Kale Mueez just wants to work on his computer programs and, okay, some not-so-legal hacking. Even though he sold one of his computer software companies for more money than he’d ever need, he wasn’t one to sit back and do nothing. That is especially true since his father is a super soldier known around the world. After spending time in the army, Kale returns home to his small town of Keeneston, working to hunt down The Panther, the one elusive criminal that’s ever escaped Kale. Until a wrong number changed everything. Delaney Warner worked in military intelligence, so when she accidentally texted the wrong number about standing her up on a date, she felt silly. She blamed stress at work for her lack of dating life and the wrong number text. Too bad she can’t get the short conversation with the man at the end of her wrong number out of her mind. When The Panther presents a threat, a wrong number turns into more than either Kale or Delaney ever imagined.
Some argued it would save the U.S. after 9/11. Instead, the CIA’s enhanced interrogation program came to be defined as American torture. The Forever Prisoner, a primary source for the recent HBO Max film directed by Academy Award winner Alex Gibney, exposes the full story behind the most divisive CIA operation in living memory. Six months after 9/11, the CIA captured Abu Zubaydah and announced he was number three in Al Qaeda. Frantic to thwart a much-feared second wave of attacks, the U.S. rendered him to a secret black site in Thailand, where he collided with retired Air Force psychologist James Mitchell. Arguing that Abu Zubaydah had been trained to resist interrogation and was withholding vital clues, the CIA authorized Mitchell and others to use brutal “enhanced interrogation techniques” that would have violated U.S. and international laws had not government lawyers rewritten the rulebook. In The Forever Prisoner, Cathy Scott-Clark and Adrian Levy recount dramatic scenes inside multiple black sites around the world through the eyes of those who were there, trace the twisted legal justifications, and chart how enhanced interrogation, a key “weapon” in the global “War on Terror,” metastasized over seven years, encompassing dozens of detainees in multiple locations, some of whom died. Ultimately that war has cost 8 trillion dollars, 900,000 lives, and displaced 38 million people—while the U.S. Senate judged enhanced interrogation was torture and had produced zero high-value intelligence. Yet numerous men, including Abu Zubaydah, remain imprisoned in Guantanamo, never charged with any crimes, in contravention of America’s ideals of justice and due process, because their trials would reveal the extreme brutality they experienced. Based on four years of intensive reporting, on interviews with key protagonists who speak candidly for the first time, and on thousands of previously classified documents, The Forever Prisoner is a powerful chronicle of a shocking experiment that remains in the headlines twenty years after its inception, even as US government officials continue to thwart efforts to expose war crimes. Silenced by a CIA pledge to keep him imprisoned and incommunicado forever, Abu Zubaydah speaks loudly through these pages, prompting the question as to whether he and others remain detained not because of what they did to us but because of what we did to them.
The hidden crisis of missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls in Canada is both a national tragedy and a national shame. In this ground-breaking new volume, as part of their larger efforts to draw attention to the shockingly high rates of violence against our sisters, Jennifer Brant and D. Memee Lavell-Harvard have pulled together a variety of voices from the academic realms to the grassroots and front-lines to speak on what has been identified by both the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights and the United Nations as a grave violation of the basic human rights of Aboriginal women and girls. Linking colonial practices with genocide, through their exploration of the current statistics, root causes and structural components of the issue, including conversations on policing, media and education, the contributing authors illustrate the resilience, strength, courage, and spirit of Indigenous women and girls as they struggle to survive in a society shaped by racism and sexism, patriarchy and misogyny. This book was created to honour our missing sisters, their families, their lives and their stories, with the hope that it will offer lessons to non-Indigenous allies and supporters so that we can all work together towards a nation that supports and promotes the safety and well-being of all First Nation, Métis and Inuit women and girls.
Greer Parker had her life planned out. She’d follow in her father and brothers’ FBI footsteps, and then she’d become the first female director. Now on loan to the president’s off-the-books black ops group, Greer is at a crossroads in her life—go back to the FBI or forge a new path. The decision is about to become more complicated when the man Greer can’t decide if she loves or hates needs to be rescued—and she’s the only one who can save him. Sebastian Abel’s best friend, the president, asked for a favor. Little did Sebastian know that developing code for a new spy satellite would find him kidnapped. When all hope is lost, he thinks about Greer Parker, the sweet girl next door with a sniper rifle. He had no business thinking of Greer in the many ways he was thinking of her. The trouble was Greer infuriated him by rolling her eyes at him and refusing to keep herself out of danger. Sebastian finds himself constantly worried about a woman he didn’t want . . . or was it that he shouldn’t want? Explosions, daring rescues, a town racing to help, and all the apple pie bribes lead to two strong personalities ending the charade that it hasn’t been love all along. Is the small town of Keeneston ready for what happens when someone puts the woman Sebastian Abel loves in the crosshairs? Or the better question: are they prepared for what Greer Parker will do to protect the man she loves?
Colton Davies is living the ultimate bachelor life in Keeneston as the chief fireman. He should be enjoying every moment of it, but a strange feeling in his chest suddenly takes over whenever he sees his friend Cady dancing with other men. The urge to rush in and rescue her is almost overwhelming, but he can’t let himself get carried away. Cady has been his friend for years, yet Colton’s thoughts about her are anything but friendly. They’re burning hot, and he just can’t seem to shake them off. Cady Woodson, the first female bourbon master distiller in Kentucky, has worked hard to earn her respect and start her own distillery. And she’d always had a crush on Colton. Who wouldn’t after seeing him on the cover of the Fireman’s Calendar? But he’s never given her more than friendship . . . until that one dance. Yet, with things going wrong at the distillery, Cady can’t afford to lose focus and battle for Colton’s attention. She’s not that kind of woman. As Cady tries to find out what’s behind the minor accidents at her distillery, one night changes everything. Colton comes to Cady’s rescue, and the strange feeling in his chest turns into an inferno, igniting his determination to keep Cady safe. Even if they’re just friends, he can’t let anything happen to her. As they work together to find the source of these dangerous accidents, it’s not just their friendship but also their hearts and lives that are on the line. Can they solve the mystery before it’s too late?
Years ago, on the darkest night of Poppy and Zinnia’s lives, they got a letter. It was from three elderly sisters in the small town of Keeneston, inviting them to visit and if interested, take a job. The Rose Sisters had wanted to retire, but they’d wanted family to take over their small café. Poppy and Zinnia Meadows, orphaned, alone, and in danger, left in the dead of night and raced toward the hope of a future they knew may come crashing down at any moment. That moment is now. Talon Bainbridge and Lucas Sharpe are teammates in the FBI’s Hostage Rescue Team based near Keeneston. The two friends have both fallen hard for the Meadows sisters, but suddenly the girls end what never had the chance to begin. Something was going on, but neither Poppy nor Zinnia would tell them what it was when all they wanted to do was to help the women they loved from afar. Poppy had been hiding a secret from her older sister and everyone in Keeneston. Someone knew what happed that graduation night back in Alabama when their lives changed forever. They’d been taunting Poppy for almost a year. As they approached the anniversary of the night their lives changed, the threats had escalated. With no other option, Poppy comes clean to Zinnia. They turn to Talon and Lucas, the two men they trust most, to protect them from the past knowing they may have to sacrifice their future to do so.
What happens when the bookworm becomes the main character? Paige Turner and her book club friends live a thousand lives through the characters of their romance books. In real life, they’re just one of the millions of people running around New York City. That is until a New Year’s Resolution to lose her virginity forces Paige to step out from behind the pages of her books. Paige strikes out on romantic adventures inspired by the main characters of her favorite romance books from every genre and trope to fulfill her resolution. Paige learns that it’s a truth universally acknowledged that billionaire bosses are hot, that some meet-cutes aren’t cute at all, that furries can fill in for shifters in a pinch to fulfill a paranormal romance trope, and sometimes that sexy cop really is there to arrest you. Paige is in for the adventure of her life, from virginity auctions to secret clubs to emergency room visits. But she learns that it’s not the romance that makes the heroine the main character. It’s finding her inner strength, determination, and confidence that makes her the heroine of her own story. Can Paige fulfill her New Year’s resolution without getting arrested or fired and maybe even find herself and love by the end of the year?
Kane Townsend was with the FBI Behavioral Analysis Unit until one case changed everything. Hampered by the red tape preventing him from saving an innocent life, Kane left the FBI and started his own private contracting company. Kane was called in to rescue people all over the world when the government couldn’t or wouldn’t get involved. Now headquartered in the small town of Shadows Landing, Kane was called in to rescue a woman. Little did he know, this case would once again change everything. Waverly Davenport was a Chief Science Officer in Charleston, South Carolina. She’d developed a new technology that would disrupt the criminal world. Waverly decided to take a well-earned vacation before starting the long process of patenting and selling her technology. The last thing Waverly expected at the five-star resort was to be kidnapped and held for ransom while out on an excursion or to fall for the man sent to rescue her. Kane thought the case would be over once he rescued Waverly. Now, they were on the run, trying to make it back to South Carolina as the kidnappers pursued them. As Kane and Waverly’s hearts become involved, so does the mystery of who is after Waverly and why. Can Kane and Waverly discover the truth before it’s too late?
Hunter Townsend loves his new home in the small town of Shadows Landing. It’s his sanctuary when he comes home from a mission as part of his Special Forces team. Maggie, the infuriating, monogram loving, bright color wearing, cuter than she should be woman, who loves to tease him was the only issue in Shadows Landing. Until a mission goes wrong . . . Maggie Bell is an Olympic sharpshooter and is getting ready to go for the gold once again. She loved nothing more than letting the handsome, yet cocky Hunter put his foot in his mouth over and over again by not telling him she was a better shot than he was. He just kept digging that hole and she just kept smiling. While everyone groaned when Maggie and Hunter started verbally sparring, Maggie loved it. She’d earn Hunter’s respect when he saw her win gold. That is, if anyone finally tells him she’s in the Olympics. But that all seems inconsequential when Shadows Landing becomes a target. Now will Hunter and Maggie put their verbal sparring aside and find the threat before they end up in the crosshairs?
Stone Townsend is the center for the pro-hockey team in Charleston. There are just a few things he’s concerned with: bringing his large family together again, leading his new team to a championship, and doing a lot of scoring–on and off the ice. Which is why it was the worst time to get an injury under new team management and a new coach. Natalie Novak owns a new sports academy that trains and rehabilitates athletes. She’s also a former prima ballerina and daughter of Charleston’s new hockey coach, though no one knows it. But there was a lot more going on behind her pretty costumes and flawless leaps, including being thrown into the spy world when she was dancing in London. She thought it would be simple enough to leap back out, but her past is about to find her. All Stone cared about was getting back into skating shape for the tournament. But when the paradox of Natalie gets his attention, he realizes there’s a lot more to her than meets the eye–including someone who wants to kill her. With his heart and career in Natalie’s hands, he vows to protect her with his life. Keywords: Shadows Landing, South Carolina, Romantic Suspense, Comedy, Sports, Action
