Science Thriller

Herbs are good for you, right? Maybe not so good for one person - who's found dead beside a cauldron of magical herbs. Glittery, frilly Sian Pederi is running a course up in the hills called "Unfurl Your Inner Spirit", and it's all path working, ley lines, drumming, and vegan food...until the corpse rocks up. Bron needs to get to the bottom of it, but literally everyone wanted this person dead - and even Bron herself could have cheerfully hit them with a tree branch. She's got other problems, too.

There's a witch running loose in the town of Excelsior, Minnesota, and her brew is…beer. Actually, Leona Cunningham, co-owner of The Barleywine, is a practitioner of Wicca, which many mistakenly believe to be sorcery or black magic. Then, after one too many pints, local alcohol aficionado Ryan McMurphy accuses Leona of being a real witch, blaming her for the series of accidents. When Ryan ends up dead, without a mark on his body, Leona is not only the target of a witch hunt but also the prime suspect.

STOP. You should not have touched this flyer with your bare hands. NO, don't put it down. It's too late. They're watching you. My name is David Wong. My best friend is John. Those names are fake. You might want to change yours. You may not want to know about the things you'll read on these pages, about the sauce, about Korrok, about the invasion, and the future. But it's too late. You touched the book. You're in the game. You're under the eye. The only defense is knowledge. You need to read this book, to the end. Even the part with the bratwurst. Why?

You open your eyes for what you know is not the first time and you remember nothing. You find out that a catastrophic event known as the Kollaps has destroyed life as we know it. Something crucial has been stolen - but under no circumstances can you know what or why. You’ve got to get it back or something bad is going to happen. And you’ve got to get it back fast, so they can freeze you again before your own time runs out. Paralyzed from the waist down, you’re being carried around on the backs of two men who don’t seem anything like you at all.

For my forty-fifth birthday, I planned to treat myself to a spa day with my bestie. But instead, my late husband's insurance broker drops by to let me know that not only am I still widowed but my husband's insurance policies are being paid to his other wife-and his other family. The next thing I know, I'm being romanced by an Indiana Jones wannabe who arrives like a dervish to sweep me off my feet. One thing leads to another, but before anything happens, Indy goes missing, the place is trashed, and I've got myself a glowing snake tattoo that seems to be talking to me about magic.

With Charleston's council poised to take over Honeysuckle Hollow, the town and all of its people must band together to prove they don't need to be absorbed into the big city magical district. What better way to show off the small supernatural Southern town than to host a barbecue contest and some classic broom racing?

Already cited on the floor of Congress and discussed in the corridors of the Pentagon as a book all Americans should read, One Second After is the story of a war scenario that could become all too terrifyingly real. Based upon a real weapon - the Electro Magnetic Pulse (EMP) - which may already be in the hands of our enemies, it is a truly realistic look at the awesome power of a weapon that can destroy the entire United States.

When a massive solar flare wiped out all modern technology across the globe, the small town of Abney, Texas, was thrown into chaos. Shelby Sparks and her teenage son, Carter, have found refuge, but Shelby knows she can't simply remain hidden. Carter is a type-one diabetic in need of insulin - and Shelby will risk her life traveling to Austin to make sure he gets it. Shelby's best friend and high school sweetheart, Max Berkman, won't even consider letting her make the perilous journey alone.

Randolf "Thorn" Wilson died a long time ago. But that doesn't stop him from riding his ghost Harley through the sky, trying to help other bikers. Now, he's caught in a battle between an elven King and his skateboard-riding champion and a mad Prince of the Dark Elves and his demon drug-pusher. Also caught in the middle are two mortal bikers: Wolf, an ex-vet who's a mage-in-training, and Lucas Tatum, a criminal-in-training. It's up to Thorn to save the two without getting the tattered remnant of his spirit blasted to the four winds....

Long lost to the public in out-of-print pulp magazines, dusty Victorian anthologies, and the pages of now defunct newspapers, these vintage vampire stories have truly proved immortal. Resurrected now for the year 2011, this is a stunning collection of nineteenth-century vampire stories by heavyweights such as Sabine Baring-Gould and Bram Stoker. These rare stories are arranged in chronological order from 1846 to 1913 and are compiled by two of the world's leading vampire anthologists and experts.

Lucy and her friends' time at Minecrafters Academy is coming to an end, and the entire school is preparing for graduation. But when an explosion shakes the campus and Lucy's old friend Steve appears with bad news from his village, all plans to celebrate come to a halt. The school is no longer under attack - it's being destroyed. And it's time for the students to use their training outside the safety of the Academy. Lucy, Jane, and Phoebe must use the skills they've honed in school to battle the evil force.

It may be less than a month since the doors of New Order opened, but that doesn't mean Bo Blackman isn't busy. It's not just daft allegations about vampire dogs and complicated relationships that she has to deal with, however.

Black Hollow is a town with a dark secret. For centuries, residents have foretold the return of the Dreamwalker - an ominous figure from local folklore said to lure young women into the woods and possess them. Yet the boundary between fact and fable is blurred by a troubling statistic: Occasionally, women do go missing. And after they return, they almost always end up dead.

“Are you happy with your life?” Those are the last words Jason Dessen hears before the kidnapper knocks him unconscious. Before he awakens to find himself strapped to a gurney, surrounded by strangers in hazmat suits. Before a man he’s never met smiles down at him and says, “Welcome back, my friend.” In this world he’s woken up to, Jason’s life is not the one he knows. His wife is not his wife.

The year is 1590. The city of London flourishes, the most brilliant jewel in the crown of Elizabeth I. Years ago, Elizabeth forged a pact with her faerie counterpart to secure both of their thrones. Now that alliance is in danger. Michael Deven, a rising star in Elizabeth’s court, seeks the “hidden player” who has influenced mortal politics for so long. Lady Lune, a faerie out of favor, must infiltrate the mortal world to protect her vicious queen. Together this pair will uncover the secret of Invidiana’s power - a secret that has the potential to shatter both realms.

Angharad "Harry" Russo has had to adjust to some major changes in her life. Her computer is haunted, she accidentally acquired a vampire servant, and she's attracted to the most aggravating alpha male on the planet. Her friend betrayed her, a lunatic tried to sacrifice her to raise a god, and she accidentally "outed" herself to the Magister, the most powerful vampire in town. What else could go wrong? Oh yeah, she's just discovered that her father is a vampire and her dhamphiric powers are emerging.

At first, it looks like a disease. An epidemic that spreads through no known means, driving its victims mad with memories of a life they never lived. But the force that’s sweeping the world is no pathogen. It’s just the first shock wave, unleashed by a stunning discovery - and what’s in jeopardy is not our minds but the very fabric of time itself. In New York City, Detective Barry Sutton is closing in on the truth - and in a remote laboratory, neuroscientist Helena Smith is unaware that she alone holds the key to this mystery...and the tools for fighting back.

Zoe’s hard-won peaceful life is shattered when a devious thief targets her most prized possession—a vibrant portrait that’s her last connection to her long-dead brother. It’s a painting that also holds the secrets of a forgotten artist who created recipes for the most breathtaking colors ever seen. When the canvas disappears and murder follows, Zoe must unravel a palette of deadly puzzles. With her quick-witted sidekick Dorian and their eclectic group of friends, Zoe races to catch a killer, evade a secret society, and recover her beloved painting.

As Sarah and Julian begin their quest to uncover the truth surrounding his curse, a new threat arises, endangering not only their lives but the future they hope to build with one another. In order to protect themselves and those they care about the most, Julian and Sarah must use all of the resources at their disposal to neutralize their adversaries.

Doing Time: For the prison writers whose work is included in this anthology, it means more than "serving a sentence"; it means staying alive and sane, preserving dignity, reinventing oneself, and somehow retaining one's humanity. For the last quarter century the prestigious writers' organization PEN has sponsored a contest for writers behind bars to help prisoners face these challenges. The contest honors the best short stories, plays, essays, and poems among hundreds submitted annually by men and women nationwide.