This homage to Edgar Allan Poe and his masterful short story, "The Masque of the Red Death", definitely has all the imagery down pat! From the ravens, to the ruined castle, to the utterly macabre animated corpses, to the addled Professor Fichtenburg, the visuals are strong and eminently suited to the genre. It is very easy to imagine the Gothic and often grotesque scenes. Likewise, the action scenes are fast-paced, clear, and full of lively energy. The conflicts set up in the story make for a solid story framework. The plot progresses quite smoothly with each of these conflicts and builds, the tone and characterization are clear-and the dialogue is terrific! The overall pacing of the plot is consistent, smooth, and nicely developed. The structure is typical for the Gothic horror genre. The plot progression is linear, and the chapters move forward in a logical way. The opening is engaging and introduces Ravenword in an appealing way. The juxtaposition of the modern dialogue and characters with the old-fashioned Gothic castle setting is particularly satisfying. The first few chapters provide the reader with all the need-to-know information about the characters, conflict, and premise. The ending offers effective closure and resolution. The story is written in third-person omniscient point of view. We learn, view, hear, and understand everything as the Ravenword characters do. This sets up the feeling of suspense very well, as the reader is just as baffled as Ravenword by the strange goings-on and, like them, wants to uncover the mystery. The characters are described and developed consistently, and each character has a purpose in the plot. Characters are consistent, well-developed, and effective throughout. Parson is funny, strong-willed, and emotional. He delivers the most biting (and humorous) insults, but he retains a high likability factor. Agnot, too, is a well-drawn, strong character, one who is easily visualized right from the beginning. Both Billy and Grayson are mysteriously presented (pleasingly so). The dialogue itself is great. It offers a nice distinction, in its slang and modernity, from the prose of the narrative. As mentioned before, the reader will enjoy the juxtaposition of this modern-sounding dialogue and characters with the Gothic setting.

The road to redemption has never been so fierce. Atticus Riot wants to leave his tortured past behind, but his partner’s murder haunts his every step. Before he can find peace, the gunfighter turned detective needs to find the killer. But then a missing heiress draws him into a conspiracy of lies. A young woman’s life is at stake, so why won’t her rich, older husband tell the whole truth about her disappearance? The clock is ticking and Riot must unravel a twisted trail before an innocent life is lost. But deceit runs deeper than he imagined, and he’s soon thrown into the path of a fiercely independent woman who’s his match in every way. A suspenseful Victorian mystery with a strong female lead and a romantic detective duo in San Francisco’s lawless Barbary Coast. Fans of Laurie R. King, Deanna Raybourn, and C.S. Harris will love this thrilling historical mystery series.

“An eloquent testimonial to the power of love and the devastation of loss” from the National Book Award–winning author of Becoming a Man (Publishers Weekly). In 1974, Paul Monette met Roger Horwitz, the man with whom he would share more than a decade of his life. In 1986, Roger died of complications from AIDS. Borrowed Time traces this love story from start to tragic finish. At a time when the medical community was just beginning to understand this mysterious and virulent disease, Monette and others like him were coming to terms with unfathomable loss. This personal account of the early days of the AIDS crisis tells the story of love in the face of death. A finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award, Borrowed Time was one of the first memoirs to deal candidly with AIDS and is as moving and relevant now as it was more than twenty-five years ago. Written with fierce honesty and heartwarming tenderness, this book is part love story, part testimony, and part requiem. This ebook features an illustrated biography of Paul Monette including rare images and never-before-seen documents from the Paul Monette papers of the UCLA Library Special Collections.

Poetry, Short Stories, Nonfiction, Photos, Art and Book Reviews by Daniel Barnum-Swett, Tony Barnstone, Austin Bennett, Kimberley Blaeser, Chris Bullard, .chisaroakwu., Stewe Claeson, Chard DeNiord, Ty Dettioff, Richard Dinges, Anita Endrezze, Michele Feeney, Courtney Felle, Ann Fisher-Wirth, Jerry Gates, Julia Mary Gibson, Jenn Givhan, Joy Harjo, Elizabeth Hellstern, Sandra Hunter, Richard Jackson, Patricia Spears Jones, Whitney Judd, Sarah Kaminski, Barry Kitterman, Joan Larkin, Angela LaVoie, Sara Levine, Jennifer Martelli, Tim Miller, Patricia Colleen Murphy, Naomi Shihab Nye, Martin Penman, Samuel Piccone, Herbert Plummer, Sarah Priestman, Maj Ragain, Linsey Royce, Anele Rubin, David St. John, Sarah Elizabeth Schantz, Danielle Sellers, Art Smith, Jane Hipkins Sobie, Meredith Striker, Melissa Studdard, Emma Claire Sweeney, John Tait, Shelly Taylor, Marina Tsvetayeva, Heidi Vanderbilt, George Wallace, Donley Watt, Patricia Jabbeh Wesley, Ann Leshy Wood

DIVA newscaster’s son disappears, and Amos Walker dives into the depths of Detroit to rescue the boy/divDIV/divDIVOn screen, Sandy Broderick is everything a newscaster is supposed to be. He has a deep voice, a ten-thousand-watt smile, and the God-given ability to banter with weathermen until his ears fall off. But when the cameras turn off, he has a private problem: His twenty-year old son, Bud, has disappeared. Amos Walker is going to find him./divDIV /divDIVThe boy and his junkie girlfriend are both gone, and Broderick is terrified—not for his son, but for his career. The station is about to do an exposé on drugs in Detroit, and the newscaster doesn’t want his boy’s addict girlfriend to get in the way of his Pulitzer. This new client may be sleazy, but Walker handles scum for a living, and it’s time to go to work./divDIV /divDIVThis ebook features an illustrated biography of Loren D. Estleman including rare photos from the author’s personal collection./div

After the fall of democracy, the royal monarchy was replaced, uniting all of North America to create one big country: Aedorynn. And since the start of Aedorynn, traditions were put in place to keep the royal family the highlight of the nation. When a member of the royal family turns twenty-one years old, all eligible sons and daughters of dukes and lords of each province must venture to the royal palace to compete for marriage. It’s a tradition that has lasted since the end of the War of Civil Unrest—a tradition that Kaiser Rowan wanted nothing to do with. Lady Kaiser Rowan is the daughter of Josephine and Philip Rowan, duke and lady of the province of Texxarnan. She is sarcastic, blunt, and rebellious by nature; so when she is told that she must compete in the race for the crown, she is less than thrilled. Kaiser forms a plan to get back home as soon as possible, but things don’t always go as planned.

When shy Ivy's troublemaking twin Scarlet vanishes from Rookwood boarding school, Ivy is invited to "take her place." But when Ivy arrives, she discovers the school's true intention; she has to pretend to be Scarlet. Ivy must think like Scarlet, act like Scarlet, become Scarlet. What on earth happened to the real Scarlet, and why is the school trying to keep it a secret? Luckily for Ivy, Scarlet isn't about to disappear without a fight. She's left pieces of her journal carefully hidden all over the school for Ivy to find. Ivy's going to figure out what happened to Scarlet. She's got to. But the staff of Rookwood is always watching, and they'll do anything to keep their secrets buried... Scarlet and Ivy Series: The Lost Twin (Book 1) The Whispers in the Walls (Book 2) The Dance in the Dark (Book 3)

A compelling mix of classic and contemporary stories: Norton quality at the most affordable price, now in a high school hardcover edition.

For over a century, the works of Edgar Allan Poe have sparked the imaginations and sent shivers up the spines of horror-lovers of all ages. While most people know the story or "The Tell-tale Heart" and "The Black Cat" and many can recite "The Raven" from memory, there are many great stories and poems by Poe that remain "forgotten lore." This book collects many of the lesser known tales and poems from the great mind of Edgar Allan Poe and combines them with wonderful illustrations from many of today's up-and-coming illustrators: Jason Keith Phillips, Dan Gorman, Tyler Sowles, Joshua Werner, Diana Busby, Jeff Sornig, Darcey Young, Summer Ketchum, and Aaron Trendy.