The sexually abused body of a young talented actress is discovered at Lake Mohegan, in wealthy Fairfield, Connecticut. Detective Frank Gianni’s sixth sense screams serial killer the minute he lays eyes on her. This erotically charged thriller calls upon the synergism of Detective Gianni and rookie Detective Brenda Corrino to find the killer before he strikes again. With the help of the new Medical Examiner Dr. Darren Crowe, Detective Corrino infiltrates the prime suspect’s erotic world in an attempt to confirm her suspicions. However, the investigation is developing much too slowly for Detective Corrino and she decides to take matters into her own hands. Unfortunately, the killer is one step ahead of her.
Someone is killing the A-List actors of Hollywood, shooting them dead, and leaving a defaced DVD of one of their films at the crime scene. Enter Detective Second Class Frank Callahan, a big, tough, rough and tumble sort of guy who happens to be gay. Follow him and his fellow Irish Catholic sidekick, Barry, as they pursue the elusive DVD killer over the streets of Hollywood, through gay bars, bath houses and cruising grounds, on a chase around Magic Mountain Amusement Park, Forest Lawn, Sunset Strip and other L.A. landmarks. Witness Callahan's evolution from a seeker of personal glory to team player, his monumental showdown with a gay-bashing rival detective, the brutish Moose Koehler, and his reunion with his estranged lover, a fascinating character named Car. In the end, it's good, old-fashioned police work with an assist from Barry's Aunt Bee, a walking encyclopedia of film lore that leads to the killer's downfall in an exciting climax reminiscent of Hollywood's legendary gangster films.
In 1929, while serving a 25-year sentence for burglary, Carl Panzram bludgeoned a fellow inmate with an iron bar and was sentenced to death. On death row at Leavenworth Prison Panzram wrote his life story, or autobiography, through a series of letters to Henry Lesser, a guard he befriended. Here he sets down a detailed description of his criminal exploits, including 21 murders, his upbringing in correctional facilities for juvenile delinquents (where he was severely beat and tortured for petty infractions) and time as an adult incarcerated in places as varied as Leavenworth to county jails.
The Great Plains were once among the greatest grasslands on the planet. But as the United States and Canada grew westward, the Plains were plowed up, fenced in, overgrazed, and otherwise degraded. Today, this fragmented landscape is the most endangered and least protected ecosystem in North America. But all is not lost on the prairie. Through lyrical photographs, essays, historical images, and maps, this beautifully illustrated book gets beneath the surface of the Plains, revealing the lingering wild that still survives and whose diverse natural communities, native creatures, migratory traditions, and natural systems together create one vast and extraordinary whole. Three broad geographic regions in Great Plains are covered in detail, evoked in the unforgettable and often haunting images taken by Michael Forsberg. Between the fall of 2005 and the winter of 2008, Forsberg traveled roughly 100,000 miles across 12 states and three provinces, from southern Canada to northern Mexico, to complete the photographic fieldwork for this project, underwritten by The Nature Conservancy. Complementing Forsberg’s images and firsthand accounts are essays by Great Plains scholar David Wishart and acclaimed writer Dan O’Brien. Each section of the book begins with a thorough overview by Wishart, while O’Brien—a wildlife biologist and rancher as well as a writer—uses his powerful literary voice to put the Great Plains into a human context, connecting their natural history with man’s uses and abuses. The Great Plains are a dynamic but often forgotten landscape—overlooked, undervalued, misunderstood, and in desperate need of conservation. This book helps lead the way forward, informing and inspiring readers to recognize the wild spirit and splendor of this irreplaceable part of the planet.
Los Angeles is no stranger to glamour, celebrity . . . and murder. When Susan Kaplan moves to L.A. to become a TV writer, she's thrilled to be hired as a writers' assistant on the well-regarded but low-rated TV series Babbitt & Brooks. The last thing she expects, however, is that she'd find herself working for the beautiful yet seriously neurotic Rebecca Saunders, the show's less-than-competent associate producer who may or may not have gotten the job by sleeping with Babbitt & Brooks' demanding creator and executive producer, Ray Goldfarb. And Susan definitely doesn't expect to find murdered Rebecca's body in her office at the studio early one morning. When the police learn that Rebecca torpedoed Susan's writing career shortly before her death, Susan becomes their number one suspect. Determined to prove her innocence and find the murderer, Susan discovers that all her colleagues have secrets they would kill to protect. From producers to writers to stars, it seems that the hopes and dreams of nearly everyone associated with the show were being threatened by Rebecca. Despite the danger to her own life, Susan remains determined to find Rebecca's killer and in the process unmasks the dirty little secrets behind the making of a primetime television series. She learns that real life behind the camera is far more dramatic than the fictional one in front of it. Lisa Seidman draws on her thirty years of experience as a successful television writer to take the reader behind the scenes and show how the struggle to achieve high ratings truly can lead to murder.
Since the mid-1980s, US audiences have watched the majority of movies they see on a video platform, be it VHS, DVD, Blu-ray, Video On Demand, or streaming media. Annual video revenues have exceeded box office returns for over twenty-five years. In short, video has become the structuring discourse of US movie culture. Killer Tapes and Shattered Screens examines how prerecorded video reframes the premises and promises of motion picture spectatorship. But instead of offering a history of video technology or reception, Caetlin Benson-Allott analyzes how the movies themselves understand and represent the symbiosis of platform and spectator. Through case studies and close readings that blend industry history with apparatus theory, psychoanalysis with platform studies, and production history with postmodern philosophy, Killer Tapes and Shattered Screens unearths a genealogy of post-cinematic spectatorship in horror movies, thrillers, and other exploitation genres. From Night of the Living Dead (1968) through Paranormal Activity (2009), these movies pursue their spectator from one platform to another, adapting to suit new exhibition norms and cultural concerns in the evolution of the video subject.
"Anderson, a TV producer, depicts Molly, Manhattan and terminally cool suspects with a refreshing hilarity. . . ."--Publishers Weekly "Fashion commentary, urbane asides, and witty characters keep the pages turning."--Library Journal They say love is easier the second time around: You'd think solving a mystery would be, too. But Molly Forrester finds both to be less than true in this sassy sequel to her first adventure, Killer Heels. Molly's journalism career is stalled. Solving the murder of a colleague in Killer Heels hasn't led to bigger and better opportunities as quickly as she'd hoped. Instead, she's still writing her popular advice column for Zeitgeist magazine, now under a new editor. Stalled too is Molly's relationship with Detective Kyle Edwards. Perhaps meeting over a dead body isn't the best way to build a romance after all. When her best friends, Tricia Vincent and Cassady Lynch, suggest a trip to the Hamptons, Molly seizes the chance to get away from her worries for a while. But what starts as an entertaining, champagne-filled weekend of "sipping and sniping" at the ultra-rich explodes into disaster with a dead guest of honor, a blue-blooded family feud, a jealous lover or three, and a murder investigation that stretches back to Manhattan and strains Molly and Kyle almost to the breaking point. And through it all, Molly must contend with an icy female homicide investigator who may be competing with Molly on more than a professional level. With a penchant for saying the right thing--even if at the wrong time--and the enthusiastic help of her two devoted friends, Molly Forrester tackles another murder with zest and style. But will her sharp wit and droll insight be enough to protect those she cares about most? Sheryl J. Anderson whips up another sexy cocktail that's equal parts comedy, mystery, and romance. This heady brew takes the sting out of the greatest mystery of all--how to keep love alive in the big city. "Her delightful series . . . reverberates with wit, style, and superb characterization."--Mystery Scene
The definitive horror movie guide for fans of killer animals and "revenge of nature" films. When Animals Attack: The 70 Best Horror Movies with Killer Animals provides a fascinating and entertaining insight into the cinematographic world of animals on the rampage. From well-known predators such as sharks and lions to unusual killing machines like turkeys, elephants, frogs, cats, and rabbits, there is no shortage of the species on display in this book. Leading horror writers and filmmakers present their favorite "animals attack" films through in-depth essays. Some of the films are touching, some are repulsive, and some are just plain silly. Not all of these horror movies line up with the critical consensus, yet they have one thing in common: they have made the heart of the writer beat faster with excitement.
Grandmaster Simon Williams has played the Classical Dutch for over twenty years. It remains his favourite opening and has featured in some of his greatest individual results, including a win over World Championship finalist Boris Gelfand. In this book, Williams examines the Classical Dutch in great depth. He also presents a complete repertoire for Black with the Dutch Defence, which is based on his own repertoire he has used successfully at grandmaster level for many years. As well as presenting the latest theory and revealing his new ideas in the key lines, Williams highlights the main tactical and strategic ideas for both sides and covers important issues such as move orders. Each chapter includes a series of tests at the end, so that readers are able to assess how well they have understood the main concepts. This books tells you everything you need to know about successfully playing the Classical Dutch. A Dutch repertoire against 1 d4, 1 c4 and 1 Nf3Written by a world-renowned Classical Dutch expert Packed with new ideas and critical analysis
Can this undercover agent save the woman he loves—or is her heart as counterfeit as the money he's been sent to track down? After all that Grandfather has sacrificed to raise her, Theresa Plane owes it to him to save the family name—and that means clearing their debt with creditors before she marries Edward Greystone. But when one of the creditors' threats leads her to stumble across a midnight meeting, she discovers that the money he owes isn't all Grandfather was hiding. And the secrets he kept have now trapped Theresa in a life-threatening fight for her home—and the truth. After months of undercover work, Secret Service operative Broderick Cosgrove is finally about to uncover the identity of the leader of a notorious counterfeiting ring. That moment of triumph turns to horror, however, when he finds undeniable proof that his former fiance is connected. Can he really believe the woman he loved is a willing participant? Protecting Theresa and proving her innocence may destroy his career—but that's better than failing her twice in one lifetime. They must form a partnership, tentative though it is. But there's no question they're both still keeping secrets—and that lack of trust, along with the dangerous criminals out for their blood, threatens their hearts, their faith, and their very survival. Combining rich history, danger, suspense, and romance, Crystal Caudill's debut novel launches this new historical series with a bang. Fans of Elizabeth Camden, Michelle Griep, and Joanna Davidson Politano will be thrilled to find another author to follow!
