Allan Corduner

Trying to make sense of the horrors of World War II, Death relates the story of Liesel--a young German girl whose book-stealing and story-telling talents help sustain her family and the Jewish man they are hiding, as well as their neighbors.

A timeless love story set in a secret underground world--a place of pirates, painters, lovers, liars, and ships that sail upon a starless sea. Zachary Ezra Rawlins is a graduate student in Vermont when he discovers a mysterious book hidden in the stacks. As he turns the pages, entranced by tales of lovelorn prisoners, key collectors, and nameless acolytes, he reads something strange: a story from his own childhood. Bewildered by this inexplicable...

As Bluejay--Mo's fictitious double--tries to keep the Book of Immortality from unraveling, Adderhead kidnaps all the children in the kingdom, asking for Bluejay's surrender or the children will be doomed to slavery in the silver mines.

"Farlingaye Hall is a beautiful hotel in Suffolk on the east coast of England. Unfortunately, it is also the site of the brutal murder of Frank Parris, a retired advertising executive. Stefan Codrescu, a Romanian maintenance man, is arrested after police find blood spatter on his clothes and bed linen. He is found guilty and spends eight years in prison. It appears an open and shut case, but there is more than meets the eye. Alan Conway, the late...

In an alternate England, where people who are wicked in thought or deed are marked by the Smoke that pours from their bodies, Thomas, Charlie, and Livia notice that some people appear to be able to lie without triggering Smoke. As they dig deeper, they discover teachers who have mysterious ties to warring political factions, a sumptuous estate which hides attic rooms and laboratories, revolutionaries who are fighting against a secret police force....

As Arthur Penhaligon seeks to find the seventh key, complete his quest to save the Kingdom to which he is heir, and learn his true identity, he discovers that he has a greater purpose than he could have imagined.

Even as he grows stronger and closer to discovering the secret of his identity, Arthur must face further dangers and conflicts as he struggles to attain the Sixth Key from the powerful Saturday.

This is one of the early mystery stories, first published in 1860. The hero, Walter Hartright, encounters a solitary, terrified and beautiful woman dressed in white one moonlit night in north London. He feels impelled to solve the mystery of her distress. The intricate plot is peopled with a finely characterized case, from the peevish invalid Mr. Fairlie to the corpulent villain Count Fosco and the enigmatic woman in white herself. [From the back...

Arthur Penhaligon must unravel the secrets of the key and discover his true fate.

"Margaret Atwood has established herself as a beloved cultural icon and one of the most visionary and canonical authors of her generation. In this collection comprised of fifteen extraordinary stories--some of which have appeared in The New Yorker and The New York Times Magazine--Atwood speaks to our times with her characteristic wit and intellect. Of special significance are the seven works revolving around the long-term married couple Tig and Nell....