A classic thriller from the bestselling master of action and suspense. The atomic submarine Dolphin has impossible orders: to sail beneath the ice-floes of the Arctic Ocean to locate and rescue the men of weather-station Zebra, gutted by fire and drifting with the ice-pack somewhere north of the Arctic Circle. But the orders do not say what the Dolphin will find if she succeeds – that the fire at Ice Station Zebra was sabotage, and that one of the survivors is a killer…

Shortlisted for the Orange Prize for Fiction. Hilarious and sinister, ‘Beyond Black’ is a tale of dark secrets and secret forces in suburban England. Alison Hart is a medium by trade: dead people talk to her, and she talks back. With her flat-eyed, flint-hearted sidekick, Colette, she tours the dormitory towns of London's orbital road, passing on messages from dead ancestors: 'Granny says she likes your new kitchen units.' Alison's ability to communicate with spirits is a torment rather than a gift. Behind her plump, smiling and bland public persona is a desperate woman. She knows that the next life holds terrors that she must conceal from her clients. Her days and nights are haunted by the men she knew in her childhood, the thugs and petty criminals who preyed upon her hopeless, addled mother, Emmie. They infiltrate her house, her body and her soul; the more she tries to be rid of them, the stronger and nastier they become. ‘Beyond Black’ is a witty and deeply sinister story of dark secrets and forces, set in an England that jumps at its own shadow, a country whose banal self-absorption is shot through by fear of the engulfing dark.

The nightmare continues… Vampire War Trilogy comprising: Hunters of the Dusk, Allies of the Night and Killers of the Dawn. Join Darren Shan’s descent into the darkness. HUNTERS OF THE DUSK Darren Shan leaves Vampire Mountain on a life or death mission. Darren scours the world in search of the Vampaneze Lord, bu the road ahead is lined with the bodies of the damned. ALLIES OF THE NIGHT Darren Shan faces his worst nightmare yet – school! But bodies are piling up and the past is catching up with the hunters fast! KILLERS OF THE DAWN Darren Shan becomes public enemy Number One. As the vampires prepare for deadly confrontation, is this the end for Darren and his allies?

Assembled here for the first time in book form are the very best of several decades' worth of occasional writings from perhaps the best-loved and most-admired of Britain's great female writers. A selection of the very best of Doris Lessing's essays, never before collected together and published in book form. Articles on writers as diverse as Jane Austen, Muriel Spark, Virginia Woolf, D.H. Lawrence, Mikael Bulgakov sit alongside autobiographical looks at the beliefs that have shaped Lessing's thinking. There are adoring and adorable pieces on the beloved cats that she has allowed to share her life, and insightful looks at the Africa in which she grew up, and London and England, the place where she made her home. The range of subjects, cultures and periods within these essays is huge but the collection is utterly consistent in one key regard: Doris Lessing's clear-eyed vision and clearly-expressed prose are present throughout. There is a huge amount of wisdom and entertainment in these pages, and fans of Doris' infectiously forthright, zestful and impish spirit will love to own and read this book.

«Paris James has come to Las Vegas to take the sting off turning the dreaded «Three-O». But one glass of bubbly leads to another — and when the redhead wakes up the next morning, she finds to her astonishment she's in bed with ... Elvis! The good news is it's the young, sexy Elvis. The bad news is there's a diamond ring on her finger. Sometime during the evening she actually married The King of Rock 'n' Roll! Well, what happened in Vegas better stay in Vegas, right? But not if Turner Pruitt has anything to say about it. Because years before he put on his first pair of blue suede shoes, Turner knew the real Paris ... She's running away, as usual, but he knows her deepest secrets, and as much as she struggles against love, Paris is going to need him by her side as she faces her demons head-on. Because this time, Paris James has met her match.»

Fire alone can save our clan... Fireheart's traitorous enemy Tigerclaw has been vanquished and exiled from ThunderClan—but Fireheart can't shake the feeling that he's lurking out there in the forest, waiting for the chance to strike. That's not the only problem facing the young ThunderClan deputy in these blazing summer months, as he struggles to handle ominous omens, a disrespectful apprentice with a shocking secret, and a devastated Clan leader who is a shell of her former self. Meanwhile the forest gets hotter and hotter...and everyone braces for the coming storm...

ShadowClan has a dark new leader, but will he be satisfied with his power now — or does his desire for revenge burn even more strongly? Fireheart fears that there is a connection between the rise of Tigerstar and the terrible dreams that haunt his nights, murmuring of danger and death. Meanwhile, a mysterious and vicious threat unlike any other has invaded the forest, placing every cat's life in peril. Fireheart's beloved leader has turned her back on their warrior ancestors, and Fireheart can't help but wonder if she's right. Has StarClan abandoned them forever?

«ThunderClan's darkest hour is upon them, as Tigerstar's quest for power plunges all the Clans into the most terrible danger any cat has ever faced. In order to save his Clan and his friends, Fireheart must uncover the meaning of an ominous proclamation from StarClan: «Four will become two. Lion and tiger will meet in battle, and blood will rule the forest.» The time has come for prophecies to unfold, and for heroes to rise ...»

«The international bestselling author of «Kisscut» and «Blindsighted» shows off her superb talent with this brilliantly conceived, skillfully executed tale of a suspenseful hostage situation.»

It's a tough life for witch Rachel Morgan, sexy, independent bounty hunter, prowling the darkest shadows of downtown Cincinnati for criminal creatures of the night. She can handle the leather-clad vamps and even tangle with a cunning demon or two. But a serial killer who feeds on the experts in the most dangerous kind of black magic is definitely pressing the limits. Confronting an ancient, implacable evil is more than just child's play — and this time, Rachel will be lucky to escape with her very soul.

Rachel Morgan's back! Bestselling author Kim Harrison returns with a new supernatural adventure that fans of Laurell K. Hamilton and Charlaine Harris won't want to miss. Some days, you just can't win. Witch and former bounty hunter Rachel Morgan's managed to escape her corrupt company, survive living with a vampire, start her own runner service, and face down a vampire master. But her vampire roommate Ivy is off the wagon, her human boyfriend Nick is out of town indefinitely and doesn't sound like he's coming back while the far-too-seductive vampire Kisten is looking way too tempting, and there's a turf war erupting in Cincinnati's underworld. And there's a greater evil still. To put the vampire master behind bars and save her family, Rachel made a desperate bargain and now there's hell to pay—literally. For if Rachel cannot stop him, the archdemon Algaliarept will pull her into the sorcerous ever-after to forfeit her soul as his slave. Forever.

«Throughout the centuries, royal mistresses have been worshiped, feared, envied, and reviled. They set the fashions, encouraged the arts, and, in some cases, ruled nations. Eleanor Herman's «Sex with Kings» takes us into the throne rooms and bedrooms of Europe's most powerful monarchs. Alive with flamboyant characters, outrageous humor, and stirring poignancy, this glittering tale of passion and politics chronicles five hundred years of scintillating women and the kings who loved them. Curiously, the main function of a royal mistress was not to provide the king with sex but with companionship. Forced to marry repulsive foreign princesses, kings sought solace with women of their own choice. And what women they were! From Madame de Pompadour, the famous mistress of Louis XV, who kept her position for nineteen years despite her frigidity, to modern-day Camilla Parker-Bowles, who usurped none other than the glamorous Diana, Princess of Wales. The successful royal mistress made herself irreplaceable. She was ready to converse gaily with him when she was tired, make love until all hours when she was ill, and cater to his every whim. Wearing a mask of beaming delight over any and all discomforts, she was never to be exhausted, complaining, or grief-stricken. True, financial rewards for services rendered were of royal proportions — some royal mistresses earned up to $200 million in titles, pensions, jewels, and palaces. Some kings allowed their mistresses to exercise unlimited political power. But for all its grandeur, a royal court was a scorpion's nest of insatiable greed, unquenchable lust, and vicious ambition. Hundreds of beautiful women vied to unseat the royal mistress. Many would suffer the slings and arrows of negative public opinion, some met with tragic ends and were pensioned off to make room for younger women. But the royal mistress often had the last laugh, as she lived well and richly off the fruits of her «sins». From the dawn of time, power has been a mighty aphrodisiac. With diaries, personal letters, and diplomatic dispatches, Eleanor Herman's trailblazing research reveals the dynamics of sex and power, rivalry and revenge, at the most brilliant courts of Europe. Wickedly witty and endlessly entertaining, «Sex with Kings» is a chapter of women's history that has remained unwritten — until now.»

«The Reign of Terror has washed the streets of France blood-red. And in England a terrified aristocracy awaits the next blow. Secure in their wealth and power, the noble Lazenders remain safe from history's violent storm behind the walls of their opulent «little kingdom». But theirs is a house under siege. With the family's heir, Toby Lazender, away in revolution-torn France hunting the brutal murderers of the woman he loved, a secret cabal of powerful and dangerous assassins—the Fallen Angels—conspires to bring the chaos to England's shores by seizing the vast resources of Lazen Castle. And only one obstacle stands in their way: Toby's sister, Lady Campion Lazender. Caught in an ever-tightening net of conspiracy, Campion sees treachery all around her—even as she follows a mysterious horseman into a realm of fascination and desire. And in the clashing of nations—as traitors, spies, and their masters move furtively through the night—Campion's heart could be leading her to destruction... by the hand of one she trusts above all.»

Rarely does adolescent love reach its full potential, but what happens when two young lovers reunite after eleven years? Time has transformed Pilar into a strong and independent woman, while her devoted childhood friend has grown into a handsome and charismatic spiritual leader. She has learned well how to bury her feelings... and he turned to religion as a refuge from his raging inner conflicts. Now they are together once again, embarking on a journey fraught with difficulties, as long-buried demons of blame and resentment resurface after more than a decade. But in a small village in the French Pyrenees, by the waters of the River Piedra, a most special relationship will be reexamined in the dazzling light of life's biggest questions.

They were young, popular, the perfect couple — an all-American boy and a beautiful cheerleader. But the youthful passion that led them to Lookout Point that terrible evening would prove fatal. For Richie Walters the end came swiftly, as death descended upon him in a savage orgy of horrific violence. Elaine Murray would live long enough to learn just how lucky her boyfriend had been ... Two brutal slayings have rocked a stunned city. But the murders are merely the nightmare's beginning, flinging open a terrifying Pandora's box of sordid secrets and dark revelations more deadly than the bloodlust that lives in the rock-hard heart of a killer.

So what if he's a bit older and usually regards a human female as dinner, not a dinner date? Yes, Roman Draganesti is a vampire, but a vampire who lost one of his fangs sinking his teeth into something he shouldn't have. Now he has one night to find a dentist before his natural healing abilities close the wound, leaving him a lop–sided eater for all eternity. Things aren't going well for Shanna Whelan either...After witnessing a gruesome murder by the Russian mafia, she's next on their hit list. And her career as a dentist appears to be on a downward spiral because she's afraid of blood. When Roman rescues her from an assassination attempt, she wonders if she's found the one man who can keep her alive. Though the attraction between them is immediate and hot, can Shanna conquer her fear of blood to fix Roman's fang? And if she does, what will prevent Roman from using his fangs on her...

«Meet Californian Téa Caruso... her mother drives her crazy, her sisters give «advice». She has a family just like any other, except for one tiny difference... Her grandfather isn't just in the mob... he is the mob! And no one knows this better than Johnny Magee. The Caruso family destroyed his dad. Now, it's payback time—and he's going to need an unsuspecting insider... one who won't realize what he's really after. Téa loves her family but hates what they do. She's tried to stay far away from her notorious relatives, making a legit name for herself as an interior designer. But her grandfather Cosimo's gala 80th birthday is coming up. Every mobbed-up member of the family from San Francisco to Sarasota will be there—and it's time for Téa to face the family or face the consequences. Intent on using Téa for revenge, Johnny hires her to redo his home, but then she makes him «offers» he can't refuse. Soon he's falling in love with the enemy and when all the secrets are revealed, what will Téa do... and even worse, what will her family?»

With the help of letters her husband left her before he died, and a little nudging from an eccentric assortment of family and friends, a young widow learns to laugh, overcome her fears, and discover the world.

For more than sixty years, the imagination of Ray Bradbury has opened doors into remarkable places, ushering us across unexplored territories of the heart and mind while leading us inexorably toward a profound understanding of ourselves and the universe we inhabit. In this landmark volume, America's preeminent storyteller offers us one hundred treasures from a lifetime of words and ideas. The stories within these pages were chosen by Bradbury himself, and span a career that blossomed in the pulp magazines of the early 1940s and continues to flourish in the new millennium. Here are representatives of the legendary author's finest works of short fiction, including many that have not been republished for decades, all forever fresh and vital, evocative and immensely entertaining.

A few nights after Jessica Day arrives in Bixby, Oklahoma, she wakes up at midnight to find the entire world frozen, except for her and a few others who call themselves 'midnighters'. Dark things haunt this midnight hour — dark things with a mysterious interest in Jessica. The question is...why? The Secret Hour is a compelling tale of dark secrets, midnight romance, eerie creatures, courage, destiny, and unexpected peril.