthood to old age. Renowned neuroscientist D. F. Swaab takes us on a guided tour of the intricate inner workings that determine our potential, our limitations, and our desires, with each chapter serving as an eye-opening window on a different brain stage: the gender differences that develop in the embryonic brain, what goes on in the heads of adolescents, how parenthood permanently changes the brain. Moving beyond pure biological understanding, Swaab presents a controversial and multilayered ethical argument surrounding the brain. Far from possessing true free will, Swaab argues, we have very little control over our everyday decisions, or who we will become, because our brains predetermine everything about us, from our moral character to our religious leanings to whom we... Views: 10
Carla Bowman is a young and beautiful society girl with wild blood coursing through her veins. She becomes the honey of King Logan, a gangster operating the protection racket on New York's East Side, and is caught up in a maelstrom of violence and bloodshed. When Sylvester Shapirro cuts in on King, Carla decides to double-cross the gang-leader and join Shapirro, a decision she regrets when she faces him in his fantastic house at Montauk Point. Here she learns the horrifying secret of Shapirro's true nature, and becomes his captive in a sanatorium. After she escapes, to learn that Shapirro has killed her father, Carla's only desire is to revenge her father's death—whatever the cost to herself. A classic, hard-driving crime thriller from the 1950s! Views: 10
Nessie dreams of escaping her sheltered life to become a mechanical engineer with mechas. But wanting and doing are two very different things, and outer confidence hides inner fears—until she meets Joy.Joy is tough and self-reliant, used to looking out for no one but herself. As her job keeps her always on the move, keeping to herself is the best way to survive. The very last person she expects to break her solitude is the prim and proper Nessie. Views: 10
Appearing for the first time in English, this masterful novel by one of the foremost figures of postwar German literature is an indelible portrait of Nazism slowly overtaking and poisoning a small town. Semi-autobiographical, it is also a remarkably vivid account of a childhood fraught with troubles, yet full of remembered love and touched by miracle.In a provincial town on Lake Constance, Johann basks in the affection of the colorful staff and regulars at the Station Restaurant. Though his parents struggle to make ends meet, around him the world is rich in mystery: the attraction of girls; the power of words and his gift for music; his rivalry with his best friend, Adolf, son of the local Brownshirt leader; a circus that comes to town bringing Anita, whose love he and Adolf compete to win. But in these hard times, with businesses failing all around them and life savings gone in an instant, people whisper that only Hitler can save them. As the Nazis gradually infiltrate the... Views: 10
Victor the assassin returns in the new novel from the author of The Killer, The Enemy, and The Game... THE JOB IS SIMPLE When Victor is called to meet with an old friend who ultimately betrayed him, what he thought was an ambush is in fact a plea for help. As a Russian gangster, Norimov is accustomed to death threats, but now an unknown enemy wants more than his life. They intend to kill everyone he cares about, including his missing daughter Gisele. This time, Victor's job is not to kill but to protect. Unfortunately, locating Gisele is his first mistake—because someone is watching his every move. ESCAPE IS IMPOSSIBLE Before she went into hiding, Gisele had uncovered a secret worth killing for—and now Victor has brought the enemy right to her doorstep. The least he can do is help her escape. But the ruthless network they're up against has the police, MI5, and every major news outlet joining in the... Views: 10
