From agaves to ice plants and sedums to sempervivums, hardy succulents can bring color, texture, and versatility to perennial flower beds in any climate. This comprehensive guide offers clear growing instructions accompanied by vivid photography of these durable and beautiful plants. With tips on choosing the right varieties for every North American hardiness zone, you can enjoy all the quirky vibrancy of succulents wherever you live.

    But photography has surely changed during these many decades. The rigs and gear of old have given way-first slowly, then all at once-to sleek miracle machines that process pixels and have made the darkroom obsolete. The casual photog puts eye to lens, sets everything on auto and captures a photograph that is . . . perfectly fine. One of LIFE's master shooters-in fact, the final in the long line of distinguished LIFE staff photographers-was Joe McNally, and he has always believed that with a little preparation and care, with a dash of enthusiasm and daring added to the equation, anyone can make a better photo-anyone can turn a "keeper" into a treasure. This was true in days of yore, and it's true in the digital age. Your marvelous new camera, fresh from its box, can indeed perform splendid feats. Joe explains in this book how to take best advantage of what it was designed to do, and also when it is wise to outthink your camera or push your camera-to go for the gold, to create that indelible family memory that you will have blown up as large as the technology will allow, and that will hang on the wall forevermore. As the storied LIFE photographer and photo editor John Loengard points out in his eloquent foreword to this volume, there are cameras and there are cameras, and they've always been able to do tricks. And then there is photography. Other guides may give you the one, two, three of producing a reasonably well exposed shot, but Joe McNally and the editors of LIFE can give you that, and then can show you how to make a picture. In a detailed, friendly, conversational, anecdotal, sometimes rollicking way, that's what they do in these pages. Prepare to click.

    A relaxing vacation to Scotland turns deadly when a chance encounter with a ghostly highland warrior leads to murder. When Emily witnesses a murder no one else can see, she learns she possesses an extraordinary ability allowing her to interact with the dead. WITH A GHOSTLY HIGHLAND WARRIOR Lord Colin Campbell prowls the streets of Edinburgh, a barren shell, eviscerating those who prey on humanity. No longer believing in love, unable to trust, Colin is rocked to the core when fate intervenes. UNLEASHES A DEADLY CURSE AND A CHANCE AT ETERNAL LOVE... Unwittingly drawn into Shadow when she saves Colin, a terrible curse is unleashed. Now with only a week to break the curse, time is running out. Locked in a deadly fight with forces that will stop at nothing to destroy her before she succeeds, Emily must find the key. Intensely romantic and thrilling, Lost in Shadow portrays the struggle between redemption, retribution and the desire to find a love that transcends time. If you enjoy persnickety gods, supernatural creatures and ghosts with the ability to manifest physical bodies, then Lost in Shadow is for you. This is the first book in the series though they all may be read stand alone.

    It soon becomes apparent that the murder, the method and the appearance of the victim, is something they have seen before.With the help of Medical Examiner George Waller, DI Watton uncovers the case history of Michael Richards – a local murderer who killed five women before turning himself in.Further investigations reveal that Jenni was recently reported missing by her parents. And when Jenni’s personal effects are explored, shocking discoveries are made about the victim’s fascination with the original killings.However, when the ME makes a surprise discovery, DI Watton realises that Jenni was perhaps not the only local with a fixation on these infamous killings.With a copycat killer on the loose, the team know it is only a matter of time before another body is discovered. But when a second victim is found, the team find themselves questioning everything they thought they knew… C.S. Barnes is also the author of the critically-acclaimed author of the psychological thriller, Intention. Copycat is a gripping new detective mystery which will appeal to fans of authors like Angela Marsons and Helen H. Durrant.

    Marshal, he’s a cranky veteran detective, together they'll make one hell of a team in the sweltering, mosquito-filled swamps of Florida. Skylar Reid has spent her entire career hunting down fugitives as part of the country’s most elite task force. After losing her fiancé in a tragedy six-months prior, it sent her world into a spin and caused her superiors to slam the brakes on. Now with the big city in the rearview mirror, and the quiet Panhandle town of Carrabelle in her sights, Skylar takes a position as an investigator for the local sheriff's office and partners with an aging detective. Within days, Skylar is at odds with the powers at be when the dead body of the chief medical examiner is pulled from a mosquito-filled swamp and deemed a suicide, but she's not convinced. Though quick to dismiss her as a loose cannon, her partner soon agrees when the investigation takes a dangerous turn in a new direction. But can she prove it was murder? Everyone thinks the sunshine state is beautiful. What if it's not?

    The brilliant and uproarious #15 bestseller (i.e., a runaway phenomenon in its own right-no, seriously) - a lavish compendium of handy reference tables, fascinating trivia, and sage wisdom - all of it completely unresearched, completely undocumented and (presumably) completely untrue, fabricated by the illuminating, prodigious imagination of John Hodgman, certifiable genius.

    His first beat was the New Orleans French Quarter, on foot. He met business owners and learned street scams from the best con-artist. Mario befriended Lucinda Jones who picked up a nick name of Voodoo Lucy later in the True Blue Detective Series. The first day she met Mario she had something to offer the undercover cop. She soon found herself looking down the barrel of a gun by a local thug that liked beating on woman. Lucy left Tupelo Mississippi with her mother Wanda to escape an abusive father who beat on her mother sometimes just because it was a Tuesday—he didn’t need a reason. It was risky for Lucy to take on an abusive woman beater drug dealer but that was Lucy. With her new found police officer friend they set up their own con to put this thug behind bars. This story is a prequel, taking place immediately before the events in the first book of the, True Blue Detective series. This story is filled with action, drama, mystery, relationships, and crime. It’s a front-row seat to see New Orleans from a cop’s perspective: cruising the streets, dealing with injustice, while also visiting local businesses to interact with the interesting people in this unique, historic city.