The thirty stories in this heart take the reader to landscapes sometimes gritty, sometimes lavish, sometimes otherworldly— but all these places are made familiar by the humanity and grace Smith offers this life's misfits and lost souls. Using prose both lyrical and spare, this heart offers a vision of a world that aches with a harsh and unforgettable beauty.

Kiley loves her stepsister Nora, loves her so much she refuses to use the word step, believing it gives too much credit to the fathers who gave them nothing. The girls came up hard, watching over each other, their backs to the wall and their fists raised. Their small town and all its sad histories abandoned with their move to Philadelphia, where they work nowhere jobs and pocket the money they make in the city's underground economy. Their goal— a stash large enough for a down payment, thei...

Kayla perceives her world in vectors and variables, in quantities given and determined. She's a prodigy. A genius. Yet there are equations she can't solve.

A searing portrait of dopesick, small-town America. In rural America, Mark Hayes navigates a life shadowed by his mother's addiction and his father's imprisonment. Amidst poverty and chaos, he finds solace in a farmhouse, hoping for a fresh start. But shadows linger, testing his resolve at every turn. Is he destined to repeat the cycles of his parents?As Mark confronts his demons, he discovers glimmers of kindness from unexpected allies. These connections offer a l...

A haunting tale of loss, redemption, and the unexpected connections that can heal a broken heart.Jason Driscoll's world has crumbled. Haunted by an abusive father and the devastating loss of his daughter to cancer, he finds himself drowning in debt and entangled in a dangerous scheme. Violence, infidelity, and murder become his new reality as he plummets to unimaginable depths.Stripped bare of everything he once held dear, Jason arrives at the edge of despa...

A collection of thrilling novellas that explore the depths of human experience.Dive into diverse worlds with stories ranging from ancient Canaan to modern-day America. Experience the struggles and triumphs of soldiers, prophets, and ordinary people as they grapple with identity, morality, and the search for meaning.This anthology evokes a range of emotions, from fear and despair to love and hope, offering readers a thought-provoking journey through history ...

The first in a series, "Too Close to Home" introduces San Francisco's own Allison Baca, to the vast number of readers who wish to simply enjoy a "good exciting read". With "America's City" as the backdrop, this fresh and formidable ex-cop presses through events steeped with intelligent dialogue and artful suspense driven by dangerous individuals who live entirely by their own rules.Accompanying Allison in this fast paced thriller is Lt. Phillip McCarthy, her former boss and mentor w...

Risk-informed Methods and Applications in Nuclear and Energy Engineering: Modelling, Experimentation, and Validation presents a comprehensive view of the latest technical approaches and experimental capabilities in nuclear energy engineering. Based on Idaho National Laboratory's popular summer school series, this book compiles a collection of entries on the cutting-edge research and knowledge presented by proponents and developers of current and future nuclear systems, focusing on the conn...

Through compelling ethnography, Homelessness and Housing Advocacy: The Role of Red-Tape Warriors reveals the creative and ambitious methods that social service providers use to house their clients despite the conflictual conditions posed by the policies and institutions that govern the housing process.Combining in-depth interviews, extensive fieldwork, and the author’s own professional experience, this book considers the perspective of social service providers who work wit...

Slaughterhouse-Five is a seminal novel of contemporary literature, a rumination on war, space, time and the meaning of life and death. In Kurt Vonnegut’s existential classic, we meet Billy Pilgrim, a man who has become unmoored in time after being abducted by aliens from the planet Tralfamadore. In a non-linear universe where time has no meaning, we revisit key moments in Pilgrim’s life, in particular his harrowing experience as an American prisoner of war during the firebombing o...

In 1987 my life took on new meaning. Through a supernatural encounter I realized Frank Sinatra’s self-centred song ‘My Way’ was not the right road to tread. I became filled with an excitement and love for others that changed my life’s direction. Moments that had previously passed me by became wonderful opportunities to share what I had discovered.I was told that a little bit of faith could move mountains. I decided to put this idea to the test. Seizing the Moment is a collection of...

The God of the Bible is alive and active in our world today. Warren Curtis-Smith has captured a collection of exciting encounter stories where in the name of Jesus he has seen God do many miraculous things."In 1987 my life took on new meaning. Through a supernatural encounter I realized Frank Sinatra's self-centred song 'My Way' was not the right road to tread. I became filled with an excitement and love for others that changed my life's direction. Moments that had previously passe...