What no one predicted was the sudden message that appeared before every living soul moments before impact, a message from 'The Administrators' revealing our entire world and everything in it to be a species simulation. According to the message, Humanity had been reset over a million times and every single time we could not prevent our own extinction. No more resets for humanity. No more chances. They would leave our world an irradiated disaster, but to keep things interesting, they would convert our species simulation to a game for their twisted entertainment. Digital or not, real or not, I have a family to protect. A wife and daughter who need me, universe be damned. I say bring it on. Welcome to the end of the world.  Welcome to The Great Filter.

    This revealing collection of interviews tells the story of his 30-year career in his own words. Including his debauched years with the Birthday Party, the global success of the Bad Seeds and their ragged gospel-rock, Cave's addictions and artistry, and the roots of the barbed gothic romanticism that suffuses his lyrics. Displaying provocative intelligence and enigmatic vision, Cave offers valuable insight into the risks and gains of surrendering oneself to the rock’n’roll myth.

    This biography, written by his close spiritual disciple Elder Isaac and universally recognized as the most authoritative account of his life, has been reprinted numerous times in numerous languages. The life and virtues of the elder are exhaustively and accurately sketched in profound simplicity, revealing the spiritual brilliance which shone forth from his heart, enveloping on all who drew near. In part one, we are led step by step through the development of a contemporary saint: from his origins in Cappadocia and early spiritual zeal, through his monastic beginnings in the monastery and ascetic struggles on Athos and Sinai, to his outpouring of spiritual consolation to his fellow man and his blessed repose in the Lord. In part two, we are presented with the full spectrum of his spiritual personality: his virtues, way of life, spiritual gifts, self-offering and teaching. The life of Elder Paisios of Mount Athos resembles a garden adorned with countless flowers in bloom, radiant and colourful, beautiful to the eyes of man's spiritual heart, letting off an otherworldly aroma of holiness. The reader is invited to enter into his life and words, to "lay aside all earthly cares", to see life from the divine perspective, to understand the mystery of the Gospel by standing under, submitting and entrusting oneself to experience and wisdom this God-bearing Holy Father.

     "Move over Twilight! Here comes Aaron Patterson!" --Joshua Graham, bestselling author of Beyond Justice and Darkroom "I was surprised by how much I really, really liked this book. I have not jumped on the whole "fallen angel" bandwagon, just as I didn't jump on all of the vampire stories that came out after Twilight. This is not your typical fallen angel story. It is one that has left me breathlessly waiting for the next one in the series. Hurry up please!!!" --Sandra Stiles *This box set is the complete series. It includes all the Airel Saga books 1-6. PRODUCT DESCRIPTION: AIREL, The Awakening Book 1 All Airel wanted was to be normal... She seems like an average 17-year-old in the anonymous little city of Boise, Idaho: Airel. But those untroubled days are soon to end, and the change she undergoes will be so radical she will wonder if it wasn't all an illusion to begin with. Pursued ferociously, relentlessly by an ancient enemy in the deepest darkness, now she will have to learn how to fight for her life. And all because of who she is, because of her lineage. Because of this she will never have what she wants most: she will never be normal. AIREL, The Discovering Book 2 All Airel wanted was to be normal... How will Airel manage now that everything's changed? She thinks she might be falling in love, though Michael Alexander isn't her type. But those eyes. Why does she want what she can't have? Why does she fall for the one thing she knows she shouldn't allow herself to feel? A killer stalks her movements. She needs someone she can trust. But will her trust be betrayed? And if so, will her love survive? MICHAEL, The Curse Book 3 All Michael wanted was to be free... Appearances can be deceptive: Michael. Choices made in ignorance still have consequences. Michael bought the lie, now he wants the truth. But people who live on beaches shouldn't build castles made of sand. As they flee for their lives, as the authorities hunt them down, will Michael be able to keep Airel safe, or even alive? Will he have what it takes, and can he be man enough for his love? MICHAEL, The Mark Book 4 All Michael wanted was to be free... But it turns out freedom isn't cheap, and it isn't easy. Michael will have to make hard decisions now. The chase for truth will take them from Oregon to Africa, on a journey fraught with peril at every step. There's something about Airel's friend Kim, too; something's not right with her. And who is this brash latecomer, Ellie? Is it admiration he feels for her, or is it something else? Whom can he trust? More importantly, can he trust himself? URIEL, The Inheritance Book 5 All Uriel wanted was to be loved... When heroes start to tell lies, even to themselves: Uriel. She's spent thousands of years fighting against her destiny, fighting against her bereaved father, against El Himself. "It's just one letter, but it's my letter, father..." What happened in Cape Town is going to have consequences for everyone she knows and loves, even though they all make efforts to plug back into their routine at home. She can't help wondering when the bill for all she's done is finally going to come due.

    Dottie Manderson stumbles upon the body of a dying man in a deserted night-time street. As she waits for help to arrive, she holds the man’s hand and tries to get him to tell her what happened. But with his last breaths he sings to her some lines from a popular stage show. But why, Dottie wonders? Why would he sing to her instead of sending a final message to his loved ones? Why didn’t he name his attacker? Dottie needs to know the answers to these questions and so, even though a particular, very annoying, young policeman is investigating the case officially, she feels compelled to carry out her own investigation into the mysterious death. Introducing a new 1930s female sleuth in a traditional, cozy mystery series set in London between the two world wars, from Caron Allan, the writer of Criss Cross, Cross Check and Check Mate, a diary-based murder not-so-mysterious trilogy set in contemporary Britain. Extract from Night and Day: a Dottie Manderson mystery: If she hurried, she shouldn’t get too wet. She had been hopelessly optimistic when she told the cabby the rain had stopped. It hadn’t. Dottie drew her fur coat more tightly around her and held onto her hat, now not much more than a bit of limp lace and ribbon. But almost her first step took her an inch deep into a puddle and she couldn’t help but give a little yelp at how cold the water was, and the shock of it. ‘Blast it,’ she grumbled, and leaning against a nearby gate-post, she shook the worst of the water from her silver sandals. Almost new, too, she thought ruefully, and almost certainly ruined. At least her dress hadn’t seemed to suffer too badly. She hitched the skirt of it up a little higher and continued her short but eventful journey. A sound came to her ears. A soft shushing sort of sound but almost melodic. She paused a moment. Listened. Her eyes, growing accustomed to the darkness, made out a shape on the pavement not ten yards ahead. Her heart gave an odd lurch, as if a cold hand gripped it. ‘Idiot,’ she muttered, and forced herself to keep going. She really shouldn’t read gothic novels late at night, it made her jumpy. No doubt all she would find were the pages of a newspaper all spread about by the wind, and made to look odd by the streetlamp behind her creating shadows. The sound came again. A little louder, a little more insistent. It sounded almost like… There was someone—a man—lying on the pavement. She felt a little shimmer of fear. Could it be a drunk? Perhaps she ought to step into the road, walk round him very carefully, keeping her distance… The head moved very slightly. His face was a pale oval in the dim lamplight. And she saw that the lips moved too. It was him making that odd noise. So it was a drunk, after all. He was singing to himself in a soft sibilant whisper. Her ear caught the rough melody of it, and even then, just as she saw the blood on his shirt-front, one part of her mind was saying, I know that song. She forgot her fears and ran to his side. ‘What happened? Are you all right?’ she asked, then berated herself for asking such a stupid question. Because it was all too obvious he was not all right. She knelt beside him and put out a hand to take his groping one. He was quite young, though older than her own nineteen years of age. But no more than perhaps his early thirties. Fairish hair, slightly receding, and dark from the rain. One of those moustaches that were all the rage at the moment. Blue eyes, very blue like a child’s, wide and astonished-looking. From his smart evening dress, he was clearly well-to-do, although she didn’t recognise him. But the blood—oh the blood.

    His conversations with the great scholars, kings, and mystics of the day form the basis of “Teachings of Lord Caitanya,” which is is an easy-to-read single-volume summary of Lord Caitanya's teachings in the beautiful and poetic 9-volume Sri Caitanya-caritamrta (ISBN: 0947259066).

    The Transformed Mind is a collection of talks he gave at a Tibetan Buddhist centre in Delhi during the 1990s. The history of Tibetan Buddhism is covered in a useful Introduction by Lama Thubten Zopa Rinpoche; in the transcribed talks the Dalai Lama explores many of its teachings. "The essence of Buddhist conduct and philosophy is non-violence and the theory of interdependence respectively." Non-violence has two directives: "If you can, help and serve other sentient beings; if you cannot, then at least do not harm others." Spiritual development, he says, comes from having "a good and compassionate heart [which] automatically brings inner strength and allows for less fear and less doubt." This isn't restricted to Buddhism; he has a great respect for believers in other religious traditions, and longs for greater harmony between religions. A refreshing honesty runs throughout this book, and also a delightful humour. When asked, "What is the best method to stop the population growth?" his response is "More monks and more nuns, of course! I call it non-violent birth control." One of the simplest and most useful pieces of advice in the book is that every morning we should create positive feelings by thinking, "I must have a meaningful day." Unlike his earlier book Ancient Wisdom, Modern World, this one is clearly primarily for followers of Buddhism. However, the warmth of the Dalai Lama's approach means that, though his style is sometimes discursive, his teachings are quite accessible by non-Buddhists. --David V Barrett

    So why does she end up—once again—focusing her lens on murder?Callie Cassidy is no stranger to dead bodies. Two decades as a photojournalist on a big-city newspaper landed her face to face with so many of them that her colleagues dubbed her Queen of the Dead. Now, Callie believes her days of hanging out with cadavers are behind her. With her lovable golden retriever Woody in tow, she has returned in disgrace to Rock Creek Village, Colorado, where she licks her wounds in a cabin on her parents’ Rocky Mountain ski resort property. But when her mother persuades her to abandon her fetal position beneath the quilts and take a photography gig at the Snowflake Swirl winter ball, Callie’s foray back into the real world lands her smack in the middle of town drama.Before the first partygoer arrives, Callie stumbles across a deadly scene. A former classmate, one of the “mean girls” from high school, lies lifeless on her office floor. Another woman from Callie’s past crouches above the body, holding a bloody letter opener. The conclusion is obvious—at least to rookie detective Raul Sanchez. But Callie believes there’s more to the picture. With the help of an adopted stray cat named Carl, whose investigative skills may rival her own, Callie sets out to find the real murderer. Because unless she, her pets, and a quirky group of villagers can solve the mystery, Callie’s photos won’t be the only thing being framed.

    Gibran's mysticism, evident here as in all his works, reveals an intense preoccupation with the spiritual and visionary.

    To make the final cut for The Best of Cooking Light, each recipe had to meet one or more of the following criteria: • Earned a high rating in the Cooking Light Test Kitchens • Has a surprising and satisfying “no-way-this-can-be-light” flavor • Named a “reader favorite recipe” based on calls, letters, e-mails, and comments on cookinglight.com • Voted “most popular” among the Cooking Light Foods staff—these are the recipes they cook for their families and friends You’re guaranteed success with every recipe! Each recipe has been tested at least twice, often three or four times, in the Cooking Light Test Kitchens to ensure that not only are they supremely healthy, tasty, and easy to prepare, but that they also have the all-important “yum factor.”  “Our Test Kitchens’ staff does the hard work every day so the rest of us can take Cooking Light accuracy for granted.” Mary Kay Culpepper Editor, Cooking Light  Over 250 color photographs make this all-star collection come alive. A virtual feast for the eyes, this book is as beautiful to read and display, as it is practical to use. Look for serving suggestions and artful food presentations throughout to show you how to turn an ordinary dish into an extraordinary meal. This healthy cookbook is for all cooks and for all occasions. While some recipes take very little time, others require a bit more commitment. Eitherway, you’ll have your choice of great food that adjusts to your schedule, your grocery list, and your mood. Plus, • Step-by-step instructions and complete nutritional analysis with each recipe • Preparation and make-ahead tips • Menu suggestions• Ingredient substitutions and purchasing information Whatever your definition of “best” is, there are recipes here for you. Just step into your kitchen and make them your own.

    I killed myself.”Having destroyed his life, the suicidal T. Rimberg strikes out on a journey through history and geography. From Minneapolis to Europe to a fiery accident near Green Bay, he searches for a father who is likely dead, digs for meaning where he’s sure there is none, fires off suicide letters to family, celebrities, presidents, and football stars, and lands in a hospital bed across from a priest who believes that Rimberg has caused a miracle. This funny, moving novel asks us to consider the nature of second chances and the unexpected form that grace sometimes takes.

    Virtually unknown and only published in pulp magazines before he died in poverty, he is now regarded as one of the most significant 20th-century authors in his genre. Lovecraft was born in Providence, Rhode Island, where he spent most of his life. Among his most celebrated tales is "The Call of Cthulhu", canonical to the Cthulhu Mythos. Never able to support himself from earnings as author and editor, Lovecraft saw commercial success increasingly elude him in this latter period, partly because he lacked the confidence and drive to promote himself. He subsisted in progressively straitened circumstances in his last years; an inheritance was completely spent by the time he died at the age of 46.

    As a result he was detained in solitary confinement, tortured by sleep deprivation and eventually blown up by a car bomb which cost him his right arm and the sight of an eye. His experiences provoked an outpouring of creative thought on the role of law as a protector of human dignity in the modern world, and a lifelong commitment to seeing a new era of justice established in South Africa.After playing an important part in drafting South Africa's post-apartheid Constitution, he was appointed by Nelson Mandela to be a member of the country's first Constitutional Court. Over the course of his fifteen year term on the Court he has grappled with the major issues confronting modern South Africa, and the challenges posed to the fledgling democracy as it sought to overcome the injustices of the apartheid regime.As his term on the Court approaches its end, Sachs here conveys in intimate fashion what it has been like to be a judge in these unique circumstances, how his extraordinary life has influenced his approach to the cases before him, and his views on the nature of justice and its achievement through law.The book provides unique access to an insider's perspective on modern South Africa, and a rare glimpse into the working of a judicial mind. By juxtaposing life experiences and extracts from judgments, Sachs enables the reader to see the complex and surprising ways in which legal culture transforms subjective experience into objectively reasoned decisions. With rare candour he tells of the difficulties he has when preparing a judgment, of how every judgment is a lie. Rejecting purely formal notions of the judicial role he shows how both reason and passion (concern for protecting human dignity) are required for law to work in the service of justice.

    But it was his award-winning and controversial role as Ennis Del Mar in Brokeback Mountain that cemented Ledger’s place in the pantheon of acting greats. He was one of the youngest actors to ever to be nominated for an Oscar, and it was on the set of Brokeback that he fell in love with his costar Michelle Williams, with whom he had a daughter in 2005. With the world at his feet and a star role in the new Batman movie—The Dark Knight—in the can, there was worldwide shock and disbelief following his sudden death in his New York apartment on January 22, 2008. Prescription drugs—found next to his body—were thought to be the cause, but mystery surrounded the circumstances. Was it an accidental death? Or were the pressures of life in the spotlight too great to bear? This is the tragic story of the brilliant actor whose light shone so brightly, but all too briefly, upon the world.

    John Gould has updated and westernized the form of the palm-of-the-hand story, invented eighty years ago by Yasunari Kawabata, who wanted a way to write a fiction writer’s poetry. In spare, elegant prose, Gould crafts quirky gems, compact fusions of humor and pathos. At the center of this multifaceted collection is a vision of human beings as paradoxical creatures, finite and haunted by infinite longings. In story after story, Gould locates the fulcrum on which a life tilts from kilter to off-kilter and back again. “There are big ideas in these small packages. . . . Kilter, at once quiet and terribly ambitious, funny and moving, is a keeper.”—The Globe and Mail