The Gameshouse is an unusual institution.
Many know it as the place where fortunes can be made and lost though games of chess, backgammon - every game under the sun.
But a select few, who are picked to compete in the higher league, know that some games are played for higher stakes - those of politics and empires, of economics and kings . . .
And now, the ultimate player is about to step forward. Views: 1 100
The Gameshouse is an unusual institution.
Many know it as the place where fortunes can be made and lost through games of chess, backgammon - every game under the sun.
But a select few, who are picked to compete in the higher league, know that some games are played for higher stakes - those of politics and empires, of economics and kings . . .
In 1930s Bangkok, one higher league player has just been challenged to a game of hide and seek. The board is all of Thailand - and the seeker may use any means possible to hunt down his quarry - be it police, government, strangers or even spies . . . Views: 983
Some stories cannot be told in just one lifetime. Harry August is on his deathbed. Again.
No matter what he does or the decisions he makes, when death comes, Harry always returns to where he began, a child with all the knowledge of a life he has already lived a dozen times before. Nothing ever changes.
Until now.
As Harry nears the end of his eleventh life, a little girl appears at his bedside. "I nearly missed you, Doctor August," she says. "I need to send a message."
This is the story of what Harry does next, and what he did before, and how he tries to save a past he cannot change and a future he cannot allow. Views: 941
A powerful tale of revenge, betrayal, mystery, love and power that sweeps from the troubles of Northern Ireland in the 80's to the Middle East and the the UK today. A powerful Arab sheikh lands in the UK with an agenda that appeals to the UK elite. But those who are drawn to him soon find themselves ensnared in series of revelations and an agenda that sets the clock ticking towards Guy Fawkes Day.An explosive story of revenge, betrayal, return, mystery, love and power. When the millionaire Prince Omar Al Ajnabi from the tiny oil rich state of Ramliyya arrives in the UK to launch a programme of investment ventures, he is quickly welcomed to the bosom of British high society. Young British Oxford student Sophie Palmer is not the only individual to fall into the enigmatic sheikh’s maw who quickly finds herself ensnared in a web of political intrigue and painful revelations of the past that stretch back to the troubles of Northern Ireland and forward to a day of countdown and reckoning as the clocktower of Big Ben ticks towards midnight on the 5th of November: Guy Fawkes Day. Views: 798
In 17th Century Venice exists a mysterious establishment known only as the Gameshouse.
There, fortunes are made and fortunes are broken over games of chess, backgammon and every other game under the sun.
But those whom fortune favours may be invited to compete in the higher league... a league where the games played are of politics and empires, of economics and kings. It is a league where Capture the Castle involves real castles, where hide and seek takes place on a scale as big as the British Isles.
Not everyone proves worthy of competing in the higher league. But one woman, who is about to play, may just exceed everyone's expectations.
Though she must always remember: the higher the stakes, the more deadly the rules... Views: 760
Listen.
All the world forgets me. First my face, then my voice, then the consequences of my deeds.
So listen. Remember me.
My name is Hope Arden, and you won't know who I am. We've met before - a thousand times. But I am the girl the world forgets.
It started when I was sixteen years old. A slow declining, an isolation, one piece at a time.
A father forgetting to drive me to school. A mother setting the table for three, not four. A teacher who forgets to chase my missing homework. A friend who looks straight through me and sees a stranger.
No matter what I do, the words I say, the people I hurt, the crimes I commit - you will never remember who I am.
That makes my life tricky. But it also makes me dangerous . . .
The Sudden Appearance of Hope is the tale of the girl no one remembers. But this gripping story – of love and loss, of hope and despair, of living in the moment and dying to leave a mark – is novel that will stay with you for ever. Views: 697
A hauntingly powerful novel about how the choices we make can stay with us forever, by the award-winning author of The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August and 84K.South Africa in the 1880s. A young and naive English doctor by the name of William Abbey witnesses the lynching of a local boy by the white colonists. As the child dies, his mother curses William. William begins to understand what the curse means when the shadow of the dead boy starts following him across the world. It never stops, never rests. It can cross oceans and mountains. And if it catches him, the person he loves most in the world will die.Gripping, moving, and utterly thought-provoking, this novel proves once again that Claire North is one of the most innovative voices in modern fiction.Previous books by Claire North:The First Fifteen Lives of Harry AugustTouchThe Sudden Appearance of HopeThe End of the... Views: 695
What if your life were defined by a number?
What if any crime could be committed without punishment, so long as you could afford to pay the fee assigned to that crime?
Theo works in the Criminal Audit Office. He assesses each crime that crosses his desk and makes sure the correct debt to society is paid in full.
But when Theo's ex-lover Dani is killed, it's different. This is one death he can't let become merely an entry on a balance sheet.
Because when the richest in the world are getting away with murder, sometimes the numbers just don't add up. Views: 599
Kepler had never meant to die this way — viciously beaten to death by a stinking vagrant in a dark back alley. But when reaching out to the murderer for salvation in those last dying moments, a sudden switch takes place.
Now Kepler is looking out through the eyes of the killer himself, staring down at a broken and ruined body lying in the dirt of the alley.
Instead of dying, Kepler has gained the ability to roam from one body to another, to jump into another person’s skin and see through their eyes, live their life — be it for a few minutes, a few months or a lifetime.
Kepler means these host bodies no harm — and even comes to cherish them intimately like lovers. But when one host, Josephine Cebula, is brutally assassinated, Kepler embarks on a mission to seek the truth — and avenge Josephine’s death. Views: 582
After an absence of over twenty years, Brian Wood returns to Kenya with his autistic son bringing a football betting gospel that offers financial salvation to Kenya's poor. But as he embarks on an epic road trip all over the bush, a bittersweet story of love and sadness unfolds, leaving Brian to show just how far one man will go for love of his son.After an absence of over twenty years, Brian Wood returns to Kenya with his autistic son on a twofold mission. He brings with him a football betting system that soon spreads like wildfire among Kenya’s poor, providing hope, joy and upheaval in equal measure to every part of the country. But Brian has secrets with him too, and there are friends from the past and new acquaintances that could complicate his plans. While Brian and his son embark on an epic road trip around Kenya, a bittersweet tale of love, sadness, joy and regret unfolds as Brian shows just how far one man will go for the love of his son. Views: 495
The World Fantasy Award-winning author of The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August presents a mesmerizing tale of a gambling house whose deadly games of chance and skill control the fate of empires.Everyone has heard of the Gameshouse. But few know all its secrets...It is the place where fortunes can be made and lost through chess, backgammon - every game under the sun.But those whom fortune favors may be invited to compete in the higher league... a league where the games played are of politics and empires, of economics and kings. It is a league where Capture the Castle involves real castles, where hide and seek takes place on the scale of a continent.Among those worthy of competing in the higher league, three unusually talented contestants play for the highest stakes of all...This novel was originally published as three digital-only novellas: The Serpent, The Thief, and The Master. Previous books... Views: 483
"ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS I'VE READ IN RECENT YEARS. THOUGHT PROVOKING, IMAGINATIVE AND PACKS A HELL OF AN EMOTIONAL PUNCH." —Adrian Tchaikovsky, author of Children of TimeFrom one of the most imaginative writers of her generation comes an extraordinary vision of the future...Ven was once a holy man, a keeper of ancient archives. It was his duty to interpret archaic texts, sorting useful knowledge from the heretical ideas of the Burning Age—a time of excess and climate disaster. For in Ven's world, such material must be closely guarded so that the ills that led to that cataclysmic era can never be repeated.But when the revolutionary Brotherhood approaches Ven, pressuring him to translate stolen writings that threaten everything he once held dear, his life will be turned upside down. Torn between friendship and faith, Ven must decide how far he's willing to go to save this new world—and how much he is willing to lose. Views: 279
From the bestselling and award-winning author of The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August and 84K, a darkly inventive novella about the dangers of pursuing perfection.Harmony is tired. Tired of working so hard, tired of the way she looks, tired of being average. But all that changes when she decides to splash out and upgrade her nanos. And why not? Everyone's doing it now. With a simple in-app purchase, you can update the tech in your bloodstream to transform yourself - get enhanced brain power, the perfect body or a dazzling smile. Suddenly, everything starts going right for her. She's finally becoming the person she always wanted to be.But as Harmony will find out, there's a limit to how many upgrades a body can take . . . Previous books by Claire North:The First Fifteen Lives of Harry AugustTouchThe Sudden Appearance of HopeThe End of the... Views: 259
