In the world of Gnomon, citizens are constantly observed and democracy has reached a pinnacle of 'transparency.' Every action is seen, every word is recorded, and the System has access to its citizens' thoughts and memories--all in the name of providing the safest society in history. When suspected dissident Diana Hunter dies in government custody, it marks the first time a citizen has been killed during an interrogation. The System doesn't make mistakes, but something isn't right about the circumstances surrounding Hunter's death. Mielikki Neith, a trusted state inspector and a true believer in the System, is assigned to find out what went wrong. Immersing herself in neural recordings of the interrogation, what she finds isn't Hunter but rather a panorama of characters within Hunter's psyche: a lovelorn financier in Athens who has a mystical experience with a shark; a brilliant alchemist in ancient Carthage confronting the unexpected outcome of her invention; an expat Ethiopian painter in London designing a controversial new video game, and a sociopathic disembodied intelligence from the distant future. Embedded in the memories of these impossible lives lies a code which Neith must decipher to find out what Hunter is hiding. In the static between these stories, Neith begins to catch glimpses of the real Diana Hunter--and, alarmingly, of herself. The staggering consequences of what she finds will reverberate throughout the world.

It is winter in Area X. A new team embarks across the border on a mission to find a member of a previous expedition who may have been left behind. As they press deeper into the unknown — navigating new terrain and new challenges — the threat to the outside world becomes more daunting. In Acceptance, the last installment of Jeff VanderMeer’s Southern Reach Trilogy, the mysteries of Area X may have been solved, but their consequences and implications are no less profound — or terrifying.

Received an honourable mention on the Globe and Mail's top first fiction for 2008 Shari Lapeña takes the wit of David Sedaris and the outrageousness of Douglas Coupland to create a dark, hilarious and wildly inventive contemporary comedy about how the past can come back to haunt you. Literally. In Things Go Flying, Harold Walker is desperately average and listless at mid-life, stemming in part from the abrupt death of his one-time best friend, Tom. Harold's wife Audrey, an increasingly frustrated housewife and mother to their two teenage sons, is a control freak silently harbouring an explosive secret. Things go flying in the Walker household when Harold's long-deceased mother comes back to haunt them. He finds he has her gift for opening the door to the past-and if there was ever a gift he wanted to return, it's this one! Audrey is similarly terrified-how is she to safeguard her secret now? If she can't control this world, how is she to control the next one? And how will she protect her good china? Harold, who has made a practice of avoiding things all his life, must confront two problems-how to find meaning in this life, and how to come to grips with the mostly terrifying idea that life just might go on forever!

The ultimate back story of the original Dracula, and its creator, Bram Stoker. Best-selling author Frank Delaney deconstructs the Vampire myth through the ages, and shows us how Stoker’s 1897 novel, one of the most widely read books of all time, heightened the allure of sex, the glamour of blood, and the defeat of death in a way that continues to pulse - and faster than ever - on the page and on the screen.

As Lost in Space, starring William Hurt and Gary Oldman, gets ready to blast off into movie blockbusterdom, Hugo Award-winning author Joan D. Vinge offer fans this action-packed audiobook based on the movie's exciting storyline. Capturing the Twists and Turns of Intergalactic fate, this exciting audio tells how the Robinsons came to be castaways -- the parents' plans for space travel and planet colonization, their children's mixed reactions to leaving Earth, and Dr. Smith's treachery that backfires when he's trapped aboard the lost ship. As their ship careens blindly through space, they encounter a mysterious, technologically advanced, but abandoned, space station, where the adventures escalate and their role in the fate of the entire universe becomes clear.

Catherine Jinks's follow-up to PAGAN'S CRUSADE is another tale with special appeal for boys -- filled with action, featuring a witty young narrator, and loaded with down-and-dirty details of medieval life. The year is 1188, and Jerusalem is in the hands of the Infidel. Upstanding Crusaders and their squires--like Lord Roland Roucy de Bram and Pagan Kidrouk--are returning to Europe, hoping to rally more knights to their cause. The sardonic young Pagan expects Lord Roland's family to be the picture of fortitude and good manners, but he is in for a rude awakening. Brutish and unfeeling, the de Bram clan cares nothing for the Crusades, or indeed for anything outside their neighborhood in France. Meanwhile, local unrest is brewing. Church authorities are duking it out with the de Brams over a group of "heretics" living nearby. And now Pagan and Roland, sworn to defend Christianity, are left to decide for themselves whom to stand by-and whom to trust.

Now that Laura is 12 years old, she realizes that everything about her mother is totally embarrassing. Like the way she yodels at the top of her lungs while she works (okay, she calls it singing). And plays really old music so loud the neighbors can hear (can’t she listen to normal music?). And walks around in clay-covered pajamas (yes, she is a sculptor, but still . . . ). But things are about to get much, much worse. Laura has noticed that her mother is getting a little bit, well, fat. Then one night over dinner (at a restaurant, since she almost burned down the house trying to cook), her mother announces that she’s going to have a baby. Now all the neighbors, including the gorgeous boy Laura has a crush on, will know her parents have been doing it. Maybe even in the house! There must be some way Laura can change her mother before her own life is completely, utterly ruined! From the Hardcover edition.

Stories exploring the fascinating realm of Elfhome, a world where modern day Pittsburgh has collided with the kingdom of the Elves. A special entry in the the best-selling Romantic Times Sapphire award winning Elfhome series. Contains some of Wen Spencer's best shorter works including gems "Bare Snow Falling on Fairywood," "Pittsburgh Backyard and Garden," "Peace Offering,” and more tales set in the world of best-selling Elfhome series entries Tinker, Wolf Who Rules, Elfhome, and Wood Sprites! Pittsburgh: a sprawling modern Earth city stranded in the heart of a virgin forest on Elfhome.  Sixty thousand humans, twenty thousand black-winged tengu, ten thousand elves, an unknown number of invading oni, four unborn siblings of an elf princess, three dragons, and a pair of nine-year olds geniuses. For every story written, there's a thousand others not told. Lives interweave.  Fates intersect.  People change one another, often without realizing the impact they've made on others.  They come together like a mosaic, little pieces creating a greater picture. Project Elfhome tells the stories of those impacted by Tinker and Windwolf as they struggle to make Pittsburgh a safe haven.  Some of the characters are familiar: Stormsong, Pony, Blue Sky, and Lain.  Others are new to readers. Law forages for wild plants and fish to sell to elf enclaves.  A social misfit, she drives a hundred year old Dodge, has a pet porcupine, and saves damsels in distress in her spare time.  A mysterious phone call sets her on a collision course with danger as she races to save a young female elf. Jane Kryskill is the producer for the popular TV series Pittsburgh Backyard and Garden.  She spends her days keeping her host, Hal Rogers, from getting himself killed as he takes on man eating plants.  She's not happy when the network drops famed naturalist Nigel Reid and his cameraman in her lap to film Chased by Monsters. Olivia is sixteen, a runaway wife of a religious cultist, illegal immigrant, and soon to be mother.  As Pittsburgh plunges into war, she makes a desperate bargain with the mad elf lord, Forest Moss. As the war between the elves and the oni builds to a head, these three women struggle with their own problems, supported by a circle of unique friends, yet entangled with each other. About Wen Spencer's Elfhome series:“Spencer's intertwining of current Earth technology and otherworldly elven magic is quite ingenious.” —Booklist "[M]aintains the series' solid quality. . . . The girls are endearing without being twee, and bright but not implausibly brilliant, and Spencer's prose remains engaging. The melange of science fiction and fantasy tropes, starships rubbing shoulders with proud elf warriors, is uncommon but tasty. Established fans will enjoy this installment, and those unfamiliar with the series or Spencer may find it an intriguing introduction to her work."—Publishers Weekly About Wen Spencer:“Wit and intelligence inform this off-beat, tongue-in-cheek fantasy. . . . Furious action . . . good characterization, playful eroticism and well-developed folklore. . . . lift this well above the fantasy average. . . . Buffy fans should find a lot to like in the book's resourceful heroine.”—Publishers Weekly on series debut TinkerAbout Wen Spencer's Eight Million Gods:Eight Million Gods is a wonderfully weird romp through Japanese mythology, culture shock, fan culture and the ability to write your own happy ending. It is diverting and entertaining fantasy."—Galveston County Daily News The Elfhome SeriesTinkerWolf Who RulesElfhomeWood Sprites**

Past to present... PAST: It all starts with a glimpse into the past of Falling Down, when Jesse meets Lucy, and everything you've wondered about Cage. Let's see how they got to where they are right now. PRESENT: It's time to prepare to go back out on tour. Let's meet the Blush Baby and get everyone settled in for what looks to be like a kick ass finish to the BFD tour.**

Baringa, grandson of the mighty Silver Brumby, Thowra, becomes The Stallion of Quambat Flat. But first he has to defeat Lightning, his own dam’s brother, and then there are floods, and trouble with a black stallion who seeks a silver horse that has stolen his roan mares.This Elyne Mitchell’s fourth book about the wild horses of the Australian bush.

It's not easy to keep a boyfriend, run a business, and survive for centuries as one of the immortal undead. Glory St. Clair knows-ever since a sexy Scottish vampire bit her while she was a tad. . . bloated. But when a frustrated vampire hunter firebombs her vintage clothing boutique, she's ready to pitch a fit. Then her long-time, part-time lover takes off in a rage to hunt the hunter and prove himself worthy of her. And that's only the beginning of her troubles. The Energy Vampires want her-and not in a good way. They're paranormal drug dealers, selling thrills to those who've lived for ages, been everywhere, and done everything. . . and they want to suck Glory dry. But it'll take more than a few super-suckers to get the goods out of her.

This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery.

Left Half Harmon

This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery.

The Buffalo Runners - A Tale of the Red River Plains is presented here in a high quality paperback edition. This popular classic work by R. M. (Robert Michael) Ballantyne is in the English language, and may not include graphics or images from the original edition. If you enjoy the works of R. M. (Robert Michael) Ballantyne then we highly recommend this publication for your book collection.

A QUEER OLD PERSON There was a queer old person that lived in Farmer Green's garden. Nobody knew exactly how long he had made his home there because his neighbors seldom saw him. He might have been in the garden a whole summer before anybody set eyes on him. Those that were acquainted with him called him Grandfather Mole. And the reason why his friends didn't meet him oftener was because he spent most of his time underground. Grandfather Mole's house was in a mound at one end of the garden. He had made the house himself, for he was a great digger. And Mr. Meadow Mouse often remarked that it had more halls than any other dwelling he had ever seen. He had visited it when Grandfather Mole was away from home, so he knew what it was like. Some of those halls that Mr. Meadow Mouse mentioned ran right out beneath the surface of the garden. Grandfather Mole had dug them for a certain purpose. Through them he made his way in the darkness, whenever he was hungry (which was most of the time, for he had a huge appetite!). And when he took an underground stroll he was almost sure to find a few angleworms, which furnished most of his meals. To be sure, he did not despise a grub—if he happened to meet one—nor a cutworm nor a wire-worm. The wonder of it was that Grandfather Mole ever found anything to eat, for the old gentleman was all but blind. The only good Grandfather Mole's eyes did him was to let him tell darkness from light. They were so small that his neighbors claimed he hadn't any at all. Another odd thing about this odd person was his ears. The neighbors said they couldn't see them, either. But they were in his head, even if they didn't show. And Grandfather Mole himself sometimes remarked that he didn't know how he could have burrowed as he did if he had been forever getting dirt in his eyes and ears. He seemed quite satisfied to be just as he was. And he used to say that he didn't know what good eyes were to anyone whether he was under the ground or on top of it! Liking to dig as he did, he certainly had nothing to complain about. His long nose was as good as a drill. And his front legs were just long enough so that he could reach his large, spade-like feet beyond his nose and throw the dirt back. His fur lay in one direction as easily as in another, never troubling him in the least when he was boring his way through the dry, loose soil of Farmer Green's garden. So in spite of what might seem great drawbacks to others, Grandfather Mole was contented with his lot. The only thing he was ever known to grumble about was the scarcity of angleworms. II WHAT THE CAT CAUGHT Everybody knew the cat at Farmer Green's to be a great hunter. She had long since disposed of the last mouse that was so foolish as to venture inside her home. And being very big, and not at all timid, she had made such a name for herself in the neighborhood that even the rats looked on her as a monster to be avoided. Now it often happened that this capable cat turned up her nose at the saucer of milk that Farmer Green's wife set before her with great regularity....

This is a reproduction of a book published before 1923. This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. ++++ The below data was compiled from various identification fields in the bibliographic record of this title. This data is provided as an additional tool in helping to ensure edition identification: ++++