In this third novel about Karla Spicer and her teaching career, we find her in charge of a thousand student Joseph Ward Junior High School in Auckland, New Zealand’s largest city.This is more than a story of Karla’s career as it covers her personal life with her husband Ryan and also life of the teachers and students at Joseph Ward Junior High.After arriving at her new school Karla finds that Deputy Principal Michael White has been selecting more sporty pupils for his own syndicate. Karla stops this but believes the competition between the four school syndicates is at the expense of co-operation. It is as if there are four mini-schools all going their own way. Her hands on approach in melding the school into one identity is a distinct contrast from the previous principal who was more interested in being socially accepted in the business community.Avery Francis, a first year teacher at JWJHS is attacked and stabbed by an intruder late one... Views: 312
From crime writer Steve Cavanagh comes another gripping thriller featuring lawyer Eddie Flynn. This is the legal thriller listeners have been waiting for.An innocent client. A wife in jeopardy. Who will take The Plea?When billionaire David Child is arrested for the murder of his girlfriend, Clara, the FBI believes they can get him to testify and take down a huge money laundering scheme. Con artist turned lawyer Eddie Flynn is given the job: persuade David to plead guilty and give the agents the evidence they need. If Eddie can't get David to take a plea bargain, the FBI has incriminating files on Eddie's wife - and will send her to jail. But David swears he didn't murder anyone. The evidence overwhelmingly shows that David killed Clara: the security video showed no one else entering their apartment, the murder weapon was in his car, and he was covered in gunshot residue he can't explain. Yet as the FBI pressures Eddie to secure the guilty plea, Eddie becomes increasingly convinced that David is telling the truth.With adversaries threatening, Eddie has to find a way to prove David's innocence and find out if there's any way he might have been framed. But the stakes are high: Eddie's wife is in danger. And not just from the FBI....The Plea is a locked room mystery from Steve Cavanagh, the author Nelson DeMille compares to John Grisham, Scott Turow, and Brad Meltzer. Views: 312
Elliott O’Donnell (1872-1965) was an British author known primarily for his books about ghosts. He claimed to have seen a ghost, described as an elemental figure covered with spots, when he was five years old. He also claimed to have been strangled by a mysterious phantom in Dublin. This volume assembled 8 of his supernatural books: Views: 311
Forever does not go on unchanged.
Caitriona Hayden’s destiny as the Dracopraesi dragon’s North Star is no clearer to her than it was weeks ago. However, Cait’s eternal future seems a minor concern while the vengeful elves continue taunting the dragons, now using violence against the human population in their desire for war.
Battles of war aren’t the only ones fought.
King Corrin struggles to make peace with his coming end, and as his family bonds heal, stronger relationships and alliances form among Cait and her dragons. Theo may have won her heart, but Oliver fills a void long left by the passing of her uncle, and each dragon is a part of Cait’s family.
But a darkness bleeds through to change their world.
When faced with decisions of life and death, Cait, Theo, and demigod Dante must choose unpredictable paths, chance outcomes of eternal consequences, and make dubious promises. As Cait displays unexpected abilities, complications arise, more details of her destiny are revealed, and she discovers the inherent risks of fearing change.
Every era has a beginning and an end. There are things in the world no one is meant to stop.
BLOOD OF STARS AND GODS is book two in the exciting Stars and Souls trilogy, sequel to Amazon #1 Contemporary Fantasy: FIRE OF STARS AND DRAGONS! Views: 311
From The New York Times bestselling author of THE ORGANIZED MIND and THIS IS YOUR BRAIN ON MUSIC, a primer to the critical thinking that is more necessary now than ever. We are bombarded with more information each day than our brains can process—especially in election season. It's raining bad data, half-truths, and even outright lies. New York Times bestselling author Daniel J. Levitin shows how to recognize misleading announcements, statistics, graphs, and written reports revealing the ways lying weasels can use them. It's becoming harder to separate the wheat from the digital chaff. How do we distinguish misinformation, pseudo-facts, distortions, and outright lies from reliable information? Levitin groups his field guide into two categories—statistical infomation and faulty arguments—ultimately showing how science is the bedrock of critical thinking. Infoliteracy means understanding that there are hierarchies of... Views: 311
Somewhere on the lake, far down the highway, a gunshot echoed across the water. Birds took off from the trees, their fluttering silhouettes dark against the sunset, and then both my parents were gone. I was completely alone in this world, with no one to shield me from the oncoming voids of death and old age.Sometimes, when I don’t recognize the ghost looking back at me in the mirror, I think of the fireworks on the lake. I think of the whistling right before the explosion, spider webs of light streaking across the sky, the water coated in a thin film of ash and memory. I think of my brother in his hoodie, staring up a night sky that was alive with the burning remains of freedom. He was the fireworks, and I was the ground: bathed in his light, in awe, lucky to be burned by his embers.I think of the ghosts I always assumed were waiting in the woods to haunt someone, too, and I realize that I can relate to them. I haunt the trees around our house, the furniture in our bedroom, the dishes in our kitchen. I stand on the back steps and stare at the trees, and I’m no longer a human, not quite a memory, but somewhere in between, some limbo that I share with Harvey and all his flaws. He’s a gas giant, glowing red and hot in the emptiness, and I am the cold, rocky world that can’t quite escape his gravity. I’m happy here. I’m okay with falling slowly toward the surface, the fiery death of a satellite.I've thought about going back to the lake, but after that year, there were no more fireworks. Eventually, the whole park closed and everyone went home and never came back. All that’s left are the stars overhead, the distant band of the milky way, explosions of white hot heat so far away now that we’ll never know them again. Views: 311
From Newbery Medalist Avi comes the spine-tingling story of Tony Gilbert, who must solve a mystery surrounding the ghost of his uncle Charlie.
For most of Tony Gilbert’s life, he always thought of his uncle as “Weird Uncle Charlie.” That is, until Uncle Charlie moves in with Tony and his family. He’s still odd, of course—talking about spirits and other supernatural stuff—but Uncle Charlie and Tony become fast friends. Between eating ice cream and going to the movies, Tony is having more fun with Uncle Charlie than he ever could have imagined.
So when Uncle Charlie dies suddenly, Tony is devastated. So sad, in fact, he starts seeing Uncle Charlie everywhere! Tony recently transferred to the Penda School, where Uncle Charlie went as a kid. The school is eerie enough on its own without his uncle’s ghost making it worse. On top of which, rumors have been circulating about a student who went missing shortly before Tony arrived. Could that and Uncle Charlie’s ghost be related?
Full of twists and turns that get spookier by the chapter, School of the Dead is a fast-paced mystery that Avi’s fans will devour! Views: 311
This is a reproduction of the historic book, Mrs Pexiada By Henry Harland (AKA Sidney Luska) . This was originally published in 1886. Here is an excerpt:CHAPTER I—A CASE IS STATED. ON more than one account the 25th of April will always be a notable anniversary in the calendar of Mr. Arthur Ripley. To begin with, on that day he pocketed his first serious retainer as a lawyer. He got down-town a little late that morning. The weather was superb—blue sky and summer temperature. Central Park was within easy walking distance. His own engagements, alas, were not pressing. So he had treated himself to an afterbreakfast ramble across the common. On entering his office, toward eleven o’clock, he was surprised to find the usually empty chairs already tenanted. Mr. Mendel, the brewer, was established there, in company with two other gentlemen whom Arthur did not recognize. The sight of these visitors caused the young man a palpitation. Could it be—? He dared not complete the thought. That a client had at last sought him out, was too agreeable an hypothesis to be entertained. Mr. Mendel greeted him with the effusiveness for which he is distinguished, and introduced his companions respectively as Mr. Peixada and Mr. Rimo. Of old time, when Arthur’s father was still alive, and when Arthur himself had trotted about in knee-breeches and short jackets, Mr. Mendel had been their next door neighbor. Now he made the lawyer feel undignified by asking a string of personal questions: “Vail, how iss mamma?” and “Not married yet, eh?” and “Lieber Gott! You must be five-and-twenty—so tall, and with dot long mustache—yes?” And so forth; smiling the while with such benevolence that Arthur could not help answering politely, though he did hope that a desire for family statistics was not the sole motive of the brewer’s visit. But by and by Mendel cleared his throat, and assumed a look of importance. His voice modulated into a graver key, as he announced, “The fact is that we—or rather, my friends, Mr. Peixada and Mr. Rimo—want to consult you about a little matter of business.” He leaned back in his chair, drawing a deep breath, as though the speech had exhausted him; mopped his brow with his handkerchief, and flourished his thumb toward Peixada. “Ah,” replied Arthur, bowing to the latter, “I am happy to be at your service, sir.” “Yes,” said Peixada, in a voice several sizes larger than the situation required, “Mr. Mendel recommends you to us as a young man who is smart, and who, at the same time, is not so busy but that he can bestow upon our affairs the attention we wish them to have.” Notwithstanding Arthur’s delight at the prospect of something to do, Peixada’s tone, a mixture as it was of condescension and imperiousness, jarred a little. Arthur did not like the gratuitous assumption that he was “not so busy,” etc., true though it might be; nor did he like the critical way in which Peixada eyed him. “Indeed,” he said, speaking of it afterward, “it gave me very much such a sensation as a fellow must experience when put up for sale in the Turkish slave market—a feeling that my ’points’ were being noted, and my money value computed. I half expected him to continue, ’Open your mouth, show your teeth!’. Peixada was a tall, portly individual of fifty-odd, with a swarthy skin, brown, beady eyes, a black coat upon his back, and a fat gold ring around his middle finger. The top of his head was as bald as a Capuchin’s, and shone like a disk of varnished box-wood. It was surrounded by a circlet of crisp, dark, curly hair. He had a solemn manner that proclaimed him to be a person of consequence. It turned out that he was president of a one-horse insurance company. Mr. Rimo appeared to be but slightly in advance of Arthur’s own age—a tiny strip of a body, wearing a resplendent cravat, a dotted waistcoat, pointed patent-leather gaiters, and finger-nails trimmed talon-shape—a thoroughbred New York dandy, of the least effeminate type. Views: 311
Whoever controls the Hundred Halls, controls the world.
Aurelia "Aurie" Silverthorne has high hopes for her second year in the Hundred Halls, the world's only magical university, but her expectations are destroyed when she accidentally unleashes a plague of faez-eating thralls and spends week after week getting killed in the Grand Contest.
But none of this matters when Aurie learns that the Cabal searches for a powerful magic that will help them get control of the Hundred Halls. If Aurie can't stop them, then passing her classes will be the least of her worries. Views: 311
���Tim, your place is going to be robbed tonight,��� said the voice on the phone. This is how Tim���s day starts. The repayment of his debt to a local ���Organized Business��� leader has been set into motion. Assigned to the task is 16 year old Desmond Reid, and Tim decides he can prevent the looting of his bar. Will Desmond be able to pull off the job, or will Tim be able to hold onto his assets? Views: 311
The September/October 2016 issue of the Hugo Award Winning Uncanny Magazine. Featuring new fiction by Carmen Maria Machado, Tim Pratt, Sarah Pinsker, E. Lily Yu, and Ferrett Steinmetz, reprinted fiction by Sofia Samatar, essays by Mary Anne Mohanraj, Una McCormack, Aidan Moher, and Dominik Parisien, poetry by S. Qiouyi Lu, Ada Hoffmann, and Sonya Taaffe, interviews with Carmen Maria Machado and Sarah Pinsker by Deborah Stanish, a cover by Kirbi Fagan, and an editoral by Lynne M. Thomas and Michael Damian Thomas. Views: 311
**"What Jen Havice explains in this short book is nothing less than a degree in message mining—what messages you need to share, what words to use, and how to find them. It's an easy read that packs a major marketing punch."
—Rob Marsh, conversion copywriter and strategist, Brandstory
“Most books about voice of customer research cover why it’s important and the outcomes you can expect from implementing it, but they don’t cover the ‘how.’ Finding the Right Message breaks VOC research down into a doable, step-by-step process that you can implement immediately.”
—Jules Taggart, Jules Taggart Marketing Strategy
“Jen’s framework for discovering, understanding, and applying your customer’s voice in your copy is nothing short of brilliant. She’s managed to distill the work of an entire, multi-disciplinary agency into a process that any ONE person can learn and use over and over.
As someone who does not enjoy the ‘online business’ hustle, having a website that can essentially be my sales wingman is a pretty big deal to me. So I am beyond excited (and grateful) to have such a simple plan to use to confidently put my site to work for me!”
—RM Harrison, business alignment and growth strategist
“I can totally attest to Jen’s remarks that she understands the quantitatively challenged brain. I am a creative, but Jen makes understanding this stuff so simple and totally doable. Follow this process and you will not only feel smarter but your ideal customers will be knocking on your door!”
—Melissa Penton, business coach, www.melissapenton.com**
Imagine if you could connect with your website visitors the moment they landed on your site. They understood exactly what kind of value your product or solution provided. And they were eager to join your email list or hit the buy button.
What would that mean to your business?
In Finding The Right Message, pro conversion rate optimizer and online copywriter Jen Havice walks you through how to ask the right questions of your customers to learn what they need to hear from you to take action on your website.
In the book you’ll get a step by step guide that any small business owner or marketer can easily start using. You’ll learn:
step-by-step process for review mining so that you can paint a picture of your customers with the words they use
Best practices for conducting interviews and surveys
How to analyze your voice of customer research findings and apply them to your copy
How to write a value proposition that speaks directly to the customer’s problem and how your product of solution will help fix it
What the differences between features and benefits really are and how that affects your website copy
**About the Author
Jen Havice is a conversion-centered copywriter and optimizer who helps businesses articulate their messaging and sell more with better performing websites. She has worked with companies all over the world, improving conversion rates with a combination of data driven research and an emphasis on a brand's personality. Her new book, Finding The Right Message, is the go-to guide on conducting voice of customer research and applying it to your website copy. She shares a practical approach to getting at the most important messages your small business customers care about with examples from the online marketing trenches of what works and what doesn't. When Jen's not chasing after three large dogs and two larger horses, you'll find her tapping away at her laptop with a strong cup of Peet's coffee by her side. Jen and her husband call the Twin Cities home, or as she affectionately likes to call it, the Land of 10,000 Hot Dishes. You can check out her website at www.makementionmedia.com or follow her on Twitter @jenhavice. Views: 311
