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Ultimate imagined story of the founding Norwegian Viking families. There are the same political alliances, sworn oaths and bloodshed that you find in the other cultures but this story starts with a jolt and spirals with twice the action. Ragnvald wants to take over his birthright and wed the beautiful Hilda but must first survive an assassination attempt, the loss of his land by the very man who held it and paid to have him done in and the assassin himself. Solvi wants Ragnvald's sister for himself but she will have nothing to do with the man who tried to kill her brother and then buy his way out of it until she begins to see him for who he really is and the freedom he can offer her. Dramatic and blood thirsty representation of a proud race where loyalty, courage and political alliances meant everything- even more than family. 
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Futuristic debut by a Swedish journalist that will have people talking around the water cooler. Anna is a workaholic with a young daughter she never sees and is about ready for a flame out when she is offered an unusual job, that of going to a remote island with a group of job applicants for a top secret job and then faking her own death in order to observe their reaction remotely. Sounds like one job interview you don't want to apply for but she takes the job. There is one catch though, her old boyfriend ends up being one of the job applicants. Once her death is official, others begin to disappear ala "And Then There Were None". A storm, lies, missing people and government shenanigans are all part of the program. Who is the manipulator and who is being manipulated and will anyone get off the island alive to tell?  This story is told in two parts - the past through the female managerette Sara Smythe and in 1985 from a poor cousin to the building's architect, Bailey. Sara falls in love with her employer and is sent away under suspicious circumstances only to have Bailey later discover the truth generations after. The history of the famous apartment, the Dakota, one of New York City's most famous buildings, is told so well you can imagine the imposing facade and the elegance of its furnishings. The sheer size of it and the number of staff to run it was impressive enough but Fiona Davis brings a touch of humanism to the deep mahogany of the stairs and breathes life into its many ghosts. Exceptional historical storytelling - just like the Dollhouse, that tells the story of the rise of the glory of New York City.  Great WWll story of a female typist working at the famous top secret Bletchley Park who starts receiving packages passed to her that she realizes are of the famous Amber Room that disappeared after Hitler invaded Russia. She risks it all by accepting the packages from a stranger who claims to work at another hut and thinks they may be coming from her brother but then realizes that this is not a test to see if she can keep secrets and it is not a game. People are dying and soon Honey finds herself deep in danger and fighting for her life. Brew yourself a strong pot of English tea and cozy up with this delightful, well thought out wartime mystery. You will love Honey Deschamps and want more.  Merrick has led an adventurous life but is now stuck living with his cranky brother at their crumbling country estate struggling with a leg injury. When the East India Company and his friends lure him into taking a trip to Peru to discover and smuggle out cuttings of the plant that produces quinine, he is hard pressed to say no. After they assure him that his leg won't slow them down and they need his expertise the trio travel to South America where they pose as coffee growers, hire a guide and stagger off into the jungle. Merrick and his friend along with a Spanish speaking priest of the highlands who is their guide make their way through a surreal area where automated statues demand tribute, trees explode and their path is lit by glowing pollen. Madness, violence and an unexpected friendship with a doomed priest send Merrick on an unusual journey of mind, spirit and soul.  Begin at the court of Peter the Great where a talented clockmaker has created an array of avomat, automated humans and animals, for the pleasure of the Czar. Peter and Elena, his little sister, are cherished and taught everything of court life and the world around them. Being machines, they outlive everyone at court and over the centuries have learned to hide among humans careful never to reveal their secret identities to them. Fast forward to recent times where a young anthropologist named June has discovered a strange relic in her grandfather's things. This relic belongs to an avomat and soon June is immersed in a world that has always been around her but hidden. As June vows to help Peter she will soon fall into a dangerous world of the avomat and the dark forces that threaten humanity unless they can stop them. A delicious mix of steampunk robotic love and historical fantasy that I did not want to end.  A plane lands in Steamboat Springs Colorado only to find everyone who is not on the plane in a catatonic state. Lucky for them there is a prominent infectious disease specialist on the plane who starts working the case. Soon, everyone is in a panic and if the disease isn't bad enough there are snowstorms, angry bears and much more. There is a lot here and at times it can be overwhelming but this is sure to become this summer's great beach read - if you love Robin Cook, Michael Crichton or Steve Berry this one is for you.  Lee is a thief, a homeless waif who gets wrapped up in a strange myriad of secret societies, urban abandoned building exploration and halfway houses that kidnap and drug children. The secret society is obsessed with an artist's last work and when Lee finds a piece of that puzzle the society will stop at nothing to get it back. Along the way she falls in love with Tomi and he introduces her to his passion of exploring abandoned museums and other relics along with squatting at nice homes of people away on vacation. Dark, mysterious, unsettling and like nothing you have read, this book is hard to pigeonhole into one genre. You will find yourself getting pulled in, eagerly following Lee into the tunnels rooting for her happiness and survival.  An eerie murder mystery that involves a woman who is incarcerated and the detective who put her there. When the strange note and new murder happens, Valerie has no choice but to contact Katherine to get her help in tracking down the other half of a murderous pair. What is Katherine's motive in helping Valerie catch her old partner and will Valerie survive being pulled back into their twisted games? For fans of twisty plots and evil characters ala Hannibal Lector or Blacklist.  This multigenerational historical novel gives us a poignant view of the early days of the American circus as well as the cruelty and lack of understanding for anyone who was different in the freak shows. As in "Water For Elephants", performers and circus animals were subjected to a total lack of humane care. The story is told in two parts - one an albino girl who is sold into slavery at a freak show by her family and the other is a modern descendant of that same family who has just inherited the estate house. Julia finds some puzzling documents and pictures hidden in her father's home office and tries to understand not only her troubled relationship with her parents but also secrets that they hid from her and the rest of the world. Julia and Lilly are bound together by their connection to the old house but also by hatred of cruelty to animals and their ability to relate to animals much easier than people. Brilliant and brutal, this is the star attraction under the literary big top.  |
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