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Laidlaw (Laidlaw Trilogy #1)
by William McIlvanneyMeet Jack Laidlaw, the original damaged detective. When a young woman is found brutally murdered in Kelvingrove Park, only Laidlaw stands a chance of finding her murderer from among the hard men, gangland villains and self-made moneymen who lurk in the city's shadows. WINNER OF THE CWA SILVER DAGGER
Mutation (A\medical Thriller Ser. #Vol. 183)
by Robin CookHe sought to create the son of his dreams—and invented a nightmare. Robin Cook's techno-medical thriller probes every father's greatest fear. Drawing on a horror theme as old as Frankenstein, as fresh as tomorrow's headlines, Mutation is a chilling cautionary tale of the perils of genetic engineering. When ob/gyn and biomolecular researcher Dr. Victor Frank learns of his wife's infertility, he initiates a bold—and dangerous—experiment. Unbeknownst to everyone, including her, Dr. Frank has adapted the methods of animal husbandry and molecular genetics to human reproduction. Fusing his wife's egg and his own sperm, he sets in motion the production of a superior being, his child. The result of this experiment, a son, VJ, is born to a surrogate mother and legally adopted by the Franks. To their delight, their son is physically perfect, and by the age of three, displays the complex problem-solving abilities of a prodigy. Victor Frank is a happy man. He has produced a flawless human being, and that success—plus the subsequently healthy births he has covertly engineered through his obstetrics practice—bodes well for a dazzling professional future. Then, without warning, VJ's intelligence level plunges to a point appropriate to his age, but stabilizes. For the moment, Frank can breathe a sigh of relief: Even if VJ is no longer the genius he was, at least he will be normal. But that relief is tragically short-lived, for all too soon VJ begins to change again. And this time, there is no cause for comfort—only terror. Mutation is both the spellbinding chronicle of a father pitted against his son in mythic battle and a timely warning to us all. Here is blue-chip Robin Cook, destined to be as controversial as it is compulsively readable.
Playmates (The Spenser Series #16)
by Robert B. ParkerBoston PI Spenser is in for the closest shaves of his career in this entry in Robert B. Parker's acclaimed series.When Spenser is hired to look into rumours of match fixing in university basketball, his investigations lead him deep into the gambling underworld - and into the most dangerous job of his career.College basketball can be a killer sport.
Straight (Francis Thriller #28)
by Dick FrancisDerek Franklin, injured steeplechase jockey, is at end of his career when he is thrust into chaos following the accidental death of his brother Greville who was an importer of semi-precious stones.
The Street Of Crocodiles: The Street Of Crocodiles And Sanatorium Under The Sign Of The Hourglass (Modern Plays)
by Bruno Schulz"Complicite not only open our eyes to Bruno Schulz but turn his densely impressionistic stories into a piece of vividly imaginative theatre" (Michael Billington, Guardian)The Street of Crocodiles is inspired by the life and stories of Polish writer Bruno Schulz (1892-1942). Originally co-produced by Théâtre de Complicité and the Royal National Theatre it opened at the Cottesloe in 1992 and toured all over the world until 1994. The original production was remounted in 1998 and played in New York, Toronto, Minneapolis and Tokyo before opening at the Queen's Theatre London in January 1999."This astounding production creates a vision of provincial Poland in the early part of the century as a restless ocean of unending flux...the miracle of Complicite's interpretation of Schulz's stories...is its ability to give specific theatrical life to this perceptual anarchy...when you leave the theatre you expect the ground beneath your feet to give way." (New York Times)
A Talent for War: Alex Benedict - Book 1 (Alex Benedict #1)
by Jack McDevittJack McDevitt's A TALENT FOR WAR takes Alex Benedict into the heart of an alien galaxy in a thrilling interstellar adventure. 'A real writer has entered our ranks, and his name is Jack McDevitt' Michael Bishop, Nebula-winning authorEveryone knows the legend of Christopher Sim. An interstellar hero with a rare talent for war, he changedmankind's history forever when he forged a rag-tag group of misfits into the weapon that broke the alien Ashiyyur. But now, in a forgotten file, Alex Benedict has found a startling piece of information. If it is true, then Christopher Sim was a fraud. If he is to see it through, Alex Benedict will have to follow the dark track of a legend, into the heart of an alien galaxy, where he will confront a truth far stranger than anything he could have imagined...
A Village Affair: Ebook Bundle
by Joanna TrollopeThe Grey House is the final piece in the jigsaw of Alice Jordan's perfect life. It seems to be the ultimate achievement of her outwardly happy marriage - a loyal, if dull husband, three children, two cars and now the house. So why does she feel as if something is missing?As Alice and her family settle themselves into village life the something missing becomes something huge and then breaks, scandalizing the village, opening up old wounds. But because of it, Alice begins to feel that there is hope and humour and understanding and compassion in the new life she must build for herself.
Young Men in Spats
by P. G. WodehouseMeet the Young Men in Spats - all members of the Drones Club, all crossed in love and all busy betting their sometimes nonexistent fortunes on unlikely outcomes - that's when they're not recovering from driving their sports cars through rather than round Marble Arch.These wonderful comic short stories are the essence of innocent fun. In them you'll encounter some of Wodehouse's favourite characters - including, for the first time, his future hero Uncle Fred. The collection is widely regarded as one of Wodehouse's best and includes one of his own favourites, 'The Amazing Hat Mystery'.
Deception: Novels And Other Narratives - The Counterlife; The Facts; Deception; Patrimony (Vintage International Series)
by Philip Roth'This swift, elegant, disturbing novel...stands at the extreme of contemporary fiction' New York Times Book ReviewHe is a middle-aged American writer called Philip; she is an articulate, well-educated Englishwoman trapped in a loveless and humiliating marriage. In Philip's London studio, this play of voices - sharp, tender and inquiring - reveals both their past lives with startling clarity. Deception is fiendishly clever, as it dances with the conventions of the novel, and redefines the boundaries between fiction and reality.
The Eye Of The World: Book 1 of the Wheel of Time (Wheel of Time #1)
by Robert Jordan'Epic in every sense' - Sunday TimesThe first novel in the Wheel of Time series - one of the most influential and popular fantasy epics ever published.The Wheel of Time turns and Ages come and pass, leaving memories that become legend. Legend fades to myth and even myth is long forgotten when the Age that gave it birth returns again. But one truth remains, and what mortal men forget, the Aes Sedai do not . . . What was, what will be, and what is, may yet fall under the shadow.'With the Wheel of Time, Jordan has come to dominate the world that Tolkien began to reveal' New York Times'A fantasy phenomenon' SFXThe Wheel of TimeThe Eye of the WorldThe Great HuntThe Dragon RebornThe Shadow RisingThe Fires of Heaven Lord of ChaosA Crown of Swords The Path of Daggers Winter's HeartCrossroads of TwilightKnife of DreamsThe Gathering StormTowers of MidnightA Memory of Light New Spring (prequel)
The Great Hunt: Book 2 of the Wheel of Time (Wheel of Time #2)
by Robert Jordan'Epic in every sense' - Sunday TimesThe second novel in the Wheel of Time series - one of the most influential and popular fantasy epics ever published.The Forsaken are loose, the Horn of Valere has been found and the Dead are rising from their dreamless sleep. The Prophecies are being fulfilled - but Rand al'Thor, the shepherd the Aes Sedai have proclaimed as the Dragon Reborn, desperately seeks to escape his destiny. Rand cannot run for ever. With every passing day the Dark One grows in strength and strives to shatter his ancient prison, to break the Wheel, to bring an end to Time and sunder the weave of the Pattern.And the Pattern demands the Dragon.'With the Wheel of Time, Jordan has come to dominate the world that Tolkien began to reveal' New York Times'A fantasy phenomenon' SFXThe Wheel of TimeThe Eye of the WorldThe Great HuntThe Dragon RebornThe Shadow RisingThe Fires of HeavenLord of ChaosA Crown of SwordsThe Path of DaggersWinter's HeartCrossroads of TwilightKnife of DreamsThe Gathering StormTowers of MidnightA Memory of LightNew Spring (prequel)
Harmful Intent (Famous Authors Ser.)
by Robin CookA routine spinal injection during a normal birth. And for Dr Jeffrey Rhodes, a living nightmare begins . . . Before his eyes, a young, healthy woman suffers inexplicable seizures and dies. Her child survives, brain damaged and severely disabled. Disgraced and convicted of a fatal error, Rhodes becomes a fugitive. Desperate to uncover what really happened in the operating room. Before a killer claims another life . . .
Haroun and the Sea of Stories (Puffin Bks.)
by Rushdie SalmanHaroun's father is the greatest of all storyletters. His magical stories bring laughter to the sad city of Alifbay. But one day something goes wrong and his father runs out of stories to tell. Haroun is determined to return the storyteller's gift to his father. So he flies off on the back of the Hoopie bird to the Sea of Stories - and a fantastic adventure begins.
The Long Valley (Penguin Modern Classics)
by John Steinbeck John TimmermanThis classic collection of short stories serves as the ideal introduction to Steinbeck's work. Set in the idyllic Salinas Valley in California, where simple people farm the land and struggle to find a place for themeselves in the world, these stories reflect many of the concerns key to Steinbeck as a writer; the tensions between town and city, labourers and owners, past and present. Included here are the celebrated tales, THE MURDERER and THE CHRYSANTHEMUMS.
The Pearl of the Soul of the World (The Darkangel Trilogy)
by Meredith Ann PierceThe spellbinding conclusion to the Darkangel Trilogy!Armed with a magical pearl imbued with all the sorcery and wisdom of the world, bestowed upon her by the Ancient known as Ravenna, Aeriel finally comes face-to-face with the White Witch and her vampire sons. Backed by her husband, his army of good, and a throng of magical steeds, she must unlock the power of the pearl to awaken her true destiny and save the world.
Play Dead
by Harlan CobenA fast-moving, suspense-filled thriller from the No.1 bestselling author of LONG LOST.Ex fashion model and successful business woman Laura Ayars' perfect world is shattered at a time which should have been the happiest of her life. On her honeymoon, her sports superstar husband goes for a swim - and never returns. But what has happened to David - can he really be dead?Whilst struggling to cope with her almost overwhelming grief, Laura is plagued by questions and doubts. Was it an accident? Or suicide? Or is it some terrible, ill-judged hoax? As events begin to unfold, Laura starts to question David's mysterious disappearance. She begins to uncover a conspiracy which reaches deep into the past, and is now slowly beginning to destroy everyone involved. Someone will do anything to keep Laura away from the awful truth - and she has no idea who she can trust . . .
The Raphael Affair (Jonathan Argyll Mystery Ser. #Bk. 1)
by Iain PearsFirst in the Italian art-history crime series featuring English dealer and sleuth Jonathan Argyll, from the author of the best-selling masterpiece 'An Instance of the Fingerpost'.
Real Murders: An Aurora Teagarden Novel (Aurora Teagarden Mysteries #No. 1)
by Charlaine Harris'Harris draws the guilty and the innocent into an engrossing tale while inventing a heroine as capable and potentially complex as P. D. James's Cordelia Gray' (Publishers Weekly)#1 New York Times and Sunday Times bestselling author Charlaine Harris introduces a librarian whose bookish bent for murder gets her involved in a real-life killing spree . . . Lawrenceton, Georgia, may be a growing suburb of Atlanta, but it's still a small town at heart. Librarian Aurora 'Roe' Teagarden grew up there and knows more than enough about her fellow townsfolk, including which ones share her interest in the darker side of human nature . . . With those fellow crime buffs, Roe belongs to a club called Real Murders, which meets once a month to analyze famous cases. It's a harmless pastime - until the night she finds a member dead, killed in a manner that eerily resembles the crime the club was about to discuss. As other brutal "copycat" killings follow, Roe will have to uncover the person behind the terrifying game, one that casts all the members of Real Murders, herself included, as prime suspects-or potential victims . . . 'Clearly focused plot, animated description of character and real estate, and sparkling prose commend this breath of fresh air to all collections' (Library Journal)'Great bloody fun' (Barbara Paul)
Stardust (The Spenser Series #17)
by Robert B. ParkerPrivate eye Spenser has been hired to protect glamorous TV star Jill Joyce from an anonymous harasser, but it's soon clear he's got more than he bargained for. She's beautiful, bitchy, sexy - and terrified. The stalking is growing steadily more sinister and Spenser fears it could turn into murder. He hopes he's wrong - but Spenser is very rarely wrong...'One of the great series in the history of the American detective story' New York Times
The Things They Carried (Flamingo Ser.)
by Tim O’BrienThe million-copy bestseller, which is a ground-breaking meditation on war, memory, imagination, and the redemptive power of storytelling.
Twilight of Idols and Anti-Christ: Or How To Philosophize With A Hammer (Cambridge Texts In The History Of Philosophy Ser.)
by Friedrich Nietzsche R. J. Hollingdale Michael Tanner'Twilight of the Idols', an attack on all the prevalent ideas of his time, offers a lightning tour of his whole philosophy. It also prepares the way for 'The Anti-Christ', a final assault on institutional Christianity. Both works show Nietzsche lashing out at self-deception, astounded at how often morality is based on vengefulness and resentment. Both reveal a profound understanding of human mean-spiritedness which still cannot destroy the underlying optimism of Nietzsche, the supreme affirmer among the great philosophers.
Bad Guys Don't Have Birthdays: Fantasy Play at Four
by Vivian Gussin PaleyBad guys are not allowed to have birthdays, pick blueberries, or disturb the baby. So say the four-year-olds who announce life's risks and dangers as they play out the school year in Vivian Paley's classroom. Their play is filled with warnings. They invent chaos in order to show that everything is under control. They portray fear to prove that it can be conquered. No theme is too large or too small for their intense scrutiny. Fantasy play is their ever dependable pathway to knowledge and certainty. " It . . . takes a special teacher to value the young child's communications sufficiently, enter into a meaningful dialogue with the youngster, and thereby stimulate more productivity without overwhelming the child with her own ideas. Vivian Paley is such a teacher."—Maria W. Piers, in the American Journal of Education "[Mrs. Paley's books] should be required reading wherever children are growing. Mrs. Paley does not presume to understand preschool children, or to theorize. Her strength lies equally in knowing that she does not know and in trying to learn. When she cannot help children—because she can neither anticipate nor follow their thinking—she strives not to hinder them. She avoids the arrogance of adult to small child; of teacher to student; or writer to reader."—Penelope Leach, author of Your Baby & Child in the New York Times Book Review "[Paley's] stories and interpretation argue for a new type of early childhood education . . . a form of teaching that builds upon the considerable knowledge children already have and grapple with daily in fantasy play."—Alex Raskin, Los Angeles Times Book Review "Through the 'intuitive language' of fantasy play, Paley believes, children express their deepest concerns. They act out different roles and invent imaginative scenarios to better understand the real world. Fantasy play helps them cope with uncomfortable feelings. . . . In fantasy, any device may be used to draw safe boundaries."—Ruth J. Moss, Psychology Today
The Captain and the Enemy: A Novel (Classic, 20th-century, Penguin Ser.)
by Graham GreeneA young boy, Victor, is collected from school by a stranger in a bowler hat - the stranger says he has won Victor in a game of backgammon with Victor's father. The stranger, known as the Captain, takes Victor to live with the sweet but withdrawn Lisa, where he serves as her conduit to the outside world. From mysterious beginnings, Graham Greene's final novel becomes a twisting thriller of smuggling, jewel theft and international espionage which culminates in a dramatic showdown in Panama.
The Cat Who Knew a Cardinal: A charming feline whodunnit for cat lovers everywhere (The Cat Who... Mysteries #12)
by Lilian Jackson BraunWhat do you do when everyone has a motive for murder? A case of murder twitches the whiskers of Qwilleran and his trusty sidekicks, Koko and Yum Yum, in Lilian Jackson Braun's delightful mystery The Cat Who Knew a Cardinal. Perfect for fans of cosy crime and clever cats.'Braun writes with charm and sureness' - Cleveland Plain Dealer Back home in sleepy Pickax, Jim Qwilleran and his Siamese companions, Koko and Yum Yum, are looking forward to country peace and quiet. But their newly converted apple barn home turns out to be not quite the refuge they were hoping for when a corpse turns up in the orchard outside...No one in Pickax is sorry to learn that the local headmaster is dead. Though reputedly brilliant, Hilary Van Brook was also arrogant and manipulative; an outsider who managed to offend teachers, pupils and parents alike - just about everybody in town has a motive for murder. Only when a good friend becomes a chief suspect does Qwilleran's instinct for mystery overtake his desire for privacy - and Koko's obsession with a set of antique printing blocks is the first clue to a mystery which takes Qwill and his Siamese sleuths on a day out to the races... What readers are saying about The Cat Who... series: 'These [books] make lovely, light-hearted reading with a good mix of humour and adventure''The entire 'Cat Who...' series are a delight for cat and mystery lovers''Quirky - lovely for anyone who owns or has owned an intelligent cat'
Childhood, Boyhood and Youth: In English Translation (Everyman's Library Classics Ser.)
by Leo Tolstoy'The beautiful illusion, when reading Tolstoy, is that one is looking directly at the world, as opposed to a depiction' Andrew O'Hagan from his preface to Childhood, Boyhood and YouthPublished in 1852, when he was just twenty-four, Childhood was Tolstoy's first published work, and the first of a trilogy of stories that evoke the upbringing and traditional education of a Russian aristocrat in a world that vanished with the revolution. In this self-portrait, narrated by its protagonist Nikólya, the young Tolstoy captured the textures of adolescence with a psychological insight and subtlety of analysis that look forward to his mature achievements; while his matchless objectivity - summoning the smells, sights and sounds of early childhood - is already fully present in these pages. The riverrun edition reissues the translation of Louise and Aylmer Maude, whose influential versions of Tolstoy first brought his work to a wide readership in English.