Psychological Science

News Media Psychological Tricks: The Way They Shape Your Reality pulls back the curtain on the hidden techniques the news uses to influence how you think and feel. From the choice of a single headline word to the order in which stories are told, the media employs subtle but highly effective methods rooted in psychology. This book explores those methods and reveals how they work, so you can become a sharper, more critical consumer of information.

In the heart of a dystopian metropolis, Building 8 stands as a silent witness to the lives and struggles of its inhabitants. Anthony C. Mazzella's gripping narrative plunges listeners into a world where reality bends and the ordinary collides with the surreal. As the central business district is besieged by chaotic flying machines and destruction reigns, the top floor of Building 8 remains a curious sanctuary of calm. Within its walls, two men go about their business, seemingly oblivious to the mayhem below, embodying the eerie contrast between normalcy and chaos that defines the story.

Rick was a professional — no ties, no questions, no second chances. But when a quiet preacher’s death leaves him waking up in a blood-soaked car with no memory of the kill, and a presence in his mind that doesn’t feel like his own. Rick realizes something’s fractured. Time doesn’t move the same. Shadows linger too long. And reality keeps slipping sideways.

Seven-year-old Henry Day is kidnapped and renamed "Aniday" by changelings, ageless beings who inhabit the woods near his home. The changelings also leave behind one of their own, who flawlessly impersonates Henry except for one noteworthy detail: the new Henry is a prodigiously talented pianist.

When London schoolteacher Cicely Denfeld begins experiencing vivid and disturbing dreams, she has no idea that they could be foreshadowing a secret reality that has long been hidden from the public eye. In haunting dreams, Cicely lives out the experiences of strangers Charles Ryder and Vivian Venables, involved in recovering a secret document taken from an American government contractor. While Cicely, with the help of a psychiatrist, seeks to understand the bizarre dreams that plague her, Charles and Vivian follow a trail of hidden knowledge that could impact the entire world.

Enhanced Memory changed everything. By sharing someone else’s memory, you can experience anything and everything with no risk at all: Learn any skill instantly, travel the world from home, and safeguard all your most treasured secrets forever. Nova’s parents invented this technology, and it’s slowly taking over their lives. That’s where Nova comes in.

Kalin Taylor is on the path to success. He's just won a scholarship to the prestigious Sanderson College of Arts and Science to study medicine. He's also about to do something very, very stupid in the name of becoming one of the 'in' kids at college. It sounded simple at the time. Sneak into a branch of the top-secret, interstellar scientific company GenTech, take a photo of the genetically engineered creature Project Tau that's supposedly inside, and sneak back out again. Cue membership of the college frat house, cue popularity and an improved lifestyle, right?

Jack Murphy thought he’d found the perfect escape for his family from a world gone horribly mad. He thought wrong. Matthew Costello’s Home begins mere minutes after the terrible sacrifice Jack made to save his family at Paterville Camp in Vacation. Barely escaping, Jack’s wife, Christie, and two children, Kate and Simon, must accept that their lives and their future have changed forever. In this intimate and human survivalist horror story, the three of them will face even greater dangers....

A shocking psychological thriller: Benjamin Walker's lifelong career of testing experimental drugs and medicines, as well as participating in fascinating sleep-related studies, has come to an end. A new and lucrative job opportunity is offered to Ben, working on a project named "Lucy," a machine capable of reading and recording a person's dreams in intimate detail. All is finally going well for Ben ... until strange dreams of a town named Drapery Falls begin to plague him, and memories once hidden begin to reveal themselves. The doctors and staff onboard team Lucy are not who Ben thinks they are, and the organization will stop at nothing to keep Ben's emerging memories buried for good. Ben is put on a collision course that will bring him to the brink of total insanity, and perhaps even death. At the heart of it all, Ben's worst enemy is his own mind, and he must confront his past in order to save his future. The twist and turns in The Experiment of Dreams will keep you guessing, down to the very last line.

In the year 2112, technology has advanced and immortality is nearly achieved - at least for those who can afford it. Those born before the stemgineering revolution, or TrueElderly, soon discover the problems of advanced age. This is just the beginning, as an avalanche of new problems is waiting on humanity's doorstep. For enthusiastic salesman Dylan Dansby, selling an innovative new product to combat these problems could be a career defining opportunity - but Dylan's selling a product he doesn't believe in, and one that might just work a little too well...

Hugo and Nebula Award winner Joe Haldeman ranks among the greatest science fiction authors to ever live. This thrilling entry from his Marsbound saga finds the mysterious alien Others prohibiting humans from space travel by destroying Earth’s fleet of starships in a display of unimaginable power. But Carmen Dula, the first human to encounter the Others, is determined to find a way to reclaim the future that has been stolen from humankind.

Between saving humanity, a childhood friend or your true love, who would you choose? In a world where Science is the law and you must adhere strictly to scientific principles, I chose to go the opposite way and rely on the Universe for answers that Science cannot explain. Secretly, I cling onto the spiritual beliefs that my mother left for me.

The Dictation is a puzzling, controversial story. The separate, yet connected lives of a young girl, Adrianne, and an elderly, unnamed man converge, revealing complex questions and dark secrets. Presenting philosophical conundrums and unique solutions, The Dictation can easily coax one into deep thought. Upon finishing the book, one may discover they misunderstood everything all along. After reading again, more is yet to be discovered... Prepare to be swept into a futuristic world, watch it burn, and sift through its ashes.

Bolstered by a newfound fortune, Sara Winthrop is finally able to escape the horrific nature of her past. She's moved her family 3000 miles, from the bustling city of Portland to the rolling Appalachians of southwest Virginia. Life is calm, the children are thriving, and she's protected inside her rural fortress. Or so she thinks. She soon discovers that the answers are never so easy. The illusion of security doesn't stand a chance against two dangerous enemies with money, motivation, and an unquenchable desire for revenge.

Welcome to Hyperbole House, a reality television show that follows the lives of six mentally ill individuals and their doctor all living under the same roof. Where everything is a mystery, and nothing is as it seems. Equal parts psychology and science fiction, this mind-bender is guaranteed to elicit the desire for multiple listenings. It is a gripping study of madness and redemption, and ultimately a blueprint for remembering the future. The portal is open, step inside.

When is a suicide not a suicide? You Can Leave, a novel by Laurie Calhoun, portrays a dark, disturbing, dystopic world where dissenters are permanently silenced whenever perceived of as threats by ruthless sociopaths occupying the highest corridors of power. The narrator relays her experiences at the hands of “the new mob”, a coordinated network of operatives enlisted from all walks of life on a “need to know” basis to carry out what appear to be trivial tasks for enticing sums of money. Lost in the labyrinth of an insane bureaucracy run amok, the heroine charts her path to survival using the only available means: her capacity to think. But will that be taken away from her as well?

When a massive solar flare kills the grid, Rose and her brother must survive a burning city and lawless seas. With only a sailboat and each other, they face hunger, strangers, and the unknown in a world that may never recover.

Stephen boards a Caribbean cruise meant to celebrate his fortieth birthday — one he was supposed to share with his twin sister, Niamh. But Niamh is gone, and Stephen is left adrift in grief, guilt, and questions. Why didn’t he see the signs? Why didn’t she say goodbye? As the ship charts its sun-drenched course through turquoise waters, Stephen navigates a more personal journey of memory, healing, and unexpected encounters. On the ship, he meets a series of performers who teach him lessons that slowly help him stitch his shattered world back together.

Psychology teacher Michael Bendixen knows it’s not uncommon for people in grief to imagine seeing or hearing lost loved ones. So, when he hears his dead son’s voice calling for him in the high school hallway, he chalks it up to just that. A hallucination born from his grief. Then a student tells him she heard it too. The student is Lisa Swan, a seventeen-year-old girl who, in the thirteen months since she suffered her own tragic loss, has had her own demons to battle. The meeting between the two marks the beginning of a long and nerve-wracking journey that leads them to Urari.

Denise Berg, a professor of psychology, and her molecular biologist husband, Gabe, expected an intelligent child. When Denise gave birth to Zack, they were thrilled. They were not surprised to find that Zack had physical and mental gifts but were astounded by their magnitude. By every parameter Zack was extraordinarily gifted, and they took pride in their genes and their good fortune.