Black Clouds And Epitaphs

In 1865, Trace Garrett, a war-weary and haggard young man returns to his Missouri farm to find that his kid brother, Charlie, has been lynched by a brutal band of seven Yankee raiders. Only the fast action of old Jason, the family's black retainer, saved the boy. Jason dispatches Trace to the house, where he finds his father slain, his mother ravaged, mutilated and murdered ...

An original novel set in the Halo universe—based on the New York Times bestselling video game series! Stripped of armor, might, and memory, the legendary Forerunner warrior known as the Didact was torn from the physical world following his destructive confrontation with the Master Chief and sent reeling into the mysterious depths of a seemingly endless desert wasteland. This once powerful and terrifying figure is now a shadow of his former self—gaunt, broken, desiccated, and alone. But this wasteland is not as barren as it seems. A blue light glints from a thin spire in the far distance… Thus begins the Didact’s great journey—the final fate of one of the galaxy’s most enigmatic and pivotal figures.

"A full-bodied cast and enjoyably dense plot elevate this fantasy tale." — Kirkus Reviews Lyaphend Farwalth is a fugitive ex-government operative in Golem, an autocratic, technologically advanced colony isolated from the rest of the world. Having escaped into a life of relative simplicity alongside her affluent adoptive family under the employment of a cyberterrorist clan, she is left with questions regarding her upbringing and the inner workings of a nation she barely knows: What is the history of Golem's mysterious ruling family? What are her faint memories of a faceless woman lost in a meadow? What is the nature of her supernatural power and the madness dormant within her? Wave Haizer, the young daughter of Golem's dictator, is hosting a lavish party to commemorate Golem's 1000th year and her older brother's upcoming inaugural address; Lyaphend considers this the perfect opportunity to confront her anonymously and determine the source of a foreboding influence within the building. Wave, having expected her company, has a proposition for her to claim the freedom she has sought since her childhood, but only under the condition that she reclaims her past. Lyaphend's consciousness is whisked away into an olden era in which she was among the ghastly entities prowling the lands beyond Golem's borders—one whose pact with a human woman would forever brand Lyaphend as a threat to existence in its entirety. As she struggled to accomplish in her past life, she must come to terms with the contradiction of what she is and who she wants to be to earn her place in the world.

A talented writer makes his debut with this evocative crime novel about a retired investigator who unearths an unrepentant SS doctor still practicing in Queens. Retired detective William Riskin is more or less waiting to die, until he comes across the obituary of his ex-partner, Jean Goldblum. A one-time war hero and concentration camp survivor, Goldblum had become a morally corrupt detective with a ruthless instinct for spotting guilt. But Goldblum had just started working on the most important case of his life, and out of loyalty to his memory, Riskin decides to finish it. Following a dangerous string of clues, Riskin finds himself in hot pursuit of a little-known World War II criminal named Dr. Petoit, who, after promising sanctuary to hundreds of fleeing Jews in occupied France, led them to death in his own home. As Riskin uncovers Goldblum’s own guilty part in these crimes, he himself comes face to face with the ultimate evil.

Discover the meaning of caring leadership and bring your school to a new level of excellence! The author examines what it means to be an effective, caring leader who develops meaningful bonds with staff members to establish common core values. This updated edition of a bestseller demonstrates the relationship between caring leadership and moral and ethical choices and expands on the power of caring leadership to transform schools. This revised edition provides veteran and aspiring leaders with: Two new chapters on the art of caring leadership Real-world examples that illustrate what leaders encounter each day Expanded reflective exercises in each chapter