Showing results by narrator "Mason" in All Categories

The King of Bohemia engages Holmes to recover an indiscreet photograph showing him with the renowned beauty, adventuress and opera singer Irene Adler – the revelation of which would derail his marriage to a daughter of the King of Scandinavia. In disguise, Holmes witnesses Adler marry the man she truly loves, then by means of an elaborate stratagem discovers the photograph's hiding place. But when Holmes and the king return to retrieve the photo, they find Adler has fled the country with it, leaving behind a letter for Holmes and a portrait of herself for the King. The king allows Holmes to retain the portrait as a souvenir.

The Club of Queer Trades is a collection of stories by G. K. Chesterton first published in 1905. Each story in the collection is centered on a person who is making his living by some novel and extraordinary means (a "queer trade", using the word "queer" in the sense of "peculiar"). To gain admittance one must have invented a unique means of earning a living and the subsequent trade being the main source of income.

Former Marine Will Hawthorne has defeated the Gates of the Golden Staff, but the remnants of the cult have escaped with the tools he needs to finally save his adopted world. Searching for their last stronghold, he and three of his closest wives - fox-girl Merindra, cat-girl Narilora, and bat-girl Mereceeree - must trek deep into the Taitalan wilderness in hopes of destroying the cult once and for all.

At Waterloo Station, hopeful new arrivals from the West Indies step off the boat train, ready to start afresh in 1950s London. There, homesick Moses Aloetta, who has already lived in the city for years, meets Henry 'Sir Galahad' Oliver and shows him the ropes. In this strange, cold and foggy city where the natives can be less than friendly at the sight of a black face, has Galahad met his Waterloo? But the irrepressible newcomer cannot be cast down.

Apparently, conservative Midwestern voters want more than my brains, connections, and good looks to vote me in as a congressman. That's right, to appear as the all-American family man they want . . . I need a wife. ASAP. The lovely Odette Hastings seems to fit the bill. She's a wholesome small-town girl, and conveniently in need of cash. I'll give her the money to take care of her elderly parents, and she'll be the political arm candy I need. We both win, right? The only problem is Odette is a little too beautiful, a little too intelligent, and way too distracting.

Down and out in Paris and London is the first full-length work by the English author George Orwell, published in 1933. It is a memoir in two parts on the theme of poverty in the two cities. The first part is an account of living in near-destitution in Paris and the experience of casual labour in restaurant kitchens. The second part is a travelogue of life on the road in and around London from the tramp's perspective, with descriptions of the types of hostel accommodation available and some of the characters to be found living on the margins.

David "Dax" Xavier knew he was supposed to stay away from Arya Rossi. Not only was she too young for him . . . Arya was the sister of one of his Silver Saints MC brothers. But even Nova's threat of death to anyone who touched her wasn't enough to keep Dax from claiming Arya for himself. Arya didn't know she was delivering herself to her own kidnapping, but she didn't complain when she found herself alone in a cabin with the man who'd been starring in her fantasies. 

Lutz and the party are finally back where everything began, but as they found out when they encountered a full power Archfiend, their strength isn't enough to defeat the fiends of Chaos. So, Lutz decides that a grinding session is long overdue! This time, they're going to one of the most feared dungeons in the Orakian Kingdom: The Beast Warrens.

The Great Food Expo was meant to introduce new restaurants, country inns, and food specialty shops to Pickax - it was not supposed to be a literal explosion. But that's what happened. Luckily, Qwill is on the scene, his mustache twitching with suspicions that the bomber meant to do more than send a warning. His evidence: Koko and Yum Yum's newfound interest in...cheese.

She's the definition of lost. Doesn't know her name? Check. Cruelly beaten within an inch of her life? Check. No memory of anything that's happened since she woke up from that beating? Check. Losing a child she doesn't remember conceiving? Check. She hasn't felt anything but lost in a very long time. Then an old biker tells her danger is on the horizon. He sends her to a man that she instantly feels a connection with. A bone deep connection.

The huge alien prince claims I’m his wife—but I’ve never been a good little princess. I’m not about to start now. Stuck in a hot jungle with an even hotter alien is not how I imagined my diplomatic mission going. To make things worse, every conversation is an exercise in survivor charades. I’ve always prided myself on never needing a man, but this planet seems determined to prove I can't live without the massive alien stuck to my side.

Coolheaded Georgia Taylor dreams of becoming a police officer. But her orderly world goes into a tailspin when she and her friends answer an ad looking for egg donors and she winds up the intended bride of an honest-to-goodness alien. Georgia is convinced she can leave the brave new world behind and get back to her life plan, if she can just keep Rocky at arm's length. If only he weren't so infernally good-looking and thoughtful.

Never touch another club member's sister. It's one rule in the MC I'll never understand. That means Gemma is off limits. Too bad I don't listen to rules very well. I'll make Gemma see that she's the only woman for me. On my bike, in the clubhouse. She'll be mine. The Devil Saints are on our heels though, so I won't get to take my sweet time with her. And that's all I want to do. If I have to kill somebody to be with her, so be it. Those bastards have no idea what it really means to be the devil. I'll show them.

Graydon Adler: A man who's impossible to forget. Yet the first time our paths crossed on a SEAL mission—the kind that requires computer nerds like me to mingle with SEALs like him—I was so terrified that I barely remember him there. But every time after that? Oh, I remember plenty. Abs for days, shoulders that fill up a doorway, and a hard-earned SEAL trident on his uniform.

When I'm rescued by space pirates, they tell me I'm safe. I'm told I can be myself again, get as angry as I want, laugh and cry and scream all I need. I don't believe them, of course. I certainly don't believe Alyvos, the "muscle" of the pirate ship. Everyone says he likes nothing more than a good fight, but to me, he's kind and protective. How can I fear someone who holds me tenderly through the night and has fuzzy skin? But my pirate wants more from me than I'm ready to give. He wants my fiery spirit...and I'm not sure it's there anymore.  

Four years ago, I fell in love with a demon. Then he bailed on me, leaving me with a broken heart and a big secret. When I see a news article about Monsterville's new demon sheriff, I recognize Venom. My heart may have healed, but our past isn't over. I present him with our daughter, and he's stunned and overjoyed. He's still the gruff, growly demon I fell for with a soft, squishy inside he hides from the world.

Overnight, my life has changed to one of sheer survival. I wake up on a strange alien world covered in ice. I have no memories of myself, not even my name. And I've resonated to the biggest braggart on the planet. Skarr is a chest-beating alpha male gladiator with lizard genetics and an intense case of self-love. He tells everyone within hearing distance how amazing he is. Bleh.

Penguin presents the unabridged, downloadable, audiobook edition of PostCapitalism, written and read by Paul Mason. 'The most important book about our economy and society to be published in my lifetime' Irvine Welsh From Paul Mason, the award-winning Channel 4 presenter, Postcapitalism is a...

I never thought I’d be tricked into an arranged marriage with an alien warlord. Still, it’s been easy enough to keep my former gladiator husband at arm’s length. But once my translator starts working, the hulking himbo decides he’s tired of waiting and freaking kidnaps me. I wake up in a picturesque seaside village, and the big lug is only too happy to inform me that it’s all part of his plan to give us time to fall in love. Strangely enough, it turns out he was listening when I told him I loved historical mysteries.

The reclusive Ian barely participates in life, only doing so when his powers demand that he use them or pay the consequences. It seems that there's not a single person on this planet who doesn't want something from him, but the pain and suffering of others is nearly unbearable at times, leaving him no choice but to act. That is, until Wink unwittingly walks into his life, completely unaware that she's stepped straight into the dragon's den. Wink is just trying to get home after a long day of work. Her plans for the evening do not include stumbling upon a man with blood on his hands.