Showing results by narrator "Zura Johnson" in All Categories

We're at an inflection point in data, where our data management solutions no longer match the complexity of organizations, the proliferation of data sources, and the scope of our aspirations to get value from data with AI and analytics. In this practical book, Zhamak Dehghani introduces data mesh, a decentralized sociotechnical paradigm drawn from modern distributed architecture that provides a new approach to sourcing, sharing, accessing, and managing analytical data at scale.

My transformation from a poor, orphaned scullery maid into the enchantingly mysterious lady who snagged the heart of the prince did not happen—as the rumors insisted—in a magical metamorphosis of pumpkins and glass slippers. On the first evening of the ball, I didn’t meekly help my “evil” stepmother and stepsisters primp and preen or watch forlornly out the window as their carriage rolled off toward the palace. I had other preparations to make.

Magic-less witch Violet Maxwell wants nothing to do with alpha wolf shifter Lincoln Thorne - the man who broke her fragile teenage heart. But when the two of them are forced by arcane Supernatural Laws to find mates, Violet and Lincoln agree to fake-date their way to a fake-mating in order to conjure themselves some time. The joke’s on them.

Wyn and Remy Gastineau were perfect together. Until, without warning, Remy walks out on their life, love, and marriage. Wyn is blindsided and heartbroken. It takes her years to get over the loss of Remy. Sometime later, their children call a family meeting, and Remy is acting strange. Wyn refuses to hope. Remy has moved on. She must do the same. But she’s wrong. Remy wants her back, and he’s pulling no punches. He’s determined to do the work to piece together the marriage he shattered. Forced by circumstances to tell Wyn things he never wanted her to know, Remy reveals his tragic secrets.

Ever since the System brought magic and monstrous mayhem to Earth, long-haul trucker Jill "Junkmouth" MacLeod has had a need for speed. The highway snaking through the Midwestern plains is the battleground, and the stakes are the lives of not only Jill but thousands of survivors along for the ride. Together with Bertha, her mega-upgraded, fully-turreted, heavily-armored Soulbound big rig, Jill has the edge—so far.

When Melanie D'Angelo arrives at Rose Cottage, she’s only looking to mend her shattered heart and restore the beautiful house her grandmother once called home. The last thing she wants is to become involved with her landscape designer.... Single dad Mike Mikelewski can't deny his instant connection with the gorgeous Melanie, but he already has a woman in his life - his adorable but troubled young daughter, Jessie. So even though Melanie makes his heart pound - and Jessie smile - he won’t allow himself to take a chance on a love that’s blossoming just like the Rose Cottage garden.

The darkness of the Hunt is going to find out exactly what the light of Summer is made of. Dancing With Darkness is a deliciously slow-burn fantasy romance. The heat and court intrigue ramp up as the series continues. The world of Eadha is full of unique fantasy creatures, magical artifacts, and tavern-type songs.

Luckily for humanity, scientist Marie Curie applied her brilliant mind and indomitable spirit to expanding the frontiers of science, but what if she had instead drifted toward the darkness? At the cusp of between child- and adulthood, at the crossroads between science and superstition, a teen Marie Curie faces the factual and the fantastic in this fabulous collection of stories that inspire, delight, and ask the question: What if she had used her talents for diabolical purposes?

For her entire life, Rose Maxwell trained to become the next Prima on the Supernatural Council. Now that she’s stepped down, it’s time for this witch to focus on herself—and not think about her impulsive one-night stand with Damian Adams, a half-demon veterinarian who she can’t get out of her head, since neither of them is looking for a relationship. But when Rose is sentenced to community service at Damian’s animal sanctuary, it becomes impossible for them to ignore their sparking attraction.

Nineteen-year-old Katrina van Tassel knows she’s a disappointment to her parents, for more reasons than one. But as the only daughter of the most prominent family in Sleepy Hollow, she never imagined that she would be chosen as the next sacrifice. Or that in her attempt to escape, she would instead come face to face with the Horseman himself.

Everly Winters is perfectly happy to navigate life like a good neutral paint color: appreciated but unnoticed. That’s why she’s still a receptionist instead of exploring a career in art, why she lurks but never posts on the forums for her favorite makeover show, On the Plus Side, and why she’s crushing so hard on her forever-unattainable co-worker. When no one notices you, they can’t reject you or insist you’re too much. This plan is working perfectly until someone secretly nominates Everly for the next season of On the Plus Side.

In the village of Liver-and-Onions, there was a Potato Face Blind Man who used to play an accordion on the corner near the post office. The sometime narrator of these tales, he transports readers and listeners to Rootabaga Country, where the railroad tracks go from straight to zigzag, the pigs wear bibs, and the Village of Cream Puffs floats in the wind, looking like a little hat that you could wear on the end of your thumb. Carl Sandburg, the beloved folk chronicler and three-time Pulitzer Prize winner, invented these stories for his own daughters.

The world of Zenafrost is burning. Darkness has overtaken the lands, corrupting everything it touches. After discovering the truth of her birth, Mara—Princess of Delinval, daughter of the Dread Queen, prophesied bringer of the dawn—has no time to sift through the rubble of her former life. Not with the salvation of the world resting upon her shoulders. By sheer luck and the help of her allies, Mara has somehow managed to survive the first Trial of the Odelians.

In this follow-up to Ask Baba Yaga: Otherworldly Advice for Everyday Troubles, award-winning writer Taisia Kitaiskaia once again embodies the legendary witch of Slavic folklore, Baba Yaga, to provide life advice to the questioning and the hurting. Answering real questions from audiences, Baba Yaga provides responses in the form of short poems that are lyrical, surreal, sometimes funny, and always honest. During these difficult days, Poetic Remedies for Troubled Times provides literary self-help for those who appreciate Baba Yaga's strange, surprising style and striking honesty.

Poet and author Taisia Kitaiskaia embodies the legendary witch of Slavic folklore, Baba Yaga, to provide poetic life advice to the questioning and the hurting in this audio collection of her books, Ask Baba Yaga and the all-new Poetic Remedies for Troubled Times.

When it comes to firefighter Sam O'Shea, absence—and a regime of tactical avoidance—has been working for me juuust fine. But when the audition of a lifetime falls in my pathetically broke lap, and he's the only one who can help me land the job, I'm willing to make a deal with the devil if it means I can kickstart my career as a narrator for audio books. The problem? We'd have to actually do the job. Together. And then we're told it's for an erotic romance.

Hot on the heels of her 2018 This Is Horror Award–winning short story collection Spectral Evidence, critically horror author Gemma Files compiles fifteen more of her most startling recent nightmares—a creepily seductive downward spiral of dark poetry and existential dread, entirely suitable to the slow apocalypse going on all around us. So take your mind off your troubles and send it somewhere the rules still operate, if only to punish those who violate them.

As a witch in the walled city of Chernograd, Kosara has plenty of practice treating lycanthrope bites, bargaining with kikimoras, and slaying bloodsucking upirs. There’s only one monster she can’t defeat: her ex, the Zmey, known as the Tsar of Monsters. She’s defied him one too many times and now he’s hunting her. Betrayed by someone close to her, Kosara’s only choice is to trade her shadow—the source of her powers—for a quick escape.

Tirne is one of four humans rigorously selected to usher the turn of the seasons into the mortal world. Every year, she escorts the taciturn god Autumn between the godly and human realms. Autumn’s seasonal stay among mortals brings cooler weather, changing leaves, and the harvest of apples and gourds until Winter takes his place. This year, the enchanted Mirror that separates their worlds shatters after Tirne and Autumn pass through, trapping both of them in the human realm.

The P.A.N. Trilogy (The Complete Series) Omnibus contains all three books: The P.A.N., The H.O.O.K., and The C.R.O.C.. With high-flying adventure, a dash of science fiction, and a whole lot of angst, this YA romance reimagines the Peter Pan story, bringing the tale into the 21st century. The P.A.N. trilogy is perfect for fans of Marissa Meyer’s The Lunar Chronicles, Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight, and fans of the hit TV show Once upon a Time.