Patterson (No Safe Place) deftly combines his knack for spellbinding legal drama and his recent interest in the world of politics. Stella Marz is the assistant county prosecutor in a struggling Midwestern city. Her boss is running for mayor， and Stella hopes to be elected to his job. First， however， she must investigate the deaths of two prominent menAthe project manager for the construction of a new baseball stadium and the city s leading defender of drug cases. Neither is clearly murder， but the circumstances are horrific and unusual， involving heroin and kinky sex. Stella s investigation quickly becomes a factor in the mayoral race， and the candidates， their backers， and other ambitious county employees all play roles in Stella s progress. The deeper she goes， the more signs of corruption she finds， and the less she can trust her friends， her co-workers， and even herself. As in all of Patterson s books， the plot s twists and turns build to an unexpected conclusion. Patterson has peopled this very believable novel with fascinating characters， and his understanding of political subtleties is superb. Highly recommended. [Literary Guild main selection.]AKatherine E.A. Sorci， IIT Research Inst.， Annapolis， M.-AKatherine E.A. Sorci， IIT Research Inst.， Annapolis， MDCopyright 1999 Reed Business Information， Inc.

Erotica/Romance. 21281 words long. First published in 2007, 2007

Heidi and Felicia had been roommates for a while when they started to wonder if they even needed men anymore. So they decided to head on down to the adult store and grab some toys that would take care of the only thing they were missing. As it turned out, there was absolutely no need for men whatsoever. Adults only. 18

The Chosen Five-wielders of elemental magic-have defeated their betrayers and are returning to the city behind a legion of their followers. Tamrissa, fierce lady of Fire; Rion, noble lord of Air; Vallant, brave captain of Water; Lorand, clever master of Earth; and Jovvi, passionate sorceress of Spirit have so far successfully met the challenges set by those who would prevent the Five from their rightful throne. But the struggle is not over yet. Still barring their way are the sinister usurping Five, an invading army and a peasant rebellion. The battle has never been more desperate, nor the stakes so high. But nothing can stop the forces of Fire, Air, Water, Earth and Spirit when they unite behind the greatest power of all the power of Destiny.Review"An acknowledged master of fantasy adventure." -- Rave Reviews"Engaging, imaginative...a wonderful new fantasy series." -- Publishers WeeklyAbout the AuthorSharon Green is the author of more than two dozen novels, including the five books of her tremendously popular series, The Blending. She lives in Tennessee.

In a country mansion converted to adult educational courses, Mr Utamaro is lecturing on Zen Buddhism to a small and not entirely appreciative audience. But Zen questions and their seemingly quirkish answers predominate, until they are superseded by two of greater urgency: 'Who stole the wakizashi?' and 'Who killed Flaveen Mills?' H. R. F. Keating provides the solution in the same brilliantly humorous vein which won him so many admirers with his first novel, Death and the Visiting Firemen.

In a particularly difficult case of alleged child abuse, Trish knows that the jury’s decision hinges on the persuasive testimony of her friend and star witness, Kara Huggate. When Kara doesn’t appear at the trial, Trish realizes that something must have gone terribly wrong. She returns to her chambers after court to find the police waiting for her with some horrifying news: Kara has been brutally raped and murdered. At first it seems as though her attacker was the Kinsford Rapist – a serial rapist and killer who has managed to elude the police. Then several inexplicable clues indicate that the murderer may have been a copycat. Trish receives a letter from Kara, posted the night of her death, asking her to help a suspicious man named Blair Collons. Although Trish decides to help him out of loyalty and affection for her friend, she cannot understand why Kara cared so much for the paranoid and strangely obsessive Blair. Soon Trish finds herself mired in his unhappy story, with potentially devastating consequences.

"Going round the world" is an idea that has excited people ever since it was realized that the earth was a sphere. The appeal has something to do with encompassing all the known environment and exploring the unknown, not only on the surface of the planet but within the spirit of the explorer. The story of circumnavigation is thus a long saga of human adventure, travel and discovery. Beginning with the fateful day in 1521 when Ferdinand Magellan was speared to death on Mactan and Juan de Elcano took up the challenge of bringing his surviving companions home, the story continues through four centuries crammed with astonishing exploits by men and women of many nations. Some of the names that feature are well-known, others less so.

“The living haunt the dead . . .” These fifteen genre-bending stories are set against a backdrop of sudden violence and profound regret, populated by characters whose circumstances and longings drive them to the point of no return . . . and sometimes even further. A young girl takes a journey to see what is really hidden within the belly of an ancient water tower. A high school senior learns about defiance on a school bus and witnesses a tragedy that he won’t soon forget. Six survivors in an underground bunker discuss the possibility of Armageddon being an elaborate hoax. A man stumbles from bed to drive a bus down lonely roads, collecting passengers who’ve lost their way in the night-shrouded heartland of America. And in the title story, a former train conductor must confront the ghosts of his past while learning that it’s not the dead who haunt the living, but the other way around. Traversing the back roads of the south and beyond, these stories probe the boundaries of imagination, taking the reader to the fringes of a society where the world looks different, and once you visit, you won’t ever be the same.