Time has become a loathsome enemy.After the harrowing battle against Herja, Vala and Xavyn find themselves in a new battle against time. The war between lands quickly approaches should The Divide fall, but even that concern must wait while they engage in a more dire conflict with Verdandi. She must be stopped before finding the final piece needed to end the world. To stand any chance at defeating her, Vala and the others will have to add numbers to their charge, which includes negotiations with the incorrigible Volare king.In the midst of it all, Vala has to face her true identity. Though acceptance doesn't always come easily, especially when it comes from within. For Vala, it also means accepting what happens after.If they stop Verdandi ...If they prevent the war ...If she reconnects with her pith ...Will she have to say goodbye forever?
A family curse, a powerful warlock bound by love, and a woman bewitched. Psychic Ember Stone has been dreaming of a blue-eyed, dark-haired man for as long as she can remember. When a man named Derek shows up as her next client, she’s shocked to see he resembles the man in her dreams. Who is Derek, and why does she feel drawn to him? As secrets emerge and answers come to light, Ember’s feelings for Derek intensify. But on Halloween, a centuries old curse will change everything, requiring a sacrifice neither of them can bear. Follow Ember, Derek, and their strange connection through the ages as they navigate the haunting secrets that will either bring them together or tear them apart. In The Cards is book one in the Forevermore Series, set in a world that includes vampires, psychics, witches, and other creatures of the night.
Since the Purge, people like me have three choices. Slavery, sterilization, or hide our gender and hope for the best.Thanks to a toxic cocktail of black market heat blockers and pheromone suppressors, I've managed to carve out a respectable life in the glittering world of beta politics. Maybe I can do some good here, but if my secret ever comes out, I'll face a death sentence at the hands of the Committee-the shadowy international organization bent on crushing the aIphomic race under the bootheel of a ruling beta class.Even in these dark times, there are still those in the world who value us the way we're meant to be valued. Jax, Alex, and Flynn are subjugated like the rest of our people, assigned to act as muscle in a security detail protecting high level officials from the United Federation of North America-myself included.Being around them is slow torture of the sweetest kind. If I ever gave in to my instincts, the three of them would destroy me, sending my delicate house of cards tumbling to the ground. I've sworn they can never know about me, which is all well and good until terrorists capture my diplomatic contingent a week before my heat is due.Now, this pack of misfits may be my only hope.* * *Secret Pack is a non-shifter semisweet-verse trilogy where pack is everything. It features growly protectors and soft-hearted love interests who deserve to be cherished. Strap in for complicated relationships set against a backdrop of social upheaval. Series HEA guaranteed. What happens between now and then? not guaranteed.
If you’re a web developer interested in building scalable single-page applications—full-stack, browser-based apps that connect to a backend—this practical guide shows you how to use Ember.js, the popular JavaScript framework based on the model-view-controller (MVC) architectural pattern. Through the course of the book, you’ll learn how to build a prototype Ember application (a musician index called Rock’n’Roll Call), using routers, templates, models, controllers, and views. You’ll also understand how Ember’s convention over configuration approach helps you persist data, build backend technologies, and create widgets for developing production-capable applications that behave like desktop software. Set up workflow management and boilerplate code creation Learn how Ember’s “developer ergonomics” help you use less code Write templates for the book’s prototype with Handlebars.js Use routers to manage application states without reloading the page Connect controllers and views with events, and sync data with data-binding Build an Ember backend with a RESTful API or Ruby on Rails Use the Ember-Data library to persist data and talk to the backend Write reusable encapsulated widgets to extend your applications
How our collective intelligence has helped us to evolve and prosper Humans are a puzzling species. On the one hand, we struggle to survive on our own in the wild, often failing to overcome even basic challenges, like obtaining food, building shelters, or avoiding predators. On the other hand, human groups have produced ingenious technologies, sophisticated languages, and complex institutions that have permitted us to successfully expand into a vast range of diverse environments. What has enabled us to dominate the globe, more than any other species, while remaining virtually helpless as lone individuals? This book shows that the secret of our success lies not in our innate intelligence, but in our collective brains—on the ability of human groups to socially interconnect and learn from one another over generations. Drawing insights from lost European explorers, clever chimpanzees, mobile hunter-gatherers, neuroscientific findings, ancient bones, and the human genome, Joseph Henrich demonstrates how our collective brains have propelled our species' genetic evolution and shaped our biology. Our early capacities for learning from others produced many cultural innovations, such as fire, cooking, water containers, plant knowledge, and projectile weapons, which in turn drove the expansion of our brains and altered our physiology, anatomy, and psychology in crucial ways. Later on, some collective brains generated and recombined powerful concepts, such as the lever, wheel, screw, and writing, while also creating the institutions that continue to alter our motivations and perceptions. Henrich shows how our genetics and biology are inextricably interwoven with cultural evolution, and how culture-gene interactions launched our species on an extraordinary evolutionary trajectory. Tracking clues from our ancient past to the present, The Secret of Our Success explores how the evolution of both our cultural and social natures produce a collective intelligence that explains both our species' immense success and the origins of human uniqueness.
A magical NEW story filled with adventure, wonder and edge-of-your-seat excitement, set in a world of daring dragons and magical maladies by the best-selling author of Sky Song, Abi Elphinstone . . . ‘This new fantasy series for younger readers is bubbling with action and imagination… A joy.’ The Daily Mail 'Elphinstone has the confidence to embrace fantasy's most popular tropes - unicorns, dragons, dark-hearted villains - and make them thoroughly her own.' TheTelegraph Rusty Fizzbang, vet to magical beasts, needs an apprentice. Ember Spark, looking for adventure, is his newest recruit - and together with an unlikely friend, Arno, she is sent to help a baby dragon whose parents have gone missing. But keeping magical beasts a secret isn’t an easy task, especially with arch-villain, Jasper Hornswoggle, hot on their heels and keen to derail them… Praise for Ember Spark ‘A total masterclass in high-action, high-stakes, high-fun adventure.’ Emma Carroll, author of Letters from the Lighthouse ‘Quirky and magical, this wonderful adventure proves what everyone should know – Abi Elphinstone is a writer to be cherished.’ Phil Earle, author of When the Sky Falls ‘Ember Spark herself is a wonderful heroine – she’s brave, curious and always up for an adventure.’ Katie Tsang, author of the Dragon Realm series ‘I adored Ember Spark. Abi is a master storyteller . . . she’s created a thrilling adventure fizzing with heart and magic and wonder.’ Zohra Nabi, author of The Kingdom over the Sea ‘Kids are going to go wild for this joyful, moving, thrill-ride of a book, guaranteed to leave you smiling. Every word is magic.’ Lauren St John, author of The White Giraffe series ‘Sure to ignite any reader’s imagination and warm their heart. Wonderful and wonder-filled!’ Andy Shepherd, author of The Boy who Grew Dragons 'Utterly charming, wonderfully wild and sprinkled with gutsy characters, dastardly villains & magical creatures galore . . .' Jo Clarke, author of The Travelling School Mysteries 'Ember Spark is bursting with adventure, magic & that very special Abi Elphinstone sparkle . . .' Mel Taylor-Bessent, author of The Christmas Carrolls
Will they be able to discover what true love is really like, or will the war tearing countries apart rip that opportunity from their grasp before they can venture forward in faith? Ember and Virginia are sisters living with their family in southwestern Montana with dreams that go far beyond the small farming town and its inhabitants. Ember Hirschel has little interest in men of any kind since her last attempted relationship ended in shambles--that is, until she meets the charming Lieutenant LaHaye, who quickly steals her heart and leaves her wondering what a future would be like with him by her side. But life in 1941 is not easy, especially for a young couple whose lives could easily be torn apart by the war raging on between nations. When disaster strikes and leaves Ember with little to cling to, will her faith and trust in God bring her and the people she cares about into a safety net of happiness and peace? Though she loves her job as a nurse in her small hometown, Virginia Hirschel longs for excitement and maybe even a handsome young beau to bring some adventure to her rather dull life. When her qualifications as a nurse are called into question, Virginia begins to wonder if she was ever meant to care for the sick and dying. And when a handsome young soldier makes it clear he wishes to court her, Virginia couldn't imagine a more tempting prospect. But maybe Virginia's plan for her life isn't the same as God's plan for her future. Accepting and acknowledging that reality are two different things. And when faced with a crisis in her new relationship, will Virginia choose to persevere in faith or let go of the dreams she once thought impossible?
In The Vintage Book of African American Poetry, editors Michael S. Harper and Anthony Walton present the definitive collection of black verse in the United States--200 years of vision, struggle, power, beauty, and triumph from 52 outstanding poets. From the neoclassical stylings of slave-born Phillis Wheatley to the wistful lyricism of Paul Lawrence Dunbar . . . the rigorous wisdom of Gwendolyn Brooks...the chiseled modernism of Robert Hayden...the extraordinary prosody of Sterling A. Brown...the breathtaking, expansive narratives of Rita Dove...the plaintive rhapsodies of an imprisoned Elderidge Knight . . . The postmodern artistry of Yusef Komunyaka. Here, too, is a landmark exploration of lesser-known artists whose efforts birthed the Harlem Renaissance and the Black Arts movements--and changed forever our national literature and the course of America itself. Meticulously researched, thoughtfully structured, The Vintage Book of African-American Poetry is a collection of inestimable value to students, educators, and all those interested in the ever-evolving tradition that is American poetry.
Though always an important North Carolina city, Charlotte truly helped to make history during the Civil War. The city's factories produced gunpowder, percussion caps, and medicine for the Confederate cause. Perhaps most importantly, Charlotte housed the Confederate Naval Ordnance Depot and Naval Works, manufacturing iron for ironclad vessels and artillery projectiles, and providing valuable ammunition for the South. Charlotte also sent over 2,500 men into the Confederate army, and played home to a military hospital, a Ladies Aid Society, a prison and even the mysterious Confederate gold. When Richmond fell, Jefferson Davis set up his headquarters in Charlotte, making it the unofficial capital. Join historian Michael C. Hardy as he recounts the triumphs and struggles of Queen City civilians and soldiers in the Civil War.
