They are all sincere; they all had a story to tell and they attempted to share their experience to the best of their ability. They each have unique aspects even though they share some similarities. Some of these stories will likely resonate and encourage and inspire you. Some may be difficult to relate to or to understand; if that is the case, I would suggest you skip that particular story for the time being and move on to the next one.Perhaps the afterlife is revealed to us in such a way that allows each of us to understand and comprehend the process of passing in a way that we can accept. The uniqueness of each experience may be in part due to the individual; their ability to take in the awesomeness of such an event may be reflected in their memory of the event.In any case, these incidents are presented to the reader in the hopes that they will encourage and inspire; my hope is that you will find, as I did, a common theme within these experiences which seem to reflect the powerful love of God towards humanity, towards each one of us.

    Brooding. Impossibly intimidating.He also happens to be my boyfriend's best friend...and my best friend's boyfriend.They say fate has a twisted way of bringing people into your life. I just didn't count on it to come in the form of a jarring betrayal. Despite my best efforts, I find myself getting drawn to the emotionally unavailable boy who carries the weight of the world on his shoulders.I don't expect to fall fast. I never expect to fall hard.But that's the thing about fate—it always gets its way.

    Fikry. A comprehensive guide to Zevin's wonderful celebration of the world of literature, this book includes useful literary context; a full plot summary, discussion of themes and symbols; character notes; 15 thought-provoking discussion questions; recommended further reading and a quick quiz. **Amazon Reviews for the Reading Room Book Group Notes:** "Belong to a small book club and we had our liveliest, best discussion ever over this book." (Jeanne McCloskey) "I would definitely recommend it to other book groups." (Book Addict) "Insightful and made the discussion easy to begin." (C. Childress) "I'm in a book club that read this and it was SO helpful!" (AvidReaderAllGenres) The Reading Room Book Group Guides are designed to help you get the absolute best from your book club meetings. An invaluable reference tool, they provide a wealth of useful information on your chosen novel. *THIS BOOK IS A COMPANION GUIDE, DESIGNED TO BE READ IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE ORIGINAL NOVEL. PLEASE BE AWARE, IT DOES NOT CONTAIN THE ORIGINAL TEXT OF THE NOVEL.*

    With a mother addicted to crack, Kendrik's parents argued constantly, leading him to sneak off to Chellise's house and seek refuge sleeping on her bedroom floor. Although Chellise's parents forbid her to spend time with Kendrik, in her bedroom in the middle of the night, they secretly built a strong friendship. After Kendrik's mother and supplier are murdered by his father, Kendrik pleads guilty to the crime in an effort to save his father, thinking he'll only be charged as a juvenile. Fifteen years later, Chellise is living a dream. She is engaged to Mulah, one of the sexiest businessmen in the area, and life with him can’t get any better. But Mulah is keeping a dark secret that could shake Chellise’s entire world. He has a 7-year-old son with his best friend's sister, Kaletha. Mulah and Kaletha have told everyone else that he belongs to Kaletha's drug dealing boyfriend, and up until now it hasn’t been questioned. But now, Kaletha’s boyfriend has been given a life sentence for murder, causing Kaletha to pressure Mulah to step into his rightful role as father to their son. Kendrik, now grown, has taken to the streets to make his way through life in light of his troubled past. When his team arranges a job, he finds that the very house he is robbing belongs to his childhood friend, Chellise, who he hasn't seen in years. Unable to go on with his life without reconnecting with her, he finally runs into her and all of the feelings, he thought were lost over the years, return. The only problem he has is Gianna, his crazy, pregnant girlfriend who has shown she is not above slashing a tire, setting things on fire or even fighting it out in the streets to keep him in her grasp. In the midst of all the drama, secrets and betrayal, Kendrik and Chellise find themselves rekindling more than just a friendship when they start spending time together. Although Chellise wants to remain loyal to her fiancé, she can't help but be caught up by Kendrik's rough, abrasive and rugged nature. Will she be able to put a cap on her feelings before it's too late?

    One day while at home relaxing with his great pal Doug, a Golden Retriever, the two were shocked when cats won the contest for best pet of the year. To Spike and Doug, cats are lazy and mean creatures that only think about themselves. After learning this, Spike thought of a way to make the humans change their minds and redo that poll.After surveying the animals in the city and learning that all the animals were outraged at the results, Spike told them of his plan for his group to help the humans around the city until they see that they were the best animals and not the cats. However, when the cats learned of Spike’s team’s intentions, they went straight into action. These animals would not take that title from the cats, especially not a dog!In “The Fight for Best Pet,” Spike along with his friends, Doug the Golden Retriever, Tweet the yellow Warbler, Charlee the Hamster, and the other various animals, attempt to show the humans that they’re the best. However, the cats do not plan to go down without a fight, and they will do anything to keep their title, even if it means turning their enemies into dog food.

     Macy Elmsworth has found herself in a mess. The 18 year old pastor’s daughter got in trouble with the law, nearly died, and in the process, damaged her relationship with her family. She now needs to fulfill community service hours. As a last resort, she moves in with her grandparents, where they need a housekeeper at the small motel they own. Feeling broken and defeated, Macy counts down the days her community service hours are over. Until she meets others at the motel. People a lot like her. People with questionable pasts and bleak futures. As friendships are forged, Macy begins to come out of her shell and help her new friends. It is through these new relationships that she begins to repair the broken relationship with her family. But her past isn’t about to go away, and Macy is going to have to turn to God for the complete restoration she needs.

    Good tool for intellectual grooming.

    Addictive personalities are similar. If a person breaks an addiction, they then have to find something else to transfer their energy towards. With Ashlon's help, Devin has made major strides to change his life in order to be a better man. He gives up alcohol and drug addiction, but is now facing the toughest battles he's ever had to face: forgiveness and gambling. Coming from the streets, he only understood that penalties existed for those who offended him. But you can't walk with God and carry the work of the devil, and how can you ask for forgiveness from God when you yourself can't forgive those that have hurt you? Some people saw gambling as a harmless venture, they saw a gambler win big or lose big, but never saw the psychological side effects to winning and losing money at such a rapid pace. Devin gets the wake-up call of a life time, forcing him to embark on a dramatic journey towards finding and getting to know God on a level that he'd never known him before. A deep, emotional love story that is sure to make you feel every single emotion that exists.The sequel to the best-selling love story, "Broken Crayons Still Color" is a passionate drama that wins readers over one page at a time. One of the most important stories of the year with over 1,000 Amazon customer reviews in 5 months, this is a must-read for fans of powerful award-winning stories as well as members of Oprah's Book Club.

    He watched his father ascend the ranks within the academy to become one of the most respected warriors in the kingdom. The only thing he has ever wanted is to become an academy student and follow the path of his father. Unfortunately, only the best can enter the academy and Justan is a horrible fighter. Everyone tells him that he is more suited to scholarly work than swordplay. In desperation he hurls himself into training, eager to overcome the doubters and walk into the academy triumphant, unaware that secretive powers plot to disrupt his plans. Meanwhile, an evil wizard of immense power is using magic to twist the bodies of the creatures of the land and transform them into monsters. With these creatures and the peoples of the wilds, he is building an army . . . Ogres and dragons, warriors and wizards are destined to clash, their fates guided by The Bowl of Souls.

    But Max Leonard, himself an accomplished amateur cyclist, does not forget the pain, the glory, the sweat, and the tears that go into these grueling climbs.  After all, cycling up a mountain is hard.  So hard that, to many, it can seem absurd. But for others, climbing a mountain gracefully (and beating your competitors up the slope) represents the pinnacle of cycling achievement. It is where legends are forged.Many books tell you where the mountains are, or how long and how high. None of them ask why. Why are mountain ranges professional cycling’s Coliseum? Why do amateurs also make pilgrimages to these high, remote roads? Why are the roads even there in the first place to lure us on to these obsession inducing climbs?   Just why are mountains so enthralling? “This is real cycling, where the glory is and where dreams come true,” according to Bradley Wiggins. Mountains are where cycling's greatest heroes have made their names. Every amateur rider wishes they could climb better, too.  Are all these people addicted to the pain? To the achievement? Or to the allure of the peaks? Some spend their weekends and holidays cycling up mountains from start to finish. But how does a rider push themselves beyond their limits to get up a 10% gradient on pedal power alone? What is happening when they do?A Higher Calling explores the central place of mountains in the folklore of road cycling. Blending adventure and travel writing with the rich narrative of racing, Max Leonard takes the reader from the battles that created the Alpine roads to the shepherds tending their flocks on the peaks, and to a Grand Tour climax on the “highest road in Europe.” And he tells stories of courage and sacrifice, war and love, obsession and even elephants, along the way.

    Artemis Fowl, the main character, is a ruthless and extremely intelligent young (human) criminal whose main goal is the acquisition of money through a variety of often illegal schemes. There are many settings in the series, including Siberia, Chicago, Taiwan, Morocco, France and various places in Ireland. One main setting that has been in all the books is the Lower Elements. The author has described the series as "Die Hard with fairies." There are six novels in the series so far; the first was published in 2001 and the sixth released in the United States on 15 July 2008. A film based on the series is also in development, although most details are unclear. The series has sold over 18 million copies as of June 2008.

    Intelligent, well-educated, perfectly isolated in his lofty rank, responsibilities, and privilege of the divine Imperial Dynasty. He's the most powerful boy on Atlantis and he's going into the real world for the very first time. . . .Now just another student in Fleet Cadet School, Aeson must learn everything normal people take for granted—including the basics of how to look after himself, how to interact with others his age, how to laugh, and how to make friends.As if that wasn't enough to boggle the mind of a confident but shy boy who's never had a real conversation with anyone but his mother, Aeson has one more lesson ahead . . . what it's like to fall in love.Get inside Aeson's mind and learn his story from the inside out as he forms the bonds that will change him forever—with Elikara, Xelio, Oalla, Keruvat, Erita, and other favorite Atlantean characters, long before they took to the stars as astra daimon! AESON: BLUE is the first in The Atlantis Grail Novella Series.

    It makes you wonder what is REALLY out there?" -- Reader, Beverly (on Campfire 4) *Each of the first four books in the Campfire series has reached #1 Best Seller status on the Kindle Supernatural rankings on Amazon. FREE Audio Download with Purchase On this special audio Campfire, Jim replays his 5 favorite stories as told by the actual experiencers! Get the exclusive link with your purchase of True Ghost Stories: Campfire 5!

    

    A musical genius with more money than I could spend, and more women than I could I sleep with. I had everything I wanted, except what I needed. Until I met you. You were a simple girl from a very different world. But we had something in common. We were both lonely, in desperate need of a connection. When a random encounter brought us together, a spark ignited that changed our lives forever. You became my lover, my wife, the mother of my child… You became my greatest joy… And my greatest heartbreak. This is the story of our love. This is the story of our sacrifice. Ozlo and Priya Grey, the bestselling authors of Healing Melody, weave a timeless, erotic love story that spans decades into the future. Love’s Composure will tug at your heartstrings while you contemplate love’s greater purpose. Enjoy this inspirational and scintillating tale, intended for mature adults only.