Pleasing the Ghost

      Sharon Creech
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Newbery Medal winner and master storyteller Sharon Creech spins a wonderfully funny and tender tale. As nine-year-old Dennis confronts the ghost of his uncle Arvie, Arvie's eccentric antics and wonderful wordplay keep the reader laughing. But at its tender heart, the story reveals the holes left in our lives when we lose the ones we love. Ever since nine-year-old Dennis's dad died, a veritable parade of ghosts has been passing through his bedroom. When the ghost of his uncle Arvie blows into his room on a warm breeze, Dennis isn't surprised, but Uncle Arvie is the first ghost who wants something from Dennis. Dennis would love to help Uncle Arvie, but he can't quite understand what Uncle Arvie is asking for. What, for example, is "Fraggle pin Heartfoot a wig pasta"? Dennis has to find out, because this is one ghost who isn't going to leave until he gets what he came for. Uncle Arvie's antics and Dennis's attempts to please his ghost form the heart of this touching story.

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    Rumble

      Ellen Hopkins
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Can an atheist be saved? The New York Times bestselling author of Crank and Tricks explores the highly charged landscapes of faith and forgiveness with brilliant sensitivity and emotional resonance. "There is no God, no benevolent ruler of the earth, no omnipotent grand poobah of countless universes. Because if there was ... my little brother would still be fishing or playing basketball instead of fertilizing cemetery vegetation." Matthew Turner doesn't have faith in anything. Not in family—his is a shambles after his younger brother was bullied into suicide. Not in so-called friends who turn their backs when things get tough. Not in some all-powerful creator who lets too much bad stuff happen. And certainly not in some "It Gets Better" psychobabble. No matter what his girlfriend Hayden says about faith and forgiveness, there's no way Matt's letting go of blame. He's decided to "live large and go out with a huge bang," and whatever happens happens. But when a horrific event plunges Matt into a dark, silent place, he hears a rumble … a rumble that wakes him up, calling everything he's ever disbelieved into question.

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    The Scar

      China Miéville
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Winner of the Arthur C. Clarke Award and the British Fantasy Award by the age of 30, China Miéville has also been a World Fantasy Award and Bram Stoker finalist. IThe Scar,/I arguably his most ambitious novel yet, takes us on a bizarre voyage on a vast ship teeming with grotesquely re-engineered prisoners. Among them, biding her time for a peaceful landing, is the brilliant Bellis Coldwine, a linguist whose access to secrets protects her. But on the Swollen Oceans, pirates overrun this vessel of mutants, and Bellis, now doubly captive, confronts a death sentence that others call life

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    There Is No Darkness

      Joe Haldeman
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Carl Bok is a citizen of Springworld, the heavy-gravity planet with monstrous and dangerous flora and fauna. Carl is well over two metres tall and weighs-in at 180 kilograms. Now Carl has won a scholarship to Starschool. He'll spend a year on this touring school, visiting sixteen of the colonized planets. This will be the experience of a lifetime. It's tough enough for Carl as the poor scholarship student among the rich kids. His problems get worse when they arrive at Earth. Carl finds himself in urgent need of big money and, since he's a pretty tough guy, becomes a paid fighter. He has to fight dangerous and deadly human and animal opponents. His fellow students, B'oosa, Miko, Alegria and Francisco "Pancho" Bolivar, get caught up in his exploits. And then there are the aliens.

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    Second Chance Summer

      Morgan Matson
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From the Flying Start author of Amy & Roger’s Epic Detour, a powerful novel about hope in the face of heartbreak. Taylor Edwards’ family might not be the closest-knit—everyone is a little too busy and overscheduled—but for the most part, they get along just fine. Then Taylor’s dad gets devastating news, and her parents decide that the family will spend one last summer all together at their old lake house in the Pocono Mountains. Crammed into a place much smaller and more rustic than they are used to, they begin to get to know each other again. And Taylor discovers that the people she thought she had left behind haven’t actually gone anywhere. Her former best friend is still around, as is her first boyfriend…and he’s much cuter at seventeen than he was at twelve. As the summer progresses and the Edwards become more of a family, they’re more aware than ever that they’re battling a ticking clock. Sometimes, though, there is just enough time to get a second chance—with family, with friends, and with love.

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    A Fish in the Water

      Mario Vargas Llosa
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This work by the renowned Peruvian author allows us to glimpse into the key years of his youth until his candidacy for President of Peru. These are stark, unadorned truths revealed through his hypnotic and masterly prose. The strained relationship between the author and his harsh, violent father; the discovery of his calling as a writer as a means to oppose parental authoritarianism, the precocious bohemia, the hasty wedding with “la tía Julia” (“aunt Julia”) and the short, yet intense, political career of the writer. Description in Spanish: La obra del escritor peruano se sustenta en numerosos acontecimientos personales que transcurrieron en su juventud. La difícil relación con un padre duro y violento, el nacimiento de la vocación de escritor como oposición a esa autoridad, los años del colegio militar Leoncio Prado, la precoz vida bohemia, la precipitada boda con «la tía Julia» o la existencia real de «La casa verde». Además, y a modo de contrapeso, conocemos la corta pero intensa carrera política del escritor. Esos tres años que transcurrieron desde la improvisada movilización popular de la Plaza de San Martín en oposición a la política de Alan García hasta la definitiva derrota ante Fujimori.

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    Light a Penny Candle

      Maeve Binchy
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Evacuated from Blitz-battered London, shy and genteel Elizabeth White is sent to stay with the boisterous O'Connors in Kilgarret, Ireland. It is the beginning of an unshakeable bond between Elizabeth and Aisling O'Connor, a friendship which will endure through twenty turbulent years of change and chaos, joy and sorrow, soaring dreams and searing betrayals... Writing with warmth, wit and great compassion, Maeve Binchy tells a magnificent story of the lives and loves of two women, bound together in a friendship that nothing could tear asunder - not even the man who threatened to come between them forever.

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    The Black Stallion's Filly

      Walter Farley
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"She’ll never be a racehorse,” murmurs the crowd as Black Minx is led into the sales ring. But Alec Ramsay thinks differently and buys the Black’s first filly to train her for the Kentucky Derby. But Black Minx, like her sire, has a mind of her own. This fast-paced racing story follows a great horse’s journey through training and preliminary races to the opening gate at America’s most famous racetrack: Churchill Downs. From the Trade Paperback edition.

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    Lacybourne Manor

      Kristen Ashley
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In 1522, the very night they were wed, Royce Morgan and his new bride, Beatrice Godwin, were murdered on their way home to Lacybourne Manor. After the cruel deed was done, a local witch came across their bodies, witnessing firsthand the tragedy of star-crossed lovers. Vowing that Royce and Beatrice would someday uncross those stars, using magic mixed with murder as well as true love, she linked their spirits together with hers (because someone had to protect them) forever… or until their reincarnated souls find happily ever after. Now arrogant, forbidding Colin Morgan lives at Lacybourne, knowing, from lore (as well as the portraits of Royce and Beatrice that hang in Lacybourne’s hall and the small fact that he looks exactly like Royce Morgan), that he is the reincarnated soul of his ancestor. One stormy night, flighty, free-spirited, scarily kind-hearted Sibyl Godwin comes to Lacybourne and it doesn’t escape Colin’s notice that Sibyl is the spitting image of Beatrice. However murder, magic, a warrior’s heart beating in a modern man’s chest, a woman bent on doing good deeds even if they get her into loads of trouble, a good witch whose family has vowed throughout the centuries to protect true love, distrust and revenge make a volatile cocktail. This means the path to happily ever after is paved with tranquilizer darts, pensioners on a rampage, Sibyl’s bad morning moods, heartbreaking misunderstandings and all kinds of magic, good… and bad.

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    Climate of Change

      Piers Anthony
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A remarkable epic of passion and courage, savagery and survival, Piers Anthony's "Geodyssey" is a saga unlike any ever written. It is nothing less than the story of humanity itself, told through the lives of a handful of extraordinary men and women reborn throughout history. Now, with Climate of Change, Anthony introduces us to a new cast of characters, including Keeper, who knows the ways of nature, Rebel, a headstrong girl as brave as any man, Craft, a cunning inventor, and Crenelle, who uses her seductive charms to defend her people. Through their eyes, we see how some of the most crucial moments in human history have been driven by natural forces, from the great ice ages of prehistory to the droughts and plagues that have destroyed history's proudest civilizations. And we witness a harsh but hopeful future in which humanity at last transcends the devastating effects of climate change.

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    Uchenna's Apples

      Diane Duane
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In a new short novel by Diane Duane, three suburban Dublin teens are lured into mystery in the mists of Ireland... Uchenna O'Connor lives a life like that of any other Dublin schoolgirl... until the horses arrive. The unexplained appearance of a little herd of "tinker ponies" that no one will claim causes no particular stir among adults in the purpose-built suburb of Adamstown... but there are others who notice. Uchenna starts feeling responsible for the ponies that have suddenly turned up on just the other side of the wall separating her suburban home from the fields around Adamstown. Her growing concern for the hungry and seemingly abandoned horses leads Uchenna into hatching a benevolent plot to secretly take care of them, while she tries to discover who's brought them to her doorstep and why. But Uchenna little realizes the complications that will ensue when she draws two others into her plans: her best friend Emer -- an American transplant with a taste for rocking the boat -- and young Jimmy Garrity, a Traveler boy with a yen for higher math and a stubborn streak that drives him to try to beat the odds against his acceptance by "settled" people. Together the three of them find themselves enmeshed in trouble in the neighborhood, at school, and even with the police, before the strange unseasonable autumn mist lifts enough for them to have a chance of discovering the truth behind the puzzle. But will the fragile new friendship that's growing in the mist survive the pressures and demands of the adults trying to pull them apart?...

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    The Golden Braid

      Melanie Dickerson
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The one who needs rescuing isn’t always the one in the tower. Rapunzel can throw a knife better than any man around. And her skills as an artist rival those of any artist she’s met. But for a woman in medieval times, the one skill she most desires is the hardest one to obtain: the ability to read. After yet another young man asks for Rapunzel’s hand in marriage, Mother decides they need to move once again, but this time to a larger city. Rapunzel’s heart soars—surely there she can fulfill her dream. But Mother won’t let her close to a man. She claims that no man can be trusted. After being rescued by a knight on the road to the city, and in turn rescuing him farther down the road, Rapunzel’s opportunity arrives at last. This knight, Sir Gerek, agrees to educate Rapunzel in order to pay back his debt. She just has to put up with his arrogant nature and single-minded focus on riches and prestige. But this Rapunzel story is unlike any other and the mystery that she uncovers will change everything—except her happily ever after.

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    Conquests: Hearts Rule Kingdoms

      Emily Murdoch
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England, 1069. The nation is still recovering from the Norman invasion three years earlier - and adjusting to life under its sometimes brutal new rulers. A young girl trembles in the shadows of what was once her home. Avis is homeless and penniless, and with no family left alive she is forced to become a ward of Richard, the Norman lord who has taken her home. But when King William decrees that Norman lords must marry Anglo-Saxon women Avis must make a terrible choice. Either marry the repulsive Richard or take a else chance on another Norman, Melville, a man she has never met. Soon she realises that survival in a time of turmoil and war depends of putting aside the prejudices of the past And if she can do so, kingdoms and hearts can still be among her 'Conquests'.

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    The Frog Princess Returns

      E. D. Baker
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Fans of E. D. Baker's The Frog Princess, rejoice! Fifteen years after the original, Princess Emma, Prince Eadric, and all the beloved characters are back for another magical adventure from popular author E. D. Baker. Two weeks after Emma's birthday, Prince Eadric -- having been turned from a frog into a human again -- is still in Greater Greensward. One day, a beautiful princess named Adara arrives at the castle in Greater Greensward for a visit, claiming to be Emma's distant cousin. But Adara has other motives that threaten Emma and Eadric's blossoming romance. Meanwhile, something is very wrong in Greater Greensward. Crops are dying, streams are drying up, and large sections of trees in the enchanted forest are withering -- all because the Fairy Queen has disappeared. Without her, there is no peace in the magical kingdom, and dangerous foes threaten to take advantage of her absence. Only brave, tenacious Emma with her knowledge of the land can restore order . . . but first she must set out on a journey unlike any before. Brimming with lovable characters and page-turning magic, The Frog Princess Returns will bring a whole new batch of readers to E. D. Baker's highly acclaimed, wonderfully popular world of Frog Princess series.

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    Midsummer Moon

      Laura Kinsale
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All the king's men could not surpass the intellect, nor all the king's ladies the beauty of Merlin Lambourne. As the infamous Napoleon's deadly army grows ever closer, Lord Ransom Falconer frantically searches for an inventor who can create a new way to defeat the advancing forces. He unexpectedly finds that only the lovely Merlin is adequate for the challenge. Drunk from her intoxicating beauty, Falconer whisks Merlin backto his home on a trail of tender kisses, oblivious to mounting whispers of scandal. His quickly falls under the spell of her magical touch. But as Napoleon draws nearer, Falconer must use Merlin's own inventions to protect her from danger. The magic of love surrounds them as they fall under the spell of undeniable passion.

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    Jack Maggs

      Peter Carey
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The Booker Prize-winning author of Oscar and Lucinda returns to the nineteenth century in an utterly captivating mystery. The year is 1837 and a stranger is prowling London. He is Jack Maggs, an illegal returnee from the prison island of Australia. He has the demeanor of a savage and the skills of a hardened criminal, and he is risking his life on seeking vengeance and reconciliation.        Installing himself within the household of the genteel grocer Percy Buckle, Maggs soon attracts the attention of a cross section of London society. Saucy Mercy Larkin wants him for a mate. The writer Tobias Oates wants to possess his soul through hypnosis. But Maggs is obsessed with a plan of his own. And as all the various schemes converge, Maggs rises into the center, a dark looming figure, at once frightening, mysterious, and compelling. Not since Caleb Carr's The Alienist have the shadowy city streets of the nineteenth century lit up with such mystery and romance.

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    The Second Trip

      Robert Silverberg
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Manhattan 2012: Nat Hamlin's brilliant career as an artist came to an end the day he went insane and embarked on a murderous rampage his sentence: Total Personality Replacement. Lissa loved Nat for his passion, now she loves him again--but as Paul Macy--for his warmth and kindness. Now each personality wants her help in battling the other, for with her Power, the man she chooses can kill the other. Lissa is terrified. She has to send one of her loves to his destruction. If she chooses the wrong man, the horror will never end.

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    The Killing Game

      Iris Johansen
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A merciless killer on the hunt...an innocent child in his sights...a woman driven to the edge to stop him... The killer knows Eve Duncan all too well. He knows the pain she feels for her murdered daughter, Bonnie, whose body has never been found. He knows that as one of the nation's top forensic sculptors she'll insist on identifying the nine skeletons unearthed on a bluff near Georgia's Talladega Falls. He knows she won't be able to resist the temptation of believing that one of those skeletons might be her daughter's. But that is only the beginning of the killer's sadistic game. He wants Eve one on one, and he'll use his ace in the hole to make sure she complies. And he won't stop playing until he claims the prize he wants most: Eve's life. From the Paperback edition.

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    Bold Conquest

      Virginia Henley
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Guy de Montgomery's Norman invaders sweep across the English countryside to claim Godstone Hall and its fairest prize of war, Lillyth. She is irresistibly drawn to this virile conqueror. Though treacherous friend and foe alike rise up to challenge him, Guy will never relinquish this bewitching woman who has enflamed his warrior's blood with a passion he is powerless to resist. Bold Conquest is a classic tale of loyalty and passion that sizzles with white-hot intensity, written by "The Queen of Steamy Romance."

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    Hidden Moon

      Lori Handeland
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He's got a secret. . . Claire Kennedy left Lake Bluff, Georgia, for the bright lights of Atlanta and a promising career in journalism. Now, recovering from a cruel betrayal, she's back in the one place she always felt safe, starting over as Lake Bluff's new mayor. But then trouble comes to town in the form of Malachi Cartwright, a man whose past is as mysterious as his present--a man who awakens something dangerous in sensible, realistic Claire. That leaves her hungry for more. . . When a tourist claims to have been mauled by a vicious wolf, and when the attacks turn deadly, Malachi's strange behavior rouses Claire's suspicions. Could he have a secret agenda and a sinister reason for coming to Lake Bluff? Malachi is the only man who could tempt Claire to succumb to her desires--but he's the last person she can trust. And as an eclipse approaches, the secrets of the hidden moon will come to light, and a deadly enemy will be revealed at last. . .

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    Loved

      Morgan Rice
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"A book to rival TWILIGHT and VAMPIRE DIARIES, and one that will have you wanting to keep reading until the very last page! If you are into adventure, love and vampires this book is the one for you!" --Vampirebooksite.com (Turned)LOVED is Book #2 in the #1 Bestselling series THE VAMPIRE JOURNALS, which begins with Book #1, TURNED! In LOVED (Book #2 in the Vampire Journals), Caitlin and Caleb embark together on their quest to find the one object that can stop the imminent vampire and human war: the lost sword. An object of vampire lore, there is grave doubt over whether it even exists. If there is any hope of finding it, they must first trace Caitlin’s ancestry. Is she really the One? Their search begins with finding Caitlin’s father. Who was he? Why did he abandon her? As the search broadens, they are shocked by what they discover about who she really is. But they are not the only ones searching for the legendary sword. The Blacktide Coven wants it, too, and they are close on Caitlin and Caleb’s trail. Worse, Caitlin’s little brother, Sam, remains obsessed with finding his Dad. But Sam soon finds himself in way over his head, smack in the middle of a vampire war. Will he jeopardize their search? Caitlin and Caleb’s journey takes them on a whirlwind of historic locations―from the Hudson Valley, to Salem, to the heart of historic Boston―the very spot where witches were once hung on the hill of Boston Common. Why are these locations so important to the vampire race? And what do they have to do with Caitlin’s ancestry, and with who she’s becoming? But they may not even make it. Caitlin and Caleb’s love for each other is blossoming. And their forbidden romance may just destroy everything they’ve set out to achieve…. “LOVED, the second book in the Vampire Journals series, is just as great as the first book, TURNED, and jam packed with action, romance, adventure, and suspense. If you loved the first book, get your hands on this one and fall in love all over again.” --Vampirebooksite.com “THE VAMPIRE JOURNALS series has had a great plot, and LOVED especially was the kind of book you will have trouble putting down at night. The ending was a cliffhanger that was so spectacular that you will immediately want to buy the next book, just to see what happens. As you can see, this book was a huge step up in the series and receives a solid A.” --The Dallas Examiner

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