Alice Munro's territory is the farms and semi-rural towns of south-western Ontario. In these dazzling stories she deals with the self-discovery of adolescence, the joys and pains of love and the despair and guilt of those caught in a narrow existence. And in sensitively exploring the lives of ordinary men and women, she makes us aware of the universal nature of their fears, sorrows and aspirations.

From the wicked imagination of award-winning writer Warren Ellis comes DEAD PIG COLLECTOR, a love story with a classic Ellis twist. So while it might be a love story, it’s also about killing people and disposing of their bodies in the most efficient manner possible.DEAD PIG COLLECTOR introduces readers to Mister Sun, a very proficient businessman whose trade is the murder and spotless removal of human beings. Like any businessman, he knows each transaction is only as good as his client—and today’s client, in Los Angeles, has turned out to be so dangerously stupid that Mister Sun’s work and life are now in jeopardy…

In story after story in this brilliant new collection, Alice Munro pinpoints the moment a person is forever altered by a chance encounter, an action not taken, or a simple twist of fate. Her characters are flawed and fully human: a soldier returning from war and avoiding his fiancée, a wealthy woman deciding whether to confront a blackmailer, an adulterous mother and her neglected children, a guilt-ridden father, a young teacher jilted by her employer. Illumined by Munro’s unflinching insight, these lives draw us in with their quiet depth and surprise us with unexpected turns. And while most are set in her signature territory around Lake Huron, some strike even closer to home: an astonishing suite of four autobiographical tales offers an unprecedented glimpse into Munro’s own childhood. Exalted by her clarity of vision and her unparalleled gift for storytelling, Dear Life shows how strange, perilous, and extraordinary ordinary life can be.

Behind every man of adventure stands a woman. She can inspire him to reach the stars, or she can chain him with doubt and fear and indecision. And if he is a 500-mile-an-hour pilot, she can literally worry him to his death.

«„Невыразимые“ давали бал. Они взяли у артиллеристов семифунтовик, увили его лаврами, натерли пол для танцев, так что он стал гладким, как лед, приготовили такой ужин, какого никто никогда не едал, и у дверей комнаты поставили двух часовых, поручив им держать подносы с программами. Мой друг, рядовой Мельваней, был одним из этих часовых, так как он принадлежал к числу самых рослых малых в полку. В разгаре танцев часовых освободили, и Мельваней пошел помогать сержанту, который заведовал ужином…»

A Soviet political prisoner is ordered to use her unique talents to explore a strange scientific phenomenon. It could be a trap… or a way out.* * *

Garth Nix was born in 1963 in Melbourne, Australia, to the sound of the Salvation Army band outside playing ‘Hail the Conquering Hero Comes’ or possibly ‘Roll Out the Barrel’. Garth left Melbourne at an early age for Canberra (the federal capital) and stayed there till he was nineteen, when he left to drive around the UK in a beat-up Austin with a boot full of books and a Silver-Reed typewriter.

Despite a wheel literally falling off the Austin, Garth survived to return to Australia and study at the University of Canberra. After finishing his degree in 1986 he worked in a bookshop, then as a book publicist, a publisher’s sales representative, and editor. Along the way he was also a part-time soldier in the Australian Army Reserve, serving in an Assault Pioneer platoon for four years. Garth left publishing to work as a public relations and marketing consultant from 1994–1997, till he became a full-time writer in 1998. He did that for a year before joining Curtis Brown Australia as a part-time literary agent in 1999. In January 2002 Garth went back to dedicated writer again, despite his belief that full-time writing explains the strange behaviour of many authors. He now lives in Sydney with his wife, two sons and lots of books.

“It was just a test report. Like one of many, many he’d written up in the past. Except this time, several of the test subjects are dead…”At first, Dr. James Cutlass had thought his new job at NORAD was thrilling and full of opportunities, but that was before the demonstration… “Dress Your Marines in White” is the story of the terrifying choices surrounding a chemical weapons demonstration gone horribly wrong.DRESS YOUR MARINES IN WHITE is a new original science-fiction story from writer and actress Emmy Laybourne, who has appeared in movies like Superstar and The In-Laws and has performed original comedy on Comedy Central, MTV, VH1, and with UCB and Chicago City Limits. It is a prequel to her debut novel, Monument 14, which will be available on June 5th.

“It was just a test report. Like one of many, many he’d written up in the past. Except this time, several of the test subjects are dead…”At first, Dr. James Cutlass had thought his new job at NORAD was thrilling and full of opportunities, but that was before the demonstration… “Dress Your Marines in White” is the story of the terrifying choices surrounding a chemical weapons demonstration gone horribly wrong.DRESS YOUR MARINES IN WHITE is a new original science-fiction story from writer and actress Emmy Laybourne, who has appeared in movies like Superstar and The In-Laws and has performed original comedy on Comedy Central, MTV, VH1, and with UCB and Chicago City Limits. It is a prequel to her debut novel, Monument 14, which will be available on June 5th.

FROM THE AUTHOR OF The Gone-Away World AND THE FORTHCOMING Angelmaker—AN EXHILARATING ESPIONAGE MURDER-MYSTERY eShort.

There has been a strange death in the quiet village of Shrewton: old Donny Caspian has lost his head. In the Copper Kettle tea rooms, Tom Rice, a junior nobody from the Treasury, puzzles over the details of the case. He has been sent by his superiors to oversee the investigation, but is he supposed to help or hinder? At the next table, octogenarian superspy Edie Banister nibbles a slice of cake and struggles not to become Miss Marple. But what is the connection between the two? Who killed Donny Caspian, and why?

Taking in Rice’s present and Edie’s daring past, from duels on shipboard to death in back alleys, “Edie Investigates” is a superb short story from the incomparable Nick Harkaway.

Also included with this short, the first chapter of Nick Harkaway’s long-awaited new novel Angelmaker.

He knew he had one more race left in him; he was good for one more crack at the Indianapolis classic. But he needed a car. To get one, he had to amuse Bander son — who thought death was fun.

...is the author of more than 500 short stories and some 50 novels, including the bestselling Travis McGee series. Added together, the number of his books is now approaching the astonishing total of 30 million printed copies.

Few authors in history have been as prolific as John D. MacDonald, and few have been as highly praised by the critics. The SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE has called him “one of our best craftsmen”; the CHICAGO TRIBUNE has called him “a masterful writer”; and THE NEW YORK TIMES once dubbed him “the John O’Hara of the crime-suspense story.”

“He is a master of plot and construction,” said the LOS ANGELES TIMES, “discerning in characterization, able to bring alive the dimension of mood and setting.”

Only three times in my life have I heard as much horn as Buck blew those nights. We didn’t know why until it was all over.