Shadow Friends

Once upon a time, a boy named Tommy lived in a forest. One night, he needs to walk through the forest to give his grandma some soup, but along the way, magical things start to happen... A huge battle takes place between shadows in order to protect Tommy. Will the shadows succeed in keeping Tommy safe? After reading this story, you might never look at your shadow the same way again...Have you ever looked at your shadow and wondered if it ever does things without you knowing? Once upon a time, a boy named Tommy lived in a forest. One night, he needs to walk through the forest to give his grandma some soup, but along the way, magical things start to happen... A huge battle takes place between shadows in order to protect Tommy. Will the shadows succeed in keeping Tommy safe? After reading this story, you might never look at your shadow the same way again...
Views: 788

Dark Video

The second installment in Peter Church's Dark Web Trilogy A minibus taxi flipping spectacularly on its head; two teenagers engaged in forbidden sex in a shopping-mall rest room; a raunchy table dance in a Cape Town strip club. How are these scenes connected to a beautiful young woman running through a forest near the university early on a Sunday morning? Alistair Morgan is the key. A gifted law student with a glittering career in the offing, Alistair seems to have it all: looks, charm and money. But his privileged lifestyle is about to be turned upside down as he is lured deeper and deeper into the sinister online world of Dark Video, where reality blurs and morals unravel. Toggling between the urban landscape of Africa's southern tip and Seattle, Washington in the mid- to late-2000s, just as YouTube and other video sharing sites were getting started, Dark Video explores the most disturbing and darkest corners of the digital world, where some...
Views: 595

Finding Home

We all yearn to find a place to call our own, the place which we can call “home”. Everybody has their own definition of what they hold onto. Finding home is a collection of poetry and prose that compiles our attempts to find and define the one place we settle into.Being a son of a cat demon and a human isn't all it's cracked up to be. As a half-demon, Niko has a unique ability: he can control his demon transformations. However, while he is participating in a Martial Arts tournament, where the best of the best are competing. During his last fight with the last opponent he would expect, his demonic powers become uncontrollable.Meanwhile, Chisai Konami is falling asleep in class... again, when a sudden illness causes her to collapse, and change into something new: a synthetic cat demon.With the help of the mysterious Lord Tora, who helps Chisai control her newfound powers, and allows Niko to uncover a powerful attack, these two begin on a new quest to pay him back. However, when danger arises, will these two half cat-demons be able to bring their "A" game?
Views: 419

Bitter Pill

"A fast-paced and gripping thriller—expect several twists along the way." —Cosmopolitan Amid rumors of bartenders paid to spike drinks and then deliver drugged college women to paying, eager patrons, University of Cape Town (UCT) authorities move quickly to limit the damage—but the police don't want to believe there is a problem. A world away in Seattle, Carlos De Palma, the shadowy operator behind Dark Video, is plotting his survival strategy in the ever-changing Internet landscape. With his wealthy clientele clamoring for heightened thrills, Carlos begins tapping into a new service that blurs the boundaries between the real and virtual worlds. Meanwhile, UCT student Robbie is sent into a sinister underground world where no price is too high to pay to deliver every fantasy—no matter how twisted. Bitter Pill, part of Church's dark web trilogy, is a gripping thriller that sweeps through the intoxicating haunts of Cape Town's...
Views: 346

Dancer from Khiva, The

In a narrative that flows like a late-night confession, Bibish recounts her story... Born into an impoverished family in a deeply religious village, Bibish was named 'Hadjarbibi' in honour of her grandfather's hadj, his pilgrimage to Mecca. But her holy name could not protect her when, at the age of eight, she was brutally abused, and left for dead in the desert. Bibish's tenacity helped her survive the attack - she instinctively knew to keep her experience a secret rather than risk further punishment. But soon her love for dancing - prohibited by Islamic custom - resulted in her being beaten, victimized, and ostracized from her family and her community. Despite all this, Bibish secretly cultivated her own dreams of freedom - of dancing, of raising a family, and of escaping to tell her story to the world. The Dancer from Khiva is testament to Bibish's extraordinary resilience and spirit: the harrowing and ultimately inspiring story of a woman who risked everything.
Views: 63

A Mighty Purpose

The inspiring story of how the iconoclastic humanitarian Jim Grant succeeded in saving the lives of tens of millions of children through his extraordinary ability to win over world leadersNicholas Kristof hailed Jim Grant as a man who "probably saved more lives than were destroyed by Hitler, Mao, and Stalin combined." Nominated by President Jimmy Carter to head UNICEF, Grant ran the United Nations agency from 1980 to 1995 and became the most powerful advocate for children the world has ever seen. To ensure that even children trapped by war received health care and immunizations, he brokered humanitarian ceasefires by exploiting the political self-interests of presidents and warlords alike. Grant at first met fierce resistance at the United Nations and in his own organization, and some thought his ideas were crazy and dangerous. But as he kept toppling obstacle after obstacle, he eventually won over even his most stubborn detractors. Grant spearheaded a...
Views: 57

Thai Girl

When travellers Ben and Emma come to blows on the idyllic Thai island of Koh Samet, it's not long before Ben falls for Fon, a flirtatious but enigmatic beach masseuse, and is forced to come to terms with the darker side of tourism in Thailand. As Ben parties on the beaches with travellers from around the world and experiences the raunchy nightlife of Bangkok, he is drawn deeper into the harsh reality of his island paradise. The closer he is to Fon, the sparkling Thai girl of his dreams, the more he realizes what it means to be truly poor and what drives farmers' daughters away from their homes to sell their bodies in the bars of Bangkok. On the surface Thai Girl is an endearing romantic adventure novel; at another level it explores some of the disturbing issues affecting a fast-developing country and its people as well as the problems associated with cross-cultural relationships. Hicks weaves a gripping and thought-provoking narrative that reaches its climax in the sultry heat...
Views: 6