You might have heard the rumours—whispers of an evil plot involving time travel, dangerous experiments, a secret fortress, a terrible book, famous authors and, regrettably, murder. You might also have heard of heroes who were caught up in this plot, fighting to do the right thing. That sounds a lot more impressive than it actually was. My name is Boone Shepard. I’m here to set the record straight.”Boone is taking a break from writing for The Chronicle newspaper to hunt down and destroy every last copy of a very rare, very dangerous book. But then his editor calls to demand he investigate a missing persons case deep in the Scottish Highlands—in the company of his rival, photographer Promethia Peters—and he is forced to abandon his personal goals and get back to work. Restless and begrudging, Boone is unprepared when this hunt leads him back to the one story that won’t stop chasing him—his own. Boone Shepard is the first in a series of young adult novels following the adventures of an Australian expat, errant journalist and accidental hero.

    After eleven years in the remote Mahlangeni region they are transferred, first to Crocodile Bridge and then to Pretorius Kop. Fully at peace in the wild and lonely landscapes of the North, Kobie fears she will never adapt to the relatively people-populated southern area. It takes time, but eventually she is able to acknowlege that the move has shown her "other Edens" and has given her a store of the new and precious memories. Foremost among these memories is the unique experience of raising Leo, an abandoned lion cub. It is a facinating and emotional encounter with the king of the beasts, which brings her and her family equal measures of joy and sorrow.

    I knew what it meant, that clasp and the mischievous grateful glance that accompanied it: it meant I was thanked, that there were secrets here. I could accept that. I too had secrets - who doesn't?Sent abroad to Egypt in 1922 to recover from the typhoid that killed her mother, eleven-year-old Lucy is caught up in the intrigue and excitement that surrounds the obsessive hunt for Tutankhamun's tomb. As she struggles to comprehend an adult world in which those closest to her are often cold and unpredictable, Lucy longs for a friend she can love. When she meets Frances, the daughter of an American archaeologist, her life is transformed. As the two girls spy on the grown-ups and try to understand the truth behind their evasions, a lifelong bond is formed. Haunted by the ghosts of her past, the mistakes she made and the secrets she kept, Lucy disinters her past, trying to make sense of what happened all those years ago in Cairo and the Valley of the Kings. And for the first time in her life, she comes to terms with what happened after Egypt, when Frances needed Lucy most.

    The only way for her to get it: A coffee plantation she has inherited. But there's a catch: She has to run the plantation, deep in the jungles of Colombia, a land of drug lords and warlords. The mysterious inheritance of the plantation, from the father she had never met, comes at the same time a criminal conspiracy is turning her life into a living hell--a conspiracy that stretches all the way to Colombia.  Racing to South America, on the run from the police, she becomes entangled with suspicious characters: Ramon, rich and handsome, with a secret sex life that shocks even Nash though she considers herself an adventurous woman; Josh, an American expatriate, who claims to be a simple gem smuggler and arouses passions in Nash she thought were long dead; and Lily Soong, an erotic Chinese beauty who men--and women--lust after, often to their doom. But no one brings as much danger to her life as Pablo Escobar, king of the Medellín drug cartels, considered the most dangerous man in Colombia, the murder capital of the world.  Things get even more complicated when Nash's quest to clear herself takes her to Shanghai, home of the powerful Chinese Triads that control the flow of dirty money from gambling, prostitution, drugs and murder. Refusing to let the cartel's murderers drive her off the plantation and ruin the lives of hundreds of families who work it, Nash tackles organized crime and police agencies on two continents to save her plantation . . . and stay alive.

    Perhaps this is why I have not left yet. Perhaps I have no choice but to follow the story to its end.Compulsively readable and stylistically stunning, Black Dog Summer begins with a murder, a farmstead massacre, in the South African bush. Thirty-eight-year-old Sally is but one of the victims. Her life brutally cut short, she narrates from her vantage point in the afterlife and watches as her sister, Adele, her brother-in-law and unrequited love Liam, her niece Bryony, and her teenage daughter, Gigi, begin to make sense of the tragedy.A suspenseful drama focusing on marriage and fidelity, sisterhood, and the fractious bond between mothers and daughters, Black Dog Summer asks: In the wake of tragedy, where does all that dark energy linger? The youngest characters, Bryony and Gigi, cousins who are now brought together after Sally’s murder, are forced into sharing a bedroom. Bryony becomes confused and frightened by the violent energy stirred up and awakened by the massacre, while Gigi is unable to see beyond her deep grief and guilt. But they are not the only ones aware of the lurking darkness. Next door lives Lesedi, a reluctant witchdoctor who hides her mystical connection with the dead behind the façade of their affluent Johannesburg suburb.As Gigi finally begins to emerge from her grief, the fragile healing process is derailed when she receives some shattering news, and in a mistaken effort to protect her cousin, puts Bryony’s life in imminent danger. Now Sally must find a way to prevent her daughter from making a mistake that could destroy the lives of all who are left behind.Gorgeously written, with a pace that will leave readers breathless, Black Dog Summer introduces a brilliant new voice in fiction.

    After the 2nd, only the lucky escape. And after the 3rd, only the unlucky survive. After the 4th wave, only one rule applies: trust no one. Now, it's the dawn of the 5th wave, and on a lonely stretch of highway, Cassie runs from Them. The beings who only look human, who roam the countryside killing anyone they see. Who have scattered Earth's last survivors. To stay alone is to stay alive, Cassie believes, until she meets Evan Walker. Beguiling and mysterious, Evan Walker may be Cassie's only hope for rescuing her brother--or even saving herself. But Cassie must choose: between trust and despair, between defiance and surrender, between life and death. To give up or to get up. Begin Cassie's journey with 14 free sample chapters from The 5th Wave.

    Can he escape? From multi-award-winning Ellie Crowe and Scott Peters.16-year-old Josh is thrilled to be a crew member aboard the mighty USS Indianapolis. But when a Japanese torpedo strikes in the middle of the night, it tears the warship in half. Josh is thrown from the deck and plunged deep into the black ocean. In horror, he watches the massive vessel begin its death plunge, threatening to pull him down with it. Josh is no swimmer. He's a baseball player from San Antonio, Texas. He's way out of his element. Soon, hundreds of sharks begin to circle. He's living his worst nightmare, but for how long? Can he survive without a lifeboat, food or water in a sea of countless hungry sharks? Every hour is a fight because if he gives up, he'll never make it home. But does he have what it takes to survive? With no rescue team in sight, can Josh ever hope to escape?On July 30, 1945, the USS Indianapolis was torpedoed at 15 minutes past midnight. It sank in 12 minutes. The survivors spent four days fighting off the deadliest shark attacks in history.This is the 3rd children's book in the I Escaped Series about brave kids who face real-world challenges and find ways to escape. Sure to appeal to fans of books like I Survived by New York Times Bestseller Lauren Tarshis, stories about the Titanic, and readers of Alan Gratz.A study guide is available at bit.ly/sharkescapeAn adrenaline-charged tale of bravery and friendship during a terrible tragedy in American history.

    That is, until they show their teeth during class at the Academy.And then there are the hunters—the humans trying to uncover our secrets. I’m talking about Mason Fowler, my next-door neighbor with smoldering, brandy-colored eyes, who has taken a sudden interest in me.In a whirlwind of magical twists, I must learn to tell friend from foe, master my abilities before I lose them, and figure out how to hide my powers from Mason. Because revealing the truth could lead to war…No wonder they call me the harbinger of death.Newcomer is a young adult fantasy novel about a magical academy and the creatures it hides—the good, the bad and those in between. If you like complicated friendships, dark family secrets, and slow-burn romance, this story will pull you in and leave you wanting more.Step into a world of magical intrigue now!

    Problem is, Mom’s a seriously wicked witch.Cam’s used to stopping the witch’s crazy schemes for world domination. But when the witch summons a demon, he gets loose—and into Devon, the cute new boy at school.Now Cam’s suddenly got bigger problems than passing Algebra. Her friends are getting zombiefied. Their dragon is tired of hiding in the RV garage. For being a shy boy-band boy, Devon is sure kissing a bunch of girls. And a phoenix hidden in the school is going to explode on the night of the Halloween Dance.To stop the demon before he destroys Devon’s soul, Cam might have to try a spell of her own. But if she’s willing to work spells like the witch...will that mean she’s wicked too?

    Outlawed magic. A heist that’s about to change everything. In a near-future city shielded from the destructive elemental magic that rages through the wastelands, seventeen-year-old Ridley steals from the wealthy and secretly gives to those in need—which is far less of a crime than the other thing she spends her free time doing: using magic. When the stranger who follows her home after her latest heist ends up murdered in the alley behind her apartment, everything starts going wrong. Her best friend is accused of the crime, and the guy who set him up is someone Ridley would rather stay far away from. Archer Davenport is heir to the city’s largest fortune. He represents everything Ridley hates—and that was before he landed her best friend in prison. He’s also the guy she just stole from. Though Ridley would prefer to keep her distance, she’s about to find herself spending a whole lot more time with Archer. Because that ancient artifact she just stole? Turns out it could unlock secrets that will put many lives in danger. Now Ridley and Archer will have to put their differences aside in order to uncover their true enemy and keep that information from winding up in the wrong hands. A brand new urban fantasy series with a dystopian flavor!

    She has to adapt and make a home for her baby daughter and aging husband amidst boreholes, long drops and Aga stoves.She comes to terms with her neighbours, Joshua, a practising Sangoma, and Ben, a Jewish pig farmer; is educated in the ways of the Practical by her indomitable maid May; and comes of age through her determined efforts to create things of beauty amidst the khakibos - a lawn and poetry. She even restores the family fortune by engaging in a lucrative and uniquely South African venture.

    Now she serves them as Mami Wata--a mermaid--collecting the souls of those who die at sea and blessing their journeys back home.But when a living boy is thrown overboard, Simi goes against an ancient decree and does the unthinkable--she saves his life. And punishment awaits those who dare to defy the gods.To protect the other Mami Wata, Simi must journey to the Supreme Creator to make amends. But all is not as it seems. There's the boy she rescued, who knows more than he should. And something is shadowing Simi, something that would rather see her fail . . .Danger lurks at every turn, and as Simi draws closer, she must brave vengeful gods, treacherous lands, and legendary creatures. Because if she fails, she risks not only the fate of all Mami Wata, but also the world as she knows it.

    Traversing 2,500 miles of the toughest terrain on the planet in a twenty-five year-old Land Rover, they faced repeated challenges, from kleptocracy and fire ants to non-existent roads and intense suspicion from local people. Through imagination and teamwork -- including building rafts and bridges, conducting makeshift surgery in the jungle and playing tribal politics -- they got through. But the Congo is raw, and the journey took an unexpected psychological toll on them all. Crossing the Congo is an offbeat travelogue, a story of friendship and what it takes to complete a great journey against tremendous odds, and an intimate look into one of the world's least-developed and most fragile states, told with humor and sensitivity.

    If Lady Seraphina Camden doesn't find a suitable husband soon, her family risks that very fate. Until the day she meets the new stable hand.With someone out for his blood, Lysander Keswick, the Duke of Emberborough, is running for his life. Unable to recall who he is after suffering a nasty hit to the head, he finds work as a stable boy. A position that leaves him at the mercy of Lady Seraphina, the one lady he can never have.Torn between returning memories of hatred and the duty to their hearts, Seraphina's sudden disappearance comes as a woeful reminder: someone still wants Lysander in the grave. And the only clue to their salvation lies in a name that they both know but haven't heard of before...

    Can the children defeat the robbers in the Secret Forest?