Showing results for "Strokes" in Literature & Fiction

Money can buy anything...and anyone. As the head of the Constantine family, I’m used to people bowing to my will. Cruel, rigid, unyielding—I’m all those things. When I discover the one woman who doesn’t wither under my gaze, but instead smiles right back at me, I’m intrigued. Ash Elliott needs cash, and I make her trade in crudeness and degradation for it. I crave her tears, her moans. I pay for each one, and every time, she comes back for more. When she challenges me with an offer of her own, I have to decide if I’m willing to give her far more than cold, hard cash.

Brought to you by Penguin. Far away and long ago, when dragons still existed and the only arcade game was ping-pong in black and white, a wizard cautiously entered a smoky tavern in the evil, ancient, foggy city of Morpork... A truly unmissable set of unearthed stories from the pen of Sir Terry...

Have you ever had a crush on your babysitter? Taryn Ross sure did. Sixteen-year-old Charlotte was sophisticated, thoughtful, gorgeous, and fun. Taryn counted the minutes until they’d hang out. But Charlotte and her family moved away. Now a transfer student at Hillspoint University, Taryn is ready to officially come out when she runs into a familiar face at a party. Charlie, now a grad student, insists on walking a drunk Taryn home. To the detriment of Taryn’s heart (and libido), Charlie has only grown kinder (and hotter) with time.

In 'Eight Strokes of the Clock,' master thief turned detective Arsène Lupin takes center stage in a thrilling collection of short stories. Now living a life of intrigue instead of crime, Lupin adopts the identity of Prince Rénine. Alongside the captivating Hortense Daniel, he dives into a series of enigmatic mysteries that promise to keep listeners on the edge of their seats. Each tale showcases Lupin's cleverness and charm as he unravels puzzles that challenge his wit and skill. Whether it’s outsmarting rivals or solving perplexing crimes, Lupin’s adventures blend suspense and clever ...

A delightfully funny, fantastically inventive collection of twenty newly unearthed short stories by Sir Terry Pratchett, the award-winning and bestselling author of the phenomenally successful Discworld fantasy series. This special trove is a must-have for Pratchett fans of all ages. The...

Aide, a human soul embodied in a jewel, journeys back in time to join forces with Belisarius, the greatest general of the sixth century, to stop Link, an evil supercomputer that is using its vast powers to rewrite history to create the powerful, technologically advanced Malwa Empire. 

In the tourist town of Wharton, on the coast of Lake Superior, Tess Bell is renovating her old family home into a bed-and-breakfast during the icy dead of winter… As the house’s restoration commences, a shuttered art studio is revealed. Inside are paintings Tess’s late grandfather, beloved and celebrated artist Sebastian Bell, hid away for generations. But these appear to be the works of a twisted mind, almost unrecognizable as paintings she and others familiar with his art would expect.

He’s hoping to bury the past. She’s ready to settle the score. The Sterling Ranch’s season opening isn’t going so smoothly. With the ranch’s lodge full of guests and a Montana blizzard threatening, Will Sterling needs help—and he needs it fast. So when his childhood friend Poppy...

London 1949. The lives of three very different women are about to collide. Like most working-class daughters, Caroline Wilby is expected to help support her family. Alone in a strange city, she must grab any opportunity that comes her way. Even if that means putting herself in danger. Star of the silver screen, Ursula Delancy, has just been abandoned by the man she left her husband for. Already hounded by the press, it won’t be long before she’s making headlines for all the wrong reasons.

The Eight Strokes of the Clock is a collection of short stories centred on Arsène Lupin, former gentleman thief extraordinaire. In this series, Lupin has abandoned his life of crime in favour of that of crime solver. Under the guise of a prince named Rénine, he invites the young and beautiful Hortense Daniel to help him solve several mysteries. (Summary by Cate Barratt)

Fragments of a Life Observed is a reflective collection of musings by Pramod K. Gupta, shaped by lived experience, emotional honesty, and a deep engagement with life’s quiet truths. The book moves through relationships, ageing, illness, memory, friendship, family, gratitude, faith, public life...

When Charlie Porter meets Hazaar Alim her first year of university, she's instantly smitten. Hazaar has it all: beauty, talent, and brains. What she doesn't realize is that Hazaar's future has already been decided, and Charlie has no place in it. Hazaar desperately wants to break with her traditions and stay with Charlie, but when forced to choose, she chooses her family over love. When she realizes the choice she made is the worst one possible, it's too late.

"The Eight Strokes of the Clock" is a collection of short stories centred on Arsène Lupin, former gentleman thief extraordinaire. In this series, Lupin has abandoned his life of crime in favour of that of crime solver. In Paris, six women have vanished, only to be found a week later, emaciated and disfigured, their skulls split open. What little evidence the police have suggests that the murderer is a woman and that she is preparing to strike again. When Prince Rénine’s lover disappears on a cold night in October, he fears that she is about to become the latest victim.

Cassie Miller is broke. Her parents cut off all funding when she dropped out of medical school, and graduate school is expensive. A full-time nanny job at the Wellington estate is the answer to her problems, except working for beautiful, successful Brook Wellington wasn’t in the job description. Brook has always had a head for business. Born into a global shipping empire, she sits at the helm running it with skill and savvy. But success comes at a cost. Her priority is her six-year-old son, but she can’t be in two places at once.

Widowed Arabella Northwick went from the home of a father who didn’t love her to the home of a husband who didn’t love her. It would seem at last she was on the cusp of forging a happier future for her baby and herself, were it not for her dead husband’s brother, who is determined to keep them captive.

Sarah Matamoros can’t complain. After immigrating from Mexico when she was nine years old, she’s content with the life she’s made for herself in sunny San Diego. She works hard at her mother’s housecleaning service by day and spends the evenings with her quirky eight-year-old daughter, Grace. From a very young age, Emory Owen had several concepts drilled into her head. Success is everything. Be the best. Fight your way to the top. Expectations were high in the Owen household and the world was watching. Born into a high society family, Emory never wanted for anything...at least anything money could buy.

Who says you can’t go home again? Philadelphia real estate broker Devyn Winters is at the peak of her career, closing multi-million dollar deals and relishing it. She’s pretty much blocked out her formative years in Dreamer’s Bay, where the most exciting thing to happen was the twice a year bake sale. Unfortunately, a distress call hauls her back home and away from the life she’s constructed. Now the question is just how long until she can leave again? And when did boring Elizabeth Draper get so beautiful?

‘So many things to love about this book – stunning setting, fabulous characters, a murder mystery to solve, and all under a spellbinding timeslip twist. Absolutely devoured it.’ Jessica Redland, million-copy bestselling author ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐It’s an invitation that will change...

Blair Powell, the first daughter, returns the feeling despite her ambivalence about Cam’s role as her security chief, particularly in the aftermath of an assassination attempt that nearly cost Cam her life. In this third book of the Honor series, Blair and Cam struggle to protect their relationship from intensified media exposure even as they are unwillingly drawn into a shadowy conspiracy that puts Cam’s career and the president’s political future at risk.

As winemaker at Tangle Valley Vineyard, Madison LeGrange relies on science and logic to make the best vintage possible. It’s also how she manages her life. But with her career in its prime, her accountant thinks it’s time she diversifies her income. Not a problem because her favorite café, the Bacon and Biscuit, is up for sale. What she didn’t plan on was the time she’d spend with Clementine, who has her feeling anything but logical.