The Colonel turns reluctant sleuth once more when tragedy strikes at a Christmas party, in Margaret Mayhew’s latest atmospheric village mystery Frog End, that most quintessential of English villages, is preparing for its annual Christmas pantomime. This year, it’s Hans Christian Andersen’s dark fairytale The Snow Queen. Local busybody Marjorie Cuthbertson is on the hunt for her leading lady – and who better to play the icy queen than beautiful new resident, ex-model Joan Dryden. But as interested as they are in their new neighbours, the residents of Frog End remain wary of the Dryden family, considering them aloof Londoners. Mystery is about to engulf the village however when a cast member collapses and dies at a Christmas party, having consumed a rogue mince pie. Was the death an accident – or was it a malicious revenge strategy masked as an allergic reaction? The Colonel makes it his business to find out.

The champion of uncelebrated foods including fat, offal, and bones, Jennifer McLagan turns her attention to a fascinating, underappreciated, and trending topic: bitterness. What do coffee, IPA beer, dark chocolate, and radicchio all have in common? They’re bitter. While some culinary cultures, such as in Italy and parts of Asia, have an inherent appreciation for bitter flavors (think Campari and Chinese bitter melon), little attention has been given to bitterness in North America: we’re much more likely to reach for salty or sweet. However, with a surge in the popularity of craft beers; dark chocolate; coffee; greens like arugula, dandelion, radicchio, and frisée; high-quality olive oil; and cocktails made with Campari and absinthe—all foods and drinks with elements of bitterness—bitter is finally getting its due. In this deep and fascinating exploration of bitter through science, culture, history, and 100 deliciously idiosyncratic recipes—like Cardoon Beef Tagine, White Asparagus with Blood Orange Sauce, and Campari Granita—award-winning author Jennifer McLagan makes a case for this misunderstood flavor and explains how adding a touch of bitter to a dish creates an exciting taste dimension that will bring your cooking to life.

Panic and suspicion give way to bizarre accusations of conspiracy, revenge, and blood feuds in this true story behind the 2003 Maine church arsenic poisonings. photos. Postponed from 3/06

What happened after Africa's biggest country split in two? When South Sudan ran up its flag in July 2011, two new nations came into being. In South Sudan a former rebel movement faces colossal challenges in building a new country. At independence it was one of the least developed places on earth, after decades of conflict and neglect. The '"rump state'", Sudan, has been debilitated by devastating civil wars, including in Darfur, and lost a significant part of its territory, and most of its oil wealth, after the divorce from the South. In the years after separation, the two Sudans dealt with crippling economic challenges, struggled with new and old rebellions, and fought each other along their disputed border. Benefiting from unsurpassed access to the politicians, rebels, thinkers and events that are shaping the Sudans, Copnall draws a compelling portrait of two misunderstood countries. A Poisonous Thorn in Our Hearts argues that Sudan and South Sudan remain deeply interdependent, despite their separation. It also diagnoses the political failings that threaten the future of both countries. The author puts the turmoil of the years after separation into a broader context, reflecting the voices, hopes and experiences of Sudanese and South Sudanese from all walks of life.

A dark, sexy, and wickedly funny new enemies-to-lovers romance for readers of Laura Thalassa, Sarah J. Maas, Kerri Maniscalco, and Jennifer L. Armentrout. A siren who must stay silent to survive. An executioner with a bounty he cannot kill. Lu has been living a quiet, undercover life as a vampire hidden in the quaint village of Sanford. Afraid that her voice will give her secrets away, Lu has lived for years without words, speaking only to the one witch she can trust. Except, of course, when it's time to hunt. When it comes to luring in her victims, no song is sweeter than Lu's. But when Lu's hunt is interrupted by Ashen, a mysterious and striking Reaper of the Shadow Realm, it seems like fate has finally caught up with her. An executioner with a soul to claim, Ashen doesn't realize he's stumbled on the bounty of an immortal lifetime until it's too late. As the two enemies are forced to work together to solve a crime that shouldn't be possible, it's more than just secrets that emerge between them. With every moment that passes, Lu finds it harder and harder to live like a shadow among her enemies, especially the enigmatic demon she's bound to. She might just be a little bored of living the quiet life. But for Lu, nothing is more inseparable than danger and desire. ...And there are few creatures in any realm more dangerous than Ashen. *mature themes, including violence, strong language, & sexual content*

Encouraged by the medicinal success of quinine, early 19th century scientists hoped strychnine, another plant alkaloid with remarkable properties, might also become a new weapon against disease. Physicians tried for over a century, despite growing evidence to the contrary, to treat everything from paralysis to constipation with it. But strychnine p