'Disturbingly good ... Elena Ferrante-esque' Metro 'Comparable to The Secret History ... A new and important author' Financial Times 'Her skill as a writer is beyond question' Sunday Times It is 1950, and Willa's mother has a new beau. The arrival of his blue-eyed, sun-kissed sons at Willa's summer home signals the end of her childhood. As her entrancing older sister Joan pairs off with Kenneth, nine-year-old Willa is drawn to his solitary younger brother, Patrick. As they grow up Willa is swept up in Patrick's wicked games and their encounters become charged with sexuality and degradation. But when Willa finally tries to reassert her power, an act of desperation has devastating results.

A book of firsts! One epic collection containing the first book from three different New York Times #1 best-selling series by Rick Riordan. THE LIGHTNING THIEF: Zeus's master lightning bolt has been stolen and Percy Jackson is the prime suspect. He and his friends have ten days to find and return it and bring peace to a warring Mount Olympus. To succeed, Percy has come to terms with the father who abandoned him, solve the riddle of the Oracle that warns of betrayal by a friend, and unravel a treachery more powerful than the gods themselves. THE LOST HERO: Jason, Piper, and Leo find themselves at Camp Half-Blood where people won't stop talking about a curse and a camper named Percy who's gone AWOL.These three friends must rely on one another and their newfound demigod gifts as they embark on an epic quest to save Mount Olympus. THE HIDDEN ORACLE: Apollo, once the glorious god of the sun, music, and poetry, has been cast down to Earth in punishment by Zeus. Now, as awkward mortal teenager Lester Papadopoulos, he's been tasked with restoring five Oracles that have gone dark in order to regain his place on Mount Olympus. How is he supposed to accomplish that without any godly powers? He needs help, and a demigod named Percy Jackson shows him where to find it: at a training camp on Long Island called Camp Half-Blood. This primer of heroes and demigods will start readers on three unforgettable adventures. Bonus first chapters from two other amazing series promise more exciting journeys.

From the creator of Myths Retold comes a hilarious collection of Greek, Norse, Chinese and even Sumerian myths retold in their purest, bawdiest forms! All our lives, we’ve been fed watered-down, PC versions of the classic myths. In reality, mythology is more screwed up than a schizophrenic shaman doing hits of unidentified…wait, it all makes sense now. In Zeus Grants Stupid Wishes, Cory O’Brien, creator of Myths RETOLD!, sets the stories straight. These are rude, crude, totally sacred texts told the way they were meant to be told: loudly, and with lots of four-letter words. Did you know? Cronus liked to eat babies. Narcissus probably should have just learned to masturbate. Odin got construction discounts with bestiality. Isis had bad taste in jewelry. Ganesh was the very definition of an unplanned pregnancy. And Abraham was totally cool about stabbing his kid in the face. Still skeptical? Here are a few more gems to consider: • Zeus once stuffed an unborn fetus inside his thigh to save its life after he exploded its mother by being too good in bed. • The entire Egyptian universe was saved because Sekhmet just got too hammered to keep murdering everyone. • The Hindu universe is run by a married couple who only stop murdering in order to throw sweet dance parties…on the corpses of their enemies. • The Norse goddess Freyja once consented to a four-dwarf gangbang in exchange for one shiny necklace. And there’s more dysfunctional goodness where that came from.

The All-Styles Guitar Player’s Guide to Simplified Practicing and Study Whether you’re a musician taking lessons or completely self-taught, this is the book that helps you simplify your music by changing your attitude about guitar lessons and practicing. You can’t achieve ultimate mastery of your instrument without rethinking the way you practice, jam, or rehearse your music. Whether you play solo, or with a band, this is a quick read that every guitarist needs, and it complements other music instruction and guitar music books. Learn to Quickly Shred Your Complete Fretboard with Ninja Arpeggios and Permutations This is an HONEST guitar music guide with takeaways for absolute beginners and for seasoned pros. The principal guitar practice technique presented in the book is applied to all the music that you’re already playing or writing, and is not about creating separate abstract exercises. The Ninja Arpeggios and Permutation exercises will have you completely shredding across your fretboard in no time, especially once you become more efficient with your practice time.

This book is a retelling of legends featuring the well-known Polynesian mythological character, Māui (Maui), who is regarded as a significant cultural hero and trickster. His origins and exploits vary among different Polynesian cultures, but many of his main achievements remain similar. Māui's feats and adventures are recounted throughout much of Polynesia, with some stories tracing back as far as islands off New Guinea. Some of his most famous exploits include obtaining fire for humans from the underworld, fishing up islands with his magical hook, and capturing the Sun to lengthen the days.