Download or read book Etched in Sand written by Regina Calcaterra and published by Harper Collins. This book was released on 2013-08-06 with total page 153 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Regina’s Calcaterra memoir, Etched in Sand, is an inspiring and triumphant coming-of-age story of tenacity and hope. Regina Calcaterra is a successful lawyer, New York State official, and activist. Her painful early life, however, was quite different. Regina and her four siblings survived an abusive and painful childhood only to find themselves faced with the challenges of the foster-care system and intermittent homelessness in the shadows of Manhattan and the Hamptons. A true-life rags-to-riches story, Etched in Sand chronicles Regina’s rising above her past, while fighting to keep her brother and three sisters together through it all. Beautifully written, with heartbreaking honesty, Etched in Sand is an unforgettable reminder that regardless of social status, the American Dream is still within reach for those who have the desire and the determination to succeed.

Download or read book Walk to Beautiful written by Mr. Jimmy Wayne and published by Thomas Nelson. This book was released on 2014-10-14 with total page 417 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A New York Times bestseller! Imagine yourself a thirteen-year-old hundreds of miles away from home, in a strange city, and your mom leaves you at a bus station parking lot and drives off into the night with her lover. That’s the real-life story of country music star Jimmy Wayne. It’s a miracle that Jimmy survived being hungry and homeless, bouncing in and out of the foster care system, and sleeping in the streets. But he didn’t just overcome great adversity in his life; he now uses his country music platform to help children everywhere, especially teenagers in foster care who are about to age out of the system. Walk to Beautiful is the powerfully emotive account of Jimmy’s horrendous childhood and the love he received from Russell and Bea Costner, the elderly couple who gave him a stable home and provided the chance to complete his education. Jimmy says of Bea, “She changed every cell in my body.” This moving memoir chronicles: Jimmy’s life as a foster child and homeless teenager His adoption by Russell and Bea Costner, an elderly couple who gave him a stable home and provided the opportunities for him to thrive His surprising rise to fame in the music industry His tireless advocacy for children in the foster care system through his Meet Me Halfway awareness campaign, a 1,700 mile walk halfway across America from Nashville to Phoenix Join Jimmy on his walk to beautiful and see how one person really can make a difference.

Download or read book Nest Nook Cranny written by Susan Blackaby and published by Charlesbridge Publishing. This book was released on 2010-02-01 with total page 64 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From tongue-in-cheek sonnets to lyrical free verse, this collection of poems explores the many kinds of home animals make for themselves. Readers will meet better-known animal dwellings like the spiderweb and the bird's nest as well as the more unusual: a fawn's thicket bed, a hare's bowl-shaped ground nest, and a sea anemone's ever-changing tide pool home. Readers experience different habitats—desert, grasslands, shoreline, wetland, and woodland—and the animals that build their dwellings there. Jamie Hogan's expressive line art complements this clever anthology. Back matter provides more information on the highlighted habitats, poetic forms, and the writing process.

Download or read book The Gauntlet written by Karuna Riazi and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2017-03-28 with total page 304 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A trio of friends from New York City find themselves trapped inside a mechanical board game that they must dismantle in order to save themselves and generations of other children in this action-packed debut that’s a steampunk Jumanji with a Middle Eastern flair. Nothing can prepare you for The Gauntlet… It didn’t look dangerous, exactly. When twelve-year-old Farah first laid eyes on the old-fashioned board game, she thought it looked…elegant. It is made of wood, etched with exquisite images—a palace with domes and turrets, lattice-work windows that cast eerie shadows, a large spider—and at the very center of its cover, in broad letters, is written: The Gauntlet of Blood and Sand. The Gauntlet is more than a game, though. It is the most ancient, the most dangerous kind of magic. It holds worlds inside worlds. And it takes players as prisoners.

Download or read book The Etched City written by K.J. Bishop and published by Spectra. This book was released on 2004-11-23 with total page 402 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “Combine equal parts of Stephen King’s Dark Tower series and Chine Miéville’s Perdido Street Station, throw in a dash of Aubrey BeardsleyandJ.K. Huysmans, and you’ll get some idea of this disturbing, decadent first novel.”—Publishers Weekly Gwynn and Raule are rebels on the run, with little in common except being on the losing side of a hard-fought war. Gwynn is a gunslinger from the north, a loner, a survivor . . . a killer. Raule is a wandering surgeon, a healer who still believes in just—and lost—causes. Bound by a desire to escape the ghosts of the past, together they flee to the teeming city of Ashamoil, where Raule plies her trade among the desperate and destitute, and Gwynn becomes bodyguard and assassin for the household of a corrupt magnate. There, in the saving and taking of lives, they find themselves immersed in a world where art infects life, dream and waking fuse, and splendid and frightening miracles begin to bloom . . . “The plot, with its stories-within-stories and its offhand descriptions of wonders and prodigies, brings to mind the works of Italo Calvino and Jorge Luis Borges.”—Locus

Download or read book The Last Wife written by Karen Hamilton and published by Harlequin. This book was released on 2020-07-07 with total page 358 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this domestic thriller by the author of The Perfect Girlfriend, a woman fulfills her late friend’s last wish only to uncover a terrifying web of lies. Nina and Marie were best friends—until Nina was diagnosed with a terminal illness. Before she died, Nina asked Marie to fulfill her final wishes. But her mistake was in thinking Marie was someone she could trust. What Nina didn’t know was that Marie always wanted her beautiful life, and that Marie has an agenda of her own. She’ll do anything to get what she wants. Marie thinks she can keep her promise to her friend’s family on her own terms. But what she doesn’t know is that Nina was hiding explosive secrets of her own . . . “[A] gripping thriller . . . Everybody has a nasty side, but that’s just one of the pleasures of this cunning whodunit. A devious plot is another. Hamilton knows how to keep the pages turning.” —Publishers Weekly “If there ever was a story about being careful what you wish for, this is it. A phenomenal read!” —Hannah Mary McKinnon, international bestselling author of Sister Dear “I could not tear myself away as Marie claimed the life of her dead friend Nina with devastating consequences. This is a five-star, one-sitting read.” —Fiona Cummins, bestselling author of Rattle

Download or read book The Lies We Told written by Diane Chamberlain and published by MIRA. This book was released on 2021-12-06 with total page 400 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From New York Times bestselling author Diane Chamberlain. Risks and rewards. Sisters and secrets. A riveting tale of family gone wrong. Maya and Rebecca Ward are both accomplished physicians, but that’s where the sisters’ similarities end. After a devastating hurricane hits the coast of North Carolina, Rebecca urges Maya to join her in the relief effort. It turns out to be just what Maya needs—but then her helicopter crashes into raging floodwaters, there appear to be no survivors. Forced to accept her sister is gone, Rebecca turns to Maya’s husband Adam—first for comfort, then in passion. Unaware that, miles from civilization, Maya is injured and trapped with strangers she’s not certain she can trust. Now Maya must find the courage to save herself—unaware that the life she left has changed forever. Previously published.

Download or read book Between the Lines written by Jodi Picoult and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2013-06-25 with total page 384 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Sixteen-year-old Prince Oliver, who wants to break free of his fairy tale existence, and fifteen-year-old Delilah, a loner obsessed with Prince Oliver and the book in which he exists, work together to seek Oliver's freedom.

Download or read book To Ride a White Horse written by Pamela Ford and published by Aine Press. This book was released on 2015-01-03 with total page 343 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “A sweeping historical love story that hits all the marks.” –Publisher’s Weekly starred review Your feet will bring you to where your heart is. Ireland 1846. With Ireland ravaged by famine and England unsympathetic to its plight, Kathleen Deacey faces a devastating choice – leave her country to find work or risk dying there. Despising the English for refusing to help Ireland, she crosses the ocean to support her family and search for her missing fiancé. But when her voyage goes awry, she must accept help from an English whaling captain, Jack Montgomery, who represents everything she despises – and with whom she is reluctantly falling in love. As Kathleen fights to save her family in Ireland, she finds herself facing yet another devastating choice – remain loyal to her country or follow her heart. Award-winning author Pamela Ford captures the anguish of a devastating period in Irish history and delivers an historical saga of hope, loyalty, the strength of the human spirit, and the power of love. With more than a half million copies of her books sold worldwide, she is known for creating stories that are emotional and moving. Gold Medal Winner, IPPY Awards · Finalist, National Readers’ Choice Awards · Finalist, Maggie Awards for Excellence · Finalist, Kindle Book Awards Praise for To Ride a White Horse: 5 STARS. "Expertly drawn characters that stole my heart. The writing is superb...a larger than life novel...captivating, breathtaking." –A Night's Dream of Books​ ​5 STARS. "Endearing...pulls you in from the first page and never loses momentum." –Mom in Love with Fiction​ 5 STARS. “I absolutely loved it...it was hard to put down.” –Ms Nose in a Book​ 5 STARS. "So long as there are books this good, I shall continue to shun TV...a hearty recommendation to get this book." –Gspotsylvania 5 STARS. "The story line was riveting, and the characters were fresh, well-developed, and enticing." –Books and Bindings​ 5 STARS. "I loved To Ride a White Horse...it was written beautifully...I fell in love with Kathleen and Jack.” –Books like Breathing​ 5 STARS. "A page turner...a wonderful story of personal choices, tragedy, kindness, forgiveness, and the power of faith and love!" –Rockin' Book Reviews 5 STARS. "I read the first chapter and was hooked. I didn’t want to stop." –Every Free Chance blog​ "Utterly compelling...I found myself caring about the characters in big ways...unable to put it down." –Novel Escapes "Wonderful... Ford writes with a lyrical quality that sweeps you into the story...a lovely story." –All the Reads "A superbly crafted romance/adventure novel...highly recommended." –Midwest Book Review

Download or read book Scarred written by Sarah Edmondson and published by Chronicle Books. This book was released on 2019-09-17 with total page 243 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: As seen in the HBO docuseries THE VOW: The shocking and subversive memoir of a 12-year-NXIVM-member-turned-whistleblower, and her inspiring true story of abuse, escape, and redemption. "'Master, would you brand me? It would be an honor.' From the second I climb onto the table, acutely aware that I am lying in the sweat of my sisters, I will have blocked that out. Lying there completely naked, I am at my most vulnerable but determined to prove my strength. I try to keep my legs closed as my body wills itself to protect my most private area. . . . I tell myself: I am a warrior. I birthed a human. I can handle pain. But nothing could have ever prepared me for the feel of this fire on my skin." Scarred is Sarah Edmondson's compelling memoir of her recruitment into the NXIVM cult, the 12 years she spent within the organization (during which she enrolled over 2,000 members and entered DOS—NXIVM's "secret sisterhood"), her breaking point, and her harrowing fight to get out, to expose Keith Raniere and the leadership, to help others, and to heal. Complete with personal photographs, Scarred is also an eye-opening story about abuses of power, female trust and friendship, and how sometimes the search to be "better" can override everything else. • In the tradition of Unorthodox by Deborah Feldman, Escape by Carolyn Jessop, and Troublemaker by Leah Remini • This tell-all follows Sarah from the moment she takes her first NXIVM seminar, to the invitation she accepts from her best friend, Lauren Salzman, into DOS, to her journey toward become a key witness in the federal case against its founders • Evokes questions about friendship, ethics, good and evil, making it a brilliant selection for book clubs Audio edition read by the author.

Download or read book A Dark and Hollow Star written by Ashley Shuttleworth and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2022-03-15 with total page 528 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "A queer cast of characters--a half-fae teenager, a temperamental ex-Fury, a fae prince, and his brooding guardian--must track down a serial killer whose disturbing murders are threatening to expose the hidden faerie courts to the human world"--Provided by publisher.

Download or read book Townie A Memoir written by Andre Dubus III and published by W. W. Norton & Company. This book was released on 2011-02-23 with total page 400 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Dubus relives, absent self-pity or blame, a life shaped by bouts of violence and flurries of tenderness." —Vanity Fair After their parents divorced in the 1970s, Andre Dubus III and his three siblings grew up with their overworked mother in a depressed Massachusetts mill town saturated with drugs and everyday violence. Nearby, his father, an eminent author, taught on a college campus and took the kids out on Sundays. The clash between town and gown, between the hard drinking, drugging, and fighting of "townies" and the ambitions of students debating books and ideas, couldn’t have been more stark. In this unforgettable memoir, acclaimed novelist Dubus shows us how he escaped the cycle of violence and found empathy in channeling the stories of others—bridging, in the process, the rift between his father and himself.

Download or read book The Heart Does Break written by Jean Baird and published by Random House Canada. This book was released on 2009-12-01 with total page 370 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A book in which some of our best writers address their own losses — and help us endure our own… A heartbreaking, comforting and beautiful collection of true stories about grief and mourning from some of Canada’s best known writers. When Jean Baird’s daughter, Bronwyn, died suddenly, Jean’s deep instinct was to turn to books to help her in her time of sudden loss. Although she found that the thoughts of counselors, psychologists, Buddhists, and self-help gurus were perhaps some help, the works that truly reached to the heart of the matter were by literary writers, largely from the UK and the US. Scanning the Canadian landscape, Jean and her husband George Bowering found elegies and tributes, but little from our writers about the person who is left behind to mourn or what it takes to endure grieving. The Heart Does Break — an anthology of twenty original pieces — sets out to fill that gap.

Download or read book Written in the Sand written by Lynnette Bonner and published by . This book was released on 2015-10-19 with total page 256 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Two years ago, a fist not only tore away the last tattered threads of Riley Ross's ability to trust another human being with her heart, but also stole any chance she would ever have of carrying another child. Since she wouldn't ask any man to walk through that grim reality with her, she's made a decision not to start any relationships. So when she arrives to pick up her younger brother from his soccer practice and sees that Jalen Rivera is his new coach, she knows she's in for a battle. Because if ever there was a man who could tempt her to forget her vow, it was Jalen. She'd managed to resist him once, could she find the selflessness to do so again? Jalen can't believe his good fortune when he learns that Riley still isn't seeing anyone. But convincing her to give them a chance might be more difficult than he anticipated. Can he prove to her that true love is not written in the sand, but is etched into a foundation stone that is bigger than either of them?

Download or read book Secret Slave written by Anna Ruston and published by Bonnier Publishing Ltd.. This book was released on 2016-12-29 with total page 295 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Sunday Times top ten bestseller... You're not going home. You're not going anywhere. You're mine now. Growing up in a deeply troubled family, 15-year-old Anna felt lost and alone in the world. So when a friendly taxi driver befriended her, Anna welcomed the attention, and agreed to go home with him to meet his family. She wouldn't escape for over a decade. Held captive by a sadistic paedophile, Anna was subjected to despicable levels of sexual abuse and torture. The unrelenting violence and degradation resulted in numerous miscarriages, and the birth of four babies... each one stolen away from Anna at birth. Her salvation arrived thirteen years too late, but despite her shattered mind and body, Anna finally managed to flee. This is her harrowing, yet uplifting, true story of survival.

Download or read book Kings of Paradise written by Richard Nell and published by Createspace Independent Publishing Platform. This book was released on 2018-07-19 with total page 606 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Winner of the 2018 IRDA for fantasy #1 Best Seller in Canadian Dark Fantasy 99% liked it (Goodreads) A deformed genius plots vengeance while struggling to survive. A wastrel prince comes of age, finding a power he never imagined. Two worlds are destined to collide. Only one can be king. "This dark fantasy epic will be held up against George R.R. Martin's masterwork, A Song of Ice and Fire. Read this book now so you can act pompous around your friends when HBO turns it into a television series." - Goodreads "Kings of Paradise presents a brutal world of complex yet simple politics, reminiscent of Game of Thrones. An intriguing low-magic world packed with interesting cultures to be further delved. Nell shows considerable skill in displaying his world distinctly through the eyes of his different characters." - Fantasybookreview.co.uk Ruka, called a demon at birth, is a genius. Born malformed and ugly into the snow-covered wasteland of the Ascom, he was spared from death by his mother's love. Now he is an outcast, consumed with hate for those who've wronged him. But to take his vengeance, he must first survive. Across a vast sea in the white-sand island paradise of Sri Kon, Kale is fourth and youngest son of the Sorcerer King. And at sixteen, Kale is a disappointment. As the first prince ever forced to serve with low-born marines, Kale must prove himself and become a man, or else lose all chance of a worthy future, and any hope to win the love of his life. Though they do not know it, both boys are on the cusp of discovery. Their worlds and lives are destined for greatness, or ruin. But in a changing world where ash meets paradise, only one man can be king... The first installment of an epic, low- fantasy trilogy. Kings of Paradise is a dark, bloody, coming-of-age story shaped by culture, politics, and magic. "The novel's brilliant world works on so many levels; it has a rich political landscape, moral complexity, and immense environmental challenges, all told in beautiful, thoughtful prose." - Indiereader "A must for lovers of fantasy, especially those who enjoy losing themselves in a epic tale." - Reader's Favorite "The world that Mr. Nell has created is pretty incredible. But the thing that really made me love this story was the characters he filled that world with." - Goodreads "If Kale changes, Ruka grows and festers like a storm. Without a doubt, the darker of the two characters, I feel Richard Nell has created a compelling and classic character here." Goodreads

Download or read book Legacy written by Adria Cimino and published by . This book was released on 2015-04-01 with total page 206 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A collection of literary fiction short stories on the theme of legacy What will you leave behind? Long after we've left this world, our legacy remains. Or doesn't. Or remains only in the minds of those who knew us, those whose lives we've touched. Those we've written to, or about. If you had a choice, what mark would you leave? How should people remember you? Should they remember you? Fourteen authors sat down during the month of January 2015, shut out distractions of the outside world and wrote about the subject. The resulting fiction and nonfiction stories fill the pages of Legacy: An Anthology. The book includes stories from Kristopher Jansma, winner of the 2014 Sherwood Anderson Award for Fiction, New York Times best-selling author Regina Calcaterra and Canadian best-selling author Marissa Stapley among others. Within these pages, there is laughter, pride and hope. There is romance and rock and roll. Certain messages are eerie, while others bestow a sense of peace. The collection, through the discerning lens of each writer, runs the gamut of the human experience. Author proceeds benefit the charity Paws for Reading, which pairs pets with children to improve reading and communication skills. Thanks for supporting the cause! This collection of literary fiction short stories has something for everyone. Its heavy theme will ultimately leave you feeling hopeful about the future. Interview with the EditorsQ: We see some big names in Legacy: Regina Calcaterra, whose memoir Etched in Sand was a New York Times best seller; Kristopher Jansma (The Unchangeable Spots of Leopards), winner of the 2014 Sherwood Anderson Award for Fiction; Jenny Milchman (Cover of Snow), winner of the Mary Higgins Clark Award for best suspense novel of 2013-and that's just to name a few! How did you manage to assemble such a list of talented authors? A: We were inspired by the #30Authors blog event hosted by The Book Wheel, where authors reviewed their favorite books of 2014 on participating blogs. So we thought, how about featuring the work of these authors in an anthology? We liked the idea of best-selling authors, award-winning authors and a few talented debut authors collaborating on a project. So we invited them to participate, and to our delight, they were just as excited to contribute to such an anthology as we were to publish it. Q: Why the theme of legacy? A: Words remain. And the writer's art is created through words. So it seemed the perfect subject to explore through fiction and nonfiction stories. Q: What sorts of tales will we find in the book? A: Our writers wrote stories along a common theme, legacy, yet each story is very different. It is interesting to see each author's take on the idea. You'll find the classic love story, stories of family secrets, friendship and life-changing experiences, mother-daughter relationships, father-son relationships, an on-the-edge-of-your-seat thriller, quirky stories, World War II memories, a remembrance of the Holocaust, stories of mean girls, and a tribute to rock and roll. Q: We hear your anthology is for a good cause? A: Yes, a cause we're really excited about! Author proceeds from Legacy go to the "Paws for Reading" program, which allows children to read aloud to a therapy dog (or cat, or bunny!) to improve reading and communication skills. Thanks for supporting the cause! Categories for the Legacy collection- Literary Fiction Short Stories - Literary Fiction Drama - Short Story Mysteries - Short Story Collection The Legacy anthology touches on the following themes: death, hope, human experience, quest, love story, World War II novels, Holocaust stories, rock and roll, star-crossed lovers, foster children, family secrets, friendship, destiny