In the very near future, the country is plunged into drought and unrest. Scare resources and constant heat are making life completely miserable. Casey doesn't think she can stand slugging back another gel pack or working one more shift at the wells. Fortunately, there's a solution: anyone over the age of seventeen can sign the Forever Contract and enter a utopian paradise.In the very near future, the country is plunged into drought and unrest. Scare resources and constant heat are making life completely miserable. Casey doesn't think she can stand slugging back another gel pack or working one more shift at the wells. Fortunately, there's a solution: anyone over the age of seventeen can sign the Forever Contract and enter a utopian paradise. While people's minds take a permanent vacation, their bodies get warehoused and hooked up to a complex array of sensors and feeding tubes. As Casey's brother says, "You upload your consciousness to the system and you're free to live as long as you want, however you want. No more pain, no more heat, no more awful dust, no more work. Just pure thought. It's what our species has always been meant for. Suffering is for philosophers. Not for me."Casey's ready to sign--a permanent vacation is just what she needs. There's only one problem: her boyfriend James doesn't trust it.Told from his and her perspectives, The Forever Contract is a 17,000 word (60 page) novella suitable for readers in grade 8 and above.Would you sign the contract? Views: 736
I remembered my name – Mara. But, standing in that ghostly place, faced with the solemn young man in the black coat with silver skulls for buttons, I could recall nothing else about myself.
And then the games began.
The Messenger sees the darkness in young hearts, and the damage it inflicts upon the world. If they go unpunished, he offers the wicked a game. Win, and they can go free. Lose, and they will live out their greatest fear.
But what does any of this have to do with Mara? She is about to find out . . . Views: 736
The spectacular new middle-grade fantasy series from bestselling authors Garth Nix and Sean Williams.
Are you a troubletwister?
Jaide and Jack Shield have a secret. When they're unexpectedly sent to live with their mysterious Grandma X, they're thrust into a world where cats talk and strange weather comes out of nowhere. There they learn that they're troubletwisters, with powers they must use to stop the Evil from taking over our world.
Before, they'd defeated the Evil through luck and intuition. Now though, Jaide and Jack will have to learn how to use their powers, and how to keep on their toes when evil forces return. Views: 736
Melody is not like most people. She cannot walk or talk, but she has a photographic memory; she can remember every detail of everything she has ever experienced. She is smarter than most of the adults who try to diagnose her and smarter than her classmates in her integrated classroom - the very same classmates who dismiss her as mentally challenged because she cannot tell them otherwise. But Melody refuses to be defined by cerebral palsy. And she's determined to let everyone know it - somehow.
In this breakthrough story, reminiscent of The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, from multiple Coretta Scott King Award-winner Sharon Draper, readers will come to know a brilliant mind and a brave spirit who will change forever how they look at anyone with a disability. Views: 736
Gemma thought she had said her good-byes and had felt every possible emotion she could before her soul was detached again. Deep down inside, she hoped she’d never wake up from it because, in her eyes, life without emotion and memories isn’t worth living. But she does wake up and discovers she can still feel and remember everything she experienced over the last few months. Alex is also telling her that everything’s okay, that he didn’t betray her, and that what she thought happened really didn’t. Gemma isn’t sure if she can trust Alex, so she tries to keep her distance from him, even though the electric connection and her desire make it nearly impossible. The only person she can trust is Laylen, but even that becomes complicated when the lines of their friendship begin to blur. While Gemma struggles with her emotions and relationships, she searches for her mother, entering a dangerous world of secrets, seduction, and evil. The further she digs into her mother’s secrets and past, the more she wonders what waits for her at the end of her search and if maybe some things are better left in the dark. Views: 736
Karen and Andrew are going to be in the St. Patrick's Day parade. The parade director is a funny little man dressed all in green. He tells Karen he is a leprechaun.Karen is not sure if she should believe the leprechaun. But Karen loves his tales about rainbows and pots of gold. Could the leprechaun stories be big trouble for Karen? Views: 735
New York Times bestselling author Carrie Ryan and John Parke Davis transport readers back to the boundless world of the Pirate Stream in this engaging and exhilarating sequel to the highly acclaimed The Map to Everywhere that is equal parts adventure, humor, and heart!
When the magical waters of the Pirate Stream begin flooding Marrill's world, the only way to stop the destruction is to return to the Stream and find the source of the mysterious Iron Tide. Reunited with her best friend Fin--who has been forgotten all over again--Marrill, her disbelieving babysitter, and the Enterprising Kraken crew must make the treacherous trek to the towering, sliding, impossible world of Monerva and uncover the secrets of its long-lost wish machine. Only there can Fin wish to finally be remembered. Only there can Marrill wish to save her world and all the people she loves. But to get everything they've ever wanted, Marrill and Fin may have to give up on the most important thing they already have: each other. Views: 735
Sean was a normal seventeen year old boy. When he found an abandoned Britney Spears poster in the hallway, his life seemed complete. But when his poster was stolen, Sean finds himself embarking on an adventure that will test his will and the truth behind ultimate knowledge. One question remains, will he get the girl?In 2001 a story was written that would change the course of history, or at the very least, the course of about seven minutes a fifth hour Creative Writing class in Waseca High School. Ten years later it was revisited by the author. Based on a true story, you can now enjoy the story, as it didn't actually happen. Sean was a normal seventeen year old boy. When he found an abandoned Britney Spears poster in the hallway, his life seemed complete. But when his poster was stolen, Sean finds himself embarking on an adventure that will test his will and the truth behind ultimate knowledge. One question remains, will he get the girl? There's only one way for you to find out. Read "Unlucky" from cover to cover. Or I guess you could skip to the end and find out that way.And one more thing, the premise of this story is based on actual events, however many of the names have been changed, events have been made up and some characters have been completely fabricated. Relax and enjoy the book for what it is. Views: 735
From #1 New York Times bestselling author Brandon Sanderson, the Mistborn series is a heist story of political intrigue and magical, martial-arts action.Three hundred years after the events of the Mistborn trilogy, Scadrial is now on the verge of modernity, with railroads to supplement the canals, electric lighting in the streets and the homes of the wealthy, and the first steel-framed skyscrapers racing for the clouds.Kelsier, Vin, Elend, Sazed, Spook, and the rest are now part of history―or religion. Yet even as science and technology are reaching new heights, the old magics of Allomancy and Feruchemy continue to play a role in this reborn world. Out in the frontier lands known as the Roughs, they are crucial tools for the brave men and women attempting to establish order and justice. One such is Waxillium Ladrian, a rare Twinborn, who can Push on metals with his Allomancy and use Feruchemy to become lighter or heavier at will. After twenty years in the Roughs, Wax has been forced by family tragedy to return to the metropolis of Elendel. Now he must reluctantly put away his guns and assume the duties and dignity incumbent upon the head of a noble house. Or so he thinks, until he learns the hard way that the mansions and elegant tree-lined streets of the city can be even more dangerous than the dusty plains of the Roughs. Other Tor books by Brandon SandersonThe CosmereThe Stormlight ArchiveThe Way of KingsWords of RadianceEdgedancer (Novella)Oathbringer (forthcoming)The Mistborn trilogyMistborn: The Final EmpireThe Well of AscensionThe Hero of AgesMistborn: The Wax and Wayne seriesAlloy of LawShadows of SelfBands of MourningCollectionArcanum UnboundedOther Cosmere novelsElantrisWarbreakerThe Alcatraz vs. the Evil Librarians seriesAlcatraz vs. the Evil LibrariansThe Scrivener\'s BonesThe Knights of CrystalliaThe Shattered LensThe Dark TalentThe Rithmatist seriesThe RithmatistOther books by Brandon SandersonThe ReckonersSteelheartFirefightCalamity Views: 735
A Cinderella who spends her nights as a wolf. A prince with a taste for blood.
Seventeen year old Cydney struggles against her werewolf nature, trying to keep everyone around her safe. No way will she risk exposing the beast at the prince's ball, no matter how her two cousins try to persuade her. As she attempts to carve out some semblance of a life, Cydney can't forget the boy she loved three summers ago - or what she did to him after losing control.
Turned into a vampire to save his life, the prince refuses to live up to his royal duties. He just wants to find the girl he loved and lost...the werewolf girl who bit him. But his father, the king, commands him to attend a ball where he must choose a wife. Can he find his Cinderella before he's forced to marry another? He doesn't even have her real name, much less a glass slipper. Views: 735
Samantha Montgomery of Academy City 676 always dreamed of life outside of school. Sometimes you have to be careful what you wish for. A rogue weapons manufacturer, a ruthless killer, and a schoolgirl converge as a weapon so advanced it defies the laws of physics is a mere breath away from being unleashed on the world. Now it’s up to Sam and some unexpected allies to keep it out of the wrong hands.Set in our world in the near future, Harmonics: Rise of the Magician follows the life of Samantha Montgomery of Academy City 676, a normal primary education girl, and the actions of MESA, a defense contractor responsible for the world's most advanced weaponry. Elsewhere in other parts of the world, the super governments of United Western Collective and the Jade Empire follow the exploits and dealings of the world's most notorious assassin, a man known only as "The Magician". Some consider him a myth, others think of him as a legend, while others still believe he's the world's most brutal slayer of men. Still all look on in awe at any mention of the Magician. With the supposed ability to manipulate his surroundings at will, the world has seen the actions of this man whose purpose and identity remains hidden. They all look for him. The government, the fans, the law enforcement agencies search the world over for him without really knowing how truly dangerous he is...They're about to find out. A school in siege, a weapon so advanced it defies the law of physics, an assassin out for blood, and Samantha caught in the middle. When reality as you know it ceases to be, can you live with the reality yet to come? Join Sam as she discovers for herself how dangerous life outside of school really is. Views: 735
Skip Ralstat is a man so steeped in grief that life seems no longer possible. After the death of his wife and child, Skip blames himself. He has given up his friends, his job, and even his home. Now, homeless, he survives on the mean streets of Albany. He knows he can't go on, that life must end. But will it? Come join Skip on his most unusual road to redemption.Skip Ralstat is a man so steeped in grief and despair that life seems no longer possible. After the death of his wife and child, Skip blames himself. He has given up his friends, his job, and even his home. Now, homeless, he survives on the mean streets of Albany. He knows it can't go on, that life must end. But will it?Come join him on his most unusual road to redemption. The salvation of one life...lies along this road.Let the healing from "The Santa Shop" begin.Come laugh and cry with “Maine’s Other Author”(TM), the master of emotional stories—Tim Greaton. Views: 735
In Revolution, Nadia Lake and Nate Hayes find themselves at the center of a horrifying conspiracy in the action-packed finale of Jenna Black's SF romance series that began with Replica
Paxco has a new ruler.
Dorothy Hayes claims to be the secret daughter of the recently-assassinated Chairman. She also claims that Nate Hayes, the true heir and her supposed brother, was the one who murdered their father.
Nate and his best friend, Nadia Lake, are the only ones who know the truth about what really happened to the Chairman, and more importantly, the truth about Dorothy.
But with Dorothy in power, Nate and Nadia know their days are numbered. They have nowhere to run except the Basement, Paxco's perilous and lawless slums. But Dorothy is far from content with driving her enemies into hiding.
She wants them dead.
At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied. Views: 734
Out West during the reign of Greenley the Third, Renzo, a government biologist specializing in bird counts, isn't aiming to run afoul of the ruthless government he's dutifully serving - but life has a way of taking strange turns, as he's about to find out.Out west in Northam during the reign of Greenley the Third, Renzo's primary job is to count birds. He has no idea that his post was originally set up to protect the bridge down the hill from his cabin. He also has no idea how to deal with the cattle herder who lives across the Snake River from him. Her name is Julia, and she is about to make his life very complicated.Meanwhile, one of the helicopter pilots who brings in supplies has been targeted for death, simply because his co-pilot is hankering to be among the first in this part of the world to get a pilot declared an experson, now that the longterm taboo on depersoning pilots has been lifted. The targeted man is hoping to go underground instead - really underground, into tunnels that house a largely-unknown civilization that's been dodging the topside tyranny for decades.There's a smallish problem. The rising Subterran generations aren't content to stay in the tunnels left to them by their ancestors. They want their land and their bridge back, and - most of all - they want freedom. Views: 734
She has done the unthinkable: died so that she might continue to live. Cast out of Eden and separated from the boy she dared to love, Allie will follow the call of blood to save her creator, Kanin, from the psychotic vampire Sarren. But when the trail leads to Allie's birthplace in New Covington, what Allie finds there will change the world forever—and possibly end human and vampire existence. There's a new plague on the rise, a strain of the Red Lung virus that wiped out most of humanity generations ago—and this strain is deadly to humans and vampires alike. The only hope for a cure lies in the secrets Kanin carries, if Allie can get to him in time. Allison thought that immortality was forever. But now, with eternity itself hanging in the balance, the lines between human and monster will blur even further, and Allie must face another choice she could never have imagined having to make. Views: 734
