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"Two mothers asked me who you were at the PeeWee soccer match yesterday, Frank. I just said, 'Oh him? He's a Catholic priest and a physics professor, cosmic rays—that kind of stuff, and is helping a woman detective catch whoever is trying to kill us. He's also my fiancé.' They gave me a strange look. I don't think they'll be inviting Olivia and Joey over for any more play dates."Frank Donnelly is a physics professor at a Philadelphia university and a Catholic priest; a rare combination but not unique. What may be more unusual is that Frank is also married, one of less than a hundred such priests in the United States. When his wife is killed in a tragic accident Frank is left to raise his young daughter alone. Eventually he falls in love with Vicki Meyers, a young widow mystery. As their love grows, and they struggle with the difficulties of raising children as single parents, Frank and Vicki form a "virtual" family and join with other young families in an endless round of soccer matches, birthday parties, and car pooling while Frank uses with a small boy and a teacher in the parish school where Frank is the weekend assistant. The Vatican is not amused at Frank's petition to marry — and that is not his only problem. He has been receiving threatening emails suggesting that he is not a "true" priest and a woman detective investigating the threats discovers similar ones on the computer of a murdered elderly priest. Could Frank and those he loves be in danger? He and the detective team up to find the murderer and presumed author of the emails. In Frank's physics lab a routine student experiment to observe cosmic rays produces an unusual number of tracks but only when Frank is near the apparatus, and only when he is carrying a Holy Communion wafer. As a scientist Frank is reluctant to consider a supernatural explanation and he and an astrophysicist friend conduct experiments to find a physical explanation of the the cosmic ray phenomenon as "ecclesiastical blackmail" to push the Vatican toward an unprecedented concession. Views: 733
The last big budget exploration mission for NASA has gone wrong. The first of eight Seeker spacecraft sent to our nearest stars has come to life. What has happened? What if the newly sentient probe reaches its Mission Objective and finds life? Can humanity afford to make its first contact with an alien race though an ambassador they have created, but do not know?The last big budget exploration mission for NASA has gone wrong. Eight remote spacecraft were sent to our nearest stars. Seeker One was sent to Alpha Centauri and it has come to life. NASA engineers are desperate to find out what has happened, but with a 6 month communications gap, how can they react in time before Seeker One reaches its Mission Objective and finds life? Can humanity afford to make its first contact with an alien race though an ambassador they have created, but do not know? Views: 733
The second, thrilling adventure in the Fever Crumb trilogy from the brilliant and award-winning Philip Reeve.
Two years ago, Fever Crumb escaped the war-torn city of London in a traveling theater. Now, she arrives in the extraordinary city of Mayda, where buildings ascend the cliffs on funicular rails, and a mysterious recluse is building a machine that can fly. Fever is the engineer he needs - but ruthless enemies will kill to possess their secrets. Views: 733
When a father must choose ... a short horror story by David Wesley Hill.Connor Matthews was born with powers that human beings can only dream of, and he could care less. All he wants is to be with his wife, who yearns for a quiet life, and his son, who wants nothing more than to train his dad for the superhero he will one day become. And that day has arrived. When a villain comes to his doorstep, demanding his allegiance, he must embrace the powers he has been given, and ultimately become the Champion of the world. Views: 733
In a world where magic is revered, what could be worse than the power to steal it?In a land where those with magic are esteemed and revered, Janir guards a secret that would send her to the headsman's block at a word. As one of the reviled Argetallams, she has the power to destroy enchantments and steal others' magic—an ability that has caused bloodshed for generations. Raised as the illegitimate daughter of an influential lord, she was determined to turn her back on her heritage, but when her power manifests, leaving a nobleman dead, she has no choice but to flee her adoptive home. In exile with the help of a fearless young enchanter and an elf sworn to protect her, she finds herself entangled in a quest to hide an ancient artifact from the kingdom’s enemies. But they are not the only ones after the relic and soon their paths cross with a rival from Janir's distant childhood. With no hope of help or rescue, the fate of nations will depend on a fifteen year old girl and her mastery of powers she doesn't understand. Views: 733
Contains two companion stories to the *Darkest Powers* trilogy.
**Belonging** (the novella set after The Reckoning), Derek's werewolf family comes to claim him. Narrated by Derek.
**Facing Facts** (short story set after The Reckoning), Tori discovers who her father is, and Chloe deals with a vengeful ghost. Narrated by Chloe. Appearing in [Enthralled](https://www./book/show/11604316.Enthralled "Enthralled") Views: 733
Mina Grime is unlucky, unpopular and uncoordinated, but it all changes when she learns she is descended from the Brothers Grimm and has inherited all of their fairytale unfinished business. To break the storybook curse on her family, Mina must relive all of the fairy tales..until the very Grimm end.Mina Grime is unlucky, unpopular and uncoordinated, that is until she saves her crush's life on a field trip, changing her High School status from loser to hero overnight. But with her new found fame brings misfortune in the form of an old family curse come to light. For Mina is descended from the Brothers Grimm and has inherited all of their unfinished fairy tale business. Which includes trying to outwit a powerful Story from making her its next fairytale victim.To break the fairy tale curse on her family and make these deadly occurrences stop, Mina must finish the tales until the very Grimm end. Views: 733
Wolf’s Magic is the story of Azriel Kane, fifth brother in the royal Westervelt wolf pack. Always different from his siblings, Azriel prefers to spend his time underground in a lab than out fighting battles to save the pack from destruction. In his own way, he feels he is contributing to the pack’s success. However, when fate plants his destined mate in a cage where he can’t ignore her, Az will be forced to face up the demons that have plagued him since childhood and be the shifter she needs him to be.
Leah St. James has no idea who she is or how she came to be trapped in a cage in Azriel’s lab. The only thing she is certain about is that she is not a wolf and that she wants out of her false wolf body as soon as possible. Counting on Az to save her from the same doomed fate as the other wolves Az is given to study, from the distance of her cage she can see Az for who he really is and not the false front he presents to the world.
But Kendrick Kane is not done with Westervelt and when he steps up his game to eliminate the Kanes from Westervelt, Az and Leah will need each other to discover the truth behind his evil plans, that is if Azriel can finally reveal the secret he has been keeping since he was a child.
With Leah’s help, can Azriel finally take his place in the pack hierarchy or will they fail and lose Westervelt forever? Views: 733
Lester Ferris, sergeant of the British Army, is a good man in need of a rest. He's spent a lot of his life being shot at, and Afghanistan was the last stop on his road to exhaustion. He has no family, he's nearly forty, burned out and about to be retired.
The island of Mancreu is the ideal place for Lester to serve out his time. It's a former British colony in legal limbo, soon to be destroyed because of its very special version of toxic pollution - a down-at-heel, mildly larcenous backwater. Of course, that also makes Mancreu perfect for shady business, hence the Black Fleet of illicit ships lurking in the bay: listening stations, offshore hospitals, money laundering operations, drug factories and deniable torture centres. None of which should be a problem, because Lester's brief is to sit tight and turn a blind eye.
But Lester Ferris has made a friend: a brilliant, internet-addled street kid with a comic book fixation who will need a home when the island dies - who might, Lester hopes, become an adopted son. Now, as Mancreu's small society tumbles into violence, the boy needs Lester to be more than just an observer.
In the name of paternal love, Lester Ferris will do almost anything. And he's a soldier with a knack for bad places: 'almost anything' could be a very great deal - even becoming some sort of hero. But this is Mancreu, and everything here is upside down. Just exactly what sort of hero will the boy need? Views: 733
Terrible fate awaits anyone who touches the stolen Sacred Slipper. Terrorism meets foggy London mystery. Views: 732
SOME LAWS YOU BREAK. SOME BREAK YOU.
AND THEN THERE’S CAINE’S LAW.
From the moment Caine first appeared in the pages of Heroes Die, two things were clear. First, that Matthew Stover was one of the most gifted fantasy writers of his generation. And second, that Caine was a hero whose peers go by such names as Conan and Elric. Like them, Caine was something new: a civilized man who embraced savagery, an actor whose life was a lie, a force of destruction so potent that even gods thought twice about crossing him. Now Stover brings back his greatest creation for his most stunning performance yet.
Caine is washed up and hung out to dry, a crippled husk kept isolated and restrained by the studio that exploited him. Now they have dragged him back for one last deal. But Caine has other plans. Those plans take him back to Overworld, the alternate reality where gods are real and magic is the ultimate weapon. There, in a violent odyssey through time and space, Caine will face the demons of his past, find true love, and just possibly destroy the universe.
Hey, it’s a crappy job, but somebody’s got to do it.
From the Trade Paperback edition. Views: 732
What if praise of a work of art affects the way it looks? Does criticism literally destroy a painting?Quantum Critique is a short story that asks the question, Does criticism literally destroy a painting? Views: 732
An evil not seen in hundreds of years has awakened in the highland nation of Badelgard. The Ulfr – the original inhabitants of the land whose evil was matched only by their power over death – stir from their barrows. The dead walk again at the command of an Ulfr witch, and their goddess waits for Her awakening.An evil not seen in hundreds of years has awakened in the highland nation of Badelgard. The Ulfr – the original inhabitants of the land whose evil was matched only by their power over death – stir from their barrows.The dead walk again at the command of an Ulfr witch. The fate of the High King and the possession of the High Throne grow more and more uncertain. Tensions flare between the lowborn commoners and the highborn descendants of the Seven Wardens.In the middle of it all, the lowborn musician Brand Gutlaffson is thrust into a perilous chase thanks to the foolish decisions of his friend, the warrior Gunnar Whoreson. Their midnight flight takes them to the accursed land of Blackfold, where the ancient Ulfr goddess waits for Her awakening.The cold begins to set in. But there is more to fear than darkness and snow in this FELL WINTER.This dark fantasy novel begins the “Ulfr Crisis” trilogy. Views: 732
Born to a noble Breed lineage steeped in exotic ritual and familial duty, vampire warrior Jehan walked away from the luxurious trappings of his upbringing in Morocco to join the Order’s command center in Rome.
But when a generations-old obligation calls Jehan home, the reluctant desert prince finds himself thrust into an unwanted handfasting with Seraphina, an unwilling beauty who’s as determined as he is to resist the antiquated pact between their families.
Yet as intent as they are to prove their incompatibility, neither can deny the attraction that ignites between them. And as Jehan and Seraphina fight to resist the calling of their blood, a deadly enemy seeks to end their uneasy truce before it even begins… Views: 732
This action-packed epic fantasy tells the remarkable adventures of an orphan boy with incredible powers who grows up in the Dark Ages during a brutal world war fought with non-magical wands that shoot fireballs and enable flight, resulting in massive air battles. Mature content makes it unsuitable for little kids. It's more Game of Thrones than Harry Potter.Andi Hampton and her two friends treat themselves to a getaway at a Wyoming guest ranch. It would be their last summer together before college, and Andi's well planned life begins. When she meets ranch wrangler Jake Walker, she begins to wonder if she can pencil in a little bit of love.A short prequel to Alanna's book Retreat Also includes the first chapter of Retreat at the end of the file. Views: 732
