In The Winter King and Enemy of God Bernard Cornwell demonstrated his astonishing ability to make the oft-told legend of King Arthur fresh and new for our time. Now, in this riveting final volume of The Warlord Chronicles, Cornwell tells the unforgettable tale of Arthur's final struggles against the Saxons and his last attempts to triumph over a ruined marriage and ravaged dreams.
This is the tale not only of a broken love remade, but also of forces both earthly and unearthly that threaten everything Arthur stands for. Peopled by princesses and bards, by warriors and magicians, Excalibur is the story of love, war, loyalty, and betrayal-the work of a magnificent storyteller at the height of his powers. Views: 790
Connor broke the seal and opened the psychic doorway in his mind. Now he needs to lock it again before something wanders through it looking for him.Connor True broke the seal on the psychic doorway in his mind. With this doorway Connor can see anywhere and any time he wishes. He can also see into the Afterlife, only it's not just the dead that walk the astral plane. There are other terrifying creatures lurking in the shadows, waiting for us and the last time Connor opened his doorway he found something looking back at him. Views: 789
She's heartbroken. He's the man who loves her.Preternaturalist Alexandra (Alex) Dalton and her glowing cat are hunting for the person who kidnapped and murdered Alex’s three-year-old daughter when her uncle’s deathbed request sends her across the country to solve two Night Hag murders. The worst part? She must join forces with her estranged husband, the handsome treasure hunter, Richard Dalton.She's heartbroken. He's the man who loves her. In this tale of romance, suspense, and fantastical mystery, preternaturalist Alexandra (Alex) Dalton and her paranormal sensitive cat are hunting for the person who kidnapped and murdered Alex’s three-year-old daughter when her uncle’s deathbed request sends her across the country to solve two mysterious Night Hag murders. The worst part? She must once again risk her heart as she joins forces with her estranged husband, the handsome treasure hunter, Richard Dalton. Views: 789
Tell your lord to beware;
the wolves smell danger in the wind . . .
Wolfhaven Castle has been attacked, and only four escape capture... Tom, trained to scrub pots, not fight; Elanor, the lord's daughter; Sebastian, a knight in training; and Quinn, the witch's apprentice.
Somehow, if they are to save their people, these unlikely heroes must find four magical beasts from legend and awaken the sleeping warriors of the past. But first, they have to make it out of the castle alive. Views: 789
Two young women, living centuries apart, both accused of madness, communicate across time to fight a common enemy... their doctors.
"It was the dog who found me."
Such is the stark confession launching the harrowing scene that begins The Asylum for Wayward Victorian Girls as Emilie Autumn, a young musician on the verge of a bright career, attempts suicide by overdosing on the antipsychotics prescribed to treat her bipolar disorder. Upon being discovered, Emilie is revived and immediately incarcerated in a maximum-security psych ward, despite her protestations that she is not crazy, and can provide valid reasons for her actions if someone would only listen.
Treated as a criminal, heavily medicated, and stripped of all freedoms, Emilie is denied communication with the outside world, and falls prey to the unwelcome attentions of Dr. Sharp, head of the hospital's psychiatry department. As Dr. Sharp grows more predatory by the day, Emilie begins a secret diary to document her terrifying experience, and to maintain her sanity in this environment that could surely drive anyone mad. But when Emilie opens her notebook to find a desperate letter from a young woman imprisoned within an insane asylum in Victorian England, and bearing her own name and description, a portal to another world is blasted wide open.
As these letters from the past continue to appear, Emilie escapes further into this mysterious alternate reality where sisterhoods are formed, romance between female inmates blossoms, striped wallpaper writhes with ghosts, and highly intellectual rats speak the Queen's English.
But is it real? Or is Emilie truly as mad as she is constantly told she is?
The Asylum for Wayward Victorian Girls blurs harsh reality and magical historical fantasy whilst issuing a scathing critique of society's treatment of women and the mental health care industry's treatment of its patients, showing in the process that little has changed throughout the ages.
Welcome to the Asylum. Are you committed? Views: 788
Four short stories and a novella set in 'The Apostrophe Universe' - a place where only the starborn have privileges common to the west and the mudfoot, those born on Earth, work in scientific and engineering jobs maintaining the lifestyle of the starborn. The stories range from Christmas with a broken family to cloning a boy's father after he is sentenced to death. Great stories for sci-fi fans.This is a collection of short stories and one novella. All are science fiction set in a world called 'The Apostrophe Universe.'Gravity before NewtonThis is the story of a man named Futter who dreams of becoming a scientist yet is thwarted at every turn by real life. One day when working in his professional garage he is hit on the head with a lug nut and has an epiphany about the science of fate. As he calls it, Fate before Futter is like Gravity before Newton. It existed, but took a unique mind and a knock on the head by an apple to bring the science to the world. His plan goes disastrously wrong costing him everything.A View Without SeasonsThis is the story of a man raising his young daughter by himself. Her mother has taken a job on another ship and is doing important scientific work that will change all of humanity forever. Yet when the man hears that his ex-wife's vessel will dock with his on Christmas day, he takes the opportunity to have his family together and to celebrate the antiquated holiday in the old fashioned way. It is a look at Christmas from the point of view of a society that has moved beyond Earth and faith.Lomonosov's DriftWhen a geologist finds a beautiful rock while mining for solid methane he takes it back to his wife. When she hosts a party for potential clients of her engineering firm some clients begin to believe the rock has supernatural healing powers and should be shared with the entire ship. When the couple disagree with the consensus of the ship they are forced to leave, heading out into the void alone.The Storm FishersThe novella that gave the book its title. This is the story of two young men who attend Faraday University on Mars and are assigned to different places on the spaceship for their intern year. One a brilliant physicist the other a struggling mathematician, they drift in opposite directions until they discover the injustice in the system of space travel that the solar system uses. Together, and with new friends, they set out to regain what is theirs both physically and legally.Sheep BiteWhen a man is convicted of unethical science he is condemned to die, his wife, a geneticist, takes a sample of his DNA to produce a clone of him that will help her raise their son. When the ship she works on discovers what she has done disaster strikes and all of their lives are changed forever. Views: 787
`It is better to be feared than loved' - Niccolo Machiavelli
In the bear pit of renaissance politics, a young Florentine diplomat finds himself first hand observer on the history's most notorious family - the Borgias.
In the Name of the Family - as Blood and Beauty did before - holds up a mirror to a turbulent moment of history, sweeping aside the myths to bring alive the real Borgia family; complicated, brutal, passionate and glorious. Here is a thrilling exploration of the House of Borgia's doomed years, in the company of a young diplomat named Niccolo Machiavelli.
It is 1502 and Rodrigo Borgia, a self-confessed womaniser and master of political corruption is now on the Papal throne as Alexander VI. His daughter Lucrezia, aged twenty-two, already thrice married and a pawn in her father's plans, is discovering her own power. And then there is Cesare Borgia: brilliant, ruthless and increasingly unstable; it is his relationship with the diplomat Machiavelli which offers a master class on the dark arts of power and politics. What Machiavelli learns will go on to inform his great work of modern politics, The Prince.
But while the pope rails against old age and his son's increasing maverick behavior it is Lucrezia who will become the Borgia survivor: taking on her enemies and creating her own place in history.
Conjuring up the past in all its complexity, horror and pleasures, In The Name of the Family confirms Sarah Dunant's place as the leading novelist of the Renaissance and one of the most acclaimed historical fiction writers of our age. Views: 787
The bestselling author of Nop’s Trials presents the true story of his search for the perfect sheepdog
In April of 1988, Donald McCaig traveled to Scotland to buy a young, well-bred female sheepdog to raise and train for use on his three-hundred-acre Virginia farm. He knew exactly what he wanted: a Scottish border collie, considered the best sheepdog in the world because the breed is hardworking, smart, strong, and fast, with unique personalities.
McCaig attends dog trials and meets numerous trainers, fellow shepherds, and top handlers before he finally finds Gael. From his heartfelt prayers that Gael will pass her eye exam to his faithful sheepdog Pip’s reaction to the new bitch on the farm, Eminent Dogs, Dangerous Men chronicles McCaig’s journey through the Scottish highlands, where border collies have been bred since the seventeenth century, and illuminates the ennobling bond between humans and dogs.
This ebook contains sixteen pages of photos. Views: 786
“Mary Renault is a shining light to both historical novelists and their readers. She does not pretend the past is like the present, or that the people of ancient Greece were just like us. She shows us their strangeness; discerning, sure-footed, challenging our values, piquing our curiosity, she leads us through an alien landscape that moves and delights us.”—Hilary Mantel
Alexias is a young aristocrat living during the end of Athens’s Golden Age. Prized for his beauty and athletic prowess, Alexias studies under Sokrates with his closest friend, Lysis. Together, the young men come of age in an Athens on the verge of great upheaval. They attend the Olympics, partake in symposia, fight on the battlefields of the Peloponnesian War, and fall in love.
The first of Mary Renault’s celebrated historical novels of ancient Greece, The Last of the Wine follows Alexias and Lysis into adulthood, when Athens is defeated by Sparta, the Thirty Tyrants take hold of the city, and the lives of both men are changed forever. Through their friendship, Renault opens a vista onto ancient Greek life, uncovering its vibrancy, culture, and political strife, and offers an unforgettable story of love, honor, loyalty, and the remarkable bond between two men.
This ebook features an illustrated biography of Mary Renault including rare images of the author. Views: 786
One Woman. Two Men.
One stirs her pulse and the other her faith.
But who will win her heart?
Marceline Murphy is a gentle beauty with a well-founded aversion to rogues. But when two of Boston's most notorious pursue her, she encounters a tug-of-war of the heart she isn’t expecting. Sam O’Rourke is the childhood hero she’s pined for, the brother of her best friend and a member of the large, boisterous family to which she longs to be a part. So when his best friend Patrick O’Connor joins in pursuit of her affections, the choice seems all too clear. Sam is from a family of faith and Patrick is not, two rogues whose wild ways clash head-on with Marcy’s—both in her faith and in her heart.
While overseeing the Christmas play fundraiser for the St. Mary’s parish soup kitchen—A Light in the Window—Marcy not only wrestles with her attraction to both men, but with her concern for their spiritual welfare. The play is based on the Irish custom of placing a candle in the window on Christmas Eve to welcome the Holy Family, and for Marcy, its message becomes deeply personal. Her grandmother Mima cautions her to guard her heart for the type of man who will respond to the "light in the window," meaning the message of Christ in her heart. But when disaster strikes during the play, Marcy is destined to discover the truth of the play’s message first-hand when it becomes clear that although two men have professed their undying love, only one has truly responded to “the light in the window.” Views: 786
Maggie O'Farrell is one of England's best young writers. Her first novel, "AFTER YOU'D GONE," won a Betty Trask Award and earned her a spot on the "21 great talents for the 21st century" list compiled by the Orange Prize for Fiction panel. "MY LOVER'S LOVER" was a Sunday Times top ten bestseller.
In "MY LOVER'S LOVER," Lily meets Marcus, a magnetic, elusive architect, outside a gallery in London. They have an instant, electric attraction to each other, and within a week she has moved into his echoing loft apartment in East London. But nothing could have prepared her for what she finds there. A distinct presence lingers in the loft, that of a woman who seems to have disappeared in a hurry, leaving behind a single dress hanging in the closet, a puzzling mark on the wall, and the suffocating scent of jasmine. Marcus, who is deep in the throes of an unnamed grief, refuses to talk about the woman or her fate. The apartment's other inhabitant, Aidan, seems to understand Lily's unease, but is unwilling to give her any information about the unsettling situation. Who was this woman? And what exactly were the circumstances of her sudden disappearance? Lily begins to be haunted by the spirit of this mysterious woman, and it doesn't take long for her curiosity to grow into an all-pervading obsession.
"MY LOVER'S LOVER" is a haunting tale of obsession and betrayal, a modern day R"EBECCA" set in London that keeps readers hooked until the very en Views: 786
The 1970 World Cup would be an exciting event for all of Brazil. All young Rego Ouliveyra wanted was to watch his favorite player Pele and to witness this historical moment in sports from his humble roots in Brasilia. But unbeknownst to him fate would have other plans as he is entrusted with an incredible secret and is pressed into embarking on an adventure of a lifetime!The Brazilian follows young Rego Ouliveyra, an ordinary college-age teen, growing up in Brasilia. Rego loved to play soccer and was eager to watch his favorite player, Pele, compete in the 1970 World Cup. But his life is thrown into a frenzy when a stranger implores him to go on an incredible journey. The stranger entrusts him with a mysterious leather satchel containing an unknown secret. The journey takes Rego on an adventure of a lifetime through South America and across the Atlantic. He encounters many people along the way, both good and bad, in several wondrous and unique locations. All the while, his own government will stop at nothing to catch him and seize the contents of the satchel for themselves. Explore with him on this exciting journey of discovery and intrigue! Views: 786
For five hundred years a statue of the Madonna has watched over Venice. Now, dulled by time and pollution, she is prepared for restoration. As Simon Raikes immerses himself in the painstaking task of cleaning and repairing, he is inexorably drawn to the stories of violence and lust which have surrounded this stone virgin.
Simon’s investigations lead him to Chiara Litsov, the wife of a renowned sculptor. A dangerous attraction develops between them and it appears inevitable that once again the stone virgin will bear witness to passion, betrayal and murder. Views: 786
Miles from anywhere, Darracott Place is presided over by irascible Lord Darracott. The recent drowning of his eldest son has done nothing to improve his temper. For now he must send for the unknown offspring of the uncle whom the family are never permitted to mention. Yet none of that beleaguered family are prepared for the arrival of the weaver's brat and heir apparent ...
Yet again Georgette Heyer shows the qualities that made her one of the most successful and best-loved romantic novelists of her age, and why her popularity endures to this day. Views: 786
"An easy and light read, especially for young sci-fi mystery lovers." Kirkus------------------------------"Despite its part in the larger series, The Boy Who Played with Dark Matter makes a fine read all on its own, although a reader will most certainly crave the sequel to find out if Zeddy gets his father back." ForeWord Clarion"In a world where caffeine is distributed only by terrorists and 1000-SPF sunscreen isn't strong enough, scientists long for a discovery that will restore Earth to a greener state. However, the International Government likes to think it has everything under control, especially since it issues twenty to thirty new laws each day to keep its constituents current."Six-year-old Zeddy, whose "IQ is off the charts," soon finds himself racing to avoid capture when his physicist father, Zane, goes missing. His mother, Zadie, suspects that the International Military Police have taken Zane, but Nimueh, the ancient Lady of the Lake, believes that he's in a parallel universe in a neighboring constellation. She also believes that young Zeddy, with a "brain that is exceptionally rare," is the key to saving Earth."The Boy Who Played with Dark Matter is a charming tale told in the tradition of A Wrinkle in Time, by Madeline L'Engle. Like young Charles Wallace, who is misunderstood by his teachers and peers, Zeddy finds himself alone and forced to "hide as much as possible in front of others." His only friend is a zutterfly made of dark matter, which proves to be a significant clue to finding his father. Other classic tales influence this story as well, such as The Man of La Mancha, The Count of Monte Cristo, and some King Arthur legends."The postapocalyptic setting is filled with fascinating social reforms, such as newly engaged couples being required to take parenting classes and the International Military Police kidnapping gifted children in order to force them into government service. The story's technologies have plausible explanations, like the transporter device that was supposed to get Zeddy's father to Zamira (a dark-matter planet) or the pretty crystal that contains dark energy."At times, Zeddy's dialogue is overly mature for his age, but his adult-like speech patterns might be attributed to his high IQ. Still, the character's adventures are appropriate for his tender years, like chatting with a dark-matter butterfly, believing in Nimueh's magical gifts, or convincing a nervous professor to divulge information about Zane's last experiment. These scenes are paced in short chapters, making them just the right length for young children with shorterattention spans. Although six-year-olds aren't likely to have the reading abilities to tackle this story, it would make excellent bedtime reading with a parent's help. Even teens might be amused by all the high-tech explanations and the challenge of solving the author's mystery."Known as Holy Ghost Writer, the author has placed clues about his/her identity throughout the series. The first reader who figures out the author's identity will earn a $1,000 reward. Despite its part in the larger series, The Boy Who Played with Dark Matter makes a fine read all on its own, although a reader will most certainly crave the sequel to find out if Zeddy gets his father back." ForeWord Clarion review Views: 785
