John Joseph McGuire was an American author of science fiction. He usually wrote with H. Beam Piper.

Bride of the Dark One is presented here in a high quality paperback edition. This popular classic work by Florence Verbell Brown is in the English language, and may not include graphics or images from the original edition. If you enjoy the works of Florence Verbell Brown then we highly recommend this publication for your book collection.

Breakaway is presented here in a high quality paperback edition. This popular classic work by Stanley Gimble is in the English language, and may not include graphics or images from the original edition. If you enjoy the works of Stanley Gimble then we highly recommend this publication for your book collection.

Includes the following classic ghost stories: I. THE BECKONING FAIR ONE II. PHANTAS III. ROOUM IV. BENLIAN V. IO VI. THE ACCIDENT VII. THE CIGARETTE CASE VIII. THE ROCKER IX. HIC JACET

"The skies must smile and the sun must shine When Semper Fidelis goes out to dine," sang Arline Thayer joyously as she rearranged her sofa pillows for the eighth time, patting each one energetically before placing it, then stepping back to view the effect. "Aren't you glad every one's here, and things have begun to happen again, Ruth?" she asked blithely. "I hope no one disappoints us. I wish this room were larger. Still, it held eighteen girls one night last year. Don't you remember my Hallowe'en party, and what a time we had squeezing in here?"

This collection of literature attempts to compile many of the classic works that have stood the test of time and offer them at a reduced, affordable price, in an attractive volume so that everyone can enjoy them.

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.

CHAPTER I.INTRODUCES MRS. JAMES PREEDY; HINTS AT THE TROUBLE INTO WHICH SHE HAS FALLEN; AND GIVES AN INSIGHT INTO HER SOCIAL POSITION.Mrs. James Preedy, lodging-house keeper, bred and born in the vocation, and consequently familiar with all the moves of that extensive class of persons in London that has no regular home, and has to be cooked for, washed for, and generally done for, sat in the kitchen of her house, No. 118, Great Porter Square. This apartment was situated in the basement, and here Mrs. Preedy received her friends and “did” for her lodgers, in so far as the cooking for them can be said to be included in that portentous and significant term. The floor of the kitchen was oil-clothed, with, in distinguished places, strips of carpet of various patterns and colours, to give it an air. Over the mantelpiece was a square looking-glass in a mahogany frame, ranged on each side of which were faded photographs of men, women, and children, and of one gentleman in particular pretending to smoke a long pipe. This individual, whose face was square, whose aspect was frowning, and whose shirt sleeves were tucked up in an exceedingly free and easy fashion, was the pictorial embodiment of Mrs. Preedy’s deceased husband. While he lived he was “a worryer, my dear,” to quote Mrs. Preedy—and to do the lady justice, he looked it; but being gone to that bourne from which no lodging-house keeper ever returns, he immediately took his place in the affections of his widow as “the dear departed” and a “blessed angel.” Thus do we often find tender appreciation budding into flower even at the moment the undertaker nails the lid upon the coffin, and Mr. Preedy, when the breath was out of his body, might (spiritually) have consoled himself with the reflection that he was not the only person from whose grave hitherto unknown or unrecognised virtues ascend. The weapons of the dead warrior, two long and two short pipes, were ranged crosswise on the wall with mathematical tenderness. When her day’s work was over, and Mrs. Preedy, a lonely widow, sat by herself in the kitchen, she was wont to look regretfully at those pipes, wishing that he who had smoked them were alive to puff again as of yore; forgetting, in the charity of her heart, the crosses and vexations of her married life, and how often she had called her “blessed angel” a something I decline to mention for defiling the kitchen with his filthy smoke.CONTENTS1. Introduces Mrs. James Preedy; hints at the trouble into which she has fallen; and gives an insight into her social position2. What was printed on the quarto bill: a proclamation by her Majesty’s Government3. Extracted from the “Evening Moon”4. The examination of Mrs. Preedy, continued from the “Evening Moon”5. Contains further extracts from the “Evening Moon” relating to the Great Porter Square mystery6. The “Evening Moon” speaks its mind7. In which the “Evening Moon” continues to speak its mind8. The “Evening Moon” postpones its statement respecting Antony Cowlrick9. In which the “Evening Moon” relates the adventures of its Special Correspondent10. The Special Reporter of the “Evening Moon” makes the acquaintance of a little match girl11. The “Evening Moon” for a time takes leave of the case of Antony Cowlrick12. Mrs. Preedy has dreadful dreams13. Mrs. Preedy’s young man lodger14. In which Becky commences a letter to a friend in the country15. In which Becky continues her letter, and relates how she obtained the situation at No. 11816. In which Becky writes a second letter to her friend in the country, and gives a woman’s reason for not liking Richard Manx17. In which Becky, continuing her letter, relates her impressions of Mrs. Preedy’s young man lodger18. The “Evening Moon” reopens the subject of the Great Porter Square murder, and relates a romantic story concerning the murdered man and his widow19. The “Evening Moon” continues its account of the tragedy, and describes the shameful part enacted by Mr. F

CHAPTER I. I FIND MYSELF A FOUNDLING. My earliest recollections are of a square courtyard surrounded by high walls and paved with blue and white pebbles in geometrical patterns—circles, parallelograms, and lozenges. Two of these walls were blank, and had been coped with broken bottles; a third, similarly coped, had heavy folding doors of timber, leaden-grey in colour and studded with black bolt-heads. Beside them stood a leaden-grey sentry-box, and in this sat a red-faced man with a wooden leg and a pigtail, whose business was to attend to the wicket and keep an eye on us small boys as we played. He owned two books which he read constantly: one was Foxe's Martyrs, and the other (which had no title on the binding) I opened one day and found to be The Devil on Two Sticks. The arch over these gates bore two gilt legends. That facing the roadway ran: "Train up a Child in the Way he should Go," which prepared the visitor to read on the inner side: "When he is Old he will not Depart from it." But we twenty-five small foundlings, who seldom evaded the wicket, and so passed our days with the second half of the quotation, found in it a particular and dreadful meaning. The fourth and last wall was the front of the hospital, a two-storeyed building of grey limestone, with a clock and a small cupola of copper, weather-greened, and a steeply pitched roof of slate pierced with dormer windows, behind one of which (because of a tendency to walk in my sleep) I slept in the charge of Miss Plinlimmon, the matron. Below the eaves ran a line of eight tall windows, the three on the extreme right belonging to the chapel; and below these again a low-browed colonnade, in the shelter of which we played on rainy days, but never in fine weather—though its smooth limestone slabs made an excellent pitch for marbles, whereas on the pebbles in the yard expertness could only be attained by heart-breaking practice. Yet we preferred them. If it did nothing else, the Genevan Hospital, by Plymouth Dock, taught us to suit ourselves to the world as we found it. I do not remember that we were unhappy or nursed any sense of injury, except over the porridge for breakfast. The Rev. Mr. Scougall, our pastor, had founded the hospital some twenty years before with the money subscribed by certain Calvinistic ladies among whom he ministered, and under the patronage of a Port Admiral of like belief, then occupying Admiralty House. His purpose (to which we had not the smallest objection) was to rescue us small jetsam and save us from many dreadful Christian heresies, more especially those of Rome. But he came from the north of Britain and argued (I suppose) that what porridge had done for him in childhood it might well do for us— a conclusion against which our poor little southern stomachs rebelled. It oppressed me worse than any, for since the discovery of my sleep-walking habit my supper (of plain bread and water) had been docked, so that I came ravenous to breakfast and yet could not eat. Nevertheless, I do not think we were unhappy....

Forks Settlement no longer occupies its place upon the ordnance map of the state of Montana. At least not the Forks Settlement—the one which nestled in a hollow on the plains, beneath the shadow of the Rocky Mountains. It is curious how these little places do contrive to slip off the map in the course of time. There is no doubt but that they do, and are wholly forgotten, except, perhaps, by those who actually lived or visited there. It is this way with all growing countries, and anywhere from twenty to thirty years ago Montana was distinctly a new country.

Commodore Barney's Young Spies - A Boy's Story of the Burning of the City of Washington is presented here in a high quality paperback edition. This popular classic work by James Otis is in the English language, and may not include graphics or images from the original edition. If you enjoy the works of James Otis then we highly recommend this publication for your book collection.

Theo Vilmos' life is about to take a real turn for the worse. He is drawn from his home in Northern California into the parallel world of Faerie, for, unknown to him, he is a pivotal figure in a war between certain of Faerie's powerful lords and the rest of the strange creatures who live in this exotic realm.

It's the '80s and the excess is brighter than the sunshine. It's all gone bad for Clendon Lindsey until he accepts an employment offer that is too good to be true from his old friend Brooks in L.A. Turns out that nothing is what it seems with Brooks and his tantalizing wife Shelley and Clendon's big score is always just beyond his reach--Someone has been stealing expensive jewelry from Alhaja Munirat Rahman, a fabric and jewelry merchant. It is up to Wura Oyelese, her 20-something year old niece, to unmask the culprit. As she nurtures a budding romance with the self-proclaimed suave efiko, Kola Adegbenro, and pursues the highly-coveted title of Miss UNILAG, will Wura catch the thief?

Miss Davis’s class have been studying measurement all term. Today, they will measure each other’s normal walking speed. But class misfit Gary Mooney has other plans. This playground tale reveals much about social conformity, betrayal and punishment.The Measure of Gary Mooney was awarded third place in the New Zealand 2007 Sunday Star-Times Short Story Competition.Dr. Jonathan Anderson, chair of the psychology department of Dallas's most prestigious university, received a rejection letter on his life's work. The next day, October 31, 2008, he got a second chance, an article confirming the existence of ghosts at the infamous Reindeer Manor. The current owner, who only goes by Andy, has been running the property as a Halloween attraction for years. However, it's not the attraction that is of interest to Anderson, but rather its true history. Upon visiting the manor, he struck a deal with the owner to rent the entire property for five days, under the condition that all Halloween props are removed. Unfortunately for Dr. Anderson, he got his way...

Bob, a widower, living in Small End, a village in Hampshire, England, meets and is attracted to Claire. This doesn't work out and friends persuade him to take a holiday. Bob enjoys this and decides to make and sell more wooden train sets to earn enough money to take more holidays. He and a partner overcome difficulties and eventually build a successful toy-making factory.Bob, a widower and retired railway station manager in Hampshire, England, meets and is attracted to Claire, a lady who is interested in buying a cottage in Small End. His tentative advances are unsuccessful and his friends Joe and Jane persuade him to go to Portugal with them. Enjoying this, Bob decided to make and sell more wooden train sets so he'll have enough money to take more holidays.Over the next few months, Bob and Ken, an acquaintance who becomes his partner, build a successful toy-making factory. Another romance develops and Bob's future looks bright.

Can a mortal sound healer and a vampire fall in love? Grace Blackburn has spent a lifetime avoiding the strong emotions that trigger deadly consequences, but Ethan James arouses her like no other. He saved her, but she may be his salvation. Each is dangerous to the other. Now they must join forces and trust in the transformative power of love as they battle the hungry forces of the night.A voice like sunlight…Grace Blackburn’s extraordinary voice is a gift. And a curse. As a sound healer, her otherworldly singing can create miracles. It can also kill. Only her sound circle provides the safety she craves, until the night Grace crosses paths with a fanged creature and dreams she is rescued by an angel.A soul lost to the night…Ethan James is sexy, playful, irreverent. And a vampire. Between his sadistic master and his dangerous blood lust, he’s losing all control of his life. Assigned to exterminate feral vampires to protect humans and prevent any unwelcome light shining on the hidden world of the bloodsuckers, he rescues a woman whose soothing voice reminds him of the humanity he’s lost.A deadly dance…Grace has spent a lifetime avoiding the strong emotions that trigger deadly consequences, but Ethan arouses her like no other. He saved her, but she may be his salvation. Each is dangerous to the other. Now they must join forces and trust in the transformative power of love as they battle the hungry forces of the night.

On Davox, the second moon of the Gateway World of Utainium, the Belar, majestic shepherds of the runeyan live peacefully. But now their adopted world is filling with Watchers from the home world of Omni, Watchers who, usually, take whatever they wish...The Belar is set in Robin Gilbert’s Gateway Worlds where magic keys disguised as mundane objects transport Watchers vast distances, even to new worlds, as easily as stepping through a door. Where strange races and wonderful creatures dwell. Where evil lurks at every turn, where the lands are often unimaginably dangerous and where power is all... and every Watcher wants it.

A sci-fi serial novel set in the near future, where the Earth is choked black by industry and the world teeters on the brink of civil war. With a dark cyberpunk setting and plenty of action to keep you occupied, this is up-and-coming writer Jack Delgado's first attempt at a book and definitely not his last.Earth, two hundred years in the future. Some people call it heaven, a place where all your wildest dreams are at your fingertips; cybernetics, androids, a thousand ways to enjoy life and forget about the world. Many more call it hell. Because they have to face their worst nightmares every day and never forget that the world is out to take their life. Crime lords. Corrupt government. A million ways to die.In a world choked of freedom and opportunity, a world where all your decisions are made for you, what can you do but accept your fate and die?The answer; fight.Something is waking in the dark, something that's been asleep for nearly two hundred years. Its return will be heralded by fire, brought about by steel, and will shake the world to the core.It's not just a change.It's a revolution.

Jack walks Aurelia home every day from her college classes. She just doesn't know it. What will it take for her to notice him? And when she does, will the consequences be more than either of them can bear?Contemporary Short Story. A (stalking) love story with a twist... Jack walks Aurelia home every day from her college classes. She just doesn't know it. What will it take for her to notice him? And when she does, will the consequences be more than either of them can bear? Recent Reviews "Lovely romantic read, well developed characters that were easy to connect to." --Luke22

I was alone on a yacht when the war wiped out most of the Human race. All life on land had been wiped out, and without food and water, I would soon be sailing the Oceans Of Death. Short Story.This story is not about legal aspects of our emotional presumptions. It’s about the real life consequences of the judgments that we all make about others. Sometimes, the smallest judgment can have tragic consequences. Perhaps that’s why we have been warned against judging.Karen Bronsky lived a enviable life with a successful devoted husband and a darling child. But something caused her to want just a little more from life. Karen must lose part of her life to find what’s really important to her.Jan Murray thought that she had everything that she needed for happiness. She has looks that most young women would envy. She knew it, and flaunted it. She never knew what it was like to be unnoticed by men. But she will learn that true happiness is not found in the adoration of physical appearances.Stan Bronsky is a good man and husband. He is hard driving and successful in business. But he will learn that success can be fleeting and very costly when he experiences a momentary lapse of judgment and character.Robert Louis Gatewood suffered tragic early life experiences and has carried scars that have shaped his thinking and behavior. He will find new direction in an unexpected moment of encounter.As the lives of these four people weave together through what they perceive to be chance circumstances, they will experience a plethora of emotional experiences and share the uncomfortable consequences of being misjudged, or of having misjudged another.

Tess lives with Grandma Wilma now. Grandma manages a storage facility, and Tess watches people come and go. She places them in categories, and for a seven-year old she has some insightful thoughts.Fast-paced, epic space fantasy adventure:The interstellar Empire of Man had been destroyed by Umpala invaders, forcing the survivors of the Great Houses to establish new lives on low-tech Refuge Worlds, but now, centuries later, a starship has come. A society of elite warrior mystics, able to tap and utilize the energy of the Void, has awaited this day for centuries, and now a trainee is thrust into the middle of the storm as old and new enemies converge, threatening not only the planet but all of humanity.A warrior, perhaps one of the Nine Champions prophesized, will rise to stand against the Darkness and the Destroyers and to rally the free peoples against the invaders from another galaxy.