“Lukeman’s sequel to the Scottish play succeeds as both a fascinating literary exercise and an entertaining play in its own right….[A] poetic, well-paced drama.”—Booklist “Lukeman did a top-notch job creating a fresh play in the style of Shakespeare. The story moves quite briskly, and takes quite a few intriguing twists...."“An audacious achievement.”--Jennifer Lee Carrell, Ph.D. (Harvard)New York Times Bestselling author of Interred With Their Bones/The Shakespeare Secret“Lukeman’s sequel to the Scottish play succeeds as both a fascinating literary exercise and an entertaining play in its own right….[A] poetic, well-paced drama.”—BooklistRecommended Reading, New York Magazine Fall PreviewIn 1610, The Tragedy of Macbeth was first performed. 400 years later: the sequel, written as a five-act play in blank verse.Ten years king, Malcolm sits on an uneasy throne. If Malcolm’s mind is haunted by the ghosts of his royal father (“gracious Duncan”) as well as the thane and lady who so bloodily betrayed him, Malcolm’s soul is sickened, as was Macbeth’s, by the witches’ prophecy that from Banquo’s seed would spring a line of Scottish kings: a prophecy that remained unfulfilled at the end of Shakespeare’s play. The witches also taunt Malcolm with riddles all his own: that sorrows will visit him from Ireland (where his younger brother fled upon their father’s death); that his love for Macbeth will breed fresh treachery. True to the Shakespearean model, its devious plot unfolding in five acts and its speech set to the measure of blank verse, Macbeth, Part II, draws bold the tragedy of a powerful man undone by the terrors he imagines and the truths he fails to see."Noah Lukeman's bold sequel to Macbeth, written in blank verse, is a fierce, memory-ridden love letter to Shakespeare, and an enthralling reminder that, in our imagination, Shakespeare's greatest plays have no end."--Nigel Cliff, author of The Shakespeare Riots “Lukeman did a top-notch job creating a fresh play in the style of Shakespeare. The story moves quite briskly, and takes quite a few intriguing twists....The rhythm of the words and the drama of the story would make for quite a suspenseful and entertaining show.”—Fashionista Piranha“Lukeman truly has mastered the Shakespearian art and created a play that can stand as a sequel to the great Shakespearian play.”—A.M. Perez, Amanda's Weekly Zen

Eighteen-year-old Yazmin's life is pretty crazy right now. Her new relationship with her fave star isn't quite what she expects it to be and she seems to be finding herself in one bizarre situation after another. But hey - how many girls can say they've appeared in a music video, partied in a spooky mansion and been through a succession of mad adventures all in the space of a few short weeks?Eighteen-year-old Yazmin's life is pretty crazy right now. Her new relationship with her fave star isn't quite what she expects it to be and she seems to be finding herself in one bizarre situation after another. But hey - how many girls can say they've appeared in a music video, partied in a spooky mansion and been through a succession of mad adventures all in the space of a few short weeks?Crazy Mad Life is the second book in the lighthearted Stage Door series.

Memories flood Mr. Voss as the man sits amid the winking lights of his treatment. Mr. Voss’ memories have been lost for years, and disease shrouds his mind with mist. Treatment composed of glimmer promises to restore Mr. Voss’ health, and his wife will give everything to help him return. But the children fear what the light might summon, and they hesitate to pay any of the light's cost.Elaine Voss looks upon her husband and prays that Thomas quickly returns to her. Disease has stolen her husband’s memory, so that Thomas fails to recognize the faces of his family. That disease seems especially cruel to Elaine, for her husband’s shoulders remain wide, his legs strong, and his face little wrinkled. Elaine puts her faith into the lights, and she sacrifices to pay whatever cost the sparkle requires to reunite with the man Elaine always believed Thomas to be.Vicki Voss looks upon her father as the lights dance upon him. She learned to carve her own path while the mist filled Thomas’ mind, and she wonders if a returned father would do her more harm than good. Like her mother, Vicki believes the therapy will heal her father, but she remains unsure if she desires a family reunion. Vicki fears Thomas will mock her aims and force her to remain silent and meek.Logan Voss drives through the night to return to his childhood home. Mother again contacts him with news that his father will soon walk out of the light. Yet Logan remains skeptical. He has often hurried home only to find that disease keeps it grip upon Thomas Voss’ mind. But Logan hurries home now with a different purpose; he is determined to convince his mother and sister to let their father drift forever away, believing a quiet death a better option than the monster Logan fears his family summons.

Though best-known for his epic masterpiece Moby-Dick, Herman Melville also left a body of short stories arguably unmatched in American fiction. In the sorrowful tragedy of Billy Budd,Sailor; the controlled rage of Benito Cereno; and the tantalizing enigma of Bartleby, the Scrivener; Melville reveals himself as a singular storyteller of tremendous range and compelling power. In these stories, Melville cuts to the heart of race, class, capitalism, and globalism in America, deftly navigating political and social issues that resonate as clearly in our time as they did in Melville's. Also including The Piazza Tales in full, this collection demonstrates why Melville stands not only among the greatest writers of the nineteenth century, but also as one of our greatest contemporaries. This Penguin Classics edition features the Reading Text of Billy Budd, Sailor, as edited from a genetic study of the manuscript by Harrison Hayford and Merton M. Sealts, Jr., and the authoritative Northwestern-Newberry text of The Piazza Tales.

From the celebrated author of Things Fall Apart and winner of the Man Booker International Prize comes a new collection of autobiographical essays—his first new book in more than twenty years. Chinua Achebe’s characteristically measured and nuanced voice is everywhere present in these seventeen beautifully written pieces. In a preface, he discusses his historic visit to his Nigerian homeland on the occasion of the fiftieth anniversary of the publication of Things Fall Apart, the story of his tragic car accident nearly twenty years ago, and the potent symbolism of President Obama’s election. In “The Education of a British-Protected Child,” Achebe gives us a vivid portrait of growing up in colonial Nigeria and inhabiting its “middle ground,” recalling both his happy memories of reading novels in secondary school and the harsher truths of colonial rule. In “Spelling Our Proper Name,” Achebe considers the African-American diaspora, meeting and reading Langston Hughes and James Baldwin, and learning what it means not to know “from whence he came.” The complex politics and history of Africa figure in “What Is Nigeria to Me?,” “Africa’s Tarnished Name,” and “Politics and Politicians of Language in African Literature.” And Achebe’s extraordinary family life comes into view in “My Dad and Me” and “My Daughters,” where we observe the effect of Christian missionaries on his father and witness the culture shock of raising “brown” children in America. Charmingly personal, intellectually disciplined, and steadfastly wise, The Education of a British-Protected Child is an indispensable addition to the remarkable Achebe oeuvre. **

Can the same killer strike again—a hundred and fifty years later?  Estes Park, Colorado, is a place of serenity. But it wasn't always so serene. Shortly after the Civil War, Nathan Kendall and his wife were murdered there, leaving behind a young son. The crime was never solved.  Now…historian Scarlet Barlow is working at a small museum attached to a B and B, the same building where that murder occurred. She recently came to Colorado, reeling after her divorce from FBI agent Diego McCullough. Diego—who's just been asked to join the Krewe of Hunters, a unit dealing with "unusual" situations…  When Scarlet unwittingly takes pictures of people who've been murdered—just like the Kendalls a hundred and fifty years before—the police look at her with suspicion. Then the museum's statues of historic people, including Nathan Kendall, begin to talk to her, and she knows it's time to call her ex-husband. Diego heads to Estes Park, determined to solve the bizarre case that threatens Scarlet's life—and to reunite with the woman he never stopped loving.

"It began as a mistake." By middle age, Henry Chinaski has lost more than twelve years of his life to the U.S. Postal Service. In a world where his three true, bitter pleasures are women, booze, and racetrack betting, he somehow drags his hangover out of bed every dawn to lug waterlogged mailbags up mud-soaked mountains, outsmart vicious guard dogs, and pray to survive the day-to-day trials of sadistic bosses and certifiable coworkers. This classic 1971 novel—the one that catapulted its author to national fame—is the perfect introduction to the grimly hysterical world of legendary writer, poet, and Dirty Old Man Charles Bukowski and his fictional alter ego, Chinaski.

Synopsis: Lucian and Tara may have won Dom Wars and the Million--two, in fact--but they didn't realize they'd be the reigning Mr. and Mrs. Dildo USA. As the new "Faces" of the large adult-toy company, they're required to train at least five couples within five years, in the art of Dominance and submission. In addition to selling X amount of Gladiator toys. Only problem is, Gramma isn't leaving Maplewood, Missouri, which means they'll have to conduct Undercover Operation-Kink in Tara's stuck-up, religious hometown, without getting caught and having the entire family thrown out. But two million dollars is two million dollars, and Lucian and Tara didn't come all this way to forfeit everything they sacrificed. So, the plan is to Dom and sub up, find a way to pull this kink-heist off, and collect their winnings. And with the help of his good friend Steve, he's sure they can manage anything.

Primo Levi, the Italian-born chemist once described by Philip Roth as that “quicksilver little woodland creature enlivened by the forest’s most astute intelligence,” has largely been considered a heroic figure in the annals of twentieth-century literature for If This Is a Man, his haunting account of Auschwitz. Yet Levi’s body of work extends considerably beyond his experience as a survivor. Now, the transformation of Levi from Holocaust memoirist to one of the twentieth century’s greatest writers culminates in this publication of The Complete Works of Primo Levi. This magisterial collection finally gathers all of Levi’s fourteen books—memoirs, essays, poetry, and fiction—into three slip-cased volumes. Thirteen of the books feature new translations, and the other is newly revised by the original translator. Nobel laureate Toni Morrison introduces Levi’s writing as a “triumph of human identity and worth over the pathology of human destruction.” The appearance of this historic publication will occasion a major reappraisal of “one of the most valuable writers of our time” (Alfred Kazin). The Complete Works of Primo Levi features all new translations of: The Periodic Table, The Drowned and the Saved, The Truce, Natural Histories, Flaw of Form, The Wrench, Lilith, Other People’s Trades, and If Not Now, When?—as well as all of Levi’s poems, essays, and other nonfiction work, some of which have never appeared before in English.

Three children, strangers to each other, are brought together by seemingly motiveless and extreme acts of violence. Orphaned and alone, they are taken in as students at Evensong, a boarding school for emotionally traumatized children in the remote Maine wilderness. A PLACE OF SAFETY? Forensic pathologist Maura Isles already has a connection with the school � Julian 'Rat' Perkins, the 16-year-old boy she met during a previous case, is now living there. But she suspects that the Evensong founders may be using the school for their own agenda. And her concerns grow when Detective Jane Rizzoli is asked to investigate yet another attempt on the life of one of the orphans at the school . . . OR A PLACE OF DANGER? What both Jane and Maura soon discover is that even a school protected by locked gates and acres of forest cannot shut out a gathering threat. When three blood-spattered twig dolls are found hanging from a tree, they wonder if the threat comes from outside the school . . . or from within.

"Oates's introduction to Akashic's noir volume dedicated to the Garden State, with its evocative definition of the genre, is alone worth the price of the book . . . Poems by C.K. Williams, Paul Muldoon, and others--plus photos by Gerald Slota--enhance this distinguished entry." -- Publishers Weekly "It was inevitable that this fine noir series would reach New Jersey. It took longer than some readers might have wanted, but, oh boy, was it worth the wait . . . More than most of the entries in the series, this volume is about mood and atmosphere more than it is about plot and character . . . It should go without saying that regular readers of the noir series will seek this one out, but beyond that, the book also serves as a very good introduction to what is a popular but often misunderstood term and style of writing." -- Booklist , Starred Review "A lovingly collected assortment of tales and poems that range from the disturbing to the darkly humorous." -- Shelf Awareness Featuring brand-new stories (and a few poems) by: Joyce Carol Oates, Jonathan Safran Foer, Robert Pinsky, Edmund White & Michael Carroll, Richard Burgin, Paul Muldoon, Sheila Kohler, C.K. Williams, Gerald Stern, Lou Manfredo, S.A. Solomon, Bradford Morrow, Jonathan Santlofer, Jeffrey Ford, S.J. Rozan, Barry N. Malzberg & Bill Pronzini, Hirsh Sawhney, and Robert Arellano. From the introduction by Joyce Carol Oates: ". . . The most civilized and 'decent' among us find that we are complicit with the most brutal murderers. We enter into literally unspeakable alliances--of which we dare not speak except through the obliquities and indirections of fiction, poetry, and visual art of the sort gathered here in New Jersey Noir."

Vivi’s animal instincts are her legacy—and maybe her downfall—in this start to a romantic fantasy series that will appeal to fans of The Nine Lives of Chloe King. Vivi has known the truth about her family—and herself—since she was thirteen. But that doesn’t mean she’s accepted it. Being Haguari isn’t something she feels she’ll ever accept. How can she feel like anything but a freak knowing that it’s in her genes to turn into a jaguar? Now eighteen, Vivi’s ready to break away from the traditions of her heritage. But all of that changes with the shocking, devastating deaths of her parents and the mysteries left behind. Vivi discovers family she never even knew she had, and a life open with possibility. New friends, new loyalties, and even romance all lay ahead—but so do dangers unlike anything Vivi ever could have imagined.

Jane Yellowrock used to hunt vampires, but now she must fight--and win--beside them. As Enforcer to the vampire Master of the City of New Orleans, Jane Yellowrock stakes her reputation and her life on keeping her territory safe. But Leo has been issued a blood challenge by the emperor of the European vampires, who seeks to usurp all of his power and possessions. If Leo loses the match to the death, the city will be forfeit, and the people of New Orleans will suffer the consequences. Jane can't let that happen. Preparing for the duel requires all of Jane's focus, but with so much supernatural power in play, nothing goes according to plan. She has to rely on herself and the very few people she knows she can trust to stand and fight. Only two things are guaranteed: nothing is sacred, and no one is safe.

A sweeping tale of abduction, battle, and courtship played out in a universe of deities and demons, The Ramayana is familiar to virtually every Indian. Although the Sanskrit original was composed by Valmiki around the fourth century BC, poets have produced countless versions in different languages. Here, drawing on the work of an eleventh-century poet called Kamban, Narayan employs the skills of a master novelist to re-create the excitement he found in the original. A luminous saga made accessible to new generations of readers, The Ramayana can be enjoyed for its spiritual wisdom, or as a thrilling tale of ancient conflict.

Duncan Gatewood, seventeen and heir to Gatewood Plantation, falls in love with Maggie, a mulatto slave, who conceives a son, Jacob. Maggie and Jacob are sold south, and Duncan is packed off to the Virginia Military Institute—he will eventually fight for Robert E. Lee. Another Gatewood slave, Jesse—whose love for Maggie is unrequited—escapes to find her. Jesse finds his freedom and enlists in Mr. Lincoln’s army; in time he will confront his former masters. In his award-winning novel of the interlocked lives of masters and slaves, Donald McCaig conjures a passionate and richly textured story in the heart of America’s greatest war.

This rarefied novel adopts the form of the interior monologue characteristic of Lispector's (1925-1977) oeuvre. A woman sits by the open window of her Brazilian beachfront studio, writing a long letter to someone no more specific than "you." She parries with language (which is "only words which live off sound") and is wholly consumed with problems of epistemology: "I want to die with life." A painter, she struggles as well to recreate the world around her: "On certain nights, instead of black, the sky seems to be an intense indigo blue, a color I've painted on glass." When she listens to music, she says, "I rest my hand lightly on the turntable and my hand vibrates, spreading waves through my whole body." While the narrator's self-consciousness ("And if I say 'I,' it's because I don't dare say 'you,' or 'we,' or 'a person.' I'm limited to the humble act of self-personalization through reducing myself, but I am the 'you-are.' ") and diction ("the ultimate substratum in the domain of reality") may strike some readers as academic, others will appreciate the challenges of Lispector's philosophical investigations. Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Imagine a United States in which registries and detainment camps for Muslim-Americans are a reality. Fifteen-year-old Sarah-Mary Williams of Hannibal, Missouri, lives in this world, and though she has strong opinions on almost everything, she isn’t concerned with the internments because she doesn’t know any Muslims. She assumes that everything she reads and sees in the news is true, and that these plans are better for everyone’s safety. But when she happens upon Sadaf, a Muslim fugitive determined to reach freedom in Canada, Sarah-Mary at first believes she must turn her in. But Sadaf challenges Sarah-Mary’s perceptions of right and wrong, and instead Sarah-Mary decides, with growing conviction, to do all she can to help Sadaf escape. The two set off on a desperate journey, hitchhiking through the heart of an America that is at times courageous and kind, but always full of tension and danger for anyone deemed suspicious.

Felix Francis is back with another edge-of-your-seat thriller, in the classic Dick Francis tradition. Undercover investigator Jeff Hinkley is assigned by the British Horseracing Authority to look into the activities of a suspicious racehorse trainer, but as he's tailing his quarry through the Cheltenham Racing Festival, the last thing he expects to witness is a gruesome murder. Could it have something to do with the reason the trainer was banned in the first place—the administration of illegal drugs to his horses?Then many more horses test positive for prohibited stimulants, and someone starts making demands, threatening to completely destroy the integrity of the racing industry. In order to limit the damage to the sport, it's critical that Jeff find the perpetrator . . . but he'll soon learn he's up against someone who will stop at nothing to prevail.

Welcome back to Shakespeare -- a charming Arkansas town with endless back roads, an eclectic mix of residents, and a dollop of noir. Featuring cleaning woman/karate expert Lily Bard, Charlaine Harris's series puts a unique spin on the traditional cozy to create mysteries that "work on every level". — In the latest installment, Lily discovers lifelong Shakespeare resident Deedra Dean murdered inside a car parked in a woodsy area outside town. Determined not to get involved, Lily wants to leave the police work to Sheriff Marta Schuster and her team of deputies, and concentrate on cleaning, high kicks, and her boyfriend Jack's impending visit. But when Deedra's notoriously promiscuous lifestyle provides an extensive list of suspects but very few clues, Lily has no choice but to resume the roll of amateur detective and join the investigation. In this fourth book in Charlaine Harris's highly acclaimed and darkly compelling series, Lily Bard delivers a hard-hitting mix of Southern charm and street smarts, a combination so alluring that long-time readers and newcomers will be dying to visit Shakespeare again.

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"Voodoo Planet" features Dane Thorson, a young man fortunate enough to land a job on the Free Trader ship, the "Solar Queen." Plying their trade among the stars, Free Traders visit planets -- known and unknown -- in search of profit. (Another novel featuring Dane Thorson, "Plague Ship," is also available from Wildside Press.) In "Voodoo Planet," Captain Jellico and the ship's medic, Tau, are invited to Khatka, a world settled by African refugees, to help unravel the secret of a witch doctor's growing power. Dane is invited along as cover, much to his delight. Khatka has been set up as an exclusive hunting preserve for the rich. With mysterious, possibly supernatural deaths at the hands of otherworldly creatures, disappearing equipment, and a witch doctor's "magic" (not to mention poachers!), it may be more than the crew of the Solar Queen can handle! Includes a new introduction by best-selling author John Gregory Betancourt written especially for this edition.