The Living End

The Living End
Author: Stanley Elkin
Publisher: Open Road Media
Total Pages: 102
Release: 2010-10-26
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 1453204407

Elkin’s darkly comic novel of the afterlife—the story of one man’s redemptive journey to hell and back When he is killed during a holdup at his Minneapolis liquor store, Ellerbee’s bad luck is only beginning. After a short stint in heaven, Ellerbee is banished to hell, abruptly and without explanation. What follows is a surreal and memorable adventure that brings Ellerbee face-to-face not only with his murderer’s accomplice, but also with God, Jesus, the Virgin Mary, and a host of others, all in his quest for salvation unlike any other. Moving and witty, The Living End is a hilarious send-up of afterlife clichés and a masterful exploration of the absurdities of human existence. This ebook features rare photos and never-before-seen documents from the author’s estate and from the Stanley Elkin archives at Washington University in St. Louis.

The Puddle Variations

The Puddle Variations
Author: Jeff Alworth
Publisher: Lulu.com
Total Pages: 266
Release: 2010-02-05
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 0615171842

What portion of a 16mm movie can be made for $1,000? Or, put another way, how does one turn a thousand dollars into a 30-minute short? This is the question confronting Charlie di Paulo, who has just received a seed grant from the Portland Film Institute to shoot his 16mm film. For a 26-year-old cab driver, a thousand dollars is a lot of cash, yet it won't even cover the cost of his film stock. Money isn't Charlie's only problem. His new girlfriend and his stepfather, Vic, are both convinced he should be pursuing his dream through more conventional means, and Vic has offered to pay for film school. For Charlie, whose 8mm short was good enough to win him the grant, education isn't necessary'money is. As the book unfolds, he sets about trying to raise the money and mount the production, and along the way he receives support in various forms from the local doyenne of independent film, a cobbler, a philosophy student, and a bookie.

Hell's Chimney

Hell's Chimney
Author: Derek Smith
Publisher: Earlham Books
Total Pages: 304
Release: 2014-07-01
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 1909804339

A fantasy that begins with Toby in a dungeon, due to be executed for murdering his father, the king. His escape results in a hue and cry, instigated by his step-mother, the Queen. Toby must be caught and executed along with any who assist him. While on the run, he rescues a peasant, Far, and an aristocratic young woman, Orly, both of whom have had their families slaughtered. Class and passion complicate their relationship as they struggle to escape the marauding soldiers. Exhausted and battered, they find sanctuary in the cavern of a magician. There, Toby is told he must go down to the Underworld, via Hell’s Chimney, to find the truth of his father’s death.

Adobe Kroger

Adobe Kroger
Author: Dan Sacharow
Publisher: iUniverse
Total Pages: 413
Release: 2013-05-23
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 147599009X

Adobe Kroger has a secret. She is a Paladin---a holy knight blessed with the power to wield the divine Light of love and creation. Or she was, anyhow. After being convicted of blasphemy, she’s been excommunicated from the holy order and her power was taken away. Or so her superiors thought. Unbeknownst to them, despite their efforts the Light is still hers to command. She would be in terrible danger if they were to discover the truth, but she is determined to use her power to rectify a terrible mistake, whatever the personal cost. When one night she encounters a mysterious evil creature the likes of which no Paladin or Wizard has ever seen, she becomes embroiled in a sinister conspiracy that holds the fate of the world in the balance. As if that weren’t enough, she also loses her phone. This modern day fantasy tale is told in Adobe’s own voice. Join the potty-mouthed Paladin as she confronts the terrors of an obnoxious speech impediment, an embarrassing viral video, a far more talented and handsome rival, a phantasmal dream-walking roommate, and a wizard armed with a cricket bat and a faulty memory. With all of that and being caught between her day job and former colleagues with murderous grudges, can she come to terms with her destiny in time to avert the destruction of the human race?

Boy @ the Window

Boy @ the Window
Author: Donald Earl Collins
Publisher:
Total Pages: 384
Release: 2013-11
Genre: African Americans
ISBN: 9780989256131

As a preteen Black male growing up in Mount Vernon, New York, there were a series of moments, incidents and wounds that caused me to retreat inward in despair and escape into a world of imagination. For five years I protected my family secrets from authority figures, affluent Whites and middle class Blacks while attending an unforgiving gifted-track magnet school program that itself was embroiled in suburban drama. It was my imagination that shielded me from the slights of others, that enabled my survival and academic success. It took everything I had to get myself into college and out to Pittsburgh, but more was in store before I could finally begin to break from my past. "Boy @ The Window" is a coming-of-age story about the universal search for understanding on how any one of us becomes the person they are despite-or because of-the odds. It's a memoir intertwined with my own search for redemption, trust, love, success-for a life worth living. "Boy @ The Window" is about one of the most important lessons of all: what it takes to overcome inhumanity in order to become whole and human again.

Biohell

Biohell
Author: Andy Remic
Publisher: Solaris
Total Pages: 491
Release: 2009-02-02
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 184997313X

The City: an entire planet teeming with corruption, guns, sex, and designer drugs. Humans are upgraded by the injection of microscopic nanobots, courtesy of new technology from the Nano-Tek corporation, but when this highly desirable technology heads onto the black market, millions of people inject themselves with pirated biomods—and transform into zombies. Now they roam the streets, out for blood, packing shotguns and bombs. The Combat-K squad are dropped into this warzone to uncover what's turned the planet into a wasteland of murder and mutations, and soon their focus is on the darkness at the Nano-Tek corporation itself…

The Safe House

The Safe House
Author: L. H. Stacey
Publisher: Boldwood Books Ltd
Total Pages: 305
Release: 2023-12-11
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 1835330827

No place left to run... After the shocking events of last Christmas, Jess Croft is determined this festive season will be the one to remember, for all the right reasons. But when a stranger turns up on her doorstep claiming to be her estranged father, Jess is shocked. Moreso, when the man claims that the little girl with him is none other than Jess’s sister - a child she knew nothing about. Jess isn’t sure she wants these strangers to stay, but she can’t turn them away, especially when she learns that their lives are in danger. Now Wrea Head hall isn’t just Jess’s home, it’s the only safe place for her new family to hide. Perfect for fans of Teresa Driscoll, Sue Watson, Jackie Kabler and Kendra Elliot. Please note: This book was originally published as The House of Christmas Secrets