Diamonds are a girl's best exfoliator.When naturopath and self-proclaimed chocoholic, Dr. Piper Meadows, hosts a spa night for the launch of the super-exfoliating diamond-dust Carat Cream, she never expects her guests to actually be "drop dead" gorgeous. But that's just what happens when celebrity dermatologist Dr. Jasmine dies after using a jar laced with poison. Suddenly Piper's products are under scrutiny...as is her eccentric, fun-loving Aunt Alfa, who has a history with police and poisonings. Add in an ornery psychic from the "other side," a pampered potbellied pig, and a handful of eclectic suspects, and Piper has her work cut out for her. With her more-delish-than-dark-chocolate-covered-almonds boyfriend, Tattoo Tex, along to help, Piper sets out to find the out the truth as she consults her PI flash cards to catch a killer intent on ridding the world of more than just dead skin cells. Views: 33
For most children, summer vacation is something to look forward to. But not for our 13-year-old hero, who’s forced to spend his summers with an aunt, uncle, and cousin who detest him. The third book in J. K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series catapults into action when the young wizard “accidentally” causes the Dursleys’ dreadful visitor Aunt Marge to inflate like a monstrous balloon and drift up to the ceiling. Fearing punishment from Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon (and from officials at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry who strictly forbid students to cast spells in the nonmagic world of Muggles), Harry lunges out into the darkness with his heavy trunk and his owl Hedwig. As it turns out, Harry isn’t punished at all for his errant wizardry. Instead he is mysteriously rescued from his Muggle neighborhood and whisked off in a triple-decker, violently purple bus to spend the remaining weeks of summer in a friendly inn called the Leaky Cauldron. What Harry has to face as he begins his third year at Hogwarts explains why the officials let him off easily. It seems that Sirius Black—an escaped convict from the prison of Azkaban—is on the loose. Not only that, but he’s after Harry Potter. But why? And why do the Dementors, the guards hired to protect him, chill Harry’s very heart when others are unaffected? Once again, Rowling has created a mystery that will have children and adults cheering, not to mention standing in line for her next book. Fortunately, there are four more in the works. Views: 33
They say one’s home is one’s castle, but when it comes to Wynter Castle,
Merry would like it to belong to someone else. But until a buyer bites,
she could use some extra dough, so she decides to take in renters. The
idea pans out, and Merry’s able to find a handful of tenants eager to
live in a real castle. The only problem is most of them are crumby,
tea-swilling old biddies.The Legion of Horrible Ladies, as Merry
calls them, is led by the terribly nasty—and fabulously wealthy—Cleta
Sanson. The abrasive Englishwoman keeps everyone whipped into a
frenzy—until she meets an embarrassing end behind a locked door.
Evidence reveals that Cleta was murdered, yet no one is privy to how the
deed was done. Merry knows she must quickly find the killer before
another of her guests gets greased…INCLUDES DELICIOUS RECIPES! Views: 33
From the USA Today bestselling author of The House on Mermaid Point comes a powerful novel about secrets, loyalty, and the bonds of true friendship . . . Twenty years ago, Emma Michaels, Mackenzie Hayes, and Serena Stockton bonded over their New York City dreams. Then, each summer, they solidified their friendship by spending one week at the lake together, solving their problems over bottles of wine and gallons of ice cream. They kept the tradition for years, until jealousy, lies, and life's disappointments made them drift apart. It's been five years since Emma has seen her friends, an absence designed to keep them from discovering a long-ago betrayal. Now she's in desperate need of their support. The time has come to reveal her secrets—and hopefully rekindle their connection. But when a terrible accident keeps Emma from saying her piece, Serena and Mackenzie begin to learn about the past on their own. Now, to heal their... Views: 33
I used sex to help me forget. To help me numb the pain. Because for those few minutes of pleasure, I could shut it all off. The reminders of all that I had lost. All that I had endured. Of all that I saw die before my eyes.I slept with a man I can’t get out of my head. It was supposed to be a one-time thing with no attachments and no commitments. No names were exchanged, no phone numbers swapped. And that was fine by me ... until I lay awake at night, dreaming about that man’s caress. Wanting and yearning to feel his touch once more.But one day, my fantasies of seeing this man become an all-too-consuming, nightmarish reality. Suddenly, he is in my house, that cocky grin of his silently promising more to come.And the reason being? His father is getting married to my mother. We are going to be family.I am in the seven circles of hell. His look alone consumes my soul and makes me beg for more. He wants me and is determined to get me. I’m his obsession, and I’ve just become a slave to his infatuation ... to the games he likes to play. The games he knows will have me surrendering to his will.But that’s not the only problem. That’s not the only reason I am living in my own personal hell.The year before I met my soon-to-be step-brother, Hunter ... The year I made a decision that will ultimately end up destroying my very soul...I lost my virginity to Hunter’s dad. Views: 33
Best friends Devin and Frankie hate reading, but getting trapped inside Dracula might change their mindsDevin and Frankie may be the best of friends, but they aren't the best of students. When they're busted for not reading Dracula with the rest of the class, their English teacher sends them to the library to mend books as punishment. As the friends fight about who has to mend Dracula, the book flies out of their hands and lands between the library's broken security gates. Suddenly, a gigantic crack appears in the wall, and Frankie, Devin, and the book are all sucked inside. When they land, they realize they're not in the library anymore; they're in Dracula!To escape from the book, Devin and Frankie have to battle the bloodthirsty Count Dracula with the help of some new friends—and a little bit of garlic. But can they make it to the end of the story before becoming Dracula's midnight snack? Views: 33
A rare and fascinating account of one of modern and contemporary painting's most powerful creative mindsIn the course of a career covering more than sixty years, Frank Auerbach has established a still growing international reputation for his paintings of friends, family, and surroundings in north London, with his vigorous, precise brushwork, and for his insistence on working until the picture emerges, free of all "possible explanations."Catherine Lampert, an art historian and the curator of a major Auerbach retrospective at the Kunstmuseum Bonn and Tate Britain, has had unique access to the artist since 1978, when she became one of his sitters. Drawing on her conversations with Auerbach and from published and archival interviews, she offers rare insight into his professional life, working methods, and philosophy, as well as the places, people, and experiences that have shaped his life. These include arriving in Britain as a seven-year-old refugee from Nazi Germany in... Views: 33
Darby: Bride of Oregon is 33rd in the unprecedented 50-book American Mail-Order Brides series.Fearless Darby McClintock knows she can imitate a refined British accent to fulfill the mail order bride advertisement. Granted, the man states that Scotswomen need not apply, but he'll never hear the lilt of her brogue...if she can keep from losing her temper.In order to play a dangerous game as the Phantom, in the Shanghai Tunnels below Portland, Oregon, Rand Beauregard has to keep up a respectable façade above ground. And for that, he needs a well-bred, upper-crust wife. Anything less will jeopardize lives...How long can Darby keep up the act? And will the dangers of the Tunnels move their ultimate happiness beyond their reach? Views: 33
As a child, Anna Olmstead is rescued from her life of poverty and drugs by a vampire named Asher. Over the years, she grows to love Asher, first as a father and later as a lover. But soon trouble interrupts her once-perfect life. While Anna wants to settle down, Asher wants a more voyeuristic, party-driven lifestyle.
When Anna leaves him, Asher does everything he can to bring her back to him—including murder. Even as she finally escapes and starts a new life with a special agent of the F.R.E.A.K.S., Asher makes a new move to kidnap Anna and her children. This time, she may not be able to escape him. Views: 33
It's not just for a week, it wasn't just a fling. Ethan's not just my stepbrother anymore, he's my boyfriend...Rule #14 – You're perfect just the way you are, Princess. Don't let anyone ever try to tell you differently.That's it for an entire week. We're going back to college now. We won't see each other until the weekend.It's only for a week, Ashley, I remind myself. I shouldn't be so upset at that, because a week isn't really that long of a time, but I am. I just...It's not just for a week. It wasn't just a fling. We didn't just spend the entire summer together only to go back to college and go our separate ways. He's not just my stepbrother anymore, he's my boyfriend, and he's special. We have more.He's kind of a bad boy, but he's my bad boy. He makes me feel so beautiful and special, even when I'm sad and upset.If only I didn't have my ex-boyfriend intent on making my life miserable, this would all be so much easier... Views: 33
