Showing results by author "Des O'Connor" in All Categories

In the centuries since rising up against a cruel, twisted dynasty, the Seven Cities have done much to move past their horrid histories, the memories of ancient monarchs who once fed on the life and blood of their own people. Those with a talent for magic are no longer hounded and slain. The lands beyond the Cities are safe, spared the atrocities the Alescuans once wrought upon them. For 300 years, there has been peace. Then Eska de Caraval, head of the prestigious Firenzia Company, finds herself framed for murder.

In business, many people follow the golden rule. But treating people the way we'd like to be treated can turn off clients or colleagues with different needs, wants, and hopes. The Platinum Rule shows you how to do unto others as they'd like done unto them. You'll discover the four basic business personalities and how to handle them in ways that put them at ease - the key to stronger career prospects, higher productivity, improved customer relations, and fewer conflicts.

This collection of nine short stories by Flannery O'Connor was published posthumously in 1965. The flawed characters of each story are fully revealed in apocalyptic moments of conflict and violence that are presented with comic detachment.

When It Is Darkest draws on Rory O'Connor's years of experience in suicide prevention, mental health and psychology and takes a comprehensive look into the reasons behind suicide and how to support someone who is suicidal themselves. Suicide is baffling and devastating in equal measures, and it can affect any one of us - one person dies by suicide every 40 seconds. Yet despite the scale of the devastation, for family members and friends, suicide is still poorly understood.

It is 1938 and for Manod, a young woman living on a remote island off the coast of Wales, the world looks ready to end just as she is trying to imagine a future for herself. The ominous appearance of a beached whale on the island's shore, and rumours of submarines circling beneath the waves, have villagers steeling themselves for what’s to come. Empty houses remind them of the men taken by the Great War, and of the difficulty of building a life in the island's harsh, salt-stung landscape.

Twenty years ago, a group of students each wrote themselves a letter, Dear Future Me. Confiding their deepest dreams and their very darkest secrets. Now the letters, thought long discarded, have begun to drop through letterboxes. For some they will make them re-evaluate the decisions they've made, the person they could have been. For others, the letters could be deadly . . .

In an age riven by "fake news," "alternative facts," and disputes over the validity of everything from climate change to the size of inauguration crowds, the authors argue that social factors, not individual psychology, are what's essential to understanding the persistence of false belief and that we must know how those social forces work in order to fight misinformation effectively.

Aaron Rodgers is among the two or three most talented players to ever hold the most important job in American team sports–quarterback. He also stands as the most mysterious and polarizing figure in the modern-day national pastime that is professional football. From his controversial Covid stance to his methods of spiritual awakening to his estrangement from his family to his high-profile romances to his devastating Achilles injury a mere four plays into his New York Jets career, Rodgers has long dominated the NFL’s news cycle.

Tara never imagined her introduction to Ireland like this - carrying her mam's ashes to honor her final request: "Tell Johnny I'm sorry.... Take me home." She's never met her mam's estranged brother, Johnny Meehan, who owns an architectural salvage business in Galway. Although Tara is immediately charmed by the medieval city, the locals seem wary of strangers, and a gypsy warns her that death is all around. When Tara arrives at her uncle's stone cottage, the prophesy seems true. A dead man lies sprawled over the threshold in a pool of blood.

Brothers Thom and Archie are the best of friends and never disagree, until the beautiful, young and very headstrong Molly James comes into their life. Molly might be playing a game with the brothers - but when war strikes and they both join up to fight, it isn't a game anymore. Based on the true story of the author's grandfather's wartime experiences, At the Going Down of the Sun explores the intense bond between soldiers and brothers fighting in war, and a love that may tear them apart.

Family is everything to Siobhán: her five siblings; her dear departed mother for whom the family business, Naomi’s Bistro, is named; and now her fiancé, Macdara Flannery. So precious is her engagement that Siobhán wants to keep it just between the two of them for a little longer. But Macdara is her family, which is why when his cousin Jane frantically calls for his help, Siobhán rushes with him from Kilbane to the rural village where Jane and her mother have recently moved. In a cottage, Ellen Delaney lies on her bed in a fancy red dress, no longer breathing.

Every family has a story.... But for the Guinness family a happy ending looks out of reach. Olly and Mae's marriage is crumbling, their teenage daughter Evie is on a mission to self-destruct and their beloved Pops is dying of cancer. Their once strong family unit is slowly falling apart. But Pops has one final gift to offer his beloved family - a ray of hope to cling to. As his life's journey draws to a close, he sends his family on an adventure across Europe in a camper van, guided by his letters, his wisdom and his love.

Nancy Clancy is growing up and ready for a whole new adventure... in her chapter book debut! Nancy and her best friend, Bree, have everything they need to solve a mystery, from their totally professional trench coats to their top-secret code. But when crime strikes in their classroom, will these super sleuths be able to crack the case? Find out in the glamorous start to an all-new chapter book series featuring everyone s favorite fancy girl!

Sir Ian McKellen is that rarest of characters: a celebrity whose distinguished political and social service has transcended his enormous fame and international stardom to reach far beyond the stage and screen. The breadth of his endeavour - professional, personal and political - has been truly staggering. Of some 400 stage and film roles, there are only three, in his own estimation, of which he has not been proud. Iconic roles have not been in short supply: Gandalf in The Lord of the Rings being perhaps the most universally recognised and well-loved.

Two women, one fake relationship & a fall they'll never forget. Bella Gold needs money for college, so when she hears of an agency that pays you to date people in return for large sums of cash she signs up. She knows what everyone’s thinking but she doesn’t take off her clothes, even if she wanted to. The only thing that happens is some hand holding and honest conversation. If she’s being honest, she feels bad for how lonely these people are.

No matter how Declan Idrys looks at his situation, he comes to the same conclusion every time: He is about to die at the hands of the first dark elf seen in 700 years. Fate, fortunately, is not so cruel, though, and after barely surviving this initial encounter with the er’endehn of Eserysh, Declan and his friends find themselves in a tentative truce with the war-loving elves. They share a common enemy, after all, and their mutual hate for the Endless Queen and her growing legions is enough for the two groups to set aside their mistrust for one another, if only for now.

In 2016, while in the early stages of IVF, Rose is shaken by the discovery that she carries a dangerous mutation of the BrCa1 gene. She begins to ask questions about her family history, and particularly her grandmother Nellie, whose early death left a hole in their family that was never quite filled. As the certainties in Rose's life start to crumble around her, she becomes fixated on the shadowy figure of Nellie. Who really was this woman, and could her secrets reveal the way forward for the granddaughter who may share her fatal gene?

Lectures on the History of Continental Philosophy brought to you by Staffordshire University. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How is that that some people seem to know just what to say all the time? Would you like to find out? Or are you surrounded by narcissists, psychopaths, and total d-bags at work and you’re sick of feeling like they ”got you?” Whether you’re just beginning to improve your communication skills, or you’re looking for advanced communication skills training, you’ll learn something new and useful in every episode that will help you find your voice, speak up, stand your ground, and hold your own even when up against the most skilled and powerful communicators. In this podcast, you’ll ...

Every spring, Little Leaguers across the country mimic his stance and squabble over the right to wear his number, 2, the next number to be retired by the world’s most famous ball team. Derek Jeter is their hero. He walks in the footsteps of Ruth, Gehrig, DiMaggio, and Mantle, and someday his shadow will loom just as large. Yet he has never been the best player in baseball. In fact, he hasn’t always been the best player on his team. But his intangible grace and Jordanesque ability to play big in the biggest of postseason moments make him the face of the modern Yankee dynasty, and of America’s game.