Assorted Hits Music Murder Mayhem And The Mob

Setting: New York City, the 1980s, the music business and the underworld. Meet Savannah, the sassy, sexy heroine of Assorted Hits: Music, Murder, Mayhem and the Mob©. A girl who fi nds herself in a bit of trouble after aiming her pearl-handled .22 caliber in the direction of Leonardo Ingrasio Pasquale (better known in the music biz as LIP), owner of AlBea Records and Savannah’s boss of several years. (Once, she would have taken a bullet for LIP. Now she put three in him.) After pulling the trigger, her adventures really begin. Surrounded by a cast of characters that includes the suave and oh-so-manly Jimmy Big Balls (Bs to his friends), who loves Savannah like a daughter and has friends in important (read: connected) places to keep her from harm. The Chuppah Boys, record company types who are so busy kissing ass that they are constantly in need of Chapstick and in danger of missing the next big thing. I.C. Greenfi elds, the lawyer extraordinaire who can work both a courtroom and a press junket at the same time. Through it all Savannah fi nds herself on the ride of her life, dishing out attitude and sex appeal in generous doses. There’s the mystery man, whose involvement in her defense reveals juicy tidbits from LIP’s past. The oldworld parents, who raised Savannah née Shoshanna Sneider in Brooklyn to be a good Orthodox Jewish girl. This is the story of Savannah in all her glory. With street-smart savvy, music business mojo and leopard skin stilettos, she’s the girl behind the gun, behind the scenes and in front of the jury. It’s a story you don’t want to miss, because this is only the beginning.

From a pair of New York Times bestselling authors with unparalleled access comes an in-depth account of the manhunt for Joran van der Sloot, one of the most reviled accused criminals in the world In May 2005, Natalee Holloway disappeared from a high school trip to Aruba. Five years to the day later, twenty-one-year-old Stephany Flores was reported missing in Lima, Peru. Implicated in both crimes was one young man: Joran van der Sloot. A twenty-three-year-old Dutchman, Van der Sloot has become the subject of intense scrutiny by the media and the public in the years since 2005. He was arrested and detained by Aruban authorities in connection with the Holloway disappearance, only to be released after questioning. In 2008, during a Dutch sting operation, he admitted to being present for Holloway's death---but later recanted his statement. In 2010, on the five-year anniversary of her disappearance, a young business student in Peru named Stephany Flores disappeared, only to be found dead three days later in a hotel room---registered to Van der Sloot. He was arrested for the murder and confessed, but he later claimed he was coerced. This is the first book to offer a probing look at the man tied to two of the most sensational cases of the decade. It draws from: • Interviews with members of the families of Joran, Stephany, and Natalee • Never-before-seen photographs of the crime scene in Peru, fingerprint files, hotel records, and more • Internal communications between Interpol, the FBI, Aruban officials, and officials in Chile and Peru • Never-before-seen police files from Chile, Peru, and Aruba Portrait of a Monster offers an unflinching look into the workings of an international manhunt and a chilling portrait of an alleged killer.

Investigating the way Hollywood scoops up notorious criminals and turns them into legends, this entertaining who's-who guide provides thumbnail sketches of such killers as Ma Barker, Black Beard, Al Capone, John Wesley Hardin, and Charles Starkweather. Noting that some figures are glamorized in popular culture (Jesse James), while others are demonized (Charles Manson), this encyclopedic collection explores the legends' emotional truths as depicted in movies, stories, and songs. Facts of the real cases behind these notorious criminals are also presented, including the landmark rulings that pioneered new approaches to criminal justice.

An account of how a police detective lead the task force that exposed the facts behind the deaths of rappers Biggie Smalls and Tupac Shakur.

From the New York Times bestselling author comes a novel in which dedicated, if somewhat demented, environmentalists battle sleazy real estate developers in the Florida Keys. "Rips, zips, hurtles, keeping us turning the pages at breakfinger pace." —New York Times Book Review When the precious clue-tongued mango voles at the Amazing Kingdom of Thrills on North Key Largo are stolen by heartless, ruthless thugs, Joe Winder wants to uncover why, and find the voles. Joe is lately a PR man for the Amazing Kingdom theme park, but now that the voles are gone, Winder is dragged along in their wake through a series of weird and lethal events that begin with the sleazy real-estate agent/villain Francis X. Kingsbury and can end only one way....

"Here’s a happy story hour choice. . . . A picture book that passes the fun test with flying fizz." — Booklist It’s hot, hot, hot! So Junie and Jake and Poppa and the baby want to go to the lake. But can they make it there in their rattletrap car? It doesn’t go fast, and it doesn’t go far. . . . Inventive wordplay and expressive illustrations make this a readaloud road trip to remember.