Derrick Steel was three years old when his mother moved him and his two sisters away from rural northeast Mississippi to live in St. Louis. Now twelve years later, fi fteen-year-old Derrick learns that his father, Luke Steel has become a legendary taxidermist in Mississippi because of his more unconventional specimens: a huge Hereford bull that now stands beside a prominent steak house, a pit bulldog who won more than forty-one illegal fi ghts before being shot by the local sheriff , and a wrestling bear whose fi nal match almost caused a second civil war in the county. But Derrick also discovers that his father has now been placed in a mental institution. Why had Luke Steel not contacted his son? And why was he now in a mental institution? Derricks answers can only be solved by returning to the place of his birth. And since his initial link to his father is an aunt who is deaf, Derrick must fi rst learn to communicate in American Sign Language.

The Luke Steel Chronicles follows a student's gap year in Tibet! There he meets fellow travellers all seeking spiritual enlightenment and self discovery as is he. But once seduced by copious amounts of Entheogens they soon abandon the tried and tested hippie route in search of adventure. Blazing a trail from Kathmandu to the jungles of the Golden Triangle where they accidently stumble across a secret society of tsunami surviving ex-backpackers for whom the very idea of returning to life in the matrix is not an option! Fed a diet of Opium and indoctrinated to their captor's lifestyle Luke realises very quickly he either stays forever or escapes! But with no compass and hundreds of miles from civilisation not to mention completely out of his mind on drugs, is an escape even an option?

The outrageous and often hilarious autobiography of legendary session musician and lead guitarist and singer of Toto. "...one of the most entertaining rock memoirs of recent years..." - Houston Press No one explodes one of the longest-held misconceptions of music history better than Steve Lukather and his band Toto. The dominant sound of the late ‘70s and ‘80s was not punk, but a slick, polished amalgam of rock and R&B first staked out on Boz Scaggs’ Silk Degrees. That album was shaped in large part by the founding members of Toto, who were emerging as the most in-demand elite session crew in LA, and further developed on the band’s self-titled multi-platinum debut. A string of massive hits followed for Toto while Lukather and bandmates David Paich, Jeff Porcaro, and Steve Porcaro also served as creative linchpins on some of the most successful and influential records of the era, including Michael Jackson’s Thriller. In this incisive memoir, Lukather tells the complete Toto story. He also lifts the lid on what went on behind the closed studio doors, shedding light on the unique creative processes of some of the most legendary names in music: from Quincy Jones, Michael Jackson, Paul McCartney, Stevie Nicks, and Elton John to Miles Davis, Joni Mitchell, Bruce Springsteen, Don Henley, Roger Waters, and Aretha Franklin. Lukather’s extraordinary tale also encompasses the dark side of stardom and the American Dream. Frank, engaging, and often hilarious, The Gospel According to Luke is no ordinary rock memoir. It is the real thing.

"The Ancients have arrived. In the third volume of Luke Scull's "gripping"* fantasy epic, the Grim Company must face the immortal race known as the Fade, who seek nothing less than the utter destruction of every man, woman, and child on the continent...In the City of Towers, former rebel Sasha and her comrade Davarus Cole struggle to keep the peace between the warring mages who vie for dominion. But when the White Lady sends Davarus south to the Shattered Realms to seek allies among the fallen kingdoms, he finds that his hardest battle may be one fought within. The godly essence now residing inside him offers power that could be used against the Fade--but with every death that feeds It, Cole risks losing a part of himself. An association with a Fade officer grants the Halfmage Eremul a position of privilege among Dorminia's new masters. He witnesses firsthand the fate that awaits humanity. But since his magic is pitiful in the face of the Fade's advanced technology, the Halfmage must rely on his wits alone to save whom he can...And in the frozen north, legendary warrior Brodar Kayne fights a desperate battle for his people. He is running out of time. An ancient evil sealed beneath the mountains is about to break free, an evil that is older than humanity, older than the Fade, older even than the gods--and it will not stop until the entire world is drowned in blood..."--

As a cargo ship rockets across thegalaxy to Canto Bight, the deckhands on board trade stories about legendary JediKnight Luke Skywalker. But are the stories of iconic and mysterious LukeSkywalker true, or merely tall tales passed from one corner of the galaxy toanother? Is Skywalker really a famous Jedi hero, an elaborate charlatan,or even part droid? The deckhands will have to decide for themselves when theyhear The Legends of Luke Skywalker. A collection of myths and tall-tales about the legendary Jedi Luke Skywalker, written by Nebula, Hugo, and World Fantasy award-winning author Ken Liu.

She had rules! She had a life plan that worked for her! Go to the gym, eat salads and broccoli. Focus on her career and steer clear of Luke Steele! The first part of the plan…well, she accomplished that on some days. The last rule…um…well, he wasn’t helping her. Not one little bit! So instead of running from him, Naya would accept the attraction, but with boundaries. If he wouldn’t agree to the rules, she would…well, she’d do something. So far, all of her plans weren’t working but she’d eventually end up with a winning plan. Luke Steele saw the lovely temptation that was Naya and knew that his single days were over. Just like his three brothers before him, he’d found his soul mate and he was willing to tumble headlong into marriage. After avoiding the matrimonial state for so long, he had to laugh at how hard it was to convince the gorgeous woman to trust him. Until she set up the rules. Rules to an affair? Oh, hell no! And "no way" to an affair either! This woman was his. Forever!

Featuring Powder finger, Kylie, The Presets, The Drones, Silver chair, Jet, INXS, Sarah Blasko, Eskimo Joe, The Veronicas, The Living End, Australian Crawl, You Am I, Delta Goodrem and many more, Play listed takes the pulse of Australian rock-n-roll with a series of short, sharp chapters from leading music journalist Craig Mathieson. Smart, opin...

For Chris Barnes and his best friend, Luke Lin-ford, summer has been anything but ordinary. After a botched attempt to help their local sheriffs department stop a criminal named Dr. Bertram Watson, the boys fear that the escaped Dr. Watson will be looking for revenge. Their suspicions are confirmed when two men arrive, claiming to be detectives who have more questions for Chris and Luke about their knowledge of Dr. Watson and his late wifeand then take them into protective custody while the investigation continues. But after Chris, Luke, and their protective detail are attacked at their safe house, the pair of teens realizes that theyll have to take matters into their own hands if they want to capture Dr. Watson and live to tell the tale. On their own, it isnt long before Dr. Watson and his thugs catch up with them and chase the boys into an old graveyard. Its there that Chris and Luke receive help from an unexpected source and learn of a legendary crystal skull that, if found, can give anyone power to change the future. When the boys learn that Luke is the key to finding the real skull, the two begin a dangerous adventure to find it before Dr. Watson silences thempermanently.

Born to nomadic parents and humble beginnings, Luke Richmond grew up running wild and free in the Australian outback. After finishing school, he joined the Australian Army and served his country overseas as a qualified infantry soldier – an experience that sparked in him an unrelenting desire for adventure. But when he leaves the army Luke finds himself broke and adrift in London, caught up in the soulless world of drug and alcohol addiction. When he wakes up in a police cell with no memory of how he got there, he knows he has hit rock bottom, and makes the snap decision to turn his life around. Within days he is in Thailand, training his mind and body at a Muay Thai boxing camp in the jungles of Phuket. In suffering Luke finds his salvation, and he decides to make the most out of life by seeking adventure in remote corners of the world. Since then Luke has climbed the highest mountains on six continents, set a new world record for ocean rowing across the Atlantic, battled -60 degree temperatures in the Antarctic, witnessed death at high altitude, was held captive in the humid jungles of West Papua and has thrown himself from cliffs in the adrenalin-fueled world of BASE jumping. More than an awe-inspiring story of endurance and adventure, One Life One Chance will ultimately remind you that we only have one shot, so don’t waste a second of it.

Did Jesus claim to be the "bridegroom"? If so, what did he mean by this claim? When Jesus says that the wedding guests should not fast "while the bridegroom is with them" (Mark 2:19), he is claiming to be a bridegroom by intentionally alluding to a rich tradition from the Hebrew Bible. By eating and drinking with "tax collectors and other sinners," Jesus was inviting people to join him in celebrating the eschatological banquet. While there is no single text in the Hebrew Bible or the literature of the Second Temple Period which states the "messiah is like a bridegroom," the elements for such a claim are present in several texts in Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Hosea. By claiming that his ministry was an ongoing wedding celebration he signaled the end of the Exile and the restoration of Israel to her position as the Lord's beloved wife. This book argues that Jesus combined the tradition of an eschatological banquet with a marriage metaphor in order to describe the end of the Exile as a wedding banquet.