Evangeline Shaw is the key to the conspiracy that threatens Robert Cannon's company. Classified software developed by Cannon's group is being sold to a foreign government without his approval. It isn't just theft or a case of corporate espionage -- it's treason. And the trail leads straight to Shaw -- who by all accounts has both the means and the motives.
Determined to handle his own investigation, Cannon tracks her to a small town in Alabama. But as he tries to untangle the knot that surrounds her, he finds himself questioning he's believed. The facts still seem pretty black-and-but his heart tells him she's no Mata Hari.... Views: 759
A hilarious spoof on the classic country-house murder mystery, from the Russian masters of sci-fi—never before translated
When Inspector Peter Glebsky arrives at the remote ski chalet on vacation, the last thing he intends to do is get involved in any police work. He’s there to ski, drink brandy, and loaf around in blissful solitude.
But he hadn’t counted on the other vacationers, an eccentric bunch including a famous hypnotist, a physicist with a penchant for gymnastic feats, a sulky teenager of indeterminate gender, and the mysterious Mr. and Mrs. Moses. And as the chalet fills up, strange things start happening—things that seem to indicate the presence of another, unseen guest. Is there a ghost on the premises? A prankster? Something more sinister? And then an avalanche blocks the mountain pass, and they’re stuck.
Which is just about when they find the corpse. Meaning that Glebksy’s vacation is over and he’s embarked on the most unusual investigation he’s ever been involved with. In fact, the further he looks into it, the more Glebsky realizes that the victim may not even be human.
In this late novel from the legendary Russian sci-fi duo—here in its first-ever English translation—the Strugatskys gleefully upend the plot of many a Hercule Poirot mystery—and the result is much funnier, and much stranger, than anything Agatha Christie ever wrote. Views: 759
(Suncoast Society series #73, MF, BDSM)
Between losing her job, surviving cancer, and her long-term Dom dumping her, Meri’s hit rock-bottom. When her Dom of a little brother unexpectedly shows up on her doorstep in St. Louis with a moving truck to bring her home with him, she’s ready to go.
Returning to Florida means reunions with old friends and getting involved with kinky locals in the Suncoast Society. Except she doesn’t expect to run into her old high-school teacher, Elvin. She definitely didn’t expect him to look so…haaawwtt.
Elvin was only a couple of years older than Meri when she was his student. Since then, he’s survived a crushing divorce and a near-fatal accident. He’s rebuilt himself inside and out and is ready to truly be himself. He never thought he’d date a former student…except Meri’s all grown up, and has way more experience in kink than he does. Now it’s time to see if Elvin can learn a few lessons of his own. Views: 759
A mysterious murder in a dystopian future leads a novice investigator to question what she’s learned about the foundation of her population-controlled society.
Decades after economic and environmental collapse destroys much of civilization in the United States, the Coast Road region isn’t just surviving but thriving by some accounts, building something new on the ruins of what came before. A culture of population control has developed in which people, organized into households, must earn the children they bear by proving they can take care of them and are awarded symbolic banners to demonstrate this privilege. In the meantime, birth control is mandatory.
Enid of Haven is an Investigator, called on to mediate disputes and examine transgressions against the community. She’s young for the job and hasn't yet handled a serious case. Now, though, a suspicious death requires her attention. The victim was an outcast, but might someone have taken dislike a step further and murdered him?
In a world defined by the disasters that happened a century before, the past is always present. But this investigation may reveal the cracks in Enid’s world and make her question what she really stands for. Views: 758
In Slave Girls of the Western World we follow the adventures of Marcus, a lusty officer in the legions of Rome, as he is sent to guard the Northern frontier from the savage blond barbarians - proud Nordic warriors whose women were renowned throughout the empire for their startling beauty. War yields captives — and captives in those less civilized times were forced into slavery, made to obey and to serve their Roman masters. This is the story of the wild debauchery and the sensual decadence that flourished from Rome itself to the farthest reaches of the expansive empire. Views: 758
Young newlyweds out to discover a new life in the sage desert of central Wyoming stumble upon uncharted territory within their relationship that is more beautiful and more hazardous than the rigorous terrain.In this short story, recently married twenty-year-old Zach and eighteen-year-old Allison, accompanied by their Brittany spaniel Gina, leave the comfort and security of their New England home in search of new opportunities in the far-off wilderness of central Wyoming.While camped in that wilderness they discover unexpected challenges within their relationship and in the unforgiving countryside that threaten both their marriage and their lives.This familiar theme of youthful idealism colliding with worldly realities and constraints is rendered in clear refreshing prose and placed in an original setting where the sage desert of Wyoming becomes a virtual character in the drama, complete with its demands and surprises. Views: 758
Madame Lambert meets American diplomat Dexter Jones. Dedicated to her official work, the widow resists romance while becoming intrigued with the charming diplomat as he escorts her to salons across the Left Bank cultural scene. Romance ripens into commitment as momentous events unfold as the French attempt to face the Ethiopian crisis while countering the Nazi threat in the German Rhineland.In the darkening years of the 1930s, the beautiful Madame Lambert meets American diplomat Dexter Jones at the Quai d’Orsay. She works on the staff of French Premier Pierre Laval. Dedicated to her work, the austere widow resists romance while becoming increasingly intrigued with the charming diplomat as he escorts her to political and literary salons across the vibrant Left Bank cultural scene. Romance ripens into enduring commitment against a backdrop of momentous historical events as the French government attempts to contain the Ethiopian crisis at the League of Nations while countering the rising Nazi threat to remilitarize the German Rhineland.Madame Lambert witnesses first-hand the British-French diplomatic meetings between Premier Laval and British foreign secretary Sir Samuel Hoare that collapse in controversy over ending the Italo-Ethiopian war. Shortly afterwards, she is in the room when the French government bogs down with indecision over responding to Hitler’s march into the Rhineland, the key to preserving France’s alliances with its East European allies. Cameo appearances by Colonel Charles DeGaulle, André Malraux, Sylvia Beach, Adrienne Monnier, André Chamson, and journalists Genevieve Tabouis and Pertinax. Views: 758
Love sometimes hides in plain sight.
Savannah is one of the boys—fun loving, adventurous, a general contractor, and dive master extraordinaire. There isn't much she takes seriously about herself, or at least that's the impression she likes to give off. Women often misjudge her based on her looks so she's gravitated toward a group of men who accept her 'as is'—her SCUBA diving club.
Bill has known Savannah's wild side for years and has been comfortable playing the role of best friend. As part of the Dallas Divers, he's shared many adventures with the group from diving the Blue Hole in Belize to exploring the Great Barrier Reef in Australia. When the team heads out to Costa Rica for a series of cave dives, he knows something is off but can't quite justify his nerves.
Catastrophe happens shortly after their immersion in the cave. With the entrance blocked from an earthquake and separated from the rest of their team, Savannah and Bill are forced to find another way out while battling aftershocks, rising tides, and an undeniable attraction that they've ignored for too long. Views: 758
Combining elements of horror and sword and sorcery, John Grover weaves an epic fantasy tale full of action, mystery and suspense.A long vanquished evil has returned to the beautiful and peaceful realm of Orum. An evil that will stop at nothing to plunder and enslave all of the realm’s people and lay waste to its lands.Combining elements of horror and sword and sorcery, John Grover weaves an epic fantasy tale full of action, mystery and suspense.A long vanquished evil has returned to the beautiful and peaceful realm of Orum. An evil that will stop at nothing to plunder and enslave all of the realm’s people and lay waste to its lands. An evil that refuses to die, that has ravaged every realm it has touched. Its name is Sinnia, the Spider Queen and she has set her eyes back on the one world that eludes her grasp.The leadership races must come together and harness the old power of their ancestors, sing their song of lore as one people and defeat this horror once and for all. These races will come to discover a long lost secret about their own ancestry, their connection to each other and the realm itself, a secret that will change their world…forever.Novella. 20,000 words. Views: 758
A short story, about 5000 words.Young Jacinta Jaara likes to sit by the old landfill mine and listen to the music ancient Neyerneyemeet plays. The music speaks of her of the old days, when the people of Australia were divided, before the war that changed everything. Soon, Jacinta's curiosity will lead her to an even more profound change, a change of growth, learning, and understanding.Our animal friends do fun, amazing, and silly things. These poems ask why our animal friends do such things. As you read each small poem, imagine what their answer would be or think of new questions of your own.This booklet includes the children poems: Zippy Dragonfly, Young Elephant, Giggling Hyena, and Slithering Snake Views: 757
A short, episodic, tongue-in-cheek story based on the Time Meddlers series. Thirteen-year-old Matt Barnes, while searching for his time-travelling father, stumbles into a canyon maze on Mars, and makes a grisly discovery – not for weak stomachs. Is this a strange twist of evolution - another species colonizing Mars - or a prediction of their fate?Thirteen-year-old Matt Barnes, while searching for his father, a scientist trapped in quantum foam, ventures onto the red planet. He and his faithful, though reluctant, companion, Sarah Sachs, stumble through a canyon maze and make a grisly discovery - perhaps a strange twist of evolution. Things go downhill from there. After all, Mars is a planet with an unbreathable atmosphere and hurricane-force winds where your blood might boil. The perfect place for a summer vacation, or a short disastrous adventure. Will they escape the maze, and will they stop arguing long enough to survive their next deadly encounter? Views: 757
Colonizing the moon is hazardous work...made more dangerous by political bickering back on Earth. Now Jack Chang must face either the starvation of the colony he leads, or the deadly terror threat posed by his former Marine buddy who's trying to extort the government and keep the colony alive. Some choice.With the advent of the timequake ships, mankind spread so rapidly out into the galaxy that chaos and corruption soon became the order of the day. So Union Fleet was formed to defend and protect mankind from his worst enemy — himself. To keep the peace, Union Fleet enforced the laws on all of the planets of the Union. For the most part, the people of Union Fleet were good and decent folks. For the most part, this all worked just fine on all of the civilized planets, but in the outworlds … well, that was another story. In the outworlds, where civilization was thin, evil thrived. Pirates plied their ancient trade in the outworld spaceways.Even so, the pirates were not the worst that mankind had to face. The Jatarian Alien Group was mankind's worst nightmare. But there was one ship that fought them off and saved the people of Benara-3 -- the Crystal Dragon. It defeated the whole Jatarian battle group and sent what was left of them back to their own with a message -- don't come back!Created with alien technology, this ship single-handedly did what a whole fleet of Union starships could not. But that was a long time ago. The people of Benara-3 forgot and went on with their lives. Corrupt Union Admirals tried to confiscate the Crystal Dragon to steal its secrets. When it slipped their grasp, in spite, they declared it an outlaw ship. As time went on, everybody forgot the Crystal Dragon and got on with their lives.But the Jatarians did not forget ... Views: 757
