The Rat With The Human Face

Lyle Hertzog and his friends Marilla and Dave are the Qwikpick Adventure Society, three kids who seek out adventure in their seemingly quiet hometown of Crickenburg. On the hunt for their next big adventure—something to top the Fountain of Poop, if that’s even possible—the kids overhear a construction worker telling his buddies about a rat with a human face he saw in the basement of an old research facility. The decision is unanimous: the next adventure for the Qwikpick Society is on! But when their trip to find the rat doesn’t go quite as expected, the trio gets in big trouble. Will the second adventure for the Qwikpick Society also be their last?

Having just endured the death of his son during the First World War, Delapore moves from the US to his ancestral property, Exham Priory, in England, seeking space and peace to mourn his loss. He begins to restore the estate - despite dire warnings from locals - and hears rats scurrying behind the walls. Joined by academics, he investigates - and discovers a truly spine-chilling family secret. His ancestors had an underground city populated by prisoners, some walking on all fours, who were kept to feed their desire for human flesh! As the sound of the scurrying rats grows to a cacophony in his ears, Delapore is seized by madness and the uncontrollable urge to feast on flesh. Fans of James Herbert's 'Rats' trilogy, 'The Rats', 'Lair', and 'Domain', will get a similar shiver from 'The Rats in the Walls'. There is also a taste of Bram Stoker's 'Dracula'. Howard Phillips (H.P.) Lovecraft (1890-1937) was an American author famed for his horror and fantasy fiction. Born in Rhode Island, he became a pioneer of ‘cosmic horror’, conjuring up the lore of supernatural creatures who exist beyond our understanding. His best-known stories include "The Call of Cthulhu", "At the Mountains of Madness" and "The Colour Out of Space". While he was a mainstay of pulp magazines, Lovecraft never achieved wider literary recognition in his lifetime. But his posthumous influence has been profound. It can be found in everything from the fiction of Stephen King and Neil Gaiman to the HBO series "Lovecraft Country".

The “lively” (The New York Times) Agents of the Crown series continues with this thriller about Queen Elizabeth I’s advisor John Dee in a race to save the Empire with the help of a mysterious manuscript that offers global power. With rumors of the end times swirling, philosopher and astronomer John Dee travels to Prague in an effort to prevent one of Catherine de Medici’s seductive ladies-in-waiting from luring the Holy Roman Emperor into a crusade against England. To convince the famously occult-loving Emperor to join his side, Dee entices him with the esoteric Book of Secrets, a volume that, if decoded, could provide the chance to control the levers of heaven and earth. But Dee faces enemies at every turn, including a female codebreaker who could be the undoing of Dee and the British Empire.

This volume brings together the leaders in the field of PTSD research to present an up-to-date summary and understanding of this complex disorder. All of our current knowledge and controversies concerning the diagnosis, epidemiology, course, pathophysiology and treatment are described in detail. The evidence for efficacy for each of the different forms of psychotherapy and pharmacotherapy is reviewed. Particular attention is paid to at-risk groups, including minorities, and coverage of PTSD throughout the world is reviewed as well. The authors present state-of-the-art findings in genetics, epigenetics, neurotransmitter function and brain imaging to provide the most current and comprehensive review of this burgeoning field.

This hilarious, highly original series, which so astutely captures the odd preoccupations of middle schoolers, will appeal to the many fans of the Origami Yoda series and such gross-out classics as How to Eat Fried Worms and Freckle Juice. Lyle Hertzog and his friends Marilla and Dave expect to spend another dull holiday passing time at the local Qwikpick convenience store. Then an article in their hometown paper catches their eye—the sludge fountain at the nearby sewage plant is being retired. With this news, the three friends decide they’re not just normal kids who don’t have Christmas plans: they’re the Qwikpick Adventure Society. Their first mission: to see the “poop fountain” before it fades from glory. Told with the mix of journal entries, doodles, and handwritten notes that has made the Origami Yoda books so appealing, this is another great series from a master chronicler of middle school. Praise for The Qwikpick Papers "Laugh-out-loud high jinks tailormade for reluctant readers. A hilarious and well- designed update." --School Library Journal Summer 2014 Kids' Indie Next List