In 1946, Commodore Valentine discovers a mysterious abandoned child with a noble Baltic background. He raises her as his perfect Athenian Spartan daughter named Violet. But her idyllic life at Clifftops is shattered when she is sent to Boarding School at 14. Her Father dies suspiciously when she is 16. Violet matures into a beautiful, and resilient, multilingual athlete and fighter. She also learns charm, humour, and empathy. At 21, she survives the KGB uncovering her father’s investigation of traitors known as The Trinity. As the charismatic and solitary loner, code-named Poison Ivy, she is the perfect asset with no emotional attachments. This story takes her on an exhilarating journey through the 1960s as she is selected and trained by ASIS, then sent to various Asian countries discovering the mysterious death cult, The Empire Of The Three Lights. Despite facing challenges like drugging, street fights, over amorous villains, kidnapping, and torture, Violet remains sharp-witted and determined to seek justice and avenge her father. She also strives to protect the Anglo Australian ICBM program and prevent the use of The Cobalt Bomb. However, things become more dangerous when she is abducted and forced to fight in The Arena of Death in the Laotian jungle. Her final showdown takes place in Vietnam, where her enemies plan to sacrifice her in their temple. As threats loom and a traitors lurk, the ever-watchful KGB and Trinity hover.

In 1946, Commodore Valentine discovers a mysterious abandoned child with a noble Baltic background. He raises her as his perfect Athenian Spartan daughter named Violet. But her idyllic life at Clifftops is shattered when she is sent to Boarding School at 14. Her Father dies suspiciously when she is 16. Violet matures into a beautiful, and resilient, multilingual athlete and fighter. She also learns charm, humour, and empathy. At 21, she survives the KGB uncovering her father's investigation of traitors known as The Trinity. As the charismatic and solitary loner, code-named Poison Ivy, she is the perfect asset with no emotional attachments. This story takes her on an exhilarating journey through the 1960s as she is selected and trained by ASIS, then sent to various Asian countries discovering the mysterious death cult, The Empire Of The Three Lights. Despite facing challenges like drugging, street fights, over amorous villains, kidnapping, and torture, Violet remains sharp-witted and determined to seek justice and avenge her father. She also strives to protect the Anglo Australian ICBM program and prevent the use of The Cobalt Bomb. However, things become more dangerous when she is abducted and forced to fight in The Arena of Death in the Laotian jungle. Her final showdown takes place in Vietnam, where her enemies plan to sacrifice her in their temple. As threats loom and a traitors lurk, the ever-watchful KGB and Trinity hover.

As a broad category of identity, “transgender” has given life to a vibrant field of academic research since the 1990s. Yet the Western origins of the field have tended to limit its cross-cultural scope. Howard Chiang proposes a new paradigm for doing transgender history in which geopolitics assumes central importance. Defined as the antidote to transphobia, transtopia challenges a minoritarian view of transgender experience and makes room for the variability of transness on a historical continuum. Against the backdrop of the Sinophone Pacific, Chiang argues that the concept of transgender identity must be rethought beyond a purely Western frame. At the same time, he challenges China-centrism in the study of East Asian gender and sexual configurations. Chiang brings Sinophone studies to bear on trans theory to deconstruct the ways in which sexual normativity and Chinese imperialism have been produced through one another. Grounded in an eclectic range of sources—from the archives of sexology to press reports of intersexuality, films about castration, and records of social activism—this book reorients anti-transphobic inquiry at the crossroads of area studies, medical humanities, and queer theory. Timely and provocative, Transtopia in the Sinophone Pacific highlights the urgency of interdisciplinary knowledge in debates over the promise and future of human diversity.

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • From the critically acclaimed author of Six Crimson Cranes comes the thrilling next adventure! A journey to the kingdom of dragons, a star-crossed love, and a cursed pearl with the power to mend the world or break it... Fans of Shadow and Bone will devour this soaring fantasy. Princess Shiori made a deathbed promise to return the dragon's pearl to its rightful owner, but keeping that promise is more dangerous than she ever imagined. She must journey to the kingdom of dragons, navigate political intrigue among humans and dragons alike, fend off thieves who covet the pearl for themselves and will go to any lengths to get it, all while cultivating the appearance of a perfect princess to dissuade those who would see her burned at the stake for the magic that runs in her blood. The pearl itself is no ordinary cargo; it thrums with malevolent power, jumping to Shiori's aid one minute, and betraying her the next—threatening to shatter her family and sever the thread of fate that binds her to her true love. It will take every ounce of strength Shiori can muster to defend the life and the love she's fought so hard to win.

This elegant, international collection of prayers, ranging in origin from the Celtic tradition to modern-day feminist theologians, offers gentle spiritual guidance and honest reflection. More than 160 prayers by Mother Teresa, Janet Morley, Helen Keller, and others are aranged by categories. Line drawings throughout.

Project Runway meets Mulan in this sweeping fantasy about a teenage girl who poses as a boy to compete for the role of imperial tailor and embarks on an impossible journey to sew three magic dresses, from the sun, the moon, and the stars. And don’t miss Elizabeth Lim’s new novel, the instant New York Times bestseller, Six Crimson Cranes! “All the cutthroat competition of a runway fashion reality show and the thrilling exploits of an epic quest." —The Washington Post Maia Tamarin dreams of becoming the greatest tailor in the land, but as a girl, the best she can hope for is to marry well. When a royal messenger summons her ailing father, once a tailor of renown, to court, Maia makes the ultimate sacrifice and poses as a boy to take his place. She knows her life is forfeit if her secret is discovered, but she'll take that risk to achieve her dream and save her family from ruin. There's just one catch: Maia is one of twelve tailors in a cutthroat competition for the job. Backstabbing and lies run rampant as the tailors compete in challenges to prove their artistry and skill. Maia's task is further complicated when she draws the attention of the court magician, Edan, whose piercing eyes seem to see straight through her disguise. And nothing could have prepared her for the unthinkable final challenge: to sew three magic gowns for the emperor's reluctant bride-to-be, from the sun, the moon, and the stars. With this impossible task before her, she embarks on a journey to the far reaches of the kingdom, seeking the sun, the moon, and the stars, and finding more than she ever could have imagined. Steeped in Chinese culture, sizzling with forbidden romance, and shimmering with magic, this fantasy novel is not to be missed. "This is a white-knuckle read." —Tamora Pierce, #1 New York Times Bestselling author of Tempests and Slaughter

This lavish title presents the best work of Ira "Iraville" Sluyterman van Langewedye, a popular illustrator beloved for her idyllic paintings.