Laura van den Berg's gorgeous new book, The Isle of Youth, explores the lives of women mired in secrecy and deception. From a newlywed caught in an inscrutable marriage, to private eyes working a baffling case in South Florida, to a teenager who assists her magician mother and steals from the audience, the characters in these bewitching stories are at once vulnerable and dangerous, bighearted and ruthless, and they will do what it takes to survive. Each tale is spun with elegant urgency, and the reader grows attached to the marginalized young women in these stories—women grappling with the choices they've made and searching for the clues to unlock their inner worlds. This is the work of a fearless writer whose stories feel both magical and mystical, earning her the title of "sorceress" from her readers. Be prepared to fall under her spell. An NPR Best Book of 2013

There's no place like home. Especially if home is the infamous Isle of the Lost. Mal, Evie, Carlos, and Jay haven't exactly turned their villainous noses up at the comforts of Auradon after spending their childhoods banished on the Isle. After all, meeting princes and starring on the Tourney team aren't nearly as terrible as Mal and her friends once thought they would be. But when they receive a mysterious invitation to return to the Isle, Mal, Evie, Carlos, and Jay can't help feeling comfortable in their old hood—and their old ways. Not everything is how they left it, though, and when they discover a dark mystery at the Ise's core, they'll have to combine all of their talents in order to save the kingdom.

Evil tree. Bad Apple? Twenty years ago, all the evil villains were banished from the kingdom of Auradon to the Isle of the Lost--a dark and dreary place protected by a force field that makes it impossible for them to leave. Stripped of their magical powers, the villains now live in total isolation, forgotten by the world. Mal learns from her mother, Maleficent, that the key to true darkness, the Dragon's Eye, is located inside her scepter in the forbidden fortress on the far side of the island. The eye is cursed, and whoever retrieves it will be knocked into a deep sleep for a thousand years. But Mal has a plan to capture it. She'll just need a little help from her "friends." In their quest for the Dragon's Eye, these four kids begin to realize that just because you come from an evil family tree, being good ain't so bad.

DENORIEL: WARRIOR OF KORONOS; RIDER IN THE WILD HUNT . . . NURSEMAID Denoriel Siencyn Macreth Silverhair was a warrior in Koronos' band, a fierce rider in the Wild Hunt, but when he was summoned he came obediently to the valley of the FarSeers. A glow of power lifted about the crystal lens. "Here is the nexus of our future," said the FarSeer in the dress of ancient Greece, and a mist seemed to pass over the surface of the lens. A moment later, the surface cleared, and within it, Denoriel saw the image of a human infant, red-haired and scowling, swaddled in fine, embroidered linen and lace . . . and glowing with power. The babe was being held by a figure that Denoriel recognized¾the mortal king of England, Henry, eighth of that name. The lens misted again, and scene after scene played out briefly before him¾briefly, but enough to show him a future very bright for the mortals of England, a flowering of art, music, and letters, of great deeds, of exploration and bravery. Oh, there were problems¾¾twice, if Denoriel read the signs aright Spain sent a great fleet against England, only to be repulsed at minimal cost. But the troubles were weathered, the difficulties overcome, and the result was nearly an age of gold. "And this," said the lady of the ancient ways, "Is what will come to pass if that child does not reign." Fires . . . Black-robed priests, grim-faced and implacable, condemned scores, hundreds, to the Question, torturing their bodies until they would confess to anything, then burning what was left in front of silent onlookers. Others, whose intellects burned as brightly as the flames, did not need to be tortured; they confessed their sins of difference defiantly . . . and were also burned. In place of a flowering of art and science, came a blight. Darkness fell over the land, pressed there by the heavy, iron hand of Spain and the Inquisition. "You are the key to all of this." The FarSeer's emerald eyes held his. "The red-haired child of Great Harry of England must live, and thrive, and grow up to rule. You must go to it in the mortal world, and become its protector." "But I am a warrior, not a nursemaid¾" he said, feebly. At the publisher's request, this title is sold without DRM (Digital Rights Management).

This volume gathers nineteen of the most representative and defining essays from the journal ISLE: Interdisciplinary Studies in Literature and Environment over the course of its first ten years. Following an introduction that traces the stages of ecocriticism's development, The ISLE Reader is organized into three sections, each of which reflects one of the general goals the journal has sought to accomplish. The section titled "Re-evaluations" provides new readings of familiar environmental writers and new environmental perspectives on authors or literary traditions not usually considered from a green perspective. The writings in "Reaching Out to Other Disciplines" promote cross-pollination among various disciplines and methodologies in the environmental arts and humanities. The writings in the final section, "New Theoretical and Practical Paradigms," are especially significant for the conceptual and methodological terrain they map. The ISLE Reader documents the state of research in ecocriticism and related interdisciplinary fields, provides a survey of the field, and points to new methodologies and possibilities for the future.

Book one in the #1 New York Times best-selling Descendants series--now in the wickedly fun, action-packed graphic novel! Twenty years ago, all the evil villains were banished from the kingdom of Auradon to the Isle of the Lost--a dark and dreary place protected by a force field that makes it impossible for them to leave. Stripped of their magical powers, the villains now live in total isolation, forgotten by the world. Mal learns from her mother, Maleficent, that the key to true darkness, the Dragon's Eye, is located inside her scepter in the forbidden fortress on the far side of the island. The eye is cursed, and whoever retrieves it will be knocked into a deep sleep for a thousand years. But Mal has a plan to capture it. She'll just need a little help from her "friends." In their quest for the Dragon's Eye, these four kids begin to realize that just because you come from an evil family tree, being good ain't so bad.

Ride with the tide! Deep beneath the waves, King Triton's powerful trident has passed through the magical barrier that surrounds the Isle of the Lost—keeping villains in and magic out. And when Mal's longtime rival Uma, daughter of Ursula, gets wind of this, she can't believe her luck. The tide has dragged in something good for a change, and Uma is determined to get her wicked hands on it. But first, she needs a pirate crew. A storm is brewing back in Auradon, and when Mal, Evie, Carlos, and Jay hear that the trident has been washed away, they realize they'll have to find it before anyone from the Isle does. Luckily, they seem to have a talent for locating missing magical objects. As Uma readies for the high seas alongside Harry, son of Captain Hook, Gil, son of Gaston, and the toughest rogues on the Isle of the Lost, the reformed villains of Auradon devise their own master plan. And with King Ben away on royal business, they won't have to play by all the rules. Using bad for good can't be totally evil, right? The thrilling, perilous race to the trident pits old friends—and current enemies—against each other with the future of Auradon on the line. Both teams might like to make waves, but only one will come out on top of this one.

Middle grade fantasy adventure comics featuring dragons, wizards, talking wolves and lots of silly wordplay!

Mal, Evie, Jay, and Carlos may have once been the baddest of the bad, but their wicked ways are (mostly) behind them—and now graduation is almost here! But before the seniors can don their custom-designed caps and gowns, courtesy of Evie, they've got an epic plan to put into action. There are tons of villain kids on the Isle of the Lost who are eager for their chance to come to Auradon Prep—even Celia, Dr. Facilier's trickster daughter, wants in on the deal!—and Mal's crew is using their upcoming visit to the Isle to help make it happen. But Auradon's biggest threat is still at large... Trapped on the other side of the barrier, Uma is more desperate than ever to get her long-awaited revenge against Mal. When she discovers an underground lair belonging to Hades, god of the underworld, Uma realizes she's found the perfect partner in crime. Together, they can defeat Mal, bring down the barrier, and escape the Isle for good. Mal and Uma have a score to settle, and they'll come face to face in an explosive underwater battle that could determine the fates of Auradon and the Isle of the Lost once and for all. Praise for The Isle of the Lost "Disney lovers and fairy-tale fans alike will need to get their hands on this book." — School Library Journal Praise for Return to the Isle of the Lost "Packed with plenty of humor and adventure, this sequel spinoff is destined to please. With a second movie in the works and a bevy of loyal readers, it certainly won't stay on shelves for long." — Booklist

Only daughter of Ireland's ruling queen, Isolde has always known that she will take over the rule of the sacred Island of the West when her time comes. Until then she practises her skills as a healer and struggles to hold back her mother, a passionate, headstrong woman under the sway of her champion, Sir Marhaus, who is determined to make war. Attacking Cornwall, Sir Marhaus wounds the king's nephew, Sir Tristan of Lyonesse, so badly that he can only be saved by Isolde, the most noted healer of the isles. And when the King of Cornwall decides to marry Isolde, unaware of the young couple's growing love, the stage is set for the mythic tale of star-crossed lovers that the world knows so well. Like Arthur's queen Guenevere, her friend from their girlhood days on Avalon, Isolde is fated to a lifelong struggle between duty and desire before finding peace. Tristan too relies on his dearest friend at the Round Table, Sir Lancelot of the Lake, as he strives to balance his loyalty to his king against the dictates of his heart. Set in Ireland, Cornwall and Camelot, ISOLDE offers a compelling new version of the familiar legend rich in Celtic magic and mythology, yet firmly grounded in the well-loved Arthurian world. Merlin, Arthur, Guenevere, and all their knights appear once again to delight those who enjoyed Rosalind Miles's previous forays into this enchanted terrain.