1572: Returning from his studies in Montpellier, Pierre de Siorac is ambushed by a jealous Périgord nobleman. A duel ensues, and Pierre must subsequently travel to Paris, to seek his pardon from the King. The capital city and the royal court are a disorienting new environment for Pierre: a world of sweet words and fierce pride, where coquettish smiles hide behind fans, and murderous intents behind elegant bows; a world of genteel tennis matches and deadly swordplay, whose elaborate social graces mask a simmering tension that will soon explode to engulf the entire city in one of history's most infamous bouts of butchery - and signal the dawn of a new and bloody era in the history of France. Here, Pierre faces the greatest challenge of his young existence - to make his way through this deceptively dangerous milieu, to win a royal pardon, and finally to escape from Paris with his life, and the lives of his beloved companions, intact. From the Trade Paperback edition.

Living in a rat-infested hotel in Franco’s post-war Spain, André Bennett, a Canadian painter, loves Toni, his girl friend, who wants him to return home. Roger Kraus, a Nazi on the run, shadows the young artist day and night. They meet on a bridge during the last night of the fiesta, and as the sky is shredded by exploding fireworks, the story draws to its violent climax. Originally published in 1954, The Acrobats marks Mordecai Richler’s stunning debut as a novelist.

With this new collection, George Saunders takes us even further into the shocking, uproarious and oddly familiar landscape of his imagination. The stories in Pastoralia are set in a slightly skewed version of America, where elements of contemporary life have been merged, twisted, and amplified, casting their absurdity-and our humanity-in a startling new light. Whether he writes a gothic morality tale in which a male exotic dancer is haunted by his maiden aunt from beyond the grave, or about a self-help guru who tells his followers his mission is to discover who's been "crapping in your oatmeal," Saunders's stories are both indelibly strange and vividly real.

"There is a strangeness about Christabel Alderton. Elias Newman can see it right away, as well he might. "When Christabel was 13 she was walking by the River Lea and some people in a cabin cruiser waved to her. The scene before her seemed to freeze like a photograph and she felt weird. A little later the boat blew up and killed everyone on board. Since then she's been troubled by a sort of second sight that works sometimes, but not always. Now, years later, she sings with a band called Mobile Mortuary who make their onstage entrance climbing out of body drawers. Death is much on her mind because the men in her life tend to die before their time and she's come to think she's bad luck. Elias Newman is a diabetologist who meets Christabel at a Royal Academy of Arts exhibition. Fascinated, he's keen to know her better. She's attracted to him but afraid of what might happen if she lets herself fall in love. Christabel and Elias are complicated people. Via Symbolist paintings and German ballads the narrative flows from the River Lea via a haunted woodland bog out to the crash of the Pacific surf on Kahakuloa Head in the Hawaiian Islands. And only in a Hoban novel could such an intensely involving love story embrace the redemptive power of ketchup bottles.

Elaine Hawthorn is a gray American werewolf, currently out of work, and on a mission to share in a family treasure. When she arrives in Scotland, she nearly has a head-on collision with one hot, kilt-garbed Highlander, and runs him off the road. Werewolf laird Cearnach MacNeill isn't happy Elaine ruined his car, but he quickly becomes her protector after a misunderstanding lands her right in the middle of two feuding clans. Now he's out to ensure that this sexy female wolf gets her fair share of her clan's treasure. He knows he should leave well enough alone, but it's too late to leave his heart out of it.

Kate was born, post Civil War, in Western Appalachia. Turning eighteen, tragedy forced her to face the world alone. A Bounty Hunter introduced her to a world populated by trains, hotels, steamships, fashionable clothes, society and tracking dangerous felons. Kate is a strong lady in all aspects of her life, willing to break cultural codes on how women were obliged to deport themselves.The recent Civil War had little effect on people living in the hills of Western Appalachia where Kate was born. Women struggled through a weary life in a corn-liquor culture dominated by hypocritical men holding to the tradition that women should be kept barefoot, silent, busy and pregnant. These male dominated customs were enforced by ego driven ignorant preachers.At eighteen Kate possessed a ripe body, an inquiring mind, an in tact virginity and a talent for hitting whatever came in the sights of her small-bore muzzleloader squirrel rifle.Within a fortnight two tragic events claimed the life’s of Kate’s father, two brothers and her mother. Kate was suddenly alone with two horses, a team of mules, some smaller livestock and a worn out farm in Painter Holler.While tracking two wanted men, a bounty hunter connected with Kate and learned the men he was seeking had met their end during a midnight shootout, when they attempted to rob Kate and her mother.With a storm in the offing, Brady accepted Kate’s invitation to stay at her house until the weather improved. During his visit Kate offered up her virginity and became Brady’s life partner. In return Brady introduced Kate to a world populated by trains, hotels, steamships fancy clothes and a life she lacked the knowledge to imagine.Traveling with Brady, Kate quickly transitioned into a mature young woman with a new vocabulary and demeanor able to feel at ease in formal afternoon teas wearing a holstered Derringer pistol under a fashionable dress or creeping around inside a dark, stinking, cheap saloon to arrest a wanted felon.Kate held up her half of the partnership by always being at Brady’s side and going gun to gun during showdowns with determined men and added more notches to her pistol than Brady.Following the Civil War, territories became states and municipal law enforcement replaced federal jurisdictions reducing the use of bounty hunters. Brady and Kate set aside their bounty hunting hats and formed Modern Investigation Agency to service civil cases and special contracts let by Federal Judge, Andrew Blake.

All four Sassy books, now available in an ebook collection!

Dana Majors is an up and coming fashion designer with all eyes on her. The best thing about it is she hasn't even finished design school yet, and she never will if her fathers new girlfriend has anything to say about it. Months before graduating the rug is pulled from under her.Dana Majors is an up and coming fashion designer with all eyes on her. The best thing about it is she hasn't even finished design school yet, and she never will if her fathers new girlfriend has anything to say about it. Months before graduating the rug is pulled from under her. That is until an unlikely ally is willing to pave...and pay the way for her to chase her dreams. The only problem is her unlikely benefactor is her closest friends brother.

A parody on the sport of televised professional wrestling. Tex Rich, an oil rich Texan, creates his own wrestling federation where his sons can be champions but just like the real show, nothing goes as expected. Full of plot twists, off the wall commercial breaks and colorful characters, S.A.W. is a non-stop laughter filled roller coaster ride.(UPDATE) If you want to HEAR two of the commercials from the book, they are on Youtube now. Working on an audio book version of this book. Coming soon. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzy0D-Vq_evYvQZEns_BtNwA parody on the sport of televised professional wrestling. Tex Rich, an oil rich Texan, creates his own wrestling federation where his sons can be champions but just like the real show, nothing goes as expected. Full of plot twists, off the wall commercial breaks and colorful characters, S.A.W. is a non-stop laughter filled roller coaster ride.Has over the top commercials such as an escort service called Pimps R Us, fast food restaurant Immigration Burger. Colorful characters like James 'Boogie Down' Brown, an albino with a soulful slang tongue; Kaboom, a wrestler who has never won a match cause he always gets dq'ed, Cashless Clayton, who might actually be homeless, etc. Not Howard Stern over the top style but some that the FCC would not allow the WWE to put on T.V. without a fight.THIS IS NOT PART OF THE MCLAUGHLIN CITY SERIES but will have its own series AND does appear throughout the MCLAUGHLIN CITY SERIES in the form of being an 'entertainment commodity' through clothing, tv show in the background, minor character appearances and vice versa. E.G. One of your favorite bad guys makes a minor appearance at the pay per view.

Liz Porelli has lived with the monster called Multiple Sclerosis for years, but when she finds her life threatened during a hospital procedure, she discovers that the monsters lurking within the human mind can be far deadlier.A death caused by a hospital mishap, a missing hospital attendant, neighborhood break-ins and the murder of a good friend, pull Liz into a baffling mystery.Jessie James was fresh out of the FBI academy at Quantico, Virginia and tasked with the unbelievable: taking down the Iron Assassins Motorcycle Club, headquartered in California City. It was a tough order for any new agent, especially one as green as Jessie. One night while undercover at a dusty, wind torn bar she encounters Colt Winters, the head of the Iron Assassins Motorcycle Club. Her confidence is shattered when she realizes he isn't anything like she's been told. In fact he's quite charming. Torn between her duty to her country and the desires of her body she falls head over heels for him, and him for her. With the FBI breathing down her neck she's forced to play both sides of the law, but the gambit can't last forever. Soon she'll have to choose a side. For country, or for love? This 11K word story is the first portion of the Steel Horses story. It contains mature content and is intended for mature audiences only.

Farmer returns to his towering World of Tiers, where immortal Lords fight bloody wars over a host of pocket universes. Jim Grimson is a young man with problems who finally goes over the edge, gets placed in a mental hospital, and ends up in the World of Tiers. But is it therapy or reality? "A wide-screen adventure that never fails to provoke, amuse, and educate".--Time.

Charismatic ruler Andres Sereno was ruthless when it came to his island of Kadeira--and to the safety of Sara Marsh. Sara could no more resist Andres than she could resist the next beat of her heart. But could she surrender to the primitive force of his desire?

A madcap romp where the humour flows non-stop. Elizabeth West, of the Territory Police, arrives at a job interview but the job has already been given to the nephew of a politician. That is not West's only problem, the detectives conducting the interview are as loony as any character in Monty Python's Flying Circus. This is not a serious work of detective fiction but a seriously funny parody.In Death in the Australian Outback the serious detective thriller is completely blown away. In this modern world of climate change, terrorism and ever increasing regulation on the way we think, we need to lighten up. So sit in a comfortable chair, let your hair down, relax, download the book and have a laugh with Elizabeth West at the very crazy, very zany characters of Detective Chief Superintendent Bigfoot and Detective Superintend Chief Littlefoot. For comedy, like sex, one has to be in the mood and as we get older we forget that one of the most enjoyable things in life is to let go and laugh. So liberate those joy releasing happy hormones, set your inner laughter free and have a read. You will be rewarded by entry into a brilliantly crazy and surreal world of madcap cops trying to solve the problems of a madcap world. Reviews: 'The Australian Outback is the backdrop to this first in the Bigfoot series which sees West angling for a job with TURDS. It's packed with misunderstandings, mishaps, bizarre exchanges and loads of laughs. Along with other books about these three stooges, yarns about this zany trio are rapidly becoming a cult series from an author with a seemingly endless fund of crazy ideas and themes. Strongly recommended if you enjoy a good laugh.''Thoroughly enjoyed the book. The character names and departmental names had me giggling away on the train to my dental appointment. I read a lot of crime and thriller books, so it was a nice change to read something that was quite satirical. I would highly recommend this book to anyone that has a wonderfully warped sense of humour like myself.'

Tess gets an abrupt introduction to the F.B.I. - Fairyland Border Investigations - when two redcaps cross into Goose Creek and go on a killing rampage.The early morning phone call was disturbing enough. Two murders in the mercantile downtown and it looked like some freaky kind of serial killer. But Tess's day really turns on its head when she receives unexpected help from the F.B.I.—Fairyland Border Investigations. Her killers aren't ordinary cultists or asylum escapees. They're worse, much worse. Insane redcap gnomes won't stop killing until the whole world is painted red in blood. Or until they're stopped by an elf agent and a detective with a little too much Irish in her background.

A girl. A coma. A life she can't remember. When Emma Walker wakes up in the hospital with no knowledge of how she got there, she learns that she's been in a coma for six months. Strangers show up and claim to be her parents, but she can't remember them. She can't remember anyone. Not her friends, not even her boyfriend. Even though she can't remember, everyone wants her to just pick up where she left off, but what she learns about the 'old her' makes her start to wish she'd never woken up. Her boyfriend breaks up with the new girl he's dating to be with her, her parents want her to start planning for college, her friends want their leader back, and her physical therapist with the hazel eyes keeps his distance to save his position at the hospital. Will she ever feel like she recognizes the girl in the mirror?

Where do you run to when your life has fallen apart? Lucy Jorik is a champ at never embarrassing the family she adores—not surprising since her mother is one of the most famous women in the world. But now Lucy has done just that. And on her wedding day, no less, to the most perfect man she's ever known. Instead of saying "I do" to Mr. Irresistible, Lucy flees the church in an ill-fitting blue choir robe and hitches a ride on the back of a beat-up motorcycle plastered with offensive bumper stickers. She's flying into the unknown with a rough-looking, bad-tempered stranger who couldn't be more foreign to her privileged existence. While the world searches for her, Lucy must search for herself, and she quickly realizes that her customary good manners are no defense against a man who's raised rudeness to an art form. Lucy needs to toughen up—and fast. Her great escape takes her to his rambling beach house on a Great Lakes island. Here, she hopes to find a new direction . . . and unlock the secrets of this man who knows so much about her but reveals nothing about himself. As the hot summer days unfold amid scented breezes and sudden storms, she'll also encounter a beautiful, troubled beekeeper; a frightened young boy; a modern-day evil queen; and a passion that could change her life forever. In this dazzling follow-up to her New York Times bestseller Call Me Irresistible, Susan Elizabeth Phillips tells the funny, touching, enchanting story of a young woman searching for her destiny . . . and of a damaged man who doesn't believe in second chances.

Donja Bellanger, suffering after the death of her father, finds herself in dire straits when her mom takes a new husband. Forced not only to move to a strange city, but to share a room with her glamorous, new stepsister, Makayla Hampton, her life spirals out of control. Makayla lures her from goth to glam, straight into an exclusive club, not only for wealthy elites but Immortal Descendants. Donja crosses paths with Torin Mancini and he’s too damn handsome to be real. Torin, who has concealed his identity as a powerful ancient sprit for eight hundred years, sets his eyes on Donja; there’s something about her blood, something he can’t walk away from. He’s not alone. A deadly predator has picked up her scent. Stalked, she reaches out to Torin, but the lure of her blood has him on edge. As Torin battles his heart desires and feelings he thought buried and gone, one thing is clear: they have as much, if not more to fear of each other than the predator who would have her life. Is love enough? Can she accept him for what he is and better yet, can he control his hungry, hungry eyes? A beautiful love story with relentless action, elite battles and steamy moments… unforgettable!

He is a good man, a brilliant corporate executive, an honest, handsome family man admired by men and desired by women. But sixteen years ago Ben Tyson was a lieutenant in Vietnam.There, in 1968, the men under his command committed a murderous atrocity-and together swore never to tell the world what they had done. Not the press, army justice, and the events he tried to forget have caught up with Ben Tyson. His family, his career, and his personal sense of honor hang in the balance. And only one woman can reveal the truth of his past-and set him free.

The time is the 1930s. Buddy Sandifer, dressed in his natty white flannels, baby-blue shirt, striped tie, tan-and-white shoes, and coconut-straw hat with polka-dot band, is falling into one of his moods. Owner of a used-car lot and father of a fifteen-year-old son with a penchant for sex manuals, Buddy has decided to murder his wife and marry his mistress, Laverne, a robust blonde who cooks his favorite meal of fried pork chops, fried potatoes, and fried apples while wearing a short pink apron over black-lace step-ins and brassiere, long-gartered silk stockings, and platform shoes. The only problem is how to arrange the crime.