I English U
Serena Young travels the world daily, teaching English online from her living room table to people in every corner of the globe. But when the laptop is off, her universe shrinks to her bare-bones apartment and a pair of toothy hamsters. And the men in her life? There's the computer nerd down the street and the house painter who loves dinner theater... Sigh. Surely a better life exists somewhere on the other side of the webcam. Then Alessandro, a scrumptious Italian olive oil heir, signs up for online lessons, which soon extend into virtual walks under a milky Mediterranean moon. He's rich. He's gorgeous. He's charming. He invites her to Italy. Or wait...did he? Should Serena toss caution-and her savings and possibly her job-to the wind and fly into his arms? Can we ever choose which way the heart leads us? Sometimes you might need to stand on a mountain top on the other end of the world to find out. "An extraordinarily strong debut; a perky, quirky story of love and decisions with tremendous appeal." - Novels Alive
I English U
Serena Young travels the world daily, teaching English online from her living room table to people in every corner of the globe. But when the laptop is off, her universe shrinks to her bare-bones apartment and a pair of toothy hamsters. And the men in her life? There's the computer nerd down the street and the house painter who loves dinner theater... Sigh. Surely a better life exists somewhere on the other side of the webcam. Then Alessandro, a scrumptious Italian olive oil heir, signs up for online lessons, which soon extend into virtual walks under a milky Mediterranean moon. He's rich. He's gorgeous. He's charming. He invites her to Italy. Or wait...did he? Should Serena toss caution-and her savings and possibly her job-to the wind and fly into his arms? Can we ever choose which way the heart leads us? Sometimes you might need to stand on a mountain top on the other end of the world to find out. "An extraordinarily strong debut; a perky, quirky story of love and decisions with tremendous appeal." - Novels Alive
Parklife
From the writer of The Twenty Seven Club...Dumped, drunk and desperate - will a job serving ice-cream at the park save Emma from herself?It's 1996. Emma's been rejected by the man she loves and sacked from the job she hates but desperately needs. Feeling like she's hit a new low, she finds herself serving ice-cream and phoney smiles at the local park.Best mate Dave's loved up, and her dad's finally emerging from years of unemployment and a deep depression. Everyone's life is on the up while Emma's plummeting towards rock bottom.Every day she gives a free '99 to the lonely old man who sits on the park bench and reminds herself that life could be much worse.But soon, even sprinkles and monkey's blood can't hide the truth. She's in deep trouble and losing sight of the edge. Who will help her up when she falls?This is the follow up to The Twenty Seven Club (which was described by Stylist Magazine as 'a moving exploration of mental health, music myths and why love can help us through'). Parklife can also be read as a standalone tale.
It's a Haint Blue Christmas
Haint Blue needs a vacation. It looks like she'll be alone for Christmas. Her relationship with Buster is in limbo. Why not slip off to the beach? She can almost taste the fish tacos and fried shrimp. But before she can make a motel reservation, psychic Aunt Moira calls. "I had a vivid dream this morning. There was a bright Christmas tree...children laughing...an empty deep freezer in a garage. You were wringing your hands in a red apron. Some weird nursery rhyme repeated 'the larder was bare, the larder was bare'. The dream tells me that you need to stock your pantry; you're going to be a busy hostess this Christmas. Get your holiday cookbooks out, sweetheart."Surely not.As the 25th approaches, the phone calls begin."Haint? This is Yolanda, from Paco's. Our restaurant stove--something is wrong. It's gas. Sometimes it works and then suddenly nada. Sometimes I swear I smell gas. I'm not going to play with gas. I'm afraid of gas. We were wondering if you had a few cabins?""Haint? Max. Listen, my sister Nellavon thinks I'm dying. She's got this hairbrained notion to get the family together. I can't talk her out of it. I know business has been slow, and I was wondering, you gonna be open for the holidays?""We're travelling with alpacas. Do you have space to exercise them?""We're the Lame Brain Zombie LARPers...party of seven, do you have a cabin?""My client wants privacy."The calls keep coming.And odd little gifts keeping showing up and disappearing. What's that about?As the retreat fills to capacity, strangers become family as they come together for a Haint Blue Christmas.Looking for a funny, feel-good holiday romp with a bit of mystery? This is the one.
The French for Murder
A grand villa, croissants for breakfast and a dead body in the wine cellar... Lady Swift can't seem to take a vacation from murder! Summer 1923. Lady Eleanor Swift is finally persuaded by her butler, Clifford, to take a villa in the south of France for the season. She plans to do what a glamorous lady abroad should: long lunches on the balcony followed by lazy afternoons lounging by the pool. Even Gladstone the bulldog is looking forward to a daily paddle in the ocean. But when Clifford examines the wine cellar, he discovers there are no decent reds but there is a very dead body. The victim is famous American movie star Rex Armstrong. Poor Rex seems to have been stabbed with a sword from the film set. So how did he end up in Eleanor's villa? Before Eleanor even has time to change out of her travelling suit, her beloved butler is arrested for the crime. At sea without her right-hand man, Eleanor must gather her wits if she's to outsmart a murderer and save Clifford. Attending a glitzy party at the luxurious Hotel Azure with the film's cast and crew so she can question her main suspects, Eleanor overhears the director having a most unsettling telephone call that throws all her theories out of the water. Can Eleanor unmask the true killer before her time abroad is cut murderously short? A gripping historical murder mystery full of charm and intrigue, set in the beautiful French Riviera. Fans of Agatha Christie, T E Kinsey and Lee Strauss will adore The French for Murder. Readers are utterly addicted to Verity Bright! 'What a great cozy mystery! I am hooked! This is the best book, bar none, that I have read this year... An extremely witty, fast-paced mystery... I love the heroine, intrepid adventuress... A most enjoyable read!' Reviews by Carol in Tallahassee ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 'Can I give it six stars please?... Pretty much perfect... Bright has the amazing gift of bringing the reader into that world where the characters are alive.' Goodreads reviewer ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 'What a wild ride it is!... Gripping... This book is what would happen if Downton Abbey and Agatha Christie had a baby. Fun, fast-paced read with lots of charm!' The Literary Wife 'I was literally on the edge of my seat until the last page trying to figure out the mystery. It's an adorable, captivating book.' Washington Life Magazine 'A sparkling heroine and perfect partner-in-crime... Every bit as compelling a couple as Bertie Wooster and Jeeves and the series is both entertaining and eminently readable... The perfect light reading for a summer day. An added bonus is the delightful dog Gladstone who is indolent, gluttonous and totally adorable.' Goodreads reviewer
Paradise
You think you've got problems. My favourite Afghan restaurant closed down. My girlfriend left. A bad-tempered lawyer named Keziah crashed her car into mine. And we couldn't even die properly.The afterlife turned out to be a cage in the heavens where we lived with all our memories, and where evil spirits wanted us to build a perfect life together. Then they could use us to market-test new products. Or, we could rot eternally in the yellow sleet outside our cage. Which honestly was tempting. But then a snake with a personality disorder offered us a way out.. Paradise - a Divine Comedy fearlessly crosses life, death, heavenly dimensions and extreme Afghan cuisine and faces our greatest problem - ourselves. Reviews: ''Hitchhikers Guide meets Screwtape meets Pilgrims Progress meets the Discworld!' (Phil Grasham)'...absolutely loved it. A hysterical surrealist take on what is out there after life on earth, or next to life on earth, or simultaneous with life on earth, or whatever. A story of Gods in kilts, crystal clear memories, and walls made of our pixelated fears. Delightful. (Jeannette M, Goodreads.com)Sometimes you want to hit the main character on the back of the head and tell him to stop being a wuss, but how would you react if you had to build a paradise controlled by some used-car-salesman-style gods? If you like quirky and surreal stories about the afterlife, then I would highly recommend Paradise. (Katie Webb, Goodreads.com) What a great book! Loved the characters, the creativity, the dialogue, the imaginative idea of evil spirits keeping humans as pets .... a delightfully comic but definitely insightful look into the human psyche and soul. It's a mark of a good book (for me, at least) when I look forward to picking it up again to read and am slow to put it down. I loved every aspect of it. (Susan Sutton, author) An interview with Glenn Myers Q. So what is this book like and what books do you like the most? A. Off-beat, quirky. British humour I guess. About the afterlife or at least about near-death experiences and the soul. Q. Why this subject? A. What are we like on the inside? If your soul was like a landscape, what would it look like? How would it change? What would be attacking it or wearing it down? I thought it would be a lot of fun to picture that. Q. And you get to ask big questions? A. I think the best comedy does. Life, death, love, redemption: all those, but handled lightly. I see comic fiction like a ridge walk on a mountain range -- scary drops each side, but a carefree stroll on the top. Q. With two warring characters at the heart? A. Three actually. The main protagonist Jamie is at war with Keziah the girl who crashed into him and so sent them both to the afterlife. If he's smug, laid-back and bone idle, she's spiky, focussed and driven. They just don't get on. There's no possible world, living or dead, where they could ever get on. Yet they have to work together. And hovering in the background is Jamie's ex-girlfriend Caroline, who he's completely failed to love and she's left him. So they're all lost souls. And of course the stress of being dead, of your soul exposed, and of being experimented on by evil spirits. Such wonderful fun to write! Q. There's a lot of food mentioned in the books: Afghan (murtabak), Indian (for example, roti prata), Singaporean Chinese (Hainanese Chicken Rice) and Malay (Mee Goreng, Laksa, Nasi Lemak). Have you eaten all these foods? A. Yes. It's important -- vital research.
My Man Jeeves (Unabridged)
In "My Man Jeeves," P. G. Wodehouse introduces readers to the delightful interplay between the bumbling Bertie Wooster and his supremely capable valet, Jeeves. This collection of short stories showcases Wodehouse's trademark wit and comedic timing, characterized by its light-hearted narrative style and sparkling dialogue. Set against the backdrop of early 20th-century England, the stories explore themes of class, romance, and the humorous absurdities of the British aristocracy, all while employing a richly intertextual approach to character development and situational comedy. P. G. Wodehouse, an author renowned for his unparalleled contributions to English humor, developed his distinct literary style from his own experiences in Edwardian society. His mastery of language and keen observation of social dynamics inform the pages of "My Man Jeeves," as Wodehouse drew inspiration from his own encounters and relationships, as well as his love for the theater and the art of storytelling. This comedic masterpiece serves as a cornerstone in the Jeeves and Wooster series, which has captivated audiences for generations. I wholeheartedly recommend "My Man Jeeves" to anyone seeking a refreshing escape into a world of comedic brilliance. Whether you are a long-time Wodehouse aficionado or a newcomer to his work, this unabridged edition is a perfect introduction to the author's genius, promising laughter and charm on every page.
The Beauty and the Yeast
The Beauty and the Yeast is a kind of unintentional satire, and play on words, of the famous French Novel, by Jeanne Marie Lepeine de Beaumont (the "de" indicating a member of the feudal aristocracy), The Beauty and the Beast (La Belle et la Bete), writing in feudal France of the mid-1700's. Both stories have in common a heroine, through whose capacity to see inner beauty in others, transcends the outward grotesqueness, or pathetic tinyness, of the protagonists, in her case, of la Bete, and, in our case the six inch high midget suffering from dwarfism. It is because of this amazing ability of the two heroines to discount and ignore the outward form, which would deter most, and to find/discover one quality of real worth that makes them want to be with, and stay with, the unfortunate protagonist despite all his handicaps and challenges. In the case of la Bete, it was his gentle voice and nobility of character, (plus, possibly, the fact that he owned a castle and was a man of rank and station), while in the case of Tim Thimble, it was on account of his brave heart and ten foot tall courage that he succeeded in winning the heart of his lady love. In both stories, the story is "consummated" (reason for quotation marks, please read on) by the heroine marrying the protagonist. In the first book, Beauty, the name of the young girl, la Bete tells the young girl, that he is dying, and gives her a ring to put on her finger, when she didn't want him to die, and promptly she put it on, and told him she wanted to marry him. Coincidental with putting the ring on her index finger, la Bete is transformed into A Beautiful Prince, the act of putting on the marriage ring, having "broken the spell" placed on him by a fairy which had made his outward appearance and aspect so betes. In our book, the second book, the heroine marries the protagonist on pastor's condition he attend daily sermon in church every day of his life, so that sometime in the present or the future, he will find the holy grail of the miracle yeast that will like any good yeast, make him grow to normal size (to match his inner courage), and thus, by dint of steadfastness, endurance, and perseverance, in doing his duty, or labour of love, will be able at last to consummate his marriage, and forthwith live happily forever after with his lady love!
What's Wrong With Monday
What do pancakes have in common with tap dancing chickens and a twelve year old girl? They all star in this hilarious debut novel about Mondays that never go as planned!
It Once Was
Book Description: A series of comedic essays and narratives about growing up in the small mountain towns in the great northern Catskills.
The Storyteller's Curse
In such fantastic and dangerous times, may the best man not end up as a smoldering pile of ash.When Bayerd the Storyteller grudgingly rescues a princess named after seaweed, his rather mundane life changes drastically. And not for the better, as one might hope when one rescues a princess. Bayerd soon endures more trials than a cursed man, not the least of which is being saved by that very same princess from the dragon jaws of fiery death.In an attempt to prove his worth, Bayerd vows to protect the future queen from her plotting kin and a parade of alarming suitors. His lowly beginnings may not see him fit to kiss the highborn princess's oddly webbed toes, or polish the blood-stained boots of Sir Gore Wolfe of Howling Stone, but royal blood isn't everything. A dozen hell cats can't be wrong. They certainly have no complaint about the quality of Bayerd's blood, and they have sampled it - liberally.Together with his tall dark and brooding friend Orson, Bayerd does his manly best to fill the role of champion. It quickly proves to be a perilous role for him. Trouble sticks so close to Bayerd, it could easily be mistaken for his shadow. Or his good and true friend Orson.Recommended for teens and adults. 303 pages in printed book format."Quite a few times, I found myself laughing out loud. Funny, hilarious and witty. I was truly entertained." -Shirley, adult"Pure entertainment ... has a fluidity that makes even the most farcical events believable. The fantastical events that unfold in the comedic tale play on both the supernatural and mystical for laughs. With just enough description, it flows without tedium. Bayerd, faced with one misfortunate event after another, truly has you rooting for the underdog." -Sam C. teenagerThe Storyteller Series- Book 1, The Storyteller's Curse, Book 2, The Storyteller's QuestVisit SrigleyArts.com and sign up for the author's newsletter to win free monthly give-aways.
Outside Providence
Farrelly's hilarious and endearing first novel, now a Miramax motion picture starring Alec Baldwin.
The Storyteller's Quest
In such fantastic and dangerous times, may the best man not make an 'ash' of himself.When Bayerd the Storyteller is sent on a quest, he has no choice but to ride off into the sunset. If he doesn't leave willingly, he will surely be catapulted over the castle battlements. It would be a fantastic bloody display, one that would end his quest before it even begins. And alas, he is starting to suspect that his own beloved Princess Kelp may be the one who wants him gone from the Golden Kingdom. Permanently. Unless someone much more dastardly is plotting against him.It isn't supposed to be a dangerous quest, yet his men begin to vanish one by one. It is just the start of his (and their) misfortune. Bayerd has to wonder if his quest is cursed, or maybe he is the one who's cursed - again. Will his misbegotten quest be the end of him?Recommended for teens and adults. 250 pages in printed book format."Quite a few times, I found myself laughing out loud. Funny, hilarious and witty. I was truly entertained." -Shirley, adult"Pure entertainment ... has a fluidity that makes even the most farcical events believable. The fantastical events that unfold in the comedic tale play on both the supernatural and mystical for laughs. With just enough description, it flows without tedium. Bayerd, faced with one misfortunate event after another, truly has you rooting for the underdog." -Sam C. teenagerThe Storyteller Series- Book 1, The Storyteller's Curse, Book 2, The Storyteller's QuestVisit SrigleyArts.com and sign up for the author's newsletter to win free monthly give-aways.
The Pineys
From the creator of the Jersey Devil comic book comes a story about four cousins cursed by their ancestors, brought together by destiny and trying to keep South Jersey from going to Hell. In 1732, Mother Leeds gave birth to the infamous Jersey Devil, which has roamed the Pine Barrens ever since. Or so the story goes...The truth is, Mother Leeds was a witch and opened the portals to Hell unleashing hundreds of devils into woods. But the villagers next door in Abe's Hat noticed and formed a secret hunting society to track down the fiends and send them back to the Abyss. Their descendants continue the Hunt in secret to this day.So grab your pork roll, put on your Piney Power hat and join the hunt, because the Galloway cousins are coming to save you whether you like it or not.
The Really Incredible Amazing Silly Thing
"Dude, can you hurry up so we can party?" my mates asked.I switched gears to proofreading one of my more autobiographical pieces focussed on how much I've matured over the years. Like a superb and resonant champagne, I've improved with time. It would no doubt take my mind off a debilitating sadness caused by a horrendous tragedy. My old friend Albert of the Royal New Zealand Army had recently become unemployed and dead at the same time when he was fired from his job as cannon safety supervisor, when he was fired from his cannon.This silly book is a light-hearted look at my life as a student, a friend of the lost and the disaffected, a party animal, a leaf in the wind attempting sense-making escapades in the political spectrum, and much more. Jokes were harvested, fermented, and shot out of various joke-cannons into many innocent ears during testing.
last rites
last rites is the final book in the first series of the Whitborough Novels. A supernatural comedy book series based in North Yorkshire. It covers the events leading to the re-internment of a cursed treasure in the midst of the construction of a new Druid stone circle. There are many different groups of characters involved, following very different agendas, all attempting to complete their work with the least amount of interference. None of the protagonists are ever really aware of just how many other interested parties are watching them as they go about their business.
In a Nut’s Hell
"In a Nut's Hell" by Jim Wood is a collection of satirical, humorous, and literary shorter-than-short stories geared for the waning attention span and aimed at providing the laughs we all so desperately need these days. Perfect for the coffee table or bathroom, Wood's serious silliness covers the topics we all must live with, from information overload to identity theft to hypocrisy to cancer to surprise parties to home invasion to religion to dung beetles taking over Washington DC. Wood hopes his book will make you laugh and think, ideally at the same time.
The Great American Boogaloo
From his woodland bunker in Michigan, Bo 'Big Bruddah' Watts has assembled a scratch army of gun-toting militiamen, and he's ready to use it. Rumours are circulating that the liberal, female President of the USA is going to fight climate change by banning beef, snatching the great American hamburger from the mouths of patriots. Big Bruddah missed the last militia uprising. That one, sparked by a conspiracy theory about a deadly virus and stolen cheese recipes, ended in failure when his now ex-wife, Miky Spike, stopped the potentially bloody conflict at a Cracker Barrel restaurant in Wisconsin.He is determined to stop the president, with the help of eccentric octogenarian Wilbur Tuttle, who runs Silver Eagle Security, the private military enterprise owned by the hapless former governor of Michigan, Bill Hoeksma.The plan is to launch a coup in Tampa, Florida by kidnapping the President's daughter and then installing Hoeksma as a puppet President. With the support of Silver Eagle's best men, Big Bruddah and Tuttle hope to ignite the long-awaited insurrection militia members call the "boogaloo." What could possibly go wrong?What readers are saying about The Great American Cheese War: "A rollicking riot of insanity and I mean that in the most wonderful sense! I laughed my way through this story.""Highly recommended!! This book was a lot of fun, I laughed out loud, and it's a clever satire book. It's well written, engrossing and entertaining.""Enjoy your summer, read this book!""Satire at its finest. The whole book had me rolling on floor laughing!"
Book of Toons
Ever wonder what it would be like to be inside the brain of a ridiculous cartoonist? Explore into subject matter like who is God? Why do things happen? What's a molecule's favorite game? What reality might be like in alternate universes? Poke fun at society's attempt at making sense of existence. Along with some far out inventions and a few short stories, this book will bring out the reader's inner silliness. With over 199 cartoons to stir the imagination, there's something for all walks of life from astronaut to farmer to doctor or even if you're just an average plank of wood.
Book of Toons
Ever wonder what it would be like to be inside the brain of a ridiculous cartoonist? Explore into subject matter like who is God? Why do things happen? What's a molecule's favorite game? What reality might be like in alternate universes? Poke fun at society's attempt at making sense of existence. Along with some far out inventions and a few short stories, this book will bring out the reader's inner silliness. With over 199 cartoons to stir the imagination, there's something for all walks of life from astronaut to farmer to doctor or even if you're just an average plank of wood.
Thy King Dumb Come
Stephen Tryon delivers a prescient parody of an American President who wants to be a king. The book opens on a late night in the spring of 2020 with a student, whose first name also happens to be Stephen, describing his perceptions the current president and mulling over the final requirements for his masters degree. He decides to take a short break and falls asleep, only to awaken as an insect on the wall of the Oval Office observing a meeting wherein the current president is exploring the idea of staying in power by declaring himself King. Moving to one of the Oval Office windows so he can get a better view of the meeting participants, Stephen attracts the attention of a hungry bird. The bird's collision with the window jolts Stephen out of his first dream world. He "awakens" in the town of Green Valley, only to find himself face to face with a talking dog who claims to be Socrates. Socrates tries to help Stephen by introducing him to some of his philosopher friends. Stephen connects with an African American Jesus who is running the local homeless shelter. The two befriend a homeless young woman who is trying to decide whether to have an abortion. Jesus' words from the New Testament offer a thoughtful and non-judgmental perspective on how Jesus would behave in this situation. Jesus and Socrates, along with a host of other interesting characters, help Stephen survive adventures including a Black Lives Matter protest, a presidential rally, a day in the Senate and encounters with a sinister foreign power. He periodically snaps back into his first dream world, watching the current president and his congressional supporters manipulate events in Washington, D.C. to gain political advantage. As Stephen struggles to find his way home, his two dream worlds collide in a final, climactic court appearance.
Royal Quest
She never believed in fairy tales . . . Going undercover as a maid at the Suite Royale Lodge in an attempt to meet her half sister, Kamille, isn't one of Amelia Lennox's best ideas. Kami has no idea of Amelia's existence, and her recent marriage to Gabriel, the new King of Beaumont, puts her further out of Amelia's reach. Even if Amelia finds Kami, there's no guarantee the queen will believe her-or that she wants a sister.To complicate matters, Amelia meets Damien Giraud, who steals her breath away and makes her knees weak. She's never believed in the kind of fairy tale that her sister found, but then she's never known anyone like Damien. Maybe, if their secrets don't keep them apart, she might begin to believe.Royal Quest is the story of how two sisters find each other, and about love-true love. Because in Beaumont, fairy tales do come true. Note: The author originally wrote this story as part of Amazon's Kindle World Royals of Monterra, but the story has been rewritten to reflect the new series. Royals of Beaumont SeriesRoyal KissRoyal QuestRoyal DanceRoyal Time
The Doctor's Dilemma
The Doctor's Dilemma is a play by George Bernard Shaw first staged in 1906. It is a problem play about the moral dilemmas created by limited medical resources, and the conflicts between the demands of private medicine as a business and a vocation. The eponymous dilemma of the play is that of the newly honoured doctor Sir Colenso Ridgeon, who has developed a revolutionary new cure for tuberculosis. However, his private medical practice, with limited staff and resources, can only treat ten patients at a time. From a group of fifty patients he has selected ten he believes he can cure and who, he believes, are most worthy of being saved. However, when he is approached by a young woman, Jennifer Dubedat, with a deadly ill husband, Louis Dubedat, he admits he can, at a stretch, save one more patient, but that the individual in question must be shown to be most worthy of being saved. However, the situation is complicated when an old friend and colleague reveals, he too, needs treatment. Sir Colenso must choose which patient he will save: a kindly, altruistic poor medical colleague, or an extremely gifted but also very unpleasant, womaniser, bigamist and amoral young artist. Sir Colenso falls instantly in love with the young and vivacious Mrs Dubedat and this makes it even harder for the doctor to separate his motives for the decision of who shall live. (wikipedia.org)
The Doctor's Dilemma
The Doctor's Dilemma is a play by George Bernard Shaw first staged in 1906. It is a problem play about the moral dilemmas created by limited medical resources, and the conflicts between the demands of private medicine as a business and a vocation. The eponymous dilemma of the play is that of the newly honoured doctor Sir Colenso Ridgeon, who has developed a revolutionary new cure for tuberculosis. However, his private medical practice, with limited staff and resources, can only treat ten patients at a time. From a group of fifty patients he has selected ten he believes he can cure and who, he believes, are most worthy of being saved. However, when he is approached by a young woman, Jennifer Dubedat, with a deadly ill husband, Louis Dubedat, he admits he can, at a stretch, save one more patient, but that the individual in question must be shown to be most worthy of being saved. However, the situation is complicated when an old friend and colleague reveals, he too, needs treatment. Sir Colenso must choose which patient he will save: a kindly, altruistic poor medical colleague, or an extremely gifted but also very unpleasant, womaniser, bigamist and amoral young artist. Sir Colenso falls instantly in love with the young and vivacious Mrs Dubedat and this makes it even harder for the doctor to separate his motives for the decision of who shall live. (wikipedia.org)
Cold Turkey
Times were good for the man in the Oval Office until three student radicals from Finlandia University and one resident nerd from Michigan Tech seek his support in making Michigan's Upper Peninsula the fifty-first state. They give the President an ultimatum to support their cause or the Yoopers (as the U.P. residents refer to themselves) will throw the coming election. When the President refuses, they hijack a truckload of his turkeys from the Western White House. The truck driver is stripped naked, drenched in molasses, and covered with feathers. The newspapers have a field day at the President's expense, while the truck driver makes the talk-show rounds.To make matters worse, the White House plumbing becomes constipated and refuses to function, twelve hundred and twenty-four of the abducted turkeys find their way to the White House lawn tripping numerous security sensors, and Washington D.C. becomes infested with Amorous Spotted Slugs. Still the President refuses to capitulate. (Pharaoh needed ten plagues.)The final straw occurs when the President receives irrefutable evidence from the CIA that Finland has Weapons of Mass Destruction and intends to turn the Upper Peninsula into a Finnish colony. He is left with no alternative-he must declare war on the U.P.!
Bear Creek
Bear Creek in Michigan's Upper Peninsula is best described as a cross between The Little House on the Prairie's Walnut Grove and Garrison Keilor's Lake Woebegone. The year is 1923 and prohibition is in full swing. The Ladies' Aid Society from the local church plans to close the Snake Pit Saloon.The town's influential men meet everymorning at Barker's Hardware and Feed Store, where they plan strategies toprotect their moonshine from their meddling wives. In their spare time, theyorganize MACHO nights (Men Advocating Completely Hedonic Outings) in which theyplay poker and drink moonshine while hiding from their spouses.In this rural paradise arrives a quixoticMethodist pastor. The Rev. Hooper was apprehensive about his assignment to the localchurch, feeling it was a vindictive appointment in revenge for Rudy'sdisparaging comments concerning the Bishop's wife. He had expected arun-down parsonage in some God forsaken land filled with tsetse flies andcannibals, not an idyllic community such as Bear Creek. The Bishop didn'tmention the previous three pastors were weaving baskets in downstatesanitariums. Nor did the bishop warn Rudy about the obsessive-compulsive beaverthat came with the parsonage. Rudy would discover this soon enough.
Red
Short listed in the SANTA FE WRITERS PROJECT (SFWP) 2022 Literary Awards: Desperate for experience, and a chance to earn his stripes, 23 year old pilot, Will is forced to accept gruelling work in remote Outback Australia, with cringeworthy, hilarious and often hair-raising consequences. ACE student, William Boyston's whole life has been about flying. He's sacrificed everything to get his pilot licence, leaving him with a massive overdraft, an unhealthy Top Gun obsession, and an addiction to Luigi's coffee - the big-hearted, hopeless romantic, and Italian proprietor of Will's favourite cafe. Renting a shared house in Nineties Melbourne, with Adam, his impossibly cool, Fedora wearing, bushwalking flatmate, Will only has one thing on his mind - getting his Captain's stripes so he can fly Boeing jets for an international airline. If only jobs weren't so scarce in the city. At the bottom of the career ladder, and desperate to pay off his escalating debt, he'll take any work, however menial. So when he gets his only job offer he knows that he must take it. Even though it means relocating 3000km to the harsh, far north of Australia. Even though it means saying goodbye to his prized Toyota Corolla T18, to Adam, and to their intriguing new flatmate, Molly Malone. In the isolated towns of the Northern Territory, Will's life is soon defined by stifling heat, squalid accommodation, and the peculiar habits of the locals. Social opportunities are almost non-existent. Work is erratic. Living expenses are sky-high. Life up here is nothing like the big city - snakes, scary neighbours, crocodiles, and relentless hordes of blowflies. But if he's ever going to get into an airline, he needs thousands of hours in the air. No, he must stick to the plan and focus on filling his log book. He lives to fly. It's all he's ever wanted. So why can't he stop thinking about Molly, the girl he left behind?
Major Barbara
Major Barbara is a three-act English play by George Bernard Shaw, written and premiered in 1905 and first published in 1907. The story concerns an idealistic young woman, Barbara Undershaft, who is engaged in helping the poor as a Major in the Salvation Army in London. For many years, Barbara and her siblings have been estranged from their father, Andrew Undershaft, who now reappears as a rich and successful munitions maker. Undershaft, the father, gives money to the Salvation Army, offending Major Barbara, who does not want to be connected to his "tainted" wealth. However, the father argues that poverty is a worse problem than munitions, and claims that he is doing more to help society by giving his workers jobs and a steady income than Major Barbara is doing to help them by giving them bread and soup.The play script reprises several typical "Shavian" moves in lacking apostrophes on contractions and other punctuation, by having a didactic introductory essay explaining the play's themes, and by bending some rules of play scripting for literary purposes; for example, two characters are listed as "The Woman" and "The Man" before Shaw gives them names, for dramatic effect. As well, lines in dialect English are written phonetically (Bill Walker jeers, "Wot prawce selvytion nah?", "What price salvation now?"). (wikipedia.org)
What Matters Most
Mallory's Manly Methods is a comic adventure story about a Customer Service Representative for a cable company who hates customers, looks down on women, and fears Blacks. When his actual life experiences conflict with his prejudices, he makes his own unique attempts at self-improvement, but his efforts are complicated by the fact that he's also a blundering idiot. "An exceedingly kooky protagonist drives this touching, silly adventure." - Kirkus Reviews.
Major Barbara
Major Barbara is a three-act English play by George Bernard Shaw, written and premiered in 1905 and first published in 1907. The story concerns an idealistic young woman, Barbara Undershaft, who is engaged in helping the poor as a Major in the Salvation Army in London. For many years, Barbara and her siblings have been estranged from their father, Andrew Undershaft, who now reappears as a rich and successful munitions maker. Undershaft, the father, gives money to the Salvation Army, offending Major Barbara, who does not want to be connected to his "tainted" wealth. However, the father argues that poverty is a worse problem than munitions, and claims that he is doing more to help society by giving his workers jobs and a steady income than Major Barbara is doing to help them by giving them bread and soup.The play script reprises several typical "Shavian" moves in lacking apostrophes on contractions and other punctuation, by having a didactic introductory essay explaining the play's themes, and by bending some rules of play scripting for literary purposes; for example, two characters are listed as "The Woman" and "The Man" before Shaw gives them names, for dramatic effect. As well, lines in dialect English are written phonetically (Bill Walker jeers, "Wot prawce selvytion nah?", "What price salvation now?"). (wikipedia.org)
You Only Live Once
"A brilliant homage to everyone's favorite super-spy, and a hilarious, action-packed, made-for-the-movies thriller about a man suavely dancing along both sides of the thin line between heroism and madness." -Matt Forbeck, New York Times bestselling author of Halo: New BloodJames Flynn is an expert shot, a black belt in karate, fluent in four languages and irresistible to women. He's also a heavily medicated patient in a Los Angeles psychiatric hospital. Flynn believes his locked ward is the headquarters of Her Majesty's Secret Service and that he is a secret agent with a license to kill.When the hospital is acquired by a new HMO, Flynn is a convinced that the Secret Service has been infiltrated by the enemy. He escapes to save the day and carjacks a young orderly named Sancho.This crazy day trip turns into a very real adventure when Flynn is mistaken for an actual secret agent. Paranoid delusions have suddenly become reality, and now it's up to a mental patient and a terrified orderly to bring down an insecure, evil genius bent on world domination.
The Green Overcoat
The Green Overcoat follows a story of Professor Higginson, a tall, thin, exceedingly shy and nervous psychologist on his journey when he comes across the magnificent green overcoat. Its cloth is soft and thick, pliable and smooth; the rich fur at the collar and cuffs was a promise of luxury lining... Now the Devil during all Professor Higginson's life had had trifling fun with him until that memorable moment.
The Colors of Seduction
A betrayed woman decides that she must get revenge not only against her cheating husband, but also the people who for some time revolved around her life: the lesbian friend, the career police officer, the photographer who is half paparazzi and half private investigator, the Milanese writer, the pusher, and so on. The story takes place in the Marche charming townhome of poet Giacomo Leopardi. This town is where Emanuela will carry out her revenge, based on the number seven and colors, the colors of seduction. Seven colors of the rainbow, seven deadly sins, seven secret rooms of her house where, one after the other, the unsuspecting victims of her revenge will end up. An act of revenge that, however, will leave a bitter taste in the mouth of the protagonist. Emanuela La Capricciosa is the pseudonym behind which, in addition to Emanuela from Recanati, there are some authors belonging to the literary Token Ring, who have created this short novel as a collective work. A pleasant, flowing and intriguing reading, irreverent enough, but never vulgar.
A Way With Words
A WAY WITH WORDSWe may choose our words carefully or use them without thought. They might be employed to get our message across, or hide what we're feeling. They can be tools, gifts or weapons. We need them for the games we play, the work we do and the excuses we make.Words are written or typed, texted, emailed, signed or spoken. They're heard, misheard, remembered forever or forgotten in an instant. Strung together they create fact or fiction, tell lies or the truth.Whether compliments or taunts, hard to spell or difficult to say, formal, familiar or foreign, long or short, the words we use all influence the stories we tell. This book contains 25 of them.
Corporately Blonde
The mainstream humor debut of Edie Claire, author of the USA-Today bestselling Leigh Koslow mystery series!A professional woman's mind is a terrible thing to waste.With two kids, a mortgage, and a husband who's about to lose his job, the last thing Karen Robertson needs is to get fired from her own. Ordinarily, she enjoys her work in the Communications Department of Zomar Industries, where she, Darcy, Whitney, and Luba click on keyboards all day in a friendly four-station cubicle nicknamed "The Blonde Pod." But management happens.Counting time spent in a pediatrician's waiting room as vacation is bad. Switching the company's entire database of office supply products into an untested new software program is worse. But when younger and sexier hotshot Morgan Bessel gets mysteriously promoted, then secretly sets out to lay off some of Zomar's most senior and beloved employees, the blondes decide it's time to "provide solutions."Can Karen help it if a certain highly sensitive tidbit of information just happens to fall onto her desktop? Is a little blackmail between co-workers really so wrong? With both her work life and her home life threatening to crash down around her, Karen struggles to choose between what she knows is right... and what sounds like a hell of a lot more fun.
John Bull's Other Island
John Bull's Other Island is a comedy about Ireland, written by George Bernard Shaw in 1904. Shaw himself was born in Dublin, yet this is one of only two plays of his where he thematically returned to his homeland, the other being O'Flaherty V.C. The play was highly successful in its day, but is rarely revived, probably because so much of the dialogue is specific to the politics of the day. The play deals with Larry Doyle, originally from Ireland, but who has adopted English cultural customs and manners to fit in in England and Tom Broadbent, his English business partner. They are civil engineers who run a firm in London. They go to Roscullen, where Doyle was born, to develop some land.Doyle has no illusions about Ireland while Broadbent is taken with the romance of the place. Broadbent, a lively man who is seemingly not always aware of the impression he makes, becomes a favourite of the people. Before the play is over, it is clear he will marry Nora Reilly, the woman waiting for Doyle (who is more than happy to let her go) and become the area's candidate for Parliament after Doyle refuses to stand. Doyle has also 'called in' all his loans given "so easily" to the locals against their homes and intends (as he had planned all along) to make the village into an amusement park.Another major character is the defrocked priest Peter (Father) Keegan, the political and temperamental opposite of Broadbent, becomes suspicious of him upon his arrival and warns the locals against him. As popular as the play was originally, it is not one of Shaw's more revived pieces. Liz Kennedy reviewing a revival in 2004, during the New Labour government of Tony Blair, argued that the play was still relevant: "Shaw's vision from one hundred years ago was a far-seeing one...The drama has especial contemporary resonance in this continued period of political vacuum on our own shores" She particularly praised "Alan Cox, giving an appropriately mannered Blairite performance as Broadbent the Englishman...he might historically be a Liberal, but he sounded very New Labour." (wikipedia.org)
John Bull's Other Island
John Bull's Other Island is a comedy about Ireland, written by George Bernard Shaw in 1904. Shaw himself was born in Dublin, yet this is one of only two plays of his where he thematically returned to his homeland, the other being O'Flaherty V.C. The play was highly successful in its day, but is rarely revived, probably because so much of the dialogue is specific to the politics of the day. The play deals with Larry Doyle, originally from Ireland, but who has adopted English cultural customs and manners to fit in in England and Tom Broadbent, his English business partner. They are civil engineers who run a firm in London. They go to Roscullen, where Doyle was born, to develop some land.Doyle has no illusions about Ireland while Broadbent is taken with the romance of the place. Broadbent, a lively man who is seemingly not always aware of the impression he makes, becomes a favourite of the people. Before the play is over, it is clear he will marry Nora Reilly, the woman waiting for Doyle (who is more than happy to let her go) and become the area's candidate for Parliament after Doyle refuses to stand. Doyle has also 'called in' all his loans given "so easily" to the locals against their homes and intends (as he had planned all along) to make the village into an amusement park.Another major character is the defrocked priest Peter (Father) Keegan, the political and temperamental opposite of Broadbent, becomes suspicious of him upon his arrival and warns the locals against him. As popular as the play was originally, it is not one of Shaw's more revived pieces. Liz Kennedy reviewing a revival in 2004, during the New Labour government of Tony Blair, argued that the play was still relevant: "Shaw's vision from one hundred years ago was a far-seeing one...The drama has especial contemporary resonance in this continued period of political vacuum on our own shores" She particularly praised "Alan Cox, giving an appropriately mannered Blairite performance as Broadbent the Englishman...he might historically be a Liberal, but he sounded very New Labour." (wikipedia.org)
When God Laughs, and Other Stories
When God Laughs, and Other Stories By Jack LondonCarquinez had relaxed finally. He stole a glance at the rattling windows, looked upward at the beamed roof, and listened for a moment to the savage roar of the south-easter as it caught the bungalow in its bellowing jaws. Then he held his glass between him and the fire and laughed for joy through the golden wine. "It is beautiful," he said. "It is sweetly sweet. It is a woman's wine, and it was made for gray-robed saints to drink." "We grow it on our own warm hills," I said, with pardonable California pride. "You rode up yesterday through the vines from which it was made." It was worth while to get Carquinez to loosen up. Nor was he ever really himself until he felt the mellow warmth of the vine singing in his blood. He was an artist, it is true, always an artist but somehow, sober, the high pitch and lilt went out of his thought-processes and he was prone to be as deadly dull as a British Sunday-not dull as other men are dull, but dull when measured by the sprightly wight that Monte Carquinez was when he was really himself. From all this it must not be inferred that Carquinez, who is my dear friend and dearer comrade, was a sot. Far from it. He rarely erred. As I have said, he was an artist. Contents: - When God laughs- The apostate- A wicked woman- Just meat- Created he them- The Chinago- Make westing- Semper Idem- A nose for the king- The Francis Spaight- A curious fragment- A piece of steakNamed after the first story - about a couple that tries in vain to uphold an intensely idealistic romance against the erosions of time and the inconstancy of human nature - the collection explores themes for which London became famous: the struggle for survival in the midst of hostile environments, human nature's most elemental drives, and worker abuse in industrialized society.In The Apostate his concerns with the working poor and his dislike of pre-union-era capitalism are evident in a grim story about a young man who is brutalized by the subhuman working conditions in a textile mill, yet achieves a kind of liberation in the end.London's fascination with primitive male characters is evident in Just Meat, a story of two thieves who plot each other's demise in a selfish grab for a hoard of recently stolen jewelry.
The Great American Boyhood Project
How hard is it to teach a boy how to be a man? We have the answer in this hilarious sendup of contemporary parenthood: practically impossible. No matter how hard he tries, the father in this book can't seem to get it right. He's got plenty of ideas and lots of enthusiasm, but his lessons never seem to take. Frustrated, he tries-and fails-even harder. Meanwhile, his son is learning all kinds of valuable lessons, just not the kind his father is trying to teach him.
Revved To The Maxx
Maxx Reynolds needs help.His shop, house, and life are all in a state of disarray. In desperation, he turns to the internet to hire a new employee, thinking it will make his life easier.What he expects is a fellow named Charly.What he gets is a quirky, sassy, red-head named Charlynn who runs circles around him.And she's all woman.He can't stand her. He can't keep his hands off her either.
The Condom and Other Stories
How does a philandering London lawyer explain the condom his shocked wife found in his clothes that morning? Can sophisticated Ada hold her breath-and misgivings-long enough to finish consulting the musty mystic healer on her childlessness?Why does feisty Nez seem to be doing everything possible to fail her visa interview at the US Embassy? Will straitlaced Susan, a chorister and prayer warrior, come up with a ruse in time to stop her partner from yielding to the rapacious preacher? Intrigue follows intrigue as The Condom and Other Stories reels out a colorful cast of characters that readers will love and loathe at the same time. The seventeen stories are told at pace, each laced with humor, snappy dialogue, and the occasional twist. As the heroines and heroes wade through encounters and trying relationships, their inflamed passions, conflicted moralities, and nifty schemes come together to produce a series of amusing results.
The Funny Thing about Norman Foreman
"Charming, warm and uplifting...there is so much to love about this book."--Laurie Frankel, New York Times bestselling author of This is How It Always IsA triumphant and touching debut about the unlikeliest superstar you'll ever meet.Twelve-year-old Norman Foreman and his best friend, Jax, are a legendary comedic duo in waiting, with a plan to take their act all the way to the Edinburgh Fringe. But when Jax dies, Norman decides the only fitting tribute is to perform at the festival himself. The problem is, Norman's not the funny one. Jax was.There's also another, far more colossal objective on Norman's new plan that his single mom, Sadie, wasn't ready for: he wants to find the father he's never known. Determined to put a smile back on her boy's face, Sadie resolves to face up to her own messy past, get Norman to the Fringe and help track down a man whose identity is a mystery, even to her.Julietta Henderson's delightfully funny and tender debut takes us on a road trip with a mother and son who will live in the reader's heart for a long time to come, and teaches us that--no matter the odds--we must always reach for the stars.
The Shower Fixture Played the Blues and Other Stories
Dog-Adoption bureaucrats, psychotic deer, lonely magical creatures who just want to hang out and maybe eat your kids; the stories of CL Bledsoe are often strange and always entertaining. Whether they're summoning a demon to get out of having to go to work or trying to escape from Santa's labor camp, the characters in Bledsoe's stories weirdly relatable while living in unfamiliar worlds. These stories span Bledsoe's career from the beginning up until about 2:30 p.m., last Tuesday.
You Hated Us for Our Wings, So We Never Flew
In his twelfth poetry collection, CL Bledsoe uses absurdity to explore the landscape of his own grief and to come to terms with the question of how to live in the world as a moral being. At times funny, at times tragic, Bledsoe's poems explore existential questions with the wit he's become known for.
Just Friends
Lily took a deep breath. She wasn't going to pass out from her now-galloping heart. She was thirty-three years old and way beyond having issues seeing an ex. Even the ex. She was going to just ignore Matt and enjoy her best friend's wedding... Lily is fine. Really, truly, she's ok. She might have to attend her best friend's wedding with the ex-boyfriend she never got over, on a gorgeous Greek island that's so small it's impossible to avoid him, but she is determined to be friendly.And Matt, too, is completely and utterly fine. Lily may have broken his heart, but he moved on. And surely they can be amicable, as this week is about his best friend's wedding too? So he will be civil, stay out of her way as much as he can, and get on with the celebrations.But then the wedding comes under threat, and Matt and Lily are thrown together in the efforts to save the day and - yet again - sparks fly. What happens when you try to repeat the past though? Can a holiday romance turn into a lasting love, for the second time? Or are Lily and Matt destined to remain just friends, forever?A totally gorgeous, escapist holiday will-they-won't-they romantic comedy for fans of One Day in December, This Time Next Year and Paige Toon.Readers love JUST FRIENDS: 'OOOH yes loved this... Really lovely... Lots of fun moments in this as well as some sentimental scenes. Great chemistry between Lily and Matt.' Bobs and Books'Another corker of a read from Jo Lovett! Funny, romantic and all set on a Greek Island! I utterly adored this book... A 'will they won't they' tale of the one that got away, heartbreak, misunderstandings and a pre wedding holiday. Laugh out loud funny, warm and utterly romantic.' NetGalley reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐'It took me 2 days to finish this book. I could not resist it... Fast-paced, funny and wonderful. I love this book!' Goodreads reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐'Full of giggles for me when so much went wrong leading up to the wedding... The setting in Greece was so dreamy... I could just picture everything!' Goodreads reviewer'Really enjoyed this book! Such a fun read with great character development! Such a fun one and great to grab!' Starts With Coffee'I love Jo's books and this was no exception... I devoured this book. It was a real will-they-won't-they and kept me guessing right until the end.' Goodreads reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐'Kept me hooked from start to finish!' Goodreads reviewer'Filled with relatable characters, real life relationships issues, fun and romance. Definitely a fun romance read!' Goodreads reviewer
