Seven years before Richard Preston wrote about horrifying viruses in The Hot Zone, he turned his attention to the cosmos. In First Light, he demonstrates his gift for creating an exciting and absorbing narrative around a complex scientific subject--in this case the efforts by astronomers at the Palomar Observatory in the San Gabriel Mountains of California to peer to the farthest edges of space through the Hale Telescope, attempting to solve the riddle of the creation of the universe. Richard Preston's name became a household word with The Hot Zone, which sold nearly 800,000 copies in hardcover, was on The New York Times's bestseller list for 42 weeks, and was the subject of countless magazine and newspaper articles. Preston has become a sought-after commentator on popular science subjects. For this hardcover reprint of what has been called "the best popular account of astronomy in action," (Kirkus Reviews) he has revised the text and written a new introduction.

There was a new kid in town.Several new kids, plus the odd grizzled old-timer, not to mention a whole bunch of mean-eyed, mature hell-raisers. And the whores, painted-up and liquored-up. All come drifting into town to drink and brawl and gamble and cause great offense to the God-fearing, gun-fearing citizens of Providence, Calif.They'd come in a search for the truth. One of those deep philosophical questions was about to be answered out on the dusty, bloodied street:Just who was the fastest gun in the West?Though to Adam Steele, hired by reluctant townspeople to drive the whole kill-happy convention out of town, the more important question seemed to be 'Was there Life after Death' and was he about to find out the answer?

Original anthology of 6 stories. The last of the Universe series edited by Terry Carr before his death.Contents: Second Going / James Tiptree, Jr.; Mencken Stuff ·/ Joel Richards; Lapidary Nights / Marta Randall; The Man Who Watched the Glaciers Run / Cherie Wilkerson; Pliny’s Commentaries / Ned Huston; In the Tower / Jack McDevitt. Until Terry Carr's untimely death in 1987, his Universe series was acknowledged by critics and readers alike as the foremost anthology of original science fiction. Its seventeen star-filled volumes were a shocase for the finest work of the field's most distinguished authors. The Universe series was continued for three editions with starting over numbering: Universe 1 (1990); Universe 2 (1992); Universe 3 (1994) ... under the editorship of two of Terry Carr's closest friend's, multiple award winning author and anthologist Robert Silverberg and his wife, author Karen Haber.

In these eleven stories, Rohinton Mistry opens our eyes and our hearts to the rich, complex patterns of life inside Firozsha Baag, an apartment building in Bombay. Here are Jaakaylee, the ghost-seer, and Najamai, the only owner of a refrigerator in Firozsha Baag; Rustomji the Curmudgeon and Kersi, the young boy whose life threads through the book and who narrates the final story as an adult in Toronto. We see their passions, their worst fears, their betrayals, and their humorous acts of revenge. Witty and poignant, in turns, these intersecting stories create a finely textured mosaic of lives and illuminate a world poised between the old ways and the new.

Dinah Sachs and Asa Thayer have had a love affair, conducted in afternoons stolen from the office of the magazine where they work. But now that the affair is over, Dinah, in an act of lingering passion, invents a narrative of Asa's youth, imagining the events that shaped the "happy, handsome man" who, in her words, "was born to stomp on my heart." Witty and sexy, funny and immediate, Asa, As I Knew Him is a a seductive dialogue between love and memory, obsession and illusion. From the Trade Paperback edition.

The heartwarming debut that brought Per Petterson, the author of the highly acclaimed Out Stealing Horses, to prominence Young Arvid Jansen lives on the outskirts of Oslo. It’s the early sixties; his father works in a shoe factory and his Danish mother works as a cleaner. Arvid has nightmares about crocodiles and still wets his bed at night, but slowly he begins to understand the world around him. Vivid images accompany each new event: A photo of his mother as a young woman makes him cry as he realizes how time passes, and the black car that comes to collect his father on the day Arvid’s grandfather dies reminds him of the passing of his bullfinch. And then, one morning, his teacher tells his class to pray because a nuclear war is looming. Ashes in My Mouth, Sand in My Shoes, Per Petterson’s debut, in which he introduces Arvid Jansen to the world, is a delicate portrait of childhood in all its complexity, wonder, and confusion that will delight fans of Out Stealing Horses and new readers alike.

From Publishers WeeklyWhen the president of the Miami Chamber of Commerce is found dead inside a suitcase with his legs sawn off and a rubber alligator stuffed down his throat, news and police locals prefer to believe it's simply another typical South Florida crime. But when letters from a terrorist group, Las Noches de Diciembre, link the man's death to the disappearances of a visiting Shriner and a Canadian tourist, former newsman (now private eye) Brian Keyes intuits that someone is out to kill Florida's tourist trade. His investigation leads him to an old journalism crony obsessed with fury against the state's irresponsible development policies. Miami Herald columnist Hiaasen writes with a seriousness of intent and knack for characterization which, unfortunately, outstrip his comic talents. This is an auspicious solo debut for the serious Hiaasen (he has written three thrillers with William Montalbano), but a lukewarm one for him as a potential comic-absurdist. (March 24pCopyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc. Review"A dark, funny book full of irony and spice. I loved it!"-- Robert B. Parker

EPUB (reformatted)Hero or Killer?In a startling future that's coming closer every year, Chet Kinsman is an astronaut ace who has done everything in space--including committing the first murder. It's a secret he can never escape, not even on the Moon, where he's head of the first U.S. lunar colony.But suddenly, a series of shocking yet strangely inevitable circumstances forces Kinsman to confront his hidden past and decide Earth's destiny. In a desperate countdown to nuclear annihilation, Kinsman struggles against a deadly paradox: if he rescues the world, he may end up destroying himself.

A HIGH VOLTAGE DREAM COME TRUE. The Rileys and their friends had lived in the old city tenement for years. A crumbling building full of memories and love… it was their home. Now the property is condemned. And soon, the wrecking cranes will destroy the remnants of their lives. UNLESS… Something happens.Something weird.Something wonderful…

In early nineteenth-century America, a woman takes flight to protect a young boy—but love is about to catch up to her. Bethany Cole and her young charge, Peeto, are running for their lives, following the raging waters of the Mississippi to freedom, escaping the ruthless Luke Randall, Peeto's father. When Luke finds Bethany and his son gone, he immediately vows to track down the lovely "kidnapper." However, he isn't counting on Bethany's strength of will and determination. As she braves crossing the river and traversing the lawless lands of the frontier, Bethany shows him just what she's made of. Now, Luke finds his resolve weakening in the face of Bethany's beauty. She taunts and tantalizes him . . . but remains just out of reach, as a supreme battle of wills turns into a sweetly passionate surrender for the two adversaries. They began as enemies, but couldn't defy the overwhelming need that brought them together.

His identity card may read Gerald Knave: Survivor, but to his countless followers, he’s that wisecracking, adventure-loving space traveler who tickles the funny bone, while sending your imagination reeling into the far future. Gathered for the first time in one volume, the seven stories you’ll discover here offer some of Knaves most recent —and most thrilling—escapades to date. Consider “Love in Bloom,” where our man Knave, with the help of a possibly deranged chemist, gives a whole new meaning to the phrase “Make love not war”…“The Samaritan Rule,” where a distant civilization points up the possibility of a Samaritan being too good…and “The Wheelbarrow Thief,” where the ultimate survivor volunteers for an assignment on a faraway planet —it’s not exactly a suicide mission, but it’s no piece of cake either. With loads of fast action, electrifying suspense, and uproarious fun, Knave and the Game is a collection fans old and new can’t afford to pass up! Best known for his creation of the inimitable Gerald Knave, Laurence M. Janifer is the author of many short stories and novels, including You Sane Men. He lives in Brooklyn, New York.

Five Fabulous Sex Goddesses Their careers span the history of motion pictures. The life of each has been touched by the legendary agent (and lover) Frankie Adano. From Babe, the outrageous honky-tonk blonde who becomes an eternal box-office draw ... to April, the classy beauty who never wanted to act, let alone be a star ... Claire, Star of Stars, quintessential Hollywood Movie Queen, who's lasted the longest yet still looks back unforgivingly at her incredible life—they're dominated by exalted success, desperate failure, excess, and illusion ... royal lives ruled by All That Glitters.

When luckless Raymond Jardine becomes Sean Delancey's eleventh-grade-English project partner, he persuades Sean's grandfather to pose as a long-deceased, obscure Canadian poet, in an effort to pass the course and win a vacation to a luxurious Greek island.