A collection of short stories set during the summer after sophomore year at Sunnydale High. When sophomore year ended with Buffy's defeat -- just barely -- of the Master, she headed off to spend the summer with her father in L.A. The theme was R&R, parties, and an occasional shopping spree. But things that go bump in the night don't take vacation. So Buffy's trying desperately to keep a lid on things in L.A. -- and to keep her secret identity from her father. Meanwhile, back in Sunnydale, trouble keeps popping up in the darnedest places. Giles wants Willow and Xander to have a "normal" summer, so he and Jenny Calendar, whose budding romance is progressing to full bloom, attempt to stave off the forces of darkness sans Slayer and Slayerettes. And Angel, grappling with Buffy's brush with death, must decide: Does he want to be a more permanent member of the Scooby Gang? Concerts. Picnics. The resurrection of an ancient monster or two. Just your typical fun in the sun. With contributions from Cameron Dokey, Nancy Holder, Yvonne Navarro, Paul Ruditis, and Michelle West!
While holidaying in Atlantic City, Amanda Pepper is offered a bed by a woman friend staying in a hotel. She accepts, only to spend the rest of her holiday chasing a killer who put a body in her friend's bed. But at least she has good company, her detective boyfriend.
As a child, Avis Cardella devoured the glamorous images in her mother's fashion magazines. She grew up to be one of the people in them, living a life that seemed to be filled with labels and luxury. But shopping had become a dangerous addiction. She forwent food for Prada. Credit card debt blossomed like the ever-increasing pile of unworn shoes and clothing in the back of her closet. She defined herself by the things she owned and also lost herself in the mad hunt for the perfect pair of pants or purse that might make her feel whole. Spent is Avis Cardella's timely, deeply personal, and shockingly dramatic exploration of our cultural need to spend, and of what happens when someone is consumed by the desire to consume.
The View from the Grass Roots is an anthology of 192 columns written over the last decade by award-winning New Jersey opinion columnist Gregory J. Rummo. Writing for a number of newspapers, Rummo's columns cover a broad range of topics, examining each issue with a fresh, down-to-earth perspective. Whether writing about family life or the demise of America's Judeo-Christian heritage, he is blunt and to the point. You will never have any doubt where he stands on an issue. His opinion columns appear in a number of newspapers, including; The Daily Record, The Weekly News, The Herald News and The New Jersey Herald. His column "An Evangelical View" appears regularly in The Record of Hackensack.
About the Book This work is a result of several decades of material uncovered through an archival dive during recent Covid-19 mandated home confinement. The opportunity for personal reflections during this period led the author to contemplate his life’s journey. In so doing he wonders aloud; was the meandering route traveled between early island life to retirement an accident or was it a path carefully laid out by the Master Designer? His hope is that the stories and incidents included in this work will enable each reader to not only contemplate this bit of life’s mystery, but also like him, find similar affirmation regarding their individual life's path. About the Author C. M. Phillip is a boomer born on the 108-square mile Caribbean Island of Antigua. He is the younger of two brothers, among eight siblings born to parents Amaletha and Solomon Phillip, who are both deceased. After completion of his early education in his birthplace, he migrated to the United States in pursuit of higher education. This pursuit paved a path for a career in Public Health. Following his recent retirement, he settled in Scottsdale, Arizona with his wife Annette. From this location, they both continue to pursue their passion for hospitality and mentoring, while enjoying their love for the outdoors and travel. In addition to family commitments, the author continues to carve out space and time to volunteer as a teacher, participate in various local choirs and musical ensembles, while continuing to train for his next marathon. Phillip's travels include various global ventures with his wife Annette. Together they have journeyed throughout the Caribbean, North, South and Central America, Asia (to include Thailand, Vietnam &; Japan) and the African Continent (including stops in South Africa, Robben Island and Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe). Also, the Pacific islands and most of the United States and its major cities. This writer will tell you that his journey from the islands, through the South and East Coasts, and finally being led to exchange his slice of Paradise with its 365 beaches, to enjoy the beauty of the McDowell Mountain Range, has been no accident.
Books four through six in the award-winning Amanda Pepper mystery series are now available in one volume! This collection includes: WITH FRIENDS LIKE THESE Well-known Broadway playwright and TV producer Lyle Zacharias is throwing himself a lavish birthday party in his hometown of Philadelphia. Guests include his current wife, ex-wives, friends, former partners—not to mention Amanda Pepper and her own irrepressible mother, Bea. Yet when Lyle drops dead in the middle of a speech, it appears the likely perpetrator is none other than Bea, whose gift was fifty delicious, but apparently poisoned, tarts! It's up to Amanda to clear her mother's name and find the real murderer…before he or she strikes again! But Amanda herself may be the next target! Who says teaching isn't exciting? With any more excitement, Amanda will have to retire before she hits thirty-one…if she lives that long! HOW I SPENT MY SUMMER VACATION Amanda Pepper's friend Sasha has a photography assignment in Atlantic City, and she invites her broke schoolteacher friend to come along for a free mini-vacation. But the two quickly discover there's more to lose than money at the shore when Sasha finds a stranger bludgeoned to death in her bed. When a witness identifies Sasha as having been at the scene, she Goes Directly To Jail and does not pass "Go." Under the boardwalk and between the slot machines, and sometimes with the help of a motley crew of gamblers, Amanda works to unearth the truth and free her friend. IN THE DEAD OF SUMMER Mellow old Philadelphia, where life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness have flourished for centuries, now has a new claim to fame. The City of Brotherly Love has been proclaimed number one in the nation...for hostility. English teacher Amanda Pepper, crabbily gearing up for summer school at exclusive Philly Prep, feels she fits right in with the hostility mode. And it's going to get worse. Amanda gets her first prickling of unease in her own classroom, where a reading of Romeo and Juliet activates some very strange chemistry. Then the computer science teacher begins receiving anonymous "go-back-to-Africa" phone calls. A young Vietnamese boy dies in a drive-by shooting. And late one night, outside a Chinatown massage parlor, student April Tuong is kidnapped. Random violence? Perhaps. But Amanda refuses to let gentle April vanish without at least asking a few questions, starting in her own classroom. Gillian Roberts's Philadelphia is the real thing. So, too, are her wit and humor, and her gripping story of Amanda's tenacious search for the missing girl--along the brick streets of historic Philadelphia, in exotic Chinatown, and through the shady, sinister back alleys of the impoverished. The truth, when she finds it, is appalling, deadly, and much too close to home.
