A seventy-four gun square rigger is sailing the Atlantic Ocean searching for British naval ships to capture. Its red banner holds bright gold letters spelling out REVENGE. But its crew, all able seamen who had been cruelly mistreated by the British Admiralty, find themselves with a mascot and stow-a-way: Max, a wire haired fox terrier and Zoe Eaton, his owner, who is far away from her home in New Haven, Connecticut. How all this ends is surprising.

As time goes by, there are too many clocks in my house. If the power goes off, besides the time pieces themselves, there are those embedded in our refrigerator, stove, telephones, car, you name it. All awaiting a resetting. Our lives do, too. Of course life doesn't begin at seventy, nor did it end at thirty. It is said the three demands of youngsters are: see me, hear me, pay attention to me. Well it's clear to those of us in our second childhood, few see us or hear us, much less pay attention to us. The world is interested in younger generations. My essays pay attention to us with a twist, or at least a chuckle.

Serendipity Island is in another dimension, accessed through a Grandfather Clock. It has been cursed by Morinder, a descendent of an evil sorcerer. She wants revenge on Phineas and the inhabitants of Serendipity. ‘I know that your most prized possessions are not gold and precious gems but your children. I’ll take them all, unless you can find any other children brave enough to save yours.’ It’s up to Matthew, Alex, Zoe and Ellen – who form the Amazateers – to save the islander’s children. They face the cursed maze and a beast that the islanders and animals call the Guardian. ‘A huge hedge has grown around the island and the sun can’t shine through. The problem is, it’s spread into the island and now it forms a maze and we can’t find the way to the centre.’ Each of the Amazateers has a part to play in breaking the curse. Will they complete their mission and save the children of Serendipity Island? The Curse of the Maze is the fifth book in Lorraine Hellier’s Serendipity series but can be read as a standalone novel. It will appeal to 7-11 year old children who enjoy fantasy fiction, and fans of Enid Blyton, C. S. Lewis and Michael Morpugo.

Airi is back for another hilarious story of friendship and pranks, and this time, there's drama--literally! Perfect for fans of Dork Diaries and Diary of a Wimpy Kid! It's the spring semester, and Airi Sano is on top of the world! Her grades are up, she has real friends at her side, and she’s joined the school play. She’s even keeping out of trouble and toning down the pranks! But when the play falls victim to some truly awful pranks, everyone immediately suspects that Airi is behind them. As suspicion mounts, it's up to her to solve the mystery and clear her own name before the imposter strikes again. Sounds like a job for Airi and her crew!

A novel of prodigious scope and ambition, ablaze with imaginative energy and rendered in mesmerizing prose—complete with polar bear attacks, tsunamis, modern piracy, airship crashes, Cold War intrigue, and a djinn On May 25, 1928 over the frozen seas of the Arctic, an airship falls out of the sky. Among the survivors is a young scientist on the verge of a discovery that will redefine physics. On October 3, 1996 through the dusty industrial towns of India's Great Trunk Road, a disgraced and disfigured female detective starts tracking a criminal syndicate whose tentacles spread from forgery to smuggling to piracy. Her life has been ruined, but she will have her revenge. On December 26, 2004 a tsunami washes up a rusting container on the island of Bali. Locked within this aluminum tomb are the mummified remains of a shipping magnate missing for 29 years, and a handwritten journal of his last days. On December 13, 2011 off the coast of Sri Lanka, a tramp steamer is seized by pirates. The captain has his wife and son aboard, and their survival depends on following the pirates' every demand. But what can they possibly want with his worn-out ship and its cargo of junk? The ship was carrying a Dead Water cargo—Dead Water is the key to everything.

Had he come to guard her body or steal her heart? Prim and pampered, Lucinda Snow knows little of men and nothing of danger until the fog-shrouded night she is abducted by the legendary Captain Doom. Ruthless and mocking, tender and virile, the notorious pirate awakens all of her passionate longings, then leaves her with nothing but a kiss. After that night, her father hires the handsome and mysterious Gerard Claremont to serve as her personal bodyguard. Too late, Lucy discovers that the man hired to protect her body poses an even greater danger to her lonely heart. Book 2 of the ROGUES AND GENTLEMEN series, which includes Yours Until Dawn, Thief of Hearts, Once an Angel and Nobody’s Darling “Emotional, funny, sensual and spellbinding. This is a marvelous read!”—Romantic Times “This one gets a starred review.”—Publishers Weekly “Try a novel by Teresa Medeiros and you will swear it was written just for you.”—New York Times bestselling author Lisa Kleypas “Ms. Medeiros casts a spell with her poignant writing.”—Rendezvous ENGLISH LANGUAGE EDITION Regency romance, Bodyguard romance, Pirate romance

In the first-ever Seven Seas history of the world's female buccaneers, Pirate Women: The Princesses, Prostitutes, and Privateers Who Ruled the Seven Seas tells the story of women, both real and legendary, who through the ages sailed alongside—and sometimes in command of—their male counterparts. These women came from all walks of life but had one thing in common: a desire for freedom. History has largely ignored these female swashbucklers, until now. Here are their stories, from ancient Norse princess Alfhild and warrior Rusla to Sayyida al-Hurra of the Barbary corsairs; from Grace O'Malley, who terrorized shipping operations around the British Isles during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I; to Cheng I Sao, who commanded a fleet of four hundred ships off China in the early nineteenth century. Author Laura Sook Duncombe also looks beyond the stories to the storytellers and mythmakers. What biases and agendas motivated them? What did they leave out? Pirate Women explores why and how these stories are told and passed down, and how history changes depending on who is recording it. It's the most comprehensive overview of women pirates in one volume and chock-full of swashbuckling adventures that pull these unique women from the shadows into the spotlight that they deserve.

If you love the danger and sword-fighting of MERLIN, you'll like this! In a discontent kingdom, civil war is brewing. To unify the divided people, Conner, a nobleman of the court, devises a cunning plan to find an impersonator of the king's long-lost son and install him as a puppet prince. Four orphans are recruited to compete for the role, including a defiant boy named Sage. Sage knows that Conner's motives are more than questionable, yet his life balances on a sword's point - he must be chosen to play the prince or he will certainly be killed. As Sage's journey continues, layer upon layer of treachery and deceit unfold, until finally a truth is revealed that proves more dangerous than all of the lies put together.