Showing results by narrator "Mike Carnes" in All Categories

Keeping the peace in a West Texas town like Buffalo Peak should be easy for a legendary frontiersman like Marshal Elwood "Firestick" McQueen. He’s got his longtime buddies "Beartooth" Skinner and "Moosejaw" Hendricks as his deputies—not to mention the famous rifle that earned him his nickname. But when Firestick learns that their ornery old friend “Rip” Ripley just rode into town, all bets are off. It’s darn near impossible to keep the peace when Rip’s specialty is disturbing it. Firestick finds a decade-old wanted poster for Rip—the reward is one dollar.

Altai managed to survive in Limbo and get a coveted pass to the Green Zone, but this is only the beginning of his journey. Thanks to the "Hand of Justice" achievement, the former planetary assault trooper saw a faint glimmer of hope that one day he'll escape Rhapsody. One day, maybe, if he's lucky.... Now is not the time, though. After all, a visit to Elysium is just a short respite before a new race with death begins.

There are some things in this world that can't be stopped. Like progress, a moving train, and the American Dream. When the bigwigs in Washington decide to build a transcontinental railroad to the West Coast, they need a man who's just as unstoppable to clear a path through Mexican territory. That man is Jamie MacCallister. Jamie knows it's a tough job. The territory is overrun with Apaches. The Apaches are gunning for a fight. And the first patrol sent in by the president has already been ambushed, kidnapped, and most likely killed.

Altai has managed to accomplish the impossible. He survived in the Red Zone and won the tournament—but the victory didn't give him the satisfaction he'd been seeking. He took revenge on the man who had ruined his life—but revenge only raised new questions. Questions that can't be answered as long as he remains in the Range. There's only one thing left to do: complete special assignments given by the Administration with the hope that, sooner or later, he'll earn his freedom. If he survives, of course.

Altai has always considered himself lucky, but this time, his luck at the Range may have run out. His first venture into the Orange Zone turned out to be a setup, a standard leveling up mission proved to be disastrous, and an epic quest cost the lives of his squadmates. Moreover, he found himself teetering on the brink of survival. Now, Altai's life depends on an experimental neural network and an alien creature whose sole purpose is to subjugate his consciousness and turn him into a living weapon.

Few people on Rhapsody have ever managed to achieve what Altai has achieved. The status of a champion, a high level, increased loyalty of the Administration . . . But when things go completely sideways and the Range system falls apart, virtual achievements lose value. When forts perish and the Perimeter collapses, when the Xenos have swarmed Limbo and are trying to break into Elysium, the only things that matter are the thick walls, a supply of ammunition, and a friend's shoulder to lean on.

Marshall McLuhan was the greatest prophet of the digital age. In the 1960s, McLuhan, a Canadian literary theorist, turned his attention toward the budding and befuddling electronic age. Like most prophets, McLuhan became one through a fascination with God. Prophets divine their wisdom from a source, and Digital Communion shows that McLuhan's was his own Catholic faith. In other words, the greatest prophet of the digital age was an ardent Christian. A reconsideration of his vision can change the way we view the online world.

TC is a mysterious adventurer who suddenly awakes in a strange, new world. He meets a female elf in the forest who, despite being beautiful, attacks him and nearly takes his life. The encounter ends well and he manages to find his way out of the forest and reach the nearest city. Luck is on TC’s side at first, and a friendly innkeeper gives him advice on what to do next. It turns out, in order to survive in this world, he needs to have a female companion, otherwise TC won’t be able to get any jobs at the Guild.

Programming jobs are on the rise, and the field is predicted to keep growing, fast. Landing one of these lucrative and rewarding jobs requires more than just being a good programmer. Programming Interviews for Dummies explains the skills and knowledge you need to ace the programming interview. Interviews for software development jobs and other programming positions are unique. Not only must candidates demonstrate technical savvy, they must also show that they're equipped to be a productive member of programming teams and ready to start solving problems from day one.

Fate has once again played a trick on Altai. The chance to evacuate from Rhapsody was nothing more than an empty promise. Victory turned into defeat, and friends turned into enemies. Past achievements lost their value and disappeared. All hope was gone, and he had to start all over again. The last act of the tragedy turned out to only be a prelude, with new challenges looming on the horizon.

It starts as a happy reunion between Preacher and his fellow trappers in a peaceful Indian village. But it ends swiftly in death and destruction when a rival tribe attacks the village, slaughters some of Preacher’s Crow and mountain man friends, and carries off the women and children as prisoners. Preacher was off hunting when it happened. Now he’s teaming up with old friend Lorenzo and half-breed Tall Dog, to get the prisoners back—and get revenge. But the road to justice is paved with some very dark omens. And the trail leads to the baddest place on God’s good earth.

A powerful new kind of competitive advantage is now possible thanks to technological and social disruptions that are already occurring. These disruptions revolutionize how companies can partner to create new growth. The Reciprocity Advantage shares a model for creating that growth: define your right-of-way (the underutilized resources you already own that you can share with others), partner to do what you can't do alone, experiment to learn, and scale the new business at low risk.

Yesterday, Altai was a war hero. Today, he is a prisoner who chose exile to Rhapsody instead of death. This planet, the Range, knows no mercy. Here, thousands of prisoners fight each other for a place under the strange, cold sun. Here, the leftover alien biomechanisms and out-of-control Terran war machines roam in the ruins, and human life is measured in virtual experience that can be exchanged for armor and implants. Surviving in the Limbo slaughterhouse, upgrading to the 10th level, and getting into the Green Zone is all any dead man can hope for. Except not everyone succeeds.

God Loves Sex offers a truly liberating, godly view of holy sensuality by recovering the clear meaning of the Song of Songs as God-sanctioned eroticism. Then it uses that lens to answer questions posed by a fictional new Christian struggling with expectations of sexual purity. It asks provocative questions, such as What does it mean to be both holy and filled with rich sexual desire? and How can our sexual struggles take us deeper into the purposes of God?

TC's adventures continue. This time he decides to join a fighting tournament in Saramis, and it is not just a simple tournament. It is called a Five Star Tournament where the winner will be able to get a five star gold companion, Angel, as a prize. The reason sounds enticing but also suspicious. Having spent enough time learning about the local life, TC’s hunch tells him there is more to the tournament than everyone thinks. Strange rules and Angel’s Master’s unwillingness to see anyone until the winner is decided adds to the mystery.

The world is still reeling from the devastation of the final battle between the world’s strongest metahumans. Empire City has been left in shambles as it struggles to rebuild. Overnight, the world’s metabands, mysterious bracelets that offer their owner’s superhuman powers and abilities, have all ceased working. Guilt ridden over his possible hand in all of this, the masked vigilante Midnight has hung up his cowl.

What happens when a man starts life as a corpse? Two hundred years ago, Frank Victorsson awoke as a semi-dead, monstrous abomination reanimated by his hubris-ridden father Victor Frankenstein. But Frank refused to become the infernal hate his father spewed at the world. He walked away from his origins and into a small Minnesota town overflowing with magic.

From self-realization and self-promotion to self-help and the selfie, the modern world encourages us to be self-obsessed. We are even told that finding ourselves is the key to happiness. Better to lose yourself! More than 2,500 years ago, the Buddha argued that the self is an illusion—and that our belief in it is the cause of most, if not all, of our suffering. How to Lose Yourself presents lively, accessible, and expert new translations of ancient Buddhist writings about the central, unique, and powerful Buddhist teaching of "no-self."

A twisted tale of three unlikely heroes. Heretic monk turned sorcerer, Aldous Weaver. Infamous crusader turned fugitive, Kendrick the Cold. Aristocrat, rogue, monster hunter, and legend in his own mind, Theron Ward. Three men condemned to die for their crimes find in each other both the will and the means to survive. A dark brotherhood with sword and sorcery is forged, and all monsters meek and mighty do fear the three.

Trying to keep your in-person and virtual meetings on track and running smoothly? You need Robert's Rules of Order! These rules for conducting meetings have stood the test of time as the gold standard for practical and effective procedure in group settings like corporate and nonprofit boards, councils, and more.