More than three centuries ago, Nicholas Winters irrevocably altered his genetic makeup in an obsession-fueled competition with alchemist and Arcane Society founder Sylvester Jones. Driven to control their psychic abilities, each man's decision has reverberated throughout the family line,...  more

More than three centuries ago, Nicholas Winters irrevocably altered his genetic makeup in an obsession-fueled competition with alchemist and Arcane Society founder Sylvester Jones. Driven to control their psychic abilities, each man's decision has reverberated throughout the family line, rewarding some with powers beyond their wildest dreams, and cursing others to a life filled with madness and hallucinations. Jack Winters, descendant of Nicholas, has been experiencing nightmares and blackouts -- just the beginning, he believes -- of the manifestation of the Winters family curse. The legend says that he must find the Burning Lamp or risk turning into a monster. But he can't do it alone; he needs the help of a woman with the gift to read the lamp's dreamlight. Jack is convinced that private investigator Chloe Harper is that woman. Her talents for finding objects and accessing dream energy are what will save him, but their sudden and powerful sexual pull threatens to overwhelm them both. Danger surrounds them, and it doesn't take long for Chloe to pick up the trail of the missing lamp. And as they draw closer to the lamp, the raw power that dwells within it threatens to sweep them into a hurricane of psychic force.

John Paul Theriault, a Mi'kmaq Indian living near the Canadian border in northern Maine, uses the sled dog team he's training for a major race as he smuggles cigarettes into Canada - and then people out of Canada into Maine. When he learns that one of the aliens has a terrorist agenda, John Paul...  more

John Paul Theriault, a Mi'kmaq Indian living near the Canadian border in northern Maine, uses the sled dog team he's training for a major race as he smuggles cigarettes into Canada - and then people out of Canada into Maine. When he learns that one of the aliens has a terrorist agenda, John Paul joins forces with a retired ATF agent in hopes of short-circuiting a bomb plot. Both men suspect that a strange Indian from the far north, now accused of a young boy's murder, may be John Paul's father, a man who has long been presumed dead. As a powerful magnetic storm lights up the sky, it exposes dark secrets usually cloaked both by the forest and by the past, and the lives of all three men change as they confront their choices and the consequences.

This is a full-fledged lovers' tragedy between a drifter-turned-writer and the fatally flawed Betty, his muse and obsessive promoter.  

PI Helen McCorkendale?s childhood friend, Jimmy Scanlan, has just opened January, the most lavish casino and hotel resort in Vegas. After attending the grand opening, Helen returns to New York and encourages her magazine editor friend, Laurel Imperiole to create a get-away contest for readers...  more

PI Helen McCorkendale?s childhood friend, Jimmy Scanlan, has just opened January, the most lavish casino and hotel resort in Vegas. After attending the grand opening, Helen returns to New York and encourages her magazine editor friend, Laurel Imperiole to create a get-away contest for readers offering a weekend at the hotel as the grand prize. The winner, Dawn Chapman, a jewelry store employee from Cincinnati, denies entering the contest and initially refuses the trip. Finally persuaded by Laurel to accept, she arrives at the hotel and nearly faints when she passes the hotel?s elite meeting rooms where the International Diamond Dealers Consortium is holding its annual meeting. She insists on returning home immediately. Suspicious of her behavior, Jimmy visits her suite to encourage her to attend the Saturday afternoon pool party, saying she can leave on his private jet the next day. Later in the afternoon, he finds Chapman?s dead body by the pool. She?s been murdered?an unusual double poisoning by cyanide and diamond dust. Dawn Chapman was not who she appeared to be, and therein lies a mystery. But to Helen and Laurel, the main task is to take Jimmy Scanlon off the suspect list and clear his name. Will their luck hold? Or will it be a crap shoot, as they roll the dice and do it ?the hard way,? going for doubles when the odds are against them. Losing may mean losing their lives. Book 3 of the Laurel and Helen New York Mystery series.

Expanded, updated, and more relevant than ever, this bestselling business classic by two internationally renowned management analysts describes a business system for the twenty-first century that supersedes the mass production system of Ford, the financial control system of Sloan, and the...  more

Expanded, updated, and more relevant than ever, this bestselling business classic by two internationally renowned management analysts describes a business system for the twenty-first century that supersedes the mass production system of Ford, the financial control system of Sloan, and the strategic system of Welch and GE. It is based on the Toyota (lean) model, which combines operational excellence with value-based strategies to produce steady growth through a wide range of economic conditions. In contrast with the crash-and-burn performance of companies trumpeted by business gurus in the 1990s, the firms profiled in Lean Thinking -- from tiny Lantech to midsized Wiremold to niche producer Porsche to gigantic Pratt & Whitney -- have kept on keeping on, largely unnoticed, along a steady upward path through the market turbulence and crushed dreams of the early twenty-first century. Meanwhile, the leader in lean thinking -- Toyota -- has set its sights on leadership of the global motor vehicle industry in this decade. Instead of constantly reinventing business models, lean thinkers go back to basics by asking what the customer really perceives as value. (It's often not at all what existing organizations and assets would suggest.) The next step is to line up value-creating activities for a specific product along a value stream while eliminating activities (usually the majority) that don't add value. Then the lean thinker creates a flow condition in which the design and the product advance smoothly and rapidly at the pull of the customer (rather than the push of the producer). Finally, as flow and pull are implemented, the lean thinker speeds up the cycle of improvement in pursuit of perfection. The first part of this book describes each of these concepts and makes them come alive with striking examples. Lean Thinking clearly demonstrates that these simple ideas can breathe new life into any company in any industry in any country. But most managers need guidance on how to make the lean leap in their firm. Part II provides a step-by-step action plan, based on in-depth studies of more than fifty lean companies in a wide range of industries across the world. Even those readers who believe they have embraced lean thinking will discover in Part III that another dramatic leap is possible by creating an extended lean enterprise for each of their product families that tightly links value-creating activities from raw materials to customer. In Part IV, an epilogue to the original edition, the story of lean thinking is brought up-to-date with an enhanced action plan based on the experiences of a range of lean firms since the original publication of Lean Thinking. Lean Thinking does not provide a new management "program" for the one-minute manager. Instead, it offers a new method of thinking, of being, and, above all, of doing for the serious long-term manager -- a method that is changing the world.

There Is No Me Without You is the story of Haregewoin Tefarra, a middle-aged Ethiopian woman of modest means whose home has become a refuge for hundreds of children orphaned by AIDS. It is a story as much about the power of the bond between children and parents as about the epidemic that every...  more

There Is No Me Without You is the story of Haregewoin Tefarra, a middle-aged Ethiopian woman of modest means whose home has become a refuge for hundreds of children orphaned by AIDS. It is a story as much about the power of the bond between children and parents as about the epidemic that every year leaves millions of children, mostly healthy themselves, without family. Originally a middle-class woman with a happy family life, Haregewoin fell into a deep depression after the death of her recently married daughter. But then a priest brought her two children, AIDS orphans, with nowhere to go. Unexpectedly, the children thrived, and Haregewoin found herself drawn back into daily life. As word got out, an endless stream of children began to arrive at her door, delivered by dying parents and other relatives who begged for her help, and, pushing against the limits of her home and bank account, she took more and more in. Today, Haregewoin runs a school, a daycare system, and a shelter for sick mothers. Without medication for her charges—some HIV-positive, some uninfected, and some infants trying to fight off the virus, but almost all of whom come to her terrified and malnourished—she forges on, caring for as many as she can handle. Increasingly, she also places them for adoption with families like that of journalist Melissa Fay Greene, who has two children adopted from Ethiopia. In Haregewoin Tefarra’s story, Greene gives us an astonishing portrait of a woman fighting a continent-wide epidemic.

When pro baseball player Chase Walker first meets Amanda at her restaurant, it’s love at first sight. While Amanda can’t help noticing the superstar with the Greek-god-build, he doesn’t have a chance of getting to first -- or any other -- base with her. A successful...  more

When pro baseball player Chase Walker first meets Amanda at her restaurant, it’s love at first sight. While Amanda can’t help noticing the superstar with the Greek-god-build, he doesn’t have a chance of getting to first -- or any other -- base with her. A successful entrepreneur who’s built her business from scratch, Amanda doesn’t need a Prince Charming to sweep her off her feet. And a curvy girl who likes to cook and eat isn’t interested in being around the catty, stick-thin herd of females chasing Chase and his teammates.  But Chase isn’t about to strike out. A man who isn’t interested in playing the field, he’s a monogamist who wants an independent woman like Amanda. His hopes rally when she discovers that squeaky-clean Chase has a few sexy and very secret pre-game rituals that turn the smart, headstrong businesswoman on -- and into his number one fan. Then a tabloid discovers the truth and turns their spanking good fun into a late- night punch-line. Is Amanda ready to let loose and swing for the fences? Or will the pressure of Chase’s stardom force them to call it quits?

Elmo is a story about an economic crisis in the small town of Miner. Fundraisers, food drives, and generous donations initially held the financial plague at bay. Eventually the township was forced to bend with the rest of the nation causing the dads to volley back with a clever remedy. They...  more

Elmo is a story about an economic crisis in the small town of Miner. Fundraisers, food drives, and generous donations initially held the financial plague at bay. Eventually the township was forced to bend with the rest of the nation causing the dads to volley back with a clever remedy. They would brave the winter nights and secretly take shifts dressed as a hobo on the corner of Main Street and Elm...

An inspiring story of how a Mormon kid with Tourette's found salvation in books and weight-lifting Josh Hanagarne couldn't be invisible if he tried. Although he wouldn't officially be diagnosed with Tourette Syndrome until his freshman year of high school, Josh was six years old and...  more

An inspiring story of how a Mormon kid with Tourette's found salvation in books and weight-lifting Josh Hanagarne couldn't be invisible if he tried. Although he wouldn't officially be diagnosed with Tourette Syndrome until his freshman year of high school, Josh was six years old and onstage in a school Thanksgiving play when he first began exhibiting symptoms. By the time he was twenty, the young Mormon had reached his towering adult height of 6'7" when -while serving on a mission for the Church of Latter Day Saints- his Tourette's tics escalated to nightmarish levels. Determined to conquer his affliction, Josh underwent everything from quack remedies to lethargy-inducing drug regimes to Botox injections that paralyzed his vocal cords and left him voiceless for three years. Undeterred, Josh persevered to marry and earn a degree in Library Science. At last, an eccentric, autistic strongman -and former Air Force Tech Sergeant and guard at an Iraqi prison- taught Josh how to 'throttle' his tics into submission through strength-training. Today, Josh is a librarian in the main branch of Salt Lake City's public library and founder of a popular blog about books and weight lifting - and the proud father of four-year-old Max, who has already started to show his own symptoms of Tourette's. The World's Strongest Librarian illuminates the mysteries of this little-understood disorder, as well as the very different worlds of strongman training and modern libraries. With humor and candor, this unlikely hero traces his journey to overcome his disability -and navigate his wavering Mormon faith- to find love and create a life worth living.

Meet Chick Best - a middle-aged, self-absorbed, disaffected, California dot.com millionaire. Other than his house and high-priced foreign cars, Chick's most expensive possession is his trophy wife, Evelyn. Evelyn is good at spending Chick's money, money that has pretty much run out. His...  more

Meet Chick Best - a middle-aged, self-absorbed, disaffected, California dot.com millionaire. Other than his house and high-priced foreign cars, Chick's most expensive possession is his trophy wife, Evelyn. Evelyn is good at spending Chick's money, money that has pretty much run out. His other personal possession is his drug-addled sixteen-year old daughter, Melissa. Though concerned about his life and family, Chick resigns himself to a miserable state of acceptance. That is, until he, Evelyn, and Melissa take a Christmas vacation in Maui. With this, Chick's life changes.. Chick experiences unrequited love at first sight when he observes Paige Ellis. His obsession, exceeded only by his need to possess her, isn't diminished when he learns that she is happily married. Instead, he befriends Paige and her near-perfect husband, Chandler. A short time later, Chick's obsession compels him to drive to Paige's house, where he runs down and kills Chandler in a drug store parking lot. He attends the husband's funeral, feigning compassion for Paige. Several months later, with his lust for Paige in high gear, Chick stages a carjacking and murders Evelyn. Evidence that Chick has planted in and around the car implicates an ex-convict. When he calls Paige with the news of Evelyn's murder, she returns the favor and comes to comfort Chick in what she thinks is his time of need. Chick, however, has other ideas. Will Paige learn the truth before it's too late?

For more than forty years Miles Davis has been in the front rank of American music. Universally acclaimed as a musical genius, Miles is one of the most important and influential musicians in the world. The subject of several biographies, now Miles speaks out himself about his extraordinary...  more

For more than forty years Miles Davis has been in the front rank of American music. Universally acclaimed as a musical genius, Miles is one of the most important and influential musicians in the world. The subject of several biographies, now Miles speaks out himself about his extraordinary life.Miles: The Autobiography, like Miles himself, holds nothing back. For the first time Miles talks about his five-year silence. He speaks frankly and openly about his drug problem and how he overcame it. He condemns the racism he has encountered in the music business and in American society generally. And he discusses the women in his life. But above all, Miles talks about music and musicians, including the legends he has played with over the years: Bird, Dizzy, Monk, Trane, Mingus, and many others.The man who has given us some of the most exciting music of the past few decades has now given us a compelling and fascinating autobiography, featuring a concise discography and thirty-two pages of photographs.

A cerebral literary thriller in the vein of Dan Brown, Matthew Pearl, and Sam Bourne, The Orpheus Descent follows classical philosopher Plato on a mysterious journey to Italy that will ignite a conspiracy that burns into the present.The greatest thinker in human history, Plato, travels to Italy...  more

A cerebral literary thriller in the vein of Dan Brown, Matthew Pearl, and Sam Bourne, The Orpheus Descent follows classical philosopher Plato on a mysterious journey to Italy that will ignite a conspiracy that burns into the present.The greatest thinker in human history, Plato, travels to Italy seeking initiation into the Orphic mysteries: the secret to the Underworld known only to the gods. But the knowledge he discovers is terrifying.Two millennia later, twelve ancient golden tablets secreted in museums around the world hold sacred information known to only a few?the pathway the dead must follow to the afterlife. And archaeologist Lily Barnes has just found another on a dig in southern Italy. But this tablet is far more valuable?and dangerous?than the rest. It holds the key to hell itself.Now, Lily is gone and her husband, Jonah, is desperate to find her. He knows she is alive?and in mortal danger?and he?s willing to go to hell itself to find her. But the deeper he descends on this dark and twisting journey, the more Jonah?s fear rises, for not everyone who travels where Lily has gone will find their way back. . . .

A profound, darkly comedic parable set in a future where collective memory has vanished following a historic catastrophe, and one young couple's love affair could have shattering consequences for the human race. In a world where the past is a dangerous country, not to be talked about or...  more

A profound, darkly comedic parable set in a future where collective memory has vanished following a historic catastrophe, and one young couple's love affair could have shattering consequences for the human race. In a world where the past is a dangerous country, not to be talked about or visited, J is a love story of incomparable strangeness, both tender and terrifying. After the devastation of WHAT HAPPENED, IF IT HAPPENED, all that should remain is peace and prosperity. Everyone knows his or her place; all actions are out in the open. But Esme Nussbaum has seen the distorted realities, the fissures that have only widened in the twenty-plus years since she was forced to resign from her position at the monitor of the Public Mood. Now, Esme finds something strange and special developing in a romance between Ailinn Solomons and Kevern Cohen. As this unusual pair's actions draw them into ever-increasing danger, Esme realizes she must do everything in her power to keep them together--whatever the cost.      With a sense of the dramatic sweep of Michael Ondaatje and the dystopian, literary sensibility of Margaret Atwood, Howard Jacobson's J is an astonishing feat of fiction. In this exquisitely written, beautifully playful and imaginative, and terribly heart-breaking work, Jacobson gathers his prodigious gifts for the crowning achievement of a remarkable career.

When Hilton was just a boy, his grandmother sacrificed her life to save him from drowning. Thirty years later, he begins to suspect that he was never meant to survive that accident, and that dark forces are working to rectify that mistake. When Hilton's wife, the only elected...  more

When Hilton was just a boy, his grandmother sacrificed her life to save him from drowning. Thirty years later, he begins to suspect that he was never meant to survive that accident, and that dark forces are working to rectify that mistake. When Hilton's wife, the only elected African-American judge in Dade County, FL, begins to receive racist hate mail, he becomes obsessed with protecting his family. Soon, however, he begins to have horrible nightmares, more intense and disturbing than any he has ever experienced. Are the strange dreams trying to tell him something? His sense of reality begins to slip away as he battles both the psychotic threatening to destroy his family and the even more terrifying enemy stalking his sleep. Chilling and utterly convincing, The Between follows the struggles of a man desperately trying to hold on to the people and life he loves, but may have already lost. The compelling plot holds readers in suspense until the final, profound moment of resolution.

From the Essence bestselling author of Hiding in Hip Hop and an entertainment insider--a juicy debut novel about the down-low life of one of New York's most beloved Hip Hop producers.  After the sudden death of his father, a renowned jazz musician, Aaron Big A.T. Tremble clings...  more

From the Essence bestselling author of Hiding in Hip Hop and an entertainment insider--a juicy debut novel about the down-low life of one of New York's most beloved Hip Hop producers.  After the sudden death of his father, a renowned jazz musician, Aaron Big A.T. Tremble clings to music as an escape. Making hip hop beats becomes his life. His love for music lands him at the estate of Larry Pop Singleton, a retired and respected Hip Hop music mogul who sees something special in Big A.T., and he also knows the truth about his sexuality. With Pop's blessings and nurturing, Big A.T. is on the path to becoming the next great Hip Hop producer in New York.  With the help of Pop and the family, a network of secretly gay men in the Hip Hop world, Big A.T. finds success and starts his own music label. He's signed and worked with some of the biggest Hip Hop artists in the country. One of them is Brooklyn native lyricist, Tickman. Together they are making sweet music together. Tickman and Big A.T.'s relationship goes beyond producer and rapper  they become secret lovers.  Nothing can stop Big A.T. All of the radio stations play his music. He has money, fame, and Jasmine, his girlfriend who doesn't know about his secret love for men. However, at the pinnacle of his career, compromising photos of Big A.T. land on the desk of a national news program--and in the hands of his girlfriend. Big A.T., for the first time is at a crossroad in his career: come out publicly with his secret or watch his music empire crumble.

At the beginning of the twenty-first century, readers have a dizzying selection of Christian books from which to choose. Those wondering where to start have a helpful new resource in How to Read a Christian Book. After an introductory chapter explaining the importance of reading Christian...  more

At the beginning of the twenty-first century, readers have a dizzying selection of Christian books from which to choose. Those wondering where to start have a helpful new resource in How to Read a Christian Book. After an introductory chapter explaining the importance of reading Christian books, the author teaches readers how to choose a good book, how to judge the quality of books, and how to read Christian books as a spiritual discipline. He shows how to plan personal libraries, providing a list of books to help readers get started and make wise choices. McKenna takes all this one step further by selecting what he considers "classics" and developing a reading program. This thorough resource provides not only a list of the very best books in all the various disciplines (fiction, spirituality, etc.), but an excellent reading program as well.

When all you have is a blank page, it's often tough to begin writing. Writing Advice for Teens: Creating Stories aims to help you overcome that initial hurdle by making it easy for you to write down simple, focused ideas and craft them into stories. However, coming up with ideas is not enough....  more

When all you have is a blank page, it's often tough to begin writing. Writing Advice for Teens: Creating Stories aims to help you overcome that initial hurdle by making it easy for you to write down simple, focused ideas and craft them into stories. However, coming up with ideas is not enough. Teen writers need to understand basic story structure so they can avoid typical writing problems. Filled with plenty of tips, advice, and examples to help any new writer, the first book in the Writing Advice for Teens series focuses on getting ideas down quickly and pounding out that first draft. After following the advice and using the techniques outlined in this book, you should understand how to bring the stories locked in your mind to the surface.

No matter how hard she tries life never seems to go quite right for Gnipper Tallhat, an eight-year-old Gnome determined to receive the recognition her intelligence deserves. This time, however, she's got it all figured out. Finally, her father will have to be proud of her...  more

No matter how hard she tries life never seems to go quite right for Gnipper Tallhat, an eight-year-old Gnome determined to receive the recognition her intelligence deserves. This time, however, she's got it all figured out. Finally, her father will have to be proud of her accomplishments...provided he manages to live through them.

This paperback edition contains the complete text of Roethke's seven published volumes plus sixteen previously uncollected poems. Included are his Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award winners The Walking, Words for the Wind, and The Far Field.

The world is broken. A great, unknown cataclysm has destroyed the modern world, leaving the remnants of humanity in a Second Dark Ages. With technology lost and the world once again ruled by bandits and thugs, small kingdoms and city-states are all that is left of civilization. The people living...  more

The world is broken. A great, unknown cataclysm has destroyed the modern world, leaving the remnants of humanity in a Second Dark Ages. With technology lost and the world once again ruled by bandits and thugs, small kingdoms and city-states are all that is left of civilization. The people living in these cities suffer from corruption, old prejudices, and the cold conditions in which they live. Witness to the rise and fall of human civilization are the Immortals, men and women gifted with life unending. They have watched from the shadows for thousands of years, taking care not to reveal their secret, lest they face persecution. All the while, the Immortals struggle with their own internal conflicts, bitter rivalries, and secret ambitions. Mica, a member of a small trio of Immortals, must enter a corrupt city-state in search for enemy who has trapped in the body of a child for thousands of years. The child holds an ancient artifact, which unrecovered could finally end Mica's long life. Standing in the trio's way are the lawmen of this valley town, a powerful demon under the child's control, and a mysterious woman, who holds strange powers of her own. Her actions will have a profound effect on Mica and his companions' quest, as well as on the fate of the humans struggling to survive in a harsh world. Almost all traces of our modern society have vanished, lost to age and the elements. Tales and legends have been handed down from the long ago future for over 2,500 years. Hiding in the midsts, are Immortals. Some are still looking for old enemies, others are trying to rule their own kingdoms, and one has just awoken from a centuries sleep. A small, mountain valley town becomes the convergence point where old and new grudges are played out. As the Immortal Wars rage on, will the survivors of both worlds manage to flourish? Or will the race of mortals come to their final end? Intended for mature readers: contains violence, language, and sexual situations.

The Immortal Wars have left the town of Macinas and its mortal inhabitants in danger of not surviving the coming winter. They are left to rely on the dubious protection of the Duchess Illyria and the Royal Advisor, Lord Nicky as they try to destroy each other. Alliances are strained, as...  more

The Immortal Wars have left the town of Macinas and its mortal inhabitants in danger of not surviving the coming winter. They are left to rely on the dubious protection of the Duchess Illyria and the Royal Advisor, Lord Nicky as they try to destroy each other. Alliances are strained, as memories of past betrayals burst from the locks they have been kept behind. Meanwhile, Mica, the man with the key to the little boys Final Death has been captured by his enemies. The townspeople are ready to revolt, and their king doesn't seem to care anymore. Families are torn apart, and strangers must learn to trust each other. When the reaping is done, will the price for survival be worth it?