Showing results by author "Usher" in All Categories

How to Say No is a delightful collection of brief ancient writings about Cynicism that captures all the outrageousness, wit, and wisdom of its remarkable cast of characters—from Diogenes in the fourth century BCE to the column-stander Symeon Stylites in late antiquity.

Warm beds, quaint mysteries, and the best rosemary bread this side of Pigsend Creek. Welcome to the Weary Dragon Inn. Bev may not know who she was before she showed up in the quaint village of Pigsend five years ago, but that doesn’t bother her much. She’s made a tidy little life for herself as the proprietor of the Weary Dragon Inn, where the most notable event is when she makes her famous rosemary bread.

For the past 30 years, Usher has exhilarated audiences with stadium-sized anthems, innovative choreography, and dazzling charm that has made him a once-in-a-generation superstar. The Last Showman is an introspective look into the past, present, and future of a beloved global R&B icon. Usher opens up about the inspirations, heartache, and growth that fueled the creation of his record-breaking magnum opus, Confessions, while revisiting some of its most iconic tracks.

When Sheriff Rustin doesn't show up for work, and more Pigsend citizens go missing, Bev's on the case once again. Can she figure out who or what's snatching the citizens of Pigsend before the entire town disappears—or there's no one left to help with the Harvest Festival when the queen finally arrives?

It's election time in Pigsend, and Pigsend's mayor Jo Hendry is up for re-election, but she's not the only candidate in the race. Pip Norris, the farrier, Wilda Murtagh, the cousin of the perfidious mayor from Middleburg, Gore Dewey, the blacksmith, and Hans Silver, a local farmer, have thrown their hats into the ring, too. And if Earl Dollman's polling is to be believed, it's going to be a tight race. But when every candidate except Hendry receives a letter threatening to expose their "secret," Bev's once again called to investigate.

Bev may not know who she was before she showed up in the quaint village of Pigsend five years ago, but that doesn't bother her much. She's made a tidy little life for herself as the proprietor of the Weary Dragon Inn, where the most notable event is when she makes her famous rosemary bread. But when earthquakes and sinkholes start appearing all over town, including near Bev's front door, she's got to put on her sleuthing hat to figure out what—or who—might be causing them before the entire town disappears.

Summer has arrived in Pigsend, and it’s not just the sweltering temperatures putting everyone on edge. It’s the sixth anniversary of the war ending, and a cadre of soldiers is camping north of town to keep the peace and monitor for strange activity. Rumor has it a rebellion is brewing, one that threatens to plunge the country back into war—not that anyone in Pigsend is keen on that. At the Weary Dragon, Bev’s playing host to the usual set of travelers, including butcher Vellora’s old commander Andres.

In this moving collection, Shaun Usher gathers together some of the most powerful letters about love ever written. Whether inspired by love’s first blush or the recriminations at its ending, the regrets of unrequited feelings and the joys of passions known, Letters of Note: Love is essential listening for anyone with a heart.

Neef has always been a storyteller and her story now, working in a café in London, is that her name is Jennifer. Jennifer never knew a boy called Danny, never loved him, never had him wrenched away from her. But when Neef was a teenager, and her troubled mother moved them into a flat above a pub in a working-class Yorkshire town, Danny was her whole world. Neef and Danny. Danny and Neef. Despite absent parents and small-town bigotry directed at Danny for the colour of his skin, they found solace in each other.

Letters of Note, the book based on the beloved website of the same name, became an instant classic on publication in 2013, selling hundreds of thousands of copies. This new edition sees the collection of the world's most entertaining, inspiring and unusual letters updated with 14 riveting new missives and a new introduction from curator Shaun Usher.

Get the next three books in the Weary Dragon Inn Cozy Fantasy series, including Beasts and Baking, Magic and Molemen, and Veils and Villains, in a convenient audiobook bundle.

In Letters of Note: Cats, Shaun Usher collects together the most engaging missives that celebrate, eulogise, rail against and analyse the idiosyncratic ways of our feline companions. A star-studded cast of readers brings the letters to life, with contributions from Sanjeev Bhaskar, Louise Brealey, Simon Callow, Benedict Cumberbatch, Adrian Edmondson, Stephen Fry, Neil Gaiman, Danny Huston, Toby Jones, Ferdinand Kingsley, Helen McCrory, Natascha McElhone, Stephen Mangan, Miriam Margolyes, Clarke Peters, Juliet Stevenson, Mark Strong and Meera Syal.

The annual Pigsend Harvest Festival is coming up quick, and Bev's been assigned to the planning committee against her will. But Ida Witzel, the festival chair, wants no mishaps this year, and she knows if Bev's involved, the hijinks will be at a minimum. That is, until farmer Trent Scrawl isn't seen for a few days, and on a wellness visit, Bev finds him dead.

A brand-new collection from the internationally best-selling author of Letters of Note.

Speeches of Note is a celebration of oratory old, new and unspoken. It is an obsessively curated, richly illustrated and sumptuously produced collection of speeches from throughout the ages. Some are surprising, inspiring, hilarious; others are moving, comforting, enlightening. Some of these speeches changed the course of history; others are all but unknown, even undelivered to this day, such as the chilling public announcement to be made by President Nixon should Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin become stranded on the moon. All are extraordinary.

Tara Babcock awakes the morning after her 30th birthday with a hangover that could kill an elephant - and the knowledge she is still no closer to achieving closure on her marriage breakup. Things go from bad to worse when she discovers that, not only is her ex-husband engaged to her cousin - Tash, the woman he left her for - but that Jake is also running for Lord Mayor of Sydney.

The Harvest Festival is the most-anticipated event in the quaint village of Pigsend, and Bev and the Weary Dragon Inn are ready to welcome visitors from near and far. But when strange occurrences begin happening, including the destruction of Bev's beloved herb garden, Bev's got to put her sleuthing hat back on to uncover the truth.

It's the wedding of the year in Pigsend, at least if you talk to Vicky Hamblin. The bride-to-be is dead set on making her wedding to baker Allen Mackey the most perfect spectacle in the history of weddings, if only to impress her two snooty aunts. Bev's in charge of hosting them at the Weary Dragon Inn, along with a carefully-curated list of other family members, all designed to impress. But when things start going awry, and Vicky suspects someone might be out to sabotage her wedding, Bev's on the case once more. Can she find out who's out to get the bride before the big day?

A wonderfully murky, carnivalesque world of intrigue, unexpected friendships and mysteries solved. Children are getting sucked into the water by a strange mechanical monster...and a theatre troupe are determined to find out why! When Sheba the wolf girl joins the Carnival of the Lost - an extraordinary theatre troupe of performing artists - she feels, for the first time in her life, that she fits in and will have a chance of making friends. But her stage act is not all she has to think about.

From wood to coal to oil and gas, the sources of energy on which civilization depends have always changed as technology advances. Now renewables are overtaking fossil fuels, with wind and solar energy becoming cheaper and more competitive every year. Growth in renewable energy will further accelerate as electric vehicles become less expensive than traditional automobiles. Understanding the implications of the energy transition will prepare us for the many changes ahead.