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The Baby in the Icebox: And Other Short Fiction
by James M. CainA collection of stories, both early and late, that show how Mystery Writers of America Grand Master James M. Cain made his name There is a hungry tiger loose in the house, and that is not good news for anyone. A jealous husband let the animal out of his cage hoping he would eat his wife alive, but tigers aren&’t used to taking orders. This jungle cat will get his meal, and he doesn&’t care where it comes from. &“The Baby in the Icebox&” begins with a murdered wildcat and ends with a dead human—and what comes in between is some of the most striking prose James M. Cain ever put to paper. It is one of the first stories this master of crime fiction ever wrote, and it shows all the hallmarks of the novels that would later make him famous—namely Double Indemnity and The Postman Always Rings Twice. The tales in this collection are short, but Cain never needed more than a few pages to thrill.
Code Red
by Ben BaldwinAn agent finds himself dealing with a murder, a missing body, and a mole in this action-packed international thriller . . . Twelve months ago, maverick government officer Sam Taylor was shot and left for dead while investigating a black-market organization. Now his shooter, a mysterious and beautiful agent, has been found dead in Amsterdam. Sent to identify the body, Sam is reunited with old acquaintances—and introduced to a new one: Interpol agent Karl Vogt, leader of the investigation and a man with his own agenda. But as the group enter the mortuary, they find the body has vanished . . . Back at the station, Sam begins to receive mysterious messages that turn the investigation on its head. Knowing how much is riding on the case, he heads for the Dutch countryside, where he meets an unexpected ally. And when Sam discovers there is a mole working on the inside, he resolves to help take them down. But when national security is on the line, who can he really trust?
Damaged Goods: A Stanley Moodrow Novel (The Stanley Moodrow Crime Novels #6)
by Stephen SolomitaA psychotic killer released from jail begins a spree that only Moodrow can stopEven Jilly Sappone knows they should never have let him out. Ever since a bullet fragment embedded itself in his brain, he has been prone to uncontrollable rages. Opiates help dull his anger, but only blood can make it go away. When the parole board makes the mistake of freeing him, Jilly knows it&’s only a matter of time before he goes back behind bars. Until then, he plans on having some fun. He starts by visiting his ex-wife, and leaving with his four-year-old daughter. The police have no hope of getting the girl back alive, so the mother turns to Stanley Moodrow, an ex-cop turned private investigator whose bulky frame conceals a fury that can nearly match the kidnapper&’s. With the help of his new partner, Ginny Gadd, Moodrow will do what no prison ever could: break Jilly Sappone.
A Private Mythology: Poems
by May SartonStunning reflections chronicling a journey both spiritual and physical by May Sarton, one of America&’s most beloved poetsIn celebration of her fiftieth birthday, May Sarton embarked on a pilgrimage around the world. Traveling through Japan, India, and Greece, she captured her spiritual discoveries in this vivid collection of poetry. Arresting images and meditations on the differences between East and West are rendered with the exceptional clarity of an accomplished artist.Winner of the Emily Clark Balch Prize.
Soloing: Realizing Your Life's Ambition
by Harriet RubinSoloing has two meanings: "going it alone" and being "complete in yourself." . . . But you don't just leave--a company/a career/a paycheck--and cross over to a more satisfying life. There's more to it. There is a mysterious passage to be negotiated, a delicate transition required to go from alone-in-the-desert to complete-in-yourself.Harriet Rubin, bestselling author of The Princessa: Machiavelli for Women, returns with inspiring advice for professionals dreaming of crossing over from a corporate world of prescribed boundaries to the limitless opportunities of soloing. She describes how people can do great things--things they would never be able to accomplish inside the corporate structure--when they manage or lead no one.As one successfully navigates the passage toward a truer sense of self that Rubin describes, four invaluable freedoms await:The first freedom is regaining your sense of identity.Walk out of any big company and who are you, stripped of that mighty identity? Potentially bigger and better than before. Who were you before the corporate you? To get back one's sense of self is why people go solo.The second freedom is independence.Why is working alone so important in doing great work, given that it's also the scariest part? Imagine having complete command and control over your time and the work you do. This is how soloists realize their great strengths: They are reduced to themselves.The third freedom is income.You can earn in one year what you earned in two before. Do you work harder to do this? Yes. Do you enjoy it more? Yes. Solo money is alive. Unlike a salary doled out like an allowance from parents, the money earned by soloing is a true emblem of a person's worth.The fourth freedom is illumination.A professional builds a career, but a soloist builds a portfolio and a life free of boredom, full of challenge. Direct contact with work itself is direct contact with life.With insights as diverse as Henry David Thoreau's "I want to be sure the world doesn't change," and Michael Jordan's response to the statement: "There's no 'I' in team,"--"That's right, but there is an 'I' in win,"--Rubin gives readers the chance to bring their dreams into alignment with reality.
Vortex: The Valhalla Testament, Vortex, And The Doomsday Spiral
by Jon LandA Vietnam special-forces veteran investigates a government conspiracy to build a superweapon that could alter the very fabric of reality In San Diego, a cadre of American scientists toils on a weapon with the power to make things flit in and out of reality. If perfected, Project Vortex will make the atomic bomb look like a bow and arrow. They test it on a 727 on its way into Kennedy airport, and the experiment is successful, save for two dangerous aberrations. First is a passenger, a young man to whom Vortex gives strange powers over other people—powers he can control, but cannot understand. Second is an air traffic controller who calls in an old Vietnam buddy, Joshua Bane, to help investigate the plane that disappeared. When the controller vanishes, Bane is alone, staring down the barrel of government conspiracy that has the nation on the precipice of a third world war. This ebook features an illustrated biography of Jon Land including rare photos from the author&’s personal collection.
Solo Faces: A Novel
by James SalterA novel about a lonely mountain climber from the author of All That Is: &“Beautifully composed . . . will remind readers of Camus and Saint-Exupéry&” (The Washington Post). Vernon Rand is a charismatic figure whose great love—whose life, in fact—is climbing. He lives alone in California, where he combats the drudgery of a roofing job with the thrill of climbing in the nearby mountain ranges. Sure of only his talent and nerve, Rand decides to test himself in the French Alps, with their true mountaineering and famed, fearsome peaks. He soon learns that the most perilous moments are, for him, the moments when he feels truly alive. One of the great novels of the outdoors, Solo Faces is as thrilling, beautiful, and immediate as the Alpine peaks that have enthralled climbers for centuries. This ebook features an illustrated biography of James Salter including rare photos from the author&’s personal collection.
"Johnny, We Hardly Knew Ye": Memories of John Fitzgerald Kennedy
by Kenneth P. O'Donnell David F. PowersThis classic New York Times bestseller is an illuminating portrait of JFK—from his thrilling rise to his tragic fall—by two of the men who knew him best. As a politician, John Fitzgerald Kennedy crafted a persona that fascinated and inspired millions—and left an outsize legacy in the wake of his murder on November 22, 1963. But only a select few were privy to the complicated man behind the Camelot image. Two such confidants were Kenneth P. O&’Donnell, Kennedy&’s top political aide, and David F. Powers, a special assistant in the White House. They were among the president&’s closest friends, part of an exclusive inner circle that came to be known as the &“Irish Mafia.&” In Johnny, We Hardly Knew Ye, O&’Donnell and Powers share memories of Kennedy, his extraordinary political career, and his iconic family—memories that could come only from intimate access to the man himself. As they recount the full scope of Kennedy&’s journey—from his charismatic first campaign for Congress to his rapid rise to national standing, culminating on that haunting day in Dallas—O&’Donnell and Powers lay bare the inner workings of a leader who is cherished and mourned to this day, in a memoir that spent over five months on the New York Times bestseller list.
Jeff Gordon: Portrait of a Champion
by Jeff Gordon"Go out and work hard and just take it one step at a time."He is a living legend, an athlete whodominates his sport as few otherscan. With his rainbow-colored No.24 Dupont Chevrolet Monte Carlo, JeffGordon has accomplished what noman before him could. In 1997, he wonhis second NASCAR Winston CupSeries championship...the Daytona500...the Coca-Cola 600...the Southern500...The Winston ...the Busch Clash.And he became only the second driverto win NASCAR's toughest prize: TheWinston Million.This stunning photographic portrait captures that extraordinary year--from the opening race at Daytona to theAtlanta Motor Speedway where the title became his-- and offers an intimate glimpse of the man behind the wheel himself. You'll discover what he really thinks about life on and off the track including: his familyNASCAR racingthe people who have helped shape his careerhis spiritualityhis fansbeing a role modelthe Rainbow Warriorsand much more.Honest and straightforward, Jeff shares his triumphs and his failures, what it takes to be the best and what the future may hold. Here is a rare look at an amazing champion on the road to glory."Don't ever quit. Don't ever stop fighting. It's not over 'til it's over."
Working Stiff: The Misadventures of an Accidental Sexpert
by Grant StoddardA twenty-two-year-old perennial virgin, Englishman Grant Stoddard didn't know what to do with his life in America—until he won an X-rated online contest, the prize being intercourse with an infamous married sex columnist. He consequently wound up delivering mail at Nerve.com but accidentally found his calling as a gonzo sex reporter who would try any and every lurid activity his crafty coworkers devised—from offering himself up as man-bait at a hard-core gay bar to attending an elite orgy, to being a hapless participant in a sexual home invasion—all the while wishing he could be safely tucked in bed.Working Stiff is the humble, hilarious, and delightfully salacious fish-into-water story of a young man who followed his heart—and other organs—into places where few would dare to venture.
A Pandemic in Residence: Essays from a Detroit Hospital
by Selina MahmoodIn a series of essays, a Pakistani American doctor reflects on a variety of subjects during her first year of residency during the COVID-19 pandemic. During the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic, Selina Mahmood―in the middle of the first year of a neurology residency―found scraps of time between grueling shifts to write. The resulting collection is her personal and meticulous chronicle of an unprecedented year in medicine. It&’s also the debut of a young and uncommon talent. In the tradition of Oliver Sacks and Paul Kalanithi, Dr. Mahmood takes the science of neurology and spins it into poetry, exploring theories of the mind, Pakistani American identity, immigration, family, the history of medicine, and, of course, the challenges of becoming a physician in the midst of a global health crisis. Skipping nimbly across continents and drawing inspiration from an array of sources ranging from Thomas Edison to Yuval Harari to Beyoncé, she has crafted an elegant, incisive, and utterly original investigation. As Salon put it, this book is &“A profound, moving and unfiltered account of not just a frontline worker&’s experience at an unprecedented moment, but a story of family and identity, of pop songs and PPE.&” A must-read for anyone seeking insight into the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic as well as a broader understanding of our universal search for meaning.
Target
by Brian FreemantleIn the midst of the Cold War, a secret project in the jungles of Central Africa threatens to ignite World War IIIPeterson is bewildered by the satellite photos in front of him. As head of the CIA, he is never supposed to be surprised, but what could be happening in Chad alarms him. The pictures show a small research installation, nestled in the African jungle, where a West German company claims to be building a base to launch communications satellites for use by developing African nations. But Peterson&’s analysts tell him that the ordinary, innocent-looking silo is just the size necessary to launch an intercontinental ballistic missile into outer space. If it&’s nothing more than a harmless research project, why the armed guards? Why did they kill two of the agents the CIA sent to investigate, and capture another? And why are the Soviets interested? The answer to these questions is a single terrible secret—one that could lead to nuclear war. This ebook features an illustrated biography of Brian Freemantle including rare photos from the author&’s personal collection.
Standing Fast: A Novel
by Harvey SwadosA masterful novel of political progressives making their way—and not—in an ever-changing postwar AmericaFor Marty Dworkin and his band of young Trotskyist dreamers in Buffalo, New York, the vision of a just, socialist world crumbles with the rise of Stalin and the chaos of World War II. In the two decades that follow, Dworkin and his idealistic colleagues strive to establish a new political party and battle through unexpected trials with family, work, aging, and the changing world. They run up against an increasingly conservative America and a thriving materialism directly opposed to their own fervent beliefs. They emerge humbled, but still hopeful, into the 1960s, when civil rights struggles and anti-war radicalism move to center stage. Standing Fast is a classic, panoramic portrait of life amid the shattered dreams and visionary ambitions of the American left.
Cruelty & Laughter: Forgotten Comic Literature and the Unsentimental Eighteenth Century
by Simon DickieEighteenth-century British culture is often seen as polite and sentimental—the creation of an emerging middle class. Simon Dickie disputes these assumptions in Cruelty and Laughter, a wildly enjoyable but shocking plunge into the forgotten comic literature of the age. Beneath the surface of Enlightenment civility, Dickie uncovers a rich vein of cruel humor that forces us to recognize just how slowly ordinary human sufferings became worthy of sympathy.Delving into an enormous archive of comic novels, jestbooks, farces, variety shows, and cartoons, Dickie finds a vast repository of jokes about cripples, blind men, rape, and wife-beating. Epigrams about syphilis and scurvy sit alongside one-act comedies about hunchbacks in love. He shows us that everyone—rich and poor, women as well as men—laughed along. In the process, Dickie also expands our understanding of many of the century’s major authors, including Samuel Richardson, Lady Mary Wortley Montagu, Tobias Smollett, Frances Burney, and Jane Austen. He devotes particular attention to Henry Fielding’s Joseph Andrews, a novel that reflects repeatedly on the limits of compassion and the ethical problems of laughter. Cruelty and Laughter is an engaging, far-reaching study of the other side of culture in eighteenth-century Britain.
The Book of Saladin: A Novel (The Islam Quintet #2)
by Tariq Ali&“Whether depicting erotically charged harem intrigue or siege warfare, The Book of Saladin is an entertaining feat of revisionist storytelling&” —The Sunday Times As victories mount and accolades are showered upon the great warrior Saladin, he is nearly deified. He conquers the infidel Franj, or Crusaders, and reclaims the holy city of Jerusalem while remaining true to his senses of honor, justice, and humor. When it comes time for Saladin to record his own story, he turns to a Jewish scribe. In the interlinking stories of The Book of Saladin, the mighty sultan deftly navigates the deep chasms separating Muslims, Christians, and Jews.
The Eighth Trumpet: The Eighth Trumpet And The Ninth Dominion (The Jared Kimberlain Novels #1)
by Jon LandA killer proves he can penetrate the world&’s finest security systems, and an undercover operative must come out of retirement before the president enters the crosshairs Twenty-five-thousand dollars a week buys an impressive security system, and America&’s billionaires have the best they can get. Round-the-clock guards, electrical fences, and bulletproof glass protect their mansions—but they&’re no longer enough. Three of the nation&’s most powerful businessmen have died in seemingly impossible ways: one electrocuted, one blown up in his sleep, and the third hacked to death in an impenetrable room. The security service chief contacts an old special-forces colleague, Jared Kimberlain, who quit the life when he lost his taste for clandestine ops. He&’s spent the last years trying to undo the wrongs he did when he lived without a conscience. Kimberlain doesn&’t care about the troubles of billionaires, but their security was as good the president&’s—and he could be next. This ebook features an illustrated biography of Jon Land including rare photos from the author&’s personal collection.
Last Watch of the Night: Essays Too Personal and Otherwise
by Paul MonetteTender and passionate autobiographical essays by the National Book Award–winning author of Becoming a Man. &“Does it go too fast?&” Monette asks about life at the beginning of one piece. The answer is a resounding &“yes&” for the individuals who populate this stunning work of nonfiction. These ten autobiographical essays memorialize those whose lives have been claimed by AIDS. Following Becoming a Man and Borrowed Time, Last Watch of the Night is Monette&’s third and final self-portrait. In this collection, he confronts death—those of lovers and friends, and even his own eventual demise—with both bravery and compassion.This ebook features an illustrated biography of Paul Monette including rare images and never-before-seen documents from the Paul Monette papers of the UCLA Library Special Collections.
Comes the Dark Stranger (The Martin Shane Novels #1)
by Jack HigginsThe New York Times–bestselling author of The Midnight Bell delivers a searing novel of psychological suspense in which the past and present collide. Martin Shane is looking for someone to kill. He just doesn&’t know who . . . yet. Eight years earlier, Shane and five other soldiers were captured in Korea. Tortured by a sadistic Chinese colonel, they vowed to stay strong. But one of them broke, revealing all he knew in exchange for his own life. Before Shane could uncover the traitor, explosive shrapnel shredded his brain—and his memories. Then, after years in a mental institution, a fateful slip awakens Shane&’s mind. He&’s not sure what happened to him; it feels like the war happened only yesterday. The only thing he knows is that someone has to pay. Now, returning to the town where they all enlisted together, Shane is going to do whatever it takes to discover the truth and exact his revenge—even if it destroys everything he thinks he knows about the war, his brothers-in-arms . . .and himself. In this compelling and intense novel, author Jack Higgins delves into the darkness of one man&’s shattered mind and flexes his prodigious talents far beyond his legendary action thrillers and into the realm of psychological drama and suspense.
Roux the Day: A Healthy Place To Die; Eat, Drink And Be Buried; Roux The Day; And Dine And Die On The Danube Express (The Gourmet Detective Mysteries #7)
by Peter KingWhen a Crescent City culinary dynasty loses its family cookbook, the London-based detective is on the scene &“in this whimsical and entertaining mystery&” (Library Journal). For five generations, the Belvedere family restaurant has been a Louisiana landmark. Unfortunately, the Belvedere clan inherits more than a talent for cooking from each other—they also have an unfortunate tendency of becoming insane. When the latest Belvedere patriarch loses his mind, his son attempts to take over the business, only to find that the ancient family cookbook has vanished—and with it the priceless recipe for the world famous Oysters Belvedere. The Crescent City will never be the same. A bookseller claims to have found the family heirloom, and attempts to sell it at auction—a daring Creole gambit that draws the attention of London&’s famous gourmet detective. The sleuth visits the bookshop, but when he finds a corpse at the desk, he must lead a chase for the murderer and the stolen cookbook. One false step, and he&’ll end up like a crawfish at a boil: in mighty hot water.
Omit Flowers
by Stuart PalmerOn a gloomy old California estate, the Cameron heirs confront greed, madness, and murderIn the heyday of silent cinema, Cameron Heights was billed as the &“California Wonder Town.&” A sprawling development of lavish bungalows, its streets were named after film stars, its houses decorated with Hollywood finery. Fifteen years later, it&’s a ghost town, and the spirit who rules over it is more disturbing than any horror that has ever haunted the silver screen. Elderly eccentric Joel Cameron has more money than he knows what to do with, and heirs too greedy for words. One Christmas, they convene at Cameron Heights, hoping to have the old man declared mad and the inheritance divided accordingly. But when part of the house goes up in flames—taking old Joel with it—there arises the question of who set the fatal fire, and which family member will be left with nothing but ashes.
Zeroville: A Novel
by Steve EricksonThe novel that inspired the film starring James Franco and Seth Rogen: &“One of a kind . . . a funny, unnervingly surreal page turner&” (Newsweek). Named one of the Best Books of the Year by the Washington Post Book World, Newsweek, and the Los Angeles Times Book Review Zeroville centers on the story of Vikar, a young architecture student so enthralled with the movies that his friends call him &“cinéautistic.&” With an intensely religious childhood behind him, and tattoos of Elizabeth Taylor and Montgomery Clift on his head, he arrives in Hollywood—where he&’s mistaken for a member of the Manson family and eventually scores a job as a film editor. Vikar discovers the frames of a secret film within the reels of every movie ever made, and sets about splicing them together—a task that takes on frightening theological dimensions. Electrifying and &“darkly funny,&” Zeroville dives into the renegade American cinema of the 1970s and &’80s and emerges into an era for which we have no name (Publishers Weekly). &“Funny, disturbing, daring . . . dreamlike and sometimes nightmarish.&” —The New York Times Book Review &“Magnificent.&” —The Believer &“[A] writer who has been compared to Vladimir Nabokov, Don DeLillo, and Thomas Pynchon.&” —Bookmarks Magazine &“Erickson is as unique and vital and pure a voice as American fiction has produced.&” —Jonathan Lethem
The Crossing: A Novel
by Howard FastA novel about George Washington&’s trip across the Delaware River and the Battle of Trenton by the #1 New York Times–bestselling author of Spartacus. Immortalized on canvas by Emanuel Leutze, Washington&’s journey across the Delaware River is one of the most celebrated moments in American history. But the true story of the crossing, and of what came after, is often lost in the legend. In The Crossing, Howard Fast, author of The Immigrants and April Morning, writes with striking historical detail and relentless narrative drive about Washington&’s surprise attack, leading the Continental Army to its Revolutionary War victory against the one thousand Hessian mercenaries in Trenton, New Jersey—a momentous occasion in American history. This ebook features an illustrated biography of Howard Fast including rare photos from the author&’s estate.
Fourth Street East: A Novel of How It Was (The Benny Kramer Novels #3)
by Jerome WeidmanA New York Times–bestselling author&’s poignant novel of a boy&’s coming of age on Manhattan&’s Lower East Side in the 1920s. When Benny Kramer&’s father came to the United States, he was hungry, broke, and ignorant. Handed a banana and told it was &“American food,&” he scarfed it down, peel and all. By the time he died, he was no richer, but much wiser, and everything he learned he imparted to his son. Growing up on New York&’s Lower East Side between the wars, Benny&’s life was just as chaotic as his neighborhood. How many young boys have seen a man decapitated by a horse? How many know blacksmiths who got tangled up in a multiple homicide? How many win an elocution contest, only to find out it was rigged by the mob? For Benny, these are everyday events, and he remembers them with the biting wit that made Jerome Weidman one of the most beloved novelists of his day. This ebook features a foreword by Alistair Cooke.
The Third Figure (The Stephen Drake Mysteries #2)
by Collin WilcoxA mob boss is dead, and his widow wants Drake to help him rest in peaceDominic Vennezio is found on the floor of his beachside love nest, murdered on a Sunday night. It looks like an ordinary mob hit, part of a routine power struggle with the East Coast Outfit, but Vennezio&’s widow has other suspicions. Her marriage to the kingpin had been strained ever since he began taking his secretary for weekends at the beach house, but even now, she feels a devotion to him. She wants justice for her husband—not just legal, but cosmic—and for cosmic justice, San Francisco can offer no better sleuth than Stephen Drake.A crime reporter with a clairvoyant streak, Drake&’s apprehensions about working for the mob are overcome by his sympathy for the noble widow. He starts his investigation in Los Angeles, talking to Vennezio&’s replacement, and sees immediately that it doesn&’t take a psychic to figure out that this job could be deadly.
Lockestep (The John Locke Mysteries #1)
by Jack BarnaoA former British SAS agent turned Toronto bodyguard is hired by the Mounties to accompany a drug dealer to Mexico in this hard-boiled crime thriller. Professional bodyguard John Locke is in no mood to babysit Greg Amadeo, a drug dealer turncoat who wants to visit his wife in Mexico, collect some cash, and settle debts before testifying in the States, but how can Locke pass up the warm climate, lovely ladies, and a quick buck? Amadeo has a trick up his sleeve that may cause Locke to come back in a body bag if he does not use all the skills he learned in the British army&’s SAS elite corps. With an appreciation for the more civilized aspects of life, Locke finds the fishing village, Zihuatanejo, right up his alley with two of his favorite things, fine women and tasty food, but there are just too many bullets flying around for Locke&’s peace of mind . . . Praise for Lockestep&“Locke is a hero midway between Bond and Spenser: large-hearted and educated, sensitive and physically very fit. . . . The Mexican background is pleasingly vivid and Barnao delivers a thriller.&” —Publishers Weekly