Blood S Game

First comes darkness, then comes fear Eve Duncan is back! Blockbuster New York Times bestselling author Iris Johansen's latest thriller brings Eve closer to discovering her daughter's killer...and into a web of danger from which she may not be able to escape... Eve Duncan returns in a thriller that pits her against the most evil mind she has ever encountered: a ruthless killer who taunts her with his every move...and who has a special affinity for blood. When a Georgia senator's daughter is found murdered, and her body drained of blood, Eve Duncan is drawn into the web of Kevin Jelak—a serial murderer who is on Eve's short list of killers who might know something about her missing daughter Bonnie. When a goblet of blood is found in Eve's refrigerator, she knows the taunting is over...and the games have begun. As Eve and Jelak engage in a dance of death, Eve must call upon those she loves and trusts the most...even if it means bringing them into the game as well.

The New York Times–bestselling author of Bitter Blood weaves “a powerful account” of greed that led to an unspeakable crime (The New York Times Book Review). As they slept in their North Carolina home, wealthy Lieth Von Stein and his wife Bonnie suffered a vicious assault with a knife and a baseball bat. Bonnie barely survived. Lieth did not. The crime seemed totally baffling until police followed a trail that led to the charming stepson, Chris Pritchard, and his brilliant, drug-using, Dungeons and Dragons–playing friends at North Carolina State University. “Haunting . . . Addictive, chilling and a masterpiece of reportage,” Blood Games is the true story of depraved young minds and a son’s gruesome greed turned to horrifyingly tragedy (Patricia Cornwell). Jerry Bledsoe masterfully reconstructs the bloody crime and its aftermath as he takes us into the secret twisted hearts of three young murderers. “Mr. Bledsoe goes straight to the bigger issues.” —The New York Times Book Review “In Mr. Bledsoe’s hands, a mega-load of inert facts becomes a human story of hurricane force.” —The News & Observer “Devastating . . . A brilliant account.” —Publishers Weekly

NATIONAL BESTSELLER “The stories in this book make for a fascinating and remarkably complete pantheon of just about every common despair and every joy related to game development.” — Rami Ismail, cofounder of Vlambeer and developer of Nuclear Throne Developing video games—hero's journey or fool's errand? The creative and technical logistics that go into building today's hottest games can be more harrowing and complex than the games themselves, often seeming like an endless maze or a bottomless abyss. In Blood, Sweat, and Pixels, Jason Schreier takes readers on a fascinating odyssey behind the scenes of video game development, where the creator may be a team of 600 overworked underdogs or a solitary geek genius. Exploring the artistic challenges, technical impossibilities, marketplace demands, and Donkey Kong-sized monkey wrenches thrown into the works by corporate, Blood, Sweat, and Pixels reveals how bringing any game to completion is more than Sisyphean—it's nothing short of miraculous. Taking some of the most popular, bestselling recent games, Schreier immerses readers in the hellfire of the development process, whether it's RPG studio Bioware's challenge to beat an impossible schedule and overcome countless technical nightmares to build Dragon Age: Inquisition; indie developer Eric Barone's single-handed efforts to grow country-life RPG Stardew Valley from one man's vision into a multi-million-dollar franchise; or Bungie spinning out from their corporate overlords at Microsoft to create Destiny, a brand new universe that they hoped would become as iconic as Star Wars and Lord of the Rings—even as it nearly ripped their studio apart. Documenting the round-the-clock crunches, buggy-eyed burnout, and last-minute saves, Blood, Sweat, and Pixels is a journey through development hell—and ultimately a tribute to the dedicated diehards and unsung heroes who scale mountains of obstacles in their quests to create the best games imaginable.

For fans of Conn Iggulden, Bernard Cornwell, Robyn Young and Ben Kane, comes the new historical series from the bestselling author of the Outlaw Chronicles. *This is FREE EBOOK SAMPLER for Angus Donald's thrilling brand-new novel BLOOD'S GAME* THE THRILLING NEW SERIES FROM THE BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF THE 'OUTLAW CHRONICLES'. AFTER THE TUDORS CAME THE STUARTS . . . London, Winter 1670. Holcroft Blood has entered the employ of the Duke of Buckingham, one of the most powerful men in the kingdom after the king. It is here that his education really begins. With a gift for numbers and decoding ciphers, Holcroft soon proves invaluable to the Duke, but when he's pushed into a betrayal he risks everything for revenge. His father, Colonel Thomas Blood, has fallen on hard times. A man used to fighting, he lives by his wits and survives by whatever means necessary. When he's asked to commit treason by stealing the crown jewels, he puts himself and his family in a dangerous situation - one that may end at the gallows. As the machinations of powerful men plot to secure the country's future, both father and son must learn what it is to survive in a more dangerous battlefield than war - the court of King Charles II. One false step could prove fatal . . .

Chess as art and recreation; checkmating combinations, endgame play, strategic principles, more. Full details and analysis of author's famous game with Emanuel Lasker. 94 diagrams; other illustrations. "Very enjoyable." — Cleveland Chess Bulletin.

The #1 bestselling author Iris Johansen delivers the first in a trilogy that will begin to answer questions that have haunted her legion of fans for over a decade, in her next novel of breathtaking suspense Eve Duncan's mission in life is to bring closure to the families who have experienced the agony of a missing child. As a forensic sculptor, she is able to piece together bones, create a face, and bring an identity to a child who would have otherwise gone unidentified...maybe forever. Eve is brilliant, and driven, and tormented--because her own daughter, Bonnie, was taken from her years ago. And Eve has never discovered what happened to her. But now a name from the past resurfaces, thanks to CIA agent Catherine Ling who knows all too well what it's like to lose a child. After teaming up with Agent Ling to find her missing son, Eve and Catherine share a bond forged by their mutual pain. Now, Catherine challenges Eve with a name: John Gallo. A man from Eve's past. A man, seemingly raised from the dead, whose whereabouts are unknown. Could Gallo be the missing piece to the puzzle that has haunted Eve for years? Why was he in Atlanta just before Bonnie's disappearance? With a brilliant narrative that goes back to Eve Duncan's early life, exploring her history and motivations like no other novel before, Eve reveals long-guarded secrets and is guaranteed to leave Johansen fans panting for more.

Out-of-town visitors keep turning up all over Chicago with their throats cut and the blood completely drained from their bodies. This is what's known in the force as a "Heater," one of the toughest, highest profile, and most bizarre cases ever to hit the city. As the bodies pile up, Chicago's top investigator Detective Dennis Kortovich and his affable partner Chuck O'Brien race against time to capture a killer who's found an absolutely ingenious way to completely cover his tracks. But what Dennis doesn't know is that the killer is coming terrifyingly close to those he loves most in the world. With more twists than a pit full of snakes, Blood Games takes readers on a thrill ride that just won't let up.

An original full-length novel set in the Halo universe and based on the New York Times bestselling video game series! Just hours following their climactic battle on the Forerunner planet Genesis, the Spartans of Blue Team and Fireteam Osiris find themselves running for their lives from the malevolent machinations of the now-renegade artificial intelligence Cortana. But even as they attempt to stay one step ahead, trouble seems to find Spartan Edward Buck no matter where he turns. A secret mission enacted by the Office of Naval Intelligence could possibly help turn the tide, and has Buck reluctantly agreeing to reform his old team, Alpha-Nine. Because if the band is really getting back together for this one, that means everybody—including the Spartan who Buck never wants to see again, the one who committed the ultimate betrayal of trust…