AJ was just a teenage girl living in the shadow of her older sister. When death takes her sister's life she is forced into the light. Finding her own way of self and love.Would you brush your toes over the edge of the bridge? Dangling a foot or two. How coincidental it looked, how easily lives were embezzled on the rocky area lower to my stance. Scrabbling from our clench, an angel, is exposed of her wings in momentary flaw, soaring below the light of day. If perhaps the summer outing occurring as an idea of my own, I solemnly would be the collapsed daughter. The first-born sister sniveling only momentarily. Living carelessly with her one true love by her side, fanatical even through eternity. The good succumb early. Operation on Earth complete, encouraged to a more chic location. My adolescent soul chock-full of rueful fire. One moment leading you to maroon hopeful optimisms of tomorrow. Not one person identifies the vivacious commotion concealing my sanity. I AM A PERSON TOO. Comforts viciously torn from the light of today. Excusing one. Jenks, opening the curtains to show me the sunlight. The gloom becoming portions of fuzziness.

Kidnapped by cruel fate... *Secuestrado por sino cruel* After her parents are killed in a truck accident, Delia Yebarra's life is turned upside down. At fifteen, she leaves the rural Mexican village where she grew up and embarks on a new life in America. Coming to her wealthy aunt Isabella's huge estate in Palm Springs, California, should be a dream come true for a simple country girl like Delia -- so why does it feel like a nightmare? A prisoner of destiny... *Un preso del destino* Her aunt refuses to acknowledge Delia's heritage, relegating her to servants' quarters with a licentious language tutor intent on exploiting a beautiful young foreigner. Her cousin Edward is kind, but cousin Sophia is cruel, manipulative, and resentful of Delia's smoky Latina looks. And just when Delia tries to embrace the life of a real American girl, a heartbreaking chain of events sends her spiraling back to a Mexico she hardly recognizes.... Will Delia find a place to call home?

Love can exit your life as quickly as it enters it, shattering your heart in the process. It's been a year since my husband was taken from me in a tragic accident. I thought it would kill me. Now, I think I'm ready to start healing. My mother says my idea of taking a solo cross-country road trip is crazy, but I see it as my road to recovery. Along the way, I'll have to deal with the poor choices I've made since Ricky died. I'll have to overcome the terror that his death has caused me. I'll have to find my balance again. And once I meet Luke and his young son, I'll have to decide if I can take the risk to do more than exist and learn to love again.

A riveting collection of literary journalism by the bestselling author of The Perfect Storm, capped off brilliantly by a new Afterword and a timely essay about war-torn Afghanistan -- a superb eyewitness report about the Taliban's defeat in Kabul -- new to book form. Sebastian Junger has made a specialty of bringing to life the drama of nature and human nature. Few writers have been to so many disparate and desperate corners of the globe. Fewer still have met the standard of great journalism more consistently. None has provided more starkly memorable evocations of extreme events. From the murderous mechanics of the diamond trade in Sierra Leone, to an inferno forest fire burning out of control in the steep canyons of Idaho, to the forensics of genocide in Kosovo, this collection of Junger's reporting will take readers to places they need to know about but wouldn't dream of going on their own. In his company we travel to these places, pass through frightening checkpoints, actual and psychological, and come face-to-face with the truth.

A powerful and compelling return to Robert Holdstock's award-winning Mythago cycle. In those days Broceliande was a terrible place, an ancient gloomy forest growing over misty dells, forgotten stones, a place of hidden lakes and strangling thickets. Though the true heart of Broceliande could never be found, the stink of its corruption oozed from the edgewood, shedding ghosts like autumn leaves. This was the forest of legend, where Merlin had come to dream his magic and the enchantress Vivien had come to beguile that magic from him. Martin and Rebecca have long since fled the forest, but when they are forced to return years later for their mother's funeral, they are at once ensnared in the forest's net of enchantment, an evil that has held the local villages in a root-strong grip. And when Rebecca gives birth to Daniel, a beautiful child who is deaf, dumb and blind, she finds herself sucked into a twilight world where she can see only strange, mysterious shadows.

Wesleyan University Press has made a significant commitment to the publication of the work of Samuel R. Delany, including this recent fiction, now available in paperback. The three long stories collected in Atlantis: three tales -- "Atlantis: Model 1924," "Erik, Gwen, and D. H. Lawrence's Aesthetic of Unrectified Feeling," and "Citre et Trans" -- explore problems of memory, history, and transgression. Winner of both the Hugo and Nebula awards, and Guest of Honor at the 1995 World Science Fiction Convention in Glasgow, Delany was won a broad audience among fans of postmodern fiction with his theoretically sophisticated science fiction and fantasy. The stories of Atlantis: three tales are not SF, yet Locus, the trade publication of the science fiction field, notes that the title story "has an odd, unsettling power not usually associated with mainstream fiction." A writer whose audience extends across and beyond science fiction, black, gay, postmodern, and academic constituencies, Delany is finally beginning to achieve the broader recognition he deserves.

Politics have never been October “Toby” Daye’s strong suit. When she traveled to the Kingdom of Silences to prevent them from going to war with her home, the Kingdom of the Mists, she wasn’t expecting to return with a cure for elf-shot and a whole new set of political headaches. Now the events she unwittingly set in motion could change the balance of modern Faerie forever, and she has been ordered to appear before a historic convocation of monarchs, hosted by Queen Windermere in the Mists and overseen by the High King and Queen themselves. Naturally, things have barely gotten underway when the first dead body shows up. As the only changeling in attendance, Toby is already the target of suspicion and hostility. Now she needs to find a killer before they can strike again—and with the doors locked to keep the guilty from escaping, no one is safe. As danger draws ever closer to her allies and the people she loves best, Toby will have to race against time to prevent the total political destabilization of the West Coast and to get the convocation back on track…and if she fails, the cure for elf-shot may be buried forever, along with the victims she was too slow to save. Because there are worse fates than sleeping for a hundred years.

When a Six saved Kale's life the night of Sumrun, she warned there would be consequences. A trade-off. Something taken for the life they gained. But Dez never imagined she'd lose the one thing she'd give anything to keep... And as if it's not enough Dez finds her immunity to Kale fading, the Six brought in to help Kale learn to control his killer touch starts drooling on him the moment they meet. Worse than that? Jade can touch Kale. But bimbo Barbie is the least of Dez's problems. After Dez and Kale got away at Sumrun, her father lost not only his most powerful weapon but an important piece of the Supremacy project. Forced by Denazen to remedy the situation, he poisons Dez and offers her a choice--surrender to Denazen for the cure...or die. Determined to find a solution that doesn't involve being bagged and tagged--or losing someone she loves--Dez keeps the poison a secret. But when a rash of Denazen attacks hit a little too close to home, Dez is convinced there's a traitor among them. Jade. Sacrifices, broken promises, and secrets. Dez will have to lay it all on the line if there's any hope of proving Jade's guilt before they all end up Residents of Denazen. Or worse, dead...

**This third YA novel starring the young thief Widdershins combines the angst and vulnerability of any teenage girl with the high action of the best fantasy adventures. ** It's been six months since Widdershins and her own "personal god" Olgun fled the city of Davillon. During their travels, Widdershins unwittingly discovers that a noble house is preparing to move against the last surviving bastion of the Delacroix family. Determined to help the distant relatives of her deceased adopted father, Alexandre Delacroix, she travels to a small town at the edge of the nation. There, she works at unraveling a plot involving this rival house and a local criminal organization, all while under intense suspicion from the very people she's trying to rescue. Along the way she'll have to deal with a traitor inside the Delacroix family, a mad alchemist, and an infatuated young nobleman who won't take no for an answer. **Story Locale:** A fantasy culture heavily influenced by historical Renaissance France. **Series Overview:** A teenage thief and her partner, an invisible minor god who lives in her head, battle against the might of monsters and the machinations of men in a French-flavored fantasy world. **Ari Marmell** (Austin, TX) is a fantasy and horror writer and the author of several original novels including *The Goblin Corps* and two previous Widdershins adventures, *Thief's Covenant* and *False Covenant.* He has also written gaming tie-in novels such as *In Thunder Forged: Iron Kingdoms Chronicles* (The Fall of Llael Book One) and worked as an author of role-playing game materials for games such as Dungeons & Dragons and the World of Darkness line. Although born in New York, Ari has lived the vast majority of his life in Texas-first Houston (where he earned a BA in creative writing at the University of Houston) and then Austin. He lives with his wife, George; their cat; and a variety of neuroses. Visit the Widdershins page at facebook.com/Madeleine.Valois, and visit Ari at mouseferatu.com, at facebook.com/pages/Ari-Mouseferatu-Marmell/181576062390, or on Twitter @mouseferatu. **Author Residence:** Austin, TX **Author Hometown:** New York, NY **Praise for *Lost Covenant*:** "Marmell's writing has tightened considerably but stayed colorful, giving fans everything they want in a Shins story…. Two unfinished threads leave plenty of room for more more more. Start with Book 1 and just keep going." **-***Kirkus Reviews* **Praise for the Widdershins Adventures:** "One of the freshest, darkest, funniest, and best sword and sorcery series being written today and should appeal to readers of all ages." **-Adventures Fantastic** "Readers seeking out a strong heroine in a well-crafted fantasy world will enjoy this title and look forward to the second." **-School Library Journal**

When Her Friend Goes Missing,Every Minute CountsDarcy St. James returns to Alaska to join a journalist friend undercover on the trail of a big story. But when Darcy arrives, she finds her friend has disappeared. Troubled by the cruise ship's vague explanation, Darcy uses her cover as a travel reporter to investigate further. The last person Gage McKenna expects to see during his summer aboard a cruise ship leading adventure excursions is Darcy. And in typical Darcy fashion, she's digging up more trouble. He'd love to just forget her—but something won't let him. And he can't help but worry about her as they are heading into more remote regions of Alaska and eventually into foreign waters. Something sinister is going on, and the deeper they push, the more Gage fears they've only discovered the tip of the iceberg."The third book in Pettrey's Alaskan Courage series ratchets up the action and suspense. It's difficult to...

“You’re an addiction I can’t overcome, no matter how hard I try.” – Rook TylerHis life consists of his best friend, Jack Daniels, his favorite drug of choice and women. Rook Tyler lives for performing at night and wasting the rest of his days washing away the pain from his childhood so he doesn’t have to feel anything...ever. The only people he trusts are his band mates from Shattered Souls and he wants to keep it that way. His life was completely under control and simple until he heard the voice of Maisy Madison filter through The Tavern speakers. Growing up in the foster care system with her two other band mates from Twisted Perfection, Maisy finds herself doing pretty much anything to get her and her band noticed but nothing seems to be working. One lucky night, Shattered Souls, the most popular band in the country, decides to show up at their little concert and luckily signs them on the spot. But the arena venues and massive amount of fans isn’t what has Maisy shaking in her heels. It’s the deep baritone voice of Rook Tyler that has haunted her dreams for years which has her wondering if she can actually go through with the tour. The force is almost too strong. He can feel her everywhere he goes and no matter how much he tries to resist her, he finds himself gravitating towards Maisy, wanting to hold her, kiss her and touch her. He knows he shouldn’t get involved. He knows no matter what, he will end up hurting her but he can’t help it, his soul is connected to hers and the pull is too strong for him to resist. Rook warned her time and time again but she doesn’t listen, she doesn’t want to listen. She needs him and she doesn’t care that she knows deep down in her heart that their relationship is going to end in disaster.She refuses to acknowledge that no matter what they do, their love is toxic.

People, in my opinion, don’t take happiness seriously enough. They go through life, constantly trying to please other people. I do, however, take my happiness seriously. Very seriously. But, when things in my life, go suddenly south, I am left with more than one choice. Do what’s right, or do what’s wrong?That, on any normal day, would be an easy choice for me. I’ll do whatever I need to keep my life flowing with happiness.But when it comes to love, everything changes. And him. I love him. Which means I have to correct my wrong doings. I need him to forgive me. I need money.It’s the only way.When a job for a live-in maid comes up, with excellent pay, I jump at the chance. When I realize it’s for the member of a Motorcycle Club, I still don’t back down. Even if it means I have to live with and work for, one of the hottest, broodiest and most difficult men I’ve ever met. I’ll do whatever it takes. Only, I don’t expect to actually like him. The mysterious biker. The one who I seem drawn to.And now I have a real problem. Do what’s right, or let my heart take me where it wishes? Two men. Once choice. Things are about to get very, very complicated.

Spike knows tragedy. He knows that feelings are better left hidden. He refuses to put his heart out there again. It's not a feeling he ever wants to experience a second time around. But then there's Ciara, the sister of his desceased wife. An old friend, his first love, and a girl determined to fix what was broken between them. She wants to reform an old friendship, but Spike won't have a bar of it. Who will win the battle of the wills?

Living after the victory of Good and Light has transformed the world into a utopia, a bored band of villains--a thief, a black knight, a Druid, and a man-eating sorceress--conspires to restore evil to the universe. Reprint. AB. PW. From Library JournalWith the banishment of Evil from the realms, the final victory of Good is assured-unless a few stalwart antiheroes can save the world from a serious and potentially fatal imbalance. First novelist Forward explores the complications that arise from a surfeit of "goodness" in the world. The result is a skewed version of the epic fantasy that features an assassin, a thief, an evil sorceress, a dark knight, and an implacable druid as the villains-turned-heroes who must restore the delicate balance of opposing forces before their world disappears in a blinding flash of Goodness and Light. Fans of role-playing games will recognize many familiar conventions in this seriocomic fantasy adventure. A candidate for fantasy collections in large libraries.Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc. From BooklistForward's first novel gives the concept of the balance between good and evil a most ingenious twist: What if good were so totally triumphant that it became a worse danger than evil, and a band of unemployed evil characters had to go on a desperate quest to find the means of putting the saving bit of evil back into the world? The result of this twist is an almost straightforward quest tale, with numerous well-drawn characters (including a centaur who starts off as a secret agent for good and eventually joins the side of evil), great ingenuity about magic, very creditable world-building, and considerable wit. Although bearing its share of first-novel flaws, it has many more virtues, which include an underlying, serious examination of the good-evil dichotomy that is the basis of so many role-playing games. Roland Green

Poignant and chilling by turns, The Opposite of Innocent is award-winning author Sonya Sones's most gripping novel in verse yet. It's the story of a girl named Lily, who's been crushing on a man named Luke, a friend of her parents, ever since she can remember. Luke has been away for two endless years, but he's finally returning today. Lily was only twelve when he left. But now, at fourteen, she feels transformed. She can't wait to see how Luke will react when he sees the new her. And when her mother tells her that Luke will be staying with them for a while, in the bedroom right next to hers, her heart nearly stops. Having Luke back is better than Lily could have ever dreamed. His lingering looks set Lily on fire. Is she just imagining them? But then, when they're alone, he kisses her. Then he kisses her again. Lily's friends think anyone his age who wants to be with a fourteen-year-old must be really messed up. Maybe even dangerous. But Luke would never do anything to hurt her...would he? In this powerful tale of a terrifying leap into young adulthood, readers will accompany Lily on her harrowing journey from hopelessness to hope.

"[Charlie Huston's] action scenes are unparalleled in crime fiction and his dialogue is so hip and dead-on that Elmore Leonard should be getting nervous."--Publishers Weekly (starred review), on Half the Blood of BrooklynIt's like this: a series of bullet-riddled bad breaks has seen rogue Vampyre and terminal tough guy Joe Pitt go from PI for hire to Clan-connected enforcer to dead man walking in a New York minute. And after burning all his bridges, the only one left to cross leads to the Bronx, where Joe's brass knuckles and straight razor can't keep him from running afoul of a sadistic old bloodsucker with a bad bark and a worse bite. Even if every Clan in Manhattan is hollering for Joe's head on a stick, it's got to be better than trying to survive in the outer-borough wilderness.So it's a no-brainer when Clan boss Dexter Predo comes looking to make a deal. All Joe has to do to win back breathing privileges on his old turf is infiltrate an upstart Clan...

WINNER of the 2017 EPIC Award for Contemporary RomanceIn 2003, journalist Connor Regan marched through London to add his voice to a million others, decrying the imminent invasion of Iraq. Eight months later, his brother, James, was killed in action in Mosul.Three years on, Connor finds himself bound for Iraq to embed with an elite SAS team. He sets his boots on the ground looking for closure and solace—anything to ease the pain of his brother’s death. Instead he finds Sergeant Nathan Thompson.Nat Thompson is a veteran commander, hardened by years of combat and haunted by the loss of his best friend. Being lumbered with a civilian is a hassle Nat doesn’t need, and he vows to do nothing more than keep the hapless hack from harm’s way.But Connor proves far from hapless, and too compelling to ignore for long. He walks straight through the steel wall Nat’s built around his heart, and when their mission puts him in mortal danger,...

The stories in Black Vodka, by acclaimed author Deborah Levy, are perfectly formed worlds unto themselves, written in elegant yet economical prose. She is a master of the short story, exploring loneliness and belonging; violence and tenderness; the ephemeral and the solid; the grotesque and the beautiful; love and infidelity; and fluid identities national, cultural, and personal.In "Shining a Light," a woman's lost luggage is juxtaposed with far more serious losses. An icy woman seduces a broken man in "Vienna," and a man's empathy threatens to destroy him in "Stardust Nation." "Cave Girl" features a girl who wants to be a different kind of woman—she succeeds in a shocking way. A deformed man seeks beauty amid his angst in the title story.These are twenty-first century lives dissected with razor-sharp humor and curiosity. Published simultaneously with Things I Don't Want to Know: On Writing, Levy's stories will send you tumbling into a rabbit hole,...

Sixteen-year-old Rasheed is smart, tough and a survivor. In his neighborhood, he has to be. The streets are run by a gang called the E Street Locals, and they've been trying to jump him in since he was a child. So far, he's managed to escape their clutches. But the gang is not his only problem. Rasheed's sister, Daneeka, was paralyzed in a drive-by shooting, and now she's confined to a wheelchair, mentally frozen at the age of nine. His mother is an addict. His father hasn't been heard from in years. High school is no safer than the streets, so Rasheed seeks solace at the local university campus. There he meets a young woman named Lanaia who takes an interest in him. He also bumps up against a police officer who he thinks at first is hassling him just because he's black. But eventually Rasheed realizes that the officer is only pushing him to become a better person. Though he can't escape his home life, or the gang, as easily as he'd like, Rasheed does learn some valuable lessons...

The Malefactor