“You’ll finish [Greenfield’s] book with new respect for color, especially for red. With A Perfect Red, she does for it what Mark Kurlansky in Salt did for that common commodity.”—Houston Chronicle Interweaving mystery, empire, and adventure, Amy Butler Greenfield’s masterful popular history offers a window onto a world far different from our own: a world in which the color red was rare and precious—a source of wealth and power for those who could unlock its secrets. And in this world nothing was more prized than cochineal, a red dye that produced the brightest, strongest red the Old World had ever seen. A Perfect Red recounts the story of this legendary red dye, from its cultivation by the ancient Mexicans and discovery by 16th-century Spanish conquistadors to the European pirates, explorers, alchemists, scientists, and spies who joined in the chase to unlock its secrets, a chase that lasted more than three centuries. It evokes with style and verve this history of a grand obsession, of intrigue, empire, and adventure in pursuit of the most desirable color on earth.

Providing a comprehensive perspective on human desire, this volume brings together leading experts from multiple psychological subdisciplines. It addresses such key questions as how desires of different kinds emerge, how they influence judgment and decision making, and how problematic desires can be effectively controlled. Current research on underlying brain mechanisms and regulatory processes is reviewed. Cutting-edge measurement tools are described, including practical recommendations for their use. The book also examines pathological forms of desire and the complex relationship between desire and happiness. The concluding section analyzes specific applied domains--eating, sex, aggression, substance use, shopping, and social media.

A collection of poems by the author of Turning Japanese, exploring race and sexuality, history and identity, through the lens of desire.

Thomas Armstrong vows only the loss of his faculties could ever convince him to take Amelia Bertram under his care during her father’s absence from England. Sadly, that loss does occur… the moment Lady Amelia publicly states that rumors of his exalted sexual prowess are more fable than fact. Responding like any man with an ounce of pride would, he picks up the gauntlet she threw down on the ballroom floor. After the death of her mother, Amelia Bertram is further devastated by the withdrawal of her father’s love. To survive the double heartbreak, she walls off her emotions. Now, her social faux pas finds her sharing a roof with the very man who took her place in her father’s affections…the man her father hopes one day to call son. In the seclusion of his country estate, Thomas glimpses in Amelia a vulnerability buried beneath a mountain of jealousy and pain. In turn, she discovers the ton’s ‘golden Greek god’ is more than the sum of rumor and innuendo. Soon a fire ignites between them not even a deluge from the Thames can extinguish. Can they set aside their plans—his for revenge, hers to escape—to forge a love powerful enough to surmount his pride and crumble the walls surrounding her heart? *Reissue. Originally published by Kensington Publishing in 2011

WHAT SHE CAN’T SEE COULD KILL HER... Natalie Jones is the lucky survivor of an elusive killer who preys on young women and then disappears from view. And since her harrowing ordeal, the once gutsy photojournalist has remained isolated in her home, paralyzed by fear and her failing vision. Special Agent Liam “Mac” McKenzie has scars of his own. But despite his efforts to ignore the attraction that simmers between him and Natalie, he needs her help to catch a predator. Soon, they will forge a tentative alliance—one charged with desire. Through a soft-focus lens, Natalie dares to envision a future with Mac beyond the investigation…never guessing that the clues hidden within her photographs are drawing them into an explosive confrontation with a madman.

The Roots of Desire is a witty and entertaining investigation into the power, myth and meaning of red hair. Redheads have been worshiped, idealized, fetishized, feared, and condemned, leaving their mark on us and our culture. Such is the power of what is actually a genetic mutation, and in The Roots of Desire, Marion Roach takes a fascinating look at the science behind hair color and the roles redheads have played over time. A redhead herself, Roach brings candor and brilliant insight to the complicated and revealing history of redheads, making this a stand-out narrative and an essential tool in understanding the mechanics and phenomenon of red hair. A must-have for every redhead.

Sexy vampires, dangerous devotion, unparalleled romance--no one does desire after dark like bestselling author Amanda Ashley. Now, in her enthralling new novel, she explores a passion as smoldering as it is risky... Vicki Cavendish knows she should be careful. After all, there's a killer loose in town--one who drains women of blood, women with red hair and green eyes just like her. She knows she should tell police about the dark, gorgeous man who comes into the diner every night, the one who makes her feel a longing she's never felt before. The last thing she should do is invite the beautiful stranger into her house... Cursed to an eternity of darkness, Antonio Battista has wandered the earth, satisfying his hunger with countless women, letting none find a place in his heart. But Victoria Cavendish is different. Finally, he has found a woman to love, a woman who accepts him for what he is--a woman who wants him as much as he wants her...which is why he should leave. But Antonio is a vampire, not a saint. What is his, he'll fight to keep and protect. And Victoria Cavendish needs protecting...from the remorseless enemy who would make her his prey...and from Antonio's own uncontrollable hunger...

“An intriguing amalgam of personal memoir, philosophical speculation, natural lore, cultural history, and art criticism.” —Los Angeles Times From the award-winning author of Orwell's Roses, a stimulating exploration of wandering, being lost, and the uses of the unknown Written as a series of autobiographical essays, A Field Guide to Getting Lost draws on emblematic moments and relationships in Rebecca Solnit's life to explore issues of uncertainty, trust, loss, memory, desire, and place. Solnit is interested in the stories we use to navigate our way through the world, and the places we traverse, from wilderness to cities, in finding ourselves, or losing ourselves. While deeply personal, her own stories link up to larger stories, from captivity narratives of early Americans to the use of the color blue in Renaissance painting, not to mention encounters with tortoises, monks, punk rockers, mountains, deserts, and the movie Vertigo. The result is a distinctive, stimulating voyage of discovery.

A certified sex educator and intimacy expert shows women how to gain control of their love life and find the relationship they want in this modern guide. “Boodram’s brand of relationship advice . . . focuses on empowering single women with the tools they need to succeed in the digital dating era.” —Refinery29 We all have that friend . . . the one who wants to capture hearts in real life and online without breaking her own. The one who can’t seem to overcome ghosting, orbiting and flaking. The one who wants to inspire like Oprah and seduce like a stripper. The one who looks for love and loses herself. You might have that friend (or be that friend), but congratulations—you have found the solution. The Game of Desire will teach you the self- and social awareness to make dating your new favorite hobby. The truth is that we live in a world where dissatisfaction and disenchantment with dating aren’t just normal—they’re expected. Sexologist and intimacy expert Shan Boodram has analyzed the competitive dating landscape as well as the common pitfalls women face in the pursuit of passion and has developed a five-phase strategy to help down-on-love daters achieve romantic success. Testing out this strategy is a group of chronically single women eager to learn how to attract, approach and seduce any partners they desire. By challenging this group to empower themselves through identifying and tackling bad habits, and by debunking dating myths through real-life experiments, Boodram empowers you to take control of your love story and to manifest the life you know you are meant to live. Featuring exclusive workshops from a range of experts, surprising techniques and revelations on why good intentions just aren’t good enough anymore—this book will inspire you to give your best self a chance to come out and play to win. Hilarious, poignant and insightful, The Game of Desire is a must for everyone tired of the new normal. “In a world thought to be run by males, sexologist Shan Boodram levels the dating playing field for all sexes with her educated dissection of the human mind, emotions, dating and sex.” —Winnie Harlow, supermodel “For The Game of Desire, a new self-help dating guide from Shan Boodram, the sexologist enlisted five women for a romance boot camp, designed to teach them to flirt better, identify matches and communicate with purpose . . . the bulk of her advice is sound: learn what you want and create the circumstances to get it.” —TIME magazine

“Pollan shines a light on our own nature as well as on our implication in the natural world.” —The New York Times “A wry, informed pastoral.” —The New Yorker The book that helped make Michael Pollan, the New York Times bestselling author of How to Change Your Mind, Cooked and The Omnivore’s Dilemma, one of the most trusted food experts in America Every schoolchild learns about the mutually beneficial dance of honeybees and flowers: The bee collects nectar and pollen to make honey and, in the process, spreads the flowers’ genes far and wide. In The Botany of Desire, Michael Pollan ingeniously demonstrates how people and domesticated plants have formed a similarly reciprocal relationship. He masterfully links four fundamental human desires—sweetness, beauty, intoxication, and control—with the plants that satisfy them: the apple, the tulip, marijuana, and the potato. In telling the stories of four familiar species, Pollan illustrates how the plants have evolved to satisfy humankind’s most basic yearnings. And just as we’ve benefited from these plants, we have also done well by them. So who is really domesticating whom?