Wagon trains heading west were forced to defend themselves against Indians, cope with injuries and illness, and struggle to find food. The group of easterners Rock Bannon was scouting for faced another problem. They were being deceived. When he warned them to remain on the Humboldt Trail, Sharon Crockett and the others refused to listen. Mort Harper, a stranger riding a beautiful black mare, had dazzled them with his charm and good looks. The southern route was the best way to go, Harper told them. But best for whom? Bannon wondered. That route led straight to the Salt Lake Desert. The conditions would be brutal. And if Harper wasn’t steering them toward those deadly alkali flats, where were they headed? And what would happen once they got there?

Kets de Vries profiles a range of toxic executives the narcissist, psychopath, cold fish, obsessive-compulsive, and many more, offering coaches examples of interventions that have worked and those that haven't, to help coaches deal with difficult people and become more effective.

Rock Bannon, wounded in an Indian attack, is rescued by a wagon train heading to Oregon. He has fully recovered when the train pulls into a fort to stock up on supplies. It is there that the leaders of the train meet Morton Harper, a smooth-talking man who persuades them to take an easier trail that will allow them to escape an attack by Indians. Bannon knows that there will be no escape from attack on that route and that it will lead the train directly onto Hardy Bishop’s vast ranching domain. Either way, and probably both, it will mean war—a war the pioneers will undoubtedly lose. Bannon first appeared in Giant Western (Winter 1948) under the title Showdown Trail. L’Amour subsequently reworked and expanded this story into The Tall Stranger, published as an original paperback in 1957. The expanded story was filmed as The Tall Stranger (Allied Artists, 1957), directed by Thomas Carr and starring Joel McCrea and Virginia Mayo.

For centuries, the love-struck, lovesick, and lovelorn have consulted the tarot-a tradition still thriving today. Tall Dark Stranger makes it easy for anyone to explore matters of the heart through tarot. Corrine Kenner's tour of the tarot begins with its colorful, romantic history. She goes on to describe the deck itself-explaining its structure, suits, symbolism, archetypes, and astrological associations-while relating its special significance in love and relationships. The second part of the book is devoted to the nitty-gritty of tarot readings: choosing a deck, preparing for a reading, asking appropriate questions, timing events, and interpreting cards and spreads. By the end of the book, readers will have a powerful edge in conquering the ever-mysterious ways of love.

When a journalist gains access to a wealthy family’s secrets, he encounters shocking revelations—and an irresistibly handsome lawyer—in this M/M romance. Twenty years ago, little Brian Arlington was kidnapped from his family’s Long Island estate and was never seen again. The trail went cold, but investigative journalist Griff Hadley has always thought there was more to the story—much more. So when the Arlingtons’ patriarch invites him to stay at their estate to research his true crime book, Griff can’t say no. But not everyone is happy about Griff’s presence. Relatives and staff alike regard him coldly, including Pierce Mather, the Arlingtons’ attractive lawyer, who is more than a little wary of Griff’s motives. When a stranger shows up claiming to be the long-lost Brian, Griff and Pierce are united in their suspicions. Startled to have found an ally in the buttoned-up lawyer, Griff soon realizes it’s hard to keep a professional distance. Even in the midst of a groundbreaking investigation, even in the face of a shocking family secret . . .

Originally published: Berkeley, Calif; London: University of California Press, 1969.

*Finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in Biography* *Winner of the 2020 National Book Critics Circle Award* *Winner of the PEN/Jacqueline Bograd Weld Award for Biography* A “captivating” (The Washington Post) work of history that explores the life of an unconventional woman during the first half of the 19th century in Edo—the city that would become Tokyo—and a portrait of a city on the brink of a momentous encounter with the West. The daughter of a Buddhist priest, Tsuneno was born in a rural Japanese village and was expected to live a traditional life much like her mother’s. But after three divorces—and a temperament much too strong-willed for her family’s approval—she ran away to make a life for herself in one of the largest cities in the world: Edo, a bustling metropolis at its peak. With Tsuneno as our guide, we experience the drama and excitement of Edo just prior to the arrival of American Commodore Perry’s fleet, which transformed Japan. During this pivotal moment in Japanese history, Tsuneno bounces from tenement to tenement, marries a masterless samurai, and eventually enters the service of a famous city magistrate. Tsuneno’s life provides a window into 19th-century Japanese culture—and a rare view of an extraordinary woman who sacrificed her family and her reputation to make a new life for herself, in defiance of social conventions. “A compelling story, traced with meticulous detail and told with exquisite sympathy” (The Wall Street Journal), Stranger in the Shogun’s City is “a vivid, polyphonic portrait of life in 19th-century Japan [that] evokes the Shogun era with panache and insight” (National Review of Books).

Fans went wild for this gripping, emotional addition to the Stranger Things' universe after its successful launch! Fall into the never-before-told backstory of the beloved Dig Dug maven, Max Mayfield, written by New York Times bestselling author Brenna Yovanoff. Meet Max. She's from California. She skateboards. Her family just dumped her in the middle of Indiana. And she's really not ready to call Hawkins her new home. Whether she's facing off against her bully brother, Billy, the new kids at school, or monsters abound, Max tackles life with sass and grit. This must-read novel based on the hit Netflix series Stranger Things explores Max's past--with all the good and the bad it's given her--in the lead up to the thrilling season that introduces our favorite new member of the gang.

Amy Talbot enjoys doing watercolors of plants, but when her brother discovers a body in the water meadow she is dismayed. There are several strangers around Chilton Abbas, and Mr. Renshaw with his bamboozling tales of India, seems a rather suspect one. His interest in Amy (with her large dowry) also seems suspect. But she finds herself attracted to him, nonetheless… Regency Romance by Joan Smith; originally published by Fawcett Crest

The Tall Stranger: Although he had helped defend a wagon trail full of hopeful settlers against a brutal Indian raid, Rock Bannon fights alone to put down Morton Harper's outlaw crew and make peace in an untamed land. Kilkenny: Kilkenny could find no peace in the valley, for his reputation as a sharp shooter was known, and gunmen arose like coyotes to test him. One trigger-happy victim was Tetlow. Old man Tetlow was driven by greed to build a cattle empire. Now he would use every ruthless killer he could hire to fulfill an even more powerful urge--to destroy Kilkenny. Hondo: He was a man etched by the desert's howling winds, a big, broad-shouldered man who knew the ways of the Apache and ways of staying alive. She was a woman raising a young son on her own on a remote Arizona ranch. And between Hondo Lane and Angie Lowe was the warrior Vittoro, whose people were preparing to rise against the white men. Now the pioneer woman, the gunman, and the Apache warrior are caught in a drama of love, war, and honor. Showdown at Yellow Butte: Battle-hardened Tom Kedrick is hired by Alton Burwick to drive a pack of renegades and outlaws from his land, but soon Kendrick suspects that he is fighting for the wrong man and that he is the only one who can stop a massacre of innocent men and women.