Yet after a night gone from bad to worse she is offered a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity by the right hand of the Empress, the infamous Black Knight: to become his apprentice and learn the business of villainy from one of the most dangerous men in Creation. It’s probably a trap, but when has that ever stopped her? For the sake of the land of her birth, she is more than willing to get her hands dirty. They say the first step on the path to the Tower is the hardest.Considering the amount of people already trying to kill her, ‘they’ might have a point.-------------------------------------------------------A Practical Guide to Evil is a fantasy series about a young girl named Catherine Foundling making her way through the world – though, in a departure from the norm, not on the side of the heroes. Is there such a thing as doing bad things for good reasons, or is she just rationalizing her desire for control? Good and Evil are tricky concepts, and the more power you get the blurrier the lines between them become.

    Yet ancient evils are stirring in the shadows, freed at last by Mazael's own deeds of valor. Unless Mazael fights with all his strength, the world will fall. ADALAR is weary of war, has seen too many friends and comrades die. Yet dark forces are stirring in the shadows, and unless Adalar defends his lost home, those under his protection will perish. SIGALDRA is the last holdmistress of the Jutai nation, the final defender of her people. Now the darkness comes to devour the final remnant of Sigaldra's home and family. Even Sigaldra's courage may not be enough to turn aside the shadows. For the goddess has been freed at last, and her servants are eager to slay in her name...

    Their home is Kent Island, MD: a beautiful, peaceful place, good for raising a family, good for having dogs. When unearthly beings strike without warning or mercy against humankind, Buddy and Sally lose the ones they love and the lives they knew. Now they must band together with other "lost dogs" to find food, water, and shelter without their masters. But survival is not enough for Buddy: he holds out hope that Rob, Genn, and Audrey live. And that he can find them before inhuman forces ensure that man is never again Earth's master.

    Captain Aisen, a military officer in the newly re-founded Sigil Order, is returning home where his life will be altered forever.His grandfather, Duke Kyreth Edorin, has died, and his body lies in preparation for a burial in the family crypts. As the heir to House Edorin, Aisen will be forced to leave his life as a solider behind and assume the role of the next leader of his house. With help from his younger brother, Beonen, and his allies within the Sigil Corps, Aisen hopes to build relationships with the other noble houses and gain the respect of the people entrusted to his care.Confronted by betrayal, Aisen will be shaped in ways which will give rise his reputation as the feared Blood Prince, and threaten to throw the nation of Nar Edor into a deadly internal conflict. The Blood Prince serves as an introduction to a larger story told in the full length novels of the trilogy.

    Based on exclusive interviews and never-before-published material, Leading from Behind investigates the secret world of the West Wing and the combative personalities that shape historic events.Contrary to the White House narrative, which aims to define Obama as a visionary leader, Leading from Behind reveals a president who is indecisive, moody, and often paralyzed by competing political considerations. Many victories—as well as several significant failures—during the Obama presidency are revealed to be the work of strong women, who led when the president did not: then-Speaker Nancy Pelosi; Secretary of State Hillary Clinton; and Valerie Jarrett, his closest adviser and an Obama family confidante, whose unusual degree of influence has been a source of conflict with veteran political insiders.In Leading from Behind, you will learn:· Why Obama's relationship with Israel was poisoned years before he met Israel's prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu· The real reason for Valerie Jarrett's strong hold over both Barack and Michelle Obama· ObamaCare wasn't Obama's idea. It was House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's. And the real reason he danced to her tune.· Obama delayed and canceled the mission to kill Osama bin Laden three times and then committed an intelligence blunder that allowed dozens of high-level members of al Qaeda to escape.· Why Obama destroyed a secret budget deal with House Speaker John Boehner that would have reformed entitlements, slashed spending, and reduced the national debt—without raising taxes· Why Obama is determined to save Attorney General Eric Holder, even though he has mislead and stonewalled Congress about "Operation: Fast and Furious"· Why Obama decided to defy the Tea Party and ditch his plans to end earmarksIn Leading from Behind, Richard Miniter's provocative research offers a dramatic, thoroughly sourced account of President Obama's White House during a time of intense domestic controversy and international turmoil.

    Have you ever come home from work wishing that you were somewhere else. What if your life was different, magical and happy? It happened to David with mixed results. This rags to riches story introduces our hero to quite a few dangerous situations including many attractive young ladies!

    When the Lord of Bastonne falls ill, his two sons Calard and Bertelis are plunged into conflict as suppressed rivalries surface. As a horde of goblins swarms out of the forests, the knights gather their forces to repel the foul beasts, little suspecting that the true enemy has yet to reveal itself.

    Yet the fragile balance between church and state lies shattered. The specter of civil war haunts the ravaged land - and a specter more fearsome still. The demon, though defeated, was not destroyed. Now its vengeful spirit has found sanctuary at the very heart of the Abellican Church. As the elf-trained ranger Elbryan Wynden presses north to reclaim the Timberlands from retreating goblin hordes, and his companion, Pony, mistress of gemstone magic, turns south to the civilized streets of Palmaris, they find themselves caught up in a power struggle to decide the fate of all Corona. Condemned as heretics, the two heroes are hunted by dangerous enemies. The leader of the Church boasts a mastery of gemstone magic that rivals Pony's proven might. And the Abbot's right hand, the Bishop of Palmaris, has claws so sharply honed by hate and magic that no man - or ranger - can withstand their killing stroke. Then an unexpected twist of fate forces Pony to make a harrowing choice, one that may doom the world to demonic domination.

    When she mistakes Iontho for a servant, he takes the opportunity to pose as her alchemically-loyal minion and seek information about her mysterious employer.While the travel is worse than he'd expected, the company's better than either had hoped, and young hormones are fully engaged - but can youth and unexpected skills defeat age and treachery?(All That Glitters is an approximately 92,000-word novel, and has mature scenes.)

    . . an alphabet soup of -delight in language. Eat up."—Alice Sebold"Brilliant. Wildly inventive, profane, and hilarious."—Bret Easton EllisThe author of the acclaimed cult classic Dear Dead Person ("refreshing, nauseating, hilarious"—Kirkus) returns with this long-awaited collection of brilliantly written and outrageously imaginative short stories.Benjamin Weissman is the author of Dear Dead Person (High Risk/Serpent’s Tail, 1995). He is a contributing editor to Bomb Magazine and writes regularly for the contemporary art magazines Parkett and Artforum. A painter and a professor at Art Center College of Design and Otis College of the Arts, he now lives in Los Angeles.

    Absolutely everything. Monsters, Magic, & Mayhem collects four novella chronicling Bubba the Monster Hunter's trip through the lands of the Fae in search of his kidnapped sister. Yeah, he didn't know he had a sister, either. And that joke's old, man. Into the Mystic - Bubba and his troupe of merry morons has to find their way to Fairyland to rescue his sister. It's not as easy as it sounds, and it involves Bubba learning a lot of uncomfortable truths about why his mother walked out, and his maybe not-quite human heritage. Cold as Ice - Bubba meets his grandmother, which should be great. Except she's the psychotic Queen of the Winter Court and wants to pretty much murder everyone. There's torture, tights, and Bubba dancing. Which is pretty much torture in tights. So lots of torture. Hot Blooded - Bubba and Co. travel to the Summer Court in their Quest for the Sister, only to find that his grandfather, while less abjectly psychopathic than his ex-wife Mab, is still kind of a douche. And just when the team thought they were on the right track to finish their quest, there's a dragon. A dragon. This is not something growing up in Georgia prepares you for. Shades of Grey - Bubba is closing in on his sister and her kidnapper, the Shakespearean trickster Puck. Except, he's not like hot Loki trickster, he's more like cut your throat while you sleep and tell you a knock-knock joke while you're bleeding out trickster. Bubba has to battle his way through a horde of zombies just to get the opportunity to go on an old-fashioned dungeon crawl (with spiders, because…dungeon) to maybe finally confront Puck and save his sister. Then they get home and things get REALLY screwed up!

    Kama Pootra is the ultimate poop gag gift for adults.The average human performs approximately 25,000 bowel movements in their lifetime. Sadly, most people never depart from the first poop position they were taught as children. However, there exists another way — fifty-two, in fact!The Kama Pootra is the authoritative educational guide for a new and exciting pooping experience, a governing handbook of free-thinking bathroom conduct. Within these pages, students will find new positions for home or work, alone or with friends, with or without the use of common household items. These lessons are the first step on the tiled path to an enlightened bathroom experience.Place it on the porcelain throne in your guest bathroom for a laugh or give it as a raunchy white elephant gift to a family member. Either way, the Kama Pootra is the perfect poop gag gift for men — or anyone who can't help but giggle at funny poop gifts. There's an entire world of poo-sitions to explore!

    

    R. MartinHonesty is the bedrock for any relationship. But how can Fitz – royal bastard, trainee assassin, holder of secrets crucial to the security of the kingdom – bare his soul to his beloved Molly?Danger lies all around him – from the raiders savaging the coastal towns, and from within the court. The king has been struck down by a mystery illness and his eldest son, Verity, is bound up in the defence of the realm.When Verity leaves the court in search of the mythical Elderlings, Fitz finds himself friendless apart from his wolf, Nighteyes, and the king’s strange, motley-clad fool, exposed to Prince Regal’s malign ambitions. He will be asked to sacrifice everything – his heart, his hope, even his life – for the sake of the realm.Continue the adventure with books two and three of Robin Hobb’s magnificent Farseer Trilogy.This bundle includes Royal Assassin (book two) and Assassin’s Quest (book three).

    Mortal Engines Quartet: 4 books - Mortal Engines / Predators Gold / Infernal Devices / A Darkling Plain