**Walker’s collection of early nonfiction serves as the manifesto of a young artist—and an illuminating self-portrait**  What is a womanist? Alice Walker sets out to define the concept in this anthology of early essays and other nonfiction pieces. As she outlines it, a womanist is a person who prefers to side with the oppressed: with women, with people of color, with the poor. As a writer, Walker has always taken such people as her primary subjects, and her search for paths toward self-possession and freedom always holds out hope for the transformative power of compassion and love. Whether she’s taking on nuclear proliferation, the promise and problems of the civil rights movement, or her own creative process, Walker always brings to bear a fearless determination to tell the truth.   This ebook features an illustrated biography of Alice Walker including rare photos from the author’s personal collection.

To take back life, one must first face death... One man stripped of his freedom, his morals...his life. Conditioned in captivity to maim, to kill and to slaughter, prisoner 818 becomes an unremorseful, unrivaled and unstoppable fighter in the ring. Violence is all he knows. Death and brutality are the masters of his fate. After years of incarceration in an underground hell, only one thought occupies his mind: revenge...bloody, slow and violent revenge. Revenge on the man who lied. Revenge on the man who wronged him. Revenge on the man who condemned him and turned him into this: a rage-fueled killing machine. A monster void of humanity; a monster filled with hate. And no one will stand in the way of getting what he wants. One woman stripped of her freedom, her morals...her life. Kisa Volkova is the only daughter of Kirill ‘The Silencer’ Volkov, head of the infamous ‘Triad’ bosses of New York's Russian Bratva. Her life is protected. In reality, it’s a virtual prison. Her father’s savage treatment of his rivals and his lucrative and coveted underground gambling ring—The Dungeon—ensures too many enemies lurk at their door. She dreams to be set free. Kisa has known only cruelty and loss in her short life. As manager of her father’s death match enterprise, only grief and pain fill her days. Her mafia boss father, in her world, rules absolute. And her fiancé, Alik Durov, is no better; the Dungeon’s five-time champion, a stone-cold killer, the treasured son of her father’s best friend, and her very own—and much resented—personal guard. Unrivaled in both strength and social standing, Alik controls every facet of Kisa’s life, dominates her every move; keeps her subdued and dead inside...then one night changes everything. While working for her church—the only reprieve in her constant surveillance—Kisa stumbles across a tattooed, scarred, but stunningly beautiful homeless man on the streets. Something about him stirs feelings deep within her; familiar yet impossibly forbidden desires. He doesn’t talk. Doesn’t communicate with anyone. He’s a man beyond saving, and a man she must quickly forget...for both their sakes. But when weeks later, out of the blue and to her complete surprise, he’s announced as the replacement fighter in The Dungeon, Kisa knows she’s in a whole lot of trouble. He’s built, ripped and lethally unforgiving to his opponents, leaving fear in his wake and the look of death in his eyes. Kisa becomes obsessed with him. Yearns for him. Craves his touch. Needs to possess this mysterious man...this man they call Raze. Dark Contemporary Romance. Contains explicit sexual situations, excessive violence, disturbingly sensitive and taboo subjects, offensive language and mature topics. Recommended for age 18 years and up.

My name is Liam Wyatt, and my brother, Oliver, and I are the founders and owners of Wyatt Enterprises. He had found love and I was still trying. After dating a countless number of women throughout the years, I was ready to have a real relationship with the possibility of settling down. I could have any woman I wanted. So what’s the problem, you ask? I didn’t want just any woman; I wanted The One. Unfortunately, I still hadn’t found her—but then, Avery Lewis walked into my life and turned my world upside down. She was everything I wanted in a woman, all wrapped up in a beautiful and breathtaking package. The problem was, she didn’t want a relationship. She had built a wall around her and I was going to do everything I could to break through that wall and make her a permanent part of my life. My name is Avery Lewis and I moved to New York when I landed a job at Finley, Muir, & Abernathy, one of the most influential law firms in the country. I moved from Danbury, Connecticut when an office romance went bad and I wanted to start my life over, focusing on my career and my career only. Men were off limits. A girl could only take so much heartbreak in a lifetime. Then Liam Wyatt walked into my life and turned my world upside down. He was a man who could have any woman in the world, yet he wanted me. Sexy, smart, and a genuinely a nice guy wasn’t enough for me to let my half glass/half stone wall I built around me down. The problem was that I was falling for him on such a deep level that it scared me. Between my past and my daddy issues, the poor guy didn’t stand a chance. He was determined to make me a part of his life and I was determined to run.

Charlotte has spent her twenties adrift, floating from interest to interest, job to job, and guy to guy, searching for a spark but never quite finding it. All she knows is that she won’t discover it working as a waitress at a pies-and-fries joint in Los Angeles or living with her fun but aimless best friend in a tiny apartment in the Arts District. Then Charlotte collides with Adam, a gorgeous and soulful painter who seems just as lost as she feels. Their instant connection turns into a midnight drink… and a whirlwind night of champagne, Chinese food, and the kind of conversation that only happens in romantic comedies. But the next morning, Adam gives Charlotte the cold shoulder, leaving her confused and hurt—and wondering if the few odd moments between them the night before were red flags in disguise. Months later, Charlotte hasn’t been able to shake Adam, so she decides to find out what happened the morning after their magical night together. This fateful decision rewrites their wild love story, but what Charlotte doesn’t know yet is that the ending has already been written.

Prepare for a breathtaking ride...

In 1982, before Matheson had fully achieved the cult-and-grandmaster status that he enjoys today, Playboy Press published a version of his erotic ghost story that was so severely edited that Matheson took his name off the book and instead published it under the name Logan Swanson. In this restored version of the original manuscript, David and Ellen Cooper’s 21-year-old marriage is nearing the rocks, so they decide to leave Los Angeles for a honeymoon and go to Long Island. Soon after they arrive at their beach cottage, a strange woman, Marianna, appears to David, and he is immediately entranced. Matheson adeptly explores David’s growing fear and guilt, which becomes intensified after he and Marianna make love in a secret room in the house. Although Marianna is portrayed as an "earthbound spirit" (a ghost who rejects the afterlife, appears real to all senses, believes she is alive, and through psychic attack, sucks life from the living) she’s really more or less a succubus, gussied up in Casper the friendly ghost clothing. With each graphically detailed sexual rendezvous, Marianna pushes David to deeper levels of obsession, loss of will and irrationality. The story reaches an even higher pitch as the evil ghost begins to threaten Ellen, injecting some excellent suspense into unabashed pathos and outright titillation.

She refuses to trust him. Red Stone Security employee Dominique Castle knows all too well that there are people in this world she just can't trust. After losing both her parents, Dominique keeps her distance from anyone tied to her past—especially the man she's hated for years. And Viktor Ivanov isn't going to change her mind about who he really is—no matter how determined the infuriatingly sexy Russian is. He's determined to win her over. She may hate him and not trust him, but Viktor is determined to crack through Dominique's icy exterior one way or another—even if it means taking the game into his own hands. With a past like Viktor's, he's made more than a few enemies along the way—enemies who'll stop at nothing to take him down. When Viktor realizes Dominique's life is in danger because of him, he’ll stop at nothing to protect her—whether she likes it or not. Now it's up to Dominique to trust the one man who's linked to the agony of her past. Can she find a way to love the enemy she always loathed? Length: 55,000 words Author Note: All books in the Red Stone Security series can be read as stand-alone books and in any order. Red Stone Security Series: No One to Trust Danger Next Door Fatal Deception Miami, Mistletoe & Murder His to Protect Breaking Her Rules Protecting His Witness Sinful Seduction Under His Protection Deadly Fallout Sworn to Protect Secret Obsession Love Thy Enemy

What would you do if you discovered the man of your dreams was lying to you? Would you leave him or would you make him pay? When Kate Hale chose between two men, she picked the nice guy. He is every bit as wonderful in and out of the bedroom as she hoped he would be. Until she discovers his secret. He’s the man she wants to grow old with, right after she gives him a taste of his own medicine. Brock Foster can’t believe how well everything has worked out. He won the heart of a woman he’s lusted after most of his life and is preparing to propose to her. When a game he thought had finished resurfaces and threatens to tear them apart, Brock must decide exactly how far he’ll go to be Kate’s Valentine.

There is no rehearsal for true love. When A-list film actor Ryan Christensen ducked into her pub to escape his screaming fans, never in a million years did Taryn Mitchell think her life was about to change forever. But now, eight months later, after a whirlwind romance, Taryn wakes up in Ryan’s Hollywood hotel room to find a diamond to die for on her left ring finger—and her face splashed across the cover of every gossip magazine. Ryan’s very public proposal is catnip to the tabloids, his management team is worried, and Taryn must figure out how a small town girl like her fits into his glittering world. What does it take to make a relationship work amidst telephoto lenses, daily on-set temptations, and jealous fans who will stop at nothing to keep you from walking down the aisle with the man of your dreams? With no script to follow and no chance for a dress rehearsal, Taryn and Ryan will be forced to take the plunge and risk everything to make their love last.

The New York Times bestselling author of The Christmas Box returns with a holiday novel of hope, love, and redemption. Dear Reader, When I was in seventh grade, my English teacher, Mrs. Johnson, gave our class the intriguing (if somewhat macabre) assignment of writing our own obituaries. Oddly, I don't remember much of what I wrote about my life, but I do remember how I died: in first place on the final lap of the Daytona 500. At the time, I hadn't considered writing as an occupation, a field with a remarkably low on-the-job casualty rate. What intrigues me most about Mrs. Johnson's assignment is the opportunity she gave us to confront our own legacy. How do we want to be remembered? That question has motivated our species since the beginning of time: from building pyramids to putting our names on skyscrapers. As I began to write this book, I had two objectives: First, I wanted to explore what could happen if someone read their obituary before they died and saw, firsthand, what the world really thought of them. Their legacy. Second, I wanted to write a Christmas story of true redemption. One of my family's holiday traditions is to see a local production of Charles Dickens's A Christmas Carol. I don't know how many times I've seen it (perhaps a dozen), but it still thrills me to see the change that comes over Ebenezer Scrooge as he transforms from a dull, tight-fisted miser into a penitent, "giddy-as-aschoolboy" man with love in his heart. I always leave the show with a smile on my face and a resolve to be a better person. That's what I wanted to share with you, my dear readers, this Christmas -- a holiday tale to warm your season, your homes, and your hearts. Merry Christmas

You can run from your past, but it will always catch up. Nastasya has lived for hundreds of years, but for some reason it never seems to get any easier. She’s left behind her days of debauchery to find peace and forgiveness at River’s Edge, a safe haven for wayward immortals. There she’s uncovered her family’s epic history, reclaimed her magickal powers, and met Reyn, whom she dubs “the Viking god.” Just as she settles into her new life, Nastasya learns that her old friends might be in town.... Reuniting with her gorgeous and dangerous ex-best-friend, Innocencio, Nas wonders if she’ll ever be truly free of her dark legacy. Is Incy dangerous, power-hungry, and wicked? Or is he the only one who truly understands Nas’s darkness? Either way, Nas is desperate to find out who she really is-even if the answer kills her.

From the author of Beneath a Marble Sky comes an inspiring new novel of a man and a woman from different worlds whose love is put to the ultimate test as they struggle to survive an extraordinary set of circumstances. View our feature on John Shors' *Beside a Burning Sea.* One moment, the World War II hospital ship Benevolence is patrolling the South Pacific on a mission of mercy--to save wounded American soldiers. The next, Benevolence is split in two by a torpedo, killing almost everyone on board. A small band of survivors, including an injured Japanese soldier and a young American nurse whom he saves from drowning, makes it to the deserted shore of a nearby island. Akira has suffered five years of bloodshed and horror fighting for the Japanese empire. Now, surrounded by enemies he is supposed to hate, he instead finds solace in their company--and rediscovers his love of poetry. While sharing the mystery and beauty of this passion with Annie, the captivating but tormented woman he rescued, Akira grapples with the pain of his past while helping Annie uncover the promise of her future. Meanwhile, the remaining castaways endure a world not of their making--a world as barbaric as it is beautiful, as hateful as it is loving. With the blend of epic storytelling and emotional intensity that distinguishes him as a unique talent, John Shors reveals a powerful story of redemption focusing on unlikely lovers, heroes and villains, and war-torn countries--all, in their own ways, fighting to survive.

Franco Genovese is the drummer for world renowned American rock band, Rook. He’s got it all. A killer smile. Tattoos. Talent. Razor sharp wit and humor. And a heart as big, and generous, as they come. Life is good. Steady. Uncomplicated. Just the way he likes things. Until one night at an unassuming L.A. bar changes everything. Enter Gemma Hendricks. She’s a successful young architect from Northern England with an adorable smile, sarcasm for days, and an unparalleled trusting heart. The attraction is instant. So is their friendship. It’s also temporary because they’ll both be heading home, thousands of miles apart from each other, in a few days. Or is it? There’s something Gemma wants more than anything else. And when Franco propositions her to provide what she’s looking for, everything changes. Will it transform friendship into love, or will it be their ruin? Note from the author: Due to strong language and sexual content, this book is recommended for mature audiences.

I had six rules I lived by: Know your mark. Listen and never look bored. Never reveal your true self. Never stay in one place too long. Exit as smoothly as you entered. Never fall in love. I was a charmer, a seducer, and the woman that men were hungry to get their hands on. Rich men never should have trusted me, but they did. It was stupidity on their part. Things were going well and I was doing what I was supposed to do, until I ripped off the wrong millionaire. A millionaire who came after me with a vengeance. My name is Kate Harper and this is my story. I was the CEO of Quinn Hotels, one of the largest hotel chains in the world. I met Kate Harper on an airplane back from Seattle to New York. She was captivating and had my attention the moment I laid eyes on her. But she was far from the person she said she was. After parting ways at JFK airport, I discovered she ripped me off. I never thought I’d see her again, but fate stepped in and we crossed paths. This time I wasn’t letting her go until her debt to me was paid. She was every kind of wrong, but that didn’t stop the feelings that emerged while I kept her in my possession. My name is Gabriel Quinn and this is my story.

In this sequel to Till Death Do Us Part, a grief-stricken April Lancaster flees to St. Croix island to cope with the loss of her fiancee.  There on the beach, she meets a dark and broody Brandon Benedict who is still dealing with the pain of  his mother's recent suicide.  Though the two quickly become close through their shared grief, April does not reveal that she is battling an incurable brain tumor.  When April's health condition worsens, she is forced to fly back home without telling Brandon.  April is dying.  Can she bring herself to tell Brandon that he'll soon lose another person he loves?