“No dragons, but [Crystal Singer] has all of [Anne] McCaffrey's gifts for world-building and characterization . . . an excellent book.”—Chicago Sun-Times Her name was Killashandra Ree; and after ten grueling years of musical training she was young, beautiful—and still without prospects. Then she heard of the mysterious Heptite Guild on the planet Ballybran, where the fabled Black Crystal was found. For those qualified, the Guild was said to provide careers, security, and the chance for wealth beyond imagining. The problem was, few people who landed on Ballybran ever left. To Killashandra the risks were acceptable . . .

The second in a mesmeric trilogy that runs the gamut of human experience and emotion from Anne McCaffrey, storyteller extraordinare and New York Times and Sunday Times bestselling author. Perfect for fans of David Eddings, Brandon Sanderson and Douglas Adams. 'Anne McCaffrey, one of the queens of science fiction, knows exactly how to give her public what it wants' - THE TIMES 'Storytelling at its best' -- ***** Reader review 'It's Anne Mccaffrey - always 5 star!' -- ***** Reader review 'Classic Sci Fi that just hasn't aged' -- ***** Reader review 'A real page-turner' -- ***** Reader review ****************************************************************************** She was one of the Crystal Singers, the élite, mysterious ones, who cut the crystals from the planet Ballybran - precious glittering crystals without which the universe could not function. Sent to the planet of Optheria to repair the famous crystal organ, she was - at first - accorded all the honour and pomp due to her rank. Then her life became threatened and she found herself isolated at the very heart of the planet, knowing that she alone had the power to confront and destroy the evil that had permeated the world of Optheria. Would she be able to find the strength she needed?

Longlisted for the Polari First Book Prize 2020 Life's a drag... Why not be a queen? 'Stories like the one where you shagged a 79-year-old builder and knocked over his sister's ashes while feeding him a Viagra. Or the time you crashed your car because you were giving a hand job in barely moving traffic and took your eye off the car in front. That's the kind of dinner-party ice-breaker I'm talking about.' Northern, working-class and shagging men three times her age, Crystal writes candidly about her search for 'the one'; sleeping with a VIP in an attempt to become a world famous journalist; getting hired and fired by a well-known fashion magazine; being torn between losing weight and gorging on KFC; and her need for constant sexual satisfaction (and where that takes her). Charting her day-to-day adventures over the course of a year, we encounter tucks, twists and sucks, heinous overspending and endless nights spent sprinting from problem to problem in a full face of make-up. This is a place where the previously unspeakable becomes the commendable - a unique portrayal of the queer experience. (c) 2019, Crystal Rasmussen (P) 2019 Penguin Audio

K-pop (Korean popular music) reigns as one of the most popular music genres in the world today, a phenomenon that appeals to listeners of all ages and nationalities. In Soul in Seoul: African American Popular Music and K-pop, Crystal S. Anderson examines the most important and often overlooked aspect of K-pop: the music itself. She demonstrates how contemporary K-pop references and incorporates musical and performative elements of African American popular music culture as well as the ways that fans outside of Korea understand these references. K-pop emerged in the 1990s with immediate global aspirations, combining musical elements from Korean and foreign cultures, particularly rhythm and blues genres of black American popular music. Korean solo artists and groups borrow from and cite instrumentation and vocals of R&B genres, especially hip-hop. They also enhance the R&B tradition by utilizing Korean musical strategies. These musical citational practices are deemed authentic by global fans who function as part of K-pop’s music press and promotional apparatus. K-pop artists also cite elements of African American performance in Korean music videos. These disrupt stereotyped representations of Asian and African American performers. Through this process K-pop has arguably become a branch of a global R&B tradition. Anderson argues that Korean pop groups participate in that tradition through cultural work that enacts a global form of crossover and by maintaining forms of authenticity that cannot be faked, and furthermore propel the R&B tradition beyond the black-white binary.

An exploration of how plant behavior and adaptation offer valuable insights for human thriving. We know that plants are important. They maintain the atmosphere by absorbing carbon dioxide and producing oxygen. They nourish other living organisms and supply psychological benefits to humans as well, improving our moods and beautifying the landscape around us. But plants don’t just passively provide. They also take action. Beronda L. Montgomery explores the vigorous, creative lives of organisms often treated as static and predictable. In fact, plants are masters of adaptation. They “know” what and who they are, and they use this knowledge to make a way in the world. Plants experience a kind of sensation that does not require eyes or ears. They distinguish kin, friend, and foe, and they are able to respond to ecological competition despite lacking the capacity of fight-or-flight. Plants are even capable of transformative behaviors that allow them to maximize their chances of survival in a dynamic and sometimes unfriendly environment. Lessons from Plants enters into the depth of botanic experience and shows how we might improve human society by better appreciating not just what plants give us but also how they achieve their own purposes. What would it mean to learn from these organisms, to become more aware of our environments and to adapt to our own worlds by calling on perception and awareness? Montgomery’s meditative study puts before us a question with the power to reframe the way we live: What would a plant do?

Award-winning artist Whelan has illustrated the work of almost every major author in speculative fiction. Here are featured all the artist's major recent paintings, as well as a series of 25 never-before-seen works produced especially for this book. Over 100 full-color reproductions.

“Crystal Muse is pure enchantment. It is written with grace, deep knowledge, and the kind of magic that comes only from years and years of experience trusting and working in the unseen realms. I highly recommend this book to everyone who wants to live a more delightful and fulfilling life.”— CHRISTIANE NORTHRUP, M.D., New York Times best-selling author of Goddesses Never Age Crystal Muse explores how you can transform life’s challenges into opportunities for growth by being equipped with the right crystals and mindset. Learn how you can connect with crystals and empower your life by using this guide to set such transformational intentions as: —Attracting love through learning to love yourself —Relieving anxiety by surrendering to meditation —Becoming a magnet for prosperity —Crystallizing a breakthrough —Consciously conceiving a new life —Cutting your unhealthy energy cords —Getting rid of insomnia to sleep with your mind fully at rest —Cultivating the connection with your creative spirit —Aligning with the energy of the moon —Grounding yourself with the energy of the earth; and —Finding the temple within These practices are a collection of over 25 years of rigorous research, world travel, and spiritual quests by holistic healer and crystal expert, Heather Askinosie. For over two decades, Heather and her business partner, Timmi Jandro, have been offering insights into crystals through their crystal healing business, Energy Muse. Throughout Crystal Muse, Heather and Timmi share their personal stories on the path toward alternative practice, and explain how these remedies can work for the reader’s life too.

Killashandra Ree, "after ten grueling years of musical training," was still without prospects, so although "few people who landed on Ballybran ever left," she was willing to risk it since the mysterious Heptite Guild "was said to provide careers, security, and the chance for wealth beyond imagining."--Cover.

CRYSTAL SINGER Young and beautiful, Killashandra Ree was a trained musician with no prospects . . . until she heard of the mysterious Heptite Guild on the planet Ballybran, where the fabled Black Crystal was found. For those qualified, the Guild was said to provide careers, security, and the chance for unimaginable wealth. But once you'd sung crystal, there was no going back . . . KILLASHANDRA Killashandra's first season on Ballybran was everything she had hoped for: She had sung Black Crystal, grown wealthy, and met a man who could make her forget her own sorrowful past. But then, a year later, everything had changed. She was broke, she had crystal sickness so bad she thought she'd die, and the only way she could be true to the man she loved was to leave him. . . . CRYSTAL LINE Crystal singing changed the singer forever, bringing ecstasy and pain, near-eternal life . . . and gradual loss of memory. Killashandra had a lot of painful memories she could afford to lose. What she hadn't counted on was the loneliness she felt when her heart still remembered what her mind had forgotten. Then she found she might have a chance to salvage what was left of her mind. But to do that, she would have to learn to open herself--to another person, and to her own unhappy past . . . THRILL TO THE SONG OF CRYSTAL ALONG WITH KILLASHANDRA REE! AT LAST, ALL THREE CRYSTAL SINGER NOVELS COMPLETE IN ONE VOLUME!

A journalist recounts the surprising history of accidents and reveals how they’ve come to define all that’s wrong with America. We hear it all the time: “Sorry, it was just an accident.” And we’ve been deeply conditioned to just accept that explanation and move on. But as Jessie Singer argues convincingly: There are no such things as accidents. The vast majority of mishaps are not random but predictable and preventable. Singer uncovers just how the term “accident” itself protects those in power and leaves the most vulnerable in harm’s way, preventing investigations, pushing off debts, blaming the victims, diluting anger, and even sparking empathy for the perpetrators. As the rate of accidental death skyrockets in America, the poor and people of color end up bearing the brunt of the violence and blame, while the powerful use the excuse of the “accident” to avoid consequences for their actions. Born of the death of her best friend, and the killer who insisted it was an accident, this book is a moving investigation of the sort of tragedies that are all too common, and all too commonly ignored. In this revelatory book, Singer tracks accidental death in America from turn of the century factories and coal mines to today’s urban highways, rural hospitals, and Superfund sites. Drawing connections between traffic accidents, accidental opioid overdoses, and accidental oil spills, Singer proves that what we call accidents are hardly random. Rather, who lives and dies by an accident in America is defined by money and power. She also presents a variety of actions we can take as individuals and as a society to stem the tide of “accidents”—saving lives and holding the guilty to account.