eBooks de , página 2 de 85

JAMES BOND AND THE SECRET AGENT ACADEMY is the first in a brand-new series, taking the worlds most beloved secret agent to a place of dread, weirdos and strange food: school.A new generation of young heroes, mentored by 007, have entered the Secret Agent Academy to see if they have what it takes to join the ranks of the Double Os. Together with Bond can they defeat a deadly foe lurking in the shadows and, more importantly, can they pass their exams?This blockbuster series is written by bestselling and award-winning crime and thriller author M.W. Craven. For existing fans and a new generation of spy adventure readers, this is 007 like youve never seen him before.

In an opulent villa near the English Channel lives a family. The father has a safe, a spanner, a candle and a maid called Rose. The son has a swing, a croquet set, a raincoat, a car. Some members of the family read crime novels to fall asleep (the father), some instead of sleeping (the son), and some to ease the loneliness of an unhappy marriage (the mother). Their equilibrium is shattered in the wake of a shocking incident and the twenty minutes of silence that follow. Darkly comedic and wonderfully strange, Twenty Minutes of Silence is a truly original take on the crime genre, inspired by a true story. Here Helene Bessette builds a world of intrigue, a world punctured by startling disruptions and unexpected shifts, and in doing so destroys and remakes the crime novel, creating a form wholly new.

Blending biography, memoir and art criticism, Fancy Work: Unpicking Past Lives explores the ever-shifting tensions between family, labour and gender through the history of embroidery, or fancy work. At the heart of the book is Alice Hattricks encounter with the embroidery designer May Morris and her circle: from her father William Morris to her mother Jane, an artists model and embroiderer herself, and M.F., Mays gender non-conforming partner for twenty years. Searching for guidance, Hattrick looks to Mays life alongside others who have found, in textiles, a means of resistance to understand better their own queer identity, family ties and fractious working conditions in an ableist society. In the ephemeral nature of textiles, Hattrick finds a mirror to archival research. How can the past help us to imagine alternative domestic circumstances and create unconstrained lives of our own, especially when not all traces remain? Expansive in thought, form and time, Fancy Work is a radical and thrilling work that reminds us that we can think differently, inviting us to place the needle in our own hands and stitch ourselves a loop in the chain.

The new novel by the international bestselling author of Fresh Water for Flowers When Agnes hears from the local police her Aunt Colette has died, she cant believe her ears. Her fathers sister Colette, her Tata, died three years ago and has been resting in peace in the cemetery of Gueugnon. Agnes is called to identify the body: there is no doubt, its Aunt Colette. But then, who rests under the stone engraved with Colettes name? And why did she fake her own death? So begins an investigation back in time, as Agnes pieces together the multitude of stories that lie behind her aunts second death. An intricate, compelling web of stories told with irony, delicacy and depth, Tata will keep readers glued to every page.

London, 1856. Ben Canaan is a young detective on the payroll of Her Majestys Executive, riding high on a string of successful cases. Then a notorious crime boss turns up murdered on the city streets, the latest in a series of brutal killings targeting the most powerful men in the global opium trade. To track down the culprits and prevent more blood from being shed, Ben is sent out to the newly-founded British colony of Hong Kong: a lawless frontier town on the southern shores of Chinas Great Qing Dynasty.Ben is plunged headlong into a labyrinthine conspiracy, set against the backdrop of an empire in collapse and a sweeping civil war. As his hunt brings him closer to the truth and the ruthless corporate interests that want him dead, Ben is forced to choose between what is necessary and what is just.

Reimagine "Place" and Reconnect with the Space Around YouIts possible for American Christians to live everywhere and nowhere at the same time. Were often disconnected from the places we inhabitcut off from nature, our neighbors, people different from us, and a sense of rootedness. Its time to imagine a better way.Each of us is placed by God in a specific "somewhere." Drawing on social science research and their experiences across American landscapes and the Middle East, Ben Norquist and Brian Miller show how Christians in the US can develop a redemptive imagination for place. Many people have uncritically accepted American cultural assumptions about land, property, home ownership, and the good life. Yet our identity as followers of Jesus should transform how we live in the physical world, even as we recognize how places shape their inhabitants.This book explores tools for deeply understanding or "reading" places, perspectives from Scripture and theology on land and place, connections between colonialism, race, social class, and American landscapes, and more. Norquist and Miller offer a variety of personal and corporate practicesincluding land research, reassessing priorities and habits, advocating for others, and reconsidering the nature of sacred spaceto help each of us connect in a healthy way with our own "somewhere." They prompt us toward a broader vision for how God works through space, using biblical lenses of landscape as gift, sacrament, kin, and home.Are you longing for a rooted, meaningful faith that responds to the needs of your community? Do you crave guidance towards engaging deeply with the place where God has set you? Every Somewhere Sacred is your hopeful invitation to receive the world with gratitude and steward it well for the next generations. Get your copy today!

A terrifying and powerful dark academia novel about Jewish folklore, grief, and other things locked in the archives. Perfect for fans of T. Kingfisher, Tori Bovalino and Sunyi Dean."Its real. Youll see."Michael Stein arrives at the Schechter Institute for Judaic Studies battered and broken after the death of his boyfriend seven months prior. Blaming himself for the accident that killed him, Michael has come to the Institute to complete his boyfriends dissertation as part of his effort at repentance. While Michaels own past leads him to condemn superstition as a way to mask prejudice and old-fashioned beliefs, his boyfriends research argues that the folktales told in the Jewish communities of Eastern Europe were based in truth, and that demons and other creatures walked the earth, wreaking havoc on peoples lives.Instead of the Institutes infamous archivist, Michael is met by his grandson, Jacob Schechter, who has taken over the archive after his grandfathers death. A firm believer in the existence of the supernatural, Jacob explains that the archive plays host to a coterie of household demons. Michael insists that he is a skeptic, but strange and frightening occurrences plague his research, causing Michael to question both his sanity and his view of the world. To cope with his guilt, grief, and the terrifying shadows following him, Michael must reckon with the events leading up to his boyfriends deathand his role in itby trusting the enigmatic Jacob to help uncover the truth. As untangling the mysteries of the past bring Jacob and Michael closer together, their respective secrets threaten to tear them apart. Because Michael is not the only one with darkness on his conscience, and if he and Jacob discover the truth of each other, only one of them may survive the fallout.

Escape to Avila Falls in this Cozy Second-Chance Romance Jane is a successful ghostwriter living her dream in New York City, collaborating with movie stars and musicians while quietly longing to publish her own novel.But just as her career comes to a crossroads, shes called back to her hometown of Avila Falls, a charming mountain town with a colorful cast of characters, where a chance encounter with her high school crush stirs unexpected questions about her NYC life. These doubts deepen as Jane tries to find her place back in Avila Falls; begins a new project with Liv, a pop star grappling with her own identity; and reconnects with a friend and mentor who runs the local bookstore, And Then There Were Books.Jane begins to see her hometown differently and sparks begin to fly. She questions whether the version of herself shes created is truly who she wants to be. Could the answers shes searching for lie in the very place she once ran from?Chapter One Again is the debut novel from actress Keelia Clarkson. This cozy, clean second chance romance is the perfect read for anyone searching for love, purpose, and a place to call home. Chapter One Again is perfect for readers who love: Cozy fiction and clean romance Charming small-town settings Faith-friendly themes Chapter One Again is the first book in the Avila Falls series. Watch for the sequel, Page Two with You.

A woman with a successful career in child protection is floored by her husbands sudden death; a retired civil servant smothers his wife, but cant go through with their pact; a teacher fleeing a disastrous school trip finds himself literally in a dark wood.Pascal famously said we shall die alone. But there are always others left behind to grieve, to cheer, to feel guilt, relief or laughter, because we are human, whether we like it or not. In these stories, a dozen characters find at least a dozen ways to live by facing death their own or that of those they love in familiar worlds shot through with a strange absurdity.A man with cancer is employed to smoke by a character from a novel who may never have existed; an historian finds a love he hopes will last beyond the grave, even if it isnt his; a former judge dispenses justice in a prison camp; a randomly-selected Prime Minister confronts the biggest life-or-death decision she or anyone will ever have to take.A Day Like Any Other explores death natural, assisted, promised and unexpected with compassion, wit, a steady gaze and a desire to confront the challenge we mostly prefer to avoid: why live at all? It is the perfect collection for anyone whos going to die one day.

In 2009, young Isla Blake disappeared from her sisters birthday party in Northumberland and she was never found.Fifteen years later, when an updated E-fit image of what Isla would look like now goes viral, everyone begins to suspect that the unassuming Ruby must be Isla Blake.Enveloped in a swarm of media attention and publicity, including that of Islas parents Keira and Finn, Ruby is thrust into the centre of a case she had never thought she would be a part of.As the case unfolds and Ruby begins to question her own identity, the same questions plague her over and over again. Is she Isla? If so, who took her? And what exactly happened to Isla all those years ago?

A novel of identity and resistance from one of Palestines most striking literary voiceswritten entirely from behind bars Nur, a Palestinian refugee from a camp near Ramallah, is often mistaken for an Ashkenazi Jew. Fluent in Hebrew and with a degree in archaeology, he dreams of freedom beyond the fence, and of writing a novel about Mary Magdalene based on the Gnostic Gospels. When he discovers an Israeli ID card in the pocket of a secondhand coat, he assumes a false identity and is hired for an archaeological dig near Megiddo. Passing as an Israeli, he moves through a world previously off-limits and gains insight into the lives of those hes been taught to perceive as enemies. As Nurs borrowed identity deepens, so does the rift within. Through an exploration of this internal conflict, Basim Khandaqjis Arabic Booker-winning novel offers a meditation on the personal toll of occupation and the elusive desire to belongfully, honestly, and without fear.

When a priceless family heirloom goes missing during a small private dinner party, Mel must find the culprit, and the painting, before Lord Jonathan and Lady Laura return home.Despite their moment of passion, Mel and Derrin are now estranged because there is still too much anger. Still trying to find her place as a Greenway in the new world, Mel holds a small reunion soiree for her pre-war friends at Avonby while Lady Laura and Lord Jonathan are away in London for the season. Mel invites Derrin to try and patch up their relationship. But when a priceless Turner painting disappears from Jonathans study, Mel learns there is a thief at Avonby.With Derrins reluctant assistance, Mel locks in the guests and servants. No one is getting out until the painting is returned. But where has the culprit hidden it, and why? Locked in together the real motives, nature and resentment of her guests begin to emerge. Mel learns how little the Greenways are liked by the locals. She is forced to hide her increasingly debilitating illness from them, even as they surround her like a pack of feral wolves. A short flashback hints at the cause of Mels war induced trauma.As the truth comes to light, and a shock reveal brings Mel face to face with the culprit, she realises there are more enemies than friends in Avonbys close-knit community, and there are those willing to do anything to get revenge even commit murder.

Harlowe could use a break. With his academic future over, just like his relationship with Jackson, a suspiciously cheap summer rental on the Cape feels like just the escape he needs.But when he arrives at the picturesque seaside cottage, hes alarmed to find his discouraging old professor in the living room, his father making coffee in the kitchen, a mysterious young man fixing a hole in the wall, and worst of all, Jackson is in the bathroom. None of them will leave. No one else can see them. And they just wont leave him alone.But Harlowe soon realises he isnt the only one who can see the houses magic, and as the summer grows hot and thick with tourists, old wounds and fresh secrets both in and outside its walls begin to transform him. And that mysterious man seems almost to be everywhere he looks now. . . not that hed want it another way.

A quarter of a century in power has allowed Vladimir Putin to enrich himself. He has done this by plundering Russias resources, confiscated private businesses and persecuted those who stood against him including Boris Berezovsky, Vladimir Gusinsky, Mikhail Khodorkovsky and Bill Browder. Putin put their assets under the control of his friends and cronies, who creamed off billions from nominally-state owned corporations.In 2022 Fortune Magazine estimated Putins personal fortune at $200 billion. The revenues he stole allowed Putin to build up an unparalleled war chest and this he used to pay for the invasion of Ukraine.The people Putin robbed he tortured and murdered. Some tried to fight back. Of these original oligarchs only Roman Abramovich survives.This is the fascinating story of what has happened to the men that Putin dispossessed and where their money went. But revenge is best served with cool heads and sharp minds. A small team of legal experts has spent the last twenty years pursuing Putin in the courts of the world. These legal experts are based in London and they are set on reclaiming this enormous wealth.The effect on the War in Ukraine will be just one result of their determined efforts.

Five years ago, Ida bravely took the stand against her celebrity therapist Clarissa Virta-and Virtas monstrous husband. Now in her twenties and working alongside her newly sober father at Helsinki Aviisis crime desk, Ida stumbles upon a disturbing pattern: a series of murders that point to a hidden serial killer stalking the streets of Helsinki. Leading the official investigation is Detective Chief Inspector Kerttu Leppanen, a veteran homicide officer with retirement in sight and ghosts she cant lay to rest. Haunted by unsolved cases and her own regrets, Kerttu is determined to uncover the truth before the killer strikes again. But the past has a way of tightening its grip. And its not finished with them yet.

An alternate 1970s science fiction romance blending first contact and queer counterculture in the Los Angeles disco scene, perfect for readers of Vajra Chandraseker and Victor Manibo.In 1977a world where America launched its space program shortly after WWIIMitch Ward is a grunt in the US Spaceguard. Stationed in a backwater base on the Moon, his only friends are Gloria, who performs "Lady Stardust" for fellow soldiers, and Flynn.Following a visit from an unseen, terrifying but also maybe euphoric being,they find themselves quickly discharged from the army, and sent back to earth. Moving to Los Angeles tochase their dreams, Mitch and Gloria scrape by, finding their joy at the discos in the city.But when Flynn crashes back into their lives, claiming to be the host for a traveler and emissary of a utopian civilization, he comes with an offer for Mitch to join him, ad claim power so that he, and his friends across the queer community, never have to live in the shadows or face oppression again.As the forces of prejudice and oppression seek to push their community back into hiding, keeping them out of sight and oppressed, its down to this community of disco-loving outcasts to stand up for what is beautiful and right.

Award-winning stories from the world of All the Murmuring Bones and The Briar Book of the Dead, this is a compendium of fantastic tales from the dark gothic heart of the Sourdough universe. Witches, assassins and pirates are brought to life in immersive, sinister and magical prose.Comprised of three collections (Sourdough and Other Stories, The Bitterwood Bible and Other Recountings and The Tallow-Wife and Other Tales) these mosaic narratives form much of the foundational mythology for the novels All the Murmuring Bones, The Path of Thorns, The Briar Book of the Dead The Crimson Road and A Forest, Darkly.Within these pages, coffin-makers work hard to keep the dead buried and their own murderous urges in check; poison girls are schooled in the art of marital assassination; books carry forth stories and forbidden secrets; a young witch wreaks a terrible revenge on an old lover; the Little Sisters of St Florian devote their lives to knowledge good and bad; a dying forest god is reinvigorated; mermaids and seamstresses make dangerous bargains; changelings bring havoc. Saints slumber, hind-girls dance across the countryside, bears show their true colours, and the fate of the upper and lower worlds rests on the whim of a volatile plague maidenExquisite, compelling and rich with unforgettable characters, these stories layer and intertwine in the dexterous hands of a master storyteller. All three collections were shortlisted for the World Fantasy Award with The Bitterwood Bible and Other Recountings winning the award. This is beautiful fairy-tale gothic of the most haunting and dangerous kind.

Cosy, hopeful and uplifting, this heartwarming post-apocalyptic romance is perfect for fans of Fable for the End of the World and Emily Henry.Thirty years after the end of the world, a young woman enters into a marriage of convenience with a man she hardly knows so she can secure vital medical care for her beloved younger sister.The world might not have ended all at once. But end it did.Kayla Hollins is a survivor. Living in the fragmented wasteland of the Canadian Pacific Northwest, shes outlived a colony, a cult, a paramilitary group, and most of her family. So when her younger sister April falls seriously ill, Kayla will do anything to save her. They trek to Salt Spring Island, a beacon of hope in their otherwise brutalized world, which is rumoured to still have a hospital. But Salt Springs utopia comes with a price. Not just anyone can enter paradise or access their medical care, and Kaylas past is chequered.Desperate, Kayla makes a deal with Sid Charles, an aspiring politician with whom she had a chance encounter before arriving on Salt Spring. If Kayla and Sid get married, it will boost Sids chances of election, and grant April automatic access to the medical treatment she desperately needs. And in two years, when Kayla is eligible for citizenship herself, they can get a divorce. Simple, right?Sid is distant and cranky, but Kayla comes to learn he is also shockingly kind. The more time she spends with him and his ragtag group of rescued boys, the more she comes to admire him. But with Aprils treatment and Sids election on the lineand the constant terror of her past being discoveredKayla isnt sure she can risk trying to change their arrangement.Trapped together in the closest thing left to paradise, Kayla and Sid both know what it means for the world to end. But as they try to rebuild with the people of Salt Spring Island, there may be time left to saveif not the worldthemselves.

"[This book] is a treasure. The first time I read it, I remember closing the final page and thinking to myself, I wish I could make every single Christian on earth read this book. John Chrysostom, Evagrius the Solitary, Julian of Norwich, Martin Luther, Dorothy Day, Dietrich Bonhoefferthese saints and sages live on in me. And they can live on in you, too. They can enlarge and enrich your faith, one page at a time." John Mark Comer, from the afterword Ancient Faith for Modern Souls In AD 165, two men named Carpus and Papylus stood before the proconsul of Pergamum, charged with the crime of being Christians. Not even torture could make them deny Christ, so they were burned alive.Is my faithfulness as strong?In the fifth century, Melania the Younger and her husband, Pinian, distributed their enormous wealth to the poor and intentionally practiced the discipline of renunciation.Could living more simply deepen my trust in God? In the seventeenth century, Philipp Jakob Speners love for the Word of God and his desire to help people apply the Bible to their daily life moved him to start "Colleges of Piety," or small groups.In what ways could commitment to community make me more like Christ? The history of Christianity has produced models of spiritual life, some very different from our own, that can enrich and enlarge our spiritual lives. These saints believed in the same God, followed the same Christ, read the same Bible, and walked in the same Spirit. And they lived wholeheartedly for God, like Perpetua, an early Christian martyr; Francis of Assisi, a medieval visionary; Philipp Jakob Spener, the founder of fifteenth-century small groups; and Dorothy Day, a servant of the poor.In Water from a Deep Well, Gerald Sittser opens to us the rich history of spirituality, helping us learn from the practices and stories of believers from the past who thirsted for God. These vibrant narratives reveal deep, powerful faith and demonstrate how old ways can bring new life to our spirituality today. These histories are deep waters from which we can drink to become faithful followers of Jesus, like those who came before us.In this revised edition, youll find history, insights, and practical exercises for incorporating spiritual practices into your life; a new chapter and updates throughout the book; and a new afterword from John Mark Comer. Discover the richness of ancient faith practices and renew your spiritual life with Water from a Deep Well. Whether youre discovering spiritual practices for the first time or seeking to deepen your journey with Christ, this book provides timeless guidance for spiritual growth, drawn from the wisdom of those who have walked the path before you.

Lessons from Midwives for Pastoral Leadership We find ourselves in a moment in which the church is in great pain. Congregations are dwindling, denominations are fracturing, and church scandals have become all too common. We need a new imagination to capture the hopefulness of God birthing something new in the midst of the pain of the old creation. In The Pastor as Midwife, Shawna Songer Gaines brings her pastoral experience alongside her research on the vocation and practices of midwifery to explore a vision of pastoral leadership that is shaped by the wisdom of those who walk alongside expectant mothers. Learning to pastor like a midwife helps us embrace what God is doing in our pain and see new life in unlikely places.This book gives pastors a ministry paradigm that embraces change and pain as part of Gods salvific work in the world. Gaines helps pastors embrace a new, life-giving posture for ministry marked by advocacy, listening, and letting go of control. Like the apostle Paul in Romans 8:22, pastors who long to witness the birth of Gods new creation are invited to imagine their work like a hopeful midwife.With The Pastor as Midwife, you will: learn how the practices and wisdom of midwives offer a new way of approaching pastoral leadership, a way that begins and ends with a hopeful view of Gods work in birthing new creation; engage with thought-provoking reflection questions to explore your own leadership patterns; and reenvision ministry to see change and pain as integral to Gods life-giving work in the world. Wherever you are in your journey as a pastor, The Pastor as Midwife offers a thoughtful and hopeful perspective on ministry in a changing and often challenging world. Learn to witness and partner with God in the birth of new creation with The Pastor as Midwife, trusting in the Spirit of God who brings new life to a fallen but beautiful world.