But beware! Surprises lurk at the turn of every page. . . .Discover a time line of ALIEN LIFE on earth--beginning 4 billion years ago! Meet a man recruited by the U.S. government to become a PSYCHIC SUPERSPY. Spend a dark and stormy night with professional GHOSTBUSTERS. Visit a mysterious library in search of DRACULA's shocking origins. Witness new photos of the actual sea monster that inspired the mythical KRAKEN. And much more!

    The adventures of those splendid fellows Bunyip Bluegum, Bill Barnacle and Sam Sawnoff, the penguin bold, and of course their amazing, everlasting and very cantankerous Puddin'.

    Join the League. . . .   Anastasia is a completely average almost-eleven-year-old. That is, UNTIL her parents die in a tragic vacuum-cleaner accident. UNTIL she’s rescued by two long-lost great-aunties. And UNTIL she’s taken to their delightful and, er, “authentic” Victorian home, St. Agony’s Asylum for the Criminally Insane.But something strange is going on at the asylum. Anastasia soon begins to suspect that her aunties are not who they say they are. So when she meets Ollie and Quentin, two mysterious brothers, the three join together to plot their great escape!

     London 1880 A dying Irish girl clutching her new-born baby drags herself to the sanctuary of an East End orphanage and throws herself on the mercy of the Sisters of Clemency. The nuns raise little Ettie O’Reilly as their own and provide her with the love and education she might never have had. But the lives of the nuns and orphans are soon crushed by a powerful and greedy bishop. The heart-breaking outcome separates Ettie from her friends and family, luring her into a world of male dominance and the fickle nature of intimate relationships. In her naivety, with her faith in the goodness of human nature severely tested, she doesn’t know who to trust. And when the boy who has promised his undying love and loyalty betrays her, Ettie’s world starts to crumble. She must finally accept the hard-hitting truth - happiness comes at a cost! Does she have the courage and wisdom to face the demons she long ago learned about from the Sisters of Clemency? Will the resolution of an undiscovered and painful secret be her making - or breaking? ’A gripping page turner' - LEAH FLEMING 'Surely one of the best saga writers of her time' – ROSIE CLARKE 'Brings the East End to life - family loyalties, warring characters and broken dreams. Superb' - ELIZABETH GILL 'Carol Rivers has captured the true spirit and resilient characters of East London' - JEAN FULLERTON What readers are saying about Carol Rivers’ books: 5***** star Amazon reviews Beautiful, page by page … Carol Rivers is a new author to me and I will certainly be reading more of her books. I would like to extend my thanks to her for a terrific read. I love nothing more than to curl up with a nice cup of hot chocolate and a book by my favourite author. Keep up the good work Carol. One amazing author - Carol Rivers is number 1 xxxxx Was so much more than I expected, I didn't want to put the book down! Really would like a sequel to this. The author has a wonderful talent for conveying an authentic sense of time and place, and creating realistic characters. I became so immersed in this fantastic read. Thank you Carol Rivers for always providing the perfect read that keeps you gripped throughout and your imagination alight. The queen of sagas has done it again! Omg what a brilliant read! Been waiting for this! Another fabulous story by the equally fabulous Carol Rivers. Whether you are new to sagas or have read them for many years (like me), you will never be disappointed reading one of Carol's books. They are utterly addictive and beautifully written, leaving you with a mixture of emotions. You will be laughing one minute and crying the next, my description of a brilliant saga writer. I've read all Carol's books now, sometimes twice. I have never been disappointed What an amazing book, such a great read.

    Keeping the secrets hasn’t been a problem, until a tarot reading with his best friend, Liam Montgomery, who happens to be one of his secrets, starts a chain of events that can’t be undone.Dark magic runs through Ryder’s veins. The cards have prophesized a magical catastrophe that could shake the foundation of Ryder’s life, and a vicious partnership with the one person he doesn’t want to risk.Magic and secrets both come at a cost, and Ryder must figure out what he’s willing to pay to become who he truly is.CONTENT WARNINGS:Blood-letting (consumption of blood)Explicit Sexual ContentDeath and Resurrection of an MCMild Gore (very mild)

    When it flew overhead, it left in its wake desolate cold and frozen land. But Adara was not afraid. For Adara was a winter child, born during the worst freeze that anyone, even the Old Ones, could remember. Adara could not remember the first time she had seen the ice dragon. It seemed that it had always been in her life, glimpsed from afar as she played in the frigid snow long after the other children had fled the cold. In her fourth year she touched it, and in her fifth year she rode upon its broad, chilled back for the first time. Then, in her seventh year, on a calm summer day, fiery dragons from the North swooped down upon the peaceful farm that was Adara's home. And only a winter child--and the ice dragon who loved her--could save her world from utter destruction. "The Ice Dragon" marks the highly anticipated children's book debut of George R.R. Martin, the award-winning author of the "New York Times" best-selling series A Song of Ice and Fire and is set in the same world. Illustrated with lush, exquisitely detailed pencil drawings by acclaimed artist Yvonne Gilbert, "The Ice Dragon" is an unforgettable tale of courage, love, and sacrifice by one of the most honored fantasists of all time.

    Then she sees the most spectacular sight – a pair of wings, enormous in size, made of the softest snow-white feathers imaginable. An angel in her bedroom … a SNOW angel! He tells her that he is here to look after her, for Sylvie is not as well as she seems... Many months later, as Sylvie recovers from her illness, she longs to see her snow angel again. He saved her life! There is so much she wants to tell him, so much she wants to know! Will he ever come back to her? And how can Sylvie make sure that everyone she loves has their own snow angel, to keep them safe, too?

    Then she will finally be declared a true haunt huntress, worthy to follow in the footsteps of her long line of female ancestors.But when Evangeline and her grandmother are called to New Orleans to resolve an unusual case, she uncovers a secret that will shake her to the soles of her silver-tipped alligator-skin boots.Set in the evocative Louisiana bayou and the vibrant streets of New Orleans, Evangeline’s is a tale of loyalty and determination, the powerful bonds of friendship and family, and the courage to trust your gut no matter how terrifying that might be.

    Summer swims move over for autumn sweaters until the snow comes back again. In Julie Fogliano's skilled hand and illustrated by Julie Morstad's charming pictures, the seasons come to life in this gorgeous and comprehensive book of poetry.

    And no one knows that better than Ebenezer Tweezer, who has stayed beautiful for 511 years. How, you may wonder? Ebenezer simply has to feed the beast in the attic of his mansion. In return for meals of performing monkeys, statues of Winston Churchill, and the occasional cactus, Ebenezer gets potions that keep him young and beautiful, as well as other presents.But the beast grows ever greedier with each meal, and one day he announces that he’d like to eat a nice, juicy child next. Ebenezer has never done anything quite this terrible to hold onto his wonderful life. Still, he finds the absolutely snottiest, naughtiest, and most frankly unpleasant child he can and prepares to feed her to the beast.The child, Bethany, may just be more than Ebenezer bargained for. She’s certainly a really rather rude houseguest, but Ebenezer still finds himself wishing she didn’t have to be gobbled up after all. Could it be Bethany is less meal-worthy and more…friend-worthy?

    Left with a talking raven and a scruffy dog for company, a magical tower that has a mind of its own and a book of instruction called Everything You Need to Know, what could possibly go wrong? With an assortment of weird and wonderful neighbours banging at the door and a box of volatile magical ingredients that must be used immediately, Elsie finds out that looking after Magenta's home might not be as easy as she first thought ... does she have what it takes to be a witch for a week or will it all end in a magical disaster?  A new magical adventure from Kaye Umansky, the bestselling author of the spellbinding children's classic Pongwiffy, brought to life with charming illustrations from rising star Ashley King!

    Every day, Goblin and Skeleton play with the treasure in their dungeon. But one day, a gang of "heroic" adventurers bursts in. These marauders trash the place, steal all the treasure, and make off with Skeleton—leaving Goblin all alone!It's up to Goblin to save the day. But first he's going to have to leave the dungeon and find out how the rest of the world feels about goblins.

    But his wife must be a witch of the darkest powers . . .A sorcery competition is held to discover which witch is the most potent and fiendish, and glamorous Madame Olympia conjures up a thousand plague-bearing rats Belladonna, the white witch, desperately wants to be a wicked enchantress, but her magic produces flowers instead of snakes. How can she become more devilish than all the other witches?

    Frank Baum's magical character conjures a world where diminutive munchkins live and work, wicked witches run riot, and the mighty Oz himself rules over an Emerald City reached by a yellow brick road. The Wizard of Oz: The First Five Novels is your passport to this marvelous realm and wonders that have enchanted readers young and old for more than a century. Lavishly illustrated by W. W. Denslow and John R. Neill, this volume includes:The Wonderful Wizard of OzThe Marvelous Land of OzOzma of OzDorothy and the Wizard in OzThe Road to OzThe Wizard of Oz: The First Five Novels is one of Barnes & Noble's Collectible Editions classics. Each volume features authoritative texts by the world's greatest authors in an exquisitely designed bonded-leather binding, with distinctive gilt edging and a silk-ribbon bookmark. Decorative, durable, and collectible, these books offer hours of pleasure to readers young and old and are an indispensable cornerstone for every home library.

    But if it helps you to know your Greek gods, and survive an encounter with them if they ever show up in your face, then I guess writing all this down will be my good deed for the week." So begins Percy Jackson's Greek Gods, in which the son of Poseidon adds his own magic--and sarcastic asides--to the classics. He explains how the world was created, then gives readers his personal take on a who's who of ancients, from Apollo to Zeus. Percy does not hold back. "If you like horror shows, blood baths, lying, stealing, backstabbing, and cannibalism, then read on, because it definitely was a Golden Age for all that." Dramatic full-color illustrations throughout by Caldecott Honoree John Rocco make this volume--a must for home, library, and classroom shelves--as stunning as it is entertaining.