Since The Grass is Singing was published in 1950, Doris Lessing has commanded a widespread and heterogeneous readership. Written from a feminist political perspective, and employing diverse modes of critical analysis, the present volume, originally published in 1982, aims to combine detailed technical exploration of Lessing’s work with a sense of this extraordinary writer’s historical, political and personal development. The essays, placed in political and biographical context by the editor’s introduction, span the entire length of Lessing’s career, up to Canopus in Argos, and includes studies of A Man and Two Women, The Golden Notebook and The Children of Violence as well as an interview with David Gladwell, director of Memoirs of a Survivor.
RUTHLESS MAFIA: The Complete Series RUTHLESS ENEMY When Lorelai promised to be mine, I never would have believed that things would end in her betrayal . . . and me spending time in prison for something I didn’t do. Now I’m out and determined to exact revenge against the woman I’d once loved, only to find out she’d been keeping a secret from me . . . a daughter I never knew I had. A daughter who belonged to me and would now be raised as a Capitani, whether her mother is in the picture, or not. Lorelai is still feisty, stubborn, and rebellious, and after so long without a woman, I greet her with an angry, hate filled kiss. But once I feel her lush curves beneath me, all I want is to claim her once again. I tell myself the craving is temporary, that once I have my fill of her I’ll sever our ties and keep my daughter with me. . . but I’ve underestimated just how much of a hold this woman still has over me. The plan should have been simple, until my daughter is kidnapped and held hostage – my life, for hers. Nobody messes with what is mine. This means war, and I will destroy anyone who dares to threaten my family. RUTHLESS REBEL My brother started a war that put me squarely in the enemy’s territory. It was all about finally exacting revenge for our family, but the plan required me to give my false allegiance to a hated Vivenzo. In return for this new alliance, I was gifted Luca’s one and only daughter, Dia, as collateral until we’d both proven our loyalty to one another. The only thing I intended to prove was that the Vivenzo family was meant to suffer and die for killing our father. But first, I had to integrate myself into their world, and Dia was the perfect pawn to make that happen. Sleeping with the enemy’s daughter was never part of the plan, but Dia Vivenzo was an irresistible siren despite us being enemies—and, I later learned, an assassin who had every intention of killing me once I’d given her father all the information he needed to take down my family once and for all. Good thing I planned on killing her first. Both our families intended to wipe out the other, and only one would survive the war. But what will happen when the one woman I should hate the most becomes the one I can’t live without? RUTHLESS RIVAL As the only daughter in a Mafia family, I always knew the possibility existed that I’d be part of an arranged marriage, but I never expected to be given to a man I hated by his name alone. Kai Vivenzo was our families greatest rival, a man I’d been taught to despise, and if he expected me to be a passive and dutiful wife, he was in for a huge surprise. All I wanted was freedom from this ruthless life I’d been born into, even if that meant severing all ties with my family. I was stubborn and strong-willed, but what I didn’t anticipate was Kai’s power of seduction. Even when I chose to escape this sham of a marriage and ran off in the middle of the night to start a new life for myself, he chased me and found me, breaking down my resistance and making me his, again and again. The next morning, I woke to a simple note from him: Until the next time I catch you. What ensued was a steamy, delicious game of cat and mouse . . . until the day I was abducted, and not by Kai, but his enemy who planned to use me in his own plan of revenge against my fiancé. I just hoped I was worth more to Kai alive, than dead.
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • From the beloved star of Gilmore Girls and the New York Times bestselling author of Talking as Fast as I Can comes an “insightful, honest, funny, and moving collection of captivating stories” (BuzzFeed). “Graham is fast and furiously funny. . . . Where Graham leads, we will definitely follow.”—E! Online Lauren Graham has graced countless television screens with her quick-witted characters and hilarious talk show appearances, earning a reputation as a pop culture icon who always has something to say. In her latest book, Have I Told You This Already?, Graham combines her signature sense of humor with down-to-earth storytelling. Graham shares personal stories about her life and career—from her early days spent pounding the pavement while waitressing in New York City, to living on her aunt’s couch during her first Los Angeles pilot season, to thoughts on aging gracefully in Hollywood. In “R.I.P. Barneys New York” Graham writes about an early job as a salesperson at the legendary department store (and the time she inadvertently shoplifted from it); in “Ryan Gosling Cannot Confirm,” she attempts to navigate the unspoken rules of Hollywood hierarchies; in “Boobs of the ’90s” she worries her bras haven’t kept up with the times; and in “Actor-y Factory” she recounts what a day in the life of an actor looks like (unless you’re Brad Pitt). Filled with surprising anecdotes, sage advice, and laugh-out-loud observations, these all-new, original essays showcase the winning charm and wry humor that have delighted Graham’s millions of fans.
Elvan, eldest of House Galmoth, is content to stay in and always eager to jump into character. Someday, he will find a facade that suits him, one that meets his mother's expectations of him. He's spent the last two years playing investigator, raking through ledgers to clear his mother's name while ignoring his family business and noble House crumbling around him. When the last servant quits, Elvan is forced back into the world and must choose between continuing his fruitless investigation and saving his home from the collectors. On his last lead, he meets Drace, a lonely shopkeeper who sweeps him away on a flight from the royal inquisitors, who is the same man that arrested Elvan's mother. They dive deep into the kingdom of Spheris, shrouded by the smog of rising industry, lit by the flicker of gas lamps. Here, the magic users must practice their art in secret, away from the eyes of the crown. After discovering their intertwined pasts, Elvan and Drace forge forward, uncovering the plot that led to his mother's exile, but who can they go to when the guilty ones are at the highest level of power? Can they dodge the inquisitors and questionable motivations of Elvan's sister, the Duchess, long enough to bring the crown to justice? Or will they fall to the same fate as Elvan's mother? Elvan will have to prepare for his greatest role yet: Himself.
Don’t miss a page of the thrilling Naturals series by New York Times bestselling author Jennifer Lynn Barnes—this collection of four books includes a bonus e-novella! In The Naturals, seventeen-year-old Cassie is a natural at reading people. Piecing together the tiniest details, she can tell you who you are and what you want. But, it's not a skill that she's ever taken seriously. That is, until the FBI come knocking: they've begun a classified program that uses exceptional teenagers to crack infamous cold cases, and they need Cassie. But what Cassie doesn't realize is that there's more at risk than a few unsolved homicides--especially when she's sent to live with a group of teens whose gifts are as unusual as her own. Soon, it becomes clear that no one in the Naturals program is what they seem. And when a new killer strikes, danger looms close. Caught in a lethal game of cat and mouse with a killer, the Naturals are going to have to use all of their gifts just to survive. In Killer Instinct, Cassie hopes she and the rest of her team can stick to solving cold cases from a distance after barely escaping a confrontation with an unbalanced killer obsessed with her mother's murder. But when victims of a brutal new serial killer start turning up, the Naturals are pulled into an active case that strikes too close to home: the killer is a perfect copycat of Dean's incarcerated father--a man he'd do anything to forget. Forced deeper into a murderer's psyche than ever before, will the Naturals be able to outsmart the enigmatic killer's brutal mind games before this copycat twists them into his web for good? In All In, Cassie and the Naturals are called in to investigate a string of brutal murders in Las Vegas. But even with the team's unique profiling talents, these murders seem baffling: unlike many serial killers, this one uses different methods every time. All of the victims were killed in public, yet the killer does not show up on any security feed. And each victim has a string of numbers tattooed on their wrist. Hidden in the numbers is a code-and the closer the Naturals come to unraveling the mystery, the more perilous the case becomes. In Bad Blood, Cassie is reeling with the truth about her mother’s murder. Everything Cassie thought she knew about what happened that night her mother was killed been called into question. Her mother is alive, and the people holding her captive are more powerful--and dangerous--than anything the Naturals have faced so far. As Cassie and the team work to uncover the secrets of a group that has been killing in secret for generations, they find themselves racing a ticking clock. And when the bodies begin piling up, it soon becomes apparent that this time, the Naturals aren't just hunting serial killers. They're being hunted. In the novella Twelve, Cassie is now twenty-three years old, and she and her fellow Naturals have taken over running the program that taught them everything they know. As a unit, they're responsible for identifying new Naturals--and solving particularly impossible cases. When their latest case brings back a ghost from their past, Cassie and the other Naturals find themselves racing against the clock--and reliving their own childhood traumas. In a small, coastal town in Maine, there has been a rash of teen suicides--or at least, that's what the police believe. Enter the Naturals.
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • In this collection of personal essays, the beloved star of Gilmore Girls and Parenthood reveals stories about life, love, and working as a woman in Hollywood—along with behind-the-scenes dispatches from the set of the new Gilmore Girls, where she plays the fast-talking Lorelai Gilmore once again. With a new bonus chapter In Talking as Fast as I Can, Lauren Graham hits pause for a moment and looks back on her life, sharing laugh-out-loud stories about growing up, starting out as an actress, and, years later, sitting in her trailer on the Parenthood set and asking herself, “Did you, um, make it?” She opens up about the challenges of being single in Hollywood (“Strangers were worried about me; that’s how long I was single!”), the time she was asked to audition her butt for a role, and her experience being a judge on Project Runway (“It’s like I had a fashion-induced blackout”). In “What It Was Like, Part One,” Graham sits down for an epic Gilmore Girls marathon and reflects on being cast as the fast-talking Lorelai Gilmore. The essay “What It Was Like, Part Two” reveals how it felt to pick up the role again nine years later, and what doing so has meant to her. Some more things you will learn about Lauren: She once tried to go vegan just to bond with Ellen DeGeneres, she’s aware that meeting guys at awards shows has its pitfalls (“If you’re meeting someone for the first time after three hours of hair, makeup, and styling, you’ve already set the bar too high”), and she’s a card-carrying REI shopper (“My bungee cords now earn points!”). Including photos and excerpts from the diary Graham kept during the filming of the recent Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life, this book is like a cozy night in, catching up with your best friend, laughing and swapping stories, and—of course—talking as fast as you can.
Professional wedding planner Macie Fuller is having trouble saying "I do." White doves and wedding bells are all in a days work, as is the occasional difficult client. But when her wealthy boyfriend Avery proposes, Macie's reaction shocks everyone. Will she become a monster in a white veil, she wonders? And more importantly, how can she be herself in Avery's purebred family? When Macie comes around, it's not for the white dress or gift registry, but for love. She wants it for life. Jennifer Manske Fenske's Toss the Bride is a warm and witty novel about finding romance on your own terms.
