Follow a daring reporter in these four hard-boiled suspense mysteries from “a master of intrigue and adventure” (New York Times–bestselling author Clive Cussler). Meet Harker, an investigative reporter willing to do whatever it takes to break a story—even if it might break him first . . . The Harker File: A CIA agent knows the cause behind mysterious deaths in Wisconsin and Iowa—and their connection to Communist Russia. But getting the scoop means Harker will be the next to die . . . Dead and Paid For: A group of con men are preying on the families of US soldiers who are missing in action in Vietnam. Harker’s out to uncover the truth without going missing himself . . . They’ve Killed Anna: In this Edgar Award finalist, a vast government conspiracy is hiding the dangers of nuclear energy from the public. Harker’s source is about to help him break the story—when she suddenly dies. Now the journalist will need to watch his back . . . Kill the Reporter: Harker is helping a California senator search for his missing daughter—only to draw the ire of a religious cult hell-bent on silencing him.

A History of the African American Novel offers an in-depth overview of the development of the novel and its major genres. In the first part of this book, Valerie Babb examines the evolution of the novel from the 1850s to the present, showing how the concept of black identity has transformed along with the art form. The second part of this History explores the prominent genres of African American novels, such as neoslave narratives, detective fiction, and speculative fiction, and considers how each one reflects changing understandings of blackness. This book builds on other literary histories by including early black print culture, African American graphic novels, pulp fiction, and the history of adaptation of black novels to film. By placing novels in conversation with other documents - early black newspapers and magazines, film, and authorial correspondence - A History of the African American Novel brings many voices to the table to broaden interpretations of the novel's development.

DIV When a dispute between modeling agencies turns to all-out war, beautiful people get ugly Annie Laurie’s modeling career has been dead since the day she turned thirty, but she is not through with that life. Now an agent, she plans to dominate the business as completely as she once did the nation’s billboards. Only one person stands in her way: her ex-husband Byron Terry, super-agent. Lucky for Annie, he taught her how to play dirty. She uses every trick she knows to steal models from Terry’s stable, making his girls more successful than he could ever dream. But when both set their sights on signing premier supermodel Karen Dial, Terry calls in the mob for help. From here out, scorched earth is in vogue. The model wars have come to New York, and the jet set is about to witness the most stylish bloodbath in history. /div

DIV To fulfill an ancient rite of vengeance, two druids descend on New York City Out for kicks on a dull summer night, a few Puerto Rican boys wander Central Park. Drunk, high, and bored they hack at an old oak tree, and they don’t notice the white-haired couple appear behind them. Murmuring in an ancient tongue, the couple attacks the boys to save the oak. By the time the police arrive, two boys have been slashed to death, and their right hands cut from their bodies. Rupert and Rowena Comfort are druids, keepers of a religion that is older than civilization itself. For thousands of years they have lived in secret in the wilds of England, until the day that five Americans happen on their village and steal the book of shadows—a witch’s tome passed down by the druids for millennia. Rupert and Rowena will kill to save the book, starting with a spell whose recipe calls for the blood from two severed hands. /div

DIV Chasing a scoop on the CIA, a reporter finds his own name on the hit list In Madison, Wisconsin, a dairy farmer drops dead of a heart attack. A few days later, a small-town citizen in Iowa is killed in a three-car pile-up. Few men know the connection between these deaths, and only one is willing to talk to Harker, an investigative reporter with sources on the inside of every agency in Washington. His source at the CIA is named Trotman, and he knows things that men cannot discuss in the light of day. The two dead men were CIA agents, defectors from Communist states living under assumed names. Trotman tells Harker not out of civic duty, but because the reporter will be one of the next to die. Getting the story of this terrifying conspiracy down in print is Harker’s only chance for survival. He must work quickly to stay alive, but that’s no problem. Reporters like Harker love deadlines. /div