Man Killers Of The Air

Take a touch of Charles Lindbergh, mix in a dash of Evel Knievel, throw in one man-killing cat—and you’ve got a recipe for a rip-roaring adventure featuring the high-flying, hard-living Smoke Burnham. There’s not a dare Smoke won’t take, and there’s not a wager he won’t make. Now he’s betting his life that he can fly his plane, Super Comet—with his pet cheetah Patty coming along for the ride—across the mountains and jungles of South America to a prize-winning payday. All he has to do is out-race the competition, out-maneuver a saboteur, and make out with his girl—who’s determined to bring him down to earth. One thing you can count on—in the air, in a fight, or in his girlfriend’s arms—he’s a man who likes to turn up the heat. Because where there’s Smoke, there’s fire. In 1931, as a student at George Washington University, Hubbard founded the college Glider Club and within a few months a respected columnist said “he is recognized as one of the outstanding glider pilots in the country.” Later he wrote as the aviation correspondent for the prestigious flying magazine Sportsman Pilot. His combined writing and flying expertise comprised the perfect recipe to give stories like Man-Killers of the Air their authentic flavor. “Great adventure to keep you on the edge of your seat.” —Gather.com

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • A twisting, haunting true-life murder mystery about one of the most monstrous crimes in American history, from the author of The Wager and The Lost City of Z, “one of the preeminent adventure and true-crime writers working today."—New York Magazine • NATIONAL BOOK AWARD FINALIST • NOW A MARTIN SCORSESE PICTURE “A shocking whodunit…What more could fans of true-crime thrillers ask?”—USA Today “A masterful work of literary journalism crafted with the urgency of a mystery.” —The Boston Globe In the 1920s, the richest people per capita in the world were members of the Osage Nation in Oklahoma. After oil was discovered beneath their land, the Osage rode in chauffeured automobiles, built mansions, and sent their children to study in Europe. Then, one by one, the Osage began to be killed off. The family of an Osage woman, Mollie Burkhart, became a prime target. One of her relatives was shot. Another was poisoned. And it was just the beginning, as more and more Osage were dying under mysterious circumstances, and many of those who dared to investigate the killings were themselves murdered. As the death toll rose, the newly created FBI took up the case, and the young director, J. Edgar Hoover, turned to a former Texas Ranger named Tom White to try to unravel the mystery. White put together an undercover team, including a Native American agent who infiltrated the region, and together with the Osage began to expose one of the most chilling conspiracies in American history. Look for David Grann’s latest bestselling book, The Wager!

American Sailor Kurt Reid is a hothead and a hard case—a man who hits first and asks questions later. As scrappy and rough around the edges as Jimmy Cagney, it’s no wonder that when the ship’s captain turns up dead, it’s Reid who takes the rap. Falsely accused and under the gun, Reid jumps ship and vanishes into Shanghai —only to get caught in a web of intrigue, betrayal, and murder. In a world where nothing is what it seems and everything is for sale, he’s soon out of his depth, drawn into a spy game in which the winner takes all . . . and the loser takes a knife to the back. Will Reid live up to his reputation as the Spy Killer? He’ll have to learn the rules fast, because with players like sexy Russian agent Varinka Savischna in the hunt, the game is about to turn as seductive as it is sinister. As a young man, Hubbard visited pre-Communist China three times, where his closest friend headed up British intelligence. In a land where communists, nationalists, war lords and foreign adventurers schemed for control, Hubbard gained a unique insight into the intelligence operations and spy-craft in the region—a knowledge that informs stories like Spy Killer. “Vividly written, super-fast-paced.” —Ellery Queen

Hurt people hurt people. Say there was a novel in which Holden Caulfield was an alcoholic and Lolita was a photographer’s assistant and, somehow, they met in Bright Lights, Big City. He’s blinded by love. She by ambition. Diary of an Oxygen Thief is an honest, hilarious, and heartrending novel, but above all, a very realistic account of what we do to each other and what we allow to have done to us.

Han Solo of Star Wars could learn a thing or two from Firsten Guide, the tough, wise-cracking rebel leader who’s light years ahead of his time—and about to lead his crew into a battle that’s Beyond All Weapons. Because the force is most assuredly with Firsten. He and his fellow colonizers of Mars have faced a brutal crackdown engineered by Earth’s tyrannical government. But the resourceful Firsten has developed an extraordinary new fuel that enables him and his hardy band to escape into space—and time. Escape, however, is not enough. Firsten wants revenge. But the universe is full of unexpected twists and turns. Just as Prometheus flew too close to the sun, Firsten will soon discover that when you break the laws of physics, you can get burned. Hubbard was a pioneer in his use and development of Einstein’s theories of space and time as a plot point in his fiction. In Beyond All Weapons, he explains: “As mass approaches the speed of light ... it approaches infinity. And, as mass approaches infinity, time approaches zero. It was only nine days back from Alpha. But in those nine days, six thousand years have passed by Earth.” It stands as one of the earliest—and most succinct—descriptions of the theory. Also includes the science fiction adventures Strain, the story of a space war’s brutality and one man’s struggle to keep a secret under the pain of torture, and The Invaders, in which the distant crystal mines are under attack until a technician crystallizes a unique strategy to undermine the attackers. “A thrilling space adventure ... the terror and excitement builds through to the end.” —Publishers Weekly

When young Tim Beckdolt strikes a rich seam of gold, his hopes for an abundant future are shattered when a pair of violent claim jumpers force him to mine the site at gun point before hunting him through the wilderness when he escapes.

Family friendly Un-Adult-A-rated fun! Does size matter? Is bigger better? That’s no small question to Tom Little—the circus midget with giant dreams. Tom may be king of the midgets, but he’s got far grander ambitions—to become the muscleman at the top, the ringmaster. Now, drawing on some dark ancient secrets and mystic texts, he’s about to get his wish. Imagine a pint-sized Mickey Rooney on steroids, trading up into a body like Burt Lancaster’s. Then imagine paying the biggest price of all…. Assuming another man’s identity, Tom discovers he must also take on his sins, debts, and enemies. He may be living large—but now there are those who want to make him pay for the big man’s sins. Throughout his young life Hubbard was fascinated and intrigued by mysticism and magic. From an old Blackfoot Indian medicine man in Montana to the last living magician descendant of Kublai Khan in China, from the Chamorro natives of Guam to voodoo displays in Haiti, he absorbed information and insight wherever he could—putting it all to marvelous use in stories like this. Also includes The Last Drop, an astounding tale of a New York bartender who mixes some very magical drinks—to amazing effect. “Wonderfully entertaining ... excellent audio quality, talented performers, great sound effects.” —School Library Journal