This “superb history” of artificial light traces the evolution of society—“invariably fascinating and often original . . . [it] amply lives up to its title” (Publishers Weekly, starred review). In Brilliant, Jane Brox explores humankind’s ever-changing relationship to artificial light, from the stone lamps of the Pleistocene to the LEDs embedded in fabrics of the future. More than a survey of technological development, this sweeping history reveals how artificial light changed our world, and how those social and cultural changes in turn led to the pursuit of more ways of spreading, maintaining, and controlling light. Brox plumbs the class implications of light—who had it, who didn’t—through the centuries when crude lamps and tallow candles constricted waking hours. She identifies the pursuit of whale oil as the first time the need for light thrust us toward an environmental tipping point. Only decades later, gas street lights opened up the evening hours to leisure, which changed the ways we live and sleep and the world’s ecosystems. Edison’s bulbs produced a light that seemed to its users all but divorced from human effort or cost. And yet, as Brox’s informative portrait of our current grid system shows, the cost is ever with us. Brilliant is infused with human voices, startling insights, and timely questions about how our future lives will be shaped by light

A bold and ghostly stand-alone from New York Times bestselling author Colleen Houck, with all the moodiness of Sleepy Hollow and all the romance her fans love. Welcome to a world where nightmarish creatures reign supreme. Five hundred years ago, Jack made a deal with the devil. It's difficult for him to remember much about his mortal days. So he focuses on fulfilling his sentence as a Lantern--one of the watchmen who guard the portals to the Otherworld, a realm crawling with every nightmarish creature imaginable. Jack has spent centuries jumping from town to town, ensuring that nary a mortal--or not-so-mortal--soul slips past him. That is, until he meets beautiful Ember O'Dare. Seventeen, stubborn, and a natural-born witch, Ember feels a strong pull to the Otherworld. Undeterred by Jack's warnings, she crosses into the forbidden plane with the help of a mysterious and debonair vampire--and the chase through a dazzling, dangerous world is on. Jack must do everything in his power to get Ember back where she belongs before both the earthly and unearthly worlds descend into chaos. Colleen Houck, the New York Times bestselling author of the Tiger's Curse series and the Reawakened series, breathes new life into classic folklore in this wild, twisting adventure propelled by the spirit of Halloween. "[Houck] offers a fresh spin on The Legend of Sleepy Hollow." --Kirkus Reviews "A wild and seductive adventure. . . . A must-have for YA collections." --SLJ "The Lantern's Ember has something for everyone. From an old-timey village to ghost stories to pirates to steampunk influences, nobody is left unsatisfied." --TeenReads.com

Viola, I'm sorry, but I had to leave. I don't expect you to forgive me, but I hope you'll find it in your heart to try. Your mother is alive. Everyone says she is dead, but she's out there. And I have to find her. I can't sit around another minute knowing that she and I can be together. I'll be back someday. I'll be back, and Eclipse will be with me. We'll be a family again. I have made arrangements for you. You'll be living with Regis until I get back. I am giving everything to you. All of my art, all of my money, everything I have. Until I see you. I love you, Love Dad