The permanent struggle for optimisation can be seen as one of the most significant cultural principles of contemporary Western societies: the demand for improved performance and efficiency as well as the pursuit of self-improvement are con-sidered necessary in order to keep pace with an accelerated, competitive modern-ity. This affects not only work and education, but also family life, parent–child relationships and intimate relationships in respect to the body and the self, in regard to the public as well as the private realm. Bringing together contributions from renowned scholars from the fields of sociology, psychology and psycho-analysis, this book explores the impacts of optimisation on culture and psyche, examining the contradictions and limitations of optimisation, in conjunction with the effects of social transformations on individuals and shifts in regard to the meaning of ‘pathology’ and ‘normality’.

Abbi Glines concludes the irresistible story of Woods and Della in the #1 New York Times bestselling Rosemary Beach series. Woods had his perfect life mapped out for him. Rise up the ranks of the family business. Marry the rich girl of his parents’ dreams. Pretend that wealth and privilege was all he’d ever wanted. Then a girl named Della breezed into town, a beautifully imperfect stranger who captured his heart and opened his eyes to a new kind of future. Woods is ready and willing to sacrifice everything for her when the sudden death of his father leaves him with his mother to care for and a business to manage. Della is determined to be strong for Woods, even as she’s quietly falling to pieces. No matter how far from home she’s run, the ghosts of her past have never stopped haunting her. Struggling to hide her true feelings from Woods, Della fears she can’t be his rock without dragging him down into the darkness with her. But is she strong enough to let go of the last thing holding her together?

From the author of the red-hot Vincent Boys, Sea Breezeand Too Farnovels, comes another steamy romance... Can you handle bad-boy Woods? My future was about to be completely thrown off track because Della Sloane was under my skin, and I had to have her. I couldn't ignore it anymore. . . . I'd gotten close enough to her to see deeper. Della Sloane is not your average girl. Yearning to break free of her dark and sheltered past, Della plans a solo road trip to experience real life on her own terms. But the trip is nearly cut short in the little beach town of Rosemary when she realizes she can't even pump her own gas-until Woods Kerrington shows up, more than willing to help out a pretty girl in need. Woods's family wants him to settle down with a wealthy woman in pearls, but he can't resist this carefree girl in cutoffs passing through town. A one-night stand should have been enough, but months later, Woods can't get the irresistible Della out of his head. When a twist of fate brings Della back to Woods, all signs point to trouble if they don't keep their distance. Neither is truly free, and a relationship could destroy both of them. With their hearts on the line, Della thinks the safest bet is to walk away. But Woods isn't about to let that happen…

Acclaimed restaurateur Heston Blumenthal reinvents kitchen classics, such as Fish and Chips, Bangers and Mash and Spag Bol, in his inimitable way.

Hugo Award finalist Daniel Polansky crafts an innovative, mind-bending fantasy mystery in The Seventh Perfection When a woman with perfect memory sets out to solve a riddle, the threads she tugs on could bring a whole city crashing down. The God-King who made her is at risk, and his other servants will do anything to stop her. To become the God-King's Amanuensis, Manet had to master all seven perfections, developing her body and mind to the peak of human performance. She remembers everything that has happened to her, in absolute clarity, a gift that will surely drive her mad. But before she goes, Manet must unravel a secret which threatens not only the carefully prepared myths of the God-King's ascent, but her own identity and the nature of truth itself. At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.