Set in Melbourne, 1893, this novel describes the times as banks are crashing, businesses are failing and the unemployed and starving are marching in the streets. A bank liquidator seeks justice for the victims of a crash and a young woman arrives from Lancashire with "the latest retailing experience". Love affairs flicker and flare.

Tehran, 1978. As Iran slides into revolution, the escalating chaos provides ample opportunity for adventurers: A secret fund that is to be transported to southeastern Iran has excited the larcenous instincts of several disparate parties: the Islamic Warriors of Truth, the amoral son of a missionary, a desperate husband, a group of exiled Kurds, and a determined US agent. Events push the reserved but vulnerable Margaret Lexler into the center of the drama, the US operative and a young Iranian her only shields. They pursue the money from Tehran to Kerman to Bam to the edge of the Kavir-e Lut, one of the most desolate regions on the planet, where they meet in a bloody showdown at the Burnt City, an eerie geological formation resembling a petrified city, rumored to be a hideout for bandits, smugglers, and demons. Robert Bangor, a veteran of more than 17 years in Iran and an eye-witness to the Revolution, provides his readers with a sumptuous banquet of violence, intrigue, greed, and lust in the streets of Tehran and Kerman, a Sufi shrine, the ruins of Bam, the Kavir-e Lut, and the Burnt City itself.

Do you want to win in the game of Risk? Have you always wanted to win against your cousin in the game of Risk? Do you feel frustrated when they gang up on you and you cannot do much about it? Or perhaps you made a reputation for yourself as the greatest Risk player ever, only to lose in the next game and the one after that! Read Total Diplomacy. This book aims to teach you how to beat them all in your own sweet way. But that's not all. Learn how to use diplomacy effectively to get what you want in life. There is a lot to learn from history and its great leaders. You will see how you can apply this knowledge to negotiate more successfully and be in control of people. You will learn the art if influence and persuasion and will be able to apply it immediately to your Risk games. Any complex system can be exploited by its users. This book is not just about Risk or use of strategy in games. It aims to enhance your personal skills too. * The best tactics and strategies to use in Risk* How to learn by example* How to understand a player's psychology* How to debate with people and influence them* When it is wise to break a deal or an alliance* How to control your emotions and exploit others' weaknesses* The best strategies to use if you are playing repeatedly against the same players* How to be deceptive and how to recognise deceptive behaviour* The best online strategies* How to negotiate successfully and make cunning deals

April 10, 1845: A monstrous fire rips through the city of Pittsburgh, destroying one-third of the city and leaving four thousand people homeless. Amazingly, the disaster claims only three lives. Or does it? City Constable John Parker and a group of night watchmen discover the body of a young girl among the rubble of a destroyed building. Others assume that the girl died as a result of the fire, but Parkeras mind is flooded by memories of a similar discovery from his boyhood, and he discards the idea that the girlas death was an accident. Compelled by his haunting memories, Parker embarks on his own investigation and discovers that this is the latest in a series of murders reaching back seventeen years. His search for the killer takes him throughout the young city of Pittsburgh and into the hinterland of Western Pennsylvania, but all answers lead him back to The Burnt District.

This story was inspired by the artwork found on a 5,000-year-old vase recently unearthed by archaeologists in Burnt City in southeastern Iran. When spun, five images on the vase come to life, showing a goat jumping up a tree and eating its leaves. This story explores the circle of life in a timeless, happy, and colorful way.