Winner of the Restless Books Prize for New Immigrant Writing, Priyanka Champaneri’s transcendent debut novel brings us inside India’s holy city of Banaras, where the manager of a death hostel shepherds the dying who seek the release of a good death, while his own past refuses to let him go. Banaras, Varanasi, Kashi: India’s holy city on the banks of the Ganges has many names but holds one ultimate promise for Hindus. It is the place where pilgrims come for a good death, to be released from the cycle of reincarnation by purifying fire. As the dutiful manager of a death hostel in Kashi, Pramesh welcomes the dying and assists families bound for the funeral pyres that burn constantly on the ghats. The soul is gone, the body is burnt, the time is past, he tells them. Detach. After ten years in the timeless city, Pramesh can nearly persuade himself that here, there is no past or future. He lives contentedly at the death hostel with his wife, Shobha, their young daughter, Rani, the hostel priests, his hapless but winning assistant, and the constant flow of families with their dying. But one day the past arrives in the lifeless form of a man pulled from the river—a man with an uncanny resemblance to Pramesh. Called “twins” in their childhood village, he and his cousin Sagar are inseparable until Pramesh leaves to see the outside world and Sagar stays to tend the land. After Pramesh marries Shobha, defying his family’s wishes, a rift opens up between the cousins that he has long since tried to forget. Do not look back. Detach. But for Shobha, Sagar’s reemergence casts a shadow over the life she’s built for her family. Soon, an unwelcome guest takes up residence in the death hostel, the dying mysteriously continue to live, and Pramesh is forced to confront his own ideas about death, rebirth, and redemption. Told in lush, vivid detail and with an unforgettable cast of characters, The City of Good Death is a remarkable debut novel of family and love, memory and ritual, and the ways in which we honor the living and the dead. PRAISE FOR THE CITY OF GOOD DEATH “In Champaneri’s ambitious, vivid debut, the dying come to the holy city of Kashi to die a good death that frees them from the burden of reincarnation…. In sharp prose, Champaneri explores the power of stories—those the characters tell themselves, those told about them, and those they believe. . . . This epic, magical story of death teems with life.” —Publishers Weekly “Brimming with characters whose lives overlap and whose stories interweave, Champaneri’s exquisite debut delves into the consequences of the past, and how stories that are told can become reality even when they contain barely a shred of truth. As Pramesh discovers, the bitterness of past wounds can bring hope for redemption and life.” —Bridget Thoreson, Booklist “Lush prose evokes the thick, close atmosphere of Kashi and the intricate religious practices upon which life and death depend. Rumor and superstition hold sway over even the most level-headed people, twisting what’s explainable into something extraordinary—with tragic consequences. . . . The City of Good Death is a breathtaking, unforgettable novel about how remembering the past is just as important as moving on.” —Eileen Gonzalez, Foreword Reviews, Starred Review "Champaneri’s Kashi is teeming and vivid . . . the book frequently charms, and it's as full of humor, warmth, and mystery as Kashi’s own marketplace." —Kirkus Reviews “The City of Good Death is the debut novel of Priyanka Champaneri but it has the confidence of a master storyteller. Drawing on the rich literary traditions of Salman Rushdie and Arundhati Roy, Champaneri’s epic saga will satisfy armchair travelers thirsty for adventure, and sick of looking out their windows.” —Chicago Review of Books "In intricate detail and with remarkable skill, Champaneri writes a powerful tale about the pull of the past and our aching need to understand the mysteries and misunderstandings that thwart our relationships. An atmospheric and immersive debut with a rich cast of characters you won’t soon forget." —Marjan Kamali, author of The Stationery Shop

A Catalonian police detective struggles to stop a serial killer targeting unsavory victims in this atmospheric crime thriller series debut. A killer is targeting figures of corruption in the Catalan city of Girona, with each corpse posed in a way whose meaning no one can fathom. Elisenda Domenech, the head of Girona’s newly-formed Serious Crime Unit, believes the attacker is drawing on the city’s legends to choose his targets, but soon finds her investigation is blocked at every turn. Battling against the increasing sympathy towards the killer displayed by the press, the public and even some of the police, she finds herself forced to question her own values. But when the attacks start to include less-deserving victims, the pressure is suddenly on Elisenda to stop him. The question is: how? Perfect for readers of Val McDermid and the Inspector Montalbano novels.

"A fabulous, action-packed modern take on Indian mythology. I can't wait to read more!" -- Rick Riordan, author of the Percy Jackson series, on The Savage Fortress Perfect for fans of Roshani Chokshi and Rick Riordan!"A fabulous, action-packed modern take on Indian mythology. I can't wait to read more!" -- Rick Riordan on The Savage FortressMeet Ash Mistry: eighth grader, pretty good video gamer, guy with a massive crush on the beautiful Gemma . . . Oh, and the Eternal Warrior of the death goddess Kali. Just when Ash has settled back into his everyday London life, his friend Parvati arrives with a mission: The evil Lord Savage is plotting to steal the Koh-I-Noor diamond. Ash and Parvati manage to intercept it, but at a terrible price-Gemma's death.Outcast and heartbroken, Ash returns with Parvati to India, where he meets up with old friends and develops new powers. But he's haunted by Gemma and thoughts of revenge. As he hunts Savage all the way to a long-hidden kingdom, Ash must face the prospect that he may no longer be entirely human . . . and his warrior side may lie beyond his control.

The gripping true story of a brutal serial killer who unleashed his own reign of terror in Nazi-occupied Paris. Dr. Marcel Petiot was eventually charged with 27 murders, although authorities suspected the total was considerably higher. The trial became a circus, and Petiot enjoyed the spotlight. A harrowing exploration of murder, betrayal, and evil of staggering proportions.

"This book is a must-read for those who have ever feared death for themselves or for those they love." -Rachel Naomi Remen, M.D., author of Kitchen Table Wisdom By the late Gehlek Rimpoche, the bestselling book that changed the way we think about death Who are we? Where did we come from? Where are we going? How do we get there? Many have asked these questions, and many have attempted to answer them. But there is another question Good Life, Good Death asks us to contemplate: how does the idea of life after death affect how we live our lives? Gelek Rimpoche tells stories of the mystical Tibet he lived in, as well as the contemporary America he is now a citizen of, and shares the wisdom of the great masters. He asks us to open our minds and see if we can entertain a bigger picture of life after life, even for a moment. He makes the connection between powerful emotions such as anger, obsession, jealousy and pride, and our past as well as our future.

Dying the Good Death is a unique ethnography, the first to focus on the experiences of dying at the end of the life cycle. In a region of northern India, some people at the end of their lives leave their villages and travel to the Hindu holy city of Kashi to die. These pilgrims expect that by dying in Kashi they will obtain the spiritual reward of moksha—liberation from the cycle of death and rebirth. Based on fieldwork conducted in Kashi's hospices or "mansions of liberation," Christopher Justice introduces us to a number of dying individuals and their families, providing rich and evocative descriptions of their remarkable experiences. The social contexts of these experiences are explored through descriptions of the families who provide care and the priests who chant the name of God twenty-four hours a day. The book also has clear implications for the potential ways in which we may choose to face the ends of our lives.

This SAGE Handbook integrates basic research on social dimensions of aging. It presents programmatic applications of research in areas not often seen in Handbooks including imprisonment, technology and aging, urban society aged, and elderly migration. The authors constitute a Who′s Who of international gerontology, and the focus on globalization and aging is unique among Handbooks today. This Handbook should be in the library of every social gerontologist. - Vern L. Bengtson, Professor of Gerontology, University of Southern California This volume reflects the emergence of ageing as a global concern, including chapters by international scholars from Asia, Australasia, Europe and North America. It provides a comprehensive overview of key trends and issues in the field, drawing upon the full range of social science disciplines. The Handbook is organized into five parts, each exploring different aspects of research into social aspects of ageing: Disciplinary overviews: summaries of findings from key disciplinary areas within social gerontology. Social relationships and social differences: explores area like social inequality, gender, religion, inter-generational ties, social networks, and friendships. Individual characteristics and change in later life: examines different aspects of individual aging, including self and identity, cognitive processes, and bio-social interactions and their impact on physical and psychological aging. Comparative perspectives and cultural innovations: topics include ageing and development, ageing in a global context, migration, and cross-cultural perspectives on grandparenthood. Policy issues: covering policy concerns such aslong-term care, technology and older people, end of life issues, work and retirement, and the politics of old age. This will be essential reading for all students, researchers and policy-makers concerned with the major issues influencing the lives of older people across the globe.