The Dancing Girl

“Wow, what a book!! I don’t think I drew a full breath for the entire time I was reading… I took it everywhere I went… I needed to read it at every opportunity!… Unbelievably twisty… I loved every word of it!” Goodreads Reviewer ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Jo pulled together the victims’ pictures. In all cases their arms were askew, in a way that looked like—what? It was like they were freeze-framed in the middle of some action. It was like they were dancing. When loving wife Jeanine is found dead in a small leafy town in Massachusetts, newly promoted Detective Jo Fournier is shocked to her core. Why leave her body posed like a ballerina? Why steal her wedding band and nothing else? Hungry for answers, Jo questions Jeanine’s husband, but the heartbreaking pain written on his face threatens to tear open Jo’s old wounds. It’s the same pain she felt when her boyfriend was cruelly shot dead by a gang in their hometown of New Orleans. She couldn’t get justice for him, but she’s determined to get justice for Jeanine’s devastated family. But before Jo can get answers, another woman is found, wedding ring stolen, body posed in the same ritualistic way. Digging through old files, Jo makes a terrifying link to a series of cold cases. She knows a serial killer is on the loose, but nobody will listen to the truth—not her bosses, nor the FBI. Still, Jo won’t let her superiors keep her from stopping the murderer in his tracks, even if it means the end of her career. Just as she is beginning to lose hope, she finds messages on the victims’ computers that feel like the crucial missing link. Knowing the killer is moments away from selecting his next target, will Jo be able to take him down the before another innocent life is lost? A USA Today bestseller, The Dancing Girls is the first book in an absolutely unputdownable and gripping crime thriller series. Fans of Robert Dugoni, Lisa Regan and Melinda Leigh will devour it in one sitting and will never see that OMG twist coming! Everyone is utterly addicted to The Dancing Girls: “Loved it, loved it, loved it!!… If I could give it 6 stars I would! In this current climate of ‘twists you will never see coming’—believe me… you will never see this coming!…Cannot wait for the next book!… Best book I have read.” NetGalley Reviewer ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ “Wow, Wow, Wow… Extremely addictive and left me wanting more. This book has everything… and a huge, unexpected twist you will not see coming. I can’t emphasize enough how much enjoyment I got from reading this… Well-deserved five stars—Wow.” Goodreads Reviewer ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ “Holy Freaking Hell when is the next book out?! From start to finish this book is just WOW!… Keeps you on the edge of your seat… Full of twists and turns… Talk about mind-blowing… Want to shout about it from the rooftops… I cannot recommend this book enough.” Baker’s Not So Secret Blog ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ “Wow! Wow! Wow! The twists left my head spinning! Oh so smugly, I thought I had the ending figured out when—whammo!—twist came out of nowhere. ‘Did NOT see that coming’ is an understatement. Blindsided! Wow.” Goodreads Reviewer ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ “I was just blown away by its climax, wandering around going OMG… Found it totally gripping… impossible to put down.” Muse Books ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ “An unpredictable rollercoaster ride with more twists and turns than you would find on a snakes and ladders board… I felt as though I had been punched in the gut and they left me breathless.” Ginger Book Geek ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Written in 1790, Hasan Shah's autobiographical romance, The Dancing Girl, is remarkable for both its lyrical prose and its fine recreation of a time, a place, and a culture - India in the 1780s, a tolerant, affable era before the full establishment of British colonial rule. The Dancing Girl tells of the doomed love of Hasan Shah (aide-de-camp to a British officer) and Khanum Jan (a courageous and gifted dancer of the courtesan caste) whose secret marriage could not prevent their separation. At Khanum Jan's death, her grief-stricken husband turned his raw emotion into a surprisingly modern, first-person narrative "without realizing", as leading Urdu novelist Qurratulain Hyder observes in the foreword to her translation (from the 1893 Urdu translation of the original Persian), "that he had become a pioneer of the modern Indian novel".

A splendid collection of short stories from the author of the New York Times bestselling novel The Handmaid’s Tale—the inspiration behind the award-winning Hulu original series. Margaret Atwood brings her singular voice to this unforgettable volume of short stories filled with rare intensity and exceptional intelligence. With brilliant flashes of fantasy, humor, and unexpected violence, the stories reveal the complexities of human relationships and bring to life characters who touch us deeply, evoking terror, laughter, compassion and recognition—and dramatically demonstrate why Margaret Atwood is one of the most important writers in English today.

An unforgettable and compassionate look at the lives of the residents of Lahore’s pleasure district The Dancing Girls of Lahore inhabit the Diamond District in the shadow of a great mosque. The 21st century goes on outside the walls, this ancient quarter, but scarcely registers within. Though their trade can be described with accuracy as prostitution, the dancing girls have an illustrious history: beloved by sultans, their sophisticated art encompassed the best of Mughal culture. The modern day Bollywood aesthetic, with its love of gaudy spectacle, music, and dance, is their distant legacy. But the life of the pampered courtesan is not the one now being lived by Maha and her three girls. What they do is forbidden by Islam, though tolerated; but they are, unclean, and Maha’s daughters, like her, are born into the business and will not leave it. Sociologist Louise Brown spent four years in the most intimate study of the family life of one Lahori courtesan. Beautifully understated, it turns a novelist’s eye on a true story that beggars the imagination. Maha, at fourteen a classically trained dancer of exquisite grace, had her virginity sold to the Sultan of Dubai; when her own daughter Nena comes of age and Maha cannot bring in the money she once did, she faces a terrible decision as the agents of the Sultan come calling once more.

When victims are found in dancing poses, Detective Jo Fournier immediately sees the pattern, but how can a serial killer get to victims all over the country? When loving wife Jeanine Hammond is found dead in a small leafy town in Massachusetts, newly promoted Detective Jo Fournier is shocked to her core. Why leave her body posed like a ballerina? Why steal her wedding band and nothing else? Hungry for answers, Jo questions Jeanine's husband, but the heart-breaking pain written on his face threatens to tear open Jo's old wounds. It's the same pain she felt when her boyfriend was cruelly shot dead by a gang in their hometown of New Orleans. She couldn't get justice for him, but she's determined to get justice for Jeanine's devastated family. But before Jo can get answers, another woman is found, wedding ring stolen, body posed in the same ritualistic way. Digging through old files, Jo makes a terrifying link to a series of cold cases. She knows a serial killer is on the loose, but nobody will listen to the truth--not her bosses, nor the FBI. Still, Jo won't let her superiors keep her from stopping the murderer in his tracks, even if it means the end of her career. Just as she is beginning to lose hope, she finds messages on the victims' computers that feel like the crucial missing link. But she knows the murderer is moments away from selecting his next victim. Will she be able to take down the most twisted killer of her career before another innocent life is lost?

A collection of twenty-three stories from one of the most influential figures in modern Japanese literature. Yasunari Kawabata is widely known for his innovative short stories, some called "palm-of-the-hand" stories short enough to fit into ones palm. This collection reflects Kawabata's keen perception, deceptive simplicity, and the deep melancholy that characterizes much of his work. The stories were written between 1923 and 1929, and many feature autobiographical events and themes that reflect the painful losses he experienced early in his life.

*THE TOP 10 BESTSELLER FROM THE MOST DECORATED BRITISH FEMALE OLYMPIAN IN HISTORY* 'Refreshingly honest [...] a highly enjoyable, fascinating read.' Horse and Hound _______________________________________________ "To ride into that arena, next to a sea of British flags and hear the roar of clapping and cheering, was so exciting. It's a sound I will never, ever forget." Charlotte Dujardin and her charismatic horse Valegro burst onto the international sports scene with their record-breaking performance at the London, 2012 Olympics. The world was captivated by the young woman with the dazzling smile and her dancing horse. But no one quite knew what it took to get there, nor how hard the path to success would be - until now. Dujardin began riding horses at the age of two, but dressage was firmly the domain of the wealthy, not the life of a girl from a middle-class family. Her parents sacrificed all and with a undeterred focus, Charlotte left school at 16 to follow her dream. When she was invited to be a groom for the British Olympian Carl Hester, she began to ride Valegro, a dark bay gelding and an unbreakable bond was formed. This is their incredible story.

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