When a rogue wave washes the houseboat you’re dancing on, out to sea, you and your beach party guests expect the worst. Harmony Stelfox was recovering from a bewildering near death experience. She was nearly killed by a rogue shark, and thought days like these were behind her. How many unforeseen disasters can a girl expect during the run of one week? They were adrift. The sun was blazing hot on their skin, they ran low on food. But they did have plenty of beer. There was one thing more. They were not alone at sea. There was a lonesome creature who watched from a distance. He never slept. He didn’t falter in his watch. And he didn’t offer them help. His stare was filled with furry and hesitation. He called to Harmony, and she swam to him, and he hadn't felt warmth, or love. Harmony thought he was a dream, for a merman couldn't be real. He briefly paused and his eyes met Harmony's. She was the native-lander he rescued from a shark attack. He had no regrets, but if she realized he is the one who rescued her during her robotic mermaid launch, it would mean death to them all. Saving a native-lander would be seen as an act of aggression against his own kind, of the Merworld. His sense of honor cringed. His loyalty would be questioned. Saving her pleased him, and yet he felt torn. His presence only prolonged the inevitable. The creatures were coming. And they would drag them down into the depths, of the Abyss. Ghastly sea creatures boarded the ship, and the war was on.

Now available in ePub format. The Rough Guide to New Zealand is the definitive guide to the world's adventure capital. Detailed accounts of every attraction, along with crystal-clear maps and plans, will show you the very best New Zealand has to offer-from white-sand beaches and vast kauri trees in the north to the hairline fiords and penguin colonies in the south. Expert writers give you the tips you need, for experiencing Maori culture and food, striking out on multi-day hikes, or tracking down Marlborough's tastiest sauvignon blancs. At every point this guidebook steers you to little-known sights, like secluded hot pools, as well as popular places to hang out, such as Wellington's best cafés. Insider tips, planning itineraries, and author picks give you the inside scoop on the best accommodation across every price range. Make the most of your time with The Rough Guide to New Zealand.

The Rough Guide Snapshot to Auckland and around is the ultimate travel guide to New Zealand's biggest city. It guides you through the city and its surroundings, with reliable information and comprehensive coverage of all the sights and attractions, from the Auckland Museum and Otara Market to hiking in the Waitakere Ranges and chilling out on Great Barrier Island. Detailed maps and up-to-date listings pinpoint the best cafés, restaurants, hotels, shops, bars and nightlife, ensuring you have the best trip possible, whether you're staying for the weekend or longer. Also included is the Basics section from the Rough Guide to New Zealand, with all the practical information you need for travelling in and around Auckland, including transport, food, drink, costs and health. Also published as part of the Rough Guide to New Zealand. Full coverage: Auckland Art Gallery, Auckland Museum, Devonport, Otara Market, Karekare, Piha, Rangitoto Island, Great Barrier Island, Tiritiri Matangi (Equivalent printed page extent 110 pages).

While studying the progress made in the colonisation of different parts of the world by European nations, I have often asked myself the following questions:— How is it that over every region of the globe the spread of the English-speaking people and of their language far exceeds that of all the other European nations combined? Why is it that, wherever the English-speaking people have settled, or are at this day found, even in small numbers, they are far more energetic, daring, adventurous, and prosperous, and understand the art of self-government and of ruling alien peoples far better than other colonising nations? Whence do the English-speaking communities derive the remarkable energy they possess; for the people of Britain when invaded by the Romans did not show any such quality? What are the causes which have made the English such a pre-eminently seafaring people? for without such a characteristic they could not have been the founders of so many states and colonies speaking the English tongue! In studying the history of the world we find that all the nations which have risen to high power and widespread dominion have been founded by men endowed with great, I may say terrible, energy; extreme bravery and the love of conquest being the most prominent traits of their character. The mighty sword with all its evils has thus far always proved a great engine of civilisation. To get a satisfactory answer to the above questions we must go far back, and study the history of the race who settled in Britain during and after the Roman occupation. We shall thus find why their descendants are to-day so brave, successful, energetic and prosperous in the lands which they have colonised; and why they are so pre-eminently skilled in the art of self-government. We find that a long stretch of coast is not sufficient, though necessary, to make the population of a country a seafaring nation. When the Romans invaded Britain, the Brits had no fleet to oppose them. We do not until a later period meet with that love of the sea which is so characteristically English:—not before the gradual absorption of the earlier inhabitants by a blue-eyed and yellow-haired seafaring people who succeeded in planting themselves and their language in the country. To the numerous warlike and ocean-loving tribes of the North, the ancestors of the English-speaking people, we must look for the transformation that took place in Britain. In their descendants we recognise to this day many of the very same traits of character which these old Northmen possessed, as will be seen on the perusal of this work. Britain, after a continuous immigration which lasted several hundred years, became the most powerful colony of the Northern tribes, several of the chiefs of the latter claiming to own a great part of England in the seventh and eighth centuries. At last the time came when the land of the emigrants waxed more powerful, more populous than the mother-country, and asserted her independence; and to-day the people of England, as they look over the broad Atlantic, may discern a similar process which is taking place in the New World. The impartial mind which rises above the prejudice of nationality must acknowledge that no country will leave a more glorious impress upon the history of the world than England. Her work cannot be undone; should she to-day sink beneath the seas which bathe her shores, her record will for ever stand brilliantly illuminated on the page of history. The great states which she has founded, which have inherited her tongue, and which are destined to play a most important part in the future of civilisation, will be witnesses of the mighty work she has accomplished. They will look back with pride to the progenitors of their race who lived in the glorious and never-to-be-forgotten countries of the North, the birthplace of a new epoch in the history of mankind. To be continue in this ebook...