Toby's life has been a perfect one, and it's not an accident. Toby has a god, and his god is going to take action.Toby's life has been a perfect one, and it's not an accident. Toby has a god, and his god is going to take action.Have you ever wondered if the things in your life just fell into place, as if orchestrated from without? That your choices really were not choices? Delve into the dark reality that is Toby's life to see what - or who - was really driving it: Toby's God.

Tormented by a disease, where only death is the cure, a stranger fights with his will to live vs. his desire for release.Other work by Curtis Berry on Smashwords.Shades of Light: Book One of the Walker ChroniclesThe first thing Mixer knew with certainty was that he was hungry. The feeling grew more intense each day until it became unbearable and Mixer began to lash out. Quietly, steadily he ate away at his enemy and, in a few weeks, where there had been two, now there was only one.History had been erased. The land had been eroded and the global population had crashed. Into this new world came an evolutionary change, a genetic mutation that could make humans perform in ways they'd never done before. Those who survived learned to fear the abilities of those who carried the gene and banished any who displayed the slightest difference. As time went on, the gene appeared to die out. But it wasn't entirely gone. In a world still largely ignorant and illiterate, nine children struggle to survive, sometimes even against their own.

Follow Slaw and Shittin' as they take advantage of the destruction of Hurricane Katrina by looting scrap metal. See how two friends linked together by love and circumstance attempt to better their lives by seizing opportunity while others wait for deliverance. A poignant and moving tale of two souls bound together with tenderness and humanity where society would least expect it.The Party Line, a Myrtle Crumb Mystery prequel, shows readers where Myrtle's sleuthing all began--with her telephone's party line! Ada, Tansie Miller's daughter, has moved back home. Word on the party line is that her husband has shown an interest in another woman. When the other woman is found dead, Myrtle is on the case! Myrtle is the sassy, sixty-something sleuth who won readers over in Between A Clutch and a Hard Place, When Good Bras Go Bad, and Claus of Death.

New kid Adam wishes for a friend, and embarks on a mission that will change everything.In the post-economic world of the Red Shift series, the city of Sydney is one of the few remaining centres of power in the technological world. But even as the new city flourishes in the advancement and comforts provided by the scientists and benefactors that have been drawn to the region, there is a dark under-belly that will not be forgotten.The old city has been left to fall at the mercy of Mother Nature. The rising seas and tainted sky slowly suck the life from the city, and those unable to escape it. The loss of faith, hope, allow a darkness to grow, turning the city into a breeding ground for anger and violence.For those in power, this place is a useful resource to recruit individuals and groups to carry out their dirty work. Acts of political deception, espionage, and worse, are carried out as business transactions. The greed and desperation of those left behind only fuels this trade, and has given rise to many competing gangs and crews.Once such crew is rising up, with a clear vision of what must be done. They will not fight for scraps with gangs. They will not bow to the whims of the Alphas and help them destroy the last of their city. They will not stand by and watch their fellow women be destroyed by the spreading cancer of the city’s darkness. They are strong, focussed, and building a formidable force. There will be a revolution, the Vixen Revolution.

The formula Ed memorized was the start of journeys that put moon landings, mars missions and faster-than-light travel to shame. It was the very beginning of D.T.Investigations (Dream Travel) and it's discreet work for private clients worldwide."When a web is broken it can never be rebuilt. Instead you abandon the old and build anew. But the new web, you wonder, will it break? What caused the old one to break, what tore that painstaking symmetry that experience and the history of lifetimes of web building created? So you build the next web more carefully, sure that this one will hold together. Yet it doesn't. The next web you decide you know what the weak place was. You will build this one different, uniquely strong. Again the jester of life tears the web and rebuild you must. Each time you build, more certain you know the fault, and each time it fails. "Finally you discover that your estimate of the weakest link was wrong and the next web is a terrible shamble because it is built in complete uncertainty. Every connection in it is tentative, unsure of itself."Now the last web, the fragile identity shaped from pain and fear, is in shreds. In despair, you give up all the spinning ... and the dreamer awakens. "With the dreamer the webs are spun in instants of golden steel. Now reality is the servant, the unknowing worker in the Dreamer's domain. And you become the master of your universe."I read my handwriting, wondering what I meant when I wrote it. I was lying in bed after a good half hour memorizing Martin's formula and this was my last read for the night. The passage came out of my grief at breaking with Carol. I had written it a few days after she moved out and its' meaning for me still lay hidden."If there is a God, a final Top God of gods, awaken the dreamer, please. Dreamer awake." That was my prayer to the sky somewhere above my house, somewhere above a Dayton, Ohio suburb, above the United States of America, far beyond the planet Earth and its atomic structure of a solar system, reaching out past the stars of the universe that man pretends to know because he can count dots of light on sheets of film.I felt that prayer touch someone, somewhere. There's no way to describe the feeling unless you know it for yourself. There's a click and you know the prayer, plea, begging has been registered on some monumental scroll, perhaps beyond the bounds of time. That second was the beginning of a life of adventure that I would only relinquish in those moments when I was in terror for my very existence.

What if everything you thought you knew about your life was a carefully crafted lie?What if everything you thought you knew about your life was a carefully crafted lie?Charlie Reese is an underachieving college student with no sense of direction or purpose in life. When his best friend Freddy convinces him to attend a school fundraiser he reluctantly agrees and volunteers to be hypnotized by a famed illusionist named The Great Standeval. But, during the hypnosis, things go horribly wrong and Standeval mysteriously disappears.Later, Charlie begins to suspect that something isn’t right. During the hypnotism he was made to believe he was an alien. Once he begins to have disturbing visions and unimaginable things start to happen, he begins to wonder if it could really be true. Could he really be an alien from a distant planet that was destroyed years ago? Things take an unexpected turn as Charlie and his close friends are kidnapped and a secret is revealed that will change the course of human history.Charlie has his doubts however, and embarks on a roller coaster ride of emotions while he struggles with the idea that so much could rest on his young shoulders. To make matters worse, he struggles with his feelings for his childhood crush Allison along with an uncontrollable desire for the irresistible Kara, a girl with whom he shares a unique bond. With the help of new friends like Nick, an arrogant and cocky jock, and Michael, the quiet, reserved one with a penchant for fire, he will learn to stand up and fight for the things he believes in and the people he holds dear. Danger lurks around every corner. It will take the combined efforts of them all to prevent the end of the human race and the fall of planet Earth.

Ronnie's imagination convinces her older brother Deshazier not to hook the oldest fish in the lake, the Fish King.A little African American girl uses her poverty induced imagination on her older brother to convince him to leave the oldest fish in the lake alone. Like the Fish King and her, Ronnie and her brother Deshazier were best of buddies, and an adventure followed them day to day along with their mother's switch.

When her son dies, Dodie is determined to find the murderer.Flamboyant, wealthy, middle aged and several-times married Dodie Fanshaw is in Madeira to help make a film about her early life as a chorus girl and Hollywood starlet, and her husbands. She is not amused when her son Jake, indifferent actor, appeals to her for money. Instead of going back to England he remains in Madeira, and contrives to alienate Dodie's friends, a rival actor, the Madeiran family who run the hotel where he had been staying, and a wealthy, elderly woman with whom he is now living. The situation becomes intolerable when Jake, drunk and abusive, comes uninvited to a party on a yacht on New Year's Eve, arranged to watch the annual Funchal firework spectacle. When his body is discovered next day in the harbour, Dodie asks was he killed or was it an accident? She is determined to discover which of the many enemies he has made could have killed him, but most of them had the opportunity.

Razo has no idea why he was chosen to be a soldier. He can barely swing a sword, and his brothers are forever wrestling him to the ground. Razo is sure it's out of pity that his captain asks him to join an elite mission--escorting the ambassador into Tira, Bayern's great enemy. But when the Bayern arrive in the strange southern country, Razo discovers the first dead body. He befriends both the high and low born, people who can perhaps provide them with vital information. And Razo is the one who must embrace his own talents in order to get the Bayern soldiers home again, alive. Newbery-Honor winner Shannon Hale returns the reader to the intrigue and magic of Bayern, first introduced in her critically acclaimed novel, The Goose Girl. Enter a world where even those with no special magical skills find in themselves something they never imagined.

Here is the fifth novel in the internationally bestselling No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency hit series. Once again we are transported to Gaborone, capital city of Botswana, and into the world of Mma Ramotswe and her friends.THE NO. 1 LADIES’ DETECTIVE AGENCY. FOR ALL CONFIDENTIAL MATTERS AND ENQUIRIES. SATISFACTION GUARANTEED FOR ALL PARTIES. UNDER PERSONAL MANAGEMENT.Mma Ramotswe and Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni are still engaged, but with no immediate plans to get married. Mma Ramotswe wonders when a wedding date will be named, but she is anxious to avoid putting pressure on her fiancé. For indeed he has other things on his mind -- particularly a frightening request (involving a parachute jump) made by Mma Potokwani, the persuasive matron of the orphan farm.Mma Ramotswe herself has weighty matters on her mind. She has been approached by a wealthy lady to check up on several suitors. Are these men interested in her or just her money? This may be difficult to find out, but it’s just the kind of case Mma Ramotswe likes and she is, as we know, a very intuitive lady.Meanwhile, Mma Makutsi -- plucky assistant detective and deputy manager of the Tlokweng Road Speedy Motors garage -- is moving. Her entrepreneurial venture, the Kalahari Typing School for Men, is thriving and with this new income she has rented two rooms in a house. Her spare time is occupied with planning the move, the décor and her new life in a house with running water all to herself.In the background of all this is Botswana, a country of empty spaces and echoing skies, a country so beautiful and entrancing that it breaks your heart. Mma Ramotswe has prepared the bush tea and is waiting for us to join her.

A spooky middle-grade story that's full of fun, friendship, and humor--perfect for fans of Ingrid Law and Lisa Graff. Ruby is best friends with Emma, but she and Emma's twin sister Olivia are definitely not friends. Unfortunately, Emma will be away for the summer, while Ruby and Olivia are going to be stuck at a community service day camp for troublemakers--together. To kick off the spirit of service, the campers are outfitted with bright pink polka-dotted t-shirts with smiley faces on the front, then tasked with cataloging the contents of an abandoned mansion. Sorting through objects in an old house sounds boring, and working with each other is that last thing the girls want to do, but the stuff is actually pretty cool. There's everything from mink stoles to golf clubs to stuffed deer heads . . . and . . . wait . . . is that stuffed deer head watching them? When the taps run freezing cold and doors slam inexplicably, Ruby and Olivia wonder if the other campers are having a bit of fun, or if the abandoned mansion is looking for new residents. To solve the mystery, Ruby and Olivia will have to put their grudges aside and figure out how to be a team with or without Emma.

The sexy second installment in the Inside Out erotic romance trilogy, following If I Were You—in the seductive tradition of Fifty Shades of Grey. Fascinated by the dark fantasies in the journals she’s discovered, and the two men who have now found a place in her life, Sara McMillan finds herself torn between her new life and her past. Now, more than ever, Sara identifies with the lost journal writer, Rebecca, and is certain that something sinister has happened. In the arms of the sexy, tormented artist Chris Merit, Sara seeks answers about Rebecca and ends up discovering things about herself she never knew existed. Chris forces Sara to reconsider who she is and what she truly wants from life, but not before his dark desires threaten to tear them apart. Her boss, Mark Compton, offers her the shelter to understand just what those needs mean to her, and what they might have meant to Rebecca, but can she trust him to lead her to a final conclusion to Rebecca’s story?

Chip Clewt, known simply as the weirdo, lives like a hermit in the Powhatan Swamp, a National Wildlife Refuge that is at the center of a heated controversy between local hunters and environmentalists. A hunting ban on the Powhatan is about to expire. The environmentalists want to protect the wildlife; the hunters are oiling their guns. Then someone completely unexpected comes forward to spearhead the conservation effort--the weirdo. *Includes a reader's guide. *

She was merely a pawn in their game. And then something happened. Once the fragile, naïve human, Evangeline has become altogether … different. A being who holds formidable power, she may be the key to changing the course of fate. Or she could be the final nail in the world’s coffin. But Evangeline doesn’t know exactly what she is, what she can do. She knows only that she has to stop an enemy far worse than the Sentinel and the sorceresses—one driven by revenge. And he’s hunting the man she loves. As Evangeline fights to keep Caden alive and the human population from eradication, she can’t help but sense the imminent doom. Find out if fate will prevail in the harrowing conclusion to the Causal Enchantment series.

Alternate cover for this ISBN can be found here and here BREAKING THE RULES Just when fifteen-year-old Bobby Pendragon thinks he understands his purpose as a Traveler—to protect the territories of Halla from the evil Saint Dane—he is faced with an impossible choice. The inhabitants of Eelong are in danger of being wiped out by a mysterious plague. The only way Bobby can stop it is to bring the antidote from another territory. Since moving items between territories is forbidden by the Traveler rules, if Bobby chooses to save Eelong he could endanger himself, his friends, and the future of every other being in Halla.

Forever does not go on unchanged. Caitriona Hayden’s destiny as the Dracopraesi dragon’s North Star is no clearer to her than it was weeks ago. However, Cait’s eternal future seems a minor concern while the vengeful elves continue taunting the dragons, now using violence against the human population in their desire for war. Battles of war aren’t the only ones fought. King Corrin struggles to make peace with his coming end, and as his family bonds heal, stronger relationships and alliances form among Cait and her dragons. Theo may have won her heart, but Oliver fills a void long left by the passing of her uncle, and each dragon is a part of Cait’s family. But a darkness bleeds through to change their world. When faced with decisions of life and death, Cait, Theo, and demigod Dante must choose unpredictable paths, chance outcomes of eternal consequences, and make dubious promises. As Cait displays unexpected abilities, complications arise, more details of her destiny are revealed, and she discovers the inherent risks of fearing change. Every era has a beginning and an end. There are things in the world no one is meant to stop. BLOOD OF STARS AND GODS is book two in the exciting Stars and Souls trilogy, sequel to Amazon #1 Contemporary Fantasy: FIRE OF STARS AND DRAGONS!

The new collection from the New York Times bestselling author of The Leftovers and Little Children, featuring stories focusing on Perrotta's familiar suburban nuclear families.Tom Perrotta's first book, Bad Haircut, consisted of linked stories featuring a shared protagonist. Now, nineteen years later, he has written and compiled his first true short story collection. This twelve story collection features a group set in Perrotta's trademark suburban setting, focusing on the fissures in families and unexpected connections among members of typical American communities, including "Senior Season" and "Nine Inches." Other offerings showcase Perrotta's assured, smooth writing, but many may surprise fans with new protagonists and concerns. One of these twistier stories is "The Smile on Happy Chang's Face," which was the Boston Book Festival's first all-city One City, One Story selection in 2010.?Following up on his dramatic and bestselling novel The...

During the highly improbable zombie uprising of 2013, the fearless American bulldog Riley quickly discovered that it was up to her to keep the pack safe. Together with Yorkshire terrier Ben-Ben and former archenemy Patches the cat, Riley struggles to keep the zombies at bay while helping her favorite human, Jessie, as they travel cross-country, dodging pepper paint balls and taser blasts from the evil, misogynistic Icely and his band of thugs. Now this motley mishmash of mammals are running for their lives. The wicked Icely has picked up their scent and is now chasing them across the badlands of Colorado in hopes of seeking revenge—a painful one at that—on the dog that tried to kill him, as well as on the "bitches" who got away. Seen through the eyes of a random narrator and Riley, we have to wonder: will Icely and his men chase them down and zap them into oblivion, or will the zombies finally win and get the brains they desperately crave?

For four thousand years, the Guardships have ruled Canon Space - immortal ships with an immortal crew, dealing swiftly and harshly with any mercantile houses or alien races that threaten the status quo. But now the House Tregesser has an edge: a force from outside Canon Space offers them the resources to throw off Guardship rule. This precipitates an avalanche of unexpected outcomes, including the emergence of Kez Maefele, one of the few remaining generals of the Ku Warrior race-the only race to ever seriously threaten Guardship hegemony. Kez Maefele and a motley group of aliens, biological constructs, an scheming aristocrats find themselves at the center of the conflict. Maefele must chose which side he will support: the Guardships, who defeated and destroyed his race, or the unknown forces outside Canon Space that promise more death and destruction. Skyhorse Publishing, under our Night Shade and Talos imprints, is proud to publish a broad range of titles for readers interested in science fiction (space opera, time travel, hard SF, alien invasion, near-future dystopia), fantasy (grimdark, sword and sorcery, contemporary urban fantasy, steampunk, alternative history), and horror (zombies, vampires, and the occult and supernatural), and much more. While not every title we publish becomes a New York Times bestseller, a national bestseller, or a Hugo or Nebula award-winner, we are committed to publishing quality books from a diverse group of authors.