The lively tale of a girl who thinks books are boring - until one day her baby brother disappears into one Jack loves books; his sister thinks they are dull. She wants a real adventure - and that's exactly what she gets when Jack crawls inside his book and she has to chase after him Tumbling down hills with pails of water, leaping nimbly over candlesticks, Jack and his sister are right inside the many traditional tales and popular nursery-rhymes involving a character called Jack. But will they manage to finish the book before the Fee-Fi-Fo-Fum giant catches them?
When Jack was six years old, his parents were brutally slain by a serial killer. The police later found drifter Clyde Colsen driving a stolen car, his clothes soaked in blood. He was tried, convicted and executed. Jack grew up knowing the police got their man. Now a decorated homicide detective in New Rhodes, Jack arrives at the third crime scene of the “South End Killer” murders and finds his name. He will soon find out something else: thirty years ago, they got the wrong guy. And now the right guy’s come back to pay Jack and New Rhodes his bloody respects. As Jack struggles to stay on the case, his cat-and-mouse game with the killer makes him wonder if he’s the cat or the mouse. His family and everyone in his life is fair game. As the killer escalates and threatens the entire city, Jack has a question he must answer in his desperation: can he stop the monster without becoming one? Praise for WELCOME BACK, JACK: “I’ve been following Liam Sweeny’s writing career for several years. He started out pretty good and now—with Welcome Back, Jack —he’s become smokin’ good! I predict this novel will propel him to the highest ranks of novelists writing police procedurals. That may look like I’m climbing out on a limb and if so, it’s an extremely stout and solid limb. This ranks with the best of the genre and Sweeny is poised to become a writer of the highest rank. Remember his name—you’re going to be seeing it a lot.” —Les Edgerton, author of The Genuine, Imitation, Plastic Kidnapping, The Rapist, The Bitch and others “A new dark, very dark star has appeared in the noir spectrum and what a star it is. Welcome Back, Jack is the real deal, as down and deliciously dirty as it gets but with a wonderful fresh style and artistry that is as compelling as it is addictive. This is one hell of a start to what promises to be a unique series.” —Ken Bruen, author of the Jack Taylor series “When a triple homicide in New Rhodes bears worrisome similarities to one from police officer, Jack LeClere’s, childhood, nothing can stop him from following the sinewy clues to their horrific conclusion. As long as writers like Liam Sweeny can work the police procedural to such great affect, readers will follow Jack back to the gritty streets of New Rhodes gladly. Sweeny’s writes beautifully and Welcome Back, Jack is full of memorable characters. Claustrophobics beware!” —Patricia Abbot, author of Concrete Angel “Equal parts police procedural and psycho-thriller, Liam Sweeny reinvents a genre with Welcome Back, Jack. When serial killing gets personal, Jack LeClere is dragged underground into the past. Literally. With crisp, taut dialogue, fast-paced action, and more plot twists than the subterranean tunnels Jack must navigate to earn redemption, Sweeny taps into modern-day, urban paranoia, mining the best of Ellroy, Cain, and Westlake. Sweeny pays homage while tearing up some serious new ground.” —Joe Clifford, author of Lamentation and December Boys “Do yourself a favor: Before you start reading Welcome Back, Jack, clear your schedule. You’re not going to be able to stop until you’ve seen it through to the explosive finale.” —Rob Hart, author of New Yorked
Jack always feels second best at home, school and with friends. He trying desperately to find his place in life while also trying to help his Mom get through a broken marriage and her sad and frustrating existence. Jack turns to sports as his ticket to better times and in the process realizes his strong attraction to Annie. She is a popular cheerleader who he considers out of his league. Jack finally has a chance to be first string in sports and perhaps life only to be faced with crucial decisions that could change his destiny. What price is Jack willing to pay for popularity and acceptance?
Dead End in Norvelt is the winner of the 2012 Newbery Medal for the year's best contribution to children's literature and the Scott O'Dell Award for Historical Fiction! Melding the entirely true and the wildly fictional, Dead End in Norvelt is a novel about an incredible two months for a kid named Jack Gantos, whose plans for vacation excitement are shot down when he is "grounded for life" by his feuding parents, and whose nose spews bad blood at every little shock he gets. But plenty of excitement (and shocks) are coming Jack's way once his mom loans him out to help a fiesty old neighbor with a most unusual chore—typewriting obituaries filled with stories about the people who founded his utopian town. As one obituary leads to another, Jack is launced on a strange adventure involving molten wax, Eleanor Roosevelt, twisted promises, a homemade airplane, Girl Scout cookies, a man on a trike, a dancing plague, voices from the past, Hells Angels . . . and possibly murder. Endlessly surprising, this sly, sharp-edged narrative is the author at his very best, making readers laugh out loud at the most unexpected things in a dead-funny depiction of growing up in a slightly off-kilter place where the past is present, the present is confusing, and the future is completely up in the air.
The follow-up book to Bad Jack. Jack has found himself thrust into hell by the conniving Lucifer. When he finally finds a way out, he seeks revenge against the fallen angel who betrayed him. Hell has changed him, physically and mentally, but will it be enough to destroy the mightiest creature God ever created? Keywords: supernatural, government conspiracy, action, unnatural creatures, dream manifestations, myths, legends, good verses evil, Lucifer, devil, God, heaven and hell, apocalypse, armageddon
Comeback Pitchers is the story of two pitchers, Jack Quinn and Howard Ehmke, whose intertwining careers began in the Deadball Era and continued into the 1920s and 1930s.
For the past nine years, heavyweight hopeful Jack Cribb has trained relentlessly under the watchful eye of his father, Walter. Now he's signed on with Leo Kern, an old pro who believes he can take him to the championship. But when Leo decides to train him as a stand-up fighter, Walter begins to worry. Jack will be ruined if he abandons the techniques that Walter has taught him, and Walter can't tell anyone why...not even Jack. Jack: A Boxing Fable is an intriguing tale of boxing, a unique father-son relationship, and a shocking secret that -- if revealed -- could destroy a lifetime of work.
The most widely respected CEO in America looks back on his brilliant career at General Electric and reveals his personal business philosophy and unique managerial style. Nearly 20 years ago, former General Electric CEO Reg Jones walked into Jack Welch's office and wrapped him in a bear hug. "Congratulations, Mr. Chairman," said Reg. It was a defining moment for American business. So begins the story of a self-made man and a self-described rebel who thrived in one of the most volatile and economically robust eras in U.S. history, while managing to maintain a unique leadership style. In what is the most anticipated book on business management for our time, Jack Welch surveys the landscape of his career running one of the world's largest and most successful corporations.
