At_the_Queen_s_Command - Michael A Stackpole.html
Incarceron -- a futuristic prison, sealed from view, where the descendants of the original prisoners live in a dark world torn by rivalry and savagery. It is a terrifying mix of high technology -- a living building which pervades the novel as an ever-watchful, ever-vengeful character, and a typical medieval torture chamber -- chains, great halls, dungeons. A young prisoner, Finn, has haunting visions of an earlier life, and cannot believe he was born here and has always been here. In the outer world, Claudia, daughter of the Warden of Incarceron, is trapped in her own form of prison -- a futuristic world constructed beautifully to look like a past era, an imminent marriage she dreads. She knows nothing of Incarceron, except that it exists. But there comes a moment when Finn, inside Incarceron, and Claudia, outside, simultaneously find a device -- a crystal key, through which they can talk to each other. And so the plan for Finn's escape is born !
There's a nasty flu going round. An epidemic, they call it. The posters say to cover your mouth when you sneeze, and throw away the tissue. But such simple measures won't stop this flu. Because when you catch the flu, armed police come and lock you in your house to die alone. When you catch this flu, it kills you in days. And when you catch this flu, two hours after it's killed you, your eyelids snap open again...
Who will own the greatest treasures of all...? In the darkness of 13th Century Europe, the most precious wonders of the Christian world lie in a small church in the great ruined city of Constantinople, the spoils of a failed Crusade. The crown of thorns, the spear that pierced Jesus' side, the shroud bearing the imprint of Christ - all lie in the mysterious Chapel of Pharos, untouchable treasures beyond earthly price. On the other side of the globe, Petroc of Auneford sails into the sprawling Pool of London for the first time. He has left his old monastic world behind for that of the enigmatic Captain de Montalhac - purveyor of fine relics and other exotic trinkets to anyone with sufficient money and desire. But for Petroc, the trip is soon blighted by tragedy. Grief, however, is no guard against greed, and with rumours of the sale of the relics of Pharos growing, the Captain needs Petroc's help. The great powers of Christendom are gathering - all covet the power of the relics - and Petroc finds himself right in the eye of the storm. Stretching from the streets of London to the brothels of Venice and all the way to ruined palaces of Constantinople, THE VAULT OF BONES is an epic tale of faith, power, money and revenge.
Thomas Ligotti is often cited as the most curious and remarkable figure in horror since H P Lovecraft. His work is noted by critics for its display of an exceptionally grotesque imagination and accomplished prose style. In his stories, Ligotti has followed a tradition that began with Edgar Allan Poe, portraying characters that are outside of what might be called 'normal life' and rendering a grim vision of human existence as a perpetual nightmare. The stories collected in Teatro Grottesco feature tormented individuals who play out their doom in various odd little towns as well as in dark sectors frequented by sinister and often blackly comical eccentrics.
Ghost Town is the hottest amusement park in the country, offering state-of-the-art chills and thrills involving the paranormal. The park's main ride is a haunted mansion that promises an encounter with a real ghost.
When Maia Peters visits during her senior year of college, she's not expecting to be impressed. Maia grew up as the only child of a pair of world-renowned "ghost hunters," so the paranormal is nothing new. In fact, the ride feels pretty boring until the very end. There, a face appears from the mist. The face of Jordin Cole, a girl who disappeared from campus a few months ago.
Convinced what she saw wasn't a hoax and desperate to find answers to Jordin's disappearance, Maia launches into a quest for answers. Joined by Jordin's boyfriend--a pastor's kid with very different ideas about the spirit realm--Maia finds herself in a struggle against forces she never expected to confront.
Locke Vinetti is a high school junior, disenchanted and more than a little hostile. In fact, for years he's had a lousy social life because of a problem he has with his anger--a force he calls "the venom." Ever since he was eight years old and bit off a piece of a classmate's nose, he's been something of a loner. But all that is about to change when he goes out with his one friend, Randall, to meet some of Randall's crew hanging out at Riverside Park. Because in addition to meeting his kindred spirit, Casey--who has his own problems with his own kind of venom--Locke meets the spikey blue fairy-haircut Goth girl of his dreams. And if their relationship is going to work, he knows he has to rid himself of the venom once and for all. Interspersed with comic book adventures of the fantasy anti-hero alter-ego Locke has invented for himself, Venomous is a fast-paced, funny, and ferocious read about one teenage boy's struggle with his inner demons.
The starship Theodore Roosevelt is fighting on the far outskirts of a galactic war, its crew made up of retreads and raw recruits. A new first officer reports, Wilson Cole, a man with a reputation for exceeding his orders (but getting results). He's been banished to the Teddy R. for his actions, but once there he again ignores his orders and again comes away triumphant.
It is when the captain of the ship stubbornly follows orders that Cole knows are wrong that he takes command of the ship and wins a major battle. But victorious or not, the service cannot condone a mutiny, even a bloodless one, and he is brought back to stand trial. But Wilson Cole realizes that a guilty verdict is a foregone conclusion… This is the first of five proposed novels about the starship Theodore Roosevelt. The next four will be, in order, Pirate, Mercenary, Rebel, and Flagship.
Fresh off the most challenging case of her career, The 7th Victim heroine and renowned FBI profiler Karen Vail finds herself ordered to take some time off after a controversial shooting incident. In no position to argue, she travels with her new beau, Detective Robby Hernandez, to the Napa Valley for a week of wine-tasting and sightseeing.
But shortly after arriving, a victim is discovered at a high-end winery, in the deepest reaches of their exclusive wine cave. The murder has all the telltale signs of a serial killer, virtually unheard of in wine country. Vail offers her skills in evaluating the crime, but the local police, led by Detective Redmond Brix, are resistant to her involvement. Their thinking soon changes, however, when a second, brutally murdered victim is unearthed.
When Vail is named to the Napa County Major Crimes Task Force, she soon learns she got more than she bargained for.
As Vail and her task force colleague, Roxxann Dixon, peel back the investigative onion, clues lead them to a decades-long history of feuding wine families, secretive organizations, and underhanded deals that may hold answers to what they are seeking.
Crush is impressively researched, with the same attention to detail as The 7th Victim. National bestselling author Alan Jacobson once again delivers a suspenseful high-velocity thriller.
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