Showing results by author "Michael Esser" in All Categories

Abandoned by her mother one Christmas Eve, eleven-year-old Meg Lefleur has learned the hard way to rely on no one. Now one of the unadoptable "big girls" at the Lafayette County Orphan Asylum, she fights each day to keep her spirit unbowed. Birdie Calhoun, unmarried and outspoken, has come to Oxford to ask her socialite sister to help the struggling family she’s left behind. But as the Depression tightens its grip, Birdie discovers her sister’s seemingly charmed life is a tapestry of lies.

A man. His ex-girlfriend's cat. A sadistic game show unlike anything in the universe: a dungeon crawl where survival depends on killing your prey in the most entertaining way possible. In a flash, every human-erected construction on Earth - from Buckingham Palace to the tiniest of sheds - collapses in a heap, sinking into the ground. The buildings and all the people inside have all been atomized and transformed into the dungeon: an 18-level labyrinth filled with traps, monsters, and loot.

The ratings and views are off the chart. The fans just can't get enough. The dungeon gets more dangerous each day. But in a grinder designed to chew up and spit out crawlers by the millions, Carl and Princess Donut need to work harder than ever just to survive. They call it the Over City. A sprawling, once-thriving metropolis devastated by a mysterious calamity. But these streets are far from abandoned. An undead circus trawls the ruins. Murdered prostitutes rain from the sky. An ancient spell is finally ready to reveal its dark purpose.

A floating fortress occupied by warrior gnomes. A castle made of sand. A derelict submarine guarded by malfunctioning machines. A haunted crypt surrounded by lethal traps. It was supposed to be easy. One bubble. Four castles. Fifteen days. Capture each one, and the stairwell is unlocked.

A lush jungle teeming with danger. Savage dinosaurs seeking blood. A fallen princess intent on vengeance. A mysterious, end-of-floor celebration for the top crawlers, dubbed “The Butcher’s Masquerade”. The sixth floor. The Hunting Grounds. As the remaining crawlers battle for their lives, a new, terrible threat looms. Outside, tourists are finally allowed to enter the game, and they are here and ready to hunt. Among them is Vrah, a famed and veteran hunter, intent on collecting the biggest trophy of her career.

THE #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLING PHENOMENON A Katie Couric Book Club Pick A Jen Hatmaker Book Club Pick “[A] word-of-mouth smash hit.” —The New York Times “A treasure.” —Hoda Kotb “To Kill a Mockingbird for this generation.” —The Dallas Morning News One spring morning, a...

From Sally Hepworth, the New York Times bestselling author of The Soulmate and The Good Sister, comes a twist-filled, darkly funny mystery about the two kinds of people no one ever expects to be murderers: little girls and old ladies. “Vivid performances emphasize resilience and the power of...

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER A GMA BOOK CLUB PICK A NEW YORK TIMES BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR (SO FAR) A traditional American woman, a “tradwife” influencer, suddenly awakens in the brutal reality of 1855—where she must unravel whether this living nightmare is an elaborate hoax, a...

The ninth floor. Nine armies, each led by rich and powerful aliens from across the galaxy. Each team has one objective: to capture and hold the castle at the very center of the battlefield. Strategy, alliances, pitched battles, and, of course, betrayal ... It all makes for great fun and even greater television. After all, none of these powerful aliens really die when they’re playing war. Except this time. This time, winner takes all. Those who fall, stay in the ground.

READ BY THE AUTHOR. The acclaimed, prize-winning #1 New York Times bestselling writer returns with a moving, luminous novel that reminds us of the sweetness and impermanence of life and the power of connection to defy time. When Daphne Fuller and her husband Jonathan visit the Metropolitan...

The aftermath of the confrontation with Yip of Yore and Ell’Hakan still lingers as the fight for the Milky Way Galaxy approaches its end. With the biggest threats dealt with, only the Holy Church and its schemes, as well as whatever remnants of Ell’Hakan’s faction, remain active threats before the galaxy is truly claimed. Once everything is concluded and the galaxy is in a (relatively) stable state, Jake looks beyond his own galaxy, as he has many places in the universe he’s been looking forward to visiting.

Detective Mina Harker has built a reputation as the sharpest mind in the New Orleans Police Department, closing cases no one else can crack. But the case that's been haunting her for years is unlike anything else in her files. The victims leave behind no forensic evidence, no witnesses, and not a single drop of blood in their bodies. When FBI Special Agent Jon Weston enlists Harker to help track a serial killer who's striking in New Orleans, she knows two things: he's closer to the truth than he knows.

Featuring original music and an exclusive letter read by the author Following the #1 NYT release of We Are All Guilty Here, comes the next thrilling mystery in the new North Falls series from Karin Slaughter, and narrated once again by Kathleen Early… Welcome to North Falls. A small town with...

Ryland Grace is the sole survivor on a desperate, last-chance mission - and if he fails, humanity and the Earth itself will perish. Except that right now, he doesn't know that. He can't even remember his own name, let alone the nature of his assignment or how to complete it. All he knows is that he's been asleep for a very, very long time. And he's just been awakened to find himself millions of miles from home, with nothing but two corpses for company.

AN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES AND USA TODAY BESTSELLER Heroes and Nashville star Hayden Panettiere reclaims her story in a remarkably candid memoir. Read by the author. Hayden Panettiere’s career in entertainment began before she was old enough to walk. From early commercials to film and...

Lowen Ashleigh is a struggling writer on the brink of financial ruin when she accepts the job offer of a lifetime. Jeremy Crawford, husband of best-selling author Verity Crawford, has hired Lowen to complete the remaining books in a successful series his injured wife is unable to finish. Lowen arrives at the Crawford home, ready to sort through years of Verity's notes and outlines, hoping to find enough material to get her started. What Lowen doesn't expect to uncover in the chaotic office is an unfinished autobiography Verity never intended for anyone to read.

In the rural idyll of St Mary Mead, a murder has taken place. The despised Colonel Protheroe is found dead in the vicarage study by Reverend Leonard Clement. Though the Colonel had many enemies, the violence of his death shocks the sleepy village and starts the tongues of the local gossips wagging. The first suspects are the Colonel's beautiful young wife, Anne, and her purported lover, handsome artist Lawrence Redding. But St Mary Mead is full of secrets, and the real killer could be anyone.

Get ready to be transported to the world of Harry Potter in a captivating production that features hundreds of unique voices and immersive sound design that brings the wizarding world vividly to life in Dolby Atmos. You’ll hear footsteps echoing through the corridors of Hogwarts and the heart-racing whoosh of the Golden Snitch as it darts past your ears in the heat of a Quidditch match. Also featuring an electrifying new musical score, The Full-Cast Audio Editions present J.K. Rowling’s iconic series as a truly spellbinding listening event for the whole family.

Block 42 Lot 17 is the most coveted oceanfront property in Shore Haven, and both Damon Burke and Jade Buchanan are certain it’s already theirs. The elderly owner, Clarabelle Spicket, promised it to Damon. She also promised it to Jade. Awkward… Now thanks to a provision in the will, the town’s coldest real estate shark and its fiercest power player are forced to spend the next four months living there together or else they forfeit the property.

His business card says he’s a lawyer, but disillusioned defense attorney Kelly Henderson knows what he really is–a janitor. His job is to clean up other people’s messes. Rich and powerful people whose sexual indiscretions need to be put to bed, so to speak. Kelly accepts who is, just eking out a living, when he takes the case of a presidential candidate whose people will do anything–including murder–to wipe his slate clean.

When private chef, Isla Merrin accepts a summer position at Maplehurst Manor, she's not there for the prestige or the pay. She's there because her twin sister Clemmie worked in these kitchens and weeks after leaving, took her own life. Nestled in the exclusive hills of the Cotswolds, behind Maplehurst's honey-stone walls and manicured lawns lies a darker truth. Staff members flee in terror. Young women disappear into silence. And all the while, the show goes on.