Adult

On the tropical island of Paraiso, Plum Lockhart has a new zest for life after solving a couple of pesky murders. She is thrilled when she gets an invite to dinner on the yacht, where she can mingle with famous singers, up-and-coming stars, society swans and billionaires. After a few hours on the boat, Plum is less than impressed with the celebrity set, and when a server tries to pull her aside to confide a secret, she wonders what else may be lurking beneath the surface. Two days later, one of the servers from the yacht --- a girl with a dragonfruit tattoo --- washes up dead. As the ship prepares to set sail across the Caribbean, it becomes clear that everyone on board has a motive, and Plum must sleuth out the killer before she becomes the next victim.

Evacuated from a secluded boarding school during a snowstorm, Hannah’s coach careers off the road, trapping her with a handful of survivors. Meg is in a cable car stranded high above snowy mountains, with five strangers and no memory of how they got on board. They are heading to a place known only as “The Retreat,” but Meg realizes they may not all make it there alive. Carter is gazing out the window of an isolated ski chalet that he and his companions call home. As their generator begins to waver in the storm, their fragile bonds will be tested when the power finally fails. The imminent dangers faced by Hannah, Meg and Carter are each one part of the puzzle. Lurking in their shadows is an even greater danger --- one with the power to consume all of humanity.

She can't recall what started her collection. Maybe it was in a fragment of conversation overheard as she cleaned a sink? Before long (as she dusted a sitting room or defrosted a fridge), she noticed people were telling her their stories. Perhaps they had always done so, but now the stories are reaching out to her and she gathers them to her. Cleaner Janice knows that it is in people's stories that you really get to know them. When Janice starts cleaning for Mrs. B --- a shrewd and prickly woman in her 90s --- she finally meets someone who wants to hear her story. But Janice is clear: she is the keeper of stories, she doesn't have a story to tell. At least, not one she can share. Mrs. B is no fool and knows there is more to Janice than meets the eye.

Abby, a young feminist economist, is anxious that she is grossly underprepared for a talk she is presenting the next day on optimism and John Maynard Keynes. So she has resolved to practice by using an ancient rhetorical method of assigning parts of her speech to different rooms in her house and has brought along a comforting, albeit imaginary, companion to keep her on track --- Keynes himself. Yet, as she wanders with increasing alarm through the rooms of her own consciousness, Abby finds herself straying from her prepared remarks. Instead she undertakes a quest through her memories to ideas hidden in the corners of her mind as she asks what a better world would look like if we told our stories with more honest and hopeful imaginations.

When unforeseen circumstances during an innovative --- and unsanctioned --- commercial asteroid-mining mission leave two crew members stranded, those who make it back must engineer a rescue. With Earth governments consumed by the ravages of climate change and unable to take the risks necessary to make rapid progress in space, the crew must build their own nextgen spacecraft capable of mounting a rescue in time for the asteroid's next swing by Earth. In the process they'll need to establish the first spin-gravity station in deep space, the first orbiting solar power satellite and refinery, and historic infrastructure on the moon's surface --- all of which could alleviate a deepening ecological, political and economic crisis back on Earth.

July, 1944: The lush, rolling hills of Normandy are dotted with a new feature --- German snipers. From their vantage points, they pick off hundreds of Allied soldiers every day, bringing the D-Day invasion to its knees. It’s clear that someone is tipping off these snipers with the locations of American GIs. But who? And how? General Eisenhower demands his intelligence service to find the best shot in the Allied military to counter this deadly SS operation. Enter Pacific hero Earl Swagger, who is assigned this crucial and bloody mission. With crosshairs on his back, Swagger can’t trust anyone as he infiltrates the shadowy corners of London and France for answers.

The newly hired personal assistant to a handsome, wealthy photographer is ready to greet her boss with coffee and good cheer. Instead, she finds him slumped in bed, shot to death. The victim recently had received rave media attention for his latest project: images of homeless people in their personal “dream” situations, elaborately costumed and enacting unfulfilled fantasies. There are some, however, who view the whole thing as nothing more than crass exploitation. Has disgruntlement blossomed into homicidal rage? Or do the roots of violence reach down to the victim’s family? Then new murders arise, and Dr. Alex Delaware and Detective Milo Sturgis begin peeling back layer after layer of intrigue and complexity, culminating in one of the deadliest threats they’ve ever faced.

The epitome of floral beauty, orchids have long fostered works of art, tales of adventure and scientific discovery. Tenacious plant hunters have traversed continents to collect rare specimens; naturalists and shoguns have marveled at orchids’ seductive architecture; royalty and the smart set have adorned themselves with their allure. In ORCHID MUSE, historian and home grower Erica Hannickel gathers these bold tales of the orchid-smitten throughout history, while providing tips on cultivating the extraordinary flowers she features.

Olivia Bender desperately wants to be a mother. Fertility treatments and IVF keep failing. And just when she feels she’s at her lowest point, the police deliver shocking news to Olivia and her husband, Park. DNA results show that the prime suspect in a murder investigation is Park’s son. Olivia is relieved, knowing this is a mistake. Despite their desire, the Benders don’t have any children. Then comes the confession. Many years ago, Park donated sperm to a clinic. He has no idea how many times it was sold --- or how many children he has sired. As the murder investigation goes deeper, more terrible truths come to light. With every revelation, Olivia must face the unthinkable. The man she married has fathered a killer. But can she hold that against him when she keeps such dark secrets of her own?

Beginning on August 17, 1942, American heavy bomber crews of the Eighth Air Force took off for combat in the hostile skies over occupied Europe. The final price was staggering. 4,300 B-17s and B-24s failed to return. Nearly 21,000 men were taken prisoner or interned in a neutral country, and a further 17,650 made the ultimate sacrifice. LUCK OF THE DRAW is more than a war story. It’s the incredible, inspiring story of Frank Murphy, one of the few survivors from the 100th Bombardment Group, who cheated death for months in a German POW camp after being shot out of his B-17 Flying Fortress.