'Clever, captivating and colourful; an absorbing thriller rich in atmosphere' Philip Gwynne Jones, author of The Venetian Game and Vengeance in Venice Death stalks the medina of Marrakech . . . Marrakech, August. It is the start of Ramadan, the hottest in memory. Among the few foreigners left in the sweltering city are a riad owner, her French boyfriend and an English girl whose bag has been stolen after a hen weekend. At the local commissariat 24-year old detective Karim Belkacem is struggling to fast while holding down two jobs to pay for his sister's wedding. On the day that the English girl comes to him for help, a Moroccan girl is found dead, her body dumped in a handcart. Investigating, Karim uncovers a world of shadowy predators and ancient secrets hidden behind the high walls of the medina.
Explosive psychological novel for fans of Michael Chabon, Mark Haddon, and George Saunders. Marilyn Monroe died just after midnight on August 5th, 1962; former Little League champion Kimitake "Clyde" Koba was born on the same day, at the same time. As Clyde struggles to escape the ghost of his brother and his alcoholic father and stumbles through his first love, he finds strength in the belief that he is the reincarnation of Monroe. Born on Yom Kippur, the holiest day of the Jewish calendar, teen prodigy Raphael Dweck has been told his whole life that he has a special purpose in God's plan. The only problem is, he can't shake off his doubts, his urges, or the trail of trouble and ruin that follow in his wake. A decade later, Raphael and 'Marilyn' find each other wandering the plastic-bright streets of Hollywood and set out to make a documentary about the transmigration of souls. But when the roleplaying goes too far, they find themselves past the point of no return in their quest to prove who and what they are to their families, God, the world, and themselves. Israel and Japan collide in the City of Angels in this explosive psychological novel about faith, idol worship, and the search for identity by the author of Jerusalem Ablaze, Stories of Love and Other Obsessions. Praise for The Death of Baseball: "Orlando Ortega-Medina's engrossing new novel, The Death of Baseball, is an epic tale of loneliness and the desire of belonging" -Lambda Literary "A tight, Gothic tale of rejection, personal struggle, and acceptance..." -Foreword Reviews "Ortega-Medina's graphic prose is vivid...[his] deft construction of this complex plot reflects his experience in creating short stories..." -Kirkus Reviews "...[B]eautiful, in-depth characters and compelling storytelling" -Helen Lederer (The Times Literary Supplement) "Ortega-Medina brings a convincing passionate story of lives and dependencies, switching style and focus throughout to keep a sense of pace and engagement till the last page" -GScene Magazine "...[N]ecessary, heartfelt, thought-provoking and sublimely perfect... Oh yes. I did say perfect" -Raven Crime Reviews "[A]n intense and thought-provoking work...very much recommended" -TripFiction "[T]his author could write a story about paint drying and it'd be one of the most engrossing and compelling things you'd ever read" -The Worm Hole "The prose is beautifully wrought. It's easy to immerse yourself into this world, and into the characters...I sobbed at the end" -Reviews by Jaye
This novel, banned shortly before publication in Sept '08 by Random House, attracting British and world-wide media attention, tells for the first time the moving but little known love story between Mohammed and his favoured wife Ai'sha. A wonderful fast-paced novel and an uplifting subject that readers from all religions will enjoy.
In the grimy London of 1935, eleven-year-old Dominic Walker has lost his voice. His mother is sick and his father’s unemployed. Rescue comes in the form of his Uncle Roo, who arrives to take him and his young sister, Marlo, to Cornwall. There, in a boarding house populated by eccentric residents, Marlo, who keeps a death grip on her copy of The New Art of Cooking, and Dominic, armed with Incredible Adventures for Boys: Colonel Lawrence and the Revolt in the Desert, find a way of life unlike any they have known. Dominic’s passion for Lawrence of Arabia is tested when he finds himself embroiled in a village uprising against a band of travelers who face expulsion. In defending the vulnerable, Dominic learns what it truly means to have a voice. Trilby Kent brilliantly handles a far-off time and place to present a story of up-to-the-minute relevance.
“A stirring tribute to the valor of Marines in Vietnam.”—Nathaniel Fick, New York Times bestselling author of One Bullet Away Thursday, October 12, 1967: Marine Lance Corporal Kevin Cahill stepped onto a trail deep in the remote Hai Lang National Forest in South Vietnam. Following Cahill were the Marines of Charlie Company, First Battalion, First Marines, First Marine Division. They would find hell on earth under the jungle canopy. Ambushed, surrounded, outnumbered, out-gunned, and quickly running low on ammunition, the marines of Operation Medina fought toe-to-toe with a ferocious, determined opponent. Based on extensive interviews with survivors of Operation Medina, as well as with the friends and families of the men who didn't make it back, Lions of Medina takes readers through the tragedy and triumphs of war, and into the heart of a close-knit group of warriors who fought, bled, and died together, and the spirit of loyalty and camaraderie that binds them to this day.
A little girl pitches in to help her tía save up for a big old car — and take the whole family to the beach — in a story told with warmth and sweetness. Tía Isa wants a car. A shiny green car the same color as the ocean, with wings like a swooping bird. A car to take the whole family to the beach. But saving is hard when everything goes into two piles — one for here and one for Helping Money, so that family members who live far away might join them someday. While Tía Isa saves, her niece does odd jobs for neighbors so she can add her earnings to the stack. But even with her help, will they ever have enough? Meg Medina’s simple, genuine story about keeping in mind those who are far away is written in lovely, lyrical prose and brought to life through Claudio Muñoz’s charming characters.
When four friends get together to use a mystical Ouija board, they are astonished when they come into contact with the restless spirit of a teenage girl from New Jersey, who lived her life during the 1970s. They soon find themselves wandering through the woods at night in search of her diary. However, once they begin to read it they are treated to an unexpected tale filled with unspeakable acts and heinous brutal crimes. It becomes apparent that the restless soul of young Audrey Malone Frayer has unfinished business, which she needs tending to and it appears she’s chosen them to help her. In this second novel by Jason Medina, author of “No Hope for the Hopeless at Kings Park,” we are treated to a special story that ties an adolescent girl’s troubled times of the 1970s with the lives of four young people in the present, particularly the character named Jay, who feels especially attached to Audrey’s spirit. Somehow he forms a bond with her, while reading her diary, which takes control of him making him obsessed with trying to help her take care of her unfinished business. He feels like there is a connection between them that he cannot ignore, although the meaning of that connection remains a mystery to him. It begins to haunt him almost immediately from the moment he first made contact with her spirit. Will he be able to figure out the connections between the past and the present in time, before it is too late? Someone’s life may very well depend upon it and it could be his own!
While violence runs rampant throughout New York, a teenage girl faces danger within her own home in Meg Medina's riveting coming-of-age novel. Nora Lopez is seventeen during the infamous New York summer of 1977, when the city is besieged by arson, a massive blackout, and a serial killer named Son of Sam who shoots young women on the streets. Nora’s family life isn’t going so well either: her bullying brother, Hector, is growing more threatening by the day, her mother is helpless and falling behind on the rent, and her father calls only on holidays. All Nora wants is to turn eighteen and be on her own. And while there is a cute new guy who started working with her at the deli, is dating even worth the risk when the killer likes picking off couples who stay out too late? Award-winning author Meg Medina transports us to a time when New York seemed balanced on a knife-edge, with tempers and temperatures running high, to share the story of a young woman who discovers that the greatest dangers are often closer than we like to admit — and the hardest to accept.
For use in schools and libraries only. Alfonso can't wait to play the role of Hamlet in his school's hip-hop rendition of the classic play. But as he is buying his first suit, an off-duty police officer misatkes a clothes hanger for a gun and shoots Alfoso. When Alfonso wakes up in the afterlife, he's on a ghost train guided by well-known victims of police shootings, who teach him what he needs to know about this subterranean spiritual world. Meanwhile, Alfonso's family and friends struggle with their grief and seek justice for Alfonso in the streets.
