The Widower's Tale

      Julia Glass
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In a historic farmhouse outside Boston, seventy-year-old Percy Darling is settling happily into retirement: reading novels, watching old movies, and swimming naked in his pond. His routines are disrupted, however, when he is persuaded to let a locally beloved preschool take over his barn. As Percy sees his rural refuge overrun by children, parents, and teachers, he must reexamine the solitary life he has made in the three decades since the sudden death of his wife. No longer can he remain aloof from his community, his two grown daughters, or, to his shock, the precarious joy of falling in love. One relationship Percy treasures is the bond with his oldest grandchild, Robert, a premed student at Harvard. Robert has long assumed he will follow in the footsteps of his mother, a prominent physician, but he begins to question his ambitions when confronted by a charismatic roommate who preaches—and begins to practice—an extreme form of ecological activism, targeting Boston’s most affluent suburbs. Meanwhile, two other men become fatefully involved with Percy and Robert: Ira, a gay teacher at the preschool, and Celestino, a Guatemalan gardener who works for Percy’s neighbor, each one striving to overcome a sense of personal exile. Choices made by all four men, as well as by the women around them, collide forcefully on one lovely spring evening, upending everyone’s lives, but none more radically than Percy’s. With equal parts affection and satire, Julia Glass spins a captivating tale about the loyalties, rivalries, and secrets of a very particular family. Yet again, she plumbs the human heart brilliantly, dramatically, and movingly.

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    Mysterium

      Robert Charles Wilson
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In a top-secret government installation near the small town of Two Rivers, Michigan, scientists are investigating a mysterious object discovered several years earlier. Late one evening, the local residents observe strange lights coming from the laboratory. The next morning, they awake to find that their town was literally cut off from the rest of the world...and thrust into a new one! Soon the town is discovered by the bewildered leaders of this new world—at which point, the people of Two Rivers realize that they've arrived in a rigid theocracy. The authorities, known as the Bureau de la Covenance Religieuse, have ordered Linneth Stone, a young ethnologist, to analyze the arrivals and report her findings to the Lieutenant in charge. What Linneth finds will challenge the philosophical basis of her society and lead inexorably to a struggle for power centering on the mysterious object that Two Rivers' government scientists were studying when the town slipped between worlds. In Mysterium, Robert Charles Wilson "blends science, religion, philosophy and alternate history into an intelligent, compelling work of fiction" (Publishers Weekly).

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    The True Deceiver

      Tove Jansson
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The True Deceiver by Tove Jansson

 Translated from the Swedish by Thomas Teal

 Introduced by Ali Smith A book of haunting suspense, a dark companion to The Summer Book, introduced by Ali Smith. In the deep winter snows of a Swedish hamlet, a strange young woman fakes a break-in at the house of an elderly artist in order to persuade her that she needs companionship. But what does she hope to gain by doing this? And who ultimately is deceiving whom? In this portrayal of two women encircling each other with truth and lies, nothing can be taken for granted. By the time the snow thaws, both their lives will have changed irrevocably. First ever publication in English, in a translation by Thomas Teal.

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    The Ghoul Next Door

      Victoria Laurie
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On a well-deserved hiatus from the ghoulish grind of their TV show, Ghoul Getters, psychic medium M. J. Holliday, her boyfriend, Heath, and her best friend, Gilley, are back home in Boston. But there’s no rest for the weary ghost busters. M. J.’s ex comes to her for help—his fiancée’s brother Luke seems haunted by a sinister spirit. The crew sets up surveillance cameras to watch for the possessive poltergeist while Luke is sleeping. But when he goes outside in the middle of the night and returns hours later covered in blood, they are all very concerned—especially when the news reports the murder of a young woman in the neighborhood. Now M. J., Heath, and Gilley must remain self-possessed as they try to stop a wicked ghost whose behavior is anything but neighborly.

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    The Second Siege

      Henry H. Neff
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EDITORIAL REVIEW: *A fast-paced, genre-blending adventure—now in paperback! *The Tapestry series continues to weave threads of fantasy, mythology, science fiction, and mystery into a wholly original adventure that appeals to fans of everything from Harry Potter to Lord of the Rings to The X-Men. Genre-blending and fully illustrated, The Tapestry novels have caught the attention of middle-grade and young adult readers alike—and the series is only getting bigger.In this second book of the series, grave forces are converging to seize control of the Book of Thoth, a hidden artifact whose pages hold the key to creating—or unraveling—the very threads of existence. Max McDaniels and David Menlo embark on a quest to protect the book from the demon Astaroth, who would exploit its secrets with dire consequence. And with Astaroth free after centuries of imprisonment, the world outside Rowan’s gates has already become hostile. Far from home, cut off behind enemy lines, Max and his allies must journey across Europe, descend into the fabled Frankfurt Workshop, brave the tangled corners of the Black Forest . . . and cross beyond the veils of our very world. “After devouring this title, young fans will be clamoring for more.”*—Kirkus Reviews*Visit www.rowanacademy.com for original content, exclusive artwork, and more!

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    Dream Thief

      Tony Abbott
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Hailed as the perfect series for kids not quite ready for Harry Potter, THE SECRETS OF DROON series is enchanting young readers everywhere! Eric is tossing and turning in his sleep! And his wild dream can only mean one thing - he is being called back to the land of Droon. But when Eric, Julie, and Neal step off the rainbow stairs, they find that something is very wrong in their magical world. Someone has been stealing people's dreams! And the kingdom of Droon is getting awfully tired of it. So now it's up to our friends to stop this dream thief, before he becomes a serious nightmare...

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    Tryst

      S. L. Jennings
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My name is Heidi DuCane. I might seem like your average happily married woman with average desires. But don’t let looks fool you. I have needs that are begging to be satisfied. So what do I want more than anything else? I want my most secret fantasy fulfilled. Have I got your interest now? Are you wondering what my most illicit, dark fantasy involves? I want my husband, Tucker, to watch while another man brings me to pleasure. While I do love Tucker, I’ve always suspected there’s much more out there waiting for me to explore. And my hunch was proven when I met rock superstar Ransom Reed—every woman’s wet dream. I would’ve been insane not to take him up on his offer to share one wild night with him…and Tucker. The sex was mind-blowing! And Tucker enjoyed himself as much as I did. But here’s the catch. The sex was so good that one night wasn’t enough. Neither Tucker nor I can stop thinking about that scorching hot night. My husband loves me so much that he’ll do anything to please me—including helping me reach staggering heights of ecstasy with another man. But it wasn’t just the sex that was enticing. I felt something come alive in me, and I felt so deliciously satisfied and loved by both men. Now that Tucker and Ransom have made my most forbidden fantasies come true, I’ve learned an important lesson. I can never go back to the way things were before…

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  • 438

    Wild Adventures round the Pole

      Burt L. Standish
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Leopold Classic Library is delighted to publish this classic book as part of our extensive collection. As part of our on-going commitment to delivering value to the reader, we have also provided you with a link to a website, where you may download a digital version of this work for free. Many of the books in our collection have been out of print for decades, and therefore have not been accessible to the general public. Whilst the books in this collection have not been hand curated, an aim of our publishing program is to facilitate rapid access to this vast reservoir of literature. As a result of this book being first published many decades ago, it may have occasional imperfections. These imperfections may include poor picture quality, blurred or missing text. While some of these imperfections may have appeared in the original work, others may have resulted from the scanning process that has been applied. However, our view is that this is a significant literary work, which deserves to be brought back into print after many decades. While some publishers have applied optical character recognition (OCR), this approach has its own drawbacks, which include formatting errors, misspelt words, or the presence of inappropriate characters. Our philosophy has been guided by a desire to provide the reader with an experience that is as close as possible to ownership of the original work. We hope that you will enjoy this wonderful classic book, and that the occasional imperfection that it might contain will not detract from the experience.

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  • 437

    More Cargoes

      W. W. Jacobs
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More Cargoes - 1897 is presented here in a high quality paperback edition. This popular classic work by W. W. (William Wymark) Jacobs is in the English language, and may not include graphics or images from the original edition. If you enjoy the works of W. W. (William Wymark) Jacobs then we highly recommend this publication for your book collection.

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  • 437

    A Death in Carolina

      Scott Skipper
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A brief fictionalized account of the murder of a deputy sheriff in rural North Carolina on the Fourth of July in 1914 by a descendant of the family containing contemporary photographs and news clips.Detective Cutfield will star in a future detective long story (A Slaughter in New York). In this short story, narrated in first person, we will discover how he is.

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  • 437

    Mirandamatics

      David Santamaria
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Mirandamatics is a long poem, wrote hand in hand, with the soul of that very lovely and famous woman. The photos included in the body of the text come from her Instagram account, and were added as she was posting them.Mirandamatics is a long poem, imaginary wrote hand in hand, with the soul of that very lovely and famous woman. The photos included in the body of the text come from her Instagram account, and were added as she published them.

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  • 437

    Last Dance of a Black Widow

      Bradley Convissar
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Meet Abbey Whistler. She's just died at the age of eighty and waits in her hospital room to be taken to the afterlife. But she quickly learns that crimes committed while alive actually do have repercussions when you die. Last Dance of a Black Widow is a sobering 3,000 word short story that explores the death of a life lived poorly.Meet Abbey Whistler. She's just died at the age of eighty and waits in her hospital room to be taken to the afterlife. But she quickly learns that crimes committed while alive actually do have repercussions when you die. From the author of the Pandora's Children collection of short stories, the novellas Dogs of War and King of the Merge, and the free short story Blink comes Last Dance of a Black Widow, a sobering 3,000 word short story that explores the death of a life lived poorly.

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  • 437

    Cool As A Cucumber

      Russ Durbin
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"He's as cool as a cucumber." It fit. Kenneth Cary Coulson was as calm and self-possessed as any rookie pitcher that I had ever seen. With the playoffs on the line, Cucumber was called to pitch. With his dad and his girl friend watching, Coulson calmly reared back and threw two blazing fast balls. What happened next shocked everyone, including me in the press box."He's as cool as a cucumber." Joe Raditz of The Times said it first. It fit. Kenneth Cary Coulson was as calm and self-possessed as any rookie pitcher that I had ever seen. With two men on base and the other team's cleanup hitter coming to the plate, Cucumber got the call to pitch. With his dad and girl friend watching, Coulson calmly reared back and threw two blazing fast balls. What happened next shocked everyone, including me in the press box.

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