The Summer of My Greek Taverna

Tom Stone

Tom Stone went to Greece on summer to write a novel – and stayed twenty-two years. On Patmos, the tiny island where St. John received the apocalyptic visions recorded in the Book of Revelations, he fell in love with Danielle, a beautiful French painter. His novel completed and sold, he decided to stay a little longer.

Seven idyllic years later, after the birth of their second child, they left Patmos for Crete, where Stone taught English to civil servants and Danielle painted icons for tourists. But Stone’s heart was still on Patmos and when a Patmian friend. Theologos, called and offered him a summer partnership in his beach taverna, The Beautiful Helen, Stone jumped at the chance – much to the dismay of his wife, who cautioned him not to forget the old adage about Greeks bearing gifts.

Back on Patmos, Stone quickly discovered that he was no longer a friend or a patron but a competitor. He learned hard lessons about the Greek’s skill at bargaining, and about how truly effective the curse of the Evil Eye can be…..”
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The Inquisitor

Catherine Jinks

An inquisitor in southern France in the early 14th century, Dominican Father Bernard Peyre's job is rooting out remnant Cathars. Shrewd and empathic, he is an effective inquisitor, but when his superior starts looking through old depositions for evidence of corruption and is brutally murdered, he has to become a detective as well. The Inquisitor starts off as a kind of "inquisition procedural", introducing us to the personnel and workings of the Holy Office and the other powers in the town, the Bishop, the Seneschal, and the Prior. But authorities can't always be trusted, approved procedures are not always followed, and the replacement chief inquisitor is more interested in demonic magic than in heresy — and has a personal grudge against Bernard. Even worse, Bernard has fallen in love, endangering his vows and clouding his judgement, and his situation rapidly becomes untenable.
The Inquisitor purports to be written by Bernard, though of course no one in the 14th century could have written something that works as a modern novel. Clever sleight of hand by Jinks stops us noticing the contrivance, however, and the result works both as a thriller and a historical novel. The background exposition necessary for a reader without knowledge of the period is unobtrusively slipped in and the language and characterisations capture something of "the spirit of the times" without making the novel indigestible. Bernard in particular is a fine psychological study: he may occasionally seem anachronistic in his sensibilities, but he is not just a modern dressed up in historical costume. -- A book review by Danny Yee © 2002 http://dannyreviews.com/
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Bunny Girl

Joan Conway

Clara Bowe’s life is not is not in the best condition: no job, no boyfriend, back living with her mother in suburban Dublin. Enter John, Clara’s ex-an-never-slept-with-him boyfriend, who’s launching his new telecommunications company. He’s very interested in helping Clara out of her predicament – and into his bed.

Her new job is not what she dreamed of. Well, dressing up as a giant rabbit to market a mobile phone is hardly the high point of a career in advertising, is it?

Clara spends her days as a bunny and her evening being wooed by John but something strange is happening… is someone trying to get her out of the way? Who are the other rabbits that John has recruited? And who exactly is the owner of the startling violet eyes, handsome face and bad line in rabbit jokes who keeps hopping into her life?

The answers are there – but dare she find them?
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Dirt Music

Tim Winton

Georgie Jutland is a mess. At forty with her career in ruins, she finds herself stranded in White Point with a fisherman she doesn't love and two kids whose dead mother she can never replace. Her days have fallen into domestic tedium and social isolation. Her nights are a blur of vodka and pointless loitering in cyberspace. Leached of all confidence, Georgie has lost her way. One morning in the boozy pre-dawn gloom, she looks up from the computer screen to see a shadow lurking on the beach below, and a dangerous new element enters her life... book cover
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Bubbles Ablaze

Sarah Strohmeyer

There's more to Bubbles Yablonsky than blond curls and bright outfits. She's becoming a hot reporter, but she still needs to add new highlights to her image. Right now, though, she's planning a romantic break with gorgeous photojournalist Steve Stiletto. He's already hours late when she's summoned to cover a press conference at an old coalmine. Bubbles arrives to find it strangely deserted,except for an injured Stiletto - and a dead body. It's Bud Price, a businessman whose plan to build a casino in small-town Pennsylvania divided the old-fashioned community. An instead of relaxing at the Passion Peak Resort, Bubbles is suddenly dodging explosions and investigating a murder.

As her loony mother and precocious teenage daughter throw themselves into the fray, Bubbles is in a race against time to beat Stiletto to the scoop, discover who wanted Price dead - and keep her own pretty little head out of the line of fire....--book cover.
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The Blithedale Romance

Nathaniel Hawthorne

The Blithedale Romance is a somewhat dark, depressing tale of idealism gone awry and of friendship and love torn asunder by private ambitions. The romance of these pages is not what many modern readers may expect to find here; there is no penultimate consummation of love among these characters, nor is there much happiness indeed to be discerned from the complexity of their relations one with another. Much has been made of Hawthorne's own temporary residence at the utopian-minded Brook Farm a decade previous to the publication of this work; it is true that some of the experiences derive from his own memories, but Hawthorne went to great pains to make clear that this is a romance first and foremost and bears no direct relation to the experiences of his own life. Those who would read this novel in an attempt to get at Hawthorne's true feelings about the utopian socialism he flirted with and watched from afar during his pivotal creative years may well miss out on the thought-provoking treatment of such wonderfully literary, fascinating characters as Hollingsworth the idealistic philanthropist, Zenobia the modern feminist reformer with a fatal flaw inimical to her self-realization, and the sweet and frail Priscilla.
The first-person narrator of this story is Miles Coverdale, a man difficult to come to terms with. He joins with the pioneers behind the utopian farming community of Blithedale and truly takes heart in the possibility of this new kind of communitarian life offering mankind a chance to live lives of purpose and fulfillment, yet at times he steps outside of events and seems to view the whole experience as a study in human character and a learning experience to which his heart-strings are only loosely bound. The drama that unfolds is told in his perspective only, and one can never know how much he failed to discern or the degree to which his own conjectures are correct. His eventual castigation of Hollingsworth cannot be doubted, however. This rather unfeeling man joins the community on the hidden pretext of acquiring the means for fulfilling his overriding utopian dream of creating an edifice for the reformation of criminals. This dream takes over his life, Coverdale observes, and his once-noble philanthropic passion morphs him into an overzealous, unfeeling man who brings ruin upon those who were once his friends. It is really Zenobia, though, upon which the novel feeds. She is a fascinating woman of means who makes the Blithedale dream a reality, a bold reformer seeking a new equality for women in the world who ultimately, at Hawthorne's bidding, suffers the ignominious fate of the fragile spirit she seemed to have overcome.

This is not a novel that will immediately enthrall you in its clutches. The first half of the novel is sometimes rather slow going, but I would urge you not to cast this book aside carelessly. The final chapters sparkle with drama and human passion, and you find yourself suddenly immersed in this strange community of tragic friends-turned-foes. You care deeply what happens to such once-noble spirits, and while you may not find joy in the tragic conclusion of the ill-fated social experiment of Blithedale, you will certainly find your soul stirred by the tragedy of unfolding events. - Review from the Oxford World Classics
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Catch Me if You Can

Frank Abagnale

Frank Abagnale, alias Frank Williams, Robert Conrad, Frank Adams and Robert Monjo, was one of the most daring con men, forgers, imposters and escape artists in history. During his brief but notorious criminal career, Abagnale donned a pilot's uniform and co-piloted a Pan Am jet, masqueraded as the supervising resident of a hospital, practised law wihtout a licence, passed himself off as a college sociology professor, and cashed over $2.5 million in forged cheques - all before he was twenty-one. An hilarious, stranger-than-fiction account of his sumptuous life on the lam, international escapades and ingenious escapes, Catch Me if You Can is a captivating tale of deceit.
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Spygirl

True adventures from my life as a private eye, Amy Gray

Amy tells what it's like to work in a man's world; she describes the initiation new gumshoes are put through; the unique dynamics of her workplace (do you really want to fight over the last biscuit with someone who's packing heat?) and what happens when her professional and private lives collide.

Spygirl is a chronicle of the real-life adventures of a single girl in New York - trying to find a clean, sheap apartment, a satisfying career and a boyfriend who isn't the kind of guy she should probably be investigating.
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The City of Falling Angels

John Berendt

The author arived in February 1996 for a prolonged spell in the city that had captivated him on his first visit. His intention was simply to see it without the obscuring overlay of tourists, but he quickly realized that his arrival had coincided with an extraordinary moment.

Using the fire that destoyed the Fenice Theatre as his starting point, Berendt takes us on a unique tour of the city and its inhabitants. It is a tour that few are privileged to enjoy. For behind the exquisite facade of the world's most beautiful historic city, scandal, corruption and venality are rampant, and Berendt is a master at seeking them out.

Millionaire art collector Peggy Guggenheim, Ezra Pound's mistress Olga Rudge, Alistair and Romilly McAlpine, are some of the high profile residents (or former residents); but no less fascinating are lesser-known eccentric Venetians such as Plant Man Adriano Delon, Massimo Donadon the Rat Man of Treviso, or Mario Moro - self-styled carabiniere, fireman, soldier or airman, depending on the day of the week.

Perfectly poised to gain access to private and unapproachable people and persuade them to talk frankly, Berendt weaves an elegantly captivating narrative that is mischievous, witty and utterly compelling.
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Cedar Cove

Debbie Macomber

Two novels in one book

311 Pelican Court

Dear Reader,

One thing about Cedar Grove, people sure are interested in what other people are doing. Take me, for instance. Everybody in the town knows that my husband Zach, and I recently got a divorce. Everybody also knows that Judge Olivia Lockhart decreed a pretty unusual custody arrangement. It won't be the kids moving between my place and Zach's. We're the ones who'll be going back and forth!

But the really big gossip has to do with the dead guy - the man who died at a local B&B. Who is he and why did he show up there in the middle of the night? Roy McAfee, our local private investigator, is absolutely determined to find out. I hope he does - and then I'll let you know! See you soon... Rosie

44 Cranberry Point

Dear Reader,

I love living in Cedar Cove, but thinks haven't been the same since a man died in our B&B. Turns out his name was Max Russell, and Bob had known him briefly in Vietnam. We Still don't have any idea why he came here and most important of all who killed him. I sure hope somebody figures it out soon!

Not that we're providing the only news in Cedar Cove these days. I heard that Jon Bowman and Maryellen Sherman are getting married. And Maryellen's mum, Grace, has more than her share of interested men!

There's lots of gossip I could tell you. Come by for a cup of tea and one of my blueberry muffins and we'll talk, Peggy
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The Riders

Tim Winton

Fred Scully can't wait to see his wife and daughter. He's got a new life for them all worked out. He's sweated on this reunion. The doors at the airport hiss open. Scully's life falls apart....
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The Rapture

Catherine Jinks

Early in the 21st century, Joseph Peek turned into another person.

Now, eighty years later, journalism student Aldo Frewin discovers who that person was - and why he's now living as Jarom Woodruff, aged sixteen, in a troubled Mormon cult in remote Tasmania.

For members of this cult, the End of the World is imminent and the Rapture awaits. For Aldo and his uncle, time is also running out. They need to know - will Jarom die as Joseph died before they uncover the truth? Has a genetic experiment changed the course of history? And if it did, does anyone have the power to change the future -- book cover
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Honeymoon

Amy Jenkins

Honeymoon is about a girl who has doubts about her nice suitable man, and doubts about commitment. She still carries a torch for Alex, the Love Of Her Life, someone she spent only one night with. A perfect night. A soulmate night. Seven years on, she's ambushed by Ed, a suitable young man so nice and kind there's nothing for it but to marry him. An then they go on honeymoon.... book jacket
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Captain James Cook

Richard Hough

James Cook was the last and greatest of the romantic navigators. In his relatively short and short and adventurous life (1728-79)he voyaged to the eastern and western seaboards of North America, the North and South Pacific and the Arctic and Antarctic bringing about a new comprehension of the world's geography and its peoples. He was the linking figure between the grey speculation of the early eighteenth century and the industrial age of the first half of the nineteenth century.

Richard Hough has written an exciting and marvellously readable biography, full of new insights and interpretations of one of the world's greatest mariners. - book cover
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America in Vietnam

edited by William Appleman Williams and others.

This collection of essays and documents, written and compiled by four distinguished historians, is an essential source book for anyone seeking to understand the causes, character, and consequences of American involvement in Vietnam.

Through a wide variety of documents - including newly opened presidential papers, congressional debates, military reports, treaties, and newspaper articles - the authors trace the origins of the war back to pre-World War II attitudes and then proceed through the development of the "domino theory' and the policies of Truman, Eisenhower, Kennedy, Jonson, and Nixon to the fall of South Vietnam in 1975. -- book cover
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The Prize

Daniel Yergin

Oil has shaped the politics of the twentieth century and has changed profoundly the way we lead our daily lives. The canvas for this story of oil is enormous - from the drilling of the first well in Pennsylvania, through two great world wars to the "accident' that led to the discovery of North Sea oil, to Iraq's invasion of Kuwait and Operation Desert Storm. Now, in The Prize, oil has become the subject of a book which does justice to the great struggle for wealth and power that has always surround the black gold.

In the great traditions of epic storytelliing, the international bestseller The Prize tells how and why oil has become the largest industry in the world, a game of huge risks and monumental rewards. --- book cover
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Commitment

Julie Ellis

Born into the family of a wealthy Jewish businessman, Carol Simon's priveleged world falls apart when her father shoots himself as the stock market plummets. Little more than a child, she is forced to take a menial job, but already she nurtures a secret ambition: to become an architect.

But these are the days of the Depression, when a young girl's aspirations are quashed by the struggle to survive. An offer of marriage seems to be a dream come true - but it is the beginning of a nightmare. How Carol endures her tragedy, comes through the Second World War and the McCarthy witch-hunts to realize her ambition without betraying her heritage,is a moving and tender story of one woman's courage and commitment. --- book cover
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Chasers

Lorenzo Carcaterra

It's 1985 - and the city that never sleeps is about to wish it had stayed in bed. The heinous machine-gun murder of innocent bystanders in a Manhattan restaurant shocks all five boroughs. The surviving members of the Apaches - controversial, take-no-crap, outside-the-law ex-cops - swear to hunt down those responsible.

Along for the harrowing ride with Boomer, Dead-Eye and Reverend Jim are three new Apaches: Ash, a wounded female Hispanic cop who specializes in arson investigations: Quincy, an HIV-positive recruit an forensics expert: and a retired police dog named Buttercup. Now this dedicated team will become Chasers, working cultiple cases that will converge into one explosive, all-out New York City street war. --- book cover
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Justice Deferred

Len Williams

Criminal: Billy Ray Billings grew up with few rules - and managed to break the ones he had. A small-time thief with three felony convictions, he finds himself behind bars for life when overzealous cops ufairly book him for a fourth. In Alabama, three strikes and you're out.

Convict: at first Billy Ray is paralyzed by his fate. But then he slowly becomes a model prisoner, taking classes and finding God. All the while, he's planning an improbable escape....

Con Man: What follows next is sweet freedom. a new identity. And a daring strategy to seek vengeance on the corrupt system that almost stole his life...

Based on the bizarre events surrounding the disappearance of the author's own son,this unforgettale page-turner will take you on a wild ride you won't soon forget... book cover
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Wings of the Storm

J.H. Fletcher

Cal Jessop returns to his home on the South Australian coast still blaming himself for what happened one fateful evening in Paris. Once he was regarded as one of Australia's most promising young artists. Now, the future is bleak; his work, like his life, devastated by guilt.

Kathryn Fanning's future seems secure. Everyone, Kathryn included, expects her to marry Charles Chivers, the local doctor.

Unexpectedly, Wagner intervenes. When Cal and Kathryn meet at a performance of Rheingold, their futures are changed irrevocably.

Kathryn brings renewed hope and purpose into Cal's life. He journeys into the summer heat of the outback seeking emptiness and light for a new series of paintings.

Uncertain of their feelings for each other, the desert will test them both in very different ways.
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