A baby is born in 1666, the year of 'Fire Horse' according to Japanese tradition, at the House of Metzengerstein in an area between Royal Hungary and the territory inhabited by Transylvanian Saxons. Frederick von Metzengerstein is nurtured by his dependable servant Bela after the Baroness passes away shortly after giving birth to him. The youngster lives a pleasant life for many years until his ailing father Baron Gotfrid is forced to negotiate the future of the region with his mortal rival Baron Willhelm von Berlifitzing. Frederick experiences a nightmare inside that castle, which haunts him for years until his father's passing, at which point the young master assumes ultimate power at the age of 17. During the celebratory ceremonies for the transition of power, Baron Berlifizing dies as a result of a fire that started in the House of Berlifitzing at their stables. By some strange coincidence, that same night, a black stallion, a proper wild beast, is captured by the guards close to the Metzengerstein property. The boy falls in love with the gorgeous animal at first sight, which alteres his fate and mental state. The secret that was eating him alive since he was an infant needs to be revealed sooner than later...
The new version of this Edgar Allan Poe tale follows closely the events in the original, with countless added historic elements and details, not mentioned by Poe, but still in his spirit. It can speak to the modern reader or draw in new audience to the works of the great author and poet, since it is now 'dirtier', sadder, more dramatic, and feels extremely realistic. The bonus features in this book are directly tied to the narrative, and the graphics will provide a glimpse into the worlds that the stories describe.
As fortune would have it, you have just stumbled across an off-the-leash, unbridled small compendium of outrageous stories called “Instant Ancestors.” Thanks to the lop-sided imagination of author Russell Shuler, you’ll meet a cast of characters, complete with a fabulous portrait (and subtle story clues contained therein), caught in every conceivable slant of shenanigan and predicament.
Stick your toe in, and you’ll experience “the long hard stare” of Cletus McHaggis as he faces off with the “devastating beauty” of twins Ismerelda and Desdomena, circling one another in an ancient game of “dupe and roll.” You’ll follow the conjurings of Gloriah Jellylooloo, the “Memory Catalyst,” who brings cinema to events thought to be long buried and those yet to occur. Observe Smabdolem Ik as he encounters a troop of dwarf strippers with a dark side. And try to stay abreast with the show-stopping ideas of exotic fan dancer Izzy Ibrahim and her creative partner (and son) Shelley. All this flabbergastery, and more, is now available between the covers of “Instant Ancestors.”
The Genesis of Instant Ancestors
It’s been said many times that you can pick your nose, but you can’t pick your relatives. I believed that to be true until, not long ago, I came across a shoe box crammed with family portraits taken roughly a hundred years ago in a favorite antique store. The stall proprietor included an index card with the scribbled broadside: “Instant Ancestors!” It went on to say that with these pictures, you could conjure up a long-lost relative from God knows where famous for such and such, and no one would be wiser. To be truthful, the idea appealed to my lop-sided, passionate sense of humor, so I bought the box of photographs and began imagining the personal chronicles of these precious folks who had been relegated to the dustbin of history.
The No.1 Sunday Times bestseller!
Will Trent and Sara Linton are back! Don’t miss the electrifying thriller featuring GBI investigator Will Trent and medical examiner Sara Linton from the international No.1 bestselling author Karin Slaughter.
Watch Will Trent on Disney+!
After that night, nothing was ever the same again …
Fifteen years ago, Sara Linton's life changed forever when a celebratory night out ended in a violent attack that tore her world apart. Since then, Sara has remade her life. A successful doctor, engaged to a man she loves, she has finally managed to leave the past behind her.
Until one evening, on call in the ER, everything changes. Sara battles to save a broken young woman who's been brutally attacked. But as the investigation progresses, led by GBI Special Agent Will Trent, it becomes clear that Dani Cooper's assault is uncannily linked to Sara's.
And it seems the past isn't going to stay buried forever …
Love crime? Love Slaughter.
After That Night was a No.1 Sunday Times bestseller w/c 26/6/22
There's nothing practical about magic—which is why I ditched my wand years ago. Thirteen years, to be exact. The day I left Silverlake. Except now, a family emergency has called me back home, and quite frankly, I'd rather be anywhere but here. But when my aunt raises her wand to cure a friend and he ends up dead, it becomes abundantly clear I'm not leaving anytime soon.
My name is Nora Black, and I'm having a very merry messy midlife Christmas!
Fifties are the new forties and I'm living my best life ever. I may have a few more aches and pains, graying roots, and couple extra pounds, but I also have two quirky best friends who always have my back, business is booming, and my love life has never been better or hotter.
That is until my sweetie Ezra Holden invites me home for Christmas to meet his family.
The season is full of surprises in Ezra's hometown, like a missing cousin, a case of mistaken identity, and a slew of painful memories-none of them my own.
This Holden Family Holiday should be filled with scents of peppermint, gingerbread, and pine, but all I smell is danger. It turns out my psychic nose really is the gift that keeps on giving.
She let him get away. Now she has to put him down.
Bubbles Marlowe thought she could handle anything HoloCity threw at her. But when a rogue scientist goes missing, the cyborg detective has no choice but follow him out of the world she knows, to a distant city even darker than her own.
Nathanial Price left a trail of bodies in his wake when he fled, and Bubbles blames herself for every one of them. With the blood of his victims on her hands, she’ll do anything to track him down and bring him to justice.
But one of her allies has a secret that could betray them all, and this black-hearted city has mysteries of its own. As Bubbles begins to unravel the lies, she makes an ugly discovery that binds her to this brutal new world.
This time she might not be able to escape…
Blade Runner meets The Fifth Element in this eccentric cyber-noir thriller series about a bleak world ravaged by corrupt leaders, mega-corporations, and crime lords… and the washed-up detective who might be the only one crazy enough to take them on.
Bubbles Marlowe IS BACK in an exciting new installment of the cyber-noir technothriller series, Bubbles in Space. Delve into the secrets of this gritty future world, and buckle up for an adventure full of unusual characters, dark humour, and non-stop action.
Fortunetellers. Demotivational speakers. Disillusioned shapeshifters.
You never know quite who -- or what -- you'll run into in Psychic City, but that's what makes life interesting for a PsyOps agent. Penny is a spirit medium hounded by hordes of undead fans, Karen is an empath who spends most of her time hiding beneath an oversized hoodie, and Viv is an eideticist with prophetic visions, a photographic memory, and a lot of baggage she'd just as soon forget. They might not always know exactly what they're doing, but when they're working together to investigate paranormal crime, they get results.
That's until a string of murders targets the city's psychic population, hitting a little close to home and putting the trio of detectives to the ultimate test.
You are in the capital city of Ireland. Like any city there are problems. Your job is to find Irish solutions to Irish problems.
Your team includes your beautiful Russian assistant Alice and the dangerous ex-army ranger, called the PMC, who has a slightly scrambled brain. Your customers include gangsters, police, business men, politicians and tailors each with a unique problem.
Each chapter is a short story but characters remain and develop as the book progresses.
There is no fear in love . . . so why is Jessica still running from it?
Jessica Chamberlain and her search-and-rescue dog, Luke, hunt for lost people in the Tidewater area of Virginia. But that's a side hustle: Jess's work as a private investigator pays the bills. Right now, she's looking for a girl missing for twenty years and the truth about a man's suicide. When someone runs her off the road and her house burns down, she could take the hint and leave-but she won't.
Regrouping in a fleabag motel far from her friends, Jess battles loneliness and anxiety. When a rich man in Norfolk asks her to find his runaway wife, Jess happily accepts his hefty advance. Soon she's on the Eastern Shore, between sea and sky, bay and ocean, the present and the past. Will Jess find the woman before fear finds them both?
Have you ever wished your cat could talk to you? If so, allow my story to be your cautionary tale.
My life was going just fine by most standards. I ran a successful business in a tight-knit magical community, and lived just blocks from a beautiful lake and series of hiking trails.
Then Selene showed up.
According to some magical code I inherit my aunt's ancient familiar; a grumpy ten-pound cat with a broken filter. She fancies herself something of a saber-toothed tiger, and claims to have wrestled the thread of her ninth life from the hands of the Fates themselves-although, I'm pretty sure that last part isn't true.
Almost positive.
I'm still looking into the magical fine print, but in the meantime I'm stuck as the guardian to an snarky immortal cat with a nonexistent filter. Oh, and by another cruel twist of fate, my ex-husband just moved back into town. I thought I couldn't take any more, but when a murder rocks my small community, I wind up entangled in the investigation thanks to a handsome stranger.
If only life came equipped with a rewind button.
Set in small-town Oregon, the latest in the charming Witch Way Librarian series from Amazon bestselling and acclaimed author Angela M. Sanders features a spellbinding heroine, a clever cat familiar, colorful locals-and of course, murder. Perfect for fans of Bailey Cates, Adele Abbott, Juliet Blackwell, and all cozy mystery lovers with a taste for the supernatural.
Josie is eager to show off Wilfred's delights to her visiting sister, Jean-even though Josie must conceal her magic from her. In any case, Jean is excited to attend Cookie Masterson's trademark 'Ready-Set-Go!' workshop on becoming a life coach. Then there's the grand reopening of Darla's Cafe, where the doors are thrown open to reveal . . . a dead man, stabbed in the back. That was definitely not on the revamped menu . . .
Even more worrisome, the sheriff receives a report of a fresh corpse at the retreat center. Maybe murder isn't so uncommon in Wilfred anymore, but two unfamiliar bodies within an hour certainly is! Josie's willing to let law enforcement take the lead-after all, she's gotten into some trouble from the hints the library's spellbound books keep feeding her about the patrons. But when her sister receives the killer's chilling calling card, she'll use everything within her otherworldly powers to divine just who in town has homicide as his new slogan . . .
Shamrocks, rainbows, pots of gold, and . . . one irate leprechaun.
Spring has sprung, and I'm finally getting out of town with my monster-hunting boyfriend. However, our cozy little rental cabin in the woods turns out to have a serious problem-an angry leprechaun infestation.
Before we can get back to our romantic rendezvous, we have to prove we didn't steal a magic hat.
Piece of cake, right?
