In the centerpiece story, an eighteenth-century Eno Indian tells of the fiery fate of his adopted father, English explorer John Lawson. In the surrounding stories, the age-old conflicts between newcomer and old-timer play out as twenty-first century retirees, carnies, runaways, heartbroken women, and farmers stumble into new lives and new insights in Ambler County, North Carolina. "Hudson's prose is pure as birdsong," says novelist Doris Betts. "These fine stories of change and discovery are a field guide to the human species in transition."

    For them death is not a mystery. They know what will happen and see it as a great chance for spiritual development. Fearless Death makes their teachings accessible to the modern West. In this book, Lama Ole Nydahl condenses the information he learned from years spent with great Buddhist masters in the East. His explanations are enriched by decades of experience guiding modern people through the dying process. In 1968, Lama Ole and his wife Hannah began training with meditation masters of the Kagyu and Nyingma schools of Tibetan Buddhism in the Himalayas. In 1972, Lama Ole learned the rare meditation practice of conscious dying (Phowa) according to the wishes of his teacher, the great 16th Karmapa Rangjung Rigpe Dorje. Since then he has taught the Phowa practice to over 90,000 people throughout the western world, inspiring them to live for others and face death without fear. People are less afraid of things they can understand. With Phowa training and the knowledge found in this book, readers can transform fear and doubt into confidence and a calm state of mind when facing death.

    For them death is not a mystery. They know what will happen and see it as a great chance for spiritual development. Fearless Death makes their teachings accessible to the modern West. In this book, Lama Ole Nydahl condenses the information he learned from years spent with great Buddhist masters in the East. His explanations are enriched by decades of experience guiding modern people through the dying process. In 1968, Lama Ole and his wife Hannah began training with meditation masters of the Kagyu and Nyingma schools of Tibetan Buddhism in the Himalayas. In 1972, Lama Ole learned the rare meditation practice of conscious dying (Phowa) according to the wishes of his teacher, the great 16th Karmapa Rangjung Rigpe Dorje. Since then he has taught the Phowa practice to over 90,000 people throughout the western world, inspiring them to live for others and face death without fear. People are less afraid of things they can understand. With Phowa training and the knowledge found in this book, readers can transform fear and doubt into confidence and a calm state of mind when facing death.

    But the moment Jared Parsons sailed the Sea Gypsy into Pamlico Sound, she knew her quiet refuge was ruined. She wasn't sure what bothered her more about this stranger—his arrogant attitude or the passions he inspired. Was Cathy running away again, or was she heading straight into the arms of the man she hated to love?Golden LassoAfter Jan Warren inherited a ranch in the beautiful Arizona desert, she put everything she could into making a success of Rancho Arroyo. But managing a resort had its problems from the start—problems that were not at all helped by the commanding presence of Derek Bannon. Owner of the Golden Lasso, the neighboring vacation hot spot, Derek was determined to buy Jan out. And he wasn't taking no for an answer. Somehow this business venture had become intensely personal and the stakes were dangerously high—her trust and her heart.

    The story of Duke University's 2000-2001 championship basketball season is one of a young inexperienced team, insurmountable odds, and the visionary coach that brought them to victory.

    SHORT STORY ~ Carrie runs away from her wedding before saying "I do." She refuses to marry Andrew, but doesn't know what she will do as she tries to straighten out the disaster her life has become. She runs to Emerald Isle, NC where happier memories call to her and she hopes she can reclaim what she's lost.

    Willis spent his most impressionable years in southern Appalachia. In his eye-opening new memoir, he perfectly captures the local culture of 1960s rural North Carolina. Willis’s memoir shows both the unique heritage of the region and his personal struggles as a young man growing up in an abusive family. The mountains of North Carolina serve as a deterrent to outsiders, but the locals embrace the beautiful scenery and rugged isolation. This isolation serves to make Mikey’s life a living hell. Even in the wild beauty of the mountains, he can’t escape the violent actions of his parents. If his father isn’t missing, he is beating young Mikey. But his neighbors know Mikey’s father only as the pastor of the local Baptist church. As Willis explores this early-childhood trauma, he also chronicles his encounters with southern gospel music, baptisms, and revival meetings. Things change for his family when his father accepts a position at a church in Asheville, North Carolina. Mikey suddenly finds himself in the big city. As he makes new friends and encounters the pangs of first love, he finally stands up to his father and plans a better future for himself.

    But when Steven spends their life savings on a cemetery plot, it's time for Maggie to take control.With her twenty-year high school reunion just around the corner and her long-lost high school boyfriend back in town, it's Maggie's turn to start turning heads. In the face of small-minded gossips, a surly family, and a meddling grandmother, Maggie must reach deep inside her Southern-housewife soul to become the woman she's always wanted to be.

    Based on a true story, Lone Survivor recreates the tale of unforgiving terrain, of savage winter storms and dwindling food supplies, and of a desperate journey into the wilderness, where brave men died and few dared to tread.

    A critically acclaimed and prize-winning memoir

    On the grassy lawn of the Rosscairn Castle B&B, she waits with the couple’s family and friends for the ceremony to begin. But one of them has other plans, and as the guests grow restive, the satin-clad bride is dying most horribly.When the sheriff asks for Stella’s assistance, she’s energized by the opportunity to prove herself. But why would someone kill Justine, the bride, on her wedding day? The grieving groom claims that she was a much-loved angel who couldn’t possibly have had any enemies. Stella finds that he is deluding himself, that jealousy, depression, and grief colored Justine’s current relationships. The groom's former girlfriend haunts him obsessively. A young couple blames Justine, a midwife, for their daughter’s disabilities, claiming the child’s birth was mismanaged. An ex-lover lost his job when Justine accused him of stalking her. Perhaps more importantly, Justine had concealed her past from everyone, even Mike. Even as a paranoid drug dealer seeks to silence her, Stella must unravel these complex knots before Justine’s murderer claims another victim.Weaving together themes of family, gender, and identity, Cold Feet is a mesmeric, disquieting story that takes the reader to the discovery of a chilling truth: sometimes death is the only way to secure a secret.

    She learns that with her aunt’s passing, Natalie has become the next witch in line to wield the magical power of the legendary Wilder Coven. Will she reject her birthright and go back to her old life, or will she stay and unmask the monster who cut aunt’s life short?

    From the author of the critically acclaimed novels A Brother's Blood and The Blind Side of the Heart comes a brilliant tale of a decent man's struggle to choose between his past and his future, between the woman he once loved and the woman he now loves.

    Set within Australia's lush rain forest at the height of the rainy season, Salt Rain is an absorbing debut about sifting through the complicated stories that shape us, and ultimately reclaiming them as our own.

    Specifically, the body of his own Santa - one of thousands worldwide - who was just murdered in an apparent random act of violence. Now, Tucker will have to somehow manage to deliver Christmas to his assigned region while he struggles to patch things up with his family, all while training the replacement sent to him by The Organization and trying to uncover the mystery of who killed Santa. And there's only five days left until Christmas.