Games 2 Buy

Produktbeschreibung

Mark and Nathan Connor are estranged twins. There is little to connect them, save their current residence at 314 Crescent Manor, an old building situated in the centre of the city. The tenants of the Manor are never housed at random. With its large, brooding stained glass tree bearing down on them from the fifth floor to the first, it watches, and waits for one world to topple into the next.

REVIEWS for 314 CRESCENT MANOR:

Review by: A.M. Harte on Dec. 11, 2010 : ****
Mark and Nathan are brothers in name only. There is little love lost between them: any time spent together is torture for both of them. Yet something unexplained ties them together, pushes them to try, and try again at building their relationship. So when Mark moves to a new city for job-related reasons, artist Nathan packs his bags and follows suit. It just so happens that the place they move into is going to change their lives forever.

While the first couple of chapters set the tone for Nathan and Mark's awkward sibling relationship, I wasn't properly pulled into the story until The Event (chapter 4), when things take a bizarre twist down the rabbit hole. And it is then that M. Jones' atmospheric story-telling really starts to shine. The sense of parallel or alternate worlds, the lurking evil, and the growing mystery all combine together into an almost Silent Hill-esque setting which promises more questions than answers. A compelling plot began to unfold, and I looked forward to reading more.

The chapters jump between Mark and Nathan's point of view, and detail their parallel experiences of The Event. Both points of view are well-written and distinctive.

The writing is description-heavy, often times eerie. For my tastes, it is a little too verbose at times, but the overall quality is extremely solid.

Both plot and characterization are strong, the latter particularly so; I have a very clear impression of not just Mark and Nathan, but all of the characters.

In sum: an refreshingly eerie story. Definitely one to read.
(review of free book)

Review by: Maurice Lawless on July 21, 2010 : *****
Fantastic, spooky read. Very interesting perspectives on the main characters. I couldn't put it down.
(review of free book)


Review by: Nancy Brauer on June 22, 2010 : *****
I've been a fan of Jones' writing for a few years now. Her work is full of black comedy, suspense, memorable characters, and palpable atmosphere. 314 Crescent Manor is no exception.

Mark and Nathan Connor are estranged fraternal twins drifting through life. They know that something's wrong, but can't put their finger on what until The Event happens at Crescent Manor. Even after the supernatural (or quantum physics-related, depending on your point of view) Event turns their lives upside down, the siblings don't yet have all the answers. A cast of supporting characters, each as wonderfully strange as conspiracy theorist and bohemian artist Nathan and straight-laced, too-serious Mark, helps them with their quest. The Manor itself, a decaying art deco apartment building, is as much of a character as its tenants. It's eerie and unsettling, which makes you wonder all the more about those who live there.

Crescent Manor comes to a satisfying conclusion while leaving room for more -- and I certainly hope there's more!

Kurzbeschreibung

In the very near future Joe Logan lives in a time commonly referred to as the ?Dislocation?. The price of gasoline is frightfully expensive, unemployment is in the double digits, and Essex, his home town, is as marginal and defunct as is most of the country and the planet at large. On the same evening when Logan is laid off from his job his dog, Tara, is brutally mauled by a large, hideously ugly creature Logan can only describe as a ?dog-man?. Its body is canine but the face is all too human in appearance. Strangely enough, Tara?s remains are stolen in the middle of the night by figures dressed in protective gear and speed away in a large van. The local police are of little help and seem reticent about giving some indication as to what sort of animal killed Logan?s dog. This sets him on a path to find out for himself and is soon brought into contact with Natalie Schneider, a research assistant for a self styled internet journalist and UFO investigator named Chris Glass. The couple had moved to Essex recently in an effort to discover the cause of an accident that had occurred at the old Pine Haven estate right outside of town. The USAF had taken over the property several years earlier to conduct ?generic? research experiments and there was little to no involvement with the local community. At the time of the accident there were fatalities to some of the scientific and technical staff and a shroud of silenced encompassed the estate for nearly five years. Air Force security had maintained a presence up until recently when it was replaced by a private military contractor, Tactical Response Team Management and Control, to guard the estate grounds. The acreage surrounding Pine Haven has since expanded and the fence line beefed up with the latest security technology. A policy of ?nobody in - nobody out? is strictly enforced.
Anomalies of a paranormal nature have occurred since before the accident and still continue and Logan has come to believe that Pine Haven holds a key to the death of his dog and the creature that killed her. Logan doesn?t believe most of the stories generated over the years about the ?Pine Haven Project?, such as interdimensional teleportation and contact with aliens. It was all so much folklore; nonetheless, Natalie Schneider entices Logan to assist her in breaking into the estate grounds in an effort to retrieve an artifact that might give some indication as to what kind of experiments the Air Force was involved in and why it its failure was so catastrophic. Their efforts lead to some rather disastrous results.

Kurzbeschreibung

"Black ash stirred and sifted off the body still, rising to float on the water's surface. Franklin had never seen anything like this. Never. The timer sitting on the side of the tub went off and Franklin dutifully released the water, watching while additional black ash drifted down the drain. More water ran in the tub and the wait began again."--Blood Sense

"Saxom may be dead, but his children are alive and well."--Blood Passage

Saxom is dead. The vampires know this. Anthony Hancock, Director of the Joint NSA/Homeland Security Department knows it as well. Tony and the vampires are now on the hunt for Saxom's brood, all of whom are determined to avenge their sire's death. Neither Tony nor the vampires are aware of the other's efforts to search out these rogues, who may number in the hundreds at the very least. Tony holds information the vampires don't--he knows that Xenides, Saxom's eldest vampire child, has allied with terrorists (both foreign and domestic). Tony also neglects to provide vital infromation to Wlodek when he requests Lissa's help.

While struggling to recover from a near-fatal bout with the sun, Lissa fails to understand why Wlodek willingly sends her away on assignment so quickly. With very little information provided to her, Lissa is forced to face an enemy more deadly than anyone can imagine and unravel a plot that could kill millions.

Amazon.com

That Alice. When she's not traipsing after a rabbit into Wonderland, she's gallivanting off into the topsy-turvy world behind the drawing-room looking glass. In Through the Looking Glass, Lewis Carroll's masterful and zany sequel to Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, she makes more eccentric acquaintances, including Tweedledee and Tweedledum, the White Queen, and a somewhat grumpy Humpty Dumpty. Through a giant and elaborate chess game, Alice explores this odd country, where one must eat dry biscuits to quench thirst, and run like the wind to stay in one place. As in life, Alice must stay on her toes to learn the rules of this game. Through the Looking Glass immediately took its rightful place beside its partner on the shelf of eternal classics. And luckily for generations of enraptured children, Carroll was again able to persuade John Tenniel to create the fantastic woodblock engravings that have become so indelibly associated with the Alice stories. For almost 130 years, Alice's curious adventures have amused, perplexed, and delighted readers, young and old. This gorgeous, deluxe boxed set of both volumes contains engravings from Tenniel's original woodblocks that were discovered in a London bank in 1985, and reproduced for the first time here. "'What is the use of a book,' thought Alice, 'without pictures?'" What indeed? (All ages)

Kurzbeschreibung

Crete: A place of magic, of mystery, where violence and sacrifice meet courage and hope.

Aridela: Wrapped in legend, beloved of the people. An extraordinary woman who dances with bulls.

The north wind brings a swift ship and two brothers who plot Crete?s overthrow. Desire for this woman will propel their long rivalry into hatred so murderous it hurtles all three into an unimaginable future, and sparks the immortal rage of the Erinyes.

A woman of keen instinct and unshakeable loyalty. A proud warrior prince and his wounded half-brother. Glory, passion, treachery and conspiracy on the grandest scale.

What seems the end is only the beginning.

Produktbeschreibung

Kurzbeschreibung

"Magic requires sacrifice."

Alexandria, Egypt, 2008. The Sentinel assault on the vampire citadel was broken by a spell that consumed the caster and destroyed everything around him. Only two of the vampire hunters walked away: Antonio Martinez, last of the Winds, and Edgar Jameson, his trusted lieutenant.

Circumstances drew them together again, eventually. Will the Sentinel curse bring them down just as it has all who came before them, or can the choices they make trump destiny?

This novella comes after Sunrise (Book 2) in story continuity.

Arshad Ahsanuddin is a hematopathologist. The irony of a physician who specializes in blood disease writing a series of vampire novels is not lost upon him.

For more details about Arshad, check out the author's website at pactarcanum.com.

Search on "Pact Arcanum" to find all the books in the series.

Kurzbeschreibung