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Orion Books
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Merlin is almost young, and immortal, one of those born to walk the paths of the world, a man with charm carved into his bones, and enchantment running through his body thicker than blood... And this is a time of heroes, centuries before King Arthur is born, men and women who, though not gods themselves, are something more than mere mortals. For decades, Jason has been immured in his ship Argo in a lake in the far north, alive, but not, still traumatised by the murder of his sons by his enchantress wife Medea... until Merlin sees through the veil of enchantment and realises the boys were never killed; it was all a trick. Through the mists-shrouded isle of Alba to Greek Land, Merlin leads Jason and his Argonauts, some old, some new, on a quest to find the boys, journey filled with heroism and heartbreak, truth and treachery. |
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Seven centuries have passed since Merlin journeyed with Jason and his Argonauts to find the Golden Fleece. Merlin is immortal, but when he uses the charm that is knit deep in his bones, his body ages — and he has no wish to be old, so rather than squander his magic, he prefers to rely on his own intelligence and cunning. Now the mage finds himself in Alba, the Island of Mists, beset by enemies both dead and Otherworldly, seeking both the children of the warlord Urtha, who have been kidnapped and taken to Ghostland, and Jason's younger son, Kinos (Little Dreamer), hidden by his enchantress mother, Medea in the Otherworld.And now Merlin must use not just his own cunning and centuries of knowledge, but also the magic that permeates his body if he is to save his friends from fates truly worse than death itself. |
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The hill below the fortress of Taurovinda, stronghold of Urtha, High King of the Cornovidi, is coming alive: the Otherworldly realm of the Shadows of Heroes are claiming the land as their own. But this time their actions are driven by a force that is darker and older than even the oldest among the ghosts. Who or what is raising the Dead? Merlin, a temporary resident in the fortress, must answer that question if this time of kings and lovers is to be saved. Jason's wonderful ship, Argo, has returned, drawn back by her own guilty past, and a dreadful secret that she will reveal only to Merlin. Argo holds the key to the mystery. And Niiv, the bewitching, beautiful Northlands enchantress, is working her way even closer into Merlin's charms. This is a journey that will take Merlin back in history, and to a fabled island of legend. Love is in the air. But at a price. In this third volume of the Merlin Codex, Robert Holdstock weaves myth and history into a fabulous tale of honour, vengeance and magic. At its centre, moving along his never-ending path, is Merlin himself, an enchanter in the prime of his life, feckless, curious, powerful, yet a stranger to his own past — and a man about find a true and honourable use for his talents. |
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Your school days are supposed to be the best days of your life — and Tracey Mortimer has no argument with that. Sixteen years ago she was the most popular girl in school, ruled her own gang, and dated the cutest boy in her year. Now it's all rather different: she's 33, stuck in a dull marriage that's only tolerable because her husband is rarely at home. And although she dearly loves her two children, a life of kids TV and alphabetti spaghetti is hardly exciting...Then Tracey spots an advert from a TV company wanting to make a reality-style show on a perfect school reunion — giving Tracey the chance to re-live the good old days. But not all her old school classmates remember their school days quite as Tracey does. Tracey made Suzanne Sharp's life hell — so what better way to get her own back than revenge, live on national television... |
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1910. A cabin north of the Arctic Circle. Fifteen-year-old Sig Andersson is alone. Alone, except for the corpse of his father, who died earlier that day after falling through a weak spot on the ice-covered lake. His sister, Anna, and step-mother, Nadya, have gone to the local town for help. Then comes a knock at the door. It's a man, the flash of a revolver's butt at his hip, and a mean glare in his eyes. Sig has never seen him before but Wolff claims to have unfinished business with his father. As Sig gradually learns the awful truth about Wolff's connection to his father, Sig finds his thoughts drawn to a certain box hidden on a shelf in the storeroom, in which lies his father's prized possession — a revolver. When Anna returns alone, and Wolff begins to close in, Sigs choice is pulled into sharp focus. Should he use the gun, or not? |
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Nic, Caryn and Tory: three girls who form a friendship that should last a lifetime. Nic is the daughter of a white Zimbabwean business tycoon. Despite a life of jaw-dropping wealth and privilege, all she really wants is a bit of attention from daddy. Caryn never met her father — but growing up on a tough London sink estate, she had other things to worry about. Like getting out and moving on. Tory just yearns for some space to be herself. Living in the shadow of your dead sister is tough, particularly when she seemed to be everything you're not. Then beautiful, ruthless Estelle McKenzie appears on the scene. Estelle has a secret — and one way or another, she's going to make each woman pay a very high price for it. |
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He's talented, he's sexy, and he's here to stay! Robert Pattinson is officially the world's hottest young actor. In this book we take you closer than ever before to the star of Twilight and New Moon... Packed with up-to-date news, the hottest gossip from the set of New Moon, the very latest gorgeous photos, facts and quizzes, the ROBERT PATTINSON ANNUAL 2010 is the perfect Christmas gift for fans everywhere. Take the test to see which Twilight character you're most like and discover whether you could even be Rob's perfect partner. Test your knowledge of Rob's loves and hates, and find out whether you're his number one fan... With a FREE and exclusive Robert Pattinson calendar poster — filled in with all of Rob's important dates over the coming year — this is a must-have annual that will keep your heart fluttering over Rob all year round! |
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Hidden in the heart of the old city of Barcelona is the 'cemetery of lost books', a labyrinthine library of obscure and forgotten titles that have long gone out of print. To this library, a man brings his 10-year-old son Daniel one cold morning in 1945. Daniel is allowed to choose one book from the shelves and pulls out 'La Sombra del Viento' by Julian Carax. But as he grows up, several people seem inordinately interested in his find. Then, one night, as he is wandering the old streets once more, Daniel is approached by a figure who reminds him of a character from La Sombra del Viento, a character who turns out to be the devil. This man is tracking down every last copy of Carax's work in order to burn them. What begins as a case of literary curiosity turns into a race to find out the truth behind the life and death of Julian Carax and to save those he left behind. A page-turning exploration of obsession in literature and love, and the places that obsession can lead. |
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A remote shelf in the Arctic circle. A small TV crew is braving the harsh conditions to film the breaking off of a major ice shelf — yet another nail in the planet's eco-coffin. Then someone calls out, pointing at something up in the sky overhead. The camera pans up and they look up to see a blazing symbol clear, burning high over the bleak, deserted terrain. Thus begins a series of strange events worldwide as the mysterious sign appears over the sites of conflict, natural disasters and terrorist atrocities. What can it portend? The world is wracked with both fear and hope. Suddenly, all this is focused onto one man. An obscure monk who recognises the symbol from the past and understands what it means for the future of humanity. But as he becomes the most sought-after man on the planet, the questions have to be asked: could this be the real deal? Or the most elaborate fake in world history? And — either way — what happens to the world now? |
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Sure, the life of a graduate student wasn't exactly glamorous, but it was mine. I was doing fine until Chicago's vampires announced their existence to the world — and then a rogue vampire attacked me. But he only got a sip before he was scared away by another bloodsucker... one who decided the best way to save my life was to take it. Turns out my saviour was the master vampire of Cadogan House. Now I've traded sweating over my thesis for learning to fit in at a Hyde Park mansion full of vamps loyal to Ethan 'Lord o' the Manor' Sullivan. Of course, as a tall, green-eyed, four hundred year old vampire, he has centuries' worth of charm, but unfortunately he also seems to expect my eternal gratitude — and servitude. Right... But my burgeoning powers (all of a sudden, I'm surprisingly handy with some serious weaponry), an inconvenient sunlight allergy, and Ethan's attitude are the least of my concerns. Someone's out to get me. Is it the rogue vampire who bit me? A vamp from a rival House? An angry mob bearing torches? My initiation into Chicago's nightlife may be the first skirmish in a war — and there's going to be blood . |
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When book editor Kate C. Leever visits reclusive romance author Lucern Argeneau to try and persuade him to make more public appearances, she has no idea that he is a 612-year-old vampire. He agrees to her request, but isn't ready for what he has committed himself to — a romance book convention with some two thousand rabid female romance fans. SINGLE WHITE VAMPIRE is a hilarious romantic comedy where a vampire finds his habits of a lifetime overturned and an unlikely romance blooms. |
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It's early April of 1945. The Nazi regime is being slowly throttled by the oncoming Russian and Allied armies and Hitler rages uselessly in his Berlin bunker. But the high command have one more throw of the dice to make... An audacious plan is hatched to save the Fatherland and beat off the oncoming apocalypse. All it will take is a hodge-podge squadron of escort fighters, a captured US bomber and one suicidally brave pilot to fly it over the Atlantic into the beating heart of America. Half a century later, a rusting plane is discovered, sunk with its crew, off the coast of New York — a relic from a bygone age. Chris Roland, a brilliant young photographer, is sent to take photos of this time capsule. But it is only when he discovers that the fragments of Nazi uniforms on the decaying corpses that he realises that he has come across a secret so terrible that even fifty years later it could still kill him... |
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New Orleans is awash with corpses after Hurricane Katrina unleashes its awesome power. In a city patrolled only by looters, all law and order gone, the survivors wait in trees or on rooftops for help that never comes. In a landscape transformed into a violent wasteland, Dave Robicheaux must investigate the shooting of two looters and find out why some very dangerous people are hunting a third. Is it because they unwittingly ransacked the house of a notorious mob boss? Or did a chance encounter with the father of a raped girl seal their fate? As Robicheaux starts to uncover a ruthless tale of greed, torture and murder, his own family comes under threat from a sinister psychopath, and the devastated city provides the perfect stage for a final confrontation between good and evil. |
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Major Brendan Archer travels to Ireland — to the Majestic Hotel and to the fiancee he acquired on a rash afternoon's leave three years ago. Despite her many letters, the lady herself proves elusive, and the Major's engagement is short-lived. But he is unable to detach himself from the alluring discomforts of the crumbling hotel. Ensconced in the dim and shabby splendour of the Palm Court, surrounded by gently decaying old ladies and proliferating cats, the Major passes the summer. So hypnotic are the faded charms of the Majestic, the Major is almost unaware of the gathering storm. But this is Ireland in 1919 — and the struggle for independence is about to explode with brutal force. |
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Glory. Death. Well-born Athenian cavalry officer, Kineas, fought shoulder to shoulder with Alexander in his epic battles against the Persian hordes. But on his return from the east to his native city, he finds not glory but shame — and exile. With nothing to his name but his military skills, Kineas agrees to lead a band of veterans to the city of Olbia, where the Tyrant is offering good money to train the city's elite cavalry. But soon Kineas and his men find they have stumbled into a deadly maze of intrigue and conspiracy as the Tyrant plots to use them as pawns in the increasingly complex power games between his own citizens, and the dread military might of Macedon. Caught between his duty to the Tyrant, his loyalty to his men and a forbidden love affair with a charismatic Scythian noblewoman, Kineas must call on all his Athenian guile, his flair on the battlefield, and even — he is convinced — the intervention of the gods, to survive. |
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DRACULA. A name of horror, depravity and the darkest sensuality. Yet the real Dracula was just as alluring, just as terrifying, his story not of a monster but of a man and a contradiction. For the one they called 'The Devil's Son' was both tyrant and lawgiver, crusader and mass slaughterer, torturer and hero, lover and murderer. His tale is told by those who knew him best. The only woman he ever loved and whom he has to sacrifice. His closest comrade and traitor. And his priest, betraying the secrets of the confessional to reveal the mind of the man history would forever remember as Tepes — 'The Impaler'. But Vlad's actions defy such labels. His extraordinary life burns with passion, taking him from his years as hostage to the Turk, through torture, battle, triumph and betrayal, ultimately to a last crusade — there perhaps, beneath the twin banners of the Dragon and the Cross, to find redemption for his innumerable sins. Vlad: The Last Confession spins legend and facts and together into a monumental novel of blood, love and terror. This is the true story of Dracula as it has never been told before. |
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A long time ago, Joe Pike asked for help. In return, he would, one day, be called upon to return the favour, no questions asked. That day has come. Joe Pike is asked to protect the life of Larkin Conner Barkley, a spoiled rich girl who happens to be a federal witness in a major case. But someone is leaking information about their whereabouts, and the killers are getting all too close. So Pike he hatches a plan: disappear into the anonymous underbelly of Los Angeles, turn the tables, and hunt down the hunters. Enlisting the help of Elvis Cole, Pike uncovers a web of lies and betrayals; even the cops aren't who they seem. But as the body count rises, it becomes clear that Pike's biggest threat may be the girl herself — an edgy, yet intensely vulnerable soul determined to destroy herself, unless Joe can fill the void in her bruised heart. |
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We've all got a story to tell... Jasmine's is the story of rags to riches — the glamour model turned footballer's fiancee has got everything she ever dreamed of — but will her past return to haunt her? Lila's story is a Hollywood romance-turned-nightmare. The actress who got out of the UK and married the biggest Hollywood star realises she might have sold her soul to get her man. Maxine is the girl who cried wolf. Three times married, three times divorced — is she ever going to find love on the party circuit? And Grace, well, she's just the woman who wants to find out everyone's story. A journalist looking for a break, she might just have found it when she swaps London for Marbella. Where glamour girls rub shoulders with Russian oligarchs, and crime godfathers meet Hollywood royalty, when the truth finally comes out, it's going to be the biggest story of all. |
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Grand Duke Georgii Alexandrovich arrives in Moscow for the coronation, with three of his children. During an afternoon stroll, daughter Xenia is dragged away by bandits, only to be rescued by an elegant gentleman and his oriental sidekick. The passing heroes introduce themselves as Fandorin and Masa, but panic ensues when they realise that four-year old Mikhail has been snatched in the confusion. A ransom letter arrives from an international criminal demanding the handover of the Count Orlov, an enormous diamond on the royal sceptre which is due to play a part in the coronation. Can the gentleman detective find Mikhail in time? |
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Kineas, the Athenian cavalry commander, has come a long way since being dismissed from the army of Alexander and vengefully exiled by his own city. Together, his mercenary force and their Scythian allies have defeated a mighty Macedonian army at the Ford of the River God, and his adopted city of Olbia is now free once more. But his destiny will not allow him to enjoy the fruits of victory for long. Far to the east, at the farthest edge of the Sea of Grass, Alexander is threatening to crush the Scythian hordes once and for all. The Lady Srayanka of the Cruel Hands, the Scythian warrior-princess who spurned a king's love to be at Kineas's side, is pledged to take her tribe east to help stop 'the monster' — and Kineas knows he has no choice but to follow, even if it means embracing the violent death in battle that he has seen prefigured in countless dreams. But long before he can confront the might of Alexander's army alongside his beloved Srayanka, he must undertake an epic journey of breathtaking daring... |
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