A down-on-his-luck ex-miner is sentenced to prison after he's caught stealing to feed his family. When Tamison's sentence is finished, he discovers his family has been kidnapped. Determined to rescue them, Tamison realizes he can't do it alone--and to break into a seemingly impenetrable city, he needs the help of three unlikely allies: a guard, a thief, and a fortune-teller.

In a time when wars are fought in space, with galaxies and dimensions at stake, a legend of cold technology and blazing magic arises. In a time of advanced science, medicine, and intellect, there still exists magic. In a time where peace has been abandoned by the power-hungry, where people are insignificant casualties of war, where ideals have been sacrificed to the conquerors, there still exists hope. In this world, the Dark Elves are warriors and survivors. They are led by Curran Nadiir, the last Spirit Warrior of a once specialized military unit made up of their greatest heroes. Curran struggles to save the remaining Dark Elves from The Suzerain—a powerful race bent on ruling the universe. Hunted by the merciless Suzerain Commander D'miron, Willow Solar is a woman with a dangerous secret. A secret that could lead to the annihilation of worlds —including the last refuge of the Dark Elves. When Willow is captured by Curran, a man presumed dead, she sees the opportunity to build a safe life in a place the Suzerain will never find her. Together they have a chance to defeat the enemy determined to exterminate the Dark Elven people. Are Willow's powers and Curran's strength enough to outmaneuver an empire that commands billions of battleships and soldiers of all races?

A story about the heart-opening effect that taking care of a wounded creature has on a wounded boy, from acclaimed picture-book creators Jairo Buitrago and Rafael Yockteng. Adrián is always in trouble, at school and at home, while Santiago gets along quite well. But they are friends. When Adrián finds a wounded bird in an abandoned lot in the midst of the city, things begin to change. Taking care of the bird, learning all about it, discovering that it is a falcon, loving it — and accepting what this love means — gives Adrián a chance to show others a glimpse of who he truly is. Santiago has always known that Adrián has a big heart, and his steadfast friendship is also the reason Adrián has a chance to heal. Key Text Features illustrations Correlates to the Common Core State Standards in English Language Arts: CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.K.3 With prompting and support, identify characters, settings, and major events in a story. CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.K.6 With prompting and support, name the author and illustrator of a story and define the role of each in telling the story. CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.K.7 With prompting and support, describe the relationship between illustrations and the story in which they appear (e.g., what moment in a story an illustration depicts). CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.1.3 Describe characters, settings, and major events in a story, using key details. CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.1.4 Identify words and phrases in stories or poems that suggest feelings or appeal to the senses. CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.2.3 Describe how characters in a story respond to major events and challenges.

When Saige and her brother Devan accompany their archaeologist father to Egypt one summer, they are unaware of the adventure before them. A late night escapade on a dare by their friend Lateef, results in all three being whirled back in time to ancient Egypt, trapped until the Great Pyramid is completed. Their visit changes the course of history and provides solutions to why the Kings Chamber was never finished and why the Sphinx has the body of a lion but the face of a man. Accustomed to the 21st century, they must deal with the primitive and, occasionally, brutal aspects of life in ancient times especially with Baruti, a bull of a man who has clawed his way to power through intimidation and fear. For Saige, it is also a time of first love with Hamadi, the son of her adoptive family. A love she must decide to leave behind and return to her own world or abandon the modern life and her father. Portal takes the reader on an adventurous, fictional journey through ancient times. Loaded with historical fact, it is primarily a story of adaptability in an alien time, offering the reader the opportunity to experience the grit in the bread and the sweat on the brow as people of all ages and from all walks of life build a monument that will become the only surviving member in a list of ancient world wonders. Portal is a book about ancient times for the computer game set.

In The Grey Falcon, Hamza Malik offers an account of the life and teaching of the twelfth century scholar and Sufi of Baghdad, and eponym of the Qadiri order, Shaykh ʿAbd al-Qādir al-Jīlānī (1077-1166). The question of whether Jīlānī was a Sufi, or simply a scholar appropriated by later Sufis as has been sometimes suggested, is tackled through an analysis of his three most popular works, the Ghunya li Ṭālibī Ṭarīq al-Ḥaqq, the Futūḥ al-Ghayb, and the Fatḥ al-Rabbānī. Malik identifies and presents Jīlānī’s Sufi thought and theological stance, and furthermore attempts to paint a picture of the character and personality of Jīlānī, as might be ascertained solely from the works analysed.

Named after a Sardinian princess of the fourteenth century who established laws protecting falcons, Eleonora's falcon is the only European bird to breed in autumn and feed its brood on the mass of birds that migrate from Europe to Africa between July and October. It breeds on small Mediterranean islands in colonies of up to 200 pairs and hunts often in groups, preying on more than 90 species of migrant birds. During the winter this falcon visits the rain-soaked woodlands of Madagascar. In this study—illustrated beautifully and extensively with 59 line drawings and 38 photographs—Hartmut Walter shows how the unique geographical and biological situation of Falco eleonorae makes the species' health an important indicator of environmental decay. For though it lives in relatively isolated areas, Eleonora's falcon nevertheless may ingest the many pollutants contained in its diet of birds migrating from industrial Europe. Walter, who has studied raptors on several continents and has been an ornithologist since his early youth, examines several discrete colonies of Eleonora's falcon. He concentrates on the species' intraspecific behavior and ecology—such as the falcons' aggressive actions, hunting strategies, and response to fluctuating environmental conditions—and investigates their evolutionary past.