Now! Let the "Mad Tea Party" begin! The Kuonji clan, owner of one of the world's top conglomerates, has a tradition: Once a month, family members attend a "Mad Tea Party." But at the latest gathering, the nine Kuonji siblings in attendance are shocked to hear a pronouncement issue from the lips of their mother, Olga- "I'd like you children to now fight one another to the death!" As chaos erupts, Stella, the fourth daughter, loses all reason, and suddenly a whole new Stella, complete with blonde hair and blue dress, comes out to play-!!

The Ad-Makers looks at the cinematic form where commerce and creativity collide most dramatically: the TV commercial. Featuring interviews from top professionals in the field, the book provides the kind of behind-the-scenes expertise that it usually takes a lifetime of professional practice to acquire. Gathered from the disciplines of cinematography, directing, producing, and editing, the filmmakers tell the stories behind the making of some of the world’s top commercials. Each chapter includes an overview of best practice and a host of images—stills from the spots themselves and concept visuals. Exploring the creative process from conception to post-production, The Ad-Makers also covers developments within the industry precipitated by the digital age and the new challenges placed on ad-making by the explosion of social media. With special focus on the shooting and production elements of making a television advert, this book is ideal for all filmmakers who want to build a career in advertising or even feature films. • The stories behind some of the best-known TV commercials, as told by the people who made them • Top producers, designers, storyboarders, directors, editors, and visual effects creatives reveal the secrets of the television advertising industry

This original anthology of noir fiction set in Maryland’s Charm City includes new stories by David Simon, Laura Lippman, Jim Fusilli, and more. As fans of the HBO series The Wire have known for years, Baltimore is home to a rich and diverse underworld that is matched by an equally rich and diverse literary tradition. This is the city where Dashiell Hammett worked as a Pinkerton agent. It’s also where Zelda Fitzgerald came for psychiatric treatment. In this sterling collection of noir fiction, some of Baltimore’s best authors “confront the full irony that is Charm City, a place where you can go from the leafy beauty of the North Side neighborhoods to the gutted ghettos of the West Side in less than twenty minutes, then find your way to the revamped Inner Harbor in another ten” (Laura Lippman, from the introduction). Baltimore Noir includes brand-new stories by David Simon, Laura Lippman, Tim Cockey, Rob Hiaasen, Robert Ward, Sujata Massey, Jack Bludis, Rafael Alvarez, Marcia Talley, Joseph Wallace, Lisa Respers France, Charlie Stella, Sarah Weinman, Dan Fesperman, Jim Fusilli, and Ben Neihart.

Melm is the last sibling I have left!! The children of the Kuonji house have been whittled down to two-Stella and Melm , the youngest. Even as their showdown begins, Stella harbors a private desire to somehow save her little brother. But the battlefield on which Melm awaits her is none other than the graveyard of their siblings , and when Stella glimpses Claire , it seems as if the ghosts of the dead have also come to play... "Stella-chan, hurry up and die so you can be one of my dolls too!" As sweet little Melm's personality takes a disturbing turn, Stella is thrown for a loop. And in the heat of battle , she is confronted by the dark secret of the littlest Kuonji! There's no way I can kill him!!

BILLY LO' and his most trusted partner, DIAMOND, are fresh out of prison with a plan to demonstrate why Baltimore, Maryland is known as BODYMORE MURDERLAND. Backed by an unlimited drug connect and a deadly team of stick-up boys, the ambitious hustlers are primed to control the most lucrative strip in the East Coast. When the body count rises along with the money, street cred and overall prestige, the whole crew is living good and enjoying their success. But what happens when the money stops pouring in and the members of this once tight clique are forced to get it out the mud? Pressure either burst pipes or it makes diamonds. What will it do to Billy Lo' and Diamond? Will old habits resurface and destroy the bonds they've created within their fam? Will ambitions override respect? Will friends become bloodthirsty enemies? Or will honor rule the day, allowing oaths to remain intact as the gunplay and vicious fatalities lead to a record number of murders in the city?

Besides, didn't I tell you that we hated each other? After narrowly defeating her eldest sister, Ibara, Stella enjoys a rare lull in the action. But when she joins her siblings in the baths, she barely has time to get her feet wet before assumed-dead, fourth brother Mare pitches an assault! "Don't tell me you forgot about li'l old Mare, hmm?" And on his heels strikes Sol, Mare's identical twin and third son of the Kuonji clan. By taking Tsukito hostage, Sol succeeds in tying Allice's blood-soaked hands. Up against the onslaught of her brother's destructive fire powers, is all hope lost for Stella?! ...I'd have to kill Mare all over again-!

Our real parents, yours and mine... The death match with Maré leaves Stella drained. Slipping in and out of consciousness, she relives the traumatic events of the airline crash. Was Stella's white-haired bully really on the same plane? And what was in the strange box she saw with him? Did you and I meet a long time ago? Maybe on an airplane...? Stella's doubts about Tsukito, her white-haired bodyguard, resurface...Is her returning memory a Pandora's box? ...and perhaps a hundred others have died at his hand.

It's sister vs. sister in a fight to the death! Stella makes a pact with Alice to save both their lives, but it seems Ibara's just getting started. The eldest sister is out for blood, and she won't stop until there's only one girl left standing. But if Stella survives this fight-what then? What havoc will Alice wreak if she's got control of their body for a whole month...?

He's right here in front of me...just like I remember him...my real big brother... Stella's true Zeno-nii, thought to have died five years ago at the very first Mad Tea Party, appears! And with his arrival, the last and biggest of Tsukito's secrets is revealed! You must never let go of this hand--Tsukito's hand--ever again...! Amid the confusion, her "father" presents Stella, who has lost the will to fight, with a way to end the traditional family death game that has embroiled her and her siblings, and--?! So don't you dare get in my way...!!

Stella-samaaaa- The scar on the palm of Zeno, Stella's most beloved brother, has switched from one hand to the other. Her mind already consumed by the fog of war, Stella arrives at a truth far too painful to consider... And all this time...this entire time-! I've been trusting and loving the very person who murdered him! A lie told at the very first tea party now comes out into the open!! Are you familiar with the term "changeling"?