The vibrant pageant of Elizabethan England comes to life in Karen Harper's fifth novel in her acclaimed Elizabeth I Mystery Series. Hailed as "extraordinary" by The Los Angeles Times, these historical mysteries beautifully blend fact and fiction as the young Queen Elizabeth Tudor becomes an amateur sleuth to save her court, crown, and kingdom.Though summering in the lush countryside to escape the plague rampaging through London, the queen and her court cannot escape the reach of a multiple murderer who seems to disappear at will. In the gardens of Hampton Court, Elizabeth proudly shows a famed visiting lawyer her huge hornbeam maze. But the intricate labyrinth soon becomes a scene of horror as Elizabeth herself is attacked and the lawyer is murdered within its leafy dead ends.The queen calls upon her small, select band of advisors to help her ferret out the identity of the maze murderer. When the court must flee the encroaching Black Death, even the royal haven of Hatfield House with its charming knot garden holds terror.Undaunted, the queen and her chief advisor, William Cecil, set a trap in the flooded thorn maze at Cecil's nearby estate. But even if they snare the ghostly murderer before he or she strikes again, will they unmask not only the villain but the person they love best in all the realm? Views: 104
New York Times bestselling author Hazel Gaynor has joined with Heather Webb to create this unforgettably romantic novel of the Great War.August 1914. England is at war. As Evie Elliott watches her brother, Will, and his best friend, Thomas Harding, depart for the front, she believes—as everyone does—that it will be over by Christmas, when the trio plan to celebrate the holiday among the romantic cafes of Paris.But as history tells us, it all happened so differently... Evie and Thomas experience a very different war. Frustrated by life as a privileged young lady, Evie longs to play a greater part in the conflict—but how?—and as Thomas struggles with the unimaginable realities of war he also faces personal battles back home where War Office regulations on press reporting cause trouble at his father's newspaper business. Through their letters, Evie and Thomas share their greatest hopes and fears—and grow ever... Views: 104
A segregated town, a hidden boy, a courageous girl - and a mystery in desperate need of solving. San Francisco, 1900. Thirteen-year-old Lizzy Kennedy is not like the other girls in her town. She'd much rather be helping her doctor father with his patients than be stuck in frilly dresses and learn how to dance - but unfortunately for her, society (and her Aunt Hortense) has other ideas about what is 'proper' for a young lady. This includes not poking your nose in other's people's business - but then Jing, their beloved housekeeper, gets stuck in the Chinatown quarantine. Fear rules San Francisco - fear of the Chinese, and mostly fear of the plague rumours that circle them. Lizzie knows she has to help Jing, whatever the warnings. But what she doesn't expect to find is a strange boy hiding in Jing's room. The boy is called Noah. He says he's Jing's son - although Lizzie's never heard of him - and although he's escaped the quarantine, he can't risk... Views: 104
Third in the brilliantly addictive new series of murder mysteries by an acclaimed and popular writer.Poppy Fields and best friend Graham are astonished to be given parts in a musical production of The Wizard of Oz. Even more astonishing is the series of murders that occurs at the theatre, targeting the leading lady. When Poppy and Graham investigate, little do they know that they are next on the murderer's list... Views: 103
From the bestselling author of It Happened at the Fair and Fair Play comes a compelling historical novel about a progressive "New Woman"—the girl behind Tiffany's chapel—and the love that threatens it all.As preparations for the 1893 World's Fair set Chicago and the nation on fire, Louis Tiffany—heir to the exclusive Fifth Avenue jewelry empire—seizes the opportunity to unveil his state-of-the-art, stained glass, mosaic chapel, the likes of which the world has never seen. But when Louis's dream is threatened by a glassworkers' strike months before the Fair opens, he turns to an unforeseen source for help: the female students at the Art Students League of New York. Eager for adventure, the young women pick up their skirts, move to boarding houses, take up steel cutters, and assume new identities as the "Tiffany Girls." Tiffany Girl is the heartwarming story of the impetuous Flossie Jayne, a beautiful, budding artist... Views: 103
After the death of his half brother, Stefan, at the hands of Vlad Tsepesh--also known as Dracula--and after the destruction of his vampire father, Arkady, also at the hands of Vlad, Abraham van Helsing has traveled the world slaying many vampires. With every vampire he destroys, Bram becomes stronger and Vlad weaker, and soon Bram hopes he will be able to finally kill the fearsome vampire who has kept the Tsepesh family enslaved through a centuries-old blood ritual.But a desperate Vlad and his vampire great-niece, Zsuzanna, summon help from the most powerful, brutal, and beautiful vampire of all--Countess Elizabeth of Bathory. Bram learns of their plot to destroy him, and makes his own move to strike out at Vlad before Vlad can put him to death. He teams up with a courageous band of humans as he hunts Vlad--including Mina Harker and John Seward--and they finally succeed in killing the head of the Tsepesh clan, just as Bram Stoker foretold in Dracula. But the terror does not end with the death of Vlad, for there is another force that drives Vlad, Zsuzanna, Elizabeth and all the vampires, an ancient entity more evil than anything Bram has ever encountered: the Lord of the Vampires. And for Bram to defeat this dark lord, he must once again risk losing his very soul, to save not only his family, but humanity as well.In her final book in The Diaries of the Family Dracul trilogy, Jeanne Kalogridis brilliantly melds her own fascinating story of the Tsepesh family with that of Bram Stoker's classic, Dracula. Told in diary form like the first two books and Stoker's own chilling tale, LORD OF THE VAMPIRES reveals the dark, startling truths behind the original Dracula.From Publishers WeeklyThis final volume in the trilogy of The Diaries of the Family Dracul merges the histories of Vlad the Impaler and Count Dracula in a prequel to, and retelling of, the Stoker classic, seeking to fill some of the gaps left by the original. This novel begins with Vlad's journal entries about wartorn Bucharest in 1476, but it swiftly moves to the more familiar territory of Transylvania and London in 1893. There, it follows the starving Count, his vampiric niece, Zsuzsanna, her servant, Dunya, and their undead cousin, Countess Elizabeth Bathory, as they lure mortals, such as Jonathan Harker, into the castle to feed on them. Meanwhile, the noted vampire slayer Abraham Van Helsing awaits Dracula's arrival in London. Using powerful paraphernalia (garlic, crosses, holy water, etc.), he attempts to save Luch and Mina from the undead's evil embrace while trying to foil the family curse and decipher the angelic Arminius's motives. Kalogridis has a firm command of atmosphere, language and character. After the opening chapter, the Count is seen mainly as a shadowy figure integral to, though not illuminated by, the novel's plot, but the spunky Zsuzsanna and ravaged Van Helsing manage to carry the book handily between them. With its descriptions of iron maidens and flaming pokers it would be hard to call this a kinder, gentler, vampire novel, but Kalogridis reconciles the forces of light and darkness in a manner likely to please fans of justice and the genre. Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. From Library JournalThink of Kalogridis's series as an embellishment of Stoker's Dracula. While the first two parts (Covenant with the Vampire, LJ 10/1/94, and Children of the Vampire, Delacorte, 1995) were prequels, this volume runs concurrently with the famous novel. Here, Dracula prepares to leave his castle, but he has enemies within. Two other immortals also walk these dark halls, his cousin Zsuzsanna and Countess Elizabeth Bathory, a woman more vile in nature than the count. Together, these women plot his destruction. Meanwhile, using occult powers he has obtained, Van Helsing continues his hunt for Dracula and his spawn. Other characters, such as Mina and Jonathan Harker, Dr. Seward, and Lucy Westenra, also make appearances but not necessarily in the same way as in Stoker's classic. Kalogridis presents a fine mixture of sinister atmosphere, horror, and eroticism. For most public libraries.?Patricia Altner, Information Seekers, Bowie, Md.Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. Views: 103
Second in a brand new action adventure series starring 14-year-old Jack Courtney - a hero to rival Alex Rider - from worldwide bestselling author Wilbur Smith.Jack and his friends Amelia and Xander are in Zanzibar diving for lost treasure to support Jack's mother's coral protection project. Going further than usual on their last day, their dive boat is lured into a trap and captured by Somali pirates. Determined that his mother shouldn't pay a ransom for their release, Jack won't give up his attempts to escape. Transferred to a militia training camp for boy soldiers, the trio's only hope is the resourceful Somali boy Mo who befriends them. Can they outwit the ruthless General Sir and his merciless troops in the second gripping adventure from the authors of Cloudburst?Praise for Cloudburst:Unputdownable conservation themed action and adventure.' - LoveReading4kids'An exciting and realistic story, full of bandits, poachers and amazing... Views: 103
She was the exquisite daughter of a wealthy Jewish merchant. From a charmed girlhood in opulent New Orleans, she would be swept into the cataclysm of the Civil War. Forced to choose between her duties as a Southern wife and mother and her love for a forbidden man, a forbidden cause, Miriam Raphael is at the center of the whirlwind in a spellbinding novel of divided loyalties and divided hearts.From the Paperback edition. Views: 103
Legacy of shame...Caroline Hartzinger fled wartime Europe with a shattered life and a devastating secret. Pregnant and unwed, she arrived in America in 1939. Joel Hirsch offered marriage and respectability, hoping one day to earn her love, if not the passion she felt for a man whose memory still haunted them both. With Joel, Caroline built a new life, determined to bury the past--until her daughter Eve brought Caroline's carefully crafted world crashing down again, driven by a rage to learn the truth....Legacy of secrets...It was Eve's turn now, a legacy that tainted her life and risked generations to come. But with it came a gift--a new sister, young enough to be her own daughter, then a truth that would finally break the hold of the past....New York Times bestselling author Belva Plain creates an unforgettable story of a remarkable family--and a deception that reaches across continents, oceans and generations.From the... Views: 103
