“Niki’s Honor” is a tragic and powerful story about an innocent victim of “honor killing” practices and the family she seeks to protect. Based on actual events still occurring in many parts of the world, this book reveals the realities of these unspeakable acts committed against girls and women, and usually carried out by their own family members. In a Soviet occupied country, Niki, a beautiful young rural Pashtun village girl, becomes entangled in a series of events that brings an end to her fairy tale dreams. She becomes a casualty of a culture where a family’s honor and pride is more precious than life itself. Suffering in silence, Niki endures great pain and humiliation, yet still refuses to reveal her personal secret, saving her family and particularly her mother from further disgrace. She is engaged at the age of nine to the handsome fifteen year old son of a Khan. They eventually fall in love. Her secret is only shared with him. She committed no crime, but carries the full weight of a heinous act done by another. In “Niki’s Honor” a horrific and cruel subject is shockingly presented. The author, growing up in Afghanistan and knowing its rich history, traditions, and customs, adds a unique and eloquent voice to Niki’s story. Soul searching and provocative this is a story needing to be heard. The story of this poor but beautiful young village girl will have a memorable and lasting effect on you.

“Joyce is a grand mistress at building tension to a crescendo . . . a vivid and more powerful romance with an undercurrent of sensuality.” —RT Book Reviews (Top Pick) She played a dangerous game. Carolyn Browne was a poor bookseller’s daughter and an enlightened thinker, delighting London with her scathingly witty columns, written under the name Charles Copperville. Penetrating the town’s gilded salons in male disguise, Carolyn soon throws her barbs at the wrong man—the enigmatic Russian prince, Nicholas Sverayov. He was a dangerous target. His notoriety, extravagances, and indulgent disregard for social convention fuel Carolyn’s outrage. Nicholas has moved through the balls and soirees of high society effortlessly, a natural target of gossip, envy, and desire. But Nicholas is furious to find himself lampooned by Copperville, and quickly discovers Carolyn’s dearly held secret. Now, as the two spar, a new game begins—a game of deception and pride, of longing and chance. And they played for the ultimate prize . . . As Nicholas sweeps Carolyn from the teeming streets and gala balls of Regency London to the splendor and majesty of St. Petersburg, against all odds the unlikely lovers embark upon a whirlwind of passion and peril until there is no turning back—for the stakes have changed, demanding no less of them than the unwavering courage to claim the love of a lifetime. “A complex narrative, lots of historical detail and a heroic era—the Napoleonic wars . . . a heroine readers will root for.” —Publishers Weekly

With her “signature mix of glamour, wealth, and intrigue” (Booklist), this is New York Times bestselling author Judith Gould at her irresistible best—as unknown forces conspire against a woman summoned into the shadows of a deadly masquerade... Nikki and Ariadne are identical twins with only their beauty in common—separated at birth by the schemes of a tyrannical father, and reared continents apart. It was Nikki who came of age in the glittering shadow of the mad tycoon, and is heiress to his empire. As cold and sharp as a cut diamond, she’s accustomed to the good things in life. Raised in obscurity, Ariadne is generous, brilliant, naïve, and unaware of her bloodline. Until a persuasive team of strangers offers Ariadne an opportunity as intimidating as it is irresistible—the chance to reclaim her share of the family empire. Little does she realize but she’s about to be plunged into deadly game of deception orchestrated by a privileged few—and that she will find protection in the arms of a bodyguard who shows her a passion like no other. Here, in this new world of luxury and glamour, the kisses of a stranger can’t be trusted, and the truth that hides in the shadows may be her undoing.

Today, 1 in 110 children will exhibit signs and receive a diagnosis of autism. Many parents will live in confusion, seeing the early signs but not understanding them. They will experience many varying emotions ranging from denial to panic to desperation. By understanding the early signs and seeing Gods hand in the circumstances of dealing with this disability, parents will begin to approach the care of their children with autism from a position of hope. This book chronicles the journey of one mother who has traveled down the path of life with a child with autism. It contains strategies, techniques, and curricular suggestions that proved helpful to her child. In addition, it details a journey of faith and hope that ends in a new way of valuing the lives of our individuals with special needs. May it bring hope and help to others who have entered upon this unique journey.

When Legiak, the great chief of the Haida Indians, who rules the Queen Charlotte Islands, needed gifts for his upcoming marriage potlatch, he raided a small Tlingit village. His son was marrying a chief’s daughter from a Salish village. His son had enough blankets to buy her. And in order to show his son’s new father-in-law just how powerful he was, he wanted to add the gifts of slaves. But as ill-luck would have it, a small Russian ship, filled with hunters and trappers will ventured into this village in search of sea otter for Russia’s Catherin the Great and for profit. This will be the furthest journey from the north that any foreign explorer will have ventured into. They will be in the islands along the Pacific coast of Canada. Three of these Russians will survive the slaughter of Legiak’s warriors and only one will escape. The other two will become slaves and one of these two will marry and father a half-breed man-child that will go on great adventures and he will find his first love on a faraway island.

Discover classic and contemporary Scandinavian style with specially commissioned photography of homes in Denmark, Norway, Sweden, and Finland. Discover classic and contemporary Scandinavian style with specially commissioned photography of homes in Denmark, Norway, Sweden, and Finland. Scandinavia is famous for its distinctive style: homes are pared-back and simple, and form and function are combined to create aesthetically pleasing and practical interiors. Scandinavians are inspired by light, having an abundance of it in summer but so little of it in winter, and house designs tend to maximize the amount of natural light that enters the home, and allow the inhabitants to make the most of outdoor life during the summer. Similarly, nature and the weather are major influences: homes are made warm and cozy for the freezing winter months—not just literally with log burners, but also through incorporating wood and natural materials. Here Niki Brantmark, owner of the interior design blog My Scandinavian Home, presents a wide-ranging collection of these beautiful homes and explores how the Scandinavian lifestyle is reflected in them all. The first chapter, Urban Living, features styles ranging from minimalist to bohemian, and pale palettes to dramatic dark colors. By contrast, the Country Homes tend to have a softer, calmer feel, through color and textiles, in line with a slower pace of life. Finally, the spectacular Rural Retreats include a mountain cabin, beach house, and rustic summer cottage, and demonstrate how having somewhere to escape to is so important to many Scandinavians. This collection of stunning interiors will put Scandi style within every reader’s reach.

The beloved and award-winning novel now available in a new format with a great new cover! When Wesley Boone writes a poem for his high school English class, some of his classmates clamor to read their poems aloud too. Soon they're having weekly poetry sessions and, one by one, the eighteen students are opening up and taking on the risky challenge of self-revelation. There's Lupe Alvarin, desperate to have a baby so she will feel loved. Raynard Patterson, hiding a secret behind his silence. Porscha Johnson, needing an outlet for her anger after her mother OD's. Through the poetry they share and narratives in which they reveal their most intimate thoughts about themselves and one another, their words and lives show what lies beneath the skin, behind the eyes, beyond the masquerade.