Showing results by publisher "Phoenix Books" in Literature & Fiction

Daniel, a successful author-psychiatrist, awakens to discover he has survived his death. Two spiritual "greeters" introduce Daniel to the afterlife, guiding him in this new environment. He learns that each soul projects what it wishes to experience, and each must learn to let go of attachments through loving psychotherapy. Throughout his journey, Daniel moves from one stage of the afterlife to another, as his understanding of the spiritual realm gradually increases, and he strives to fulfill his destiny.

Young Alvin was born the seventh son of a seventh son. By his birthright, he possesses magical powers and is destined to become something great, perhaps even a Maker. Indeed, Alvin is special. But the boy remains vulnerable to dark forces who reach out to destroy him and are willing to do anything to keep him from growing up. Carefully weaving the lore and the folk-magic of the men and women who settled a continent—as well as the beliefs of the tribes who were there before them—Orson Scott Card has created a fascinating alternate frontier America.

Ready for a story? Here's a selection of some of the finest science fiction shorts of recent years, including stories from Arthur C. Clarke, Isaac Asimov, William Gibson, Robert Sheckley, Terry Bisson, Avram Davidson, and Philip K. Dick.

In this classic gothic romance, plain and poor orphan Jane Eyre relies on her independent nature and inner strength as she is subjected to a cruel life in the mid-19th century. After she endures great emotional and physical abuse at the hands of her aunt and cousins, Jane is subsequently shipped off to a Christian boarding school for poor and orphaned girls. She eventually gains a position as a governess for the brooding and arrogant Mr. Rochester, whose secluded manor harbors a secret and strange noises coming from the attic.

When Abe Ringel takes the case of Joe Campbell, the "White Knight" of the New York Knicks who stands accused of rape, he thinks he's found the perfect easy victory to get his career on track. But when Ringel's investigations suggest that Campbell is guilty and dangerous, the defense attorney must confront the conflict between his courtroom responsibilities and his ethics as a human being.

Crime, thriller, and noir fans will delight in this fourth volume of The Greatest Mysteries of All Time, an exciting series featuring short fiction by legendary writers, past and present. From Edgar Allan Poe, Ernest Hemingway, and Georges Simenon to Lawrence Block and Sara Paretsky, this unique collection—compiled and edited by multi-award-winning mystery connoisseur Otto Penzler—is a captivating mixture of mystery and suspense.

Pranks, adventures, fence painting, and murder— young Tom Sawyer and friends Huck Finn and Becky Thatcher encounter all of this and more in a small river town in the pre-Civil War South. Ever the mischief-maker, Tom is often on the wrong side of the rules at school and at home, under the watchful eye of his Aunt Polly.

This personal, philosophical narrative surveys the panorama of our world past and present. Dillard poses questions of natural evil, God, and individual existence. Can one individual really matter? If so, how? Compassionate, enthralling, and always surprising, For the Time Being is the latest work by one of our most original writers - her breadth of knowledge matched by keenness of observation- at her best.

This rare compilation includes memorable speeches delivered by celebrated African American women from both the past and present. Spanning decades and elucidating the fight for equality, these speeches not only represent important moments of Black history but reveal the struggle from a female perspective. The live recordings in this captivating collection are preceded by a short biography that introduces each speaker.

Charlie Heller is an ace cryptographer for the "Company." He's a quiet man with a quiet job in a back office. But when terrorists kill his fiancé in cold blood and the Agency decides not to pursue those responsible, Charlie's life takes an abrupt turn. He was not a blackmailer, but he will force the CIA's hand. He was not an assassin, but he will penetrate the Iron Curtain with the intent to kill. Driven by an obsessive need for revenge and targeted for elimination by the CIA itself, Heller is an amateur with a one-in-a-million chance of success.

Harry Stanford, one of the world's wealthiest man, dies mysteriously while cruising his yacht along the rugged coast of Corsica. Immediately following Stanford's funeral in Boston, a lovely young woman identifies herself as the tycoon's daughter and heir to a share of his estate. When the well-respected Stanford family looks into the identity of the unexpected heiress, they uncover a world of blackmail, drugs, and murder that leads them through the Italian Riviera.

Sebastian Zollner's failure as a journalist is matched only by his personal failures. Searching for redemption in the eyes of his peers, he heads off into the mountains to interview the eccentric, legendary painter Manuel Kaminski with the hope of writing his biography. Going blind and living in seclusion with his daughter, Kaminski could be working on his next masterpiece or easing into his final days. His artistic reputation hinges on any number of factors, but most prominently on a definitive biography.

Locked in his desk for 25 years, What Is Man? was Twain's most serious, philosophical, and private work. The narrative appears in the form of a Socratic dialogue between a romantic young idealist and an elderly cynic. The pair debate issues of mankind, such as whether man is free to act or is more of a machine, whether personal merit is meaningless given how the environment shapes us, and if man truly has impulses other than to pursue pleasure and avoid pain.

Back in Pickax, Jim Qwilleran expects to resume a quiet life, but the people and animals of Pickax have other ideas. A noisy cardinal wakes him every morning, nosy neighbors drop by uninvited, and the Siamese cats—Koko and Yum Yum—misbehave, even sneezing on guests. As if they weren't bad enough, Qwill's long-time companion, Polly Duncan, acts as though she is in love—with another man. Worst of all, Qwill finds a body in his apple orchard. When his friend, Dennis Hough, becomes the chief suspect, Qwill embarks on a crusade to clear Hough's name and win back Polly's heart.

What would it take to lure a serious young newswoman from a respectable New England paper to the most notorious supermarket tabloid in America? The call of journalistic adventure? How about a promise of a salary that's triple what she's making? En route to her new job at the Weekly Galaxy, Sara Joslyn stumbles across a bloody corpse in a Buick Riviera. A big story? Not at this paper. The problem is compounded when the dead man vanishes, Buick and all.

The legacy of Alexandra Ripley's Charleston lives on in this next installment in her Deep South saga. Let the passion, deception, secrets, and revenge creep under your skin like South Carolina heat as you plunge into this gripping novel of Southern intrigue.

This sequel to Beaches picks up after the tragic death of Bertie Barron, who has entrusted the care of her eight-year-old daughter, Nina, to her best friend, the dazzling entertainer Cee Cee Bloom. But life in the Hollywood spotlight never prepared Cee Cee for this role: mother to a little girl she barely knows. For several years, it all seems to work for her: career, motherhood, and even high-profile romance with a marvelous and unlikely lover.

The fifth volume of The Greatest Mysteries of All Time is an intriguing anthology of crime and suspense short stories by some of the most renowned writers in the field. This unique collection of master writers includes the usual suspects such as Patricia Highsmith and Mickey Spillane, but also writers better known for other genres, such as Isaac Asimov and Ogden Nash. Edited by the legendary multi-award-winning mystery connoisseur Otto Penzler—whose name is a hallmark of quality and expertise—this thrilling mixture of mystery and suspense will have you guessing up until the very end.

It is the winter of 1879, and Dodge city has lost its snap. Thirty-one-year-old Wyatt Earp, assistant city marshal, loads his wife and all they own into a wagon, and goes with two of his brothers and their women to Tombstone, Arizona, land of the silver mines. There Earp becomes deputy sheriff, meeting up with the likes of Doc Holliday, Clay Allison, and Bat Masterson as well as finding the love of his life, showgirl Josie Marcus.

The Chippewa shaman No-Eyes shares her wisdom and perspective on life. No-Eyes sits in her humble Colorado cabin, offering startling but compelling visions of the future, including some upheavals on the horizon. Listening intently to her teacher and new friend, Summer Rain learns about the unique relationship between the Earth Mother and the many creatures in her domain.