Dred Scott Vanderpool grew up in a drug-infested community in Washington State, not far from the Canadian border. He started smoking hashish during his teen years and never stopped. Dred, who was also known by the nickname Chunky, graduated from college ahead of schedule and decided to pursue drug trafficking full time in lieu of a more traditional career path. Chunkys first order of business post-graduation was setting up a legal business entity that allowed him and his partner in crime since childhood, Tafari Winslow, to funnel illegal revenues into legitimate bank accounts. These two close friends and business associates worked hard to amass millions in cash, selling cocaine, hashish, and marijuana all over the West Coast. When they agreed it would be prudent to deposit dirty money into bank accounts they had opened in the Cayman Islands and Switzerland that was the beginning of the end.
Set in the Rocky Mountains, Sebastian Morales is smart, gorgeous, and just turned 30. He is also the youngest Priest to be ordained in the sleepy little town of Morris, nestled just below Vail, Colorado. Born in a remote village in Spain, Father Morales’ life was perfectly scripted as he obtained his dreams. Now, in America, he is tasked with revitalizing an aging congregation. The job seems easy until he meets Ian Stephens. Ian is troubled and trapped between his own dreams and the responsibility he feels for the care of his aging homophobic mother. Escorting his mother to Sunday Mass one morning, Ian and Father Morales’s lives intersect, changing both forever. Ian believes he saw something in the Father’s eyes that morning, a spark, an intuition, or was he just fantasizing about the seductively alluring priest? Ian is willing to risk it all to find the answer, in turn feeding his own sexual desires and causing boundaries to be questioned by everyone. After an unforeseen yet unforgettable kiss between the two, will an Ancient House of Cards be toppled when they are made to confront the moral dilemma that neither of them can escape?
Get all three books in the series that inspired the hit Netflix series House of Cards "This blood-and-thunder tale, lifelike and thoroughly cynical, certainly carries the ring of authenticity... a great triumph." Independent "The exciting thriller that has Westminster buzzing. Here is a political thriller writer with a marvelous inside track knowledge of government. House of Cards is fast-moving, revelatory and brilliant." Daily Express Michael Dobbs has wowed readers with his bestselling House of Cards trilogy, which inspired the hit series on Netflix. Here are the three books in the trilogy for one low price: House of Cards, To Play the King, and The Final Cut. About the Books in This Bundle 1. House of Cards A dark tale of greed, corruption, and unquenchable ambition, House of Cards reveals that no matter the country, politics, intrigue and passion reign in the corridors of power. Francis Urquhart has his hand on every secret in politics – and is willing to betray them all to become prime minister. Mattie Storin is a tenacious young reporter who has a knack for finding the real stories hidden behind the spin. When she stumbles upon a scandalous web of intrigue and financial corruption at the very highest levels, she vows to reveal the truth. But to do so she must battle her own demons and risk everything, even her life. 2. To Play the King After scheming his way to power in House of Cards, newly elected Prime Minister Francis Urquhart takes on the new King. The role of the monarchy in modern Britain comes under scrutiny as Prime Minister Francis Urquhart threatens to expose Royal secrets when his plans are blocked by the idealistic new King. Their differences of opinion quickly degenerate into open hostility. The battlefield ranges from architecture to the underprivileged; the battle is fought with rigged opinion polls, manipulated newspaper headlines, sexual scandal and economic brinkmanship as Urquhart sets out to destroy not only the King's family and friends but even the King himself. 3. The Final Cut Now Francis Urquhart is about to take his place in the record books as the longest-serving Prime Minister this century. Yet it seems the public is tiring of him at last, and the movement to force him from power is growing. But Urquhart is not yet ready to be driven from office. If the public demands new blood, that is precisely what he will give them... This is a different Francis Urquhart – more vulnerable, more loving, and more ruthless than ever. He will risk everything, but one thing is certain: whatever the outcome of this, his greatest gamble, the name of Francis Urquhart will never be forgotten.
A blistering narrative account of the negligence and greed that pushed all of Wall Street into chaos and the country into a financial crisis. At the beginning of March 2008, the monetary fabric of Bear Stearns, one of the world’s oldest and largest investment banks, began unraveling. After ten days, the bank no longer existed, its assets sold under duress to rival JPMorgan Chase. The effects would be felt nationwide, as the country suddenly found itself in the grip of the worst financial mess since the Great Depression. William Cohan exposes the corporate arrogance, power struggles, and deadly combination of greed and inattention, which led to the collapse of not only Bear Stearns but the very foundations of Wall Street.
Building Everyday Leadership in All Kids emphasizes that anyone can be a leader—and it’s never too early to start learning what leadership means and how to lead. This resource engages all emerging leaders, at all emotional and academic levels, by taking a full, practical approach to building personal and group leadership attitudes. The easy-to-use activities, in categories such as Understanding Leadership, Communication, Working with Others, Problem Solving, and Making a Difference, are designed to promote group interaction, build self-confidence, and allow students to explore personal understanding. Many activities are grouped for grades K–3 or 4–6, while others can be used with some minor adaptations for any age in the range. A special set of activities is specifically geared toward kids who are transitioning to middle school. Digital content includes customizable reproducible forms.
The Scriptures are an essential aspect of the Christian faith. But we have often equated them with the living Word Himself, even elevating them above the One to whom they point. In doing so, we have distorted their central message—and our view of God. Tragically, this has caused multitudes of people unnecessary doubt, confusion, and pain in their encounters with the Scriptures. Many people understand God as being truly loving and good. Yet, they struggle with depictions of God in Scripture as wrathful, violent, and genocidal. These “toxic texts” have caused some to set aside their Bibles as R-rated and unreliable. They have led others to completely reject their faith. Author and theologian Bradley Jersak has wrestled deeply with such passages over many years. He has experienced the same questions, doubt, and pain. In A More Christlike Word, he offers a clarifying and freeing path forward. Whether readers consider themselves believers, doubters, or skeptics, all are invited to a more beautiful and ancient way of reading the Scriptures. Bradley calls this path the “Emmaus Way” because it demonstrates how Jesus regarded all Scripture as fulfilled in himself, the final Word of God who reveals the true nature of the Father. After deconstructing the modern biblicist/literalist approaches to Scripture interpretation that have failed us, Brad turns to the early church for a hermeneutic of prefigurement, treating the Bible as the grand narrative of redemption, told through a polyphony of voices and worldviews, culminating in the arrival of Christ as the eternal Word of God—what God has to say about himself. The interpretive system of the church fathers and mothers who gathered the New Testament and preached the gospel from the Old Testament has largely been ignored or dismissed by both evangelical and liberal movements, the twin children of modernity. The patristics explain and model the apostles’ Christ-centered interpretation of the Scriptures. Brad applies their approach to “unwrath” sample passages from each genre of the Bible, showing how even the cringe-worthy texts have an important place in the Christotelic saga of divine love. Your journey on the Emmaus Way will open up to you the fullness of the Scriptures, and, most important, lead you to the God who deeply loves and welcomes you.
Fitness superstar Nona Simms worked hard to make Brickhouse one of the hottest gyms in the city. Now corrupt city politics is coming uptown to Harlem, and Nona's dream is slated for the wrecking ball. Nona's a fighter, though, and she's gathering her friends around her for support against the special interests. However, her handsome business partner, Allen, is weighed down by a shattering secret that could destroy both their futures. Best girlfriend Leila is suffering through the disintegration of her marriage to a New York Knicks superstar. And Nona's being pulled into a web of treachery, deceit, and scandal that stretches into the very highest circles of New York power. Things look hopeless, but help is on the horizon—coming on strong from the last place Nona Simms ever expected to find it . . . and from the last man she ever expected to love.
This book is to date the first monograph-length study of the popular American political TV series House of Cards. It proposes an encompassing analysis of the first three seasons from the unusual angles of discourse and dialogue. The study of the stylistic idiosyncrasies of the ruthless main protagonist, Frank Underwood, is completed by a pragmatic and cognitive approach exposing the main characters’ manipulative strategies to win over the other. Taking into account the socio-cultural context and the specificities of the TV medium, the volume focuses on the workings of interaction as well as the impact of the direct address to the viewer. The book critically uses the latest theories in pragmatics and stylistics in its attempt at providing a pragma-rhetorical theory of manipulation.
