Lucky Bastard

Meet Nick Monday: a private detective who’s more Columbo than Sam Spade, more Magnum P.I. than Philip Marlowe. As San Francisco’s infamous luck poacher, Nick doesn’t know whether his ability to swipe other people’s fortunes with a simple handshake is a blessing or a curse. Ever since his youth, Nick has swallowed more than a few bitter truths when it comes to wheeling and dealing in destinies. Because whether the highest bidders of Nick’s serendipitous booty are celebrities, yuppies, or douche bag vegans, the unsavory fact remains: luck is the most powerful, addictive, and dangerous drug of them all. And no amount of cappuccinos, Lucky Charms, or apple fritters can sweeten the notion that Nick might be exactly what his father once claimed—as ambitious as a fart. That is, until Tuesday Knight, the curvy brunette who also happens to be the mayor’s daughter, approaches Nick with an irresistible offer: $100,000 to retrieve her father’s stolen luck. Could this high-stakes deal let Nick do right? Or will kowtowing to another greedmonger’s demands simply fund Nick’s addiction to corporate coffee bars while his morality drains down the toilet? Before he downs his next mocha, Nick finds himself at the mercy of a Chinese mafia kingpin and with no choice but to scour the city for the purest kind of luck, a hunt more titillating than softcore porn. All he has to do to stay ahead of the game is remember that you can’t take something from someone without eventually paying like hell for it. . . .

In this New York Times bestselling memoir, the announcer of the biggest sporting events in the country—including the 2017 Super Bowl and this century's most-watched, historic, Chicago Cubs–winning World Series—reveals why he is one lucky bastard. Sports fans see Joe Buck everywhere: broadcasting one of the biggest games in the NFL every week, calling the World Series every year, announcing the Super Bowl every three years. They know his father, Jack Buck, is a broadcasting legend and that he was beloved in his adopted hometown of St. Louis. Yet they have no idea who Joe really is. Or how he got here. They don’t know how he almost blew his career. They haven’t read his funniest and most embarrassing stories or heard about his interactions with the biggest sports stars of this era. They don’t know how hard he can laugh at himself—or that he thinks some of his critics have a point. And they don’t know what it was really like to grow up in his father’s shadow. Joe and Jack were best friends, but it wasn’t that simple. Jack, the voice of the St. Louis Cardinals for almost fifty years, helped Joe get his broadcasting start at eighteen. But Joe had to prove himself, first as a minor league radio announcer and then on local TV, national TV with ESPN, and then finally on FOX. He now has a successful, Emmy-winning career, but only after a lot of dues-paying, learning, and pretty damn entertaining mistakes that are recounted in this book. In his memoir, Joe takes us through his life on and off the field. He shares the lessons he learned from his father, the errors he made along the way, and the personal mountain he climbed and conquered, all of which have truly made him a Lucky Bastard.

The work of a prize-winning writer, this novel is vividly portrayed, moving and thought-provoking. How do you make sense of the past when it suddenly explodes into the present? Taking unexpected turns, Lucky Bastard is a powerful novel in three acts. In post-war Japan, Eric Keeling must investigate an alleged war crime, but do his actions constitute a further crime? In New Zealand, half a century later, this is the question that confronts his two children. They have grown up with a difficult father, who was traumatised by his past as a prisoner of war. Was he a war hero, or guilty of an unscrupulous act of revenge? As their father loses his hold on reality, they must sift through the facts and fictions of what really happened, and in the process they discover a new sense of family.

One Lucky Bastard, A Memoir, is a story inspired by an event that occurred in 1995 when my biological mother and I were reunited for the first time in 37 years. I was born a bastard, big deal, not everyone enters the world through the eyes of Norman Rockwell. The important thing was that I was adopted well. My parents loved me and were excellent providers. By age twelve, however, certain issues regarding my sexual orientation emerged. During that period of chaos known as puberty, I chose to hide behind a "straight" relationship for eight years until it tragically fell apart . Little did I know, but that was just the beginning of a series of extraordinary challenges, including the death of my soul mate brought on by the onslaught of AIDS. There was the murder of my Godchild's mother, by her husband. My father would die on the floor of a VA hospital and my mother would go on to develop Alzheimer's disease. As the first thirty-seven years of my life came its darkest point, I found myself searching for my biological roots. Fate, gracefully stepped in and guided me towards the mother who was forced to give me away at birth and a reunion took place that changed two lives forever. One Lucy Bastard, A Memoir, will appeal to anyone who has been involved in an adoption experience and to everyone who has struggled to find authenticity in their lives. James B. Myers lives in Los Angeles California.

Colton is Juno’s best friend. He’d usually be the one she goes to for advice on what do you do when you fall in love with your best Imagine you’re a matchmaker and you realize too late you’re in love with your childhood best friend. You only have yourself to blame—you’re the one who matched him and now he’s engaged to be married. When you find yourself in this position there’s a few secrets you’re going to need to keep… Secret #1 – Smile when he tells you the happy news, even if your heart cracks in half. Secret #2 – Don’t compare yourself to his beautiful French fiancée. You’re just as beautiful. Secret #3 – Don’t tag along to the tux fitting with him alone. Just no. Secret #4 – Don’t help him learn to dance to his wedding song. Secret #5 – Erase all memories of the two of you through the years when lines blurred for even the briefest of moments. And the one you never saw coming… Secret #6 – Definitely, don’t stand and object—someone else might just do it for you.

**Now a USA Today Bestseller** If your ex arrives in your hometown eighteen months after you walked out on him while you were eight months pregnant, follow this short list of rules before you give him a second chance. Rule #1 – Don’t stand in the way of your brothers who want to rough him up. Rule #2 – Don’t meet him for coffee and agree to allow him to meet your daughter. Rule #3 – Don’t drool when your daughter falls asleep on his chest for the first time. It’s just your ovaries talking. Rule #4 – Don’t let him hold your hand. While we’re at it, no hugs, no kisses on the cheek… just no physical contact in general. That only leads to remembering better times. The last one is the most important… Rule #5 – When you find yourself needing someone’s help and you’re tired of always asking your family, don’t let him be the one who’s there for you. Because all those good qualities of his will suck you right back in and you’ll have no chance of fighting your feelings, especially now that he’s ready to be a father to your daughter.

This Christmas join the De La Fuentes and McKenzies in Blossom Creek as they celebrate the grand opening of Emelia’s Restaurant. Over twenty years after Levi De La Fuente's parents opened the first Emelia’s, Levi and his cousin Ryan are getting ready to open a second location. Emma De La Fuente manages the first Emelia’s in Essex, Vermont for her parents. She’s in town to assist her brother and cousin in getting the new restaurant ready for its grand opening. However, she didn’t plan on the strong attraction she feels toward the town Sheriff. The man with his sweet words and heated looks has managed to derail her plans on returning home. While his sister is distracted, Levi finds himself in need of rescuing from a rather embarrassing situation. Luckily for him, Vivien Taylor, owner of Temptations, Blossom Creek’s handmade chocolate store, appears just at the right time. If only he didn’t crave the sweet woman, then maybe, this situation wouldn’t be so awkward. Blossom Creek just might be warm enough to melt the snow this holiday season.

John Fitzgerald Adams, a charismatic young politician who believes that he is the illegitimate son of JFK, sets out to run for president, with the help of friends with mysterious links to foreign powers and his strong-willed wife, an ardent leftist. 75,000 first printing. Tour.

‘I’m about to make you an offer you can’t refuse.’ Tiffany Davis takes her first delicious step into the exclusive masquerade ball hosted by the secretive Q Virtus gentlemen’s club. There, behind the mask, Tiffany can hide her scars and reveal her true self: a powerful businesswoman with an offer for the President of Bregnovia, Ryzard Vrbancic.

"Michael McCarty's 'A Little Help from My Fiends' truly shines. His collection of short stories is a lovingly created, watered with blood and harvested at the peak of ripeness kind of work. The approach to the collection is so fresh that -- were it a steak -- you would note still a bit of warmth and even a faint pulse. You see, each story in this collection is co-authored with another excellent storyteller. Mark McLaughlin, Terrie Leigh Relf and Dave Miller, to name a few, make appearances. Each short story is prefaced with a few words that identify the co-author, point to an interesting tidbit of the tale's creation, and never fail to show McCarty lauding the co-author while remaining modestly in the background." -- Sylvia Cochran

What happens when a vicious mafia solider has an unshakable alliance with the three biggest crime syndicates? Traveling the world ignites the spirit but navigating the cultural underworld of organized crime could steal your soul. From the ghettos in China to the international brotherhood of the Russian mafia and from the Colombian cartel to the crew who run the streets of Harlem, their crimes reach across the globe as the world witnesses their chilling trail of corruption, extortion, scams and murder. The catalyst to it all is Giovanni Bassemo aka Johnny Angel. Greed, deceit and betrayal at every turn threaten to break their strategic alliances. Their secret societies mix fear and violence with a manipulative genius rivaled only by their collective minds, resulting in higher and higher stakes. Their ruthless reaping of money, power and prestige destroys the lives of everyone who gets in their way. JOHNNY ANGEL is a raw, insider's look at the inner workings of the five biggest ethnic organized crime groups in the world. Boris Alekseyev aka The Fighter leads the Izmaylovskaya Gang (Russian Mafia). Meng Chang aka Lee is the leader of the Tongs (Chinese Mafia). Hector Lopez aka Yankee is the Colombian Cartel's main man in the USA. Mark Owens aka Apollo rules Harlem. Johnny Angel who women love and men fear is the traditional Italian Mafia captain and core connection to the other leaders. Their bonds from childhood are unshakable. Their ruthlessness is unparalleled. The plotting against Johnny shrouds him as the treachery thickens. The calmness of his response comes full circle in the brilliant yet vengeful counter-attack as he turns the tables on all of his conspiring killers. Johnny Angel is one of a series of four.

Most people know Roald Dahl as a famous writer of children's books and adult short stories, but few are aware of his fascination with medicine. Right from his earliest days to the end of his life, Dahl was intrigued by what doctors do, and why they do it. During his lifetime, he and his family suffered some terrible medical tragedies: Dahl nearly died when his fighter plane went down in World War II; his son had severe brain injury in an accident; and his daughter died of measles infection of the brain. But he also had some medical triumphs: he dragged himself back to health after the plane crash, despite a skull fracture, back injuries, and blindness; he was responsible for inventing a medical device (the Wade-Dahl-Till valve) to treat his son's hydrocephalus (water on the brain), and he taught his first wife Patricia to talk again after a devastating stroke. His medical interactions clearly influenced some of his writing - for example the explosive potions in George's Marvellous Medicine. And sometimes his writing impacted on events in his life - for example the research on neuroanatomy he did for his short story William and Mary later helped him design the valve for treating hydrocephalus. In this unique book, Professor Tom Solomon, who looked after Dahl towards the end of his life, examines Dahl's fascination with medicine. Taking examples from Dahl's life, and illustrated with excerpts from his writing, the book uses Dahl's medical interactions as a starting point to explore some extraordinary areas of medical science. Solomon is an award-winning science communicator, and he effortlessly explains the medical concepts underpinning the stories, in language that everyone can understand. The book is also peppered with anecdotes from Dahl''s late night hospital discussions with Solomon, which give new insights into this remarkable man's thinking as his life came to an end.

This is the official reading order of the Lucky O'Toole Vegas Adventure series, the Kate Sawyer Medical Thriller series, the Brinda Rose Humorous Mystery series and complete list of standalone novels by Deborah Coonts. Use it to track your reading and keep up to date on the latest releases from Deborah Coonts. This list includes all releases as of November 2020!

You can take the man out of the city, but is the countryside ready for him? Comedian and born and bred townie, Tony Hawks is not afraid of a challenge - or indeed a good bet. He's hitchhiked round Ireland with a fridge and taken on the Moldovan football team at tennis, one by one. Now the time has come for his greatest gamble yet - turning his back on comfortable city life to move to the wilds of the West Country. With his partner Fran in tow and their first child on the way, he embraces the rituals of village life with often absurd and hilarious results, introducing us to an ensemble of eclectic characters along the way. One minute he's taking part in a calamitous tractor run, the next he's chairing a village meeting, but of course he still finds time for one last solo adventure before fatherhood arrives - cycling coast to coast with a mini pig called Titch. In the epic battle of man vs countryside, who will win out?

With the unexpected death of his father, Prince Tojas Malock is forced to prepare for his coronation as the next king of his nation. In the midst of his preparations, Malock discovers that his father was murdered and now must find the killer before he strikes again. At the same time, discontent is rising among the human nations against Skimif, the new god of Martir. Led by King Fabadi, the king of a nation that rivals Malock's, this coalition opposes Skimif, who is Malock's friend and who seems to be far less of a noble figure than Malock first thought. Even so, the coalition's success would spell the end of order in the world and might even lead to another civil war between the gods. If Malock fails to discover the identity of the killer and stop the coalition of nations against Skimif, then chaos will devour the whole world. KEYWORDS: epic fantasy adventure series, epic fantasy dragons, epic fantasy magic, epic fantasy sword and sorcery, sword and sorcery adult fantasy, sword and sorcery series, sword and sorcery series magic

Amazing bastard (colloquial), n: a bloke who does stuff that other bastards wouldn't try in a month of Sundays We've all met them, or at least read about them - men who drive faster, climb higher, build and invent and triumph over impossible odds. Journalist Lawrence Money has assembled a collection of Amazing Aussie Bastards who truly stand out from the crowd. Immune to critics and disbelievers, undaunted by illness or financial setback, they have done what writer Somerset Maugham so admired -- 'moulded life to their own liking'. From Prince Leonard of Hutt, the rebel WA farmer who seceded from Australia, to Bob Katter, founder of the latest political party (who tells why he once threw eggs at the Beatles) -- and the indestructible giant of Australian radio, Alan Jones (who finally reveals the reason he switched stations). It's a book that celebrates stellar Aussie male achievement. What's their secret, these Amazing Bastards? What makes them tick? Can we be like them? The answer lies within these pages.