The Burning Stone

      Kate Elliott
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In the third volume of this astonishing Nebula Award-nominated fantasy series, the many plot strands created in the first two novels become more tightly interwoven—as the time of the cataclysm nears when people and places long sundered by magic will once again reside in the same time and universe..."The best thus far...I can now honestly say I am rabid for the next book." —B&N ExplorationsPraise for the Crown of Stars series:"Well-thought-out, well-structured, and well-crafted...There's a bone-deep reality to the world." —Fantasy & Science Fiction"Elliott's new high fantasy...proves an entirely captivating affair...a resounding narrative revolving around three appealing characters." —Publishers Weekly (starred review)

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    Double Share: Solar Clipper Trader Tales

      Nathan Lowell
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AN INEXPERIENCED OFFICER. A DYSFUNCTIONAL SHIP. LIFE IN THE DEEP DARK JUST GOT A LOT HARDER. In his first assignment as an officer, Ishmael Horatio Wang finds himself fresh out of school, wet behind the ears, and way out of his depth. Aboard the William Tinker the senior officers are derelict and abusive, the crew demoralized and undisciplined, and change unwelcomed and dangerous. Can Horatio use what he learned aboard the Lois McKendrick to help the crew find the ship’s heart? Or will he discover that bucking the system may come at too high a price? Return to the Deep Dark with Ish in this fourth installment of the award winning Solar Clipper Series as he makes the transition from crew to officer.“Fans of Nathan Lowell’s Solar Clipper series are legion, and for just cause. Each book provides another chapter in the life of one of the most endearing characters to come along in recent memory. Nathan demonstrates that suburb story telling doesn’t require massive space battles or warring aliens, just great characters and a knack for spinning a really compelling tale.”-- Michael J. Sullivan, author of the Riyria Revelations2009 PARSEC AWARD FINALIST FOR BEST SPECULATIVE FICTIONAWARDS & RECOGNITION2011 Parsec Award Winner for Best Speculative Fiction (Long Form) for Owner's Share2011 Parsec Award Finalist for Best Speculative Fictions (Short Form) for The Astonishing Amulet of Amenartas2010 Parsec Award Winner for Best Speculative Fiction for Captain's Share 2009 Parsec Award Finalist for Best Speculative Fiction for Double Share 2009 Podiobooks Founder's Choice Award for Captain's Share 2008 Parsec Award Finalist for Best Speculative Fiction for Full Share 2008 Podiobooks Founder's Choice Award for Double Share 2008 Parsec Award Finalist for Best Speculative Fiction for South Coast NOVELS BY NATHAN LOWELTraders Tales from the Gold Age of the Solar Clipper Quarter Share Half Share Full Share Double ShareCaptain's Share Owner's Share Shaman's Tales from the Golden Age of the Solar Clipper South Coast* Tales from the Lammas Wood RavenwoodAudio only, print and ebooks coming soon

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    Neanderthal Parallax 1 - Hominids

      Robert J. Sawyer
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From Publishers WeeklyIn this polished anthropological SF yarn, the first of a trilogy from Nebula Award winner Sawyer (The Terminal Experiment), Neanderthals have developed a radically different civilization on a parallel Earth, as both sides discover when a Neanderthal physicist, Ponter Boddit, accidentally passes from his universe into a Canadian underground research facility. Fortunately, a team of human scientists, including expert paleoanthropologist Mary Vaughan, promptly identifies and warmly receives Ponter. Solving the language problem and much else is a mini-computer called a Companion implanted in the brain of every Neanderthal. A computerized guardian spirit, however, doesn't eliminate cross-cultural confusion permanent male-female sexuality, rape and overpopulation are all alien to Ponter nor can it help his housemate and fellow scientist back in his world, Adikor Huld, when the authorities charge Adikor with his murder. Ponter's daughter Jasmel believes in Adikor's innocence, but to prevent a horrendous miscarriage of justice (Adikor could be sterilized), she must try to reopen the portal and bring her father home. The author's usual high intelligence and occasionally daunting erudition are on prominent display, particularly in the depiction of Neanderthal society. Some plot points border on the simplistic, such as Mary's recovering from a rape thanks to Ponter's sensitivity, but these are minor flaws in a novel that appeals to both the intellect and the heart.Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc. From BooklistPonter Boddit, a physicist in a world in which Neanderthals are the dominant primates, is performing a quantum computing experiment in a Canadian mine, where cosmic rays won't disturb the test's delicate parameters. Suddenly, he is transferred into a heavy water tank in the same mine, but in the universe in which humans predominate. Human scientists are alarmed, then amazed by the spluttering Neanderthal in modern clothing with a curious AI implant in his wrist. Ponter's scientific partner, Adikor, is equally shocked, but what's more, he now faces an inquiry into his best friend's disappearance and suspected murder. Ponter is a most winning creation--thoughtful, brave, and charming as, facing the loss of everything he loves, he befriends a wounded female scientist in the strange human world. The smaller-scale, peaceful, environmentally savvy world of Ponter's people is equally well realized, though Sawyer loses a little steam trying to pin humanity's woes on organized religion. An engaging, thought-provoking story to read after either The Clan of the Cave Bear or Greg Bear's_ Darwin's Radio_ (1999). Roberta JohnsonCopyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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    Intoxicated

      Monica Murphy
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New York Times bestselling author Monica Murphy wraps up her sexy Billionaire Bachelors Club series with a wedding to remember. But this time, they're not bachelors anymore, and the groom … is one of them.It's Gage and Marina's wedding day, but wedded bliss seems a long way off: Ivy's just gone into labor, Marina's missing her matron of honor, and Bryn's giving Matt the silent treatment.It's up to Archer, Gage, and Matt to make sure this day goes off without a hitch. But between brides and babies, there's the not-so-little issue of the million-dollar bet to attend to. If only they can figure out who won … and who's paying up. Is everyone a winner? Or will someone leave broke—and brokenhearted?

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    The Summer of Owen Todd

      Tony Abbott
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Owen and his best friend, Sean, are both eleven years old. They've lived on Cape Cod all their lives, and now that they're a little older, they'll finally be free to spend some time on their own. But Sean's mother has a different idea—she hires a babysitter to look after Sean. Paul is in his twenties, and a well-liked guy from church. Paul starts doing things that just feel wrong. Because they've always been as close as brothers, Sean tells Owen, and no one else. What's not certain to Owen is what he should do. Sean warns him not to tell anyone what is happening. But if Owen doesn't tell, could something even worse happen to Sean?This harrowing and sensitively told tale of child abuse is a must-read for anyone who might ever be called upon to help a friend in need.

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    The Fox Was Ever the Hunter

      Herta Müller
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An early masterpiece from the winner of the Nobel Prize hailed as the laureate of life under totalitarianismRomania—the last months of the Ceausescu regime. Adina is a young schoolteacher. Paul is a musician. Clara works in a wire factory. Pavel is Clara's lover. But one of them works for the secret police and is reporting on all of the group.One day Adina returns home to discover that her fox fur rug has had its tail cut off. On another occasion it's the hindleg. Then a foreleg. The mutilated fur is a sign that she is being tracked by the secret police—the fox was ever the hunter.Images of photographic precision combine into a kaleidoscope of terror as Adina and her friends struggle to keep mind and body intact in a world pervaded by complicity and permeated with fear, where it's hard to tell victim from perpetrator.In The Fox Was Always a Hunter, Herta Müller once again uses language that displays the "concentration of poetry...

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    Shake, Rattle, and Hurl!

      R. L. Stine
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Chipmunk is so shy...He inhales when he sneezes!He even blushes when he's asleep!He plays guitar in the closet so he won't disturb anyone.But he just may be the best rock 'n' roll guitarist of all time! And Bernie Bridges needs him to win the annual Talent Contest for Rotten House. Bernie will do anything to keep the prize away from Sherman Oaks and his pals at Nyce House.Can Chipmunk conquer his stage fright and win?Or—when Bernie pushes him onstage, will it be Shake, Rattle, and Hurl!

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    The Flock of Fury

      Thomas E. Sniegoski
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IN THE FLOCK OF FURY, Billy Hooten learns the strange--and horrifying--truth behind Monstros City's woes. It turns out that all the supervillains Billy has encountered are under the hire of a super-SUPERvillain called the Monarch. The Monarch hates Billy--and with good reason. But when Billy learns the Monarch's shocking true identity, will he be able to fight back against his most powerful foe yet?From the Trade Paperback edition.

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    The Legend of the King

      Gerald Morris
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In this final installment of the Squire's Tale series, Terence and his fellow Knights of the Round Table must come together in a last stand to save Camelot. The characters Gerald Morris has brought to life throughout his series—"Terence and Gawain, Lynet and Gaheris, Luneta and Rhience, Dinadan and Palomides"—each have an important role to play in this climactic final conflict. Maintaining their faith, selflessness, and honor, Arthur's court bands together to try to defeat Morgause and Mordred and banish the dark magic from England forever.

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    Fire with Fire (Demonblood Series #2)

      Penelope King
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It's been over two months since the day Lucky and Liora decided their fate outside the cave. Over two months since Kieron left to finish his mission. So why hasn't he returned? Crushed and confused, Liora finds comfort with a mysterious stranger, a guy whose motives include more than just healing Liora's broken heart. Meanwhile, Lucky finds herself in the arms of an old friend..

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    Mistress of the Sun

      Sandra Gulland
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The author of the internationally acclaimed Josephine Bonaparte trilogy returns with another irresistible historical novel, this one based on the life of Louise de la Vallière, who, against all odds, became one of the most mysterious consorts of France's Louis XIV, the charismatic Sun King.Set against the magnificent decadence of the seventeenth-century French court, Mistress of the Sun begins when an eccentric young Louise falls in love with a wild white stallion and uses ancient magic to tame him. This one desperate action of her youth shadows her throughout her life, changing it in ways she could never imagine. Unmarriageable, and too poor to join a convent, Louise enters the court of the Sun King, where the king is captivated by her. As their love unfolds, Louise bears Louis four children, is made a duchess, and reigns unrivaled as his official mistress until dangerous intrigue threatens her position at court and in Louis's heart. A riveting love story with a captivating mystery at its heart, Mistress of the Sun illuminates both the power of true and perfect love and the rash actions we take to capture and tame it.From Publishers WeeklyAs she did for Napoleon's wife (The Many Lives & Secret Sorrows of Josephine B.), Gulland skillfully blends fact and fiction to imagine the life of Louise de la Vallière (1644–1710), mistress to Louis XIV, France's Sun King. Louise loses her father early and spends her childhood in a convent run by her aunt, Sister Angelique. When Louise's mother, Françoise, marries a marquis, she takes Louise home, where, by chance, she meets King Louis. As she secures a position at court about 100 pages in, the plot finally begins to bubble with intrigue: the king has married for political reasons, but, as a young and pious man, he has not kept a mistress before Louise. Their secret love eventually comes to light, but not without exacting a price. A supernatural element threaded throughout adds color to Gulland's vivid period imaginings. (June) Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. From BooklistIn spirit, there was nothing diminutive about Louise de la Valliere, known to her family as “Petite.” A rambunctious girl who could tame the wildest stallion, the impoverished and unmarriageable Petite was also able to tame the heart of the legendary Sun King, Louis XIV. Once she had captured his eye, Petite was quickly ensconced in his court, where, as his mistress, she was elevated to a titled position. Such a meteoric rise was bound to attract attention of the wrong sort, and Petite’s life was filled with the terrors and tragedies that accompany all internecine tales of palace intrigue. Amid rumors of black magic and sorcery, loved ones would die, and Petite herself would ultimately arrive at a crossroads where she would be forced to choose between her loyalty to the king and her own personal salvation. Teeming with the rich period details that make historical fiction so rewarding, Gulland’s dynamic and nuanced portrait of Louis’ notorious reign thrums with page-turning expediency and deliciously seductive machinations. --Carol Haggas

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    The Will and the Deed

      Edith Pargeter
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A dispute over a great diva's will sets the stage for bloody vengeance Antonia Byrne awakes in a splendid hotel room, and finds she isn't alone. When she sees the circle of concerned faces surrounding her bed, she knows she's going to die, but she intends to leave this world with a flourish. After all, she's the greatest diva of her generation and has always known how to make an exit. But before she goes, Antonia needs to say goodbye to Richard, whom she has loved with a passion so fierce she never dared spoil it with marriage. She's made a new will, and she wants Richard to take charge of her most valued treasure. He accepts, and she dies with laughter on her lips. Returning to England, Antonia's entourage is forced to make an emergency landing in the snowbound Alps, where the revelation of the new will leads to jealousy, betrayal, and a sweeping tragedy suited to the legacy of Antonia Byrne.

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    Scarface

      Andre Norton
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Few authors have achieved such renown as World Fantasy Life Achievement honoree and Science Fiction Writers of America Grand Master Andre Norton. With the love of readers and the praise of critics, Norton's books have sold millions of copies worldwide.In Scarface, Andre Norton tells the story of a swashbuckling adventure with a pirate crew on the Spanish Main!The boy Scarface watched the lights of Tortuga dim as the Naughty Lass stood out for the open sea. The Spanish Main promised rich prizes for Captain Cheap and his pirate crew. And this time Cheap had set his sights high—for no less a prey than Sir Robert Scarlett, his lifelong enemy, and Her Majesty's fleet at Bridgetown. His plan was daring. Muskets roared and swords flashed as redcoats and pirates fought savagely. The fate of Bridgetown hung in the balance—and with it the secret of Scarface's true identity.

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    Our Only May Amelia

      Jennifer L. Holm
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It isn′t easy being a pioneer in the state of Washington in 1899, but it′s particularly hard when you are the only girl ever born in the new settlement. With seven older brothers and a love of adventure, May Amelia Jackson just can′t seem to abide her family′s insistence that she behave like a Proper Young Lady. She′s sure she could do better if only there were at least one other girl living along the banks of the Nasel River. And now that Mama′s going to have a baby, maybe there′s hope. Inspired by the diaries of her great-aunt, the real May Amelia, first-time novelist Jennifer Holm has given us a beautifully crafted tale of one young girl whose unique spirit captures the courage, humour, passion and depth of the American pioneer experience. ∗Newbery Honour Book (USA), 2000 Ages 10+

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    Unwifeable

      Mandy Stadtmiller
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From the popular, "fresh, funny, and highly readable" (Bustle) dating columnist for New York magazine and the New York Post comes a whirlwind memoir recounting countless failed romances and blackout nights, told with Mandy Stadtmiller's unflinching candor and brilliant wit.My story is not standalone. Single girl comes to New York; New York eats her alive. But what does stand out is my discovery that you can essentially live a life that appears to be a textbook manual for everything one can do wrong to find love—and still find Mr. Right. Mandy Stadtmiller came to Manhattan in 2005, newly divorced, thirty years old, with a job at the New York Post, ready to conquer the city and the industry in one fell swoop. Like a "real-life Carrie Bradshaw" (so called by Jenny McCarthy!), she proceeded to chronicle her fearless attempts for nearly a decade in the Post, New York magazine, and xoJane. But there was...

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    Wood Sprites - eARC

      Wen Spencer
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Book 4 in the Romantic Times Sapphire award winning Elfhome series. Even though they attend a school of gifted students in New York City, child geniuses Louise Mayer and her twin sister Jillian have always felt alone in the world, isolated by their brilliance. Shortly before their ninth birthday, they make an amazing discovery. They’re not alone. Their real mother was astronaut Esme Shenske and their father was the famous inventor, Leonardo Dufae. They have an older sister, Alexander, living on the planet of Elfhome, and four siblings still in cryogenic storage at the fertility center. There’s only one problem: the frozen embryos are scheduled to be destroyed within six months. The race is on to save their baby brother and sisters. As a war breaks out on Elfhome and riots start in New York City, the twins use science and magic to plow over everything standing in their way. But when they come face to face with an ancient evil force, they’re soon in over their heads in danger.About Wen Spencer's Elfhome series:“Spencer's intertwining of current Earth technology and otherworldly elven magic is quite ingenious.” –BooklistAbout Wen Spencer:“Wit and intelligence inform this off-beat, tongue-in-cheek fantasy. . . . Furious action . . . good characterization, playful eroticism and well-developed folklore. . . . lift this well above the fantasy average. . . . Buffy fans should find a lot to like in the book's resourceful heroine.”—Publishers Weekly on series debut TinkerAbout Wen Spencer's Eight Million Gods:Eight Million Gods is a wonderfully weird romp through Japanese mythology, culture shock, fan culture and the ability to write your own happy ending. It is diverting and entertaining fantasy."  —*Galveston County Daily News The Elfhome SeriesTinkerWolf Who RulesElfhomeWood Sprites***About the AuthorJohn W. Campbell Award Winner Wen Spencer resides in paradise in Hilo, Hawaii with two volcanoes overlooking her home.  Spencer says that she often wakes up and exclaims "Oh my god, I live on an island in the middle of the Pacific!"  According to Spencer, she lives with "my Dali Llama-like husband, my autistic teenage son, and two cats (one of which is recovering from mental illness).  All of which makes for very odd home life at times." Spencer's love of Japanese anime and manga flavors her writing. Her novel Tinker won the 2003 Sapphire Award for Best Science Fiction Romance and was a finalist for the Romantic Times Reviewers' Choice Award for Fantasy Novel. Her Wolf Who Rules was a Top Pick by Romantic Times and given their top rating of four and a half stars.  Other Baen books include space opera thriller Endless Blue and Elfhome, third entry in the Tinker series.

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    The Sisters Mortland

      Sally Beauman
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A powerful and haunting story of three sisters and the tragedy at the center of their lives from the acclaimed New York Times bestselling author of Destiny and Rebecca's Tale. Summer 1967: In the heart of rural Suffolk, 13-year-old Maisie is at her decaying family home, a former medieval abbey. As an artist paints a portrait of Maisie and her older sisters, arrogant, beautiful Julia and brilliant, bookish Finn, Maisie embarks upon a portrait of her own: an account of her troubled family and her village friend Daniel. Before the summer is over, an accident will have befallen the family-one which changes their lives irrevocably for the worse. Winter 1991: As the now-famous portrait of the Mortland sisters is being featured in a huge exhibition, Daniel seeks to free himself of his obsession with these women by unraveling the secrets of that fateful summer. Readers will be transported, fascinated, and have their hearts broken by this page-turning novel of a most extraordinary family. "Before the summer is over, a catastrophic event changes the life of three young sisters in 1967 England"--Provided by the publisher.

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    A Raging Storm: A Derrick Storm Short

      Richard Castle
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Part Two of the Derrick Storm trilogy from #1 New York Times bestselling author Richard Castle, available exclusively as an eBook short. Days after being brought out of retirement to investigate a kidnapping, Derrick Storm has a dead US senator on his hands, an assassin to track down, and nearly six billion dollars' worth of gold bars--hidden by the Communist Party somewhere in the former USSR--to uncover. Teaming up again with FBI agent April Showers, Storm must talk to Ivan Petrov, a secretive millionaire who has ties to the assassination, coordinates for the gold, and a mole leaking information to the Russian government from within his inner circle. And while the CIA mission is getting heated, it's nothing compared to the growing sexual tension between Storm and Showers...

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    A Star Shall Fall

      Marie Brennan
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EDITORIAL REVIEW: The Royal Society of London plays home to the greatest minds of England. It has revolutionized philosophy and scientific knowledge. Its fellows map out the laws of the natural world, disproving ancient superstition and ushering in an age of enlightenment. To the fae of the Onyx Court, living in a secret city below London, these scientific developments are less than welcome. Magic is losing its place in the world—and science threatens to expose the court to hostile eyes. In 1666, a Great Fire burned four-fifths of London to the ground. The calamity was caused by a great Dragon—an elemental beast of flame. Incapable of destroying something so powerful, the fae of London banished it to a comet moments before the comet’s light disappeared from the sky. Now the calculations of Sir Edmond Halley have predicted its return in 1759. So begins their race against time. Soon the Dragon’s gaze will fall upon London and it will return to the city it ravaged once before. The fae will have to answer the question that defeated them a century before: How can they kill a being more powerful than all their magic combined? It will take both magic and science to save London—but reconciling the two carries its own danger

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    The Somebodies

      N. E. Bode
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There is a city beneath New York City, one made by and for Anybodies. There you can find Bing Chubb's Ballpark, Willy Fattler's ever–changing Underground Hotel, and a castle whose spire sticks up into the dirt–filled sky...dangerously close to the rear ends of unsuspecting picnic–goers in Central Park. It's an extraordinary place, but it is in danger of becoming ordinary because of the nefarious Blue Queen. Somebody has to stop her, and if anybody is going to, nobody is better than everybody's favorite Anybody. In her third quirky adventure, Fern takes on the biggest, baddest, bluest opponent ever. Yikes!

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    On Brassard's Farm

      Daniel Hecht
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In a radical departure from her urban life, Ann Turner buys a piece of remote Vermont land and sets up a tent home in deep forest. She's trying to escape an unending string of personal disasters in Boston; more, she desperately wants to leave behind a world she sees as increasingly defined by consumerism, hypocrisy, and division.As she writes in her journal, "There's got to be a more honest, less divided way to live."She soon learns she was mistaken in thinking a kindly Mother Earth would grant her wisdom and serenity in her new home. The forest confronts her with unanticipated dangers, aching loneliness, harsh weather, instinctive fears, and unsettling encounters with wild animals. It's beautiful, yes, but life in the woods is never easy. When necessity requires her to start work as a farmhand, she quickly realizes that she held similarly childish illusions about small farms. Under the stern tutelage of Diz Brassard, the farm's sixty-year-old matriarch, and the gentler...

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