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Hard-Core Romance: "Fifty Shades of Grey," Best-Sellers, and Society
by Eva IllouzFrom its beginnings in Twilight fan-fiction to its record-breaking sales as an e-book and paperback, the story of the erotic romance novel Fifty Shades of Grey and its two sequels is both unusual and fascinating. Having sold over seventy million copies worldwide since 2011, E. L. James’s lurid series about a sexual ingénue and the powerful young entrepreneur who introduces her to BDSM sex has ingrained itself in our collective consciousness. But why have these particular novels—poorly written and formulaic as they are—become so popular, especially among women over thirty? In this concise, engaging book, Eva Illouz subjects the Fifty Shades cultural phenomenon to the serious scrutiny it has been begging for. After placing the trilogy in the context of best-seller publishing, she delves into its remarkable appeal, seeking to understand the intense reading pleasure it provides and how that resonates with the structure of relationships between men and women today. Fifty Shades, Illouz argues, is a gothic romance adapted to modern times in which sexuality is both a source of division between men and women and a site to orchestrate their reconciliation. As for the novels’ notorious depictions of bondage, discipline, and sadomasochism, Illouz shows that these are as much a cultural fantasy as a sexual one, serving as a guide to a happier romantic life. The Fifty Shades trilogy merges romantic fantasy with self-help guide—two of the most popular genres for female readers. Offering a provocative explanation for the success and popularity of the Fifty Shades of Grey novels, Hard-Core Romance is an insightful look at modern relationships and contemporary women’s literature.
The Hard Crowd: Essays 2000–2020
by Rachel KushnerFrom the Booker-shortlisted author of The Mars Room, a career-spanning collection of spectacular essays about politics and culture. Rachel Kushner is a writer celebrated for her 'chops, ambition, and killer instinct' (John Powers, Fresh Air). In The Hard Crowd, she gathers a selection of her writing from over the course of the last twenty years that addresses the most pressing political, artistic, and cultural issues of our times - and illuminates the themes and real-life terrain that underpin her fiction. In nineteen razor-sharp essays, The Hard Crowd spans literary journalism, memoir, cultural criticism, and writing about art and literature, including pieces on Jeff Koons, Denis Johnson, and Marguerite Duras. Kushner takes us on a journey through a Palestinian refugee camp, an illegal motorcycle race down the Baja Peninsula, 1970s wildcat strikes in Fiat factories, her love of classic cars, and her young life in the music scene of her hometown, San Francisco. The closing, eponymous essay is her manifesto on nostalgia, doom, and writing. These pieces, new and old, are electric, phosphorescently vivid, and wry, and they provide an opportunity to witness the evolution and range of one of the world's most dazzling and fearless writers.
A Hard Day for a Hangover (Sunshine Vicram)
by Darynda JonesA Hard Day for a Hangover is another humorous installment in Darynda Jones's wine mystery series deemed: 'Laugh-out-loud funny, intensely suspenseful, page-turning fun' -New York Times bestselling author Allison BrennanSome people greet the day with open arms. Sheriff Sunshine Vicram would rather give it a hearty shove and get back into bed, because there's just too much going on right now. There's a series of women going missing, and Sunny feels powerless to stop it. There's her persistent and awesomely-rebellious daughter Auri, who's out to singlehandedly become Del Sol's youngest and fiercest investigator. And then there's drama with Levi Ravinder - the guy she's loved and lusted after for years. The guy who might just be her one and only. The guy who comes from a family of disingenuous vipers looking to oust him - and Sunshine - for good.Like we said, the new day can take a hike.The final novel in a three-arc trilogy, A Hard Day for a Hangover is the finale to the Sunshine Vicram series that will have you laughing and cheering all the way to the end.'A Bad Day For Sunshine is a great day for the rest of us' Lee Child
A Hard Day's Knight: Nightside Book 11 (Nightside #11)
by Simon GreenPrivate eye John Taylor has a supernatural gift for finding things - but when the legendary sword Excalibur finds him instead, he really wishes it hadn't . . .Most people would be happy to receive the legendary sword Excalibur in the mail one day, but private eye John Taylor knows better. The weapon is extremely powerful, but it is also extremely dangerous and - of course - a portent of perilous times to come.If he's going to find out more about the sword, and why he's been chosen to wield it, Taylor must find and investigate the Last Defenders of Camelot.And to do that, he's going to have to visit a place he fears more than even the Nightside . . . London Proper.A Hard Day's Knight is the eleventh title in Simon R. Green's New York Times bestselling Nightside series
Hard Deal: My Royal Hook-up (arrogant Heirs) / Sins Of The Flesh / Hard Deal / Legal Passion (Melbourne After Dark #2)
by Stefanie LondonA deal with the devil… But who comes out on top?
Hard Eight: A fresh and witty crime adventure (Stephanie Plum Ser. #No. 8)
by Janet EvanovichIt's a race against time when a child goes missing...The world of Stephanie Plum has never been wilder than in Hard Eight, the eighth fast-paced mystery in the Stephanie Plum series by Janet Evanovich. The perfect read for fans of Lee Child and JD Robb.Raves for the Stephanie Plum series: 'Plum is not just a smart private eye but a heroine with a sense of humour' (Daily Mail); 'Utterly delightful' (Cosmopolitan); 'As smart and sassy as high-gloss wet paint' (Time Out). Stephanie can't say no when a neighbour begs her to find a missing family member - not even when local mob man Eddie Abruzzi becomes linked to the disappearance, and threatens to end Stephanie's search by ending her life.Stephanie is going to need help and someone to watch her back. Since she's on the off with cop Joe Morelli, that leaves her mentor and tormentor, Ranger. And that could be the most dangerous thing of all...What readers are saying about Hard Eight:'Plum's hilarious attempts at solving the puzzle combined with her various accomplices make it a very light-hearted read''A little romance, a little danger and a lot of laughs''[Janet Evanovich] must be commended on giving us consistently gutsy and funny believable women characters'
Hard Evidence: I-team 2 I-team (I-Team #2)
by Pamela ClareFans of Suzanne Brockmann, Maya Banks, Christy Reece, Julie Ann Walker and Cindy Gerard will adore Pamela Clare's expertly plotted romantic suspense series, which sets the pages alight with sizzling chemistry. For tension, thrills, romance and passion take a spin with the I-Team.After the murder of a teenage girl, investigative reporter Tessa Novak has her sights set on the mysterious man seen lurking near the crime scene as the culprit. That man was Julian Darcangelo, an undercover FBI agent, closing in on the trail of a human trafficker and killer. Tessa's accusations could blow his cover, and he wants her off the case. But just as Tessa has made Julian a target of interest, she is now a target of the killer. And, as they are forced to trust each other, their physical attraction escalates as intensely as the threat from a ruthless murderer who wants to see both of them dead...Sexy. Thrilling. Unputdownable. Take a wildly romantic ride with Pamela Clare's I-Team: Extreme Exposure, Hard Evidence, Unlawful Contact, Naked Edge, Breaking Point, Striking Distance, Seduction Game.
Hard Evidence: A gripping murder mystery (Dismas Hardy #3)
by John LescroartDismas Hardy is plunged into San Francisco's murder trial of the century... The third novel in John Lescroart's Dismas Hardy series, Hard Evidence, unpicks every last clue in this gripping murder mystery. Perfect for fans of Sheldon Sigel and Michael Connelly. 'A blockbuster courtroom drama' - Kirkus ReviewWhen the bullet-ridden body of a Silicon Valley billionaire washes up on shore, assistant D.A. Dismas Hardy finds himself the prosecutor in San Francisco's murder trial of the century. The suspect: a Japanese call girl with a long list of prominent clients. But when a bizarre series of events blows the case wide open, Hardy finds himself on the other side of the law--as a lawyer for the defence....What readers are saying about the Hard Evidence:'There are enough twists in the trail to make it an interesting guessing game''A real page turner''Draws you in and doesn't let go until the final paragraphs'
Hard Evidence: The brilliant debut outing of no-nonsense DI Jack Delaney (Di Jack Delaney Ser. #1)
by Mark PearsonJackie Malone has been murdered. Her body lies in a pool of blood in the north London flat where she worked as a prostitute. Deep knife wounds have been gouged into her corpse and her hands and feet are tied with coat hanger wire. For Detective Inspector Jack Delaney this is no ordinary case. He was a friend of Jackie's and she left desperate messages on his answer phone just hours before she was killed. Despite no immediate leads and no obvious suspects, the fear in her voice tells him that this was not a random act of violence. Just as Delaney begins his investigation, a young girl is reported missing, feared abducted, and he is immediately tasked with finding her. Delaney knows he must act quickly if there is any chance of finding her alive, but he is also determined to track down Jackie's killer before the trail goes cold. However, his tough and uncompromising attitude has made him some powerful enemies on the force, and Delaney soon finds that this case may provide the perfect opportunity for them to dispose of him, once and for all...
Hard Facts: Setting and Form in the American Novel
by Philip FisherAmerican culture has often been described in terms of paradigmatic images--the wilderness, the Jeffersonian landscape of family farms, the great industrial cities at the turn of the 19th century. But underlying these cultural ideals are less happy paradoxes. Settling the land meant banishing the Indians and destroying the wilderness; Jeffersonian landscapes were created with the help of the new country's enslaved citizens; and economic opportunities in the cities were purchased at the high price of self-commercialization. In this study of the popular 19th- and early 20th-century American novel, Philip Fisher demonstrates how such works as Dreiser's Sister Carrie and An American Tragedy, Stowe's Uncle Tom's Cabin and Cooper's The Deerslayer worked to make these three "hard facts" of the 19th-century American experience familiar and tolerable--or familiar and intolerable--to their wide audience of readers. His perceptive analysis proves that the most important cultural "work" was accomplished not by novels generally taken to be at the core of the American literary canon--those of Hawthorne, Melville, or Twain--but rather by books which never abandoned the ambition to be widely read.
The Hard Facts of the Grimms' Fairy Tales: Expanded Edition (Princeton Classics Series #39)
by Maria TatarMurder, mutilation, cannibalism, infanticide, and incest: the darker side of classic fairy tales is the subject of this groundbreaking and intriguing study of Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm’s Nursery and Household Tales. This expanded edition includes a new preface and an appendix featuring translations of six tales with commentary by Maria Tatar. Throughout the book, Tatar draws on the disciplinary tools of psychoanalysis and folklore while also providing historical context to explore the harsher aspects of these stories, presenting new interpretations of tales that engage in a kind of cultural repetition compulsion. No other book so thoroughly challenges us to rethink the happily-ever-after of these classic stories.
The Hard Facts of the Grimms' Fairy Tales: Expanded Edition (Princeton Classics Series #39)
by Maria TatarMurder, mutilation, cannibalism, infanticide, and incest: the darker side of classic fairy tales is the subject of this groundbreaking and intriguing study of Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm’s Nursery and Household Tales. This expanded edition includes a new preface and an appendix featuring translations of six tales with commentary by Maria Tatar. Throughout the book, Tatar draws on the disciplinary tools of psychoanalysis and folklore while also providing historical context to explore the harsher aspects of these stories, presenting new interpretations of tales that engage in a kind of cultural repetition compulsion. No other book so thoroughly challenges us to rethink the happily-ever-after of these classic stories.
Hard Feelings (Modern Plays)
by Doug LucieWe're supposed to be having a party. It's s'posed to be fun. This is my house, and when I say everybody have fun, then everybody have fun.Thatcher's Britain – Brixton, 1981. As tensions mount on the streets, in the safety of their home, a group of Oxford University graduates barely notice what's happening on the streets outside as police and rioters clash, shops are looted, and buildings are set on fire. In both worlds there is a fight for rights... a fight for respect ... a fight for control. Who will win? Who will lose? Who will make the strongest cocktail? And when the dust finally settles the question remains... Will things ever change? Hard Feelings was first staged at the Oxford Playhouse in 1982 before transferring to the Bush Theatre in 1983, directed by Mike Bradwell. It was later broadcast as a BBC Play for Today. Hard Feelings was revived by Defibrillator Productions in a production at the Finborough Theatre in 2013.
Hard Feelings (Modern Plays)
by Doug LucieWe're supposed to be having a party. It's s'posed to be fun. This is my house, and when I say everybody have fun, then everybody have fun.Thatcher's Britain – Brixton, 1981. As tensions mount on the streets, in the safety of their home, a group of Oxford University graduates barely notice what's happening on the streets outside as police and rioters clash, shops are looted, and buildings are set on fire. In both worlds there is a fight for rights... a fight for respect ... a fight for control. Who will win? Who will lose? Who will make the strongest cocktail? And when the dust finally settles the question remains... Will things ever change? Hard Feelings was first staged at the Oxford Playhouse in 1982 before transferring to the Bush Theatre in 1983, directed by Mike Bradwell. It was later broadcast as a BBC Play for Today. Hard Feelings was revived by Defibrillator Productions in a production at the Finborough Theatre in 2013.
Hard Feelings: A New York Pyschological Thriller
by Jason StarrRichie Segal's prospects are pretty miserable and, what's more humiliating, his wife’s career is on the up. Richie knows he is a good salesman, but he just can't seem to land an account. He's starting to drink again and worry about whether Paula is seeing that old high school flame or maybe someone new. At thirty-four, he's a little young for a mid-life crisis, but that's what it feels like. And then there are those unwelcome memories of the neighbourhood bully, Michael Rudnick, and what he did to Richie when he was eleven...Just when Richie is about as low as he can get, he runs into Rudnick on the street and knows exactly what he needs to do. Suddenly things seem to be going much better. That is until they get much, much worse.In the classic tradition of Jim Thompson and Patricia Highsmith, Hard Feelings is a gripping, original novel of paranoia, obsession, and revenge.Praise for Jason Starr'A gripping novel of paranoia and obsession that's damn near impossible to put down' - Time Out
Hard Frost: (DI Jack Frost Book 4) (DI Jack Frost #4)
by R D WingfieldA young boy is found dead in a rubbish heap, suffocated and with one finger cut off. Another boy is missing. A psychopath is stabbing babies as they lie sleeping in their cots. A fifteen-year-old has been abducted, then found naked by the roadside. The corpse of a petty criminal is discovered, with the tops of three fingers chopped off. The small children of a carpet fitter are murdered; his wife's body is found on the railway line. A supermarket MD is sent a ransom demand for the missing boy, accompanied by one of the child's fingers...Jack Frost, scruffy and insubordinate, foul-mouthed and fearless, staggers from crisis to crisis, his bumbling modus operandi disguising his extraordinary powers of detection.
Hard Girls: An unputdownable serial killer thriller
by Martina ColeDI Kate Burrows could never keep away for long... HARD GIRLS is the third book in the DI Kate Burrows series: the only time the 'undisputed queen of crime writing' (Guardian) and Sunday Times bestseller Martina Cole has written from the perspective of the Old Bill. Kate Burrows might be a retired DCI, but she never could stay away from the law for long. And now Grantley appears to have a new serial killer on its hands, Kate is the only one with the expertise to catch him.The case bears striking similarities to the Grantley Ripper. But this time the victims are prostitutes, and even hard girls deserve protection and justice.Kate Burrows caught the Ladykiller. She's just the woman for this job. The DI Kate Burrows series is dangerously gripping - before you take on HARDGIRLS and DAMAGED, be sure to catch the series' first and second instalments LADYKILLER and BROKEN
Hard-Headed Texan (Mills And Boon Vintage Intrigue Ser. #No. 1081)
by Candace CampOkay, maybe Antonia Campbell hadn't exactly found heaven in Angel Eye, Texas. But even if she did get mysterious midnight phone calls and her only bed warmer was a cat named Mitzi, her life as a country vet was a lot better than what she'd left behind: a stifling Virginia upbringing and an abusive ex-husband.
Hard-Hearted Highlander: Wild Wicked Scot Sinful Scottish Laird Hard-hearted Highlander (The Highland Grooms #3)
by Julia LondonAn indomitable governess…a brooding Highlander…a forbidden affair…
Hard Justice (Alpha Security #3)
by April HuntA DATE WITH DANGERAs the first female operative at Alpha Security, Charlotte "Charlie" Sparks has her work cut out for her. Sure, she can wrestle a man to the ground and hit a target at 200 yards with the best of them. But sometimes, being surrounded by all that testosterone can drive a woman to distraction-especially when that distraction is six-and-a-half feet of cocky, confident, Alpha-trained muscle.Ex-SEAL commander Vince Franklin has been on some of the most dangerous missions in the world. But pretending to be Charlie's fiancé on their latest assignment in Miami is his toughest challenge yet. Vince and Charlie are like oil and water; they just don't mix. And when their fake romance generates some all-too-real heat, Vince learns that Charlie is more than just arm candy. She's the real deal-and she's ready for some serious action.***The Alpha Security seriesBook 1 - Heated Pursuit (Rafe and Penny)Book 2 - Holding Fire (Trey and Elle)Book 3 - Hard Justice (Vince and Charlie)
Hard Justice (Alpha Security #3)
by April HuntA DATE WITH DANGER As the first female operative at Alpha Security, Charlotte "Charlie" Sparks has her work cut out for her. Sure, she can wrestle a man to the ground and hit a target at 200 yards with the best of them. But sometimes, being surrounded by all that testosterone can drive a woman to distraction-especially when that distraction is six-and-a-half feet of cocky, confident, Alpha-trained muscle. Ex-SEAL commander Vince Franklin has been on some of the most dangerous missions in the world. But pretending to be Charlie's fiance on their latest assignment in Miami is his toughest challenge yet. Vince and Charlie are like oil and water; they just don't mix. And when their fake romance generates some all-too-real heat, Vince learns that Charlie is more than just arm candy. She's the real deal-and she's ready for some serious action.
Hard Knocks: No Limits / Hard Knocks An Ultimate Novella (An\ultimate Novel Ser.)
by Lori FosterIn the stunning prequel novella to her new mixed martial arts series, New York Times bestselling author Lori Foster brings together an elite fighter and the woman he's determined to win.