SHERLOCK HOLMESTHE ADVENTURE OF THE DYING DETECTIVEby Sir Arthur Conan DoyleMrs. Hudson, the landlady of Sherlock Holmes, was a long-sufferingwoman. Not only was her first-floor flat invaded at all hours bythrongs of singular and often undesirable characters but herremarkable lodger showed an eccentricity and irregularity in hislife which must have sorely tried her patience. His incredibleuntidiness, his addiction to music at strange hours, his occasionalrevolver practice within doors, his weird and often malodorous...　

THE SKETCH BOOKENGLISH WRITERS ON AMERICAby Washington Irving"Methinks I see in my mind a noble and puissant nation, rousingherself like a strong man after sleep, and shaking her invinciblelocks: methinks I see her as an eagle, mewing her mighty youth, andkindling her endazzled eyes at the full mid-day beam."MILTON ON THE LIBERTY OF THE PRESS.IT IS with feelings of deep regret that I observe the literaryanimosity daily growing up between England and America. Great...　

CHAPTER XIWho Stole the Tarts?The King and Queen of Hearts were seated on their throne whenthey arrived, with a great crowd assembled about themall sortsof little birds and beasts, as well as the whole pack of cards:the Knave was standing before them, in chains, with a soldier oneach side to guard him; and near the King was the White Rabbit,with a trumpet in one hand, and a scroll of parchment in theother. In the very middle of the court was a table, with a largedish of tarts upon it: they looked so good, that it made Alice...　

　Another Disc day dawned, but very gradually, and this is why.　When light encounters a strong magical field it loses ail sense of urgency. It slows right down. And on the Discworld the magic was embarrassingly strong, which meant that the soft yellow light of dawn flowed over the sleeping landscape like the caress of a gentle lover or, as some would have it, like golden syrup. It paused to fill up valleys. It piled up against mountain ranges. When it reached Cori Celesti, the ten mile spire of grey stone and green ice that marked the hub of the Disc and was the home of its gods, it built up i　

A MATTER OF MILLIONS　　THE Clipper smacked the blue of Biscayne Bay and settled into a lazy squat, from which it taxied toward a landing. An audible sigh of relief came from the roped-off crowd that lined the shore of Dinner Key. Little wonder that the sigh was heard, for the throng was immense.　　Seldom did the population of Miami, citizen and tourist, assemble en masse at the Marine Airways Base to witness the arrival of a Clipper plane. But the winged ship just in from the Caribbean was worthy of a huge turnout. Not only because its passengers were something of celebrities, but because of　

This tale grew in the telling, until it became a history of the Great War of the Ring and included many glimpses of the yet more ancient history that preceded it. It was begun soon after The Hobbit was written and before its publication in 1937; but I did not go on with this sequel, for I wished first to plete and set in order the mythology and legends of the Elder Days, which had then been taking shape for some years. I desired to do this for my own satisfaction, and I had little hope that other people would be interested in this work, especially since it was primarily linguistic in inspi　

　　The whine of Troft thrusters drifted in through the window on the late-summer breezes, jarring Jonny Moreau awake. For one heart-wrenching moment he was back in the midst of the Adirondack war; but as he tipped his recliner back to vertical the abrupt stab of pain in elbows and knees snapped him back to the present. For a minute he just sat there, gazing out the window at the Capitalia skyline and trying to bring his brain and body back on-line. Then, reaching carefully to his desk, he jabbed at the inter button on his phone. "Yes, Governor?" Theron Yutu said.　Jonny leaned back in his chair　

　FOR NATALIE　　ACKNOWLEDGMENTS　　Special thanks to Natalie Freer-the most genuine and giving person I know. To Stephen Reilly, my brother and my good friend and my loyal supporter, even from thousands of miles away. To Mum for her ments on the text and to Dad for his woeful title suggestions and to both of them for their love and support. And, last, thanks to everyone at Pan and Thomas Dunne Books (in particular, my editors, Cate Paterson, Pete Wolverton, and Madonna Duffy, first, for "discovering" me and, second, for enduring all of my crazy ideas). To all of you, never underestimate the power　

　IT BEGINS IN DARKNESS　　Effigies of the Earth King festooned the city around Castle Sylvarresta. Everywhere the effigies could be seenhanging beneath shopwindows, standing upright against the walls of the city gates, or nailed beside doorwaysstationed any place where the Earth King might find ingress into a home.　Many of the figures were crude things crafted by childrena few reeds twisted into the form of a man, often with a crown of oak leaves in its hair. But outside the doors of shops and taverns were more ornate figures of wood, the full size of a man, often elaborately painted and coifed　

Many a blond, northern moonrise,like a muted reflection, will softlyremind me and remind me again and again.It will be my bride, my alter ego.An incentive to find myself. I myselfam the moonrise of the south.　　-Paul Klee, The Tunisian Diaries　　Prologue　　It was just past midday, not long before the third summons to prayer, that Ammar ibn Khairan passed through the Gate of the Bells and entered the palace of Al-Fontina in Silvenes to kill the last of the khalifs of Al-Rassan.　　Passing into the Court of Lions he came to the three sets of double doors and paused before those that led to the garde　

　(Starring Three Witches, also kings, daggers, crowns, storms, dwarfs, cats, ghosts, spectres, apes, bandits, demons, forests, heirs, jesters, tortures, trolls, turntables, general rejoicing and drivers alarums.)　　The wind howled. Lightning stabbed at the earth erratically, like an inefficient assassin. Thunder rolled back and forth across the dark, rain-lashed hills.　The night was as black as the inside of a cat. It was the kind of night, you could believe, on which gods moved men as though they were pawns on the chessboard of fate. In the middle of this elemental storm a fire gleamed among 　

　Douglas Preston dedicates this book to Stuart Woods.　　Acknowledgments　Lincoln Child wishes to thank Bruce Swanson, Bry Benjamin, M.D., Lee Suckno, M.D., Irene Soderlund, Mary Ellen Mix, Bob Wincott, Sergio and Mila Nepomuceno, Jim Cush, Chris Yango, Jim Jenkins, Mark Mendel, Juliette Kvernland, Hartley Clark, and Denis Kelly, for their friendship and their assistance, both technical and otherwise. Thanks also to my wife, Luchie, for her love and unstinting support. And I would especially like to acknowledge as an inspiration my grandmother Nora Kubie. Artist, novelist, archaeologist, indepen　

The Life of Horatio Lord Nelsonby Robert SoutheyTO JOHN WILSON CROKER ESQ.,LL.D., F.R.S.,SECRETARY OF THE ADMIRALTY;WHO, BY THE OFFICIAL SITUATION WHICH HE SO ABLY FILLS,IS QUALIFIED TO APPRECIATE ITS HISTORICAL ACCURACY;AND WHO,AS A MEMBER OF THE REPUBLIC OF LETTERS,IS EQUALLY QUALIFIED TO DECIDE UPON ITSLITERARY MERITS,THIS WORKIS RESPECTFULLY INSCRIBED BY HIS FRIEND,THE AUTHORMany Lives of Nelson have been written; one is yet wanting, clear and concise enough to become a manual for the young sailor, which he may carry about with him till he has treasured it up for example in his memory and　

Lecture 2The Ancient Irish LawThe great peculiarity of the ancient laws of Ireland, so faras they are accessible to us, is discussed, with much instructiveillustration, in the General Preface to the Third Volume of theofficial translations. They are not a legislative structure, butthe creation of a class of professional lawyers, the Brehons,whose occupation became hereditary, and who on that ground havebeen designated, though not with strict accuracy, a caste. This...　

Bird Neighborsby Neltje Blanchan DoubledayBIRD NEIGHBORS. An Introductory Acquaintance With One Hundred and Fifty BirdsCommonly Found in the Gardens, Meadows, and Woods About Our HomesBy NELTJE BLANCHANINTRODUCTION BY JOHN BURROUGHS1897, 1904, 1922TABLE OF CONTENTSINTRODUCTION BY JOHN BURROUGHSPREFACEI. BIRD FAMILIES: Their Characteristics and theRepresentatives of Each Family included in "BirdNeighbors"II. HABITATS OF BIRDSIII. SEASONS OF BIRDSIV. BIRDS GROUPED ACCORDING TO SIZEV. DESCRIPTIONS OF BIRDS GROUPED ACCORDING TO COLOR...　

The Metal Monsterby A. MerrittPROLOGUEBefore the narrative which follows was placed in my hands, I had never seen Dr. Walter T. Goodwin, its author.When the manuscript revealing his adventures among the pre-historic ruins of the Nan-Matal in the Carolines (The Moon Pool) had been given me by the International Association of Science for editing and revision to meet the requirements of a popular presentation, Dr. Goodwin had left America. He had explained that he was still too shaken, too depressed, to be able to recall experiences that must inevitably carry with them freshened memories of thos