I try to see him among a migrating flock—he will take the loneliness of my room on his long journey; each whistling note he makes will be a little of my sadness falling over the ocean, to be swallowed in the clash of waves and the commotion of many birds flying. "Tell me the truth," demands fifteen-year-old Megumi Shimizu as her mother hurriedly packs. But her mother refuses to admit that she is leaving forever—leaving her husband to his mistress, her home to her silent, resentful mother-in-law, her daughter to survive, if she can. Angry at everyone's polite lies, Megumi realizes that she has a secret of her own: Even though she goes to church, to Bible study class, and to the Christian Girls' Academy, she no longer believes in God. Only Dr. Mizutani, the "spinster lady" veterinarian, tells the truth, and she warns that single birds without their mothers often die. In a coming-of-age novel about mothers and daughters, about best friends,...

"This is far from over." After being the target of a mob hit intended for his twin brother, Joe Saldana had settled in to his trauma-free life in Copper Lake. But when his brother's girlfriend, Liz Dalton, entered the coffee shop looking for his twin, Joe found his new life suddenly unraveling. The threat still existed – and so did the white-hot attraction between Joe and Liz. A U.S. Marshal, Liz had taken precautions to ensure her pretend boyfriend's safety. Now that he had escaped protective custody, she had to find him and bring him in to testify. She didn't count on needing Joe's help, on deceiving him yet again. She could only count on wanting him despite all the reasons she shouldn't…

An anonymous phone call reveals a horrifying secret. But can it be murder if there isn't a body?Father Joseph Kümmel is not just a deeply religious and spiritual man. He's the leader of a closed religious community at Hilltop Farm — one which kills members who want to leave.When someone manages to get messages to DCI Jack Culverhouse and DS Wendy Knight about the goings-on at Hilltop Farm, they begin to uncover a web of dark deception and murderous intent. With a distinct lack of evidence and a community distrustful of the police, they're left fighting against the odds.The stakes are raised when their attempts to charge Father Joseph are blocked by higher powers. Will they be able to uncover the truth in time to stop his plans for a far more sinister fate for the residents of Hilltop Farm?

The planet Grayson is strategically placed to make a very good ally for the Kingdom of Manticore and so Honor Harrington is sent to carry the flag. However, women on Grayson have no rights. Then Grayson is attacked by its sister planet.

Bertie is just the king's foolish, poetry loving, sometimes crossdressing brother. useless in times of crisis, or so he tells himself. He is completely beneath the notice of someone like the country's most famous general, Godric of the South. It's too bad that he happens to be in love with Godric... and that with the entire country at stake, Bertie might be the only one who can save it.

Mikandra Bisumar is useless to her father: she carries the curse of infertility that plagues the Endri people of Miran. Forced to work in the hospital to pay her duty to her proud nation, she dreams of becoming a Trader, one of the people who bring great prosperity to Miran.To her surprise Iztho Andrahar, from the city's most prestigious Trading family, has agreed to take her on. That is where her troubles begin.Her father is so angry with her that she has to leave her home. Worse, the Andrahar Traders have been accused of smuggling. Iztho has disappeared and the business license suspended.Mikandra has nowhere to go, except try to help Iztho's brothers prove their innocence.In her last meeting with Iztho, he mentioned getting married to a woman from neighbouring city-state of Barresh. Iztho's brothers know nothing of this, and think she is crazy.Going to Barresh by herself while never having left the country is probably not the smartest idea, but she's desperate for the family's...

A compelling first novel which centres on a young woman and the emotional legacy left by her father's death; two widows, his mistress and his wife. Charissa finds herself torn between the two. At 25 yrs, Charissa has her life under control – until her father dies and in his dying hour extracts a promise from her to visit his weekend mistress. Since her early teenage years Charissa has been helplessly caught up in the conspiracy of silence verging on denial surrounding her father's mistress. Far from the seductress Charissa had imagined, Flora turns out to be a self-contained , down-to-earth country woman in her fifties to whom she finds herself unexpectedly drawn. Like her father, she too begins to deceive her repressed, conventional mother by paying increasingly frequent visits to Flora 's West Country home. As the relationship between herself and Flora blossoms, Charissa starts to unravel her emotional past and, with the help of Flora's attractive neighbour Andrew, to overcome...

Winner of 1971 Booker Prize «V. S. Naipaul tells stories which show us ourselves and the reality we live in. His use of language is as precise as it is beautiful.» – The London Times «A Tolstoyan spirit…The so-called Third World has produced no more brilliant literary artist.» – John Updike, The New Yorker «The coolest literary eye and the most lucid prose we have.» – The New York Review

As head coach of the 1933 Wilmington Whispers, Sarge holds a grocery list of troubles. His catcher is a double amputee. The robot outfielders are held together with chicken wire and his star player is an ego-driven hunk of chewing tobacco. Witch doctors. Vampires with tommy guns. Carnival Baseball turns our national pastime on its head and tells the tale of a born loser who refuses to fail.

Romance/Historical Fiction. 45717 words long.

On its final test flight, a new American airliner crashes mysteriously in the Arizona desert. An accident or something more sinister? Mitchell Gant, an expert on aviation accidents, must risk his life by repeating the test flight in every detail. Is it a coincidence when another plane crashes off the coast of Finland, or as some are beginning to suspect, a conspiracy that involves business, politics, and the global marketplace? Gant survived Vietnam, the Cold War, and the Gulf. Now, he finds himself fighting a different and far more dangerous war.

The year is 1319 and Tavistock's fair has drawn merchants to Devon from all over England and beyond. Keeping the streets clean and the locals in order is no easy task, for the influx of visitors and their money puts temptation in the way of cut-purses and other villains. But no one expects a murder, and butcher Will Ruby is stunned to discover a corpse – a headless corpse at that. Former Knight Templar Sir Baldwin Furnshill, Keeper of the King's Peace, and Simon Puttock, bailiff of Lydford, have just arrived in Tavistock as guests of Abbot Robert Champeaux when the body is found. The crime falls within the Abbot's jurisdiction, and when he asks Simon and Baldwin to investigate, they can hardly refuse. But with an unidentifiable victim, they're badly hampered in their inquiries. Nonetheless there's no shortage of suspicious behaviour to spur them on. Elias, the cook near whose shop the gruesome remains were found, clearly has something to hide. A surprisingly aggressive young monk has been behaving in an ungodly fashion. And the town is awash with strangers, any one of whom could be concealing a sinister past. Can Simon and Baldwin unravel the complex web of intrigue that has brought death to Tavistock, as the undercurrents of anger and violence that lie beneath the bustling activity of the fair grow ever fiercer?

A bestselling journalist exposes the connection between the Catholic Church's sexual abuse crisis and the practice of confession.