Agatha the Beloved Queen

Agatha the Beloved Queen
Author: Fred Pilcher
Publisher:
Total Pages: 376
Release: 2021-05-29
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 9781977235893

"Agatha the Beloved Queen" includes medieval fantasy, philosophical fiction, and erotic fiction. It is an adult fairy story, not a children's fairy story. The target audience is adults 18+ who admire strong women, sympathize with the common people in preference to the fabulously wealthy, and for whom occasional fantasy, a fairy godmother and an evil sorcerer, and a few explicit adult scenes will enliven a story. People who are socially and politically conservative probably won't like it. Queen Julia rules the mystical and medieval land of Xana in which fabulous wealth is concentrated in a tiny aristocracy and most of the common people are very poor. Her daughter, Princess Agatha, is champion of the commoners but does not have the power to correct the imbalance. The evil sorcerer Magi comes to Xana, kills the queen, and ravages aristocrats and commoners alike. Her fairy godmother comes to Agatha and says that if she identifies her handsome prince incognito in the crowd on her very first try and makes love to him (just kissing is not enough), Magi will be destroyed. But she will not have a second chance. Agatha succeeds, and now as queen devotes her entire reign to devising economic and social methods to bring prosperity to all. She must deal with corruption on her own council of advisers, a vicious usurer, the school bully, brutal bandits on the frontier, and invasion by an army much larger than her own. She nurtures several children with humble backgrounds into adult greatness. In Agatha we discover an inspired princess who becomes a wise queen with a destiny, a mission to bring prosperity to every person in her medieval land. Agatha has infinite compassion for the downtrodden, a work ethic that inspires work ethic in her people. She loves children and children love her. She has zero tolerance for abusive behavior; when it happens she stops it real fast. To put the proverbial icing on the cake, Agatha and her handsome prince are both sexually insatiable - with each other. The methods used by Queen Agatha in the fifteenth century to bring prosperity to all may also work in our 21st century. However, some readers may disagree that her methods were wise and wholesome. The author leaves that decision to you.

The School for Good and Evil (The School for Good and Evil, Book 1)

The School for Good and Evil (The School for Good and Evil, Book 1)
Author: Soman Chainani
Publisher: HarperCollins UK
Total Pages: 411
Release: 2013-06-06
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
ISBN: 0007492944

THE SCHOOL FOR GOOD AND EVIL is now a major motion picture from Netflix, starring Academy Award winner Charlize Theron, Kerry Washington, Laurence Fishburne, Michelle Yeoh, Cate Blanchett, and many more! A dark and enchanting fantasy adventure for those who prefer fairytales with a twist. The first in the bestselling series.

A Deadly Affair

A Deadly Affair
Author: Agatha Christie
Publisher: HarperCollins
Total Pages: 272
Release: 2022-01-04
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 006314235X

“[We] can’t get enough of Christie’s plush and murderous thrills.” —Entertainment Weekly From the Queen of Mystery—this all-new collection of stories about love gone horribly wrong will get your heart racing. Love can propel us to our greatest heights . . . and darkest depths. In this new compendium of Agatha Christie short stories, witness the dark side of love—crimes of passion, games of the heart, and deadly deceits. This pulse-pounding compendium features beloved detectives Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple, master of charades Parker Pyne, the enigmatic Harley Quin, and the adventurous Tommy and Tuppence, all at the ready to solve tantalizing mysteries. In “The Face of Helen,” a night at the Royal Opera could reach a fatal crescendo for a woman caught in a dicey love triangle; “Finessing the King” delivers a curious ad in the personals that could mask sinister intentions; who’s in danger of getting stung in “Wasps’ Nest” depends on rounding up suspects and solving a murder—before it even happens. These are just a few of the tales in this collection featuring essential reading that Christie fans old and new will simply love to death.

The Grand Tour

The Grand Tour
Author: Agatha Christie
Publisher: Harper Collins
Total Pages: 364
Release: 2012-11-20
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 0062191241

Agatha Christie is the most widely published author of all time, outsold only by the Bible and Shakespeare. In this fascinating travelogue of the prolific author's yearlong trip around the British Empire in 1922, Christie provides the clues to the origins of the plots and locales of some of her bestselling mystery novels. Containing never-before-published letters and photos from her travels, and filled with intriguing details about the exotic locations she visited, The Grand Tour is a must-have for Agatha Christie fans, revealing an unexpected side to the world's most renowned mystery writer. In 1922 Agatha Christie set sail on a ten-month voyage around the world. Her husband, Archibald Christie, had been invited to join a trade mission to promote the British Empire Exhibition, and Christie was determined to go with him. It was a life-changing decision for the young novelist, a true voyage of discovery that would inspire her future writing for years to come. Placing her two-year-old daughter in the care of her sister, Christie set sail at the end of January and did not return home until December. Throughout her journey, she kept up a detailed weekly correspondence with her mother, describing the exotic places and the remarkable people she encountered as the mission traveled through South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, Hawaii, and Canada. Reproduced here for the first time, the letters are full of tales of seasickness and sunburn, motor trips and surfboarding, glamor and misery. The Grand Tour also brings to life the places and people Christie encountered through the photos she took on her portable camera, as well as some of the original postcards, newspaper cuttings, and memorabilia she collected on her trip. Edited and introduced by Agatha Christie's grandson, Mathew Prichard, and accompanied by reminiscences from her own autobiography, this unique travelogue reveals a new adventurous side to Agatha Christie, one that would ultimately influence the stories that made her a household name.

The Couple at the Table

The Couple at the Table
Author: Sophie Hannah
Publisher: HarperCollins
Total Pages: 377
Release: 2022-11-01
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 0063257726

Honeymooners at a posh resort receive an ominous warning with deadly consequences in the latest gripping, twisty psychological thriller from New York Times bestselling author Sophie Hannah. Jane and William are enjoying their honeymoon at an exclusive couples-only resort… …until Jane receives a chilling note warning her to “Beware of the couple at the table nearest to yours.” At dinner that night, five other couples are present, and none of their tables is any nearer or farther away than any of the others. It’s almost as if someone has set the scene in order to make the warning note meaningless—but why would anyone do that? Jane has no idea. But someone in this dining room will be dead before breakfast, and all the evidence will suggest that no one there that night could have possibly committed the crime.

Midwinter Murder

Midwinter Murder
Author: Agatha Christie
Publisher: HarperCollins
Total Pages: 305
Release: 2020-10-20
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 0063055481

INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER! "Reading a perfectly plotted Agatha Christie is like crunching into a perfect apple: that pure, crisp, absolute satisfaction.” —Tana French, New York Times bestselling author of the Dublin Murder Squad novels An all-new collection of winter-themed stories from the Queen of Mystery, just in time for the holidays—including the original version of “Christmas Adventure,” never before released in the United States! There’s a chill in the air and the days are growing shorter . . . It’s the perfect time to curl up in front of a crackling fire with these wintry whodunits from the legendary Agatha Christie. But beware of deadly snowdrifts and dangerous gifts, poisoned meals and mysterious guests. This chilling compendium of short stories—some featuring beloved detectives Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple—is an essential omnibus for Christie fans and the perfect holiday gift for mystery lovers. “Agatha Christie [is] the maestro of murder tales.” —People

Agatha Raisin and the Witch of Wyckhadden

Agatha Raisin and the Witch of Wyckhadden
Author: M. C. Beaton
Publisher: Minotaur Books
Total Pages: 216
Release: 2000-06-15
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 142990156X

Agatha Raisin and the Witch of Wyckhadden continues the tradition in M. C. Beaton's beloved Agatha Raisin cozy mystery series—now a hit show on Acorn TV and public television. There is nothing more depressing for a middle-aged lovelorn woman with bald patches on her head than to find herself in an English seaside resort out of season. Agatha Raisin, her hair falling out after a run-in with a hairdresser-cum-murderess from a previous investigation, travels to an old-fashioned hotel in order to repair the damage away from the neighbors in her all-too-cozy Cotswolds village. Unhappy about the slow results and prompted by the elderly residents of the resort, she consults the local witch for help. Agatha purchases a hair tonic (and a love potion, just in case!) and is soon sprouting hairs and capturing the fancy of the village police inspector. But the quiet town is stunned by the murder of the witch. Which one of the graying guests is capable of such a brutal crime? The brassy yet endearing Agatha won't stop until she finds the culprit--and, of course, a little love, too.

The Vicious Vet

The Vicious Vet
Author: M. C. Beaton
Publisher: St. Martin's Paperbacks
Total Pages: 224
Release: 2007-04-01
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 1429901543

The Vicious Vet continues the tradition in M. C. Beaton's beloved Agatha Raisin cozy mystery series—now a hit show on Acorn TV and public television. A PURR-FECT CRIME IN THE COTSWOLDS Former London PR agent, Agatha Raisin still hasn't adjusted to village life where the only prospect for a hot evening out is a meeting of the Ladies Society. And since her overtures toward James Lacey—the retired military man next door—have failed, Agatha jumps at the chance to visit the new vet, who's single and good-looking. Although Agatha's tabby hasn't a thing wrong with him, Hodge endures having a thermometer shoved up his bum in the name of romance. Unfortunately his sacrifice is all for naught when the vet is soon found dead next to a high-strung horse. The police call the vet's demise a freak accident, but Agatha convinces the hard-to-get James Lacey, who's also bored in the Cotswolds, that playing amateur detective might be fun. Unfortunately, just like curiosity killed the cat, Agatha's inept snooping is soon a motivation for murder...

Agatha Christie

Agatha Christie
Author: Lucy Worsley
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Total Pages: 349
Release: 2022-09-08
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 1639362533

A new, fascinating account of the life of Agatha Christie from celebrated literary and cultural historian Lucy Worsley. "Nobody in the world was more inadequate to act the heroine than I was." Why did Agatha Christie spend her career pretending that she was “just” an ordinary housewife, when clearly she wasn’t? Her life is fascinating for its mysteries and its passions and, as Lucy Worsley says, "She was thrillingly, scintillatingly modern." She went surfing in Hawaii, she loved fast cars, and she was intrigued by the new science of psychology, which helped her through devastating mental illness. So why—despite all the evidence to the contrary—did Agatha present herself as a retiring Edwardian lady of leisure? She was born in 1890 into a world that had its own rules about what women could and couldn’t do. Lucy Worsley’s biography is not just of a massively, internationally successful writer. It's also the story of a person who, despite the obstacles of class and gender, became an astonishingly successful working woman. With access to personal letters and papers that have rarely been seen, Lucy Worsley’s biography is both authoritative and entertaining and makes us realize what an extraordinary pioneer Agatha Christie was—truly a woman who wrote the twentieth century.

The Dead Harlequin

The Dead Harlequin
Author: Agatha Christie
Publisher: Harper Collins
Total Pages: 43
Release: 2011-09-27
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 0062129775

When Mr. Satterthwaite visits a new exhibit at the Harchester Galleries, there is one painting that bears an unusual likeness to a mysterious acquaintance of his, Mr. Quin. In one bold move he purchases the canvas on the spot, and in another invites the artist of “The Dead Harlequin” to dine with him that night, with an empty place at the table set for Mr. Quin. Dinner conversation soon turns to the setting of “The Dead Harlequin,” the doomed and ghostly house Charnley, where many have perished under tragic circumstances. But when a new guest is announced, it is not Mr. Quin but famed comic stage actress Aspasia Glen, who demands that she be given that very painting. Then comes a frantic telephone call from Alix Charnley herself, and Alix has the same request. What is the meaning of the painting, and can it shed any light upon the happenings at Charnley?