Wild Cards And Iron Horses

Their love rides on a spring and a prayer... During the recent war, a soldier gave his life to save Jonathan Handleston. With the help of an advanced metal brace on his crippled hand, Jon travels from one poker tournament to the next, determined to earn enough money to pay the debt he owes to the dead soldier's family. Prosperity Ridge is supposed to be the last stop on his quest, but his brace is broken and he needs an engineer to repair the delicate mechanisms. The only one available is Samantha Weatherly, a beautiful anomaly in a world ruled by men. Sam is no fool. Jon is no different from any other gambler--except for his amazing prosthetic. Despite a demanding project to win a critical contract to develop an iron horse, she succumbs to the lure of working on the delicate mechanisms. And working with the handsome Englishman. But danger lurks on the horizon as an old enemy arrives to thwart Jon's mission of redemption, ready to take out anyone or anything that stands in his way...

A father’s impossible quest to return to his family. A son’s magical journey. A single mother’s heroic efforts to protect her son. And fate’s sleight of hand bringing together baseball’s past legends and today’s major league stars in a game for the ages.

It's June 30, 2003, and four successful businessmen are celebrating their twenty-fifth annual dinner, having become close friends after starting their careers together at a large accounting firm back in June of 1979. One, Carl Messina, an unmarried Italian from Brooklyn through which the story is told, is a partner in the firm. The other three had left for other prominent positions, including Kavi Chander, who had immigrated to the US from India as a teen. Kavi is the chief financial officer of American Dynamics Group (ADG), one of the largest companies in the world. The other two are Marc Abrams, an anal-retentive partner in a prestigious New York law firm, and Ken Tanner, a physically strong, womanizing, ex-baseball prodigy who heads up the tax department at a large multinational company. At the dinner, Kavi gets a call that provides the first indication of a bribery scandal within an ADG business unit located in the Far East, which, under onerous new rules related to financial executives, has the potential to cause him significant personal harm. includes a dogmatic Securities and Exchange Commission investigator with a personal agenda, a charismatic chain-smoking Frenchman who heads up the Far East business unit, and an attractive, vibrant and highly successful asset-protection attorney by the name of Victoria Richards, who has a subconscious desire to 'take from men.

Cassie Nyre is looking forward to a quiet and lonely Christmas--until she finds an injured animal on the way home. Her big heart has her bring the hurt otter into her home and into her bathtub, to rest until Christmas Day when she can deliver it to Animal Control. But the next morning she finds a semi-naked man in her bathroom--and it's not Santa Claus!

She said no to a Prince - can she say no to a King? Kathleen Kiski, a successful businesswoman in Toronto, Canada, is shocked to see her old boyfriend, Teddy Dubrienne, leading the news feed – catapulted onto the world stage when his entire family perishes in a suspicious explosion. Teddy isn't just any man—he's the third in line to the Ansulenian Throne. He was a Prince when they dated five years ago, offering her a chance to marry and be a Princess—she said no. Now he's about to become King. Theo never planned to ascend to the throne, and not only has to deal with the devastating loss but also his mother's last request—to have Kathleen present at the funeral. In the depths of his sorrow, having Kat around would be the best medicine for his shattered heart and soul… but others are watching. Now Theo has to decide what's best for his kingdom, not necessarily for himself. Kat doesn't see herself as worthy, not five years ago to be a Princess and definitely not now to be Queen. Except it may be just this reluctance that's needed to help a kingdom heal…

Co-winner, Ray & Pat Browne Award for Best Edited Collection in Popular Culture and American Culture Once a small subculture, the steampunk phenomenon exploded in visibility during the first years of the twenty-first century, its influence and prominence increasing ever since. From its Victorian and literary roots to film and television, video games, music, and even fashion, this subgenre of science fiction reaches far and wide within current culture. Here Rachel A. Bowser and Brian Croxall present cutting-edge essays on steampunk: its rise in popularity, its many manifestations, and why we should pay attention. Like Clockwork offers wide-ranging perspectives on steampunk’s history and its place in contemporary culture, all while speaking to the “why” and “why now” of the genre. In her essay, Catherine Siemann draws on authors such as William Gibson and China Miéville to analyze steampunk cities; Kathryn Crowther turns to disability studies to examine the role of prosthetics within steampunk as well as the contemporary culture of access; and Diana M. Pho reviews the racial and national identities of steampunk, bringing in discussions of British chap-hop artists, African American steamfunk practitioners, and multicultural steampunk fan cultures. From disability and queerness to ethos and digital humanities, Like Clockwork explores the intriguing history of steampunk to evaluate the influence of the genre from the 1970s through the twenty-first century. Contributors: Kathryn Crowther, Perimeter College at Georgia State University; Shaun Duke, University of Florida; Stefania Forlini, University of Calgary (Canada); Lisa Hager, University of Wisconsin–Waukesha; Mike Perschon, MacEwan University in Edmonton, Alberta; Diana M. Pho; David Pike, American University; Catherine Siemann, New Jersey Institute of Technology; Joseph Weakland, Georgia Institute of Technology; Roger Whitson, Washington State University.

Atticus Steele is en route to Cape Cod when he rescues a stranger from death at the hands of a religious cult—and is surprised to learn that the man he’s saved is Ukah Oregon, his long-lost brother. Ukiah’s membership in the Dog Warriors— a paramilitary biker gang—gives him the ability to repay the favor by assisting Atticus in an undercover assignment to purchase an elusive new designer drug. What Atticus discovers—and can’t believe—is that the mysterious drug is an alien intoxicant specially attuned to the brothers’ shared alien biology. When the religious zealots threaten Ukiah’s life again, Atticus must learn to trust the Dog Warriors and accept his own origins if he’s to have any chance of saving his brother’s life…and his own.