Showing results by narrator "Nicol Zanzarella" in All Categories

Dozens of books promise to improve your brain function with a gimmick. Lifestyle changes, microdosing, electromagnetic stimulation: Just one weird trick can lightly alter or dramatically deconstruct your brain. In truth, there is no one-size-fits-all shortcut to the ideal mind. Instead, the way to understand cognitive enhancement is to think like a tailor: Measure how you need your brain to change, and then find a plan that suits it.

When John Nelson abandoned his government job to join a scrappy band of activists, he didn't realize trying to save the world would be so hard. His ideals remain strong, but his optimism is wearing thin. Parts per Million, Julia Stoops' socially conscious, fast-paced debut novel, is set in Portland, Oregon, in 2002. As the trio dives into antiwar protests and investigates fraud at an elite university, Nelson falls in love with an unlikely houseguest, Deirdre, a photographer from Ireland - and a recovering addict.

As team captain and enforcer, Patrick O'Doul puts the bruise in the Brooklyn Bruisers. But after years of hard hits, O'Doul is feeling the burn, both physically and mentally. He conceals his pain from his coach and trainers, but when his chronic hip injury becomes too obvious to ignore, they send him for sessions with the team's massage therapist.

Mike Beacon is a champion at defending the net, but off the ice he's not so lucky. A widower and a single father, he's never forgotten Lauren Williams, the ex who gave him the best year of his life. When Lauren reappears in the Bruisers office during the playoffs, Beacon sees his chance to make things right.

Ranging in age from six to 40, 38 sons and daughters of lesbians offer brief essays that could be valuable to like offspring, as well as to relatives and friends trying to understand the problems such children face. Homophobia, visited upon the children as well as their mothers, is the most commonly cited concern; some younger contributors feel isolated from their peers, and a couple of boys endure rejection from radical lesbian acquaintances.

Everyone, even Frost, thought that she was an ordinary mother and wife. But she begins a quest to find out who she is after the unforgiving grip of death snatches her husband and two sons from her loving arms. Her identity found, this mother and wife turned witch and swordswoman vows to travel the world fighting the very source of evil. Join Frost on her journey as she wields her mighty demonblade to slay all evil that crosses her path.

Donald believes he knows all there is to know about seeing. An optician in suburban Boston, he rests assured that he and his wife, Viv, who works at the local stables, will live out quiet lives with their two children. Then Mercury - a gorgeous young racehorse - enters their lives, and everything changes.

From the time he was a young boy roaming the forests of the unsettled Midwest, Abraham Lincoln knew in his heart that slavery was deeply wrong. The passion for humanity that defined Lincoln's life shines through in this portrait of a truly great American president.

Charlie Williamson is a life-long jock who's butch enough to cause plenty of raised eyebrows in gym locker rooms. Since flaming out of college on a wave of drugs, alcohol, and depression, she's worked the same easy, low-stress job at RRiotWear—a women's fitness clothing startup in Chicago. Elizabeth McIntyre runs a boutique tech company. When her doctor confirms what her best friend has been saying for years—that Elizabeth needs to slow down and make some radical life changes—she signs up for RRiotWear's marathon program.

For centuries, women who emerge as mystic leaders have played vital roles in American culture. For just as long, they've been subjugated and ridiculed. Today, women and others across the nation are once again turning to their mystic powers to #HexThePatriarchy and help fight the forces that seem bent on relegating them to second-class citizenry.

One of the nation's leading psychologists asks why today's corporate leaders desire but reject creative solutions - and finds some surprising conclusions.

Life in the windswept village of Rantum in the North Sea is fraught with peril and hardship. Most families must rely on arranged marriage just to survive. But free-spirited Maren Luersen doesn't care for riches - her heart belongs to handsome but poor Thies Heinen. He may not have prospects or fortune to offer, but Maren knows their intense love can overcome any obstacle, and she is determined to be his bride.

When Asher Jackson, the playboy co-owner of the Oceanix Hotel Chain, meets Dana Anders, manager of the gourmet coffee shop within the Oceanix Resort, he longs to strike up a good rapport with her. But to his surprise, his typical charm immediately fails him and he can't help but provoke her with sarcastic remarks at every turn. Even though Dana can give as good as she gets, she's confused by Asher's hostility toward her - especially when she harbors a secret attraction toward him. When she finds herself with unexpected bills to pay, Dana strikes up a deal. For a reasonable fee, the financially strapped Dana will pose as Asher's girlfriend.

Having offered sanctuary to the soul of the man who stole her brother's body, Vree heads north to Shkoder with two kigh struggling to co-exist in a single body. Although the odds aren't in their favour, there's a chance, a small chance, the Bards can find Gyhard a body of his own without anyone else having to die. But Vree was an assassin trained to kill on command, Gyhard has chosen to kill again and again on a quest for immortality, and the Bards aren't certain which of them is the more dangerous.

After losing his parents and sister in a fire, Jake is raised by his grandparents. As he transforms from a traumatized boy to an exceptional student athlete and finally to an ambitious assistant DA, he learns to hide a crippling fear behind a stony mask. Until she turns 13, Bettina (Tina) Berenson is a shy, bookish girl rejected by both parents. But her life radically changes when her father starts taking her to the places he frequents: racetracks, prizefights, nightclubs, and the occasional company of gangsters he admires.

It’s 1965, and thirteen-year-old Gia, along with her older brother and cousins, are desperate to escape their sleepy, tree-lined neighborhood where nothing ever happens. The only thing Gia would miss is the surrounding marsh, where she feels at home among sea birds and salt water. But when one of Gia’s cousins brings drugs into their neighborhood, it sets off a chain of events that quickly turn dangerous. Everyone will be caught in the ripples, and some may be swept away entirely. Gia is determined to keep herself and her family afloat while the world is turned upside down.

Two grisly murders are committed at a meatpacking plant by a person wearing a cow mask. Not long after, the CEO of a water park is brutally killed by someone wearing an orca mask. Interpol Agent An Chang believes these are the latest acts of a ruthless serial killer he has been chasing for more than 20 years...a killer who targets those who harm innocent animals.

Seventeen-year-old Cera Marlowe wants a normal life; one where she and her mom can stop skipping town every time a disturbing vision strikes. But when a girl she knows is murdered by a monster she can't explain, Cera's world turns upside down. Suddenly thrown into an ancient supernatural battle, Cera discovers she's not alone in her gifting and vows to use her visions to save lives. But why does John Milton's poem Paradise Lost keep interrupting her thoughts?

On the run from the brutal Sage and his army of Legions and Cormorants, 17-year-old Cera Marlowe knows the only place strong enough to protect her is the Alliance Council Estate. Cera’s introduction to the Estate is far from welcoming. As a Blight, her dueling powers of light and darkness make her a half-breed threat to the Alliance’s sacred powers. Cera’s ability to decipher hidden messages in classical artwork buys her shelter temporarily, but the clock is ticking as she’s faced with a daunting choice that could cost her everything.

The Kree Starforce are the baddest elite warriors in the cosmic business. Vers, their newest recruit, brings impressive photon-blasing powers to the team, but her impulsive nature has inspired some distrust among fellow Starforce members Korath, Att-Lass, Bron-Char, and, most of all, Minn-Erva, the team's most valued sniper. Under the tutelage of her commander, Vers will learn the ways of Starforce whether she likes it or not. Will Vers prove her worth to the team, and to herself, or will the pressure to succeed be her ultimate downfall?