"A Piece of the World is a graceful, moving and powerful demonstration of what can happen when a fearless literary imagination combines with an inexhaustible curiosity about the past and the human heart: a feat of time travel, a bravura improvisation on the theme of art history, a wonderful story that seems to have been waiting, all this time, for Christina Baker Kline to come along and tell it." —Michael Chabon, New York Times bestselling author of MoonglowFrom the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the smash bestseller Orphan Train, a stunning and atmospheric novel of friendship, passion, and art, inspired by Andrew Wyeth's mysterious and iconic painting Christina's World. "Later he told me that he'd been afraid to show me the painting. He thought I wouldn't like the way he portrayed me: dragging myself across the field, fingers clutching dirt, my legs twisted behind. The arid moonscape of wheatgrass and...

Alison and Charlie, Claire and Ben seem like two picture-perfect couples. Alison and Charlie have a beautiful family and a home in the suburbs, while Claire and Ben's marriage revolves around their careers and city-based lives. Despite their differences, the two couples have remained close friends for ten years. But one terrifying moment in the dead of a New Jersey night will quickly—and unexpectedly—expose the fractures and stresses that lie beneath the surface. Alison and Claire, best friends since childhood, are now worlds apart. And as each of them tries to find a way forward, all four will be forced to examine the choices they have made and the lives they have built, and ultimately to ask themselves: What is happiness? Does true human nature lie in our wanting or in how deeply we allow our desires to consume us? Four people, two marriages, one lifelong friendship: Everything is about to change.

“Mila’s Tale” is midrash—the retelling of a Biblical passage. Half of it is a new Laurie King short story; the other half is the author’s commentary on the text (“Jephthah’s Daughter” of Judges 11) and her suggestions for further reading. This is the first in Laurie King’s proposed Ladies of Spirit project, a collection of Modern Midrashes accompanied by her analysis and reflections.

His Grandma always said he'd come to no good. Chances Are, she's right.Meet Chance:"I'm Chance, this is my place. You want me; this is where you can find me."The problem with that, of course, was that it wasn't my name. My name was actually Aaron Dumont. I picked up the name Chance as a kid when my grandma kept telling me "Chances are you'll come to no good, just like your pa." She had said it so often, it just kind of stuck. I've been Chance ever since. When she passed away and left me the remains of her estate, I sold everything but a few special items then invested it all in a nest egg for a rainy day. I figured that's what she'd intended it for anyway. She'd said as soon as I joined the police force back in the eighties. "Chances are you'll come to no good there. It's a dangerous job and you're an accident waiting to happen."She was right too. E

Patrol cars? On Ivana's block? And her not knowing what's up? Heaven forbid! Curiosity may have killed the cat, but it just whets Ivana's appetite. Wander into a case with one of the Marlowe, Inc. characters, and solve it, all in five pages. Will leave a grin on your face.Ivana Sergeiyevna Modorina, star programmer, control, and tactician of Marlowe, Inc., had just come in from a night of clubbing. Spotting a bevy of patrol and unmarked cars of the NYPD a block away from her loft, of course she just had to investigate. Follow one of the favorite characters of the Marlowe, Inc., series as she wanders into a crime scene and shows New York's finest how it's done. A free short story to introduce you to just one of many real characters in the series.

Forgiveness is the most attractive of the virtues. Until you actually have someone to forgive.And when Melissa Stonelea’s born-again Christian husband Grant is found strangled in the bondage room of the city’s classiest brothel she needs revenge.This acclaimed Christian thriller is the first in the private eye Johnny Ravine series.Praise for "Prophets and Loss":"Roth, an accomplished financial writer, takes his readers on a thrilling ride that begins as a story of murder and revenge and ends as a reflection on loss and forgiveness....Fast-paced and edgy."- SydneyAnglicans.net"Wow! .…When 'Prophets and Loss' arrived…I certainly wasn’t expecting a meaty murder mystery cum terrorist plot. And when I realized that’s what it was, I certainly wasn’t then expecting Roth’s Johnny Ravine mystery to deliver such a fabulous gospel message….This is a great book for a Christian or as a starter for a non-Christian. A fabulous surprise." - The Presbyterian PulseBook Description:Forgiveness is the most attractive of the virtues. Until you actually have someone to forgive.When Melissa Stonelea’s born-again Christian husband Grant is found strangled in the bondage room of the city’s classiest brothel, a page of the Bible stuffed in his mouth, she doesn’t need to hear more of her pastor’s sermons on the healing powers of forgiveness. She needs revenge.Enter private detective Johnny Ravine, seeking the quiet life in Australia after more than twenty years as a freedom fighter in East Timor. The murdered man was his best friend. But, as he starts to investigate the slaying, a mysterious phone call and then a bullet through his window plunge him into the heart of a deadly terrorist conspiracy.Suddenly he finds himself locked inside a shady world of stock market manipulators, sex workers and underground militia, while desperately hunting the killers. But Johnny is concealing a violent past and demons of his own. Can he crack the mystery before he himself cracks?In Johnny Ravine we have a brilliant but flawed hero who is plunged into the far reaches of the human psyche - forced to confront a cycle of evil that could destroy him and all he loves. But also forced to confront the evil that lurks in his own heart.This exciting book is everything a hard-boiled, private eye thriller should be - relentlessly powerful, fast-paced, full of twists and with a climax that will leave you gasping.About the Author:Martin Roth (www.authormartinroth.com) is a veteran journalist and foreign correspondent whose reports from Asia have appeared in leading publications around the world, including the Wall Street Journal, Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune and Baltimore Sun. He is the author of many books.The first three thrillers in his Johnny Ravine private eye series are “Prophets and Loss,” “Hot Rock Dreaming” (Australian Christian Book of the Year finalist) and “Burning at the Boss.” He is also the author of the Brother Half Angel series, with "The Coptic Martyr of Cairo," "Festival in the Desert," “Brother Half Angel,” “The Maria Kannon” and “Military Orders.” The first two novels in his Feisty Ferreira series of financial thrillers are "Tokyo Bossa Nova" and "The Kalgoorlie Skimpy."He lives in Australia with his Korean wife and three sons.

“Koontz gives [Odd Thomas] wit, good humor, a familiarity with the dark side of humanity—and moral outrage.”—*USA Today *  Once presided over by a Roaring ’20s Hollywood mogul, the magnificent West Coast estate known as Roseland now harbors a reclusive billionaire financier and his faithful servants—and their guests: Odd Thomas, the young fry cook who sees the dead and tries to help them, and Annamaria, his inscrutably charming traveling companion. Fresh from a harrowing clash with lethal adversaries, they welcome their host’s hospitality. But Odd’s extraordinary eye for the uncanny detects disturbing secrets that could make Roseland more hell than haven. Soon enough the house serves up a taste of its terrors, as Odd begins to unravel the darkest mystery of his curious career. What consequences await those who confront evil at its most profound? Odd only knows. “Odd Thomas is the greatest character Dean Koontz has ever created. He’s funny, humble, immensely likable, courageous, and just a joy to read about.”—Seattle Post-Intelligencer  * “[Odd Thomas is] one of the most remarkable and appealing characters in current fiction.”*—The Virginian-Pilot  * “Supernatural thrills with a side of laughs.”—The Denver Post ***

Kill Alex Cross is faster, more exciting, and more tightly wound than any Alex Cross thriller James Patterson has ever written! The President's son and daughter are abducted, and Detective Alex Cross is one of the first on the scene. But someone very high up is using the FBI, Secret Service, and CIA to keep him off the case and in the dark. A deadly contagion in the water supply cripples half of the capital, and Cross discovers that someone may be about to unleash the most devastating attack the United States has ever experienced. As his window for solving both crimes narrows, Alex makes a desperate decision that goes against everything he believes – one that may alter the fate of the entire country.

Clutching the shards, of his shattered life, Cajun detective Dave Robicheaux has rejoined the New lberia police force. His partner is dead--slain during a condemned prisoner's bloody flight to freedom that left Robicheaux critically wounded and reawakened the ghost of his haunted, violent past. Following the trail of the escaped convicts, Robicheaux is soon drawn back to New Orleans. But this time, the stakes are even higher. He's working for the DEA undercover in an attempt to incriminate Tony Cardo, a clinically insane drug lord. But all Robicheaux's really got is revenge on the mind. And he'll only be satisfied when the killers who upended his life have been brought to justice.

A short story for adults. For some unknown reason lots of people are becoming addicted to drugs. Nobody seams to know why except one man. And the government... what are they doing about it?Dear readers, this book is free for you to download. I have enjoyed writing it and I am very interested in your comments. Please review this book by clicking the review link at the bottom.

“Former cop, Grace deHaviland is one tough cookie... fresh and appealing. She is the kind of woman every woman wants to be. Tough, savvy, and unafraid, Grace is a strong character to follow." -- Suspense MagazineA Thrilling Introduction to the Grace deHaviland Bounty Hunter SeriesWhen you're a bounty hunter, making snap judgments about people will often save your life. But what if those first impressions are wrong? When Grace deHaviland chases a bail jumper to the White Mountains of New Hampshire, a long way from her home turf of Columbus, Ohio, she may discover the answer -- with deadly consequences.

The blue vial gifted by Arron may have granted Ben a reprieve from the Elders, but what is to become of him now? What caused his companion to betray him so viciously? What actually happened on Derek and Sofia's mission with the dragons? Find out these answers and much, much more in A Vial of Life...

YE&R is the story of a 15 year-old girl and her friends in the summer before her sophomore year in high school – and, four years later, when she's a freshman in college. It's a story about self-awareness, courage, creativity – about the power of dreams, a ballpoint pen and a spiral notebook, with a surprise ending you'll never anticipate. Except for a few details, it's a true story.Hey.This is a tale of adventure like no other, for young readers, both girls and boys, age 10 and older. Parents are encouraged to read it too."Young Elizabeth," the short title, is the story of a fifteen year-old girl in the summer before her sophomore year in high school – and that same girl, four years later, when she's a freshman in college.Elizabeth is a bright, highly imaginative, aspiring author who writes about her adventures with her extraordinary cat, Rollo, and the bond between the two of them and her friends. Set in a small, mid-Atlantic, colonial town off the Chesapeake Bay, her story describes the events stemming from the arrival of an old safe at Elizabeth’s father’s office and how Elizabeth, Rollo and their friends struggle to solve the mystery that surrounds it. It is a treacherous journey, as the two of them fight to survive the onslaught of desperate strangers who believe the secret of the safe lies with Elizabeth and her family.The tale is told by the nineteen-year-old college student who is thinking back, writing about her adventures with Rollo and her friends when she was fifteen. It’s episodic, each chapter having its own cliff-hanger ending, with Elizabeth telling her tales on a “just between you and me” basis with the reader. Then one day, our college student, writer-in-progress, encounters her own dangerous situation on campus. ("ROLLLLLLOOOOO!!" ...But I'm getting ahead of my story.)And in the end, there is a surprise that not even more seasoned readers will anticipate.YE&R is a story about self-awareness, courage, creativity – and the power of dreams, a ballpoint pen and a spiral notebook.Oh, and one other thing… Except for a few details, this is a true story. Hard to believe, but nonetheless true.

Jack McKinnon’s boat overturns, his dog drowns. Creepy events occur; Jack disappears only to resurface when his wife is around. RCMP Sergeant Bill Majors and other old friends help Jack’s wife and son look for him. Seven years later he is declared dead, but turns up again. This time with help from a Medicine man and a caring Indian nurse, he regains his mind.Jack McKinnon, loving father, loyal employee and avid fisherman is going up to his summer property on the north end of Andover Lake, BC in 1989 to open it for the family’s first visit in May. A sudden spring squall turns his 1984 Unsinkable Thunder Craft over, his dog a Rhodesian Ridgeback, who was a good swimmer, drowns. Jack is a very poor swimmer, but he manages to dog paddle to shore. Exhausted, wet and cold, he finds a locked cabin, pushes the door and doorframe in and starts a fire in the stove. He sleeps till morning, and doesn’t know where he is, but manages to find railway tracks and walks back to the small town of Merriweather where he left his van. The neighbouring Carling RCMP are called. The same day, police and Jack are unable to locate the cabin where he thinks it is. However they do find a cabin with an upside down Indian Dream Catcher over a pushed in door on the other side of the lake. Jack is drawn into the cabin.Jack goes back home to Langley, but leaves his family to go back to the cabin, and disappears. Weird things begin to happen to his wife and son, soon they are told their summer property is too close to the Ancient Indian Graveyard at the north end of the lake. Jack is found but unable to remember anyone. He’s sent to the hospital in the local town. He doesn’t know his wife Rikki, discharges himself and disappears again. Meanwhile, an Indian Band whose Reserve boarders the Fraser River flats, chooses a new shaman who comes from Eastern Canada. He convinces the local Bands that he can bring the old ways back and creates an Indian uprising. It fizzles out. The shaman turns to the Ancient Indian Graveyard at the north end of Andover Lake. Things change and now the shaman wants to own the land in his own name, and build a gaming casino, hotel and RV park. Seven years pass, and the Insurance Company advises Rikki that she has waited long enough and her husband should be declared dead. But Jack turns up again. But the question of why Jack was taken and why he couldn’t stay home, what did the cabin and Soul Catcher have to do with anything, and why did the shaman finally decide to kill Jack are still out there. Good friends, a loyal wife and son never gave up hope, with help coming from an unexpected source, Jack is able to resist the spell that has kept him captive all these years. The foreseen events of the past finally catch up with Jack McKinnon and his family and friends. With the help of an Old Man (Medicine Man) and a caring Indian nurse the truth is finally told.