The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires: A Novel

Something is wrong in the small outback town of Morgan Creek. A farmer goes missing after a blue in the pub. A teenage couple fail to show up for work. When Patrick and Sheila McDonough investigate, they discover the missing persons list is growing. Before they realise what’s happening, the residents of the remote town find themselves in a fight for their lives against a foe they would never have suspected. And the dry red earth will run with blood. “Trust me, you’ve never read anything like this. Deranged, delirious, diabolical, it just begs to be a film, and when it is, I’ll be first in line to see it. The Roo is a f*cking riot.” – Kealan Patrick Burke, Bram Stoker Award-Winning author of Kin and Sour Candy

The critically acclaimed author of Lovecraft Country returns with a thrilling and immersive virtual reality epic—part cyberthriller, part twisted romantic comedy—that transports you to a world where identity is fluid and nothing can be taken at face value. John Chu is a “sherpa”—a paid guide to online role-playing games like the popular Call to Wizardry. For a fee, he and his crew will provide you with a top-flight character equipped with the best weapons and armor, and take you dragon-slaying in the Realms of Asgarth, hunting rogue starships in the Alpha Sector, or battling hordes of undead in the zombie apocalypse. Chu’s new client, the pseudonymous Mr. Jones, claims to be a “wealthy, famous person” with powerful enemies, and he’s offering a ridiculous amount of money for a comprehensive tour of the world of virtual-reality gaming. For Chu, this is a dream assignment, but as the tour gets underway, he begins to suspect that Mr. Jones is really North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un, whose interest in VR gaming has more to do with power than entertainment. As if that weren’t enough to deal with, Chu also has to worry about “Ms. Pang,” who may or may not be an agent of the People’s Republic of China, and his angry ex-girlfriend, Darla Jean Covington, who isn’t the type to let an international intrigue get in the way of her own plans for revenge. What begins as a whirlwind online adventure soon spills over into the real world. Now Chu must use every trick and resource at his disposal to stay one step ahead—because in real life, there is no reset button.

THE INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER VOTED GOODREADS CHOICE AWARD BEST HORROR NOVEL OF 2021 A Good Morning America Buzz Pick “The horror master…puts his unique spin on slasher movie tropes.”-USA Today A can't-miss summer read, selected by The New York Times, Oprah Daily, Time, USA Today, The Philadelphia Inquirer, CNN, LitHub, BookRiot, Bustle, Popsugar and the New York Public Library In horror movies, the final girls are the ones left standing when the credits roll. They made it through the worst night of their lives…but what happens after? Like his bestselling novel The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires, Grady Hendrix’s latest is a fast-paced, frightening, and wickedly humorous thriller. From chain saws to summer camp slayers, The Final Girl Support Group pays tribute to and slyly subverts our most popular horror films—movies like The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, A Nightmare on Elm Street, and Scream. Lynnette Tarkington is a real-life final girl who survived a massacre. For more than a decade, she’s been meeting with five other final girls and their therapist in a support group for those who survived the unthinkable, working to put their lives back together. Then one woman misses a meeting, and their worst fears are realized—someone knows about the group and is determined to rip their lives apart again, piece by piece. But the thing about final girls is that no matter how bad the odds, how dark the night, how sharp the knife, they will never, ever give up.

Set against a backdrop of Seattle in the early '90s, Haupt's compelling second novel explores what it means to confront the truth about the past in order to create a better future for our children. Come as You Are is a compelling love story and family drama that addresses the question: Can we alter our dreams and stories from the past to create a better future for our children? Zane and Skye are two misfit teens drawn together by their love of music and their loneliness, both part of Seattle's grunge scene in the early '90s. They dream of moving to L.A. together: Zane's music career following the trajectory of Kurt Cobain and Eddie Vedder, and Skye drawing Picasso-esque portraits on the Venice Beach boardwalk. When a tragedy violently catapults them from best friends to lovers, their bond is forever strengthened and their relationship destroyed. Ten years later, they must come together as parents, putting aside abandoned dreams and broken promises. The question is: can they face the truth of who they are, and become the parents their daughter needs them to be?

Introduction to Sociology 2e adheres to the scope and sequence of a typical, one-semester introductory sociology course. It offers comprehensive coverage of core concepts, foundational scholars, and emerging theories, which are supported by a wealth of engaging learning materials. The textbook presents detailed section reviews with rich questions, discussions that help students apply their knowledge, and features that draw learners into the discipline in meaningful ways. The second edition retains the book's conceptual organization, aligning to most courses, and has been significantly updated to reflect the latest research and provide examples most relevant to today's students. In order to help instructors transition to the revised version, the 2e changes are described within the preface. The images in this textbook are grayscale. Authors include: Heather Griffiths, Nathan Keirns, Eric Strayer, Susan Cody-Rydzewski, Gail Scaramuzzo, Tommy Sadler, Sally Vyain, Jeff Bry, Faye Jones

WINNER OF THE AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION’S BEST HORROR NOVEL OF THE YEAR “As much F. Scott Fitzgerald as Dean Koontz” (#1 New York Times bestselling author Patricia Briggs), Christopher Buehlman excels in twisting the familiar into newfound dread in his “genre-bending” (California Literary Review) novels. Now the acclaimed author of Those Across the River delivers his most disquieting tale yet... The secret is, vampires are real and I am one. The secret is, I’m stealing from you what is most truly yours and I’m not sorry... New York City in 1978 is a dirty, dangerous place to live. And die. Joey Peacock knows this as well as anybody—he has spent the last forty years as an adolescent vampire, perfecting the routine he now enjoys: womanizing in punk clubs and discotheques, feeding by night, and sleeping by day with others of his kind in the macabre labyrinth under the city’s sidewalks. The subways are his playground and his highway, shuttling him throughout Manhattan to bleed the unsuspecting in the Sheep Meadow of Central Park or in the backseats of Checker cabs, or even those in their own apartments who are too hypnotized by sitcoms to notice him opening their windows. It’s almost too easy. Until one night he sees them hunting on his beloved subway. The children with the merry eyes. Vampires, like him…or not like him. Whatever they are, whatever their appearance means, the undead in the tunnels of Manhattan are not as safe as they once were. And neither are the rest of us.

The zombie apocalypse was just the beginning of Emily's problems. Now the vampire hunter has to ride cross-country with Death himself in this thrilling apocalyptic adventure series! Two years after the zombie uprising devours 99% of the world's population, it's Emily Campbell's job to destroy vampire communes and rescue their human herds. When a mission goes wrong, and she's faced with certain undeath, she would rather kill herself than ever let them transform her. The problem is that when she tries, the Grim Reaper fails to take her life. And he somehow loses all his powers in the process. Now neither alive nor dead, Emily finds herself stranded in the California desert with Death himself. If she can get him to help her, there's a chance she can cross the vampire- and zombie-swarmed continent to New York, where the remnants of civilization are developing a cure that could make her human again. But without his powers, Death is mired in a crisis of his own. And he is not used to having company.

A genius is abducted by an alien bounty-hunter for the location of a powerful inter-dimensional object. Trouble is, he can’t remember a thing. Ben isn’t exactly a genius, but he has an immense breadth of knowledge. Whether it’s natural science (specifically the intricacies of bug sex), or vintage timepieces, he can spout facts and information with the best of experts. He just can’t explain why he knows any of it. Another thing he knows is the location of the Chime. What it is or why it’s important, he can’t say. But this knowledge is about to get him in a whole heap of trouble, as a trash-talking, flesh construct bounty hunter is on his tail and looking to sell him to the highest bidder. And being able to describe the mating habits of Brazilian bark lice won't be enough to get him out of it. File Under: Science Fiction [ Bloom of God | Patton you on the back | Eels Aplenty | Some Aliens Just Suck ]

A witch is cursed to relive a doomed love affair through many lifetimes, as both troubled muse and frustrated artist, in this haunting debut novel. Helen Lambert has lived several lives-a young piano virtuoso in 1890s Paris, an actress in 1930's Hollywood, a rock star in 1970s Los Angeles -- only she doesn't know it. Until she meets a strange man who claims he's watched over her for centuries, bound to her from the beginning. At first, Helen doesn't believe him. Her life is as normal as any other modern career woman's. Then she begins having vivid dreams about ill-fated love and lives cut short. Caught in a curse, Helen will be forced to relive the same tragic events that ruined her previous lives. But with each rebirth, she's developed uncanny powers. And as the most powerful version of herself, Helen must find a way to break the curse before her time runs out. A Witch in Time is a bewitching tale of passion, reincarnation, and magic perfect for fans of A Secret History of Witches and Outlander. Praise for A Witch in Time: "A sweeping story of magical, star-crossed love, as glamorous as it is romantic. Prepare to be dazzled."―Alma Katsu, author of The Hunger "Incredibly engrossing and decadent in all the best ways, A Witch in Time is a sumptuous story of love and loss that's perfect for fans of historical fiction with a touch of fantasy."―Hypable "A narrative rich in historical detail, brightened by flashes of humor, and filled with colorful characters and fascinating settings. A most rewarding read!" ―Louisa Morgan, author of A Secret History of Witches For more from Constance Sayers, check out The Ladies of the Secret Circus.

Bellamy's debut novel revives the central female character from Bram Stoker's Dracula and imagines her as an independent woman living in San Francisco during the 1980s. Hypocrisy's not the problem, I think, it's allegory the breeding ground of paranoia. The act of reading into--how does one know when to stop? KK says that Dodie has the advantage because she's physical and I'm "only psychic." ... The truth is: everyone is adopted. My true mother wore a turtleneck and a long braid down her back, drove a Karmann Ghia, drank Chianti in dark corners, fucked Gregroy Corso ... --Dodie Bellamy, The Letters of Mina Harker First published in 1998, Dodie Bellamy's debut novel The Letters of Mina Harker sought to resuscitate the central female character from Bram Stoker's Dracula and reimagine her as an independent woman living in San Francisco during the 1980s--a woman not unlike Dodie Bellamy. Harker confesses the most intimate details of her relationships with four different men in a series of letters. Vampirizing Mina Harker, Bellamy turns the novel into a laboratory: a series of attempted transmutations between the two women in which the real story occurs in the gaps and the slippages. Lampooning the intellectual theory-speak of that era, Bellamy's narrator fights to inhabit her own sexuality despite feelings of vulnerability and destruction. Stylish but ruthlessly unpretentious, The Letters of Mina Harker was Bellamy's first major claim to the literary space she would come to inhabit.

Diamonds and emeralds; courtesans and spies; baguette and brie - plunge into the romantic and fast-moving world of The Honeybee Emeralds. Aspirational and adventurous, The Honeybee Emeralds is set in expat Paris, a place of tiresome traffic, tucked-away cafes, exclusive boutiques and delicious desserts. Iranian refugee Alice Ahmadi grew up in Northern England, never certain of where she belonged. Interning at a struggling expat magazine, Bonjour Paris, she discovers a priceless diamond and emerald necklace with a golden honeybee pendant. Alice shares the discovery with the magazine's American editor, Lily Wilkins, who sees it as a lifeline to save the magazine: they will put the necklace, and its history, on next month's cover. Lily's best friend and fellow American, Daphne Smythe-Baird joins them in their quest. Forming the "Fellowship of the Necklace'' with a trio of unlikely men, the women dive into research. From the stunning and historic Richelieu Library, to a creepy disused theatre in a bad part of town; from high-end jewellers near Place Vendome to the idyllic home of a Loire Valley winemaker; the Fellowship encounters fascinating characters in their search for the truth. At the edges of all this excitement, Élise Boucher, Bonjour Paris's cranky long-time office manager, worries about her future. Through diaries, letters and reminiscences, the romantic story of the necklace is unravelled. Commissioned by the lusty Napoléon III for his favourite mistress, The Honeybee Emeralds was next owned by ill-fated First World War spy, Mata Hari. During the Roaring Twenties the necklace found its way onto the elegant neck of Josephine Baker, the American singer, dancer and sex symbol who took Paris by a storm. As the Fellowship unravels the twists and turns of the necklace's life, one secret remains: how did it end up in a Parisian basement?

A librarian's laugh-out-loud funny, deeply moving collection of love letters and breakup notes to the books in her life. If you love to read, and presumably you do since you’ve picked up this book (!), you know that some books affect you so profoundly they forever change the way you think about the world. Some books, on the other hand, disappoint you so much you want to throw them against the wall. Either way, it’s clear that a book can be your new soul mate or the bad relationship you need to end. In Dear Fahrenheit 451, librarian Annie Spence has crafted love letters and breakup notes to the iconic and eclectic books she has encountered over the years. From breaking up with The Giving Tree (a dysfunctional relationship book if ever there was one), to her love letter to The Time Traveler’s Wife (a novel less about time travel and more about the life of a marriage, with all of its ups and downs), Spence will make you think of old favorites in a new way. Filled with suggested reading lists, Spence’s take on classic and contemporary books is very much like the best of literature—sometimes laugh-out-loud funny, sometimes surprisingly poignant, and filled with universal truths. A celebration of reading, Dear Fahrenheit 451 is for anyone who loves nothing more than curling up with a good book...and another, and another, and another!

A New York Times Bestselling AuthorEnglish professor Arthur Prescott is happiest when surrounded by the ancient books and manuscripts of the Barchester Cathedral library, nurturing his secret obsession with the Holy Grail and researching his perennially unfinished guide to the medieval cathedral. Then a beautiful young American arrives in Barchester to digitize the library's manuscripts, and Arthur's tranquility is broken. Appalled by the threat modern technology poses to the library he loves, he sets out to thwart Bethany, only to find in her a kindred spirit with a similar love for knowledge and books - and a fellow Grail fanatic.

The last human in the universe must battle unfathomable alien intelligences—and confront the truth about humanity—in this ambitious, galaxy-spanning debut “A good old-fashioned space opera in a thoroughly fresh package.”—Andy Weir, author of The Martian “Big ideas and believable science amid a roller-coaster ride of aliens, AI, superintelligence, and the future of humanity.”—Dennis E. Taylor, author of We Are Legion Most days, Sarya doesn’t feel like the most terrifying creature in the galaxy. Most days, she’s got other things on her mind. Like hiding her identity among the hundreds of alien species roaming the corridors of Watertower Station. Or making sure her adoptive mother doesn’t casually eviscerate one of their neighbors. Again. And most days, she can almost accept that she’ll never know the truth—that she’ll never know why humanity was deemed too dangerous to exist. Or whether she really is—impossibly—the lone survivor of a species destroyed a millennium ago. That is, until an encounter with a bounty hunter and a miles-long kinetic projectile leaves her life and her perspective shattered. Thrown into the universe at the helm of a stolen ship—with the dubious assistance of a rebellious spacesuit, an android death enthusiast on his sixtieth lifetime, and a ball of fluff with an IQ in the thousands—Sarya begins to uncover an impossible truth. What if humanity’s death and her own existence are simply two moves in a demented cosmic game, one played out by vast alien intellects? Stranger still, what if these mad gods are offering Sarya a seat at their table—and a second chance for humanity? The Last Human is a sneakily brilliant, gleefully oddball space-opera debut—a masterful play on perspective, intelligence, and free will, wrapped in a rollicking journey through a strange and crowded galaxy.

At Redemption House, a haven for runaways, Reverend Robert "Brother Bob" Eversfield treats his wayward youths like family, as long as they follow his rules, but for those who transgress or try to escape Brother Bob has ingeniously horrifying punishments

This book is a printed edition of the Special Issue "Rabies Symptoms, Diagnosis, Prophylaxis and Treatment" that was published in TropicalMed

Home as Found (1838) is a novel written by James Fenimore Cooper. It takes place in the fictional town of Templeton, which is modeled after the Village of Cooperstown. In the novel the Effingham family moves back to Templeton from New York City.[

BAG OF TRICKS Eleven-year-old Juice Smith's favorite place in the whole world was the old abandoned Wilner Theatre. There on its dark and dusty stage she could pretend to be "Juice the Magnifico" performing magic with her bag of tricks. Her grandfather, a long-time member of the local Sleights-of-Hand, had given her a special skeleton key, and to Juice's surprise it fit right in the lock of the ornate old trunk that had been left backstage … BLACK MAGIC The Sleights-of-Hand were furious when they discovered at their next meeting that Nat Smith had given his skeleton key–the skeleton key–to his granddaughter. Nat wondered what they could possible be afraid of after all these years. But one by one over the next few weeks, the venerable members of the Sleights-of-Hand would find their magical talents failing them at crucial–and gruesome–moments. And Nat would discover there was good reason to be afraid. Very afraid.

Dimos Horacki is a Borolian journalist and a cynical patriot, his muckraking days behind him. But when his newspaper ships him to the front, he’s embedded in the Imperial Army and the reality of colonial expansion is laid bare before him. His adventures take him from villages and homesteads to the great refugee city of Hronople, built of glass, steel, and stone, all while a war rages around him. The empire fights for coal and iron, but the anarchists of Hron fight for their way of life. A Country of Ghosts is a novel of utopia besieged and a tale that challenges every premise of contemporary society.