In her deft hands, “relationships and mundane activities take on mythic qualities” (The Wall Street Journal).In this collection, Bender’s unique talents sparkle brilliantly in stories about people searching for connection through love, sex, and family—while navigating the often painful realities of their lives. A traumatic event unfolds when a girl with flowing hair of golden wheat appears in an apple orchard, where a group of people await her. A woman plays out a prostitution fantasy with her husband and finds she cannot go back to her old sex life. An ugly woman marries an ogre and struggles to decide if she should stay with him after he mistakenly eats their children. Two sisters travel deep into Malaysia, where one learns the art of mending tigers who have been ripped to shreds.In these deeply resonant stories—evocative, funny, beautiful, and sad—we see ourselves reflected as if in a funhouse mirror. Aimee Bender has once again proven herself to be among the most imaginative, exciting, and intelligent writers of our time.

    She’s diligent in her chores and has agreed to marry a man of their choosing. But a visit to Slava, the local tradesman, threatens to upend her entire life.Entering his empty house, Matrona discovers a strange collection of painted nesting dolls—one for every villager. Fascinated, she can’t resist the urge to open the doll with her father’s face. But when her father begins acting strangely, she realizes Slava’s dolls are much more than they seem.When he learns what she’s done, Slava seizes the opportunity to give Matrona stewardship over the dolls—whether she wants it or not. Forced to open one of her own dolls every three days, she falls deeper into the grim power of Slava’s creations. But nothing can prepare her for the profound secret hiding inside the fifth doll.

    Sure they’ll rest…when the killer is caught.After a long career as a police officer, Moira hopes a move to a luxury retirement community will mean she can finally leave the detective work to the youngsters and focus on a quieter life. But it turns out The Homestead is far from paradise. When she discovers the body of a young woman floating in one of the pools, surrounded by thousands of dollar bills, her crime-fighting instinct kicks back in and she joins up with fellow ex-cops—and new neighbours—Philip, Lizzie and Rick to investigate the murder.With the case officers dropping ball after ball, Moira and the gang take matters into their own hands, turning undercover homicide investigators. But the killer is desperate to destroy all the evidence and Moira, Philip, Lizzie and Rick soon find themselves getting in the way—of the murderer and the police.Just when they thought they could finally relax, they discover that someone has infiltrated their ‘safe’ community. Can they hunt down the murderer and get back to retiring in peace? And after all the excitement, will they want to?

    Nick Barnes and Morgan Elles learn that the man behind these organizations means to intentionally harm the global population, and he eliminates all opposition without hesitation or remorse.As they uncover proof of the unscrupulous plan, Nick and Morgan quickly find themselves fighting for their lives. They have to stay one step ahead of the security force ordered to terminate all original research. And them.Grab hold for a wild ride with this exciting, high concept story that tackles one of the biggest issues of our time. Winner – 2014 Chanticleer CLUE Thriller Award for International Intrigue/World Events.Finalist – 2015 Eric Hoffer Book Award Montaigne Medal for Thought-Provoking Books that Illuminate, Progress, and Redirect Thought.

    Arrogant, cold, but a brilliant soldier, FitzStephen commands a castle yet although his mother was a princess his father was a lowly steward. When a Welsh rebellion brings defeat and a crippling siege, his highborn comrades scorn him, betraying him to the enemy. A hostage of his cousin, Prince Rhys, FitzStephen is disgraced, seemingly doomed to a life of obscurity and shame.Then King Diarmait arrives ...Diarmait is the ambitious overlord of an Irish kingdom. Forced to flee by the High King of Ireland, he seeks to reclaim his lands by any means possible and that includes inviting the Normans in. With nothing left to lose and perhaps a great deal to gain FitzStephen agrees to lead the Irishman s armies, and to drive Diarmait s enemies from his kingdom. His price? Acceptance, perhaps ... or perhaps a kingdom of his own?

    Nor was seeing her in the headlines, fifteen years later, accused of burning her adoptive mother to death. For Dr Rebecca Carey, no longer a troubled teenager, but now a dedicated pediatrician, there was only one choice: Find out the truth about her child.

    It isn’t another war book. It is a book about people, and it contains the personal stories of 100 Vietnam Veterans who served there. Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marines, from the late 1950s to 1975 we served from the Delta to the DMZ, and from Thailand to Yankee Station in the South China Sea. Infantry grunts, truck drivers, medics, helicopter pilots, nurses, clerk typists, jet pilots, mechanics, staff officers, repairmen, artillerymen, B-52 bombardiers, MPs, and doctors, we were black, white, and Hispanic, male and female. We were only in our teens and early twenties, but our stories continue to resonate through the years. January 30 marks the 50th anniversary of the Tet Offensive, the seminal event of a war that dominated my generation and changed lives. Some of the men and women in this book are true war heroes. Most were just trying to survive. If you were there, you understand. If you weren’t, my hope is that through these stories you will. Breaking down the stereotypes, they tell who we were, the jobs we did, our memories of that time and place and how it changed us, and what we did after we came home.Over 58,200 of us paid the ultimate price, but the war didn’t end when the last US helicopter lifted off from the roof of the US Embassy in Saigon. It continues to take its ugly toll on many who did come home. Instead of bands and parades, we got PTSD and Agent Orange, diabetes, ischemic heart disease, neuropathy, leukemia, Hodgkin’s Disease, and prostate cancer, and many more. As they say, “Vietnam: the gift that keeps on giving.”

    Driven on by the discovery of a methane release that could alter the world's sea-level, with catastrophic consequences, they will stop at nothing to secure their wealth and fortunes. Will their actions help the world to preserve the remaining resources, or are their motives more sinister?Sergeant Kyle Gibbs is a disgruntled Scotsman, who after serving as an SAS team leader for a now disintegrating British Government, jumps at the opportunity to become a mercenary for this secret Billionaires Club. After a failed incursion into an oil-rich country, Gibbs, and his team are left at the mercy of the African Continent as they scramble to get back to England and find out which one of their paymasters set them up to fail.With the initial signs of climate change affecting London, they race through the poverty-stricken city streets, trying to expose the traitor.Book 1 in the Kyle Gibbs Series.

    Magical children will rule the Earth with their advanced intellectual and scientific powers. Two young people are betrothed at birth and forced by alien races to serve as the secret King and Queen of contemporary Earth: from the UK, Stefan, a seventh-grade artistic prodigy and from the US, Tova, a nineteen-year-old life sciences genius. Both were raised as humans and left to discover that they will become immortal at age nineteen. Using their emerging magic, they must protect the kingdom of Earth from unwanted alien intrusions. Shy, reclusive Stefan is ripped from his childhood and has eight weeks to learn to rule. Tova must do more than love Stefan - she must keep him sane or kill him to protect humans from his irrational use of his powers. In this first part of the four part serial storyline, Elof, an abused Tibetan-American science wizard must teach the magical children, Ty and Tyco, to use their talents ethically. Otherwise, Tova will destroy them to protect Earth. Ty, the mysterious, fearful third-grade son of a British Prime Ministerial aid, has an ancient knowledge given to him by 'ghosts'. Tyco, who is the fifth-grade son of a Mayan astronomer, must learn to keep his warrior impulses in check and protect his friend, Ty, from harm. While teaching these kids, Elof reconciles his own childhood with his sociopathic father. Does he have a magical inheritance he has yet to discover? Far grittier than Harry Potter, this story is an intellectual puzzle of mysteries and surprises for readers ready to meet the challenge. The HC Edition is a large format book with 24 Full Color illustrations enhanced by the author and color text effects. Some illustrations appear differently than in the softcover. The print is also slightly bigger than the softcover editions with better layout and other enhancements.

    Some of the details in this fictional penning are true. Some of the details are exaggerated and are simply the work of the author's imagination. What is clearly evidenced in this novel is the coldness of a mother's heart and the madness of her cruelty. The mind cannot comprehend lives the children depicted here were forced to endure: from black punishment closets of hell, kitchen tables used for crudely performed operations, to a high sierra execution by fire. The terror is real. The pain is vicariously felt. Unbelievable? Yes, it is unbelievable that such depravity, such MAMA'S MADNESS exists in our world. Accept the embellishments with the truth.Let this novel be a 'silent siren' to be ever alert in your environment - children and adults alike!

    Breeze is left in the care of a strange old Tinkerer, where she soon learns that the world is not as simple -or as safe- as anyone would like it to be. With a little help from the Tinkerman and his amazing discoveries, Breeze just might be able to change her world for the better. Unfortunately, peace is never easy and war always looms just over the horizon.What reviewers say:Five Stars - "WOW... This book drew me in instantaneously... beautifully written and wholly captivating." -Semisweet Book BlogFour Stars - "captivating... Sedgwick beautifully creates this other world that as a reader you totally get into." -Goodreads reviewerFive Stars - "...a beautifully written book with an intriguing plot and a loveable main character. This is certainly one that I will reread!" -Goodreads reviewerFive Stars: "...an incredible, adventurous read!" Amazon Review

    When did eating become so fussy? It’s enough to make you throw your hands in the air--and then right inside the fridge for some pie.Eating healthy nowadays really just means eating clean, or choosing whole foods sourced from the earth with the least processing and fewest possible ingredients that sound like hair dye. Eating clean is not about counting calories or grams of carbs, or getting tricked by “health food” imposters, so you won’t find any of that here. Real food is the science-backed way to good health and a better body.Yet eating clean day after day isn’t so easy. That’s why the editors at Prevention created Eat Clean, Stay Lean--your easy-to-use, visual guidebook to better health, delicious food, and a slimmer you. Learn how to make 50 smarter choices in the supermarket and 150 cleaner, fast meals at home, all of which can help you lose weight while you enjoy real food that tastes great--and it even includes real pie.