This powerful testimony tells the rest of the story of its heroine, the singing nun who became the famed Baroness Maria von Trapp.

    Although she has elevated herself into the white collar class, she continues to live alone in the dangerous Bronx neighborhood of her childhood. As the play begins, Marisol narrowly escapes a vicious attack by a golf-club-wielding madman while traveling home on the subway. Later that evening Marisol is visited by her guardian angel, who informs her that she can no longer serve as Marisol's protector because she has been called to join the revolution already in progress against an old and senile God who is dying and "taking the rest of the universe with him." The war in heaven spills over into New York City, reducing it to a smoldering urban wasteland where giant fires send noxious smoke to darken the skies, where the moon has not been seen in months, where the food has been turned to salt, and where water no longer seeks its level. Alone, without her protector, Marisol begins a nightmare journey into this new war zone. She finds herself on the streets, homeless, where her many encounters include a woman beaten for exceeding her credit limit and a homeless burn victim in a wheelchair looking for his lost skin. With the apocalypse well under way, the angels have traded in their wings for Uzis and wear leather motorcycle jackets and fatigues. As the action builds to a crescendo, the masses of homeless and displaced people join the angels in the war to save the universe.

    Farland curses the King's firstborn to die if touched by sunlight, and just like that, Julianna must spend her life in the depths of a castle dungeon (emptied of prisoners and redecorated in the latest fashion, of course). A young woman of infinite resourcefulness, all she needs is a serving spoon, a loose rock in the wall, and eight years of digging, and Julianna is free to explore the city—just not while the sun is out!

    And the next day the bones of a young woman are found deep in the surrounding forests. Terror courses through the hearts of the villagers, along with something else...relief. An attack such as this is not uncommon in Noor.The Shriker, a massive beast of unimaginable strength and rage, has roamed the dark woods for nearly three hundred years, savaging those unfortunate enough to encounter him. The people of Noor have lived in fear for so long that most have forgotten that the Shriker was once a loyal dog until the day his master betrayed and cursed him, condemning him to life as a monster. But Miles and Hanna Ferrell have never forgotten where the Shriker came from -- how could they? It was, after all, their ancestor who betrayed the dog.

    A fast-paced, gritty, space-opera based on cutting edge science, perfect for fans of Peter F Hamilton and Alastair Reynolds.Roboteer is a hard-SF novel set in a future in which the colonization of the stars has turned out to be anything but easy, and civilization on Earth has collapsed under the pressure of relentless mutual terrorism.

     Michael Todd is the lead pastor of Transformation Church in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and author of Relationship Goals, a candid, inspiring guide to finding lasting love by getting real about your relationships. He speaks at a variety of influential churches, events, and conferences each year, including Elevation Church, C3 Conference, Lakewood Church, VOUS Conference, Relentless Church, XO Conference, and many others. This new, never-before-published message represents one of his most dynamic, engaging, and transformational concepts to date. Michael shares with his readers the keys they need to live into this invitation.

    Part Fast Food Nation, part Bobos in Paradise, Starbucked combines investigative heft with witty cultural observation in telling the story of how the coffeehouse movement changed our everyday lives, from our evolving neighborhoods and workplaces to the ways we shop, socialize, and self-medicate.In Starbucked, Taylor Clark provides an objective, meticulously reported look at the volatile issues like gentrification and fair trade that distress activists and coffee zealots alike. Through a cast of characters that includes coffee-wild hippies, business sharks, slackers, Hollywood trendsetters and more, Starbucked explores how America transformed into a nation of coffee gourmets in only a few years, how Starbucks manipulates psyches and social habits to snare loyal customers, and why many of the things we think we know about the coffee commodity chain are false.

    The story is available for free on Karen Chance's website.

     In the past few years, mindfulness and other approaches to self-awareness have begun to transform the American workplace. But while it is increasingly widely accepted in the business world that the most direct route to success lies in adopting practices that actively promote a leader’s self-awareness, social skill, and emotional intelligence, the best and most efficient path to developing a more conscious workforce often remains unclear. The 9 Types of Leadership provides a pathway to greater self-awareness and social skillfulness. It will help you orient yourself when you get caught up in people problems that you don’t know how to work your way out of. By providing extremely detailed and accurate descriptions of nine recognizable personalities, The 9 Types of Leadership is an unmatched tool for business people to use to decode the mysteries involved in understanding why people do what they do, why we have conflicts with some people but not others and how we can become aware of our blind spots. Most importantly, it can help leaders know themselves in a deeper way so they can more effectively lead others.

    Reprint.

    Here's advice not based on saving your relationship after infidelity -- but saving your sanity. When it comes to cheating, a lot of the attention is focused on cheaters -- their unmet needs or their challenges with monogamy. But Tracy Schorn (aka Chump Lady) lampoons such blameshifting and puts the focus squarely on the-cheated-upon (chumps) and their needs. Combining solid advice that champions self-respect, along with hilarious cartoons satirizing the pomposity of cheaters, Leave a Cheater, Gain a Life offers a fresh voice for chumps who want (and need) a new message about infidelity. This book will offer advice on Stupid sh*t cheaters say and how to respond, Rookie mistakes of the recently chumped and how to disarm your fears, Why chumps take the blame and how to protect yourself, and more. Full of snark, sass, and real wisdom about how to bounce back after the gut blow of betrayal, Schorn is the friend who guides you through this nightmare and gives you hope for a better life ahead.

    Wrapped only in a sealskin, the baby girl looks up at Effie and instantly captures her heart. She meant only to temporarily foster the young orphan, but when news reaches Effie that her husband has been lost at sea, and months pass without anyone claiming the infant, she embraces her new family—her son, Jack, and her adopted daughter, Morna.Effie has always been an outcast in her village, the only granddaughter of a woman people whisper is a witch, so she's used to a solitary existence. But when Midsummer arrives, so, too, does a man claiming to be Morna's father. There's no denying Lachlan is the girl's kin, and so, Effie is surprised when he asks her to continue looking after his daughter, mysteriously refusing to explain why. She agrees, but when he returns six months hence, she pushes him for answers. And Lachlan tells a story she never anticipated... one of selkies, legend, and the power of the sea...

    Born in the deep as a princess with fins and gills, she was hidden among the humans, so her father - a corrupt sea king - could not use her to his advantage, or worse, destroy her in order to keep his position as ruler of a kingdom in the North Atlantic.A mysterious visit from a crystal-eyed stranger, along with the onset of startling abilities brings Meri to a realization that her life is in for a drastic change. Expectations are high and duties aren't taken lightly in the Deep. Thankfully, Meri's true form knows exactly what's expected of it. With the guidance of her mentor and his unmatched 'charm', and a few others along the way, Meri will have to make some tough decisions. Will she fulfill her dream of becoming a small town veterinarian or give it all up to save a world and a lifestyle she remembers nothing about? Is there someone she's destined to be with after all? Will her deadly fear of water be a problem?

    Frank Baum's world of Oz has become one of the most enduring and beloved creations in children's literature. It has influenced numerous prominent writers and intellectuals, and become a lasting part of the culture itself. L. Frank Baum was born in 1856 in upstate New York, the seventh child of a very successful barrel-maker and later oil producer. However, Baum's own career path was a rocky one. Beginning as an actor, Baum tried working as a traveling salesman, the editor of a small town newspaper and the publisher of a trade journal on retailing, failing to distinguish himself in any occupation. His careers either failed to provide a sufficient living for his beloved wife Maud and their children or were so exhausting as to be debilitating. In the 1890's, L. Frank Baum took the advice of his mother-in-law, suffragist leader Matilda Gage, and turned his attention to trying to sell the stories he'd been telling to his sons and their friends. After a few children's books published with varying success, he published The Wonderful Wizard of Oz in 1900 and it quickly became a bestseller and has remained so ever since.In this first full-length adult biography of Baum, Rogers discusses some of the aspects that made his work unique and has likely contributed to Oz's long-lasting appeal, including Baum's early support of feminism and how it was reflected in his characters, his interest in Theosophy and how it took form in his books, and the celebration in his stories of traditional American values. Grounding his imaginative creations, particularly in his fourteen Oz books, in the reality of his day, Katharine M. Rogers explores the fascinating life and influences of America's greatest writer for children.

    Baby on board! Jessica Drew is a private investigator, a super hero and...a mom to be? Since we last saw her, Spider-Woman's got a whole new responsibility- she's super heroing for two now, after all! Ben Urich and Porcupine are still along for the adventure, too, and aren't making Jess' life any easier- half the time they won't even let her leave the car! How's a gal supposed to save innocent people and keep herself out of harm's way? See how in the mother of all Spider-Stories!