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A Lively Game of Death (The Hilary Quayle Mysteries #1)
by Marvin KayeNew York&’s toughest PR woman takes on the city&’s deadliest business: toysHilary Quayle will do anything to get a client a bit of good press—no matter how late she has to stay out or how many martinis she has to knock back. But even though she is the best PR woman in Manhattan, she has a weakness: She has always wanted to be a detective. So when Trim-Tram Toys&’ hot new product is stolen and sold to a knock-off huckster named Sid Goetz, Hilary can&’t resist the case. And it only gets more interesting when the theft leads to murder. Hilary and her assistant, Gene, push their way through the crowd at the bustling Toy Fair, but when they reach Goetz&’s showroom they find it strangely subdued. Sid lies dead, shot in his sizeable stomach, three Scrabble tiles clutched in his fist. Chasing killers may not be a game, but that doesn&’t mean that Hilary won&’t have a good time playing.
Calculated Risk (The Lt. Hastings Mysteries #18)
by Collin WilcoxA gay man&’s murder leads Hastings to a blackmail plotCharles Hardaway climbs the hill to his house, immediately missing the bright lights and conversation of the bar and dreading the return to his lover, who is slowly dying of AIDS. But Hardaway&’s self-pity is interrupted by a pipe-wielding stranger, who crushes his skull before slipping away. It&’s nighttime in the Castro, and another gay man has been sent to his grave.Homicide lieutenant Frank Hastings is tempted to write the killing off as another heinous instance of gay-bashing, but witnesses say the killer was alone, and seemed to know the victim. Digging into Hardaway&’s past, Hastings finds evidence that he was a blackmailer who pushed one of his targets to the breaking point. In a neighborhood where disease and hatred claim more and more lives every day, it seems one man has been done in by plain old-fashioned greed.
Natchez (Spectros #4)
by Paul LedererA spooky and sinister army confronts Dr. Spectros in the swamplands of Mississippi The ship full of enslaved Africans arrived in Natchez just before the end of the Civil War. Freed by the Union army, the Telingas found themselves in a strange land whose language they did not speak and whose people they feared. The tribe fled into the bayou to make a new life with their old black magic—one so powerful it has brought the evil conjurer Blackschuster all the way from the West to the Deep South. On orders from his employer, Dr. Spectros, the gunslinger Ray Featherskill rides into Natchez. Seeking to avenge the kidnapping of his beloved Kirstina, Spectros has vowed to bring Blackschuster&’s reign of terror to an end. Ray has just settled into his hotel room when bullets fly through the window, missing him by inches—the sinister magician is sending his enemies a message. When Spectros arrives, he and Ray venture deep into Telingas territory, where Blackschuster has joined forces with an army of the undead.
Departure: And Other Stories
by Howard FastStories of courage against oppression by one of twentieth-century America&’s most fearless writersThese nineteen stories follow the paths of men and women, immigrants, minorities, and the poor, suffering from injustice and inequality. Written in the 1940s, Fast&’s clear-eyed and lively tales examine a world reeling from war and plagued by social unrest. With stories set in New York City, Europe, and India, this collection shares a remarkable global vision. Written during the rising Communist scare, Departure is a defiantly leftist portrait of a complex and ever-changing world. This ebook features an illustrated biography of Howard Fast including rare photos from the author&’s estate.
The Autobiography: An Only Child and My Father's Son
by Frank O'ConnorFrank O&’Connor&’s acclaimed autobiography, now in one volumeWhen Frank O&’Connor was born, his parents—Minnie O&’Connor, a former maid raised in an orphanage, and Michael O&’Donovan, a veteran of the Boer War and the drummer in a local brass-and-reed band—lived above a sweet-and-tobacco shop in Cork, Ireland. The young family soon moved, however, to a two-room cottage at the top of Blarney Street, a lane that originates, as O&’Connor so vividly describes it, &“near the river-bank, in sordidness, and ascends the hill to something like squalor.&” From this unlikely beginning, a poor boy born Michael Francis Xavier O&’Donovan set out on the remarkable journey that transformed him into Frank O&’Connor, one of Ireland&’s greatest writers.An Only Child, the first installment of O&’Connor&’s wonderfully evocative autobiography, captures the joy and pain of his early years: joy in the colorful people and places of Cork and in his devoted relationship with his mother, pain in the family&’s impoverished situation and in his father&’s melancholy moods and drunken outbursts. Fifteen years old when he joins the Irish Republican Army in the fight for independence, O&’Connor finds himself on the losing side of the ensuing civil war and is imprisoned by the government of the new nation. My Father&’s Son begins with his release from an internment camp and follows him to Dublin and the world-renowned Abbey Theatre, where he meets W. B. Yeats, J. M. Synge, and other members of the Irish Literary Revival, and takes the first steps toward becoming one of the twentieth century&’s most beloved authors.As richly detailed and eloquent as the best of his short fiction, Frank O&’Connor&’s autobiography is an entertaining portrait of a fascinating time and place, and the inspiring account of a young artist finding his voice.
A Prince of Sinners
by E. Phillips OppenheimThe sins of the father are visited on the son twofold in this classic mystery from one of the early twentieth century&’s most popular authors Kingston Brooks has just made his debut on the speaker&’s platform at the local party headquarters when a stranger brings word that the young lawyer&’s father has died on the far side of the world, where he was spreading the gospel as a missionary. Brooks has heard nothing from the old man since he disappeared decades earlier, and even this sad news is a balm. As he digs deeper into the stranger&’s story, however, Brooks discovers that his father was no saint, and that his friends are not to be trusted. The truth is that all those years ago Brooks&’s father fled to Canada to impersonate a French nobleman. There he committed a series of crimes too terrible for his son to contemplate—except that they must all be made right if Brooks hopes to clear his name. This ebook has been professionally proofread to ensure accuracy and readability on all devices.
War Year (Vietnam Ser.)
by Joe HaldemanA tour of duty through the worst that the world has to offer Before his time as a professor of writing at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, before penning multiple Nebula and Hugo Award–winning novels and stories, Joe Haldeman was a soldier in Vietnam, an experience that changed him and colored much of what he has written. War Year is Haldeman&’s first novel and his first attempt to describe what he saw in Vietnam and give insight into what happened for the benefit of those who weren&’t there. The minimalist War Year follows the life of John Farmer, a combat engineer, over the course of a year in Vietnam. John undergoes training, and then, along with his fellow soldiers, does whatever it takes to survive in unforgiving conditions. Powerful and affecting, War Year reaches its highest peaks as it describes with enduring truth the sights and experiences of what it was like to be in the humid jungles of Vietnam in 1968. This ebook features an illustrated biography of Joe Haldeman including rare images from the author&’s personal collection.
The Faithful: A Novel of the 2008 Campaign
by Carla DickensThe "Faithful" of Carla Dickens's novel are a vibrant cadre of volunteers devoted to the most charismatic presidential candidate in fifty years. Drawn from today's newspaper headlines and political blogs, The Faithful follows a cast of young, smart, beautiful, and driven men and women shepherding their candidate through the turbulent waters of the 2008 Democratic presidential campaign.
A Model World: And Other Stories (Panorama De Narrativ Ser.)
by Michael ChabonA story collection from the Pulitzer Prize–winning author of The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay, &“one of his generation&’s most eloquent new voices&” (The New York Times). With his first novel, The Mysteries of Pittsburgh, Michael Chabon announced his presence as a literary wunderkind of style and substance. A Model World and Other Stories only burnished his reputation as a distinctive prose stylist. In eleven elegant tales—some of them linked—by the New York Times–bestselling author of Telegraph Avenue and The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay, Chabon&’s singular characters hold tight to private dreams even as their closest relationships crumble. Five stories follow an anxious adolescent from the beach vacation where he learns of his parents&’ divorce to the confused days of a woefully misguided crush. Others find ex-lovers tormenting each other at an oceanside café, a washed-up professional baseball player attending a teammate&’s funeral, and a Pittsburgh disc jockey still pining for a woman who married him to get her American citizenship. &“Chabon moves across powerful emotional ground with certainty and delicacy,&” raves the Chicago Tribune. &“There are heartbreaking moments in these stories, but they are rendered so precisely, through incidents that capture the subtlest of feelings, that the reader can only smile at Chabon&’s skill.&” This ebook features a biography of the author.
The French Powder Mystery
by Ellery QueenA stylish puzzle mystery from the author who &“took the intellectual game that was the formal detective novel to greater heights than any American writer&” (The Weekly Standard). The windows of French&’s department store are one of New York&’s great attractions. Year-round, their displays show off the finest in fashion, art, and home décor, and tourists and locals alike make a point of stopping to see what&’s on offer. One afternoon, as the board debates a merger upstairs, a salesgirl begins a demonstration in one of the windows, showing off French&’s new Murphy bed. A crowd gathers to watch the bed lower from the wall after a single touch of a button. But as the bed opens, people run screaming. Out tumbles a woman—crumpled, bloody, and dead. The victim was Mrs. French, wife of the company president, and finding her killer will turn this esteemed store upside down. Only one detective has the soft touch necessary—debonair intellectual Ellery Queen. As Queen and his police inspector father dig into French&’s secrets, they find their killer is more serious than any window shopper.
Remembrance Day: Life In The West, Forgotten Life, Remembrance Day, And Somewhere East Of Life (The Squire Quartet #3)
by Brian W. AldissThird in the acclaimed Squire Quartet—from the author of &“Supertoys Last All Summer Long,&” the basis for the movie A.I.: Artificial Intelligence. Winner of two Hugo Awards, one Nebula Award, and named a Grand Master by the Science Fiction Writers of America, Brian W. Aldiss challenged readers&’ minds for over fifty years with literate, thought-provoking, and inventive science fiction. Ray and Ruby Tebbutt are a Norfolk couple struggling to pay off a loan they could not afford. Peter Petrik, a small-time Czech film director, is involved with an Irish arms smuggler. Dominic Mayor, a British millionaire with a cold past, made his fortune by manipulating the stock market. All four people&’s lives are taken by a terrorist bombing in a small British seaside hotel. In Remembrance Day, an American academic examines the details of the victims&’ lives and histories to find the relationship between them and their fate. &“In another significant mainstream outing, British science-fiction/fantasy grandmaster Aldiss discovers fresh and arresting nuances in the dichotomy between blind chance and predestination in human affairs…original, disturbing, and memorable.&” —Kirkus Reviews This ebook includes an introduction by the author.
Forgotten Life: Life In The West, Forgotten Life, Remembrance Day, And Somewhere East Of Life (The Squire Quartet #2)
by Brian W. AldissSecond in the acclaimed Squire Quartet—from the author of &“Supertoys Last All Summer Long,&” the basis for the movie A.I.: Artificial Intelligence. Winner of two Hugo Awards, one Nebula Award, and named a Grand Master by the Science Fiction Writers of America, Brian W. Aldiss challenged readers&’ minds for over fifty years with literate, thought-provoking, and inventive science fiction. Analyst Clement Winters is trying to write a biography of his recently deceased older brother, Joseph. Through the writings Joseph left behind—letters, diaries, notes, and confessions—Clement realizes how little he actually knows his brother and how vastly his perception of him differs from reality. As Clement tries to make sense of the life of his deceased sibling, he uncovers &“little dark corners&” of his family history and even his own life. &“Likable . . . solid and satisfying . . . Forgotten Life works as fiction—funny, human, tough, irresistibly lively.&” —The Times (London) This ebook includes an introduction by the author.
Marriage Is a Bad Habit
by Ruth DicksonWhen Ruth Dickson released her 1967 book Married Men Make the Best Lovers, it went off like a bombshell. Defenders of the &“sanctity&” of marriage rose up to dismiss her frank, innovative, thoroughly researched book. But why? Why cling to the broken ritual of marriage? What comfort is there in a crumbling institution held together by meaningless tradition and out of touch patriarchy? In this thoughtful follow-up, Dickson examines marriage itself. As she explains, &“It&’s no secret that the divorce rate is reaching astronomical proportions, yet nobody seems to do anything about the sole cause of divorce: marriage.&” Expertly weaving historical research, personal anecdotes, and scalpel-sharp philosophy, Marriage Is a Bad Habit makes the case that a life without marriage is a life of freedom—a woman&’s freedom from male dominance and abuse, a man&’s freedom from female resentment and martyrdom. In this new world it&’s time for the sexes to find a new way of living together. Or, more specifically, a new way to live apart. Sexier than Helen Gurley Brown, wittier than Xaviera Hollander, Ruth Dickson tells the truth, makes you laugh, gives you innovative ideas and thoughtful advice on how to navigate the tricky waters of true freedom of choice.
77th Street Requiem: A Maggie Macgowen Mystery (The Maggie MacGowen Mysteries #4)
by Wendy HornsbyMaggie looks into the decades-old murder of a controversial copA long time ago, Roy Frady was a perfect cop. Now he&’s perfect fodder for one of Maggie MacGowen&’s documentaries. Frady worked narcotics in the Seventy-seventh Street Division as part of a unit nicknamed the Four Horsemen. A merry band of iron-fisted brothers, they kept their district clean of drugs until a litany of brutality charges caused their downfall. Not long after, Roy Frady was found with a 9-mm slug in his skull. The case remained unsolved for two decades. One of the Four Horsemen was Mike Trent, who went on to become a homicide detective and the love of Maggie&’s life. Through the years, Frady&’s file never left his desk, and as he approaches retirement he vows to close the case. Maggie plans a documentary about Mike&’s investigation, unaware that she and her camera will find things in his past that are too ugly to be known.
Growing Rich: A Novel
by Fay WeldonSatan tempts mortal man and woman in Fay Weldon&’s witty and wildly inventive riff on Doctor Faustus Selling one&’s soul to the devil takes on new meaning in this fiendishly clever page-turner by Fay Weldon. Once upon a time, in the dullest town imaginable, there lived three girls: Laura, the pretty one; Annie, the one desperate to escape; and Carmen, the one who catches the devil&’s eye. She&’s sixteen when Bernard Bellamy spies her from the back seat of his big, black BMW. He&’s just made a bargain with Mephistopheles himself: his mortal soul in exchange for the fulfillment of his desires. And he wants Carmen to be his wife. As time passes, inexplicable things happen to Carmen, Laura, and Annie. But Carmen is determined to hang on to her soul, no matter what obstacles—and temptations—are erected in her path. Will she succumb? Only the devil knows . . .
House of All Nations (Miegunyah Modern Library Ser.)
by Christina SteadThe devious world of international finance comes alive in Christina Stead&’s enthralling epic about a ruthless bank director in 1930s ParisPraised as &“a work of extraordinary talent&” by the New York Times, Christina Stead&’s ambitiously layered House of All Nations is an engrossing satire of wealth and manipulation. Set in an elite European bank in the 1930s, Stead&’s epic spans the interwar years of a money-hungry Paris. Jules Bertillon, the distrustful and unpredictable bank director, sees every national disaster—including war—as an opportunity for riches. Adored by his clients for his ability to rake in staggering profits, Bertillon leaves no opening wasted—even if it means dealing with unsavory speculators or ruthless gamblers while his clients suffer the consequences. A stunning page-turner, House of All Nations is as significant and resonant today as it was upon its publication in 1938.
Were We Our Brothers' Keepers?: The Public Response of American Jews to the Holocaust, 1938–1944
by Haskel LooksteinIn this major work exploring the American Jewish response to the Holocaust as it occurred, by examining contemporary Jewish press accounts of such events as Kristallnacht, the refusal to allow the refugee ship St. Louis to land in America, the uprising in the Warsaw ghetto, and the deportation of the Hungarian Jews to Auschwitz, Haskel Lookstein provides us with an important perspective on the way in which events are reported on, perceived, and interpreted in their own time.
Lieberman's Day (The Abe Lieberman Mysteries #3)
by Stuart M. KaminskyA Chicago cop is out to avenge his nephew&’s murder in this &“masterly creation&” that puts the Edgar Award–winning author in &“the Parker/Paretsky league&” (Chicago Tribune). When you&’re a sixty-two-year-old cop with bad knees, most days feel pretty long. But the longest day of Abe Lieberman&’s life begins just after midnight when he learns his nephew David has been shot dead and David&’s pregnant wife has been gravely injured by two gunmen trying to rob the couple. Now Carol is barely clinging to life, and it&’s up to Lieberman to track down the killers. With the help of his partner, the troubled alcoholic Bill Hanrahan, Lieberman will turn the city upside down to find the men who stole his nephew&’s bright future. But as they step out into the howling Chicago wind, it&’s clear both partners will need to fight to survive the day that started out terrible and is about to get a lot worse. This day in the life of two veteran Chicago cops is &“beautifully rendered . . . Kaminsky is extraordinarily attuned to the domestic minutiae of his detectives&’ lives&” (The New York Times Book Review).
The Wintering: A Novel (Voices Of The South Ser.)
by Joan WilliamsThis poignant tale of a young woman&’s affair with a famous writer is based on Joan Williams&’s real-life relationship with William Faulkner For Amy Howard, the novels of Jeffrey Almoner are a refuge from the uncertainty of life. His books are full of the questions—about the nature of justice, the necessity of suffering, and the meaning of the past—that occupy her thoughts, but that no else seems interested in asking or able to answer. When she and two friends make a pilgrimage to Almoner&’s house, she expects the world-famous author to be tall, dark, and mysterious, and to find in him the mirror to her soul. Instead, the encounter is too brief and awkward for Amy to even introduce herself. Back at home, she pours out everything she had hoped to say in a letter, sharing with Almoner her belief that, despite the difference in their ages, they are spiritually connected. His surprisingly personal response marks the beginning of an intense relationship that soon progresses from epistolary flirtation to secret meetings in Mississippi bus stations, fancy Memphis hotels, and New York publishing houses. For the married Almoner, Amy&’s youthful beauty and devotion are irresistible. For Amy, the great artist is a source of wisdom and experience whose support gives her the courage to pursue her dream of becoming a writer. As their love affair moves from its exhilarating beginning to its inevitable, heartrending conclusion, Amy discovers that finding the answers to her questions will be more painful than she ever thought possible. The Wintering is a bittersweet coming-of-age story, an exquisite account of a beautiful yet fleeting romance, and one of the most intimate portraits of William Faulkner ever written. Included in this ebook is &“Twenty Will Not Come Again,&” Joan Williams&’s honest and revealing essay, first published in the Atlantic Monthly, on the subject of her relationship with one of the twentieth century&’s greatest artists.
The Transvection Machine (The Carl Crader Mysteries #1)
by Edward D. HochWhen a government official dies on the operating table, the president calls in the computer cops On Venus, a radical exile escapes from a maximum-security prison, pledging to return to Washington and assassinate the president. Transport between Earth and the solar colonies is tightly regulated, but the exile knows a shortcut: the top-secret transvection machine, an experimental device that could theoretically be used to teleport men from planet to planet. Vander Defoe, the tool&’s creator, is busy securing it when he feels a pain in his stomach: His appendix is about to explode. Defoe dies in the operating room during routine computerized surgery, and the case falls in the lap of the Computer Investigation Bureau, which has jurisdiction over all computer-related crimes. As the team tries to determine who corrupted the system that killed Defoe, it finds that in this case, all roads lead to Venus.The Transvectioon Machine is the first book in the Carl Crader Mysteries, but you may enjoy reading the series in any order.
The Dead Seed: A Brock Callahan Mystery (The Brock Callahan Mysteries #11)
by William Campbell GaultBrock&’s boyhood idol moves in next door before vanishing and leaving a body in his wake In Hollywood&’s golden age, there was no finer swashbuckler than Fortney Grange. Decades after he last swung on a chandelier, Grange is nearly forgotten, his legacy surviving only in fuzzy black-and-white on the late-late movie channel. But to Brock Callahan, Grange remains a hero. When his idol shacks up with the aged widow next door, the ex-private investigator is starstruck. It takes a murder for the celluloid sheen to begin to fade. A strange pair of Arizona blackmailers takes up residence in a van outside Grange&’s house. Grange and his new lady friend disappear, and a few days later, his agent is found dead. Though it breaks his heart, Callahan is forced to investigate the man who has given him so much joy. And it will take more than swordplay for this aging daredevil to escape the chair. The Dead Seed is the 11th book in the Brock Callahan Mysteries, but you may enjoy reading the series in any order.
The Melting Pot: Stories
by Lynne Sharon SchwartzA dynamic collection of stories that portrays different generations and explores various genres with compassion and dry witIn The Melting Pot, nothing is ever what it seems. In these short stories from critically acclaimed author Lynne Sharon Schwartz, characters grapple with the desires and needs of daily life, no matter how absurd or mundane. In the title story, a woman finally reveals her tangled family history to her widowed lover. In another tale, an ageing womanizer undergoes more than just a midlife crisis. In &“So You&’re Going to Have a New Body!&” a woman experiences a surreal surgical sterilization. The Melting Pot demonstrates Schwartz&’s many talents coalescing into a determined and striking whole.
Mother Earth, Father Sky: Mother Earth Father Sky, My Sister The Moon, And Brother Wind (The Ivory Carver Trilogy #1)
by Sue HarrisonA young woman comes of age in this epic saga. &“Harrison expertly frames dramatic events with depictions of prehistoric life in the Aleutian Islands&” (The New York Times Book Review). It&’s 7056 BC, a time before history. On the first day that Chagak&’s womanhood is acknowledged within her Aleut tribe, she unexpectedly finds herself betrothed to Seal Stalker, the most promising young hunter in the village. A bright future lies ahead of Chagak—but in one violent moment, she loses her entire way of life. Left with her infant brother, Pup, and only a birdskin parka for warmth, Chagak sets out across the icy waters on a quest for survival and revenge. Mother Earth, Father Sky is the first book of the Ivory Carver Trilogy, which also includes My Sister the Moon and Brother Wind.
Fata Morgana
by William KotzwinkleFrom the award-winning legend of speculative fiction, &“a witty sendup of the detective story&” with &“a richness of invention that doffs a hat to Dickens&” (Chicago Tribune). At a fashionable salon, Parisians line up to have their fortunes told by Ric Lazare&’s amazing machine. The predictions arrive with unerring accuracy, as if the invention were imbued with some sort of wondrous sorcery. The police, however, have a different opinion. They suspect that Lazare is a con man. Accordingly, they&’ve sent one of their own to investigate. Unfortunately, the man they send is Paul Picard. His methods are unconventional. His appetites—for lemon tarts, and for prostitutes—are legendary. And he is no stranger to the dark side of Paris. But Inspector Picard is entirely unprepared for the string of murders that pulls him across the continent. As the killer&’s seductive knot tightens around him, he learns once and for all that there&’s more to the glimmering world of high society than first appears. Winner of the World Fantasy Award for his novel Doctor Rat, William Kotzwinkle reaffirms his reputation as one of the most captivating and original American authors of the last half-century with this &“elegant entertainment&” of magic and mystery in Paris (The Washington Post). &“Gaudy, decadent, smoothly polished, this beguiling novel is . . . a feat of stage magic, well rehearsed and well performed by a fine craftsman.&” —The New Yorker &“Alternately dark and glittering . . . a first-rate vaudeville turn.&” —Chicago Tribune &“Pure magic.&” —Playboy
The Mommy Chronicles: Tales of a Slow-Track Mom in a Fast-Track Lane
by Leslie TonnerFollow the adventures of Charlie, an urban three-year-old on the fast track, and his slow-track mommy. In this hilarious volume, Charlie gets a haircut like Sting&’s, runs up a tab at a baseball game, and prefers the garlic press to any of his expensive &“educational&” toys. Charlie is a kid learning to be a consumer. His mommy reveals important secrets, like which stroller is &“in,&” which is the &“right&” playgroup, and how to throw a fabulous fourth birthday party. Moms and dads alike will find these anecdotes of parenting at the end of the century to be truly priceless.