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Famous Last Words
by Katie AlenderHollywood history, mystery, murder, mayhem, and delicious romance collide in this unputdownable thriller from master storyteller Katie Alender.Willa is freaking out. It seems like she's seeing things. Like a dead body in her swimming pool. Frantic messages on her walls. A reflection that is not her own. It's almost as if someone -- or something -- is trying to send her a message.Meanwhile, a killer is stalking Los Angeles -- a killer who reenacts famous movie murder scenes. Could Willa's strange visions have to do with these unsolved murders? Or is she going crazy? And who can she confide in? There's Marnie, her new friend who may not be totally trustworthy. And there's Reed, who's ridiculously handsome and seems to get Willa. There's also Wyatt, who's super smart but unhealthily obsessed with the Hollywood Killer.All Willa knows is, she has to confront the possible-ghost in her house, or she just might lose her mind . . . or her life.Acclaimed author Katie Alender puts an unforgettable twist on this spine-chilling tale of murder, mystery, mayhem -- and the movies.
Famous Men of Ancient Times: By The Author Of Peter Parley's Tales (Classics To Go)
by Samuel GoodrichExcerpt: "Confucius - From Famous Men of Ancient Times by S. G. Goodrich.... This greatest of Chinese philosophers was born in the petty kingdom of Lu, now the province of Shantung, in the year 549 B. C.-the same year that Cyrus became king of the Medes and Persians. The Chinese, in their embellishments of his history, tell us that his birth was attended with heavenly music, filling the air; that two dragons were seen winding over the roof; that five old men appeared at the door, and after consulting together, suddenly vanished; and that a unicorn brought to his mother a tablet in his mouth. It is also related that when he was born, five characters were seen on his breast, declaring him to be "the maker of a rule for settling the world." These and other marvels are a part of the established biography of the philosopher, as received by the Chinese...."
The Fandom (Chicken House Novels Ser. #1)
by Anna DayA compulsively readable and clever YA mix of fantasy and contemporary, it’s Inkheart meets Kill the Boy Band, for fans of Patrick Ness and Rainbow Rowell!Violet is in her element. Cosplay at the ready, she can’t wait to feel part of her favorite fandom: The Gallows Dance, a mega book and movie franchise that she and her friends know EVERY WORD of (canon and fanfic included). But at Comic Con, a freak accident transports Violet and her friends into the story for real. And in just the first five minutes, they cause the death of the heroine, and get taken prisoner by the rebel group she was supposed to lead to victory. It’s up to Violet to take her place, and play out the plot the way it was written. But stories have a life of their own, and when you change the script in one place, the rest gets revised too . . .“An absolute thrill to read. Turning so many conventions on their head, Day gives us a story that can make you rethink the world, make you laugh, and make you bite your fingernails off, all while falling in love with her characters. Highly recommended!” —James Dashner, #1 New York Times–bestselling author of The Maze Runner“A glorious epic to fan culture . . . for fans of Fangirl and Caraval.” —BuzzFeed“Day’s debut novel blends the joy of falling in love and the stark terror of actually becoming part of a fictional world, with no idea how to return home.” —Publishers Weekly
Fandom: Fic Writers, Vidders, Gamers, Artists, and Cosplayers
by Francesca Davis DiPiazzaHave you ever finished a book or TV series and wished for more? Created stories, art, or videos based on a game? Dressed up as your favorite character? If so, you've entered fandom. Fan writers expand and mix up stories, like sending the Star Trek crew to Hogwarts. Cosplayers sew Star Wars and Sailor Moon costumes, and fan filmmakers make music video tributes. Fans also enrich invented worlds with greater diversity, creating female and multiracial avatars for games peopled only with white male characters. Tour fandom's history and meet fan writers, video-makers, artists, costumers, and gamers who celebrate the things they love and shape fan communities online and in real life.
Fang: A Maximum Ride Novel (Maximum Ride #6)
by James PattersonBeing a kid with wings--constantly on the run--has never been easy, and Max and her flock are getting tenser than ever. First, on a trip to Africa, they meet a mysterious billionaire whose intense scrutiny of the flock makes her fear the worst. Then, a cryptic message from a young girl arrives, warning them "The sky will fall." And as if an impending apocalypse weren't bad enough, canny birdkid Angel makes a dire prophecy about Max's soul mate: Fang will be the first to die.Max's desperate desire to protect Fang brings the two closer than ever. But can the team weather the storm, or will the turmoil rip them apart for the last time?
Fang Girl
by Helen KeebleSure, the idea of vampires is sexy, but who actually dreams of spending eternity as a pasty, bloodthirsty fifteen-year-old? Not me. Unfortunately, the somewhat psychotic vampire who turned me into a bloodsucker didn't bother to ask first. Now I'm dealing with parents who want me to vamp them, a younger brother who's convinced I'm a zombie, and a seriously ripped vampire hunter who either wants to stake me or make out with me. Not sure which. Oh and PS, none of my favorite fanfic prepared me to deal with vampire politics—which are looking pretty tricky based on the undead Elder trying to hunt me down. What's a vampire-obsessed fangirl turned real-life fanggirl supposed to do?
Fangirl
by Rainbow RowellIn Rainbow Rowell's Fangirl, Cath is a Simon Snow fan. Okay, the whole world is a Simon Snow fan, but for Cath, being a fan is her life-and she's really good at it. She and her twin sister, Wren, ensconced themselves in the Simon Snow series when they were just kids; it's what got them through their mother leaving. Reading. Rereading. Hanging out in Simon Snow forums, writing Simon Snow fan fiction, dressing up like the characters for every movie premiere. Cath's sister has mostly grown away from fandom, but Cath can't let go. She doesn't want to. Now that they're going to college, Wren has told Cath she doesn't want to be roommates. Cath is on her own, completely outside of her comfort zone. She's got a surly roommate with a charming, always-around boyfriend, a fiction-writing professor who thinks fan fiction is the end of the civilized world, a handsome classmate who only wants to talk about words . . . <P>And she can't stop worrying about her dad, who's loving and fragile and has never really been alone. For Cath, the question is: Can she do this? Can she make it without Wren holding her hand? Is she ready to start living her own life? And does she even want to move on if it means leaving Simon Snow behind? <br><b> A New York Times Best Seller!</b>
Fangirl
by Rainbow RowellLa deliciosa y emotiva historia de una nerd destinada a la grandeza... Cath y Wren son gemelas idénticas, y hasta hace poco lo hacían absolutamente todo juntas. Ahora están a la universidad. Wren le ha dejado claro que no piensa compartir habitación con ella. Para Wren es una oportunidad única de empezar de cero y conocer gente. Para Cath no es tan fácil. Es terriblemente tímida. Su único mundo es ser fan de Simon Snow, donde ella se siente a gusto, donde siempre sabe exactamente qué decir y donde puede escribir un romance mucho más intenso que cualquier cosa que haya experimentado en la vida real. Sin Wren, Cath se siente completamente sola, fuera de su zona de confort. Tiene una compañera de cuarto antipática, siempre acompañada de su atractivo novio, un profesor de escritura que piensa que el fan fiction es el fin del mundo civilizado, un guapo compañero de clase, que sólo quiere hablar de palabras...Y además no puede dejar de preocuparse por su padre, que es amoroso y frágil y nunca ha estado realmente solo. Ahora Cath tiene que decidir si está dispuesta a abrir su corazón a los nuevos amigos y a las nuevas experiencias, y se está dando cuenta de que hay mucho más que aprender sobre el amor de lo que nunca creyó posible. Reseñas: «Conmovedora. Absolutamente real.»Publisher's Weekly «Absolutamente cautivadora.»Kirkus Reviews «Los diálogos realmente auténticos, una notable empatía con los adolescentes, un retrato honesto de los jóvenes y el primer amor ofrecen una lectura fascinante.»Lancashire Evening Post «Una novela divertida, triste, inteligente y entretenida.»Armadillo Magazine «Una delicia para los adolescentes en la búsqueda del primer amor... lo suficientemente inteligente como para mantenerles leyendo.»The Daily Telegraph
Fangirl: Eleanor And Park, Fangirl, Carry On
by Rainbow RowellLos meses son diferentes en la universidad, especialmente el primer año. Suceden demasiadas cosas. Cada mes del primer año equivale a seis meses normales: son como meses de perros. Cath y Wren son hermanas gemelas y son fanáticas de la serie Simon Snow desde que su madre se fue. Pasan el tiempo en los foros escribiendo sobre la serie, así como caracterizándose de los personajes. Un buen día, Wren decide dejar atrás la serie y empezar una nueva vida en la universidad, ir a fiestas, divertirse y no ser la compañera de cuarto de su hermana. Cath por su parte se siente sola, aislada, con amigos literarios, pero sin amigos en realidad, lo cual quiere cambiar. Pero cambiar implica dejar de hacer fanfiction, dejar atrás Simon Snow, vivir sin la presencia de su hermana, buscar su identidad y empezar a ser ella misma. ¿Será posible para Cath?, ¿cómo podrá enfrentarse a su nueva realidad sin sus compañeros de siempre? Un libro lleno de cuestionamientos, donde la fraternidad y el amor a sí mismo y al otro son los generadores de cambios. * La autora está en el número 13 de la lista de Book Teen de Amazon. * Su libro Eleanor & Park fue considerado uno de los diez mejores libros de ficción para jóvenes en 2014 por YALSA (Young Adult Library Services Association). * Entertainment Weekly anunció que los estudios Dreamworks compraron los derechos para producir una película sobre Eleanor & Park, novela anterior de la autora, que está a cargo del guion inicial. El lanzamiento se prevé para 2015. * Fangirl aborda temas como las relaciones amorosas, el abandono, las enfermedades psicológicas, el impacto de las acciones de los padres en los hijos, la madurez psicológica, el alcoholismo; todos temas de interés para los jóvenes lectores. La crítica ha dicho...«Una deliciosa, cálida y poderosa balada de una nerd destinada a la grandeza.» New York Journal of Books «Absolutamente cautivadora.» Kirkus Reviews «Una divertida y tierna historia de iniciación que a la vez es la historia de una escritora encontrando su voz.» Publishers Weekly «Rowell logra captar tanto el popular universo del fanfic como la mentalidad de una joven de 18 años. Me considero una fangirl de esta encantadora historia de iniciación.» Entertainment Weekly «Tan divertida como embarazosa, y tan encantadora como fiel a la realidad de los frikis... Fangirl es lectura linda y conmovedora para fangirls y fanboys de todas las edades.» Tor.com «Fangirl cuenta con una historia original, una protagonista que enfrenta un duro despertar en el mundo ’, un romance que se construye paso a paso y que me tuvo suspirando en los momentos más inesperados. Recomendado para quienes disfrutaron del estilo de Rainbow Rowellen E&P o que simplemente disfrutan de las novelas juveniles que no están cargadas de dramas ni protagonistas que caen en el estigma del chico malo. Los chicos buenos que trabajan en Starbucks pueden ser incluso mejores.» Mi realidad de tinta/blog
Fangirl
by Rainbow RowellIn Rainbow Rowell's Fangirl, Cath is a Simon Snow fan. Okay, the whole world is a Simon Snow fan, but for Cath, being a fan is her life--and she's really good at it. She and her twin sister, Wren, ensconced themselves in the Simon Snow series when they were just kids; it's what got them through their mother leaving. Reading. Rereading. Hanging out in Simon Snow forums, writing Simon Snow fan fiction, dressing up like the characters for every movie premiere. Cath's sister has mostly grown away from fandom, but Cath can't let go. She doesn't want to. Now that they're going to college, Wren has told Cath she doesn't want to be roommates. Cath is on her own, completely outside of her comfort zone. She's got a surly roommate with a charming, always-around boyfriend, a fiction-writing professor who thinks fan fiction is the end of the civilized world, a handsome classmate who only wants to talk about words . . . And she can't stop worrying about her dad, who's loving and fragile and has never really been alone. For Cath, the question is: Can she do this? Can she make it without Wren holding her hand? Is she ready to start living her own life? Writing her own stories? And does she even want to move on if it means leaving Simon Snow behind?
The Fangirl's Guide to the Galaxy: A Handbook for Geek Girls
by Sam MaggsFanfic, cosplay, cons, books, memes, podcasts, vlogs, OTPs and RPGs and MMOs and more--it's never been a better time to be a girl geek. <P><P>The Fangirl's Guide to the Galaxy is the ultimate handbook for ladies living the nerdy life, a fun and feminist take on the often male-dominated world of geekdom. <P><P>With delightful illustrations and an unabashed love for all the in(ternet)s and outs of geek culture, this book is packed with tips, playthroughs, and cheat codes, including: <br>* How to make nerdy friends <br>* How to rock awesome cosplay <br>* How to write fanfic with feels <br>* How to defeat Internet trolls <br>* How to attend your first conAnd more! <P><P>Plus, insightful interviews with fangirl faves, like Jane Espenson, Erin Morgenstern, Kate Beaton, Ashley Eckstein, Laura Vandervoort, Beth Revis, Kate Leth, and many others.
The Fangirl's Guide to the Universe: A Handbook for Girl Geeks
by Sam MaggsFrom notable geek girl Sam Maggs, The Fangirl's Guide to the Universe is the ultimate handbook for teens living the nerdy life. Fandom, pop culture, feminism, cosplay, cons, books, memes, podcasts, vlogs, OTPs and RPGs and MMOs and more—there&’s never been a better time to be a fangirl, or a better guide to navigate the wide universe of fandoms. This handbook is packed with tips, playthroughs, and cheat codes, including:· How to make nerdy friends· How to rock cosplay· How to write fanfic with feels· How to defeat internet trolls· How to attend your first con And more! Featuring wisdom from Sam and insightful interviews with fangirl faves like Danielle Paige, Rainbow Rowell, and Preeti Chhibber, The Fangirl&’s Guide to the Universe highlights the joys of fandom community and offers a fun, feminist take on the often male-dominated world of geekdom. This refreshed edition updates The Fangirl&’s Guide to the Galaxy including new interviews.
Fannie Never Flinched: One Woman's Courage in the Struggle for American Labor Union Rights
by Mary Cronk FarrellFannie Sellins (1872–1919) lived during the Gilded Age of American Industrialization, when the Carnegies and Morgans wore jewels while their laborers wore rags. Fannie dreamed that America could achieve its ideals of equality and justice for all, and she sacrificed her life to help that dream come true. Fannie became a union activist, helping to create St. Louis, Missouri, Local 67 of the United Garment Workers of America. She traveled the nation and eventually gave her life, calling for fair wages and decent working and living conditions for workers in both the garment and mining industries. Her accomplishments live on today. This book includes an index, glossary, a timeline of unions in the United States, and endnotes.
Fantasma (Track #1)
by Jason ReynoldsNow available in Spanish! A National Book Award Finalist for Young People&’s Literature Nominated as one of America&’s best-loved novels by PBS&’s The Great American Read Ghost wants to be the fastest sprinter on his elite middle school track team, but his past is slowing him down in this first electrifying novel of the acclaimed Track series from Newbery honoree Jason Reynolds.Ghost. Lu. Patina. Sunny. Four kids from wildly different backgrounds with personalities that are explosive when they clash. But they are also four kids chosen for an elite middle school track team—a team that could qualify them for the Junior Olympics if they can get their acts together. They all have a lot to lose, but they also have a lot to prove, not only to each other, but to themselves. Running. That&’s all Ghost (real name Castle Cranshaw) has ever known. But Ghost has been running for the wrong reasons—it all started with running away from his father, who, when Ghost was a very little boy, chased him and his mother through their apartment, then down the street, with a loaded gun, aiming to kill. Since then, Ghost has been the one causing problems—and running away from them—until he meets Coach, an ex-Olympic Medalist who sees something in Ghost: crazy natural talent. If Ghost can stay on track, literally and figuratively, he could be the best sprinter in the city. Can Ghost harness his raw talent for speed, or will his past finally catch up to him?
Far From The Madding Crowd
by Thomas HardyGabriel Oak is an up-and-coming shepherd in the prime of life at twenty-eight years of age. With the savings of a frugal life, he has leased and stocked a sheep-farm. He falls in love with a newcomer eight years younger, Bathsheba Everdene, a proud and somewhat vain young beauty. She comes to like him well enough.
Far from Over: A Love, Lucy Novella
by April LindnerA captivating digital original companion novella to April Lindner's Love, Lucy.Jesse Palladino is used to moving on. As a street musician backpacking through Europe, he's never in one place for long. Which is why it's so surprising he can't seem to move on from Lucy, the girl he fell for in Florence. They parted ways when Lucy returned home to start college, but every crowded piazza and winding cobblestone street reminds Jesse of the time they spent together. Now staying with a friend in Naples, he can't help wondering if it's time to pack up and move on again. But just when his mind is made up, something--or someone--might give him a reason to stay. ~13,600 words
Far From Shore
by Kevin MajorFaced with instability on many sides, and living in an outport community in Newfoundland, fifteen-year-old Chris gropes for direction in a family broken apart by unemployment. Even his easy-going, humorous attitude fails to steady him as he stumbles through the summer after grade ten. He's failed his year, he can't find a summer job, and he's incredibly bored. So the first thing he heads for is trouble -- trouble that ends in a confrontation with the law. Work as a counselor at a summer camp offers the challenge of a fresh start, but it is here, amid new responsibilities, that he encounters his toughest test as a young man. Winner of the first Canadian Young Adult Book Award and named a Best Book of the Year by School Library Journal, Far from Shore was hailed as a unique and innovative novel when it was first published. As he has done throughout his career, Kevin Major broke new ground by tackling a multinarrative structure in a young adult novel -- an approach much imitated since but never more convincingly.
Far From the Madding Crowd
by Thomas HardyBathsheba Everdene, living in the quiet rural village of Weatherbury, is indeed disrupted by the 'madding crowd'. After shunning the first man to love her, the shepherd Gabriel Oak, she is courted by two others: the lonely and repressed farmer Boldwood, and the charming but faithless Sergeant Troy.
Far from the Madding Crowd: Revised Edition Of Original Version (Classics To Go)
by Thomas HardyGabriel Oak is a young shepherd. With the savings of a frugal life, and a loan, he has leased and stocked a sheep-farm. He falls in love with a newcomer eight years his junior, Bathsheba Everdene, a proud beauty who arrives to live with her aunt, Mrs. Hurst. She comes to like him well enough, and even saves his life once, but when he makes her an unadorned offer of marriage, she refuses; she values her independence too much and him too little. Gabriel's blunt protestations only serve to drive her to haughtiness. After a few days, she moves to Weatherbury, a village some miles off. When next they meet, their circumstances have changed drastically. An inexperienced new sheep dog drives Gabriel's flock over a cliff, ruining him. After selling off everything of value, he manages to settle all his debts, but emerges penniless. He seeks employment at a work fair in the town of Casterbridge, (a fictionalised version of Dochester). When he finds none, he heads to another fair in Shottsford, a town about ten miles from Weatherbury. On the way, he happens upon a dangerous fire on a farm and leads the bystanders in putting it out. When the veiled owner comes to thank him, he asks if she needs a shepherd. She uncovers her face and reveals herself to be none other than Bathsheba. She has recently inherited the estate of her uncle and is now a wealthy woman. Though somewhat uncomfortable, she hires him. Meanwhile, Bathsheba has a new admirer: the lonely and repressed William Boldwood. Boldwood is a prosperous farmer of about forty whose ardour Bathsheba unwittingly awakens when – her curiosity piqued because he has never bestowed on her the customary admiring glance – she playfully sends him a valentine sealed with red wax on which she has embossed the words "Marry me". Boldwood, not realising the valentine was a jest, becomes obsessed with Bathsheba, and soon proposes marriage. Although she does not love him, she toys with the idea of accepting his offer; he is, after all, the most eligible bachelor in the district. However, she postpones giving him a definite answer. When Gabriel rebukes her for her thoughtlessness, she fires him. When her sheep begin dying from bloat, she discovers to her chagrin that Gabriel is the only man who knows how to cure them. Her pride delays the inevitable, but finally she is forced to beg him for help. Afterwards, she offers him back his job and their friendship is restored... (Excerpt from Wikipedia)
Far from the Madding Crowd: The 1874 Thomas Hardy's Fourth Novel (Ubspd's World Classics Ser.)
by Thomas HardyThomas Hardy&’s classic tale of a woman brave enough to defy convention: Now a major motion picture starring Carey Mulligan Spirited, impulsive, and beautiful, Bathsheba Everdene arrives in Wessex to live with her aunt. She strikes up a friendship with a neighbor, Gabriel Oak, and even saves the young shepherd&’s life. But when he responds by asking for her hand in marriage, she refuses. She cannot sacrifice her independence for a man she does not love. Years later, misfortune has bankrupted Gabriel, while Bathsheba has inherited her uncle&’s estate and is now a wealthy woman. She hires Gabriel as a shepherd but is interested in William Boldwood, a prosperous farmer whose reticence inspires her to playfully send him a valentine. William, like Gabriel before him, quickly falls in love with Bathsheba and proposes. But it is the dashing Sergeant Francis Troy who finally wins her heart. Despite the warnings of her first two suitors, Bathsheba accepts his proposal—a decision that brings long-buried secrets to the fore and leaves everything for which she has fought so hard hanging in the balance. Published a century and a half ago, Far from the Madding Crowd was Thomas Hardy&’s first major success and introduced the themes he would continue to explore for the rest of his life. A love story wrapped in the cloak of tragedy, it is widely considered to be one of the finest novels of the nineteenth century. This ebook has been professionally proofread to ensure accuracy and readability on all devices.
Far From the Madding Crowd
by Thomas HardyThe novel that first brought Thomas Hardy real success, it is a love-letter to rural English life, unafraid to show both its hardships and its beauty. Bathsheba, the story's heroine, inherits the family farm at the start of the novel, and is forced to navigate both the challenges presented by her work and by the multiple men in her life - neither easy for a woman at that time. In addition to being a classic of Victorian literature, it has been called an early feminist novel, thanks to the resilience, independence, and depth shown by Bathsheba, and for its negative depiction of the sufferings of women rendered powerless by law and custom. Penguin Random House Canada is proud to bring you classic works of literature in e-book form, with the highest quality production values. Find more today and rediscover books you never knew you loved.
Far from the Madding Crowd
by Pan Zador Thomas HardyAn earthy tale of country loving in 1870s England; Bathsheba Everdene is that unusual combination - a beautiful young woman who is also mistress of her own farm. Proposals of marriage are not long in coming, but with her lack of experience in judging men, how can she possibly choose between the solid young shepherd Gabriel Oak, the dignified squire Farmer Boldwood, or the dashing sergeant of Hussars, Francis Troy?Now with added explicit scenes of seduction, shameless pursuit, and solitary frustration - as we follow Bathsheba's initiation into physical love.Sensuality Level: Sensual
Far From You
by Tess SharpeThe truth won't let her go.Sophie Winters nearly died. Twice. The first time, she's fourteen, and escapes a near-fatal car accident with scars, a bum leg, and an addiction to Oxy that'll take years to kick. The second time, she's seventeen, and it's no accident. Sophie and her best friend Mina are confronted by a masked man in the woods. Sophie survives, but Mina is not so lucky. When the cops deem Mina's murder a drug deal gone wrong, casting partial blame on Sophie, no one will believe the truth: Sophie has been clean for months, and it was Mina who led her into the woods that night for a meeting shrouded in mystery. After a forced stint in rehab, Sophie returns home to a chilly new reality. Mina's brother won't speak to her, her parents fear she'll relapse, old friends have become enemies, and Sophie has to learn how to live without her other half. To make matters worse, no one is looking in the right places and Sophie must search for Mina's murderer on her own. But with every step, Sophie comes closer to revealing all: about herself, about Mina---and about the secret they shared.
Far Rockaway
by Charlie FletcherCat Manno and her grandfather Victor made a pact that one day, just for the hell of it, they'd take the subway and stay on the A-train until the very end of the line where the last narrow spit of land runs out into the ocean at Far Rockaway. This isn't that day.On the first page Cat is knocked down by a speeding fire truck whilst crossing 55th St and 3rd Ave in Central Manhattan. She wakes up in a world made from all the books her grandfather used to read to her, peopled by some of the most memorable heroes of classic adventure fiction, brought vividly back to life. Cat must earn their friendship and help as she begins an odyssey and epic quest to find the mythic Castle at the World's End. And the name of that distant, mythic, wave-tumbled fastness? It is, of course, the castle of Far Rockaway ...If you enjoy reading good books; swashbuckling adventures with sword fights and pirates - then Far Rockaway is the book for you. Join Cat as she embarks on the journey of a lifetime ...
The Far West (Frontier Magic)
by Patricia C. WredeFrom #1 New York Times bestselling author Patricia C. Wrede, the fantastic conclusion to her tale of magic on the western frontier.Eff is an unlucky thirteenth child...but also the seventh daughter in her family. Her twin brother, Lan, is a powerful double seventh son. Her life at the edge of the Great Barrier Spell is different from anyone else's that she knows.When the government forms an expedition to map the Far West, Eff has the opportunity to travel farther than anyone in the world. With Lan, William, Professor Torgeson, Wash, and Professor Ochiba, Eff finds that nothing on the wild frontier is as they expected. There are strange findings in their research, a long prarie winter spent in too-close quarters, and more new species, magical and otherwise, dangerous and benign, than they ever expected to find. And then spring comes, and the explorers realize how tenuous life near the Great Barrier Spell may be if they don't find a way to stop a magical flood in a hurry. Eff's unique way of viewing magic has saved the settlers time and again, but this time all of Columbia is at stake if she should fail.