On the morning of September 15, 1963, a bomb exploded outside the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama, killing four young girls. Thirty-two years later, stymied by a code of silence and an imperfect and often racist legal system, only one person, Robert “Dynamite Bob” Chambliss, had been convicted in the murders, though a wider conspiracy was suspected. With many key witnesses and two suspects already dead, there seemed little hope of bringing anyone else to justice. But in 1995 the FBI and local law enforcement reopened the investigation in secret, led by detective Ben Herren of the Birmingham Police Department and special agent Bill Fleming of the FBI. For over a year, Herren and Fleming analyzed the original FBI files on the bombing and activities of the Ku Klux Klan, then began a search for new evidence. Their first interview—with Klansman Bobby Frank Cherry—broke open the case, but not in the way they expected. Told by a longtime officer of the Birmingham Police Department, Last Chance for Justice is the inside story of one of the most infamous crimes of the civil rights era. T. K. Thorne follows the ups and downs of the investigation, detailing how Herren and Fleming identified new witnesses and unearthed lost evidence. With tenacity, humor, dedication, and some luck, the pair encountered the worst and best in human nature on their journey to find justice, and perhaps closure, for the citizens of Birmingham.

A powerful, bracing and deeply spiritual look at intensely, troubled youth, Last Chance in Texas gives a stirring account of the way one remarkable prison rehabilitates its inmates. While reporting on the juvenile court system, journalist John Hubner kept hearing about a facility in Texas that ran the most aggressive–and one of the most successful–treatment programs for violent young offenders in America. How was it possible, he wondered, that a state like Texas, famed for its hardcore attitude toward crime and punishment, could be leading the way in the rehabilitation of violent and troubled youth? Now Hubner shares the surprising answers he found over months of unprecedented access to the Giddings State School, home to “the worst of the worst”: four hundred teenage lawbreakers convicted of crimes ranging from aggravated assault to murder. Hubner follows two of these youths–a boy and a girl–through harrowing group therapy sessions in which they, along with their fellow inmates, recount their crimes and the abuse they suffered as children. The key moment comes when the young offenders reenact these soul-shattering moments with other group members in cathartic outpourings of suffering and anger that lead, incredibly, to genuine remorse and the beginnings of true empathy . . . the first steps on the long road to redemption. Cutting through the political platitudes surrounding the controversial issue of juvenile justice, Hubner lays bare the complex ties between abuse and violence. By turns wrenching and uplifting, Last Chance in Texas tells a profoundly moving story about the children who grow up to inflict on others the violence that they themselves have suffered. It is a story of horror and heartbreak, yet ultimately full of hope.

Launching Operation Last Chance in 2002, Efraim Zuroff spearheaded a vast public campaign to locate and bring to justice the worst suspected Nazi criminals before ill health or death spare them from potential punishment. Zuroff's project yielded the names of over 520 previously unknown suspects in 24 different countries, which has led to many convictions. Combining the thrill of a detective story with the inherent poignancy of the history of World War II and its aftermath, Operation Last Chance delivers the important and moving story of one man's heroic efforts to honor the victims of the Holocaust.

Few would deny that getting ahead is a legitimate goal of learning, but the phrase implies a cruel hierarchy: a student does not simply get ahead, but gets ahead of others. In These Kids, Kysa Nygreen turns a critical eye on this paradox. Offering the voices and viewpoints of students at a “last chance” high school in California, she tells the story of students who have, in fact, been left behind. Detailing a youth-led participatory action research project that she coordinated, Nygreen uncovers deep barriers to educational success that are embedded within educational discourse itself. Struggling students internalize descriptions of themselves as “at risk,” “low achieving,” or “troubled”—and by adopting the very language of educators, they also adopt its constraints and presumption of failure. Showing how current educational discourse does not, ultimately, provide an adequate vision of change for students at the bottom of the educational hierarchy, she levies a powerful argument that social justice in education is impossible today precisely because of how we talk about it.

Passion is their most dangerous move Never say die McKenna Sloan saved Lucas Kane’s life and then vanished. Lucas moved mountains trying to find her again, and finally McKenna relented—for one fleeting night. The truth is, McKenna’s life is all about the dark, deception-filled world of Last Chance Rescue, and for her, there’s no hope of love or Lucas. But fate, and Lucas’s determination, soon change everything. A kidnapped young woman, a lure to out a killer and the fierce need to bring a criminal to justice combine for one explosive event. For a woman who specializes in staying away from relationships and staying in the heart of danger, this is the most impossible mission of all. Because the odds are deadly, and the passion won’t die.

“Mindful of the quality expected of Cherry Adair and Mariah Stewart, Christy Reece’s first novel is a terrific romantic suspense thriller.”—Harriet Klausner, Merry Genre Go Round Reviews A covert operative of Last Chance Rescue (LCR) Enterprises, Eden St. Claire has made secrets her life’s work. Seven years ago, an evening of emotional vulnerability and pure pleasure almost destroyed her. Now Eden wears her beauty like a mask, concealing any hint of vulnerability or the demons of her past. A daring rescue of an innocent girl on a Greek island leads Eden to a new partner. Jordan Montgomery has been looking for Eden–though he knows her by another name, from another time. But his search for her is overshadowed by a case that’s gone international. A powerful, ruthless, organized network is stealing women and children around the world. And a lover, a traitor, and a killer all wait for Eden’s next move. “A sizzling new suspense trilogy bursts onto the scene as Reece invites readers to join the adventures of Last Chance Rescue Enterprises. . . . Plenty of danger and intrigue make this a promising series launch!”—Romantic Times Magazine “Rescue Me is an exciting magnetic story. . . . Oh, yes!”—Fresh Fiction

An amnesiac turns to a rugged bounty hunter to restore her memory and save herself from a killer in this inspirational romantic suspense thriller. The mysterious man at her door swears he recognizes her. She’s Leah Farley. Mother, wife—and suspected murderer. But her amnesia has wiped away memories of her former life. When a shower of bullets follows the man’s claims, Leah is forced to accept the truth. She’s in danger. And unless she can make herself remember, there’s no way to stay safe. With bounty hunter Roman Black’s help, she must uncover her lost memories—before the killer succeeds in keeping Leah’s past and future buried forever.