Showing results by narrator "Aisling Gray" in All Categories

The saga of the Lodore family whose fates and fortunes take irregular paths from English aristocracy to the "new world" of Illinois and back again facing struggles of death, poverty, scandal and of course love (true, ill-fated, and star-crossed) along the way. A majestic sweeping Gothic novel - written by the brilliant author of Frankenstein, Mary Shelley - where themes of social justice; female education; spiritual, moral, and intellectual satisfaction are all addressed with thoughtful care and often from several characters points of view.

This collection of 10 classic tales is very representative of Wharton's approach to story-telling - in the narrative, the venue becomes a character almost as much as do the people. Situations are presented in an elegantly understated way, and the overall effect is disturbing rather than blatantly horrific.

This classic collection of macabre tales, one of 10 such anthologies by Algernon Blackwood, was first published in 1916. It includes, "The Empty House", "A Haunted Island", "A Case of Eavesdropping", "Keeping His Promise", "With Intent to Steal", "The Wood of the Dead", "Smith: An Episode in a Lodging-House", "A Suspicious Gift", "The Strange Adventures of a Private Secretary in New York", and "Skeleton Lake: An Episode in Camp".

In the not-too-distant future, 2185 AD, anti-gerisone is the new drug that stops ageing. People are now living into their hundreds until it's time to take their own big trip up yonder, and in the case of the Ford family and Gramps, the notable patriarch, families are living and fighting together in one home for much longer. Eventually there are no prisons, slums, asylums, poverty, wars, or disease. and 200 years later the population of the US is set at 40 million people. But since no one gets any older, someone must volunteer to die if a baby is born.

“He was born with a gift of laughter and a sense that the world was mad … “So begins this historical tale of romantic adventure. Andre-Louis Moreau is an orphan and cousin of the beloved Aline. He is raised by his godfather, the Lord of Gavrillac, and matures into an educated lawyer—while Aline sets her mind on marrying the rich but dishonorable Marquis de la Tour d’Azyr. But when Moreau’s closest friend is killed by the Marquis in a duel, Moreau vows vengeance. After publicly denouncing the aristocracy and stirring up the crowds, Moreau is forced to go into hiding.

A merchant of Syracuse has twin sons and buys twin servants for them. His wife, with one twin and one servant, is soon separated from him by a shipwreck, and comes to live in Ephesus. When grown, the other son and his slave start out to find their brothers, and the father, some years later, starts out in turn to find them. Once in Ephesus, an amusing series of errors begins.

Although his work has somewhat fallen into obscurity, Alexander Ostrovsky (1823-1886) is considered to be one of the greatest of Russian dramatists. He was one of the pioneers of a realistic style, which later found exponents in celebrated European dramatists like Ibsen and Strindberg. Of Ostrovsky's 47 plays, one of the best known is The Storm, the portrait of an idealistic young woman trapped in a world of crushing and venal orthodoxy. The Storm formed the basis of Janacek's opera, Katya Kabanova.

Mary Shelley had an abiding interest in the mysterious and the supernatural. In this atmospheric tale, she describes the nocturnal wanderings of an enigmatic figure in the woods, and the expectations and conclusions those who have witnessed its activities.

Maggie Baxter, a practical, rule-following accountant, discovers that her husband of 17 years is cheating on her. All her meticulous life plans are crushed. When he leaves her for the other woman, Maggie and her the-world-is-my-smorgasbord chocolate lab, Kona, are left to put their lives back together. As Maggie begins to develop a Plan B for her life, she decides to be more like Kona. No, she's not going to sniff crotches and eat everything that isn't nailed down; rather she'll try to approach life with more ball-chasing abandon.

In 1875, Wellesley College opened its doors to women. The Story of Wellesley, written over a hundred years ago by Florence Converse, a Wellesley professor and graduate herself, tells of the first 40 years of this remarkable school. Henry Fowle Durant founded it with a very specific philosophy which grew and changed as the decades passed. The first six presidents each approached their duty with different talents and goals.

Cara Snow is newly divorced, stuck working for a jerky boss at a pet boutique, and dreading her soon-to-be-empty nest with only her beloved corgi for company. Worse still, her ex just got engaged. Doesn’t she deserve some romance, too? Or, at least a date for the Fur Ball. She’s always enjoyed the annual pet rescue gala, but this year her ex will be there with his fiancée. Meanwhile, Cara hasn’t met anyone — other than the irresistible dogs at the boutique’s adoption events. Cara is shocked when her wish to fall for a man as easily as she does for those mutts summons Vincent. His velour track suit, paunchy belly, and tough-guy accent don't exactly fit her childhood image of a fairy godfather. Not exactly on top of his game, he admits to being twenty-five years late.

This play is a dramatization of Boccaccio’s story of Gillette of Narbonne. Only the comic parts were of Shakespeare’s invention; he added the characters of the pusillanimous Parolles, the lofty courtier Lafew, the Clown Lavatch, and the long suffering Countess. He gave new depth and vitality to the leading characters, who are mere outlines in Boccaccio’s tale.

Vionna Valis and Mary Jane Kelly are a pair of hardworking psychic detectives experiencing a run of bad luck. A new detective agency, the Femmes Fatales, is taking most of their business. Things seem to change for the better in the form of a new client named Scudder Moran, a wealthy young man with a unique problem: He has been targeted by the very, very late Professor James Moriarty - the Napoleon of crime in another century, now Lord of the Vampires!

Mentoring Moments: 14 Remarkable Women Share Breakthroughs to Success is an anthology like no other! In this book, 14 remarkable women narrate their challenges and their ultimate successes in both their personal lives and their careers. These women have “been there” and made it through - and are ready to share their takeaways.

Ten women, each one between a rock that might be her tombstone and a hard place that it may take a gun to blast her way out of. Author Thad Brown's collection of hard bitten, bullet paced fiction centered on women embroiled in violence and danger takes pulp to a whole new level. Being a woman often means fighting against all odds. And the women in Brown's tales are charter members of The Smoking Gun Sisterhood.

If you're ready to take control of your well-being, The Wellness Blueprint: Simple Strategies for a Healthier Life is here to help! This one-stop resource provides an illuminating overview of the factors that influence our health and happiness and easy-to-apply strategies for creating an authentic sense of well-being.

Fourteen-year-old Rebecca Zane had big plans for summer, none of which involved her stepping foot inside of Rodger Academy. But plans change when she somehow gets stuck in summer school, with none other than her least favorite person, Luke Hess. Instead of cleanup duty, Rebecca finds herself transported to 18th-century London with no clear way home. Join Rebecca as she unknowingly passes initiation into the Sanguinity Publishing Secret Society (SPSS) and along the way finds out ordinary people can do extraordinary things.

Twins, Adam and Evette, don’t have a reputation of being well behaved children when outside the home. While staying at their grandparent’s home, their grandfather tells them a story how their island home, Dragon’s Lair, got its name. The story inspires the twins to search the beach caves. They discover an old chest of drawers. The whole chest drawers which act as a door, swings open to a primeval world where the twins steal three eggs: a bronze, a silver, and a gold.

It has been hot and dry for a very long time. A little girl asks everyone, “When is it going to rain?” She receives different answers and wonders which answers are true when the weather begins to change.

Two star-crossed lovers, whose families fought and killed each other during a civil war in France, try to find their way to forgiveness and reconciliation. The heroine's plan? Sleeping on St Catherine's Couch - a terrifying ledge above the Loire where the faithful may dream of Heaven's advice. Despite the advice from King Henry and the Countess Villeneuve's faithful servant, the lovers leave their fate up to the dream.