A thousand years ago, a mighty battle pitched two of the greatest sorcerers against each other, Brother Havoc and Sister Fortune. In the end Brother Havoc won, shattering his rival into a thousand shards. Now, a millennia later, teenager Carrie Taylor not only learns that she is one of these shards, but that each shard created an alternate universe, with multiple versions of her out there—and a great evil is bent on destroying them all. Carrie must team with a handful of “alternate” Carries from across the universes to fulfill a prophecy that will bring Sister Fortune back from limbo to defeat this evil, but the more Carrie travels from broken universe to broken universe, she realizes she might not be working for the “good guys”—nor, perhaps, is she one of these shards after all. If that is indeed the case, then who is she?

Winner of the 2019 William E. Colby Award "The book I had been waiting for. I can't recommend it highly enough." —Bill Gates The era of autonomous weapons has arrived. Today around the globe, at least thirty nations have weapons that can search for and destroy enemy targets all on their own. Paul Scharre, a leading expert in next-generation warfare, describes these and other high tech weapons systems—from Israel’s Harpy drone to the American submarine-hunting robot ship Sea Hunter—and examines the legal and ethical issues surrounding their use. “A smart primer to what’s to come in warfare” (Bruce Schneier), Army of None engages military history, global policy, and cutting-edge science to explore the implications of giving weapons the freedom to make life and death decisions. A former soldier himself, Scharre argues that we must embrace technology where it can make war more precise and humane, but when the choice is life or death, there is no replacement for the human heart.

The film critic’s sweeping analysis of American cinema in the Cold War era is both “utterly compulsive reading [and] majestic” in its “breadth and rigor” (Film Comment). An Army of Phantoms is a major work of film history and cultural criticism by leading film critic J. Hoberman. Tracing the dynamic interplay between politics and popular culture, Hoberman offers “the most detailed year-by-year look at Hollywood during the first decade of the Cold War ever published, one that takes film analysis beyond the screen and sets it in its larger political context” (Los Angeles Review of Books). By “tell[ing] the story not just of what’s on the screen but of what played out behind it,” Hoberman demonstrates how the nation’s deep-seated fears and wishes were projected onto the big screen. In this far-reaching work of historical synthesis, Cecil B. DeMille rubs shoulders with Douglas MacArthur, atomic tests are shown on live TV, God talks on the radio, and Joe McCarthy is bracketed with Marilyn Monroe (The American Scholar). From cavalry Westerns to apocalyptic sci-fi flicks, and biblical spectaculars; from movies to media events, congressional hearings and political campaigns, An Army of Phantoms “remind[s] you what criticism is supposed to be: revelatory, reflective and as rapturous as the artwork itself” (Time Out New York). “An epic . . . alternately fevered and measured account of what might be called the primal scene of American cinema.” —Cineaste “There’s something majestic about the reach of Hoberman’s ambitions, the breadth and rigor of his research, and especially the curatorial vision brought to historical data.” —Film Comment

Love gripping crime thrillers packed with non-stop action? Discover Army of One: Introducing Joe Beck. About Joe Beck He's big. He's bad. And he's as hard as they come. He's a former cop from Nebraska, turned unlicensed outlaw private eye, who roams the length and breadth of America seeking out suspects, righting wrongs and reaping riches while serving up his own no-holds-barred brand of vigilante justice. He's unlicensed. His office is his cell phone. And the gun he carries is unregistered; its serial number filed off. His methods are outwith the law. And he never takes any prisoners. He's America's Unlicensed Private Detective. About Army of One In Army of One, Joe Beck is in McAllen, a city not too far from the US-Mexico border, for the funeral of an old friend who he heard took his own life. After the funeral, he randomly bumps into a beautiful escort named Sapphire, who mistakes him for somebody else, and makes plans to spend the night with her in a smoky motel. But things don't go to plan, as they're abducted at gun point and bundled into the back of a black SUV by three men they've never seen before. Three men who know a whole lot more about Joe Beck's dead friend than they ought to. What do they want? What do they know? And how will Joe Beck react? Buy Army of One: Introducing Joe Beck to find out. You won't be disappointed. It's a high-octane, all-action thrill ride through the seething south of Texas featuring scenes akin to what you would find in Lee Child's Jack Reacher thrillers. If you like Reacher, you'll love Beck. Reader Reviews John, posting on Goodreads.com, rated it 5-stars: "Absolutely great. Characters are mysterious and the settings are vivid. In some chapters, I felt like I was actually there! Would highly recommend this book. Looking forward to more Joe Becks!" Jayden, posting on Goodreads.com, rated it 5-stars: "What a read! Absolutely loved it." Jamie, posting on Goodreads.com, rated it 5-stars.

Fiction. The short story collection ARMY OF ONE, published by Otis Books/Seismicity Editions, is Janet Sarbanes's first book, exploring a variety of curious Southern California locales, as well as the equally curious characters that populate them.

“A riveting tale told through personal accounts and sketches along the way—ultimately, a story of success against great odds. I enjoyed it enormously.” —Tom Brokaw The first book to tell the full story of how a traveling road show of artists wielding imagination, paint, and bravado saved thousands of American lives—now updated with new material. In the summer of 1944, a handpicked group of young GIs—artists, designers, architects, and sound engineers, including such future luminaries as Bill Blass, Ellsworth Kelly, Arthur Singer, Victor Dowd, Art Kane, and Jack Masey—landed in France to conduct a secret mission. From Normandy to the Rhine, the 1,100 men of the 23rd Headquarters Special Troops, known as the Ghost Army, conjured up phony convoys, phantom divisions, and make-believe headquarters to fool the enemy about the strength and location of American units. Every move they made was top secret, and their story was hushed up for decades after the war's end. Hundreds of color and black-and-white photographs, along with maps, official memos, and letters, accompany Rick Beyer and Elizabeth Sayles’s meticulous research and interviews with many of the soldiers, weaving a compelling narrative of how an unlikely team carried out amazing battlefield deceptions that saved thousands of American lives and helped open the way for the final drive to Germany. The stunning art created between missions also offers a glimpse of life behind the lines during World War II. This updated edition includes: A new afterword by co-author Rick Beyer Never-before-seen additional images The successful campaign to have the unit awarded a Congressional Gold Medal History and WWII enthusiasts will find The Ghost Army of World War II an essential addition to their library.

Collects Ms. Marvel (2015) #1-12. Ms. Marvel is joining the big leagues! Look out, world — Kamala Khan is an Avenger! But is she really cut out to be one of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes? Jersey City still needs its protector, and a development company that co-opted Ms. Marvel’s face for its project has more in mind for gentrification than just real estate! Meanwhile, who’s that spending time with Bruno? And when Kamala creates an army of automatons to help her fight crime, will she learn that too much Ms. Marvel is actually a bad thing? Then, as the superhuman CIVIL WAR II brews, young Avengers Spider-Man, Ms. Marvel and Nova have bigger things to worry about — like a tristate academic competition! But when Kamala gets called to the real battle’s front line, she’ll learn a valuable lesson: Never meet your idols!