Fragile Illusion

Fake dating never looked so hot! It started with a lie. A story to clean up my reputation. I never bargained on falling for the girl. I don’t really care what my family thinks. I work hard, selling my art for a f*ck-ton of money and yeah, I celebrate with the ladies. But my brothers just won’t ease up. So I blurt out the first thing that comes to mind. It seems like such a small deception to get my family off my back. Only now…I need to find a fake fiancé. The red-headed reporter from my art show needs to interview me to keep her job. I figure, we can strike up a deal. I give her the scoop and she plays the part. We both just need to stick with the rules. What could go wrong? Fragile Illusion is a fake-finance romance with scorching heat, witty banter, and a fierce heroine. Perfect for fans of Olivia Hayle, Samantha Christie, Melanie Harlow and TL Swan. Search terms: contemporary romance books, romance series, new adult romance, contemporary romance, billionaire romance, romance novels, romance books, alpha male, romance novels full book, first loves, girl next door romance, workplace romance, office romance, hometown romance, romance books , books like movies, emotional romance, smart romance, hot romance, Lainey Davis romance, Lainey Davis books, edgy romance, erotic romance books, strong female stories, alpha male, dominant male, dominating hero, hot guy, racy, sexy, wealthy heroes, fake dating, marriage of convenience, fake fiance, epilepsy, disabled heroine, books to read and download

The Modern Monologue in two volumes, one for men and one for women, is an exciting selection of speeches drawn from the landmark plays of the 20th century. The great playwrights of the British, American and European theatre-- and the plays most constantly performed on stage throughout the world--are represented in this unique collection. Monologues of all types--both serious and comic, realistic and absurdist--provide a dynamic challenge for all actors: the student, the amateur and the professional. A fuller appreciation of each speech is enhanced by the editors' introduction and commentaries that set the plays and individual speeches in their dramatic and performance contexts.

It started with a lie.A story to clean up his bad-boy reputation. But he never bargained on falling for the girl.Thatcher Stag doesn't give a sh*t what his family thinks. He works hard, sells his art for a f*ck-ton of money, and celebrates with the ladies. But his brothers just won't ease up, so he blurts out the first thing that comes to mind. It seemed like such a small deception to get his family off his back. Only now, he needs to find a fake fiancé.Emma Cheswick would do anything to get ahead in her newspaper job...except maybe spend time alone with notorious womanizer Thatcher Stag. When Thatcher makes a pass, she tries to turn down the assignment, but her boss gives her an ultimatum: interview Thatcher, or find someplace else to work.They strike a dangerous deal: Emma plays the part and Thatcher gives her the scoop she needs to keep her job. The illusion seems shatter-proof until Thatcher shows Emma the cracks in his inked-up armor, and she reveals a secret about her health. Can she stick to the rules or does he have a new plan in mind?Fragile Illusion is a stand-alone contemporary romance with scorching heat and a guaranteed HEA.

This book examines the little understood end-of-art theses of Hegel, Nietzsche, and Danto. The end-of-art claim is often associated with the end of a certain standard of taste or skill. However, at a deeper level, it relates to a transformation in how we philosophically understand our relation to the ‘world’. Hegel, Nietzsche, and Danto each strive philosophically to overcome Cartesian dualism, redrawing the traditional lines between mind and matter. Hegel sees the overcoming of the material in the ideal, Nietzsche levels the two worlds into one, and Danto divides the world into representing and non-representing material. These attempts to overcome dualism necessitate notions of the self that differ significantly from traditional accounts; the redrawn boundaries show that art and philosophy grasp essential but different aspects of human existence. Neither perspective, however, fully grasps the duality. The appearance of art’s end occurs when one aspect is given priority: for Hegel and Danto, it is the essentialist lens of philosophy, and, in Nietzsche’s case, the transformative power of artistic creativity. Thus, the book makes the case that the end-of-art claim is avoided if a theory of art links the internal practice of artistic creation to all of art’s historical forms.

Winner of the Lillian Smith Book Award An award–winning constitutional law historian examines case–based evidence of the court's longstanding racial bias (often under the guise of "states rights") to reveal how that prejudice has allowed the court to solidify its position as arguably the most powerful branch of the federal government. One promise of democracy is the right of every citizen to vote. And yet, from our founding, strong political forces were determined to limit that right. The Supreme Court, Alexander Hamilton wrote, would protect the weak against this very sort of tyranny. Still, as On Account of Race forcefully demonstrates, through the better part of American history the Court has instead been a protector of white rule. And complex threats against the right to vote persist even today. Beginning in 1876, the Supreme Court systematically dismantled both the equal protection guarantees of the Fourteenth Amendment and what seemed to be the right to vote in the Fifteenth. And so a half million African Americans across the South who had risked their lives and property to be allowed to cast ballots were stricken from voting rolls by white supremacists. This vacuum allowed for the rise of Jim Crow. None of this was done in the shadows—those determined to wrest the vote from black Americans could not have been more boastful in either intent or execution. On Account of Race tells the story of an American tragedy, the only occasion in United States history in which a group of citizens who had been granted the right to vote then had it stripped away. It is a warning that the right to vote is fragile and must be carefully guarded and actively preserved lest American democracy perish.

In 1829, eleven years after Illinois became the twenty-first state, New Salem was founded on a bluff above the Sangamon River. The village provided an essential sanctuary for a friendless, penniless boy named Abraham Lincoln, whose six years there shaped his education and nurtured his ambition. Eclipsed by the neighboring settlement of Petersburg, New Salem had dwindled into a ghost town by 1840. However, it reemerged in the early part of the twentieth century as one of the most successful preservation efforts in American history. Author Joseph Di Cola relates the full story of New Salem's fascinating heritage.

Psychoanalytic Collisions Second Edition wrestles with a theme that confronts every psychotherapist: the gap between illusions and realities about the professional self. Joyce Slochower closely examines situations in which the therapist’s professional and personal wishes collide with the actuality of everyday clinical work. The book unpacks the dynamics of these collisions on both beginning and seasoned therapists, offering ways of sustaining a professional ideal while also exploring the mixed impact of that ideal on clinical work. In examining how illusions and ideals affect the therapeutic encounter for both better and worse, Psychoanalytic Collisions invites the reader into the consulting room. This Second Edition has been substantially revised. It includes updated clinical and theoretical material as well as a new chapter about mutual idealizations that coalesce between patient and analyst. Slochower argues that psychoanalytic collisions can be productively engaged, even if they often cannot be fully resolved.The very act of engagement—whether by establishing new grounds for collaboration in the wake of real-world catastrophe, wrestling with clinical impasses that arise from the divergent expectations of analyst and patient, or owning up to and addressing the analyst’s "secret delinquencies"—reveals how therapeutic hopefulness can coexist with an acceptance of the analyst’s all-too-human fallibility. Psychoanalytic Collisions shows how idealization is intrinsic both to forging an analytic identity and practicing across a lifetime. Slochower’s work challenges readers to confront their own vulnerabilities and limits while also embracing a professional ideal that is at once human and inspiring. The book is an essential resource for psychoanalysts, psychotherapists, pastoral counselors, and readers interested in the practice of psychotherapy today.

Success will destroy elemental magic. Failure condemns this world and the next. Six months after a tragic war, the world of Myrrah has found peace. But many of the heroes have not. When Zhao’s reluctant homecoming sparks a battle over the fate of Elementals among his people, he calls on his friends for help only to find they are busy with new problems of their own. And one has the potential to end all magic. For nearly destroying the world in an ancient war, the Ashanti were cursed by the Goddess Mhyrah with lifespans of less than a decade. To regain normal lives for his people, Beh’sah, will defy the traditions handed down since the dawn of time even if that means rekindling an ancient feud - one that nearly destroyed the world before it fully began. Lavinia did not seek to be named Guardian of the Spheres when she touched each to gain control of elemental power. But now that choice has propelled her to being the key to stop the Ashanti. She controls the gates that allow magic into the world. And she must close them or the Ashanti will cross into the spirit realm and gain power beyond imagination, enough to enslave or destroy the world they once sought to rule. But with the closure of each gate, an elemental power is lost and those who stand against the Ashanti are less able to fight a threat that seeks control over life and death. Welcome BACK to the world of Myrrah full of elemental magic and epic fantasy adventure! The fate of the world hangs in the balance and the sacrifice to save it might be elemental magic. Discover this exhilarating tale that has received praise such as “It is the sort of read that reminds us how great fantasy can be.” and, “Strong characters and a beautiful world hold up a fine story. We love Ms Birt’s work, we only wish we’d found her sooner.” The Games of Fire Trilogy bundle contains all three books: Spark of Defiance, Fantasia Reviews 2017 nominated book of the Year Gates of Fire & Earth, and A New Goddess PLUS the Born of Water Novel Companion that gives detailed information on the world of Myrrah begun in the Rise of the Fifth Order trilogy. Q & A Should you read the Rise of the Fifth Order trilogy before reading Games of Fire? A few readers have said they got a lot more depth for having read the Rise of the Fifth Order first. They suggest you start there! It is certainly a great introduction to the world of Myrrah and the characters by starting with Born of Water, which is free to pick up. But I won’t say you absolutely have to. And, even if you read the first trilogy but it has been a long time, I've added a brief synopsis of the first trilogy at the beginning of this one so you can refresh your memory to the big events! Is Games of Fire a continuation of the Rise of the Fifth Order trilogy? The Games of Fire and the Rise of the Fifth Order trilogies are related in that they are set in the same world of Myrrah, utilize many of the same characters, and are full of elemental magic. Games of Fire begins with Spark of Defiance, which is set six months after the final book, Spirit of Life, of the Rise of the Fifth Order trilogy ends. New problems have developed, so the Games of Fire story line is stand alone trilogy with the same heroes from the first story. However a few events that happened in the Rise of the Fifth Order are the cause of the new challenges rising in Games of Fire. So the two series are linked, but each consists of a different set of adventures and issues to solve.