With Friends Like These

Dreams of love, hate, fear and revenge come true in... WOLFSTROKER - Willie Whitehorse could have been just another boozed-up guitarist, if it hadn't been for his songs. Somehow they were different - they reached out and grabbed people's souls. Now agent Sam Parker wanted a piece of the action. But when he had it, Sam knew he'd made a terrible mistake...a mistake it was much too late to correct... WITH FRIENDS LIKE THESE... - The aliens had returned to Earth after centuries because they needed allies. But after hundreds of years, they had no idea what they would be getting the universe into...and they soon found out! DREAM GONE GREEN - Pericles was a poet and a genius, who also happened to be a horse! WHY JOHNNY CAN'T SPEED - A father could teach his son a lot of important things, but combat on the freeways wasn't one of them...not when the kit was eighteen and too full of himself to survive. But revenge did have it's compensations!

One of the most enduring images of Quebec’s Quiet Revolution is of Charles de Gaulle proclaiming “Vive le Québec libre!” from the balcony of Montreal City Hall in 1967. The French president’s provocative act laid bare Canada’s unity crisis and has dominated interpretations of the Canada-Quebec-France triangle ever since. With Friends like These demystifies this cri du balcon by shifting the focus from de Gaulle to the broader domestic and international forces at play. Meren traces the evolution of Quebec’s special relationship with France after the Second World War and reveals that the resulting clash of nationalisms – French, Québécois, and Canadian -- was fuelled not only by personalities and events but also by the efforts to respond to the power and influence of the United States in an increasingly interconnected world. By seeking to understand, rather than simply condemn, aspects of Quebec, Gaullist, and Canadian nationalism, Meren casts doubt on established interpretations of events and exposes the complexity of a growing international interest in Canadian affairs.

A GMA Buzz Pick “Kim McCreight's thrillers are smart, propulsive and impossible to put down." —Laura Dave, author of The Last Thing He Told Me In this relentlessly twisty literary thriller from New York Times bestselling author Kimberly McCreight, a desperate intervention brings together a group of college friends 10 years after graduation—a reunion marked by lies, betrayal, and murder. Coming Soon from Amblin Television Six college friends have reunited for a glamorous weekend in the Catskills, a decade after a fatal accident that nearly destroyed them. Keith, once the ringleader of the group, was a handsome charmer on the fast track to success. Now he’s spiraling into addiction and stands at the edge of losing it all. This weekend is the last chance to save him. But Keith, it turns out, is not the only one who needs saving. By dawn on Sunday morning, a car has been found deep in the woods—one of the friends is dead, another is missing. When a local detective turns up to investigate, it’s clear the group is hiding something ominous. Haunted by her sister’s murder years ago, Detective Julia Scutt has her own share of problems. But she’s a skilled detective, and knows a rehearsed story when she hears one. It is up to Julia to untangle a decade-long web of friendship, lies and betrayals to discover the truth. But first she needs to face her own past—including the secrets that could, in the end, offer the key to everything. A story of unconditional love, obsession, and the sometimes-impossible choices we have to make in the name of loyalty, Friends Like These is a relentlessly twisty, roller-coaster of a novel.

Originally published in hardcover: New York: Ballantine Books, c2010.

Danny Wallace has friends. He has a wife and goes to brunch, and his new house has a couch with throw pillows. But as he nears 30, he can't help wondering about his best childhood friends, whose names he finds in a long-forgotten address book. Where are they now-and where, really, is he? Acting on an impulse we've all had at least once, he travels from London to Berlin, Tokyo, Australia, and California, risking rejection and ridicule to show up on his old pals' doorsteps. Memories of his 1980s childhood-from Michael Jackson to Ghostbusters-overwhelm him as he meets former buddies who have blossomed into rappers and ninjas, time-traveling pioneers, mediocre restaurant managers, and even Fijian royalty. Danny's attempt to re-befriend them all gives remarkable new resonance to the age-old mantra, "friends forever!"

Well-known Broadway playwright and TV producer Lyle Zacharias is throwing himself a lavish birthday party in his hometown of Philadelphia. Guests include his current wife, ex-wives, friends, former partners-not to mention Amanda Pepper and her own irrepressible mother, Bea. Yet when Lyle drops dead in the middle of a speech, it appears the likely perpetrator is none other than Bea, whose gift was fifty delicious, but apparently poisoned, tarts! It's up to Amanda to clear her mother's name and find the real murderer...before he or she strikes again! But Amanda herself may be the next target! Who says teaching isn't exciting? With any more excitement, Amanda will have to retire before she hits thirty-one...if she lives that long!

With friends like these, who needs enemies? A popular clique with a body count. A teenage girl whose twin sister may be a born killer. A sleepover with life-and-death stakes. In these six short, twisty psychological thrillers, the arena is high school. The game: climbing the social ladder, crushing their enemies, and convincing the grown-ups they’re perfect angels. And the prize? They get to stay alive. This collection contains the following short stories: The Sacrifice Her Sister’s Shoes That’s What Friends Do Family Secrets A Little More Ruthless Crazy Guilty