An unassuming man finds a secret the size of the universe hidden away behind his refrigerator. What he finds will change his life forever, and maybe not for the best.If you're looking for selfless heroes, true love, adventures on the high seas and heroic sacrifices you should go back to reading the Bible. If you're looking for a neurotic protagonist in a trench coat who is willing to become a villain to defeat the villain (and just for fun), if you want to read about a man who compensates for his shortcomings with a short-barreled shotgun and gratuitous violence, if you want to LOL, then this is the story for you. Would you like to see what's under the trench coat, little girl?

A new home. A new school. A new best mate. Things are going pretty well for Luke Keane.But as teenage kicks veer into the hedonistic world of alcohol, drugs and partying things begin to spiral out of control.So how far is too far? And can you ever really know until it's too late?"What is the Void?"The world watched in horror on the day the mysterious being known only as 'the Void' made its presence known to the world. But for John Parker it would be remembered as the day his son disappeared without a trace.Desperate for answers, John begins a life-changing search for his lost child that brings him to the brink of despair while the FBI uncovers a link between John's missing child and a Void-worshiping cult called The Brotherhood.

What would happen if you had to face your sin? If it built up so high that it became a person? Would you face it? COULD you? Sophia has dug herself in deep and blinded herself to the truth. And once it hits her, will she turn away from it, or will she face it head on? THIS IS A TEASERTHIS IS A TEASERWhat would happen if you had to face your sin? If it built up so high that it became a person? Would you face it? COULD you? Sophia has dug herself in deep and blinded herself to the truth. And once it hits her, will she turn away from it, or will she face it head on?

Hugo Gerard, an awkward and unsociable high school chemistry teacher, concealed his powers with due diligence until Pinnacle thugs held him and his peers for ransom during a bank heist. Faced with a grim outlook spiraling toward his impending demise, Hugo decided to act with a resonance powerful enough to burn his foes to cinders. Sometimes, heroes rise from the ashes.A normal little girl named Ria is playing in the room, but then it becomes time to go to sleep. She is afraid of the dark, so her father gives her a flashlight. While in the dark, she hears scary noises and uses the flashlight to see them. She sees partial images of horrifying monsters, but when she turns on the lamp, she quickly learns that the monsters are her good friends that live in her room. Eventually, she stops being afraid of the dark and goes to sleep.(This is a picture/images book)

Where death stalks the world in all her glory and beauty, we find a man, a woman and a most unlikely character to begin this our tale of life and all that makes it dark and cold. Reader, you have not come to be pandered to. Only to know, for that is what comes of such things. This fantastical tale is sure to rub against your mind, and perhaps other things, if you are brave enough to read.Reader, how far you have come.An epic clashing of fantastical worlds and dramatic prose files into a tale of such heart-wrenching disaster, that if you read, you will undoubtedly find yourself wishing you hadn't, and then reading on to the next scene, and the next, and to the last few, dribbling words. Only the first installment of this saga, we find ourselves thrust into a dying world where the darkness of a tainted heart has begun to creep into the realms. Here in Axis, where the Emperor's hefty arm crushes all beneath his reach, we are introduced to a select few souls that threaten to bend the rights of existence, not for them, but for you. Rorith's power wanes. Savill's spirit is to be overcome. And Aviin? What can be said of this poor, wretched man, for he is nothing, and yet everything to us. And into the past where we remember the long lost tales of an unfortunate boy that simply couldn't escape the Fate's grasp, squeezed between their grimy fingers for all he had.Perhaps some books were never meant to be read?Others, never to be written....You will not find disappointment, as it is sure to drag you on from bleeding page to bleeding page, but I cannot promise that you will be happy with your reward at the final remark, nor will you be glad that you must read on, for this story simply does not end. In all that is fantastical and mystic, though, there will be no equal. So read on, yes, read until your soul cries out and your lips pour out onto the paper alongside so many others.

Chapter 10 : Last Horizon The End of Book 1. We finally get a hint of who the sacred warriors really are, and if any still exist. But one resolution turns to be a key that opens a Pandora's box of mysteries that no one in the world of the Carpati and Bitani may be prepared for. While at the same time a shocking twist reveals something truly staggering... who is Nayaa? Really?Lightship Chronicles is a young adult adventure set on a mysterious world. Carpatia is a harsh desert land, but one with spectacular vistas and populated by two very different yet resilient people, the Carpati and the Bitani. Both believe in competing myths of their history. Myths of great ancient battles fought over by a clan of mysterious Sacred Warriors against magical Light-Fairies. Under the glowing warmth of their red-giant sun, it's easy for the Carpati to believe in their beautiful myths. They spend most of their long 36 hour days living a simple farming lifestyle in the Township built on the lower slopes of the mighty Table Mountain. The Bitani meanwhile rule over the Carpati from their futuristic city atop the massive pillar-like tabletop of a mountain, and have a very different, and quite mysterious perspective. For the Carpati the only respite from the drudgery of their simple days are the monthly lightship races. The hovering lightships speed at more than 700kph over a 600km course that runs up the sides of mesas, through the canyons of the Crags, over the 10m waves of the Great Salt sea, over the Long Straight, the Dunes, and through the Eastern Hills and its many giant Baobab threes. It's a spectacular race unlike anything else and the favorite pastime of Andee and his little brother Mykee. Both dream of being lightship pilots while watching the race from their favorite hangout, the 1000m high Outcrop overlooking The Crags. Join the adventure now, because this is growing into an epic tale years into the making. Visit LightshipChronicles.com for more in depth details of the race circuit, including images of the course, the outcrop, and the lightships.

Ben was fine until his uncle died. His death was a mystery, until Bed received his uncle's gift, and Ben discovered his uncle had a secret to erase.Ben has no idea what he was in for after his uncle died. The death itself was a mystery, until Ben receives the special gift his uncle left behind for him. That gift changes everything.In a world where devices exist that can erase or modify one's memory, Ben is forced to learn a the family secrets the hard way, and under the strangest of circumstances.

A mysterious diary confuses marine biologist Jerry Allen. The meeting with strange sea creatures which Priscilla Blextone describes in her ancient diary, looks lifelike. Her drawings and description agree with beings that are also known as mermaids. As a scientist Jerry Allen knows that's not possible. Mermaids do not exist. Or…?Then Allen’s leave is interrupted. The Navy urgently needs his helpA mysterious diary confuses marine biologist Jerry Allen. The meeting with strange sea creatures which Priscilla Blextone describes in her ancient diary, looks lifelike. Her drawings and description agree with beings that are also known as mermaids. As a scientist Jerry Allen knows that's not possible. Mermaids do not exist. Or…?Then Allen’s leave is interrupted. The Navy urgently needs his help. At a location close to the Great Barrier Reef Allen watches secret images of unknown beings filmed by the Navy. Unknown creatures that look suspiciously like the mermaids Priscilla Blextone had described two centuries earlier. Could it be...?‘Onset’ is a short story. An introduction to the AQUIFER series. This prequel is only available as (free) eBook.

A collection of early works by Johns that cover a far reaching export of themes by the writer. From excerpts to his greater work to short interpersonal flash fictions this eBook has a broad sense of his style and early influences. This piece of work is an excellent appetizer and introduction to Johns’ work as a whole.EARLY SHORT TALES is a brief look into the worlds in which Johns tends to write in. WAKING UP is the first of three stories that has an origin in his larger work. A small piece of what will later become THE PROMISE AND THE THREAT in is A MEMORY OF TWILIGHT series, WAKING UP has the fallen hero Jacob Jacobi fighting his own alcoholic demons to become the man he once was or slip back into bitterness. THE RIDE has echoes of the writer’s life as a lost, single father considers his life while raising those children alone. And Finally THE BOX examines a man’s self-created, self-destructive loneliness as he mourns something gone. EARLY SHORT TALES is a vivid look into the styles and themes of the writer and offers a look at what is to come.

Imagine a book filled with stories and poems written by kids who love animals. Writing gives us the chance to use our imagination, to be creative, to explore our deepest thoughts and feelings, and to discover the gifts and talents we have inside. Pet Alliance of Greater Orlando is proud to present original works that showcase how young authors view the world around them.Imagine a book filled with stories and poems written by kids who love animals. Writing gives us the chance to use our imagination, to be creative, to explore our deepest thoughts and feelings, and to discover the gifts and talents we have inside.Pet Alliance of Greater Orlando is proud to present original works that showcase how young authors view the world around them. The writings and artwork are truly from the heart and strive to portray the hands-on experiences with shelter pets and knowledge gained during Shelter Friends Summer Camps. You will not find these imaginative and creative ideas anywhere else.Pet Alliance of Greater Orlando educates, shelters, places, and heals pets and their families with compassionate, responsible care maintained to the highest professional standards. We create more caring communities by promoting happier, healthier pets and their families.

Twenty Four WeeksEpisode 25 Part 2- "Thirty Six"Quinn’s family and friends rally behind her… Judd prays for Quinn… Judd gets a vision of a different birthday surprise…“It’s okay to cry,” my mother says. I expect her to suggest that I could laugh if I wanted to, but she doesn’t. There is nothing remotely funny about this situation.“If it’s all the same to you, I’d rather not..."Twenty Four WeeksEpisode 25 Part 2- "Thirty Six"Quinn’s family and friends rally behind her… Judd prays for Quinn… Judd gets a vision of a different birthday surprise…“It’s okay to cry,” my mother says. I expect her to suggest that I could laugh if I wanted to, but she doesn’t. There is nothing remotely funny about this situation.“If it’s all the same to you, I’d rather not. I think I’ve just about cried myself out these last few months..."Still reeling from the shock of discovering his wife's infidelity, Judd Altman learns that he has lost his father and will be one himself. His soon to be ex-wife, Quinn, is pregnant with his child.After almost losing the baby, Wade (Judd's old boss and Quinn's lover) realizes the truth about himself and his relationship with Quinn and leaves her. Judd, in the face of Quinn's situation, forgives her, but cannot reconcile their marriage.With nothing but a stolen Porsche, Judd drives to Maine with limitless possibilities. A man with nothing has nothing to lose, and a man with nothing to lose can do anything.Twenty Four Weeks begins with Judd's time of reflection in Maine and his eventual decision to return to New York City, to take back the life that has been so cruelly taken from him. Sometimes humorous, this bitter-sweet tale is full of hope, love and forgiveness.With characters and back story based on the novel "This is Where I Leave You" by Jonathan Tropper, Twenty Four Weeks is set after the events of the movie of the same name.

George Orwell was a tireless and lively correspondent. He communicated with family members, friends and newspapers, figures such as Henry Miller, Cyril Connolly, Stephen Spender and Arthur Koestler, and strangers who wrote to him out of the blue. This carefully selected volume of his correspondence provides an eloquent narrative of Orwell's life, from his schooldays to his final illness. Orwell's letters afford a unique and fascinating view of his thoughts on matters both personal, political and much in between, from poltergeists, to girls' school songs and the art of playing croquet. In a note home to his mother from school, he reports having 'aufel fun after tea'; much later he writes of choosing a pseudonym and smuggling a copy of *Ulysses *into the country. We catch illuminating glimpses of his family life: his son Richard's developing teeth, the death of his wife Eileen and his own illness. His talent as a political writer comes to the fore in his descriptions of Barcelona during the Spanish Civil War, his opinions on bayonets, and on the chaining of German prisoners. And of course, letters to friends and his publisher chart the development and publication of some of the most famous novels in the English language, providing unparalleled insight into his views on his own work and that of his contemporaries. *A Life in Letters* features previously unpublished material, including letters which shed new light on a love that would haunt him for his whole life, as well as revealing the inspiration for some of his most famous characters. Presented for the first time in a dedicated volume, this selection of Orwell's letters is an indispensible companion to his diaries.

# 1 "New York Times" bestselling author Sherrilyn Kenyon has created a sensation with her sexy stories about the Bureau of American Defense. Now, three novellas about BAD agents are collected in one volume! In the all-new "One BAD Night" the bureau believes that agent Jason Banks has sold them out. Agent Samantha Winslow has never particularly cared for Jason and she volunteers to bring him in. Under orders to infiltrate his rogue mission and kidnap him, she is also trying to pull off the ultimate double-cross. But who would have guessed that Jason would be so pleased to be her captive? In "BAD to the Bone" Marianne wins the Hideaway Heroine Sweepstakes and a chance to pretend to be the heroine in her favorite romance novel. Whisked away to a remote island, Marianne's daydreams become real when BAD agent Kyle Foster kidnaps her. In "'Captivated' by You" BAD agent Rhea must go undercover as a dominatrix to capture a deadly terrorist. Fortunately, Agent "Ace" Krux, whom she has long desired, is her training partner. Immediately, the roles of master and slave are blurred, and Rhea and Ace unleash a wealth of hidden desire.

According to the writer of the best-selling crime novel ever to have been published in the city of Ankh-Morpork, it is a truth universally acknowledged that a policeman taking a holiday would barely have had time to open his suitcase before he finds his first corpse. And Commander Sam Vimes of the Ankh-Morpork City Watch is on holiday in the pleasant and innocent countryside, but not for him a mere body in the wardrobe. There are many, many bodies and an ancient crime more terrible than murder. He is out of his jurisdiction, out of his depth, out of bacon sandwiches, and occasionally snookered and out of his mind, but never out of guile. Where there is a crime there must be a finding, there must be a chase and there must be a punishment. They say that in the end all sins are forgiven. But not quite all...

In 1844, Alexandre Dumas published The Three Musketeers, a novel so famous and still so popular today that it scarcely needs introduction. Shortly thereafter he wrote a sequel, Twenty Years After, that resumed the adventures of his swashbuckling heroes. Later, toward the end of his career, Dumas wrote The Red Sphinx, another direct sequel to The Three Musketeers that begins, not twenty years later, but a mere twenty days afterward. The Red Sphinx picks up right where the The Three Musketeers left off, continuing the stories of Cardinal Richelieu, Queen Anne, and King Louis XIII—and introducing a charming new hero, the Comte de Moret, a real historical figure from the period. A young cavalier newly arrived in Paris, Moret is an illegitimate son of the former king, and thus half-brother to King Louis. The French Court seethes with intrigue as king, queen, and cardinal all vie for power, and young Moret soon finds himself up to his handsome neck in conspiracy, danger—and passionate romance! Dumas wrote seventy-five chapters of The Red Sphinx, all for serial publication, but he never quite finished it, and so the novel languished for almost a century before its first book publication in France in 1946. While Dumas never completed the book, he had earlier written a separate novella, The Dove, that recounted the final adventures of Moret and Cardinal Richelieu. Now for the first time, in one cohesive narrative, The Red Sphinx and The Dove make a complete and satisfying storyline—a rip-roaring novel of historical adventure, heretofore unknown to English-language readers, by the great Alexandre Dumas, king of the swashbucklers.

Walden (first published as Walden; or, Life in the Woods) is an American book written by noted Transcendentalist Henry David Thoreau. The work is part personal declaration of independence, social experiment, voyage of spiritual discovery, satire, and manual for self reliance. Published in 1854, it details Thoreau's experiences over the course of two years in a cabin he built near Walden Pond, amidst woodland owned by his friend and mentor Ralph Waldo Emerson, near Concord, Massachusetts. By immersing himself in nature, Thoreau hoped to gain a more objective understanding of society through personal introspection. Simple living and self-sufficiency were Thoreau's other goals, and the whole project was inspired by transcendentalist philosophy, a central theme of the American Romantic Period. As Thoreau made clear in his book, his cabin was not in wilderness but at the edge of town, about two miles (3 km) from his family home.

From the Autobiography of Tiberius Claudius, Born 10 B.C., Murdered and Deified A.D. 54. Set in the first century A.D. in Rome and written as an autobiographical memoir, this colorful story of the life of the Roman emperor Claudius stands as one of the modern classics of historical fiction. Physically weak and afflicted with stuttering, Claudius is initially despised and dismissed as an idiot. Shunted to the background of imperial affairs by his embarrassed royal family, he becomes a scholar and historian, while palace intrigues and murders surround him. Observing these dramas from beyond the public eye, Claudius escapes the cruelties inflicted on the rest of the royal family by its own members and survives to become emperor of Rome in A.D. 41.

The human eye is so complex and works so precisely that surely, one might believe, its current shape and function must be the product of design. How could such an intricate object have come about by chance? Tackling this subject in writing that the New York Times called "a masterpiece" Richard Dawkins builds a carefully reasoned and lovingly illustrated argument for evolutionary adaptation as the mechanism for life on earth.The metaphor of Mount Improbable represents the combination of perfection and improbability that is epitomized in the seemingly "designed" complexity of living things. Dawkins skillfully guides the reader on a breathtaking journey through the mountain's passes and up its many peaks to demonstrate that following the improbable path to perfection takes time. Evocative illustrations accompany Dawkins's eloquent descriptions of extraordinary adaptations such as the teeming populations of figs, the intricate silken world of spiders, and the evolution of wings on the bodies of flightless animals. And through it all runs the thread of DNA, the molecule of life, responsible for its own destiny on an unending pilgrimage through time. Climbing Mount Improbable is a book of great impact and skill, written by the most prominent Darwinian of our age.

The wind has always dictated Vianne Rocher's every move, buffeting her from the French village of Lansquenet-sous-Tannes to the crowded streets of Paris. Cloaked in a new identity, that of widow Yanne Charbonneau, she opens a chocolaterie on a small Montmartre street, determined to still the wind at last and keep her daughters, Anouk and baby Rosette, safe. But the weather vane soon turns, and Zozie de l'Alba blows into their lives. Charming and enigmatic, Zozie provides the brightness that Yanne's life needs--as her vivacity and bold lollipop shoes dazzle rebellious and impressionable preadolescent Anouk. But beneath their new friend's benevolent facade lies a ruthless treachery--for devious, seductive Zozie has plans that will shake their world to pieces.

From the internationally best-selling author of Sarah's Key Tatiana de Rosnay comes an irreverent yet heartfelt collection of short stories that examines our most intimate and forbidden desires Late nights at the office... Hotel rooms and secret rendezvous... Lingering perfume... Sizzling texts... What takes place in Paris when husbands and wives tangle with infidelity? In this compulsively readable collection, Tatiana de Rosnay paints a portrait of forbidden loves in many shades - sometimes tragic, sometimes humorous, sometimes heartfelt, always with a dry wit and unflinching authenticity. A PARIS AFFAIR will take you on a vacation overseas, into the hidden lives of husbands, wives, boyfriends and girlfriends, where illicit desire wars with duty, and where a French take on romance will surprise you every time.

Return to a world of secrets and desires. In the sultry second installment of an eBook original serial from the New York Times bestselling author of Ruined and Addicted, Aria and Sebastian turn up the heat. But will they get burned? My name is Aria Winston. I’ve fought desperately to escape the seedy underbelly of Las Vegas. Now I’m on my own, in control of my own life and my own destiny . . . just the way I like it. Until Sebastian Caine changes everything. If getting tangled up with her new boss is wrong, Aria doesn’t want to be right. Powerful men usually have a way of thinking they can take whatever they want while giving nothing back, but Sebastian is different. He’s gentle with her body. Rough in all the right places. And hot enough to make Aria break every last rule she’s set for herself. But with her history, it’ll take more than mind-blowing sex to heal the pain deep inside . . . no matter how good Sebastian’s intentions are. She’s spent her entire life fighting for control of her own life, and no one’s going to take that from her. But the more time she spends in Sebastian’s world, the deeper she’s drawn into his sensual games. Play Me is an erotic serial intended for mature audiences. Aria and Sebastian’s story continues in Play Me: Hard.