McSweeney's Mammoth Treasury of Thrilling Tales

      Michael Chabon
     McSweeney's Mammoth Treasury of Thrilling Tales

**A Vintage Contemporaries Original Includes: **Jim Shepard's "Tedford and the Megalodon" Glen David Gold's "The Tears of Squonk, and What Happened Thereafter" Dan Chaon's "The Bees" Kelly Link's "Catskin" Elmore Leonard's "How Carlos Webster Changed His Name to Carl and Became a Famous Oklahoma Lawman" Carol Emshwiller's "The General" Neil Gaiman's "Closing Time" Nick Hornby's "Otherwise Pandemonium" Stephen King's "The Tale of Gray Dick" Michael Crichton's "Blood Doesn’t Come Out" Laurie King's "Weaving the Dark" Chris Offutt's "Chuck’s Bucket" Dave Eggers's "Up the Mountain Coming Down Slowly" Michael Moorcock's "The Case of the Nazi Canary" Aimee Bender's "The Case of the Salt and Pepper Shakers" Harlan Ellison's "Goodbye to All That" Karen Joy Fowler's "Private Grave 9" Rick Moody's "The Albertine Notes" Michael Chabon's "The Martian Agent, a Planetary Romance" Sherman Alexie's "Ghost Dance" From the Trade Paperback edition.

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    The Dark Talent

      Brandon Sanderson
     The Dark Talent

Alcatraz Smedry has successfully defeated the army of Evil Librarians and saved the kingdom of Mokia. Too bad he managed to break the Smedry Talents in the process. Even worse, his father is trying to enact a scheme that could ruin the world, and his friend, Bastille, is in a coma. To revive her, Alcatraz must infiltrate the Highbrary–known as The Library of Congress to Hushlanders–the seat of Evil Librarian power. Without his Talent to draw upon, can Alcatraz figure out a way to save Bastille and defeat the Evil Librarians once and for all?

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    One Day More

      Aprilynne Pike
     One Day More

This captivating and poignant 50-page digital original short story is a prequel to New York Times bestselling author Aprilynne Pike's Life After Theft—a haunting novel about the true cost of paying for one's mistakes. Most teenagers would do anything to have Kimberlee Schaffer's life. But beneath the beauty, the wealth, and the popularity, Kimberlee has a terrible problem: an uncontrollable, insatiable need to steal. Over the years, she's learned to hide her secret from those closest to her, but now it's completely consuming her life—and Kimberlee is afraid that if she doesn't find a way to put an end to her compulsion, she may see her perfect world come crumbling down.

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    Out of the Dark

      Quinn Loftis
     Out of the Dark

Darkness has descended on the Transylvanian Alps. Four packs of the powerful Grey wolves – in a rare show of cooperation – had joined together here in an effort to help their pack members find true mates. Then they were betrayed by one of their own – an Alpha hell-bent on becoming the most powerful of the Canis lupis. And though the wolf's assassination attempt on the currently-reigning Romanian Alpha failed, his plans to get Decebel, the Romanian Beta, out of the picture were coming together even as his treachery was discovered. The wolf fled, leaving destruction, death, and a missing mate behind him. Unbeknownst to the other packs, the wolf has employed a witch to finish the deadly job and help him gain another tool to increase his power. A curse of devastating proportions will cripple Decebel in a way that may dissolve his fragile bond with Jennifer. Meanwhile, injured and alone, Jen has been fighting for her life. She had come to terms with her fate, accepting that she would not share a life with Decebel, until help came in the most unexpected form... Vasile will have to use all his resources – including Sally, the new gypsy healer of the Romanian pack – to discover a way in which to destroy the witch, lift the curse from Decebel and reunite him with the one woman who makes him whole, and solve a mystery that's been surrounding the Romanian pack for 300 years.

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    The Yanti

      Christopher Pike
     The Yanti

In Alosha and The Shaktra, thirteen-year-old Ali Warner discovered that she was not an ordinary teenager, but was actually Queen of the Fairies. Through seven painful trials, Ali reclaimed many of her magical powers and defeated an elemental army that was preparing to attack the Earth. In the elemental world, Ali learned the true nature of her greatest enemy -- the Shaktra -- and discovered why it covets the Yanti, a mystical talisman of immense power that Ali now possesses. Now, in The Yanti, Ali discovers that a mysterious Entity is masterminding the Shaktra's attack on Earth, an attack that will kill billions and leave both Earth and the elemental world shattered. Still reeling from the death of one of her closest friends, Ali finds herself accused of murder on Earth and besieged by enemies in the elemental world. The Shaktra has had years to develop her magical abilities and her evil plots, guided by the otherworldly Entity. Ali has only known about her fairy powers for a month. There are holes in her fairy memories and her powers are still incomplete, while the Shaktra commands vast armies of hideous monsters and rules over hosts of dragons. Ali's allies are few: one dragon, one leprechaun, a single troll, a handful of fairies and an African boy, Ra, who has sworn to serve Ali even beyond death. Plus the mysterious disembodied Nemi -- whose love sustains Ali through her darkest moments of despair. Only the Yanti can stop what is to come. Unfortunately, Ali has barely had a chance to study it. The first time she tries to use it as a weapon, it nearly kills her. Unless Ali Warner can solve the riddle of the Yanti - and the mystery behind the Shaktra's insane bitterness -- then the Earth and the elemental world will be doomed.

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    Keeper of the Heart

      Johanna Lindsey
     Keeper of the Heart

In search of a true and gentle love, fiery Shanelle Ly-San-Ter flees the lustful advances of the blue-eyed barbarian who has been chosen as her lifemate, confused and frightened by the fevered yearnings the handsome brute has awakened in her innocent soul. A warrior, virile and magnificent Falon Vanyer is overwhelmed with intense desire for the spirited beauty who has vowed never to be his. And though the heavens themselves conspire against him, he will pursue his sensuous prize, and brave any peril to conquer and claim the keeper of his heart.

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    Wishtree

      Katherine Applegate
     Wishtree

Trees can't tell jokes, but they can certainly tell stories. . . . Red is an oak tree who is many rings old. Red is the neighborhood "wishtree"—people write their wishes on pieces of cloth and tie them to Red's branches. Along with her crow friend Bongo and other animals who seek refuge in Red's hollows, this "wishtree" watches over the neighborhood. You might say Red has seen it all. Until a new family moves in. Not everyone is welcoming, and Red's experiences as a wishtree are more important than ever.

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    The Complete Stories, Vol. 1: Final Reckonings

      Robert Bloch
     The Complete Stories, Vol. 1: Final Reckonings

Best known as the author of "Psycho", Robert Bloch is world-renowned for his stories of horror, mystery, fantasy, and science fiction. Many of the 25 stories in this first volume of "The Complete Stories of Robert Bloch" have been unavailable for decades. The stories are in his classic style of gripping suspense, science fiction and fantasy. As Bloch writes, "These stories in this collection have a common theme; they deal with monsters. Some of the monsters are human, some are not-- but all of them embody, in one way or another, the fears common to us in our dreams. We call these monsters by many names-- ghosts, vampires, extraterrestrials, changelings. But we recognize them for what they are; manifestations of the secret dreads and desires which lurk beneath the surface of consciousness." "Bloch has become a virtual fixture on the popular culture landscape." --Publishers Weekly "If you're not familiar with Bloch's short fiction, find someone to borrow this from; if you already are familiar, you know that you want to own these volumes." --Locus

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    A Question of Magic

      E. D. Baker
     A Question of Magic

Serafina was living the normal life of a village girl, when she gets a mysterious letter--her first letter ever, in fact--from a great aunt she's never heard of in another village. Little does 'Fina know, her great aunt is actually a Baba Yaga, a magical witch who lives in an even more magical cottage. Summoned to the cottage, Serafina's life takes an amazing turn as she finds herself becoming the new Baba Yaga. But leaving behind home and the boy she loves isn't easy, and as Serafina grows into her new and magical role answering the first question any stranger might ask her with the truth, she also learns about the person she's meant to be, and that telling the future doesn't always mean knowing the right answers. In her inimitable and bestselling way, ED Baker has crafted a funny and romantic story that combines some fabulous details from the original Slavic tale, with an all new spin!

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    The Wraeththu Chronicles

      Storm Constantine
     The Wraeththu Chronicles

In this powerful and elegant story set in a future Earth very different from our own, a new kind of human has evolved to challenge the dominion of Homo sapiens. This new breed is stronger, smarter, and far more beautiful than their parent race, and are endowed with psychic as well as physical gifts. They are destined to supplant humanity as we know it, but humanity won't die without a struggle.Here at last in a single volume are all three of Constantine's Wraeththu trilogy: The Enchantments of Flesh and Spirit, The Bewitchments of Love and Hate, and The Fulfilments of Fate and Desire.

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    The Path to Power

      Karen Miller
     The Path to Power

In the distant past, the Kingdom of Harcia was torn apart by royal brothers who could not accept a lesser inheritance. Now, the consequences of their actions are coming to light. Balfre, son of Aimery, Duke of Harcia, is his father's heir. But he has dreams of a crown, not a coronet. He dreams himself the king of a Harcia re-united, but his brother Grefin, their father's favorite, stands in his way. Harald, debauched Duke of neighboring Clemen, is feared and despised by his nobles. He thinks he can trust his bastard-born cousin Ederic ... but Ederic fears for the duchy and will do what he must to save it. And caught between dangers is Harald's infant son, Liam. Stolen by his nurse, vanished into the lawless Marches, he is the spark that will grow to set the world on fire.

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    Three Pickled Herrings: Book Two

      Sally Gardner
     Three Pickled Herrings: Book Two

At the Wings & Co. Fairy Detective Agency, Emily Vole and her friends are beginning to worry. It's been five months since their official opening, and they haven't had a single case! Then local landowner Sir Walter Cross dies in sudden and mysterious circumstances, and his case arrives right on their doorstep. And soon the detectives hear more baffling news: Mr. Rollo the tailor has mysteriously lost everything, and Pan Smith's wedding plans have been ruined the night before her big day. Now Wings & Co. has not one, but three pickled herrings to solve! Can they figure out who is stealing people's luck before things go too far?

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    The Lives of Christopher Chant

      Diana Wynne Jones
     The Lives of Christopher Chant

His father and uncles are enchanters, his mother a powerful sorceress, yet nothing seems magical about Christopher Chant except his dreams. Night after night, he climbs through the formless Place Between and visits marvelous lands he calls the Almost Anywheres. Then Christopher discovers that he can bring real, solid things back from his dreams. Others begin to recognize the extent of his powers, and they issue an order that turns Christopher's life upside down: Go to Chrestomanci Castle to train to be the controller of all the world's magic.

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    Septimus Heap Complete Collection

      Angie Sage
     Septimus Heap Complete Collection

Fantasy adventure at its best! This collection contains all seven books in the New York Times bestselling Septimus Heap series. Also included are The Magykal Papers, a wonderful full-color compendium of extras such as maps, guides, and journals, and The Darke Toad, a 96-page novella packed with the action, humor, and magic that make this series perfect for fans of Fablehaven or Harry Potter. The series follows the adventures of Septimus Heap, who, as a seventh son of a seventh son, has magical powers. After he becomes the apprentice of the ExtraOrdinary Wizard, Marcia Overstrand, he starts his studies for seven years and a day to become an Ordinary Wizard (or maybe an ExtraOrdinary?). His adventures take place in a fictional world full of secrets and mysteries, a world where rats are messengers and can speak, a world where spells are common and where the dark forces are trying to penetrate. Magyk, Flyte, Physik, Queste, Syren, Darke, and Fyre are the enchanting and humorous adventures of Septimus Heap and his friends in this magical world.

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