Showing results by narrator "Jake Ruddle" in All Categories

In 1930s London, celebrity psychiatrist Anselm Rees is discovered dead in his locked study. There seems to be no way a killer could have escaped unseen. There are no clues, no witnesses, and no evidence of the murder weapon. Stumped by the confounding scene, the Scotland Yard detective on the case calls on retired stage magician turned part-time sleuth Joseph Spector. Spector has a knack for explaining the inexplicable, but even he finds that there is more to this mystery than meets the eye.

In Lutesia, middle-aged farmer Graith isn’t one for adventure. He'll leave that to the young and stupid. But when a dying dragon takes refuge in his barn with the rest of the kingdom hunting her, he doesn’t hesitate to help her. Before she is even fully healed, Azelia reveals she desperately needs to get back to her cave to protect her clutch of eggs.

When Edmund Ibbs, a young lawyer, defends a woman accused of shooting her husband dead, he finds himself drawn into a web of conspiracy and murder. Soon, Ibbs himself is accused of complicity in a killing, when a corpse unexpectedly appears as part of a magic act in a crowded theatre. Also present is Joseph Spector, former illusionist turned highly respected amateur sleuth. Spector begins to investigate the mystery, but when a second body is discovered later the same night, all the evidence points to Ibbs being guilty.

Michael Holland is a grim reaper working the worst beat in the worst town. Michael’s best friend is a pot-smoking tooth fairy, his boss is the angel of death, his psychiatrist can read his mind, and he counts bogeymen, demons, and clones as his acquaintances.

In a wasteland ravaged by plague, Lumsden Moss steps out of a decaying prison. Armed with a satchel of yellowed notebooks containing the fragile memories of five murdered children, he is determined to track down and confront their killer. Lumsden, accompanied by a stranger, begins a long journey to the ancient City of Steps where he is forced to confront the horrors of the past and present.

Firian Kess, now Head of the Tanyuin Academy, sets his sights on winning over the girl he once took hostage: Kiria Arioc, Keeper of the Western Kingdom. But power always takes its toll. Firian’s better impulses wage a losing war against his desire for control. Longing for more power, he uncovers a deadly ability in the Unreal that jeopardizes his alliances and his humanity. Facing manipulation at home and war abroad, Kiria’s bold choice to work with the Tanyu, their former enemies, makes her a political target even as she fights her growing feelings for the handsome Firian.

Through the enduring eye of Sherlock Holmes, noted historian Jeremy Black traces how Holmes and his milieu evolved in Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's books and how Holmes continues to resonate today. Black explores the context of Doyle's ideas and stories and why they struck such a chord with readers in London, and ultimately the world. Drawing on a masterful knowledge both of Doyle's era and his writings, this entertaining and wide-ranging book uses the Holmes stories to bring Victorian England to vibrant life, a world where crimes large and small abound.

The year is 1242. Dominican inquisitors are traveling in France, persecuting and torturing suspected heretics. But then someone starts killing the Inquisitors . . . and whoever it is must be stopped before the fanatical Dominicans wreak their brutal revenge, provoking the people to rise in revolt against the French Crown for allowing the bloodshed. So the Crown sends Balian of Mallorca, a notorious alchemist/physician/polyglot who many believe to be a sorcerer, to Languedoc to solve the perplexing mystery.

At least as far as Kiria's concerned. Ever since Firian's Tanyuin troops ravaged the beautiful city of Brithnem, she's been on the run, struggling with her new role as leader of a ragtag band, and tumultuous emotions over her former love. Will her resistance be enough to take back the Kingdom?

Rowan’s days of being the other woman and waiting patiently for Alex are almost over. He’s left his wife, and Rowan is finally within touching distance of her happy ever after. When Alex is involved in a terrible accident, she rushes to him, fearing the worst. But as facts begin to emerge that cast doubt on the accident and the true nature of Alex’s first marriage, Rowan is left devastated. And little does she know that a bigger shock is yet to come.

Held at a remote gothic estate, the three-day ball is rife with monstrous nobles all determined to claim a mate. They'll do whatever it takes to seduce her into hidden corners, to tempt her into signing a marriage contract. Escaping with her spinsterhood intact seems impossible, until she spots her childhood crush: the now monstrous Duke of Roth.

In this classic meets contemporary tale, Jillian Randall, a live-in teacher to a 5-year-old named Jacob, discovers her charge hiding in the trunk of her car. Chaos ensues back at the Van Buren mansion with Jacob presumed kidnapped.

With nature reclaiming cities and mountainous tides drowning islands, a group of individuals—known collectively as the We—find themselves ravaged by hunger and struggling to survive. When another community—the They—promise them luxurious meals, the We are unable to decline. After following the They to their farm, the We begin to notice some mysterious habits: odd sacrifices, talk of flames, and a strange book. Follow along as the We uncover the truth behind the secretive group and learn the most important part of being human.

When everything you imagine is within reach, what will you choose? Few people can create reality from imagination. Firian Kess is one of those few. When Firian’s ability earns him a coveted spot in the mysterious Tanyuin Academy, he finally has a chance to prove his worth. Despite obstacles and rivals, he stays intensely focused, determined that nothing will stop him from becoming the world’s best warrior.

Blood stains the land. With the gods' desperation, Azirik's mania grows. Away from her newfound family, Alea struggles to control the horrors in her mind and the power in her veins. What she must learn, however, is very different from the lessons the Laen wish to teach. Stuck waiting in a foreign city, Arman wrestles with new, fathomless fury. Coupled with the inertia of battle, his rage shatters friendships and taints alliances. Lives depend on what they learn, but war does not make time for history lessons.

Decades after his death in 1896, Professor Marchworth’s “Emotion Resonator” would be called “The Cabinet of Sorrows” as it was exhibited through a series of London sideshows. A poster preserved in the London Museum of Curiosities bills the cabinet as “an object cured in anguish, stained in grief, and varnished with madness”, a far cry from the Oxford Psychiatrist’s intended legacy.

Join James and his friends as they once again join forces with miserable pirates this time on a quest to save his mother from the vile Kraken's Curse. Will they be able to save Isabel Cutlass or will their plans be foiled by the dreaded Demetrius Galland and the famous Blackbeard himself?

Magpie’s Ladder comprises five stories that came to me while working on my visual art. My preferred drawing technique is stippling in ink, creating images with countless dots using a mechanical pen or brush. During those long hours, my imagination would wander, introducing strange characters and settings. The elements began to cohere into stories. Writing them down became a new path for expression and for approaching the worlds that I enjoy creating.

What happens when heroes are as broken as the world they must reforge? A mad king’s genocide destroyed Alea's home and left her sanity in tatters. Caught in the crossfire between the gods and their creators, Alea realizes the darkness inside her is the only thing that can end the bloodshed. Across enemy lines, bastard lieutenant Brentemir Barrackborn is horrified by the blood on his hands. He must choose between the gods he worships and newfound family if he has any hope of redemption - or surviving the war.

In a time when pirates ravage the seas, Damean Briggs' mutinous crew kidnaps the admiral's daughter, Penelope. James Cutlass must join forces with pirates to find her and combat the murderous Pirate King. Neither allies nor enemies are ever as they seem out on the great seas! Forced to trust such strangers, will James be able to save his friend, or will they all meet their miserable demise in Davy Jones' locker?