A superb storyteller who keeps his readers in thrall’—Statesman In When Darkness Falls, Ruskin Bond emerges yet again as a master storyteller: a deceptively effortless style, an eye for the extraordinary in seemingly humdrum lives, and a deep empathy with his characters—even when they belong to the supernatural realm. We meet the war veteran Markham whose deformation ends in tragedy; Susanna, the merry widow who loved each of her seven husbands to death; and Kundan Singh, the reckless rake whom women find irresistible. There are also fascinating stories from the author’s childhood, about the eccentric characters and memorable animals of old Dehradun. Told with Bond’s classic wit, these charming stories will enchant and delight in equal measure.

When Darkness Falls, the third book in The Obsidian Trilogy from Mercedes Lackey and James Mallory Despite a great working of Wild Magic and High Magic that struck at the heart of the Demon Queen's evil plots, Knight-Mage Kellen and his Elven allies are still seen as enemies by the human Mage Council. The Elves and their allies must find a way to shatter the Demons' hold on the human Mages, for without their High Magic, the forces of Light will be destroyed by the forces of Darkness. The Commander of the Armies of Light decides to turn an Elven mine into a refuge for those driven from their homes by the war. Kellen is put in command of the force of engineers and warriors who will fortify the mine and does not learn until it is nearly too late that the caverns are full of Shadowed Elves. Vestakia, the half-human, half-Demon healer, finds that she has begun to be able to read the mind of her Demon father, Crown Prince Zyperis. The Demon Queen, Savilla, is preparing a great sacrifice that will summon He Who Is back to the world and make her the ultimate ruler forever. When Wild Mage Idalia learns of Savilla's plans, she knows there is only one way to prevent the coming of He Who Is. A very different sort of sacrifice must be made. At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

In the latest novel from the bestselling author whom critics have called "the thriller writer to watch," lawyer Jack Swyteck tackles a case in which the life of his best friend hangs in the balance—and in which nothing is as it seems. Miami criminal defense attorney Jack Swyteck isn't looking for a new client, at least not one who is homeless and in jail for threatening to jump off a bridge. But from the moment Jack is called to defend the man, who goes by the name Falcon, something is amiss. For one thing, Falcon comes up with the $10,000 bail—in cash. Then the body of a brutally murdered woman is found in the trunk of the abandoned car in which he is living. Panicked and on the run, Falcon takes Jack's best friend, Theo, hostage. They end up barricaded in a motel room, and Theo isn't the only one at Falcon's mercy. Jack must work with the cops and their crackerjack negotiator to free Theo and the other captives before Falcon decides he has nothing to lose by killing them all. What Jack doesn't know is that Falcon has a much bigger agenda, and that there are people behind the scenes who will stop at nothing to keep their dangerous secrets. Thus unfolds a riveting, lightning-paced story, as only James Grippando can tell it.

A collection of short stories on small town life by one of India's novelists.

As in his larger book, A Sharp Seasoning of Truth (2019), Pascal R. Politano does not focus totally on one subject, in this case, the devastating pandemic; rather, in addition to that scourge he addresses the ancillary, overlapping problems within the state of the Union and not least our system of governance. Politano suggests strongly that we are overdue for a change in the management of our “capitalist democracy,” to include revisions and clarifications in our Constitution, which has become obsolescent.