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Nikitta: A Mother’s Story - The Tragic True Story of My Daughter's Murder
Marcia Grender - 2016
Marcia and her partner Paul, Nikitta’s father, rushed to the scene but there was nothing they could do. Firefighters had already discovered Nikitta’s body in the wreckage of the home she’d lovingly built with her childhood sweetheart. To add to their agony, Nikitta had been eight months’ pregnant. The fully formed yet unborn baby girl she’d already named Kelsey May was gone, too.But it soon became apparent Nikitta’s death was far from an accident. Within hours, the investigation became a murder inquiry and Ryan’s cousin Carl Whant was the prime suspect. Whant had been openly infatuated with Nikitta and boasted that he thought of her every time he had sex.As her world collapsed around her, Marcia could only watch in horror. Shortly after Whant was charged with murder, child destruction, rape and arson, she began charting her feelings in a searingly honest diary, the contents of which are published for the first time in this book.Marcia painstakingly recalls the agony of holding her granddaughter for the first time in a police mortuary, but being unable to see her dead daughter because of the shocking state in which Whant had left her. She charts the pain of laying them both to rest, knowing she will have to face their killer every day in court when Whant’s case comes to trial. For the first time, she opens up about her turbulent relationship with Ryan and the devastating revelations which almost cause her world to shatter for a second time. But, above all, she speaks of the indescribable hell of learning to live without the most important thing in her life.
Only Fools and Horses - The Official Inside Story
Steve Clark - 2011
It also contains material from the BBC archives and reveals how the show was rejected when it was first offered to the BBC, how David Jason nearly missed out on the starring role and the tragedy of the death of one of its stars during filming.Steve Clark was the only author on set for the filming of Only Fools and Horses, spin-off The Green Green Grass and prequel Rock & Chips and his book gives a fascinating and unique insight into this legendary series. Dragon's Den star Theo Paphitis a long-time fan of the series - has written a foreword to the book, which also includes rare photographs and other exclusive material.
Change: Realizing Your Greatest Potential
Ilchi Lee - 2013
Both personally and globally, change drives our lives. Despite the new opportunities change can bring, many of us resist and fear it, even as we long for a healthier lifestyle or agree we need a more sustainable culture. Change: Realizing Your Greatest Potential turns this unavoidable condition of life from something fearsome to something empowering by revealing a new perspective on reality. The way we were taught to think of the world is not the way it really is. We are not a mosaic of separate beings in competition for resources. Instead, each of us is an integral part of a whole that encompasses all creation. We are an intrinsic driver behind the force of change. As such, our creative potential is limitless. That potential comes from what author Ilchi Lee discovered over the course of his inner explorations that each of us has a beautiful mind that desires to benefit all beings. This inherent nature is our true greatness and the true power to solidify the changes we envision in our personal lives and the world. Change is urgently needed; the current course of our civilization is no longer tenable. But major changes are not feasible, Lee says, unless we begin with changing ourselves. He says we can start a big change, no matter how daunting it is, with changing our personal attitudes and energy. Change tells you how.
Accidental Agent: Behind Enemy Lines with the French Resistance
John Goldsmith - 2017
Not easily deterred he eventually became a tank driving instructor in the ranks.In 1942 accidental circumstances saw his recruitment into Buckmaster s F Section of the Special Operations Executive. His faultless French and upbringing in Paris were to prove invaluable. Commissioned overnight and after intensive training he was parachuted into France for the first of his three missions.His adventures included crossing the Pyrenees, sabotage, forming his own circuits, being captured by the Gestapo, a daring escape and black-marketeering. In 1944, now a Major, he was advisor to the Maquis in the Mont Ventoux area where they fought the Germans in pitched battles and won.Although this refreshingly modest account does not admit to it, Goldsmith s extraordinary war is best summed up by his DSO, MC, three Croix de Guerre and Legion d honneur.Accidental Agent is as thrilling an account of war behind enemy lines as has ever been written. The author s descriptions of his experiences and the many colorful characters he came across are a joy to read."
Matthew Reilly Collection: The Six Sacred Stones, Temple, Seven Ancient Wonders, Area 7
Matthew Reilly
Tweaking the Dream: A Crystal Meth True Story
Clea Myers - 2009
She goes from an Ivy League College to Los Angeles Women's Penitentiary in 3 years, emaciated and addicted to crystal meth. How could things go so wrong and in such a short space of time? Myers shares her descent into the hell of crystal methamphetamine dependence. Her story is of An English girl from a privileged background whose addiction journey brings her from an Ivy League College to Los Angeles Women s Penitentiary in only three years, emaciated and addicted to crystal meth. Myers description of her rapid demise is a sometimes uncomfortable read, as she holds nothing back. The lights of Hollywood twinkled briefly but, once introduced to crystal meth, she became addicted. Dumpster diving became a regular pastime: grovelling in large rubbish containers, diving for articles of value or fascination to her hugely disturbed mind. She was reduced to an animal existence, surrounded by dangerous and sometimes violent people. Arrested and jailed, she hit rock bottom and was offered a chance to leave LA immediately or stay in the drug offenders Programme. Helped by a family member, she returned to England still unable to stop completely. Finally, she did get help and discover a recovery path which combined her buddhist faith and reassures her relationship with the 12-step programme. Crystal meth in England has been reported only on the gay club scene. Part of the reason Myers wrote this book is to warn young people of its dangers. This book could be well used as part of a schools drug education programme.' Review from ADDICTION TODAY Magazine
The Old Drift
Namwali Serpell - 2019
Here begins the story of a small African nation, told by a swarm-like chorus that calls itself man’s greatest nemesis. In 1904, in a smoky room at the hotel across the river, an Old Drifter named Percy M. Clark, foggy with fever, makes a mistake that entangles the fates of an Italian hotelier and an African busboy. This sets off a cycle of unwitting retribution between three Zambian families (black, white, brown) as they collide and converge over the course of the century, into the present and beyond. As the generations pass, their lives – their triumphs, errors, losses and hopes – form a symphony about what it means to be human.From a woman covered with hair and another plagued with endless tears, to forbidden love affairs and fiery political ones, to homegrown technological marvels like Afronauts, microdrones and viral vaccines – this novel sweeps over the years and the globe.
Edge of Eternity: by Ken Follett (The Century Trilogy, Book 3) | Summary & Analysis
Book*Sense - 2014
The novel Edge of Eternity narrates the fictional stories of the descendants of Ma Peshkov, their families and their associates in the United States, the United Kingdom, divided Germany and the USSR through the decades of the all-too-real existence of the Berlin Wall and the thrust of the United States Civil Rights movement and into the generation after. Several of them—notably George Jakes, Rebecca Held and Dimka Dvorkin—find themselves in positions of political power and influence near, but not at, the top of their countries’ governments across several decades. The ten-part narrative attends closely to them, as well as to their more artistically inclined cousins as they negotiate the sociopolitical turmoil of the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, with a brief epilogue set in 2008. Ken Follett’s sweeping Century Trilogy concludes with Edge of Eternity. It is a substantial read covering more than fifty years of recent history offering a detailed and authentic account of world events as they could have been seen by those in positions near those in power which will be looked at in this companion. As a work of historical fiction, it is based upon and treats real events, but it does so from the peripheries that, still closer to the action than many or most of the readers could be, lie outside those already so thoroughly known to history and almost mythologized in multiple retellings. Thus, Follett’s Edge of Eternity presents an unusual, and ultimately more compelling, perspective on the events that shaped the last third of the twentieth century and whose effects are still being felt a generation afterwards. Nevertheless, Edge of Eternity has its shortcomings. This Analysis of Edge of Eternity fills the gap, making you understand more while enhancing your reading experience.
Stingray Billionaire
Alexa Davis - 2016
Ellie Michaels works in a junk shop masquerading as a destination for fine antiques. With as small as Mulholland is, it’s quite literally the only opening she could find. Almost content in her tiny world, Ellie sits behind her counter and watches life pass her by. That is, until billionaire CEO Nikolai Scipio comes crashing into Ellie’s world. Nikolai “Nick” Scipio is overseeing the construction of his company’s new headquarters. The problem is neither the board, nor the majority of investors are behind the move. With his decision to move the headquarters of his multi-billion dollar corporation, Stingray, to Mulholland, a place where dreams go to die and business goes never, it’s just the excuse the board needs to start making life very difficult for Nick. Only, they don’t know the real reason Nick is in Mulholland. Charmed (and more than a little disoriented) by Nick, Ellie eventually relents and accepts his invitation to dinner. She doesn’t know anything about business, much less what’s about to happen at Stingray, but there’s something so familiar in the way Nick looks at her. When rumors start circulating about why Nick is really in Mulholland, Ellie and Nick will have to pull together or be torn apart. *This sexy alpha billionaire romance is perfect for fans of Cassie Cross, Hannah Ford, Deborah Bladon, Kendall Ryan, Lauren Blakely, and J.S. Scott*
The Man Who Cried I Am
John A. Williams - 1967
Through the eyes of journalist Max Reddick, and with penetrating fictional portraits of Richard Wright and James Baldwin, among other historical figures, John A Williams reveals the hope, courage, and bitter disappointment of the civil-rights era. Infused with powerful artistry, searing anger, as well as insight, humanity, and vision, The Man Who Cried I Am is a classic of postwar American literature.
Eve out of Her Ruins
Ananda Devi - 2006
Awarded the prestigious Prix des cinq continents upon publication as the best book written in French outside of France, Eve Out of her Ruins is a harrowing account of the violent reality of life in her native country by the figurehead of Mauritian literature.The book featurues an original introduction by Nobel Prize winner J.M.G. Le Clézio, who declares Devi "a truly great writer."Ananda Devi (b. 1957, Trois-Boutiques, Mauritius) is a novelist and scholar. She has published eight novels as well as short stories and poetry, and was featured at the PEN World Voices Festival in New York in 2015. She was made a Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres by the French Government in 2010.
False Advertising
Dianne Blacklock - 2007
She recycles, obeys the water restrictions, she is even polite to telemarketers. as a mother, wife, daughter and nurse, Helen is used to putting everyone's needs before her own. But it only takes one momentary lapse of concentration to shatter her life forever.There was no momentary lapse for Gemma. Her customary recklessness leaves her pregnant, alone and estranged from her family with her one-promising advertising career in tatters.So when Gemma barges unceremoniously into Helen's life, things will never be the same again for either of them. Two very different women who have one thing in common - their lives have fallen short of their expectations. But is fate offering them a second chance?
GraceLand
Chris Abani - 2004
Elvis Oke, a teenage Elvis impersonator spurred on by the triumphs of heroes in the American movies and books he devours, pursues his chosen vocation with ardent single-mindedness. He suffers through hours of practice set to the tinny tunes emanating from the radio in the filthy shack he shares with his alcoholic father, his stepmother and his stepsiblings. He applies thick makeup that turns his black skin white, to make his performances more convincing for American tourists and hopefully net him dollars. But still he finds himself constantly broke. Beset by hopelessness and daunted by the squalor and violence of his daily life, he must finally abandon his dream.With job prospects few and far between. Elvis is tempted to a life of crime by the easy money his friend Redemption tells him is to be had in Lago's underworld. But the King of the Beggars, Elvis's enigmatic yet faithful adviser, intercedes. And so, torn by the frustration of unrealizable dreams and accompanied by an eclectic chorus of voices, Elvis must find a way to a Graceland of his own making.Graceland is the story of a son and his father, and an examination of postcolonial Nigeria, where the trappings of American culture reign supreme.
When Rain Clouds Gather
Bessie Head - 1969
When a political refugee from South Africa joins forces with an English agricultural expert, the time-honoured subsistence-farming method and old ways of life are challenged.