Three men, three lies. One thought it was for her own good, one did it for his own good, and the third nearly destroyed her career. Blacklisted by the city's finest restaurants, Chef Reese Dunbar must now put the resuscitation of her battered reputation in the hands of yet another man. The television experience Nick Coltrane's cooking show offers is her best option for restoring her name and becoming the Big Apple's super chef. But after giving her body and heart to him, her trust is put to the test when she discovers that Nick has lied about the real reason he brought her on board, and worse yet, Nick can't cook. Views: 57
Now in paperback, "an un-inching and uncompromising look at a life lived across the tracks from fame . . " (Detroit Free Press) As a teenager in Detroit, Bettye LaVette scored a hit single with "My Man—He's a Lovin' Man." But by twenty, she had faded into obscurity, and bad luck repeatedly sabotaged her career. Then, after forty years of singing in clubs, her unforgettable performances at the 2008 Kennedy Center Honors and at President Obama's preinaugural concert put her back in the spotlight. A chronicle of LaVette's incredible life, A Woman Like Me is a poignant, brazen, take-no-prisoners memoir as thrilling and fearless as her music. Views: 56
Three children must fend for themselves in Victorian London. But there might be a way out...When fifteen-year-old Maggie, her sister Liz and young brother Charlie find themselves tragically orphaned they know their young lives can never be the same again. And when Liz is taken ill, Maggie has to tend to her, and loses what little work she had. In desperation, she ventures onto the streets, risking her safety and her innocence. A mysterious stranger appears to offer hope, but does he have only her best interests at heart? Will tragedy strike again or can Maggie save the family from poverty, and find the happiness she truly deserves? Set in London's Bethnal Green shortly after the Ripper murders, A Handful of Sovereigns is a classic East End family saga, perfect for fans of Jennie Felton, Maggie Ford or Dilly Court. Views: 56
Kazin's memorable description of his life as a young man as he makes the journey from Brooklyn to "americanca"-the larger world that begins at the other end of the subway in Manhattan. A classic portrayal of the Jewish immigrant culture of the 1930s. Drawings by Marvin Bileck. Views: 56
Horror fans are getting more than their money’s worth at NOLA Ghoulfest III! Even before she stepped onto the floor, Ovsanna Moore, star of 18 blockbuster horror movies, writer, producer, and head of Anticipation Studios, knew they were all in for a bumpy ride. She's come to promote her new film, accompanied by actors from her films and the TV series she produces, among them, a young diva, her soon-to-be-ex-husband, and the actress who plays his mother, with whom he is having an affair. The diva can't seem to stop threatening to kill her husband, so Ovsanna is working mightily to keep them from crossing paths. But Ovsanna smells trouble: someone in the convention hall is schizophrenic. She has detected this through her extraordinary sense of smell, because in her "private life" she is Ovsanna Hovannes Garebedian-- the 450-year-old Chatelaine of the Clan Dakhanavar of the First Bloodline, and the most powerful vampyre in Hollywood. Ovsanna easily identifies the disturbed person, a 60-year-old Buffy the Vampire Slayer who discovers it’s not as easy to kill a vampire as it looks on TV. Mere mortals, on the other hand, are dropping like flies! Fortunately, Ovsanna’s current flame, delicious Beverly Hills cop Peter King, has also accompanied her, and he’s not going to let a little thing like lack of jurisdiction stop him from finding the killer. But this is a convention, a horror convention at that. There are thousands of suspects-- with very fertile imaginations! A partial list begins with the usual suspects-- the actor up for a big role against the victim, the diva out for revenge-- and covers some not-quite-the-usual territory, here at the crossroads of Horror and Hoodoo: the snake dancer; the totally-tatted twenty-something Goth with a gel-spiked Mohawk leading to a triceratops ridge down his back, extending to a tale; and, of course, the Buffy the Vampire Slayer senior citizen. Things take a turn for the undeadly when Peter believes he’s spotted Maral McKenzie, Ovsanna’s former assistant, sometime lover, and food-source among the attendees. The last time he'd seen her, she'd tried to kill him, so he knows she's certainly capable of murder-- and that was before he found out she's a "newly-born" vampire. Views: 56
In 2010, the al Rabeeah family left their home in Iraq in hope of a safer life. They moved to Homs, in Syria – just before the Syrian civil war broke out. Abu Bakr, one of eight children, was ten years old when the violence began on the streets around him: car bombings, attacks on his mosque and school, firebombs late at night. Homes tells of the strange juxtapositions of growing up in a war zone: horrific, unimaginable events punctuated by normalcy – soccer, cousins, video games, friends. Homes is the remarkable true story of how a young boy emerged from a war zone – and found safety in Canada – with a passion for sharing his story and telling the world what is truly happening in Syria. As told to her by Abu Bakr al Rabeeah, writer Winnie Yeung has crafted a heartbreaking, hopeful, and urgently necessary book that provides a window into understanding Syria. Views: 55
The Revolt of Aphrodite consists of two novels, Tunc ('then', 'next') and its sequel Numquam ('never'). When Felix Charlock, an inventor, is approached by Merlin's, an influential and successful firm with interests everywhere, something about the extremely generous offer makes him hesitate. But as time goes on, he finds himself tied to 'the Firm' both personally and contractually - and disentangling himself will cost more than he knows... With a cast of tantalising characters, the two novels take the reader from Turkey to Greece, from Switzerland to England. Enigmatic and engrossing, with a marvellous sweep of action and ideas, the novels show Durrell is at his most gothic and comic, and most widely allusive. Views: 55
One day in 2009, twenty-four-year-old Susannah Cahalan woke up alone in a strange hospital room, strapped to her bed, under guard, and unable to move or speak. A wristband marked her as a “flight risk,” and her medical records—chronicling a monthlong hospital stay of which she had no memory at all—showed hallucinations, violence, and dangerous instability. Only weeks earlier, Susannah had been on the threshold of a new, adult life: a healthy, ambitious college grad a few months into her first serious relationship and a promising career as a cub reporter at a major New York newspaper. Who was the stranger who had taken over her body? What was happening to her mind? In this swift and breathtaking narrative, Susannah tells the astonishing true story of her inexplicable descent into madness and the brilliant, lifesaving diagnosis that nearly didn’t happen. A team of doctors would spend a month—and more than a million dollars—trying desperately to pin down a medical explanation for what had gone wrong. Meanwhile, as the days passed and her family, boyfriend, and friends helplessly stood watch by her bed, she began to move inexorably through psychosis into catatonia and, ultimately, toward death. Yet even as this period nearly tore her family apart, it offered an extraordinary testament to their faith in Susannah and their refusal to let her go. Then, at the last minute, celebrated neurologist Souhel Najjar joined her team and, with the help of a lucky, ingenious test, saved her life. He recognized the symptoms of a newly discovered autoimmune disorder in which the body attacks the brain, a disease now thought to be tied to both schizophrenia and autism, and perhaps the root of “demonic possessions” throughout history. Far more than simply a riveting read and a crackling medical mystery, Brain on Fire is the powerful account of one woman’s struggle to recapture her identity and to rediscover herself among the fragments left behind. Using all her considerable journalistic skills, and building from hospital records and surveillance video, interviews with family and friends, and excerpts from the deeply moving journal her father kept during her illness, Susannah pieces together the story of her “lost month” to write an unforgettable memoir about memory and identity, faith and love. It is an important, profoundly compelling tale of survival and perseverance that is destined to become a classic. Views: 55
Nick Martin and his four friends made a bet—the last guy to marry wins. The losers have to help plan and pay for the winner's wedding. No way is Nick going to lose. But when Addy Wilson comes home to River Run, Nick's interest in winning the silly bet begins to wane.Will Nick and Addy let the childish things of the past stand in their way to love? Views: 55
