A lute of exquisite workmanship and beauty is crafted in Italy in the dark age of the mid 15th century by a master luthier, Francesco Ippolito da Cremona the Renaissance musician fated to play it to great acclaim, the bulk of his musical legacy composed upon it. But this lute is more than mere musical instrument; it is a memorial to love lost in a brutal tragedy. By the passion invested in it by its maker, and its embodiment of the relics of tormented love, it is imbued with the power to enchant, its enchantment released by the hands of its destined player. Against the evidence of history, the lute survives to the present day and along with a rare manuscript of Francesco Ippolito lute tablature, falls into the hands of Bob Roberts, an incurably romantic middle-class professional whose escape from a deeply unromantic life is to immerse himself in the lute music of the Renaissance. The lute is an unexceptional wreck when Bob acquires it, but he commissions its restoration and gradually its provenance is unveiled, the final revelation astonishing. The lute and Ippolitos music exert a powerful influence upon Bobs life that hints of deep unrest and a vague connection with lives long gone, as if lute and tablature combine in a conduit through which spiritual energy moves from past to present. This is a story of music across the ages, of obsession and betrayal, of destiny and, above all, of true love.

A princess with a secret. An ancient evil rising. A kingdom caught in the balance. Alyen, crown princess of Dúramair, has trained her whole life to be queen. She’s kept her faerie Sight a secret, trusting that the Keeper of Scales will find an apprentice soon—for surely one other candidate can be found. But when news comes from the north of dark magic returning to Dúramair, Alyen is forced to make the hardest decision of her life. A decision that could determine the fate of her kingdom. ​​​​Soon Alyen and her friends find that they are the last hope for Dúramair’s victory in a looming war. Forced to choose between love and duty, Alyen struggles to master her growing powers, knowing that if she fails, she risks destroying everything and everyone she loves.

With the playoffs over, Devin and her seventh-grade friends decide to try out for a soccer travel team, but friendships are threatened because not everyone makes it on to the tough, competitive team, and in the mean time the girls are faced with a crisis--budget cuts threaten to eliminate the soccer program at the elementary school Devin's little sister attends.

Dana Mikkelsen, niece of notorious killer, Vincent (Vinnie) Mikkelsen (as featured on Underbelly), An extraordinary story as it unfolds - detailing Dana growing up amongst violence and crime - moving regularly to escape police suspicion, having to change her name for her own safety and living on the street after being abandoned by her mother at the age of fifteen. In an attempt to maintain the ‘normal’ existence of a young girl her age, and with a firm belief that education might just be her saviour - she attends school. At seventeen she meets the very seductive school-chaplain and is soon putty in his hands. He brainwashes her and she spends 10 years in a cult. When she gets out he keeps her as his ‘sex-slave’. The deception is shocking with a calculated cunning plan. A plan of pure evil that keeps Dana trapped as his 'sex-slave', as the, 'girl in the closet' who no one knows about for some years… Whilst he continues to charm the Christian-community, get married and work as a Christian-leader. Not something to be expected from a school-chaplain, especially not the ‘Director’ of all school- chaplain’s within South Australia - Haydn Lush. The puzzle of her past finally comes together with the unsolved murder case of Brian Kane being re-opened by the police. The fear that terrorised her night and day as a child makes sense as she reflects back on her childhood and pieces together what really happened…especially, the link between the Kane brother murders and murderer. It is all too close to home for comfort.

A collection of short fiction from Terry Pratchett, spanning the whole of his writing career from schooldays to Discworld and the present day. In the four decades since his first book appeared in print, Terry Pratchett has become one of the world's best-selling and best-loved authors. Here for the first time are his short stories and other short-form fiction collected into one volume. A Blink of the Screen charts the course of Pratchett's long writing career: from his schooldays through to his first writing job on the Bucks Free Press, and the origins of his debut novel, The Carpet People; and on again to the dizzy mastery of the phenomenally successful Discworld series. Here are characters both familiar and yet to be discovered; abandoned worlds and others still expanding; adventure, chickens, death, disco and, actually, some quite disturbing ideas about Christmas, all of it shot through with Terry's inimitable brand of humour. With an introduction by Booker Prize-winning author A.S. Byatt, illustrations by the late Josh Kirby and drawings by the author himself, this is a book to treasure.

"A pulsing novel filled with so much love and tenderness.” —MORGAN TALTY, national bestselling author of Night of the Living Rez In 1980’s Oregon, Smokey is figuring out how to survive childhood with a young mom who is increasingly desperate in her search for love. As their mother's boyfriends come and go, Smokey aches for the comfort and safety their mother can never quite provide. When a dangerous new man moves into the house, Smokey seeks refuge in the nearby forests—finding comfort as they give themselves over to the strength and beauty of the natural world.

The international bestselling series with over 5 million copies sold in the U.S. alone! The renegade outlaw group known as the Outsiders may have been chased from Clonmel, but not before killing Halt's only brother. Now Rangers Halt and Will, along with the young warrior Horace, are in pursuit. The Outsiders have done an effective job of dividing the kingdom into factions and are looking to overtake Araluen. It will take every bit of skill and cunning for the Rangers to survive. Some may not be so lucky. The international bestselling Ranger's Apprentice series turns up the tension in John Flanagan's latest epic of battles and bravery. Perfect for fans of J.R.R. Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings, T.H. White’s The Sword in the Stone, Christopher Paolini’s Eragon series, and George R. R. Martin’s Game of Thrones/A Song of Ice and Fire series.