The Family Man: Blood and Betrayal in the House of Murdaugh

James Lasdun

An immersive account of a seemingly loving father’s transformation into family annihilator. In March 2023, Alex Murdaugh was found guilty of murdering his wife and younger son at Moselle, their home in South Carolina’s Lowcountry. In The Family Man, James Lasdun takes a new angle on this story of corruption in high places, massive fraud, opioid abuse, fake suicides, suspicious accidents, and the generational recklessness of the wealthy legal dynasty at its center. The acclaimed novelist brings his long-standing interest in the darker drives of the human psyche to investigate the events leading up to the slaughter at Moselle, examining Murdaugh through original interviews with those involved in the case, transcripts of phone calls Murdaugh made from prison, the literature of criminal psychology, and the murder trial itself. Deeply researched, sharply written, and with the page-turning intensity of a Southern gothic novel, The Family Man constructs a masterful portrait of Murdaugh and the mind-boggling crimes that wreaked havoc on his community in the Lowcountry.

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The Twisted Ones

T. Kingfisher

When Mouse’s dad asks her to clean out her dead grandmother's house, she says yes. After all, how bad could it be? Answer: pretty bad. Grandma was a hoarder, and her house is stuffed with useless rubbish. That would be horrific enough, but there’s more—Mouse stumbles across her step-grandfather’s journal, which at first seems to be filled with nonsensical rants…until Mouse encounters some of the terrifying things he described for herself. Alone in the woods with her dog, Mouse finds herself face to face with a series of impossible terrors—because sometimes the things that go bump in the night are real, and they’re looking for you. And if she doesn’t face them head on, she might not survive to tell the tale.

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Skeleton Crew

Stephen King

Librarian's Note: Alternate-cover edition for ISBN 0751504386 In a bumper collection of truly chilling tales, we meet Gramma - who only wanted to hug little George, even after she was dead; The Raft - a primeval sea creature with an insatiable appetite; The Monkey - an innocent-looking toy with sinister powers; the unspeakable horror of The Mist. And there is a gruesome host of other stories, each with the distinctive blend of unimaginable terror and realism that typifies King's writing.

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City of Bones

Cassandra Clare

When fifteen-year-old Clary Fray heads out to the Pandemonium Club in New York City, she hardly expects to witness a murder― much less a murder committed by three teenagers covered with strange tattoos and brandishing bizarre weapons. Then the body disappears into thin air. It's hard to call the police when the murderers are invisible to everyone else and when there is nothing―not even a smear of blood―to show that a boy has died. Or was he a boy? This is Clary's first meeting with the Shadowhunters, warriors dedicated to ridding the earth of demons. It's also her first encounter with Jace, a Shadowhunter who looks a little like an angel and acts a lot like a jerk. Within twenty-four hours Clary is pulled into Jace's world with a vengeance when her mother disappears and Clary herself is attacked by a demon. But why would demons be interested in ordinary mundanes like Clary and her mother? And how did Clary suddenly get the Sight? The Shadowhunters would like to know...

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The Odyssey

Homer

Sing to me of the man, Muse, the man of twists and turns driven time and again off course, once he had plundered the hallowed heights of Troy. So begins Robert Fagles' magnificent translation of the Odyssey. If the Iliad is the world's greatest war epic, then the Odyssey is literature's grandest evocation of everyman's journey though life. Odysseus' reliance on his wit and wiliness for survival in his encounters with divine and natural forces, during his ten-year voyage home to Ithaca after the Trojan War, is at once a timeless human story and an individual test of moral endurance. In the myths and legends that are retold here, Fagles has captured the energy and poetry of Homer's original in a bold, contemporary idiom, and given us an Odyssey to read aloud, to savor, and to treasure for its sheer lyrical mastery. Renowned classicist Bernard Knox's superb Introduction and textual commentary provide new insights and background information for the general reader and scholar alike, intensifying the strength of Fagles' translation. This is an Odyssey to delight both the classicist and the public at large, and to captivate a new generation of Homer's students. -- Robert Fagles, winner of the PEN/Ralph Manheim Medal for Translation and a 1996 Academy Award in Literature from the American Academy of Arts and Letters, presents us with Homer's best-loved and most accessible poem in a stunning new modern-verse translation.

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Horror for Weenies: Everything You Need to Know About the Films You're Too Scared to Watch

Emily C. Hughes

A smart, funny crash course in the horror movie canon, from Psycho to Hereditary, for people who love getting the reference but hate being scared. You don't have to miss out just because you don't like to be frightened! Stop trying to read nonsensical Wikipedia plot summaries (we know you’re doing it), and let an expert tell you everything you need to know about the most influential horror films of the past 60 years—without a single jump scare or a drop of gore. With a rundown of the history and significance of horror cinema, explanations of common tropes, and detailed entries on 25 important movies ranging from Night of the Living Dead to The Blair Witch Project to Get Out, Horror for Weenies will turn even the scarediest of cats into a confident connoisseur. Each entry includes: - A detailed plot summary, with enough jokes that it won’t freak you out - Smart, illuminating analysis of the film’s themes and cultural significance - Descriptions of iconic scenes you definitely do not want to look at - Talking points for impressing even the biggest scary-movie buffs Never get left out of a conversation again!

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The Castle on the Inside

Logan Spurgeon

Horatio has long dreamed of finding someone to spend his life with, but he never imaged he would be standing in front of an abandoned castle about to step in. At the insistence of his parents, Horatio has journeyed to Strawberry Hill—the once opulent and thriving royal home—to traverse its maze-like halls and find the princess to wed. The path won't be easy. The castle is filled with ghosts of former residents, magic mirrors, moving portraits, possessed suits of armor, and an enchantress. Yet as he journeys on, Horatio finds himself questioning his own motives and desires. When he encounters a mysterious figure, he'll be set on a course to discover his true self and find the love of his life.

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The Castle on the Inside

Logan Spurgeon

Horatio has long dreamed of finding someone to spend his life with, but he never imaged he would be standing in front of an abandoned castle about to step in. At the insistence of his parents, Horatio has journeyed to Strawberry Hill—the once opulent and thriving royal home—to traverse its maze-like halls and find the princess to wed. The path won't be easy. The castle is filled with ghosts of former residents, magic mirrors, moving portraits, possessed suits of armor, and an enchantress. Yet as he journeys on, Horatio finds himself questioning his own motives and desires. When he encounters a mysterious figure, he'll be set on a course to discover his true self and find the love of his life.

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Horror for Weenies: Everything You Need to Know About the Films You're Too Scared to Watch

Emily C. Hughes

A smart, funny crash course in the horror movie canon, from Psycho to Hereditary, for people who love getting the reference but hate being scared. You don't have to miss out just because you don't like to be frightened! Stop trying to read nonsensical Wikipedia plot summaries (we know you’re doing it), and let an expert tell you everything you need to know about the most influential horror films of the past 60 years—without a single jump scare or a drop of gore. With a rundown of the history and significance of horror cinema, explanations of common tropes, and detailed entries on 25 important movies ranging from Night of the Living Dead to The Blair Witch Project to Get Out, Horror for Weenies will turn even the scarediest of cats into a confident connoisseur. Each entry includes: - A detailed plot summary, with enough jokes that it won’t freak you out - Smart, illuminating analysis of the film’s themes and cultural significance - Descriptions of iconic scenes you definitely do not want to look at - Talking points for impressing even the biggest scary-movie buffs Never get left out of a conversation again!

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The Cairndale Orphan

J. M. Miro

A world-weary detective and a mysterious young boy hunt an unspeakable terror in a haunting short story by the internationally bestselling author of Ordinary Monsters. Horror is loose in the gaslit streets of London. David Pye, an urchin who barely escaped an orphanage fire, saw something terrible crawl out of the inferno. Heeding his warning is Thomas Bromley, a disillusioned detective from Scotland Yard who knows the recent murders on his docket weren’t the work of an ordinary killer. But when your guide has a strange affinity for the dead, where will the search for a monster lead? J. M. Miro’s The Cairndale Orphan is part of the Magic & Mystery collection, puzzle-box mysteries from top fantasy authors. They can be read or listened to in one enchanting sitting.

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Battle of the Round House

Tananarive Due

This spellbinding short story from the award-winning author of The Reformatory reimagines the Wild West through the eyes of a young Black girl with a gift. 1871: Ten-year-old Lucy Freeman and her family flee threats in Kentucky for a new life in the post–Civil War frontier. Their refuge is Zipporah Ranch, a hidden settlement founded by Black women and children that thrives, if the folktales are true, on magic. But a mob of bounty hunters is bringing hell to paradise, and it’s Lucy’s own secret magical ability that may be the only defense. Tananarive Due’s Battle of the Round House is part of the Magic & Mystery collection, puzzle-box mysteries from top fantasy authors. They can be read or listened to in one enchanting sitting.

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Ghost Tracks: Case Files of Ed & Lorraine Warren

Cheryl A. Wicks

For more than fifty years, Lorraine Warren-a validated clairvoyant-and her husband Ed Warren-a respected demonologist-have been tracking paranormal phenomena around the world. Ghost Tracks pulls together five decades of field research experience, along with historic, scientific, and religious perspectives to reveal that even the paranormal have predictable patterns of behavior. These patterns enable the Warrens to discern what is happening and why. Lectures and selected case studies and letters demonstrate what it is like to live with, investigate, and resolve the mystery of ghosts, poltergeist, and evil infestations. Ghost Tracks has a refreshing style making it an easy read, entertaining as well as informative.

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