Finding Real Magic
Summary
Zahnâs life has been anything but ordinary. While hunting archaic relics infused with magic from continent to continent, his latest search brings him to Hollywood, and then face-to-face with a movie star he has idolized for years. Until now, he has only cared about the quest. But as lust and love break into his life, Zahn is caught up in a violent competition to retrieve one of the most powerful magical creations of all time from its ancient resting place. And this time, the race includes mercenaries, a centuries-old organization bent on stopping anyone from possessing it, and a killer who doesnât understand the concept of mercy. Well, no one ever promised him that finding real magic in this world was going to be easy. But it was definitely worth dying for. Warning: This novel contains action, adventure, violence, and copious amounts of intense sex. The sexy fun contains harem elements and intense descriptions that will make the innocent blush for sure. For the entertainment of adults only!
©2019 Shawn Keys (P)2019 Shawn Keys
The Art of Storytelling: From Parents to Professionals
Summary
An absolute treat for the heart and mind, these 24 lectures demonstrate how to master the art of storytelling, offering insight into the process of crafting and delivering a tale to enhancing the stories you tell everyday - to your children at bedtime, in your conversational anecdotes, and in your presentations at work. Teachers, lawyers, clergy, coaches, parents, and anyone who wants to understand the power of stories to capture hearts and minds will benefit from these lessons. You'll discover practical methods for building dynamic tension and capturing - then maintaining - your audience's attention. You'll acquire tips and techniques for finding, selecting, and preparing stories, whether they're based on your own experiences, time-honored folk tales, or beloved family yarns. You'll also learn to choose expressive language, craft compelling characters, refine your narrator's point of view, shape your story's plot, structure, and emotional arc, use body language to connect with your audience, and more. Part how-to workshop, part intellectual study of the history of narrative, these lectures feature exercises that literally get you moving to develop your stories and make them more enjoyable. Professor Harvey's interactive activities and "side coaching" sessions are designed to make you comfortable enough with your story to tell it naturally and make impromptu changes as needed. You'll even learn what to do if the unexpected occurs while telling a story to a roomful of kids or giving a presentation, and about the practical considerations of using props, PowerPoint, and microphones in various scenarios. PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your Library section along with the audio.
©2012 The Teaching Company, LLC (P)2012 The Great Courses
Welcoming the Unwelcome
Summary
From the best-selling author of When Things Fall Apart comes an open-hearted call for human connection, compassion, and learning to love the world just as it is during these most challenging times. In her first new book of spiritual teachings in over seven years, Pema Chödrön offers a combination of wisdom, heartfelt reflections, and the signature mix of humor and insight that have made her a beloved figure to turn to during times of change. In an increasingly polarized world, Pema shows us how to strengthen our abilities to find common ground, even when we disagree, and influence our environment in positive ways. Sharing never before told personal stories from her remarkable life, simple and powerful everyday practices, and directly relatable advice, Pema encourages us all to become triumphant bodhisattvas - compassionate beings - in times of hardship. Welcoming the Unwelcome includes teachings on the true meaning of karma, recognizing the basic goodness in ourselves and the people we share our lives with - even the most challenging ones, transforming adversity into opportunities for growth, and freeing ourselves from the empty and illusory labels that separate us. Pema also provides step-by-step guides to a basic sitting meditation and a compassion meditation that anyone can use to bring light to the darkness we face, wherever and whatever it may be.
©2019 Pema Chodron (P)2020 Shambhala Publications
Gods and Androids
Summary
Was Andas an android - or the rightful emperor, held prisoner on a distant planet while an android impersonated him on the empire's throne world? Was Tallhassee Mitford a modern archaeologist suffering from strange delusions, or has an ancient Egyptian ankh somehow hurled her personality far back in the mists of time to a Nubian kingdom where she is now a warrior princess named Ashake, caught up in a struggle between the gods of Egypt? Two very different heroes in the grip of forces beyond control, beyond comprehension, both destined to be the only hope of doomed civilizations....
©2004 Andre Norton; Wraiths of Time copyright 1976 by Andre Norton; Android at Arms copyright 1971 by Andre Norton (P)2021 Tantor
Dirty
Summary
Winner, 2017 APA Audie Awards - Romance Love - on the rocks... The last thing Vaughan Hewson expects to find when he returns to his childhood home is a brokenhearted bride in his shower, let alone the drama and chaos that come with her. Lydia Green doesn't know whether to scream or cry in a corner. Discovering the love of your life is having an affair on your wedding day is bad enough. Finding out it's with his best man is another thing altogether. Just when this runaway bride has nowhere left to turn, a handsome stranger offers her a broad, muscular shoulder to cry on. Vaughan is the exact opposite of the picture perfect, respected businessmen she's normally drawn to. This former musician turned bartender is rough around the edges and is facing his own crossroads. But Lydia's already tried Mr. Right and discovered he's all wrong. Maybe it's time to give Mr. Right Now a chance. After all, what's wrong with getting dirty? Dirty is the first audiobook in the Dive Bar series from best-selling author Kylie Scott.
©2016 Kylie Scott (P)2016 Macmillan Audio
Distorsion
Summary
True crime, dark Web, catfish, conspiration, disparition, creepypasta, cyberintimidation et légende urbaine à donner froid dans le dos⦠Distorsion est une baladodiffusion québécoise qui passionne les amateurs d'histoires étranges. C'est maintenant aussi un livre fascinant qui réunit 13 récits ayant enflammé l'imagination des internautes. Le tandem d'analystes Seb et Emile a extrait des arcanes de la Toile cinq histoires glauques, jamais diffusées sur les ondes, en plus de fournir huit compléments d'enquêtes inédits. En prime? Une «mini-disto» que les fans ne voudront pas manquer. Frissons et surprises sont au rendez-vous!
©2019 Ãditions de l'Homme (P)2020 Vues et Voix
First and Only
Summary
A Warhammer 40,000 audiobook.   In the Chaos-infested Sabbat Worlds, Imperial Commissar Gaunt must lead his men through as much in-fighting amongst rival regiments as against the forces of Chaos.   Listen to it because: First and Only was one of the first books published by Black Library and is the most read Warhammer 40,000 novel ever, an absolute classic. This story begins the saga of Colonel Commissar Gaunt and the Tanith First and Only that has since grown into a multi-novel epic. It all starts here.  The story: For a thousand years, the Sabbat Worlds have been lost to the Imperium, claimed by the dread powers of Chaos. Now, a mighty crusade seeks to return the sector to Imperial rule. And at the forefront of that crusade are Colonel-Commissar Ibram Gaunt and the Tanith First and Only - better known as Gauntâs Ghosts. Trapped in the grinding trench warfare of Fortis Binary, the Ghosts find themselves drawn into a conspiracy to assassinate the crusadeâs leader, Warmaster Macaroth. With enemies all around them and no one to trust, Gaunt and his men must find a way to save the warmaster and prevent the Sabbat Worlds Crusade from falling into anarchy - even if it means waging war on their supposed allies.
©2019 Games Workshop Limited (P)2019 Games Workshop Limited
How to Be an Antiracist
Summary
Number one New York Times best seller From the National Book Award-winning author of Stamped from the Beginning comes a âgroundbreakingâ (Time) approach to understanding and uprooting racism and inequality in our society - and in ourselves. âThe most courageous book to date on the problem of race in the Western mind.â (The New York Times) Named One of the Best Books of the Year by: The New York Times Book Review ⢠Time ⢠The Washington Post ⢠Shelf Awareness ⢠Library Journal ⢠Publishers Weekly ⢠Kirkus Reviews Antiracism is a transformative concept that reorients and reenergizes the conversation about racism - and, even more fundamentally, points us toward liberating new ways of thinking about ourselves and each other. At its core, racism is a powerful system that creates false hierarchies of human value; its warped logic extends beyond race, from the way we regard people of different ethnicities or skin colors to the way we treat people of different sexes, gender identities, and body types. Racism intersects with class and culture and geography and even changes the way we see and value ourselves. In How to Be an Antiracist, Kendi takes listeners through a widening circle of antiracist ideas - from the most basic concepts to visionary possibilities - that will help listeners see all forms of racism clearly, understand their poisonous consequences, and work to oppose them in our systems and in ourselves. Kendi weaves an electrifying combination of ethics, history, law, and science with his own personal story of awakening to antiracism. This is an essential work for anyone who wants to go beyond the awareness of racism to the next step: contributing to the formation of a just and equitable society. Praise for How to Be an Antiracist âIbram X. Kendiâs new book, How to Be an Antiracist, couldnât come at a better time.... Kendi has gifted us with a book that is not only an essential instruction manual but also a memoir of the authorâs own path from anti-black racism to anti-white racism and, finally, to antiracism.... How to Be an Antiracist gives us a clear and compelling way to approach, as Kendi puts it in his introduction, âthe basic struggle weâre all in, the struggle to be fully human and to see that others are fully human.ââ (NPR) âKendi dissects why in a society where so few people consider themselves to be racist the divisions and inequalities of racism remain so prevalent. How to Be an Antiracist punctures the myths of a post-racial America, examining what racism really is - and what we should do about it.â (Time)
©2019 Ibram X. Kendi (P)2019 Random House Audio
Fight Back
Summary
Gangster Kerry Casey has fought her way to the top of the Glasgow crime scene. But can she stay there? Kerry Casey is now a fully fledged gangland boss. With her business partner Sharon and her wily lawyer Marty at her side, she is busy ridding her organisation of the drug-dealing, people-trafficking scum her dead brother Mickey got them involved with. But her great dream is still to take the Caseys straight. Her plan to turn her organisation around hinges on building a property empire in Spain. But Kerry has some deadly rivals - in Glasgow, on the Costa del Sol, and even further afield. They will never believe she has what it takes to defend her turf, and they won't rest until the Caseys are destroyed. When her enemies strike at the heart of the Casey family, Kerry must prepare for the fight of her life - for her business, her friends and her own survival.
©2019 Anna Smith (P)2019 Quercus Editions Limited
Becoming Nobody
Summary
As featured in the Ram Dass documentary film Becoming Nobody, five essential live teaching sessions on audio, presented here in their entirety "The game is not about becoming somebody, itâs about becoming nobody." (Ram Dass) If youâre a spiritual explorer of any age or tradition, chances are youâve heard of Ram Dass. This singular luminary began his âsomebody trainingâ as Richard Alpert - the 1960âs Harvard-psychologist-turned-hippie who tripped with Timothy Leary, befriended beat poets and Tibetan lamas, found his lifelong guru in India, and wrote the perennial classic Be Here Now. Thatâs the âsomebodyâ part of his story. But for those whoâve experienced Ram Dass live as he shares his insights and personal journey on the way to becoming nobody - he has been for many the spark that ignited them to the liberating truth of who we really are. This audio collection brings us five essential sessions, featured in the Ram Dass documentary film Becoming Nobody, presented here in their entirety. Each beautifully illuminates a core dimension of Ram Dassâs wisdom. Through teaching stories, true accounts, eye-opening revelations, and his one-of-a-kind sense of humor, this legendary teacher helps show us the way out of the prison of our self-identity - and into the joy of being at once ânobodyâ and the universal divine at play in the world.
©2019 Ram Dass (P)2019 Sounds True
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass
Summary
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (1865) and Through the Looking Glass (1871), written by Lewis Carroll, the pen name for Charles Lutwidge Dodgson. Charles Lutwidge Dodson, a professor of mathematics at Magdalen (Maudlin) College, Oxford, originally wrote these charming children's stories for young Alice, the daughter of his friend, Henry George Liddell, the dean of Christ Church. After publication, these children's books rapidly became popular with adults because of the extraordinary mixture of rationalism and fantasy, irony, and absurdity viewed through the looking glass of a child's dreams. These stories possibly reflect the struggles Dodgson, a conservative mathematician, was having in adapting to new scientific concepts that challenged his point of view and seemed absurd and upsetting. Perhaps Dodgson found some way of coping with his challenges through the creation of these "seriously silly" but delightful tales. A new Disney version of Through the Looking Glass directed by James Bobin, produced by Tim Burton, and starring Johnny Depp (Mad Hatter), the late Alan Rickman (voice of the Caterpillar), Stephen Fry (the voice of Cheshire Cat), Mia Wasikowski (Alice), Anne Hathaway (White Queen), and Helena Bonham Carter (Red Queen) will be released during the Summer of 2016.
Public Domain (P)2016 Jennifer M. Dixon
Ted Bundy
Summary
Intelligent. Articulate. Evil. Killer. Two journalists with unprecedented direct access speak to Ted Bundy and those closest to him - friends and family. What follows is a candid and chilling full account of the life and crimes of the most notorious serial killer in history.  What Bundy had to say in more than 150 hours of face-to-face interviews is as relevant today as it was at the time.
©2020 Stephen G. Michaud and Hugh Aynesworth (P)2020 Audible, Ltd
Every Good Endeavor
Summary
New York Times best-selling author Timothy Keller shows how God calls each of us to express meaning and purpose through our work and careers. In a work world that is increasingly competitive and insecure, people often have nagging questions: Why am I doing this work? Why is it so hard? And is there anything I can do about it? Tim Keller, pastor of New York's Redeemer Presbyterian Church and New York Times best-selling author of The Reason for God, has taught and counseled students, young professionals, and senior leaders on the subject of work and calling for more than 20 years. Now he puts his insights into a book for listeners everywhere, giving biblical perspectives on such pressing questions as: What is the purpose of work? How can I find meaning and serve customers in a cutthroat, bottom-line-oriented workplace? How can I use my skills in a vocation that has meaning and purpose? Can I stay true to my values and still advance in my field? How do I make the difficult choices that must be made in the course of a successful career? With deep insight and often surprising advice, Keller explains that biblical wisdom is immensely relevant to our questions about our work. In fact, the Christian view of work - that we work to serve others, not ourselves - can provide the foundation of a thriving professional and balanced personal life. Keller shows how excellence, integrity, discipline, creativity, and passion in the workplace can help others and even be considered acts of worship - not just of self-interest.
©2012 Timothy Keller (P)2012 Penguin Audio
Bear No Malice: A Novel
Summary
Great Expectations meets Grantchester in this story of love and lies, secrets and second chances, set in Edwardian England. Beaten and left for dead in the English countryside, clergyman and reformer Tom Cross is rescued and nursed back to health by Miranda and Simon Thorne, reclusive siblings who seem to have as many secrets as he does. Tom has spent years helping the downtrodden in London while lying to everyone he meets, but now he's forced to slow down and confront his unexamined life. Miranda, a skilled artist, is haunted by her painful past and unable to imagine a future. Tom is a welcome distraction from her troubles, but she's determined to relegate him to her fantasy world, sensing that any real relationship with him would be more trouble than it's worth. Besides, she has sworn to remain devoted to someone she's left behind. When Tom returns to London, his life begins to unravel as he faces the consequences of both his affair with a married woman and his abusive childhood. When his secrets catch up with him and his reputation is destroyed, he realizes that Miranda is the only person he trusts with the truth. What he doesn't realize is that even if she believes him and returns his feelings, he can't free her from the shackles of her past.
©2018 Clarissa Harwood (P)2019 HighBridge, a division of Recorded Books
Mrs. Jeffries Wins the Prize
Summary
NIPPED IN THE BUD The ladies of the Mayfair Orchid and Exotic Plant Society are known for a bit of friendly rivalry, but the backstabbing has never been literal - until now. When Hiram Filmore, an orchid hunter and supplier, is found dead in Mrs. Helena Rayburn's conservatory, Inspector Witherspoon is called in to weed out a murderer. When it comes out that Mrs. Rayburn and her flowery friends knew each other from long ago, Mrs. Jeffries begins to suspect that there's more to unearth about this case than meets the eye. Now she, along with the rest of Inspector Witherspoon's household and friends, will have to dig up the past to figure out which gardening gentlewoman had a grudge worth killing for.... A Mrs. Jeffries Mystery She keeps house for Inspector Witherspoon...and keeps him on his toes. Everyone's awed by his Scotland Yard successes - but they don't know about his secret weapon. No matter how messy the murder or how dirty the deed, Mrs. Jeffries' polished detection skills are up to the task...proving that behind every great man there's a woman - and that a crimesolver's work is never done.
©2016 Cheryl Arguile (P)2020 Tantor
Mrs. Jeffries Delivers the Goods
Summary
When poison fells an arrogant and rude businessman in public, Mrs. Jeffries and Inspector Witherspoon both realize they are looking for a deranged maniac in this new installment of Emily Brightwell's beloved mystery series. On a cold night in February, the popular Lighterman's ball festivities are cut short when a guest of honor, Stephen Bremmer, goes into spasms and abruptly collapses. Once again Inspector Witherspoon returns to the Wrexley Hotel to investigate a murder. The victim was considered a boorish snob who felt entitled to anything and anyone he wanted. Yet despite his Oxford education, he was barely literate, lazy, and prone to make stupid mistakes - his last mistake turned out to be crossing a killer. The owners and management of the Wrexley Hotel clearly don't welcome the return of Inspector Witherspoon but he has his job to do, and Mrs. Jeffries, and the rest of the household must do their best to catch a murderer who shows no signs of slowing down....
©2019 Cheryl A. Arguile (P)2020 Tantor
How to Behave Badly in Elizabethan England
Summary
Every age and social strata has its bad eggs, rule-breakers, and nose-thumbers. As acclaimed popular historian and author of How to Be a Victorian Ruth Goodman reveals in her madcap chronicle, Elizabethan England was particularly rank with troublemakers, from snooty needlers who took aim with a cutting "thee" to lowbrow drunkards with revolting table manners. Goodman draws on advice manuals, court cases, and sermons to offer this colorfully crude portrait of offenses most foul. Mischievous listeners will delight in learning how to time your impressions for the biggest laugh, why quoting Shakespeare was poor form, and why curses hurled at women were almost always about sex (and why we shouldn't be surprised). Bringing her signature "exhilarating and contagious" enthusiasm (Boston Globe), this is a celebration of one of history's naughtiest periods, when derision was an art form.
©2018 Ruth Goodman (P)2019 HighBridge, a division of Recorded Books
The Domestic Revolution
Summary
"The queen of living history" (Lucy Worsley) returns with an immersive account of how English women sparked a worldwide revolution - from their own kitchens. No single invention epitomizes the Victorian era more than the black cast-iron range. Aware that the 21st-century has reduced it to a quaint relic, Ruth Goodman was determined to prove that the hot coal stove provided so much more than morning tea: It might even have kick-started the Industrial Revolution. Wielding the wit and passion seen in How to Be a Victorian, Goodman traces the tectonic shift from wood to coal in the mid-16th century - from sooty trials and errors during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I to the totally smog-clouded reign of Queen Victoria. A pattern of innovation emerges as the women stoking these fires also stoked new global industries: from better soap to clean smudges to new ingredients for cooking. Laced with uproarious anecdotes of Goodman's own experience managing a coal-fired household, this fascinating book shines a hot light on the power of domestic necessity.
©2020 Ruth Goodman (P)2020 Tantor
Gene Keys
Summary
Is our destiny written inside our very DNA? Richard Rudd suggests that humanity is on the verge of a major shift in consciousness rooted in a new understanding of how our genes operate. He introduces this fantastic possibility, showing how the "gene keys" are an inner language designed to transform our core beliefs about ourselves and raise us to a higher level of awareness. The book works alongside state-of-the-art online profiling software that provides instantaneous free "Hologenetic Profiles", based on astrological data and revealing the underlying genetic patterns governing relationships, finances, and health.
©2013 Richard Rudd (P)2018 Tantor
Brainwashing
Summary
Throughout history, humans have attempted to influence and control the thoughts of others. Since the word "brainwashing" was coined in the aftermath of the Korean War, it has become part of the popular culture and been exploited to create sensational headlines. It has also been the subject of learned discussion from many disciplines, including history, sociology, psychology, and psychotherapy. But until now, a crucial part of the debate has been missing: that of any serious reference to the science of the human brain. Descriptions of how opinions can be changed, whether by persuasion, deceit, or force, have been almost entirely psychological. In Brainwashing, Kathleen Taylor brings the worlds of neuroscience and social psychology together for the first time. In elegant and accessible prose, and with abundant use of anecdotes and case-studies, she examines the ethical problems involved in carrying out the required experiments on humans, the limitations of animal models, and the frightening implications of such research. She also explores the history of thought-control and reveals how it persists all around us, from marketing and television to politics and education. This edition includes a new preface from the author reflecting on the uses of brainwashing today, including by the Islamic State.
©2004 Kathleen Taylor (P)2018 Tantor
Murder on the Tor
Summary
It was just a stroll on the hill - until the mist came down. In Murder on the Tor, the third Exham on Sea mystery, clues to a present-day crime lead baker and chocolatier Libby Forest back into the historic past of mysterious Glastonbury, a place of myth and legend where truth merges with fable. With the enormous Carpathian Sheepdog, Bear, at her side, she sets out to unravel the mystery and bring the killer to justice.
©2016 Frances Evesham (P)2018 Tantor
In My Mind's Eye
Summary
Riffing on cats and Brexit, the Royals and the annoyances of aging, the nonagenarian Jan Morris delights with her wickedly hilarious first-ever diary collection. Celebrated as the "greatest descriptive writer of her time" (Rebecca West), Jan Morris has been dazzling fans since she burst on the scene with her on-the-spot reportage of the first ascent of Everest in 1953. Now, the beloved 92-year-old, author of classics such as Venice and Trieste, embarks on an entirely new literary enterprise - a collection of daily diaries, penned over the course of a single year. Ranging widely from the idyllic confines of her North Wales home, Morris offers diverse sallies on her preferred form of exercises (walking briskly), her frustration at not recognizing a certain melody humming in her head (Beethoven's "Pathetique", incidentally), and her nostalgia for small-town America, as well as intimate glimpses into her home life.  With insightful quips on world issues, including Britain's "special relationship" with the United States and the #MeToo movement, In My Mind's Eye will charm old and new Jan Morris fans alike.
©2018 Jan Morris (P)2019 HighBridge, a division of Recorded Books
Mrs. Jeffries Rights a Wrong
Summary
Thomas Mundy checks in to London's Wrexley Hotel, but he never checks out. The maid finds him on the floor of his room, bludgeoned to death by his own walking stick. Inspector Witherspoon is soon on the case and learns Mundy had a reputation for being polite, charming, and diligent - an unlikely victim for such a violent crime. But Mrs. Jeffries and the household staff uncover that Mundy was less an amiable businessman and more a duplicitous con man with enemies on both sides of the Atlantic. Now Witherspoon and his staff must determine who on their lengthy list of suspects had the motive to put Mundy in the red. A Mrs. Jeffries Mystery She keeps house for Inspector Witherspoon...and keeps him on his toes. Everyone's awed by his Scotland Yard successes - but they don't know about his secret weapon. No matter how messy the murder or how dirty the deed, Mrs. Jeffries's polished detection skills are up to the task...proving that behind every great man there's a woman - and that a crimesolver's work is never done.
©2017 Cheryl A. Arguile (P)2020 Tantor
Murder at the Lighthouse
Summary
Everyone knows the dead woman under the lighthouse, but no one seems to know why she died. What brought the folk-rock star back to Exham on Sea after so many years? Who wanted her dead? Does the key to her murder lie in the town, or far away across the Atlantic? Libby Forest arrives in Exham to build a new life making cakes and chocolates, and discovers a talent for solving mysteries, helped by Bear, an enormous Carpathian sheepdog, and a cast of local characters. The green fields, rolling hills, and sandy beaches of England's West Country provide a perfect setting for crime, intrigue, and mystery.
©2015 Frances Evesham (P)2017 Tantor
Mrs. Jeffries Pleads Her Case
Summary
She keeps house for Inspector Witherspoon...and keeps him on his toes. Everyone's awed by his Scotland Yard successes - but they don't know about his secret weapon. No matter how messy the murder or how dirty the deed, Mrs. Jeffries's polished detection skills are up to the task...proving that behind every great man there's a woman - and that a crimesolver's work is never done. It took no time at all for the magistrate to rule the death of Harlan Westover a suicide. But not everyone is convinced by the result of what may have been a slip-shod investigation. Inspector Witherspoon is treading dangerous political waters when he discreetly pokes around to see if he can't catch himself a killer. But it's up to Mrs. Jeffries and her staff to do some detective work of their own in order to give the inspector a gentle nudge in the right direction-and ensure that a murderer, if indeed there is one, doesn't get the chance to stage another suicide...
©2003 Cheryl Arguile (P)2019 Tantor
Tolkien's Lost Chaucer
Summary
Tolkien's Lost Chaucer uncovers the story of an unpublished and previously unknown book by the author of The Lord of the Rings. Tolkien worked between 1922 and 1928 on his Clarendon edition Selections from Chaucer's Poetry and Prose, and though never completed, its 160 pages of commentary reveals much of his thinking about language and storytelling when he was still at the threshold of his career as an epoch-making writer of fantasy literature. Drawing upon other new materials such as his edition of "The Reeve's Tale" and his Oxford lectures on "The Pardoner's Tale", this book reveals Chaucer as a major influence upon Tolkien's literary imagination.
©2019 John M. Bowers (P)2020 Tantor
Wild Magic
Summary
Shake off the energy of our frenetic modern-day life and reconnect to the wild magic of your heart. This book is an immersive guide to creating deep relationships with faerie folk, green kin, the ancestors, and the spirits of the land. Explore dozens of meditations and exercises based on Celtic lore that serve as energetic keys for accessing levels of reality and spiritual destinations that will forever transform your relationship to the here and now. Learn how to work with animal spirits, the powers of place, and the tides. Discover the magic of the elements and attune your soul to the sun, the moon, and the cycles of the seasons. Connecting to nature in a magical way opens our awareness to a wider deeper source than anything we can comprehend. Wild Magic is all about sensing subtle energies, starting fires traditionally, practicing herbal magic, making a divination kit, and so much more. This is a book drawn from country wisdom and Celtic tradition, with spells and rituals designed to channel your own modern wildness for the benefit of all.
©2020 Danu Forest (P)2020 Tantor
The Path of Druidry
Summary
Listen to the call of spirit and seek truth in wild groves, the shifting seasons, and the beauty of the Old Ways. Discover how to embark on this sacred green path and enrich your life with its ancient wisdom. Practicing Druid Penny Billington offers a clear and structured course of study grounded in Celtic history and mythology, and highlights the mysteries and modern practice of this nature-based tradition. Each chapter begins with an evocative visualization and captivating Welsh mythic tales from the Mabinogionare woven throughout, introducing lessons and key concepts. A series of hands-on exercises will help you internalize these truths, develop a spiritual awareness rooted in nature, build a relationship with the multi-dimensional world, and ultimately adopt a druidic worldview to guide you in everyday life. From joining a druidic community to starting out as a solitary practitioner, this unique spiritual guide offers advice on everything you need to know about practicing Druidry today. PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your Library section along with the audio.
©2011 Penny Billington (P)2018 Tantor
Murder at the Cathedral
Summary
Is her best friend a killer? The respectable ladies of the Knitters' Guild plan to spring a surprise on the quiet cathedral city, but murder isn't part of the scheme. The last thing Libby Forest needs is another investigation into a mysterious sudden death. There's enough on her plate already. The fast-growing cake and chocolate business takes all her time, her apprentice has problems, and even Bear, her beloved dog, is determined to create havoc. She'd like to leave detection to the police, but the prime suspect begs for help, and once more, Libby takes on the role of amateur sleuth.
©2017 Frances Evesham (P)2018 Tantor
The Queen Mother
Summary
Packed with stunning revelations, this is the inside story of The Queen Mother from The New York Times best-selling author who first revealed the truth about Princess Diana. Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother has been called the "most successful queen since Cleopatra." Her personality was so captivating that even her arch - enemy Wallis Simpson wrote about "her legendary charm." Portrayed as a selfless partner to the King in the Oscar-winning movie The King's Speech, The Queen Mother is most often remembered from her later years as the smiling granny with the pastel hats. When she died in 2002, just short of her 102nd birthday, she was praised for a long life well lived. But there was another side to her story. For the first time, Lady Colin Campbell tells us that the untold life of The Queen Mother is far more fascinating and moving than the official version that has been peddled ever since she became royal in 1923. With unparalleled sources - including members of the Royal Family, aristocrats, and friends and relatives of Elizabeth herself - this mesmerizing account takes us inside the real and sometimes astonishing world of the royal family.
©2012 Lady Colin Campbell (P)2018 Tantor
Mrs. Jeffries and the Feast of St. Stephen
Summary
She keeps house for Inspector Witherspoon...and keeps him on his toes. Everyone's awed by his Scotland Yard successes - but they don't know about his secret weapon. No matter how messy the murder or how dirty the deed, Mrs. Jeffries' polished detection skills are up to the task...proving that behind every great man, there's a woman - and that a crime solver's work is never done. A Yuletide dinner in West Brompton should have been a festive occasion, until the host, wealthy Stephen Whitfield, dropped dead before the second course. Now, Mrs. Jeffries and the busy sleuths must rally in support of their inspector, especially since the clues are harder to find than a silver sixpence in a plum pudding.
©2007 Cheryl Arguile (P)2019 Tantor
Mrs. Jeffries and the Merry Gentlemen
Summary
Orlando Edison is a stockbroker using London's infatuation with foreign mining ventures to make a fortune. He has curried favor with the nation's most respected aristocrats, even inviting three influential investors - known as the Merry Gentlemen - to be part of his latest enterprise. Edison is welcomed in the highest circles and moves with ease among the rich and powerful. But a few days before Christmas, he is found murdered. Inspector Witherspoon and his household are looking forward to the festive season. But they all know their duty, and led by the intrepid Mrs. Jeffries, they plan to see justice served for the holidays.... Mrs. Jeffries keeps house for Inspector Witherspoon...and keeps him on his toes. Everyone's awed by his Scotland Yard successes - but they don't know about his secret weapon. No matter how messy the murder or how dirty the deed, Mrs. Jeffries' polished detection skills are up to the task...proving that behind every great man there's a woman - and that a crimesolver's work is never done.
©2013 Cheryl Arguile (P)2020 Tantor
Mrs. Jeffries and the One Who Got Away
Summary
OLD SINS CAST LONG SHADOWS Normally dead bodies in a graveyard are buried - but not this one. When a woman is found strangled in a North London cemetery with an old newspaper clipping clutched in her hand, Inspector Witherspoon is surprised to find that he and the victim have crossed paths before.   Alice Robinson was a respectable widow who ran a quiet Islington lodging house. None of her lodgers have any apparent motive to murder their landlady. But nagging suspicions are lodging in the Inspector's mind - only he knows that "Alice Robinson" is not her real name. Now he'll need the help of Mrs. Jeffries to revisit an old case that has haunted him for years and to get the real story.
©2015 Cheryl Arguile (P)2020 Tantor
The Lost King of France
Summary
Louis-Charles, Duc de Normandie, enjoyed a charmed early childhood in the gilded palace of Versailles. At the age of four, he became the dauphin, heir to the most powerful throne in Europe. Yet within five years he was to lose everything. Drawn into the horror of the French Revolution, his family was incarcerated and their fate thrust into the hands of the revolutionaries who wished to destroy the monarchy.  In 1793, when Marie Antoinette was beheaded at the guillotine, she left her adored eight-year-old son imprisoned in the Temple Tower. Far from inheriting a throne, the orphaned boy-king had to endure the hostility and abuse of a nation. Two years later, the revolutionary leaders declared Louis XVII dead. No grave was dug, no monument built to mark his passing.  Immediately, rumors spread that the prince had, in fact, escaped from prison and was still alive. Others believed that he had been murdered, his heart cut out and preserved as a relic. As with the tragedies of England's princes in the Tower and the Romanov archduchess Anastasia, countless "brothers" soon approached Louis-Charles' older sister, Marie-Therese, who survived the revolution. They claimed not only the dauphin's name but also his inheritance. Several "princes" were plausible, but which, if any, was the real heir to the French throne?
©2002 Deborah Cadbury (P)2019 Tantor
The London Cage
Summary
Behind the locked doors of three mansions in London's exclusive Kensington Palace Gardens neighborhood, the British Secret Service established a highly secret prison in 1940: the London Cage. Here recalcitrant German prisoners of war were subjected to "special intelligence treatment." The stakes were high: the war's outcome could hinge on obtaining information German prisoners were determined to withhold. After the war, high-ranking Nazi war criminals were housed in the Cage, revamped as an important center for investigating German war crimes. This riveting book reveals the full details of operations at the London Cage and subsequent efforts to hide them. Helen Fry's extraordinary original research uncovers the grim picture of prisoners' daily lives and of systemic Soviet-style mistreatment. The author also provides sensational evidence to counter official denials concerning the use of "truth drugs" and "enhanced interrogation" techniques. Bringing dark secrets to light, this groundbreaking book at last provides an objective and complete history of the London Cage.
©2017 Helen Fry (P)2017 Tantor
Mrs. Jeffries Forges Ahead
Summary
Arlette Montrose Banfield angered many marriageable women when she snagged the handsome Lewis Banfield - but were they angry enough to poison her? Mrs. Jeffries doesn't mind getting her hands dirty to uncover the greed behind her murder.
©2011 Cheryl Arguile (P)2019 Tantor
Mrs. Jeffries Weeds the Plot
Summary
She keeps house for Inspector Witherspoon...and keeps him on his toes. Everyone's awed by his Scotland Yard successes - but they don't know about his secret weapon. No matter how messy the murder or how dirty the deed, Mrs. Jeffries's polished detection skills are up to the task...proving that behind every great man there's a woman - and that a crime-solver's work is never done. A Bone to Pick Eccentric Annabeth Gentry pretty much keeps to herself. Besides her recent inheritance - and the attention her bloodhound gets for digging up the body of a murdered thief - her life is in fact, rather dull. So why does she think that someone is trying to kill her? That's what Mrs. Jeffries and her staff has to find out. What they discover is a dead body next door, and three attempts on Annabeth's life. It sounds like there's a jealous dog in their midst. Mrs. Jeffries will have to sniff out some clues before the plot thickens....
©2000 Cheryl Arguile (P)2019 Tantor
Mrs. Jeffries Stalks the Hunter
Summary
She keeps house for Inspector Witherspoon...and keeps him on his toes. Everyone's awed by his Scotland Yard successes - but they don't know about his secret weapon. No matter how messy the murder or how dirty the deed, Mrs. Jeffries' polished detection skills are up to the task...proving that behind every great man, there's a woman - and that a crime-solver's work is never done. Sir Edmund Leggett is flattered to be stalked by a young lady - who makes herself scarce after he's murdered in cold blood. The police hold the young woman to blame. But Inspector Witherspoon has other ideas and consults his housekeeper, Mrs. Jeffries - who always gets to the heart of the matter.
©2004 Cheryl Arguile (P)2019 Tantor
Mrs. Jeffries Demands Justice
Summary
Mrs. Jeffries always keeps her friends close and now must keep an enemy even closer if she is going to catch a killer.... Inspector Nigel Nivens is not a nice man or a good investigator. In fact, he's terrible at his job and has always done everything he can to make life difficult for Inspector Witherspoon. But even his powerful family can't help him after he maliciously tried to hobble Witherspoon's last homicide investigation. He's been sent to a particularly difficult precinct in the East End of London as penance. When a paid informant is found shot in an alley, Nivens thinks that if he can crack the case, he'll redeem himself and have a much-needed chance at impressing his superiors. But there's one big problem with his plan - Niven's distinct antique pistol is found at the scene of the crime and even more evidence is uncovered that links the Inspector to the murder. Despite their mutual dislike for Nivens, Mrs. Jeffries and Inspector Witherspoon know the man isn't a cold-blooded killer. Now they'll just have to prove it....
©2021 Cheryl A. Arguile (P)2021 Tantor
Mrs. Jeffries and the Yuletide Weddings
Summary
She keeps house for Inspector Witherspoon...and keeps him on his toes. Everyone's awed by his Scotland Yard successes - but they don't know about his secret weapon. No matter how messy the murder or how dirty the deed, Mrs. Jeffries's polished detection skills are up to the task...proving that behind every great man there's a woman - and that a crimesolver's work is never done.  The week before Christmas, Inspector Gerald Witherspoon's staff prepares for the long-awaited wedding of Betsy and Smythe. But when a middle-aged spinster is killed in what looks like a random crime, the Inspector suspects otherwise.   With uncooperative witnesses, sulking relatives, and a second Christmas wedding, a simple investigation seems as unlikely as catching St. Nick at work.
©2009 Cheryl Arguile (P)2019 Tantor
Mrs. Jeffries Sweeps the Chimney
Summary
She keeps house for Inspector Witherspoon...and keeps him on his toes. Everyone's awed by his Scotland Yard successes - but they don't know about his secret weapon. No matter how messy the murder or how dirty the deed, Mrs. Jeffries's polished detection skills are up to the task...proving that behind every great man there's a woman - and that a crimesolver's work is never done.  Inspector Witherspoon is perplexed. No one seems to know the identity of the dead man dressed like a vicar and propped up against the outside wall of St. Paul's Church. A paper clutched in the corpse's hand reveals the address of a dilapidated and seemingly abandoned cottage - abandoned if you don't count the human skeleton stuffed in the chimney. To link these two bizarre incidents will take all of the resources at Witherspoon's command - and a little help from the efficient Mrs. Jeffries....
©2004 Cheryl Arguile (P)2019 Tantor
Mrs. Jeffries & the Mistletoe Mix-Up
Summary
Under a bundle of mistletoe, art collector Daniel McCourt lies with his throat slit, a bloody sword next to his body. Inspector Witherspoon is determined to solve the case - preferably before the eggnog is ladled out on Christmas Eve - but of course he will require assistance from the always sharp-witted housekeeper, Mrs. Jeffries, who has a few of her own theories on why McCourt had to die by the sword.
©2011 Cheryl Arguile (P)2019 Tantor
Mrs. Jeffries in the Nick of Time
Summary
She keeps house for Inspector Witherspoon...and keeps him on his toes. Everyone's awed by his Scotland Yard successes - but they don't know about his secret weapon. No matter how messy the murder or how dirty the deed, Mrs. Jeffries' polished detection skills are up to the task...proving that behind every great man, there's a woman - and that a crime solver's work is never done. A two-story killer. Train enthusiast Francis Humphreys took his last breath while relatives and neighbors visited downstairs. But if everyone was downstairs, who could have stolen into Uncle Francis's study, killed him, and escaped? Mrs. Jeffries will have to lend her downstairs common sense to this upstairs murder mystery.
©2009 Cheryl Arguile (P)2019 Tantor
Queen Victoria's Mysterious Daughter
Summary
Spirited and lively, Queen Victoria's Mysterious Daughter is richly packed with arguments, intrigues, scandals, and secrets, and is a vivid portrait of a princess desperate to escape her inheritance. The secrets of Queen Victoria's sixth child, Princess Louise, may be destined to remain hidden forever. What was so dangerous about this artistic, tempestuous royal that her life has been documented more by rumor and gossip than hard facts? When Lucinda Hawksley started to investigate, often thwarted by inexplicable secrecy, she discovered a fascinating woman, modern before her time, whose story has been shielded for years from public view. Louise was a sculptor and painter, friend to the Pre-Raphaelites and a keen member of the Aesthetic movement. The most feisty of the Victorian princesses, she kicked against her mother's controlling nature and remained fiercely loyal to her brothers - especially the sickly Leopold and the much-maligned Bertie. She sought out other unconventional women, including Josephine Butler and George Eliot, and campaigned for education and health reform and for the rights of women. She battled with her indomitable mother for permission to practice the "masculine" art of sculpture and go to art college - and in doing so became the first British princess to attend a public school. The rumors of Louise's colorful love life persist even today, with hints of love affairs dating as far back as her teenage years, and notable scandals included entanglements with her sculpting tutor Joseph Edgar Boehm and possibly even her sister Princess Beatrice's handsome husband, Liko. True to rebellious form, she refused all royal suitors and became the first member of the royal family, since the 16th century, to marry a commoner. She moved with him to Canada when he was appointed Governor-General.
©2013 Lucinda Hawksley (P)2018 Tantor
Murder at the Bridge
Summary
A summer wedding.... An eccentric aunt.... What can possibly go wrong? Libby's instincts tell her there's something amiss in the picturesque villages, small towns, and rural farms of Exmoor. Then, people begin to disappear.... She's joined forces with on-off partner Max in a private investigation business, but she's getting cold feet about the idea of marriage. After all, it's taken plenty of hard work to regain her independence after her husband's death. Meanwhile, a sinister new acquaintance sends shivers down her spine.... If you love British murder mysteries, join Libby, her faithful sheepdog, and the other quirky characters of Exham on Sea as she investigates the death of a wedding guest.
©2017 Frances Evesham (P)2018 Tantor
Brutus
Summary
Conspirator and assassin, philosopher and statesman, promoter of peace and commander in war, Marcus Brutus (ca. 85-42 BC) was a controversial and enigmatic man even to those who knew him. His leading role in the murder of Julius Caesar on the Ides of March, 44 BC, immortalized his name forever, but the verdict on his act remains out to this day. Was Brutus wrong to kill his friend and benefactor, or was he right to place his duty to country ahead of personal obligations? In this comprehensive and stimulating biography, Kathryn Tempest delves into contemporary sources to bring to light the personal and political struggles Brutus faced. As the details are revealed - from his own correspondence with Cicero, from the perceptions of his peers, and from the Roman aristocratic values and concepts that held sway in his time - Brutus emerges from legend, revealed to us more surely than ever before.
©2017 Kathryn Tempest (P)2017 HighBridge, a division of Recorded Books
Mrs. Jeffries and the Silent Knight
Summary
She keeps house for Inspector Witherspoon...and keeps him on his toes. Everyone's awed by his Scotland Yard successes - but they don't know about his secret weapon. No matter how messy the murder or how dirty the deed, Mrs. Jeffries' polished detection skills are up to the task...proving that behind every great man, there's a woman - and that a crime solver's work is never done. Sir George Braxton was found lying face down in a frozen fountain with the back of his skull bashed to bits. The case is complicated by a distinct lack of holiday cheer in the victim's three argumentative middle-aged daughters and their sullen house guests. Even the cranky cat hates everyone. To top it all off, the home secretary has called in Inspector Witherspoon over the heads of some touchy local lads, making matters stickier than a plum pudding. Only the help of his housekeeper, Mrs. Jeffries, and her crime-solving staff will give the poor inspector any chance of sleeping in heavenly peace on Christmas Eve....
©2005 Cheryl Arguile (P)2019 Tantor
Viruses
Summary
Viruses are big news. From pandemics such as HIV, swine flu, and SARS, we are constantly being bombarded with information about new lethal infections. In this Very Short Introduction, Dorothy Crawford demonstrates how clever these entities really are. From their discovery and the unravelling of their intricate structures, Crawford demonstrates how these tiny parasites are by far the most abundant life forms on the planet. In this fully updated edition, Crawford recounts stories of renowned killer viruses such as the recent Ebola and Zika epidemics, as well as Middle East Respiratory Syndrome, and considers the importance of air travel in facilitating the international spread of viruses in the 21st century. Discussing the impact of global warming, which is increasing the range of vector-transmitted viruses such as dengue, yellow fever, and West Nile virus, she also considers the effect this will have on native populations in subtropical and temperate climates of the Americas, Australasia, and Europe. By examining our lifestyle in the 21st century, Crawford looks to the future to ask whether we can ever live in harmony with viruses, and considers the ways in which we may need to adapt to prevent emerging viruses with devastating consequences.
©2011, 2018 Dorothy H. Crawford (P)2021 Tantor
Mrs. Jeffries and the Three Wise Women
Summary
Mrs. Jeffries returns for the holidays in the latest mystery in Emily Brightwell's New York Times best-selling mystery series. Christopher Gilhaney isn't a popular man, and he proves why once again when he insults every guest at Abigail Chase's Guy Fawkes Night dinner party. When Gilhaney is shot dead under the cover of the night's fireworks, his murder is deemed a robbery gone wrong. But when the case hasn't been solved six weeks later, Inspector Witherspoon is called upon to find the killer - and quickly! With Christmas almost here, Inspector Witherspoon and everyone in his household is upset at the possibility of having to cancel their holiday plans - all to solve a case that seems impossible. Only Luty Belle, Ruth, and Mrs. Goodge refuse to give up and let the crime become a cold case. In fact, the American heiress, the charming next-door neighbor, and the formidable cook use all of their persuasive powers to get the others on board, because these three wise women know justice doesn't take time off for Christmas.
©2017 Cheryl A. Arguile (P)2020 Tantor
Mrs. Jeffries and the Alms of the Angel
Summary
Margaret Starling wasn't the sort of woman anyone expected to be murdered. She was on the advisory board of the London Angel Alms Society, she was an active member of St. Peter's Church, and, best of all, she was always willing to lend a hand to a friend or a neighbor in need of advice. She was also a wealthy upper-class widow. But money alone won't protect you when someone decides it's high time you met your maker. Margaret's next-door neighbor considered her an odious busybody, the Reverend Reginald Pontefract wished she'd never set foot in St. Peter's, and half the advisory board of the London Angel Alms Society heartily hoped she'd come down with pneumonia before the next quarterly meeting. All in all, Margaret wasn't as well-regarded as she'd always thought she was. But Mrs. Jeffries and Inspector Witherspoon know that justice isn't a popularity contest, and they won't rest until they sift through the suspects to catch a sinister scrooge.
©2019 Cheryl A. Arguile (P)2020 Tantor
Deadly Companions
Summary
Ever since we started huddling together in communities, the story of human history has been inextricably entwined with the story of microbes. They have evolved and spread amongst us, shaping our culture through infection, disease, and pandemic. At the same time, our changing human culture has itself influenced the evolutionary path of microbes. Dorothy H. Crawford here shows that one cannot be truly understood without the other. Beginning with a dramatic account of the SARS pandemic at the start of the 21st century, she takes us back in time to follow the interlinked history of microbes and man, taking an up-to-date look at ancient plagues and epidemics, and identifying key changes in the way humans have lived - such as our move from hunter-gatherer to farmer to city-dweller - which made us vulnerable to microbe attack. Showing how we live our lives today - with increasing crowding and air travel - puts us once again at risk, Crawford asks whether we might ever conquer microbes completely, or whether we need to take a more microbe-centric view of the world. Among the possible answers, one thing becomes clear: that for generations to come, our deadly companions will continue to shape human history.
©2007 Dorothy H. Crawford (P)2018 Tantor
Murder on the Levels
Summary
Two cyclists die on the Somerset Levels, and the Exham bakery gets the blame. Libby Forest runs into danger as she sets out to solve the mystery, save the bakery and rescue her career, helped by Bear, the enormous Carpathian Sheepdog, Fuzzy, an aloof marmalade cat, and the handsome, secretive Max Ramshore. Set in the coastal resort of Exham on Sea, Murder on the Levels features a cast of local characters, including Mandy the teenage Goth, her new boyfriend, Steve, Frank the baker, and Detective Sergeant Joe Ramshore, Max's estranged son. The green fields, rolling hills and sandy beaches of the West Country provide the perfect setting for crime, intrigue, and mystery.
©2016 Frances Evesham (P)2018 Tantor
Mrs. Jeffries Turns the Tide
Summary
Beautiful and new in town, Ellen Langston-Jones doesn't have any enemies. So, when she's found dead in the communal gardens, Inspector Witherspoon quickly narrows the field of suspects down to one: Lucius Montague, who was seen threatening Mrs. Langston-Jones shortly before her death. The Inspector and all of London are positive that he's the killer, but Mrs. Jeffries has doubts. Her biggest problem is that Lucius Montague is a very disagreeable character and no one - including Inspector Witherspoon's staff - is inclined to save his skin. Now, she must turn the tide of the investigation...or watch an innocent man take the fall for the real killer.
©2013 Cheryl Arguile (P)2020 Tantor
Mrs. Jeffries Appeals the Verdict
Summary
A Mrs. Jeffries Mystery  She keeps house for Inspector Witherspoon...and keeps him on his toes. Everyone's awed by his Scotland Yard successes - but they don't know about his secret weapon. No matter how messy the murder or how dirty the deed, Mrs. Jeffries' polished detection skills are up to the task...proving that behind every great man there's a woman - and that a crimesolver's work is never done.  Guilty Bystanders  After a perfectly decent local woman is killed during a robbery, the Witherspoon household receives a surprising visit from a stranger named Blimpey Groggins. He claims his best buddy was convicted of the crime. He also claims the peaceable chap didn't even know how to fire a gun. And considering he's to be hanged in three weeks, Blimpey's desperate to find the real killer. With the trail cold, the crime allegedly solved, and the evidence mucked up, Mrs. Jeffries and her belowstairs cohorts have their work cut out for them if they want to save an innocent man from the gallows.
©2006 Cheryl Arguile (P)2019 Tantor
A Sinister Service
Summary
Following the devastation of the Great War, England's noble class takes comfort in honoring tradition. To celebrate their grandparents' wedding anniversary, Lady Phoebe Renshaw and her siblings travel to Staffordshire to commission a china service bearing the Wroxly coat of arms from the venerated Crown Lily Potteries, a favorite of Queen Mary. The two leading designers at the illustrious china manufacturer offer competing patterns. But when one of them is found dead - his body crushed in a grinding pan and his design pattern book missing - his rival is immediately suspected. The police are also suspicious of the dead designer's resentful young son, a schoolmate of Phoebe's 15-year-old brother Fox. When Fox gets involved to help his friend, Phoebe begins to investigate the rival artist. At the same time, Eva is enlisted to go undercover at the works so she can gain the confidence of the female employees, who are only allowed to paint, not design, which may have led to a grudge against the victim. Pursuing a killer who has no compunction about using a kiln as a coffin, Phoebe and Eva take their lives into their hands to discover the shattering truth....
©2021 Lisa Manuel (P)2021 HighBridge, a division of Recorded Books
Mrs. Jeffries Defends Her Own
Summary
She keeps house for Inspector Witherspoon...and keeps him on his toes. Everyone's awed by his Scotland Yard successes - but they don't know about his secret weapon. No matter how messy the murder or how dirty the deed, Mrs. Jeffries's polished detection skills are up to the task...proving that behind every great man there's a woman - and that a crimesolver's work is never done. When the general office manager of Sutcliffe Manufacturing is murdered, no one is really surprised. Ronald Dearman was anything but a dear man. The tyrannical bully had more than enough enemies to go around. But who hated him enough to walk into his office and put a bullet between his eyes? For once, Inspector Gerald Witherspoon doesn't get the case; it's given to another inspector. Then someone from Mrs. Jeffries' past - someone she'd hoped to never see again - shows up and begs for her help. Now Mrs. Jeffries must step into the fray and stop a terrible miscarriage of justice...
©2012 Cheryl Arguile (P)2020 Tantor
Mrs. Jeffries and the Best Laid Plans
Summary
She keeps house for Inspector Witherspoon...and keeps him on his toes. Everyone's awed by his Scotland Yard successes - but they don't know about his secret weapon. No matter how messy the murder or how dirty the deed, Mrs. Jeffries's polished detection skills are up to the task...proving that behind every great man there's a woman - and that a crimesolver's work is never done.  A friendless old miser, banker Lawrence Boyd, is found dead at home. Called to the scene, Inspector Witherspoon is lucky to have Mrs. Jeffries's help - since the list of suspects includes just about everyone Boyd's ever met.
©2007 Cheryl Arguile (P)2019 Tantor
Mrs. Jeffries Holds the Trump
Summary
She keeps house for Inspector Witherspoon...and keeps him on his toes. Everyone's awed by his Scotland Yard successes - but they don't know about his secret weapon. No matter how messy the murder or how dirty the deed, Mrs. Jeffries' polished detection skills are up to the task...proving that behind every great man there's a woman - and that a crime solver's work is never done. Michael Provost lived a quiet life, yet this successful owner of a medical supply company was spotted floating facedown off the Chelsea Vestry Wharf. His servants adored him, and he had no greedy relatives or business rivals - who would ever want him dead? Luckily for Inspector Gerald Witherspoon, Mrs. Jeffries and her staff are always ready to dive into an investigation, and their combined efforts soon lead to a connection with an earlier crime. Was Provost himself sleuthing when he was horrifically interrupted? And could the same fate befall Inspector Witherspoon?
©2008 Cheryl Arguile (P)2019 Tantor
Queen Victoria's Children
Summary
Queen Victoria and Albert, the Prince Consort, had nine children, who, despite their very different characters, remained a close-knit family. Inevitably, as they married into European royal families, their loyalties were divided and their lives dominated by political controversy. This is not only the story of their lives in terms of world impact but also of personal achievements in their own right, individual contributions to public life in Britain and overseas, and as the children of Queen Victoria and the Prince Consort. John Van der Kiste weaves together the lives of each of these children and shows how their mother was the thread that kept the family together. It is a refreshing insight into one of history's most popular royal families.
©2009 John Van der Kiste (P)2017 Tantor
Mrs. Jeffries Speaks Her Mind
Summary
The eccentric Olive Kettering swore someone was trying to harm her. Too bad no one listened, though plenty wanted her dead. When Olive is shot and killed, Mrs. Jeffries has no problem speaking her mind to see justice served.
©2010 Cheryl Arguile (P)2019 Tantor
Chaucer's People
Summary
The Middle Ages re-created through the cast of pilgrims in The Canterbury Tales. Among the surviving records of 14th-century England, Geoffrey Chaucer's poetry is the most vivid. Chaucer wrote about everyday people outside the walls of the English court-men and women who spent days at the pedal of a loom, or maintaining the ledgers of an estate, or on the high seas. In Chaucer's People, Liza Picard transforms The Canterbury Tales into a masterful guide for a gloriously detailed tour of medieval England, from the mills and farms of a manor house to the lending houses and Inns of Court in London. In Chaucer's People, we meet again the motley crew of pilgrims on the road to Canterbury. Drawing on a range of historical records such as the Magna Carta, The Book of Margery Kempe, and Cookery in English, Picard puts Chaucer's characters into historical context and mines them for insights into what people ate, wore, read, and thought in the Middle Ages. What can the Miller, "big . . . of brawn and eke of bones" tell us about farming in 14th-century England? What do we learn of medieval diets and cooking methods from the Cook? With boundless curiosity and wit, Picard re-creates the religious, political, and financial institutions and customs that gave order to these lives.
©2017 Liza Picard (P)2019 HighBridge, a division of Recorded Books
The Collector of Lives
Summary
Giorgio Vasari (1511-1574) was a man of many talents - a sculptor, painter, architect, writer, and scholar - but he is best known for Lives of the Artists, which singlehandedly established the canon of Italian Renaissance art. Before Vasari's extraordinary book, art was considered a technical skill, and artists were mere decorators and craftsmen. It was through Vasari's visionary writings that Raphael, Leonardo, and Michelangelo came to be regarded as great masters of life as well as art, their creative genius celebrated as a divine gift. Lauded by Sarah Bakewell as "insightful, gripping, and thoroughly enjoyable", The Collector of Lives reveals how one Renaissance scholar completely redefined how we look at art.
©2017 Ingrid Rowland and Noah Charney (P)2018 HighBridge, a division of Recorded Books
Mrs. Jeffries Pinches the Post
Summary
A Mrs. Jeffries Mystery  She keeps house for Inspector Witherspoon...and keeps him on his toes. Everyone's awed by his Scotland Yard successes - but they don't know about his secret weapon. No matter how messy the murder or how dirty the deed, Mrs. Jeffries' polished detection skills are up to the task...proving that behind every great man there's a woman - and that a crimesolver's work is never done.  A ruthless end for a ruthless man.  Harrison Nye may have been involved in some dubious business dealings, but no one ever expected him to be murdered. Now Inspector Witherspoon must root out the perpetrator of the underhanded deed. Nye's business associate visited him just hours before the murder and seems to know more than he's letting on. And when his maid disappears, this dirty business gets even deadlier. Now, Mrs. Jeffries and her staff must root through the sins of Nye's past to discover which one caught up with him....
©2001 Cheryl Arguile (P)2019 Tantor
A Murderous Marriage
Summary
Since the Great War, some family fortunes have suffered, including those of the Renshaws. Despite being the granddaughter of an earl, Julia Renshaw is under pressure to marry for money - and has settled for Gilbert Townsend, a viscount and a wealthy industrialist. He is decades older than Julia, and it's clear to her sister Phoebe - and to Eva, who has been like a surrogate mother to the girls - that this is not a love match. Nevertheless, the wedding takes place - and in a hurry.   At the reception aboard the groom's yacht, there appears to be tension between Gil and several guests: his best man, a fellow veteran of the Boer War; his grouchy spinster sister; and his current heir, a nervous young cousin named Ernest. The bride is also less than pleased when she discovers that her honeymoon will be more crowded than expected - with Gil's pretty secretary, among others, coming along.   That very night, Julia pounds on her sister's door, brandishing a bandaged hand and reporting a hot-tempered outburst on her new husband's part. Then, the next morning, before the yacht can depart the harbor, Gil's body is found in the water below. Phoebe and Eva must discover who pushed him over - before the Renshaws' social standing is irreparably stained by Julia's arrest for his murder....
©2019 Lisa Manuel (P)2019 HighBridge Company
Gropius
Summary
The impact of Walter Gropius can be measured in his buildings - Fagus Factory, Bauhaus Dessau, Pan Amb - but no less in his students. I. M. Pei, Paul Rudolph, Anni Albers, Philip Johnson, Fumihiko Maki: countless masters were once disciples at the Bauhaus in Berlin and at Harvard. Between 1910 and 1930, Gropius was at the center of European modernism and avant-garde society glamour, only to be exiled to the antimodernist United Kingdom during the Nazi years. Later, under the democratizing influence of American universities, Gropius became an advocate of public art and cemented a starring role in 20th-century architecture and design. Fiona MacCarthy challenges the image of Gropius as a doctrinaire architectural rationalist, bringing out the visionary philosophy and courage that carried him through a politically hostile age. Pilloried by Tom Wolfe as inventor of the monolithic high-rise, Gropius is better remembered as inventor of a form of art education that influenced schools worldwide. He viewed argument as intrinsic to creativity. Unusually for one in his position, Gropius encouraged women's artistic endeavors and sought equal romantic partners. Though a traveler in elite circles, he objected to the cloistering of beauty as "a special privilege for the aesthetically initiated."
©2019 Fiona MacCarthy (P)2020 Tantor