(G K Hall Large Print Book Series)

By an extraordinary quirk, the McLean family entertained Confederates at their Manassas home just before the battle of Bull Run--and also hosted the peace negotiations at Appomattox, where they had moved to escape the war. Staying close to documented facts, as detailed in an excellent note, Rinaldi uses the McLeans' lives to dramatize the war's moral dilemmas. From his marriage in 1852, Will McLean has an uneasy relationship with his feisty seven-year-old stepdaughter Osceola (``Oscie''), the narrator; though she loves and respects the northern governess Will hires, and absorbs many of her ideas, Oscie is uneasy with Will's progressive stance toward slavery and, later, with his profiteering. Some of Rinaldi's inventions are unevenly developed--Oscie's long-held suspicions of one slave (dispelled when she understands her true story); a couple of romances typical of the era--though they do fill out the story. The most compelling relationship is between Oscie and Will, strong-minded characters, often opposed, whose mutual respect turns believably into a father-daughter bond, touchingly acknowledged in the last scene. Meanwhile, the author skillfully weaves history into her story--offstage battles, resentment against profiteers, a remarkable depiction of the northern generals taking the McLeans' furniture as memorabilia of Lee's surrender. Despite some weaknesses (Oscie at seven is unbelievably mature, and there's a 20th-century feel to some of the dialogue): a sweeping, dramatic overview of the war, authentic and compelling. Bibliography; chronology. (Fiction. 12+) -- Copyright ©1993, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Crime is common ground for the twenty-one women writers in this extraordinary collection of contemporary mystery fiction. The voices here include professional crime solvers who take you from the mean streets of V.I. Warshawski's Chicago in a case of music and murder... to the California freeway where Kinsey Millhone's beloved VW skids into a shooting... to the gang-held turf of Sharon says mum's the word. And then there are mothers, grandmothers, battered wives, and social workers -- ordinary women in extraordinary situations whose voices reveal contemporary life as seen through a woman's eye. From the opening tale of a girl down-and-out in London and what she steals from a corpse... to the final story of a summer vacation in the Berkshires, complete with romance and sudden death... this unique collection brings us great mystery writing that engages both our intellects and our hearts.From the Paperback edition.

America's most captivating secret agent tells her experiences of a Cold War mission into Morocco with William Casey.

Miss Amory Lorrimer, sole support for her 2 elderly aunts, accepts a job as social secretary for the wealthy Whitney family. While not included in the family, she is called upon occasionally to fill in at meals for missing guests. Upon her arrival, she meets a nephew of the house, Teddy, who is an accomplished pilot. Amory learns that Teddy's next flight will be dangerous but will set records if successful. She promises to pray for his safe return and gives him her copy of the New Testament to carry and read. After numerous reports of Teddy's progress, the family's routine is thrown aside when no further word comes and search parties are dispatched. In the meantime, another family nephew, a fine minister, is the target of a beautiful but scheming houseguest who plans to bring him down. The persistence of prayer plays a huge part in the story.

MURDER IS AN INAUSPICIOUS BEGINNING FOR ROMANCE Young bluestocking Lydia Trevelyn and her notable neighbor Lord Beaumont had managed to thwart all matchmaking schemes. However, fate conspires to bring them together through a most unfortunate means: murder. For when Beaumont finds a body in a local river, Lydia is shocked to discover that the deceased was, in life, her father's mistress. Shaken by the truth about her father and by the murky circumstances of his paramour's death, Lydia sees Beaumont as an ally in solving the mystery. Amid much bickering, the unlikely pair plumbs London's seamier side, exposing themselves to unbidden danger--not the least of which is the peril of losing their hearts . . . to love!

"Animals dream about the things they do in the day time just like people do. If you want sweet dreams, you've got to live a sweet life." So says Loyd Peregrina, a handsome Apache trainman and latter-day philosopher. But when Codi Noline returns to her hometown, Loyd's advice is painfully out of her reach. Dreamless and at the end of her rope, Codi comes back to Grace, Arizona to confront her past and face her ailing, distant father. What she finds is a town threatened by a silent environmental catastrophe, some startling clues to her own identity, and a man whose view of the world could change the course of her life. Blending flashbacks, dreams, and Native American legends, Animal Dreams is a suspenseful love story and a moving exploration of life's largest commitments. With this work, the acclaimed author of The Bean Trees and Homeland and Other Stories sustains her familiar voice while giving readers her most remarkable book yet.

The many moods and faces of Christmas are portrayed in this collection of short fiction by nineteenth-and early-twentieth-century authors.

Through a winning combination of biology, psychology, and personal anecdotes, renowned wildlife authority Roger Caras shows us how cats view the world around them and the people in it. He offers insights into the secret of catnip, the mystery of cats' iridescent eyes, and the true meaning of a purr. He explains cat vocabulary (nine consonants, five vowels) and the startling phenomenon of psi-trailing (a cat's ability to find its way home even after being transported miles away). He intro- duces us to the fascinating felines in his own life, helping us to see how they select people and homes to adopt. Beautifully illustrated with photographs and drawings, A Cat Is Watching will charm every cat lover, cat watcher, and cat person.

Something strange was going on in Hilary, Virginia -- Noah Braxton felt it the moment he arrived when a golden-haired, blue-eyed witch cast a spell and stole his heart! Rhiannon York beguiled the slightly staid but definitely sexy New York lawyer with her bewitching eyes and her scent of exotic spices and wild flowers. Her touch of fire melted Noah's hard edges and made him long to lose control in her arms, but was the sensual web she wove only a tantalizing illusion that would disappear with the dawn? Trailed by a black cat whose blue eyes shared Rhiannon's hypnotic power, Noah tried to uncover the mysterious secret that had brought him to the small town, but he kept coming back to the lady whose lips tasted of moonlight. He'd shattered her peace, but Rhiannon feared he would never belong. Could the fiery enchantress teach Noah the joy of believing in dreams come true?