The Cask of Amontillado

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The Silent Bullet

"It has always seemed strange to me that no one has ever endowed a professorship in criminal science in any of our large universities." Craig Kennedy laid down his evening paper and filled his pipe with my tobacco. In college we had roomed together, had shared everything, even poverty, and now that Craig was a professor of chemistry and I was on the staff of the Star, we had continued the arrangement. Prosperity found us in a rather neat bachelor apartment on the Heights, not far from the University. "Why should there be a chair in criminal science?" I remarked argumentatively, settling back in my chair. "I\'ve done my turn at police headquarters reporting, and I can tell you, Craig, it\'s no place for a college professor. Crime is just crime. And as for dealing with it, the good detective is born and bred to it. College professors for the sociology of the thing, yes; for the detection of it, give me a Byrnes." "On the contrary," replied Kennedy, his clean-cut features betraying an earnestness which I knew indicated that he was leading up to something important, "there is a distinct place for science in the detection of crime. On the Continent they are far in advance of us in that respect. We are mere children beside a dozen crime-specialists in Paris, whom I could name."
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Half Moon Street

Leo Stanhope dreams of making a home with Maria, the prostitute he loves, and he dreams of a world where no one cares what is tucked between his legs. Because Leo has a secret, and in Queen Victoria's England, that secret could get him locked up for life or killed. But it's a prostitute who's killed instead, and Leo who becomes the prime suspect. To clear his name, will he give up his secret?
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The Bazaar of Bad Dreams

A master storyteller at his best—the O. Henry Prize winner Stephen King delivers a generous collection of stories, several of them brand-new, featuring revelatory autobiographical comments on when, why, and how he came to write (or rewrite) each story.Since his first collection, Nightshift, published thirty-five years ago, Stephen King has dazzled readers with his genius as a writer of short fiction. In this new collection he assembles, for the first time, recent stories that have never been published in a book. He introduces each with a passage about its origins or his motivations for writing it. There are thrilling connections between stories; themes of morality, the afterlife, guilt, what we would do differently if we could see into the future or correct the mistakes of the past. “Afterlife” is about a man who died of colon cancer and keeps reliving the same life, repeating his mistakes over and over again. Several stories feature characters...
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Bright & Beautiful

Meet the Rev. Alma Lee, the most entertaining clergy sleuth in glittery, gay, and glorious San Francisco. Her passion for justice is matched only by her compassion for the downtrodden. Don't let her flightiness fool you—her knowledge of the city and keen understanding of people mean murderers don't stand a chance. Dumped by her would-be soulmate Rabbi Naomi Cohen and dogged by a pushy organizational coach, she is itching for a distraction. "Alma, there's been a murder at the cathedral..."When the brilliant and beautiful poet laureate of California turns up dead on the labyrinth at Grace Cathedral, Alma thrills to receive a license to meddle. The bishop appoints her as his police liaison and introduces her to the victim's family. The Goughs are a big name in San Francisco with strong ties to the church Alma serves. As Alma tracks the culprit through San Francisco's organized crime scene, posh private schools, and the British...
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Kappy King and the Pie Kaper

Kathryn "Kappy" King's skill at making kapps for the Amish women of Blue Sky, Pennsylvania, are unparalleled. But she's also dangerously good at discovering dark truths beneath this peaceful valley . . . When an "accident" puts beloved bishop's wife Alma Ebersol in a coma, many in Blue Sky are quick to blame struggling widow Frannie Lehman. Both women are the best bakers around, but for years Alma's boysenberry pies have been more award-winning—and profitable—than Frannie's. And with Alma out of this fall's county festival, Frannie's pie finally wins first prize. But when Alma dies and Frannie's children fall victim to gossip and bullying, Kappy is determined to uncover the real truth. Soon Kappy and her outcast friend Edie have their hands full of odd clues. What do Alma's strange last words mean? Why would someone break into her house just to steal a quilt? Who is the mysterious new piemaker in town—and why is she still...
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