The Last Don (Mario Puzo)

The Last Don

Mario Puzo

Blurb: In a corrupt world where crooked cops and desperate gamblers play dangerous games of betrayal, one man has power over them all.

The Last Don is Mario Puzo at his finest - a masterful saga of the last great American crime family, the Clericuzios, and their powerful reach into Hollywood and Las Vegas. Domenico Clericuzio is a wise and ruthless man who in his old age is determined to create a life free from criminal activities for his grandchildren. But as he strives to establish his heirs in legitimate society, secrets from his family's past spark a vicious and bloody war between cousins...

ISBN: 9780099533245 (Paperback)

Year: 1996

Publisher: Arrow Books

Pages: 482 (Fiction)

Links

1. Author's official site

2. Wikipedia page for the book

3. Buy from Amazon

4. Goodreads page

5. IMDB page for a TV series based on the book

Fifty Shades of Grey - Fifty Shades #1 (E L James)

Fifty Shades of Grey (Fifty Shades #1)

E L James

Blurb: Romantic, liberating and totally addictive, this is a novel that will obsess you, possess you, and stay with you forever.

When literature student Anastasia Stelle interviews successful entrepreneur Christian Grey, she finds him very attractive and deeply intimidating. Convinced that their meeting went badly, she tries to put him out of her mind - until he turns up at the store where she works part-time, and invites her out.

Unworldly and innocent, Ana is shocked to find she wants this man. And, when he warns her to keep her distance, it only makes her want him more.

But Grey is tormented by inner demons, and consumed by the need to control. As they embark on a passionate love affair, Ana discovers more about her own desires, as well as the dark secrets Grey keeps hidden away from public view...

ISBN: 9780099579939 (Paperback)

Year: 2011

Publisher: Arrow Books

Pages: 514 (Fiction)

Links

1. Interview with the author

2. Author's official site

3. Review of the book

4. Goodreads page

5. Buy from Amazon

Bill Clinton - Mastering The Presidency (Nigel Hamilton)

Bill Clinton - Mastering The Presidency

Nigel Hamilton

Blurb: Following on from the widely praised Bill Clinton: An American Journey, Nigel Hamilton takes us on another journey: charting the experience of the 42nd President as he took the presidential oath of office - and how he fared thereafter in the piranha pool of Washington D.C.

Hamilton charts what was possibly the greatest disaster and re-reinvention of a president in office in modern times. The Clinton administration began ominously badly - kicking off with the worst transition in living memory. The presidency then deteriorated through a series of fiascos at every level. The story of how Bill Clinton faced up to his failures, and refashioned himself in the White House in thus an epic one. It is a story that climaxes with a thriving U.S. economy and hard-won wisdom in international affairs. Clinton would begin his second term as the undisputed, immensely popular leader of the Western world - aware, however, that terrors and treason within America loomed as large as dangers abroad.

Insightful, balanced, prodigiously researched and a joy to read, Bill Clinton: Mastering The Presidency sets the classic story of Clinton's extraordinary effort to be a modern president, in a modern world.

ISBN: 9780099461340 (Paperback)

Year: 2007

Publisher: Arrow Books

Pages: 766 (Non-Fiction)

Links

1. Buy from Amazon

2. Review of the book

3. Goodreads page

4. Another review

5. Wikipedia page for the author

Witch & Wizard (James Patterson with Gabrielle Charbonnet)

Witch & Wizard

James Patterson with Gabrielle Charbonnet

Blurb: Your books, music and art - banned by the new order.

You are holding an urgent and vital narrative that reveals the forbidden truth about these perilous times.

This is the astonishing testimonial of Whit and Wisty Allgood, a brother and sister who were torn from their family in the middle of the night, slammed into prison, and accused of being a witch and wizard.

They are not alone in their terrifying predicament. Thousands of young people have been kidnapped; some have been accused; many others remain missing. Their fate is unknown, and the worst is feared - for the ruling regime will stop at nothing to suppress life and liberty, music and books, art and magic... and the pursuit of being a normal teenager.

Most copies of this story have already been seized, shredded, or burned. Read this rare surviving edition and pass it along with care - before it's too late.

ISBN: 9780099543725 (Paperback)

Year: 2009

Publisher: Young Arrow

Pages: 312 (Fiction)

Links

1. Author's official page

2. Buy from Amazon

3. Wikipedia page for the author

4. Teen reads page for the book

5. Blog/review on book

Lost Symbols? The Secrets of Washington, D.C. / The Secret Zodiacs of Washington, D.C. (David Ovason)

Lost Symbols? The Secrets of Washington, D.C. (The Secret Zodiacs of Washington, D.C.)

David Ovason

Blurb: The secrets, the myths and the facts behind Washington, D.C.'s design and its Masonic significance.

In this groundbreaking, original work, David Ovason reveals the intimate connections between the mysterious zodiacal symbols and the stellar lore of Washington, D.C. and the secret plan for the city.

There are over fifty complete zodiacs in Washington, D.C., all bearing witness to an extraordinary stellar mystery. Why did generations of architects and artists put their lives and energies on the line when designing this City of the Stars? What was their shared secret language? What or who drove them to create a city overflowing with such esoteric symbolism? What is the meaning behind the secret symbolism of Washington, D.C.'s layout? And what does it mean for America's future?

ISBN: 9780099548089 (Paperback)

Year: 1999

Publisher: Arrow Books

Pages: 636 (Non-Fiction)

Links

1. Buy from Amazon

2. A tour of Washington around the things mentioned in this book and Dan Brown's similar title

3. Google books page

4. Author's page

5. Site dedicated to the symbols of D.C.

Middle School - The Worst Years of My Life (James Patterson and Chris Tebbetts)

Middle School - The Worst Years of My Life

James Patterson and Chris Tebbetts

Blurb: This is the totally insane story of how I, Rafe Khatchadorian,

-fought and overcame a diabolical teacher called Dragon Lady,

-sold my soul to the school bully, a dollar at a time,

-wrestled with a real live bear; repeatedly,

-fell kind of in 'like' with the most popular girl in school,

-went into the soda business and went bust,

-and accidentally-on-purpose hurt all the people I care about.

The worst days of my life were good sometimes.

Bad sometimes.

But mostly they were hilarious.

See for yourself.

ISBN: 9780099543992 (Paperback)

Year: 2011

Publisher: Young Arrow

Pages: 283 (Fiction)

Links

1. Buy from Amazon

2. Official page for the book

3. Author's official site

4. Blog on the book

5. Google books page

Devil Bones - Temperance Brennan Book #11 (Kathy Reichs)

Devil Bones - Temperance Brennan Book #11

Kathy Reichs

Blurb: An underground chamber is exposed in a seedy, dilapidated house with sagging trim and peeling paint.

In the dark cellar, a ritualistic display is revealed. A human skull rests on a cauldron, surrounded by slain chickens and bizarre figurines. Beads and antlers dangle overhead.

Called to the scene is forensic anthropologist Dr Temperance Brennan. Boney architecture suggests that the skill is that of a young, black female. But how did she die? And when? Then, just as Tempe is working to determine the post-mortem interval, another body is discovered: a headless corpse carved with Satanic symbols.

As citizen vigilantes, blaming Devil-worshippers, being a witch-hunt, intent on revenge, Tempe struggles to keep her emotions in check. But the truth she eventually uncovers proves more shocking than even she could have imagined...

ISBN: 9780099533641 (Paperback)

Year: 2008

Publisher: Arrow Books

Pages: 370 (Fiction)

Links

1. Author's official page for the book

2. Buy from Amazon

3. Wikipedia page for the author

4. Good reads page for the book

5. Review of the book

Pandora - New Tales of the Vampires (Anne Rice)

Pandora - New Tales of the Vampires

Anne Rice

Blurb: In a cafe in modern-day Paris, in the aftermath of a fresh kill, the fearless and beautiful Pandora begins to tell her tale of treachery, vengeance and love stretching across two millennia. As a young mortal in Imperial Rome in the time of Caesar Augustus, Pandora was first introduced to the blood-tainted cult of Isis. Later, in exile in Antioch, she was drawn even further into the dark, ancient rites. Now, looking back across the centuries, Pandora decides to return once more to New Orleans, to find the love of her early life, Marius, and to see once again the Vampire Lestat...

ISBN: 9780099271086 (Paperback)

Year: 1998

Publisher: Arrow Books

Pages: 406 (Fiction)

Links

1. Anne Rice's Official Page for the book

2. Youtube clip of Anne Rice speaking about the book

3. Buy at Amazon

4. Wikipedia page for the series

5. Google books page