Double Minds

      Terri Blackstock
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SUMMARY: Struggling to make her mark on the Nashville music scene, talented singer/songwriter Parker James finds the competition can be fierce--even deadly--when a young woman is murdered at the studio where Parker works. Original.

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    Demon Day

      Penelope Fletcher
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Grieving the death of her friend at the hand of dark magics, Rae is full of hate and vengeance. Tracking Devlin and his followers across demon territory, she is forced to turn to the local shifter pack for help. Tricked into rescuing the Pack Alpha’s daughters from the Temple, she learns there really is no place more dangerous than home. Young Adult: British English (BrE).

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    The Reservoir Tapes

      Jon McGregor
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"A rare and dazzling feat of art." --George Saunders, in praise of Reservoir 13, *The Paris Review Daily* The Reservoir Tapes returns to the extraordinary territory of Jon McGregor's Man Booker Prize-longlisted novel Reservoir 13, leading us deep into the heart of an English village that is trying to come to terms with what has happened on its watch. A teenage girl has gone missing. The whole community has been called upon to join the search. And now an interviewer arrives, intent on capturing the community's unstable stories about life in the weeks and months before Becky Shaw vanished. Each villager has a memory to share or a secret to conceal, a connection to Becky that they are trying to make or break. A young wife pushes against the boundaries of her marriage, and another seeks a means of surviving within hers. A group of teenagers dare one another to jump into a flooded quarry, the one weak swimmer still awaiting his turn. A laborer lies trapped under rocks and dry limestone dust as his fellow workers attempt a risky rescue. And meanwhile a fractured portrait of Becky emerges at the edges of our vision--a girl swimming, climbing, and smearing dirt onto a scared boy's face, images to be cherished and challenged as the search for her goes on.

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    Into the Thinnest of Air

      Simon R. Green
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Dinner at an ancient Cornish inn leads to one baffling disappearance after another in the latest intriguing Ishmael Jones mystery. "It's just a nice weekend, in a nice country inn. Nothing bad is going to happen ..."Ishmael Jones and his partner Penny are attending the re-opening of Tyrone's Castle, an ancient Cornish inn originally built by smugglers. Over dinner that night, the guests entertain one another with ghost stories inspired by local legends and superstitions. But it would appear that the curse of Tyrone's Castle has struck for real when one of their number disappears into thin air. And then another . . .Is the inn really subject to an ancient curse? Sceptical of ghost stories, Ishmael believes the key to the mystery lies in the present rather than the past. But with no bodies, no evidence and no clues to go on, how can he prove it?

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    Fawkes

      Nadine Brandes
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"Fawkes is the perfect mix of history and magic." —Cynthia Hand, New York Times bestselling author of My Lady JaneThomas Fawkes is turning to stone, and the only cure to the Stone Plague is to join his father's plot to assassinate the king of England.Silent wars leave the most carnage. The wars that are never declared but are carried out in dark alleys with masks and hidden knives. Wars where color power alters the natural rhythm of 17th-century London. And when the king calls for peace, no one listens until he finally calls for death.But what if death finds him first?Keepers think the Igniters caused the plague. Igniters think the Keepers did it. But all Thomas knows is that the Stone Plague infecting his eye is spreading. And if he doesn't do something soon, he'll be a lifeless statue. So when his Keeper father, Guy Fawkes, invites him to join the Gunpowder Plot—claiming it will put an...

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    The True Queen

      Sarah Fine
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Using fire and ice magic, Elli and Ansa must bring their people together to fight a common enemy in this epic conclusion to the Impostor Queen trilogy, which is a perfect fit for "fans of Victoria Aveyard's Red Queen" (School Library Journal).Now that Ansa knows she is the destined queen of Kupari, she is desperate to find a permanent home for her people, the Kriegere, in the Kupari lands. But as the small band of warriors crosses into the foreign territory, Ansa loses her fragile grip on her newly-acquired—and violent—fire and ice magic and puts everyone, including her love Thyra, in danger. Inside the walls of Kupari, Elli maintains the facade that she is the magical queen, with her secret—that she has no magic at all—on the brink of exposure every day. But as she tries to prepare the citizens to protect themselves from another invasion, unrest spreads as wielders like her beloved Oskar begin to lose control of their powers....

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    The Heavens Rise

      Christopher Rice
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New York Times bestselling author Christopher Rice brilliantly conjures the shadowed terrors of the Louisiana bayou—where three friends confront a deadly, ancient evil rising to the surface—in this intense and atmospheric new supernatural thriller. It’s been a decade since the Delongpre family vanished near Bayou Rabineaux, and still no one can explain the events of that dark and sweltering night. No one except Niquette Delongpre, the survivor who ran away from the mangled stretch of guardrail on Highway 22 where the impossible occurred…and kept on running. Who left behind her best friends, Ben and Anthem, to save them from her newfound capacity for destruction…and who alone knows the source of her very bizarre—and very deadly—abilities: an isolated strip of swampland called Elysium. An accomplished surgeon, Niquette’s father dreamed of transforming the dense acreage surrounded by murky waters into a palatial compound befitting the name his beloved wife gave to it, Elysium: “the final resting place for the heroic and virtuous.” Then, ten years ago, construction workers dug into a long-hidden well, one that snaked down into the deep, black waters of the Louisiana swamp and stirred something that had been there for centuries—a microscopic parasite that perverts the mind and corrupts the body. Niquette is living proof that things done can’t be undone. Nothing will put her family back together again. And nothing can save her. But as Niquette, Ben, and Anthem uncover the truth of a devastating parasite that has the potential to alter the future of humankind, Niquette grasps the most chilling truths of all: someone else has been infected too. And unlike her, this man is not content to live in the shadows. He is intent to use his newfound powers for one reason only: revenge.**

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    The Martini Shot

      George Pelecanos
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Short stories and a novella from one of crime fiction's most revered writers. Whether they're cops or conmen, savage killers or creative types, gangsters or God-fearing citizens, George Pelecanos' characters are always engaged in a fight for their lives. They fight to advance or simply to survive; they fight against odds, against enemies, even against themselves. In this, his first collection of stories, the acclaimed novelist introduces readers to a vivid and eclectic cast of combatants. A seasoned claims investigator tracks a supposedly dead man from Miami to Brazil, only to be thrown off his game by a kid from the local slum. An aging loser takes a last stab at respectability by becoming a police informant. A Greek-American couple adopts an interracial trio of sons and then struggles to keep their family together, giving us a stirring bit of background on one of Pelecanos' most beloved protagonists, Spero Lucas. In the title novella - which takes its name from Hollywood slang for the last shot of the day, the one that comes before the liquor shots begin - we go behind the scenes of a television cop show, where a writer gets caught up in a drama more real than anything he could have conjured for a script. By turns heartbreaking and humane, brutal and funny, these finely constructed tales expose the violence and striving beneath the surface of any city and within any human heart. Tough, sexy, fast-paced, and crackling with energy, The Martini Shot is Pelecanos at his very best.**

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    Blue Ridge Billy

      Lois Lenski
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A young boy dreams of music and sunshine in the Great Smoky Mountains As far as Billy is concerned, there's no sight more beautiful than the sun setting over the Blue Ridge Mountains. When the day is done, he sneaks away from his work to watch the sun go down. If his father knew, he would call Billy lazy, but Mama would understand. She knows life in the mountains is hard and that there's no point in living if a person can't take time to appreciate what he has. Billy dreams of the day when he can pick up his fiddle and sing the folk songs of his people. Until then, he will be content with the sun. This beautifully written novel tells a story of simple fun and irresistible pleasures in 1 of the most beautiful regions in the United States.

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    Voyager

      Russell Banks
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The acclaimed, award-winning novelist takes us on some of his most memorable journeys in this revelatory collection of travel essays that spans the globe, from the Caribbean to Scotland to the HimalayasNow in his mid-seventies, Russell Banks has indulged his wanderlust for more than half a century. In this compelling anthology, he writes that since childhood he has "longed for escape, for rejuvenation, for wealth untold, for erotic and narcotic and sybaritic fresh starts, for high romance, mystery, and intrigue." The longing for escape has taken him from the "bright green islands and turquoise seas" of the Caribbean islands to peaks in the Himalayas, the Andes, and beyond. In Voyager, Russell Banks, a lifelong explorer, shares highlights from his travels: interviewing Fidel Castro in Cuba; motoring to a hippie reunion with college friends in Chapel Hill, North Carolina; eloping to Edinburgh to marry his fourth wife, Chase; driving a sunset-orange metallic Hummer...

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    Wit'ch Storm

      James Clemens
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Elena bears the mark of the wit'ch upon her palm, the crimson stain that testifies to an awesome power of unimaginable potency: wild, seductive, difficult to control. Only a mistress of blood magick can stand against the foul minions and all-corrupting evil of the Dark Lord. But Elena is not yet the mistress of her magick. Protected by an ageless warrior and a band of renegades, she quests for a lost city where prophecies speak of a mystic tome that holds the key to the Dark Lord's defeat. But if the Dark Lord finds her first, Elena will become his most fearsome weapon . . .

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    Before I Wake

      Dee Henderson
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Welcome to Justice . . . And good luck leaving alive. Sheriff Nathan Justice loves the town he serves. Founded by his family generations before, Justice, Illinois, is mostly a peaceful place. But the tranquility has just been shattered. Women visiting Justice are being murdered. Tourists in nice hotels, money still in their billfolds, jewelry still on the dresser. Quiet kills-they go to sleep and never awaken. Rae Gabriella left the FBI after an undercover investigation turned terribly wrong. She's seeking to rebuild her life, and working as a private investigator alongside her former boyfriend Bruce Chapel in Justice, Illinois, seems like a place to start. But she suspects finding some peace and restoring her shaken faith will take more than just a change of location. The sheriff is not pleased to find Rae working a case on behalf of one of the victims' families. Rae is staying in the same hotel where one of the women died, and her looks suggest she could be the next victim. Now that Bruce, Rae, and Nathan are forced to work around each other, the situation is threatening to become something much more personal . . . and it will test the faith of everyone it touches before it is over. . . .

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    Junie B., First Grader_Cheater Pants

      Barbara Park
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Barbara Park’s New York Times bestselling chapter book series, Junie B. Jones, is a classroom favorite and has been keeping kids laughing—and reading—for more than twenty years. Over 60 million copies in print and now with a bright new look for a new generation! Meet the World’s Funniest First Grader—Junie B. Jones! Junie B. has all the answers when it comes to cheating. It’s just plain wrong! But what about copying someone else’s homework? That’s not cheating, right? ’Cause homework isn’t even a test! And speaking of tests . . . what if a friend shares an answer that you didn’t even ask for? Sharing definitely isn’t cheating . . . is it? Uh-oh. Maybe this cheating business is more complicated than Junie B. thought. Could she be a cheater pants and not even know it?   USA Today : “Junie B. is the darling of the young-reader set.”   Publishers Weekly : “Park convinces beginning readers that Junie B.—and reading—are lots of fun.”   Kirkus Reviews : “Junie’s swarms of young fans will continue to delight in her unique take on the world. . . . A hilarious, first-rate read-aloud.”   Time : “Junie B. Jones is a feisty six-year-old with an endearing penchant for honesty.”

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    The Dead Boyfriend

      R. L. Stine
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R.L. Stine's Fear Street series is back, and in The Dead Boyfriend, he tells the frightening tale of teenage love—and how it can go terribly, murderously wrong.Caitlin has never had a real boyfriend before. When she starts seeing Colin, she throws herself into the relationship with fervor. She ignores her friends who warn her that Colin may be a phony and that she is taking the whole thing too seriously. Caitlin is smitten. She doesn't care if she loses her friends. All she wants is Colin. When Caitlin approaches Colin with another girl, she completely loses it. She snaps. Everything goes red. When she comes back to her senses, she realizes that Colin is dead—and she has killed him. But if Colin is dead, how is he staring at her across a crowded party? Terrifying from the first page to the last, The Dead Boyfriend is a heart-racing young adult novel from the master of teen screams himself.

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    Black Hearts in Battersea

      Joan Aiken
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'Wait, wait! Save us! What'll we do?'Simon is determined to become a painter when he grows up so he sets off to London to make his fortune. But the city is plagued by wolves and mysterious disappearances. The Twite household, where Simon is lodging, seems particularly shifty. Before he even gets a chance to open his glistening new paints Simon stumbles right into the centre of a plot to kill the King. And worse than that Simon is kidnapped and sent to sea! Luckily there are two friendly stowaways aboard - the feisty Dido Twite and the spoiled young Justin. But when the ship catches fire things look pretty dire. Can they escape? Will they save the king in time?BACKSTORY: Test your knowledge of Black Hearts in Battersea and play the name game.

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    The Crimson Thread

      Suzanne Weyn
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A Retelling of "Rumpelstiltskin" The year is 1880, and Bertie, having just arrived in New York with her family, is grateful to be given work as a seamstress in the home of textile tycoon J. P. Wellington. When the Wellington family fortune is threatened, Bertie's father boasts that Bertie will save the business, that she is so skillful she can "practically spin straw into gold." Amazingly, in the course of one night, Bertie creates exquisite evening gowns — with the help of Ray Stalls, a man from her tenement who uses an old spinning wheel to create dresses that are woven with crimson thread and look as though they are spun with real gold. Indebted to Ray, Bertie asks how she can repay him. When Ray asks for her firstborn child, Bertie agrees, never dreaming that he is serious....

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    Dope Sick

      Walter Dean Myers
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The itch starts when things get too heavy for Lil J. Skin popping or stealing pain pills from his mom help him relax. But Lil J's focus is wandering because money is short, and his man Rico knows a way to make some quick cash. It's supposed to be an easy deal, but it isn't so simple when the buyer is an undercover cop.With a gunshot wound to the arm, Rico in jail, and a police officer clinging to life, Lil J is starting to get dope sick. He'd do anything to change the last twenty-four hours, and when he stumbles into an abandoned crack house, it actually might be possible. . . .Walter Dean Myers weaves elements of magical realism into a harrowing story about drug use, violence, alternate perceptions of reality, and second chances.

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    Ruin

      John Gwynne
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The Banished Lands are engulfed in war and chaos. The cunning Queen Rhin has conquered the west and High King Nathair has the cauldron, most powerful of the seven treasures. At his back stands the scheming Calidus and a warband of the Kadoshim, dread demons of the Otherworld. They plan to bring Asroth and his host of the Fallen into the world of flesh, but to do so they need the seven treasures. Nathair has been deceived but now he knows the truth. He has choices to make, choices that will determine the fate of the Banished Lands. Elsewhere the flame of resistance is growing—Queen Edana finds allies in the swamps of Ardan. Maquin is loose in Tenebral, hunted by Lykos and his corsairs. Here he will witness the birth of a rebellion in Nathair's own realm. Corban has been swept along by the tide of war. He has suffered, lost loved ones, sought only safety from the darkness. But he will run no more. He has seen the face of evil and he has set his will to fight it. The question is, how? With a disparate band gathered about him—his family, friends, giants, fanatical warriors, an angel and a talking crow he begins the journey to Drassil, the fabled fortress hidden deep in the heart of Forn Forest. For in Drassil lies the spear of Skald, one of the seven treasures, and here it is prophesied that the Bright Star will stand against the Black Sun.

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    Coco Pinchard's Big Fat Tipsy Wedding: A Funny Feel-Good Romantic Comedy

      Robert Bryndza
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The highly anticipated sequel to the hit bestseller The Not So Secret Emails Of Coco Pinchard! A year has passed, Coco's career has taken off, and her relationship with the hunky Adam is going from strength to strength... there is even talk of marriage! Then the day before Adam is due to move in - he ends their relationship without explanation... After the initial shock and anger (and an 'I told you so' from ex mother-in-law Ethel) Coco digs deeper and discovers why. Adam is in terrible trouble, and he needs her help. Will Adam's mistake come between them? Or will they get to live happily ever after? Featuring an exciting cast of characters both familiar and new, and of course a starring role for the wonderfully horrible Ethel! Coco Pinchard's Big Fat Tipsy Wedding is a hilarious, heart warming romantic comedy.

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