Nixy Bauer, Home in an Hour Nixy Bauer is used to her classmates being very, very unhappy to see her. After all, she's working with the enemy she's on their parents payrolls.Nixy is a bounty hunter in a virtual-reality gaming world. Kids in the MEEP, as they call it, play entirely with their minds, while their bodies languish in a sleeplike state on the couch. Irritated parents, looking to wrench their kids back to reality, hire Nixy to jump into the game and retrieve them. Luckily for Nixy and her wallet, she's the best leveller out there.But when the game's billionaire developer and Nixy's parents boss loses track of his own son in the MEEP, Nixy is in for the biggest challenge of her bounty-hunting career. Wyn Salvador isn't some lazy kid looking to escape his homework, and this is no ordinary levelling job: Wyn does not want to be found. And he's left behind a suicide note.Nixy takes the job but quickly discovers that Wyns not hiding he's being held inside the game against his will. But who is holding him captive, and why?Nixy and Wyn attempt to fight their way out of a mind game unlike any they've encountered. And the battle brings them closer than either could have imagined. But when the whole world is virtual, how can Nixy possibly know what's real?

Carey Baldwin, author of the thrilling novel Confession, returns with a new story featuring two of her most beloved characters. Fans of Tess Gerritsen and Lisa Gardner will devour this riveting story of rivals caught in a killer's twisted web.When a coed falls prey to a sadistic murderer, forensic psychiatrist Dr. Caitlin "Caity" Cassidy and Special Agent Atticus Spenser are called in to testify—one for the defense, one for the prosecution. With warring approaches to justice, these two rivals have been butting heads for years—both inside the courtroom and out. And at first, this case appears to be no different.But when a brutal attack leaves the accused man dead and Caity in critical condition, petty differences take a backseat to saving lives. As the lone survivor, Caity knows too much, and the killer—a madman calling himself the Man in the Maze—is coming back for round two. Now Caity and Spense must join forces to uncover the killer's identity before Caity's time—and luck—runs out.

Under pressure to get a tasty, nutritious dinner on the table in a flashLike the idea of preparing fork-tender beef stew in thirty minutes and pot roast in under an hourAll this and more is made possible by the pressure cooker, a magical appliance that produces soul-satisfying, homemade food in one-third (or less) the standard cooking time.In Pressure Perfect, Lorna Sass, the country's leading authority on pressure cooking, distills her two decades of experience into one comprehensive volume. First learn everything you need to know about buying and using today's 100% safe cookers. Then enjoy?more than?200 recipes for preparing soups, meats, poultry, grains, beans, vegetables, and desserts in record time. How about whipping up a savory risotto in 4 minutes, chicken cacciatore in 12 minutes, or a delectable chocolate cheesecake in 25 minutes?Because the pressure cooker tenderizes tough cuts of meat quickly, you can prepare fall-off-the-bone beef short ribs or lamb shanks on weekday nights instead of waiting for a special occasion. The pressure cooker also allows you to make delectable one-pot meals in minutes. Among the many innovative recipes and techniques, you'll learn to cook meatloaf and potatoes simultaneously in 10 minutes, and meatballs, pasta, and sauce at the same time in only 5 minutes. Many recipes also suggest Cook-Along ideas for preparing vegetables and grains along with the entrée.To further?help?those cooking under pressure (and who isn't nowadays?), each chapter contains timing charts for quick reference. Tips and Pressure Points in every recipe ensure optimum results.This ultimate guide to pressure cooking is a must for all busy cooks, boaters, brides, college students, and anyone looking for a great way to make irresistible, healthy, home-made food fast.

Ava has spent the last hundred years as a hellhound, the indentured servant of a reaper who hunts errant souls and sends them to hell. When a human necro- mancer convinces her to steal her reaper's scythe, Ava incurs the wrath of the demon Lilith. As punishment, Lilith orders Ava to track down the last soul in her reaper's ledger—or die trying.But after a hundred years of servitude, it's time for payback. And hell hath no fury like an avenging Ava. . . .

From New York Times bestselling author Tim Green comes a captivating baseball novel about one kid's search of a lifetime.It's always been just Ryder and his mom. But on the way home from Ryder's baseball practice, everything comes to a halt. An accident sends his mom to the hospital, and now she is fighting for her life. So Ryder goes on a search to find his father, determined to help pay for the expensive operation to save his mother's life. But with only a signed baseball and a letter as his clues, and the help of his next-door neighbor and a New York City firefighter, will everything fall into place in time, or will Ryder become a lost boy forever?New York Times bestselling author Tim Green knocks this one out of the park, combining heart and baseball to create a story that readers will never forget.

Before America Singer met Prince Maxon . . .Before she entered the Selection . . .She was in love with a boy named Aspen Leger.Don't miss this digital original novella set in the captivating world of Kiera Cass's #1 New York Times bestselling Selection series. This brand new 64-page story begins just after the group of Selected girls is narrowed down to the Elite and is told from Aspen's point of view. The Guard also features a teaser to The One, the thrilling third novel in the Selection series.Epic Reads Impulse is a digital imprint with new releases each month.

An epic fantasy filled with adventure, intrigue, and romance from Incarnate series author Jodi Meadows. This duology is perfect for fans of Graceling by Kristin Cashore, The Girl of Fire and Thorns by Rae Carson, and Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo.When Princess Wilhelmina was a child, the Indigo Kingdom invaded her homeland. Ten years later, Wil and the other noble children who escaped are ready to fight back and reclaim Wil’s throne. To do so, Wil and her best friend, Melanie, infiltrate the Indigo Kingdom palace with hopes of gathering information that will help them succeed.But Wil has a secret—one that could change everything. Although magic has been illegal for a century, she knows her ability could help her save her kingdom. But magic creates wraith, and the deadly stuff is moving closer and destroying the land. And if the vigilante Black Knife catches her using magic, she may disappear like all the others. . . .

Life in modern Tokyo is a blast for Rei Shimura, a young Japanese-American woman who enjoys busy days as an antiques dealer and steamy nights with a devoted new boyfriend. But things come to a standstill when Rei overpays for a rare old chest of drawers for a wealthy client, the owner of a famous Zen temple in Kamakura. The exquisite tansu turns out to be a fake: the worst deal Rei has ever made. When the temple family turns on Rei -- and the con man who sold the tansu is murdered -- she realizes she's opened a Pandora's box of deception and murder. A young martial artist, an aspiring rock singer, and an elderly antiques mentor all become part of Rei's search for the killer through the shadows of an ancient culture. As her world begins to rapidly and inexplicably unravel, Rei realizes that it will take strength, wit, and a Zen attitude to survive.

Travel deeper into the mysterious world of the Copernicus Legacy with the Copernicus Archives: exciting, fast-paced novellas that get you close to the characters and the heart of the adventure.The Copernicus Archives #2: Becca and the Prisoner's Cross is studious language expert Becca's thrilling first-person account of the next stop in the Kaplans' perilous journey. As Becca and her family race through London, it's up to Becca to make sense of the strange time blackouts she's experiencing before the evil Teutonic Order beats them to the next relic. Or worse, hurts the people she loves.Perfect for fans of Rick Riordan and Ridley Pearson, Becca and the Prisoner's Cross continues the thrilling Copernicus Legacy quest and brings one of the characters into the spotlight.Correlates to the Common Core State Standards in English Language Arts

Set against the turbulence of 1960s Chicago—a city in transformation—and its legendary jazz scene, Last Night at the Blue Angel is a lush and immensely heartfelt mother-daughter tale about a talented but troubled singer’s relationship with her precocious ten-year-old daughter.It is the early 1960s, and Chicago is teeming with the tensions of the day—segregation, sexual experimentation, the Cold War and Vietnam—but it is also home to some of the country’s most influential jazz. Naomi Hill, a singer at the Blue Angel club, has been poised on the brink of stardom for nearly ten years. But when her big break, the cover of Look magazine, finally arrives, it carries with it an enormous personal cost. Sensual and magnetic, Naomi is a fiercely ambitious yet self-destructive woman whose charms tend to hurt those around her, and no one knows this better than her daughter, Sophia.As the only child of a single mother growing up in an adult world, Sophia is wise beyond her years, a casualty of her mother’s desperate struggle for fame and adoration. Unsettled by her home life, she harbors a terrible fear that her world could disappear at any moment, and compulsively maintains a list of everyday objects she might need to reinvent should nuclear catastrophe strike. Her only constant is the colorful and unconventional family that surrounds her and her mother, particularly the photographer, Jim, who is Sophia’s best friend, surrogate father, and protector—but Jim is also deeply in love with Naomi.Weaving between the perspectives of Sophia and Naomi, Last Night at the Blue Angel is a poignant and unforgettable story about what happens when our passion for the life we want is at sharp odds with the life we have. Part stylish period piece, part heartbreaking family drama, it’s a novel rife with revelations, a vivid and propulsive page-turner—and the major debut of an extraordinary new writer.

Power has its price.David Blake should be enjoying the high life now that he's top dog, controlling everything in the city that's worth controlling.But when it becomes clear that someone wants him dead, Blake struggles to maintain his restraint. From the heroin-laced high-rises of Newcastle to the seedy back streets of Bangkok, in a world of contract killers, corrupt politicians, bent detectives, fast women, and dangerous men, Blake is in a race against time to find—and stop—his potential assassin.Packed with action and attitude, The Damage is a gripping gangland thriller for fans of the hit films The Town and Goodfellas.

Two women share a grisly fate in the first entry of this exciting new British crime series—a blend of literary suspense and page-turning thriller that introduces the formidable Detective Chief Inspector Louisa Smith—from the New York Times bestselling author Elizabeth Haynes, "the most exciting thing to happen to crime fiction in a long time" (Sophie Hannah, author of Kind of Cruel).In the crisp, early hours of an autumn morning, the police are called to investigate two deaths. The first is a suspected murder at a farm on the outskirts of a small village. A beautiful young woman has been found dead, her cottage drenched with blood. The second is a reported suicide at a nearby quarry. A car with a woman's body inside has been found at the bottom of the pit.As DCI Louisa Smith and her team gather evidence over the course of the next six days, they discover a shocking link between the two cases and the two deaths—a bond that sealed these women's terrible fates one cold night, under a silent moon.In this compelling new detective series, Elizabeth Haynes interweaves fictional primary source materials—police reports, phone messages, interviews—and multiple character viewpoints to create a sexy, edgy, and compulsively readable tale of murder, mystery, and unsettling suspense.

For readers of Game of Thrones, Ken Follett, and Clive Cussler:an epic adventure spanning land and sea...time and distance...courage, revenge, and everything in between.GOLDEN LIONHe saw his father executed in battle. He spent his youth avenging that death. And now Henry 'Hal' Courtney is a man with a ship – and a family – of his own.But fate has not finished with Hal. On a voyage along the eastern shore of Africa, a powerful enemy abducts his wife, the fearless warrior Judith… and with her, Hal's unborn child. For Hal, a man all too familiar with loss, there is only one way forward: He must track his nemesis across desert and ocean, through the slave markets of Zanzibar and the dangerous waters of the coast, in pursuit of the woman he loves, the child he sired, and the glorious destiny that awaits him.Bursting with action and suspense, heroism and heartache, this unforgettable novel proves once more that Wilbur Smith is the world's greatest adventure writer.

A heartfelt tale of one woman's journey to discover the secrets of her mother's hidden past and confront her own uncertain future, this compelling, emotionally resonant novel about the frustrations of blood ties will appeal to fans of Emily Giffin and Jennifer Weiner.On the surface, Olivia has it all: a high-powered career, a loving family, and a handsome fiancé. She even seems to be coming to terms with her mother Jane's premature death from cancer. But when Jane's final wish is revealed, Olivia and her elder sister, Georgia, are mystified. Their mother rarely spoke of her rural Southern hometown, and never went back to visit—so why does she want them to return to Huntley, Georgia, to scatter her ashes?Jane's request offers Olivia a temporary escape from the reality she's long been denying: she hates her "dream" job, and she's not really sure she wants to marry her groom-to-be. With her fourteen-year-old niece, Logan, riding shotgun, she heads south on a summer road trip looking for answers about her mother.As Olivia gets to know the town's inhabitants, she begins to peel back the secrets of her mother's early life—truths that force her to question her own future. But when Olivia is confronted with a tragedy and finds an opportunity to right a terrible wrong, will it give her the courage to accept her mother's past—and say yes to her own desire to start over?

New York Times bestselling author Elizabeth Haynes returns with a disturbing and powerful tale that preys on our darkest fears.Police analyst Annabel wouldn't describe herself as lonely. Her work and the needs of her aging mother keep her busy. But Annabel is shocked when she discovers her neighbor's decomposing body in the house next door, and she is appalled to think that no one, including herself, noticed the woman's absence. Annabel sets out to investigate, despite her colleagues' lack of interest, and discovers that such cases are frighteningly common in her hometown.A chilling thriller and a hymn to all the lonely people whose individual voices haunt its pages, Human Remains shows how vulnerable we are when we live alone, and how easily ordinary lives can fall apart when no one is watching.

Become an expert at using Python for advanced statistical analysis of data using real-world examples About This Book Clean, format, and explore data using graphical and numerical summaries Leverage the IPython environment to efficiently analyze data with Python Packed with easy-to-follow examples to develop advanced computational skills for the analysis of complex data Who This Book Is For If you are a competent Python developer who wants to take your data analysis skills to the next level by solving complex problems, then this advanced guide is for you. Familiarity with the basics of applying Python libraries to data sets is assumed. What You Will Learn Read, sort, and map various data into Python and Pandas Recognise patterns so you can understand and explore data Use statistical models to discover patterns in data Review classical statistical inference using Python, Pandas, and SciPy Detect similarities and differences in data with clustering Clean your data to make it useful Work in Jupyter Notebook to produce publication ready figures to be included in reports In Detail Python, a multi-paradigm programming language, has become the language of choice for data scientists for data analysis, visualization, and machine learning. Ever imagined how to become an expert at effectively approaching data analysis problems, solving them, and extracting all of the available information from your dataWell, look no further, this is the book you want! Through this comprehensive guide, you will explore data and present results and conclusions from statistical analysis in a meaningful way. You’ll be able to quickly and accurately perform the hands-on sorting, reduction, and subsequent analysis, and fully appreciate how data analysis methods can support business decision-making. You’ll start off by learning about the tools available for data analysis in Python and will then explore the statistical models that are used to identify patterns in data. Gradually, you’ll move on to review statistical inference using Python, Pandas, and SciPy. After that, we’ll focus on performing regression using computational tools and you’ll get to understand the problem of identifying clusters in data in an algorithmic way. Finally, we delve into advanced techniques to quantify cause and effect using Bayesian methods and you’ll discover how to use Python’s tools for supervised machine learning. Style and approach This book takes a step-by-step approach to reading, processing, and analyzing data in Python using various methods and tools. Rich in examples, each topic connects to real-world examples and retrieves data directly online where possible. With this book, you are given the knowledge and tools to explore any data on your own, encouraging a curiosity befitting all data scientists.

Arm yourself to make the most of the versatile, powerful Ubuntu Server with over 100 hands-on recipes About This Book Master the skills to setup secure and scalable web services with popular tools like Apache, Nginx, MySQL and HAProxy Set up your own cloud with Open Stack and quickly deploy applications with Docker or LXD Packed with clear, step-by-step recipes to let you protect you valuable data with your own chat servers, code hosting and collaboration tools. Who This Book Is For Ubuntu Server Cookbook is for system administrators or software developers with a basic understanding of the Linux operating system who want to set up their own servers. You are not required to have in-depth knowledge or hands-on experience with Ubuntu, but you should know the basics commands for directory navigation, file management, and the file editing tool. An understanding of computer networks is advisable What You Will Learn Set up high performance, scalable, and fault-tolerant back ends with web and database servers Facilitate team communication with a real-time chat service and collaboration tools Quickly deploy your applications to their own containers and scale your infrastructure as and when needed Find out how to set up your own cloud infrastructure for your internal use or rent it to the public Ensure quick and easy access for your users while also securing your infrastructure from intruders Set up a high performance private network with a personal VPN server and centralized authentication system Swiftly start a content streaming service Set up network storage for private data and source code and say good bye to costly and unreliable cloud services In Detail Ubuntu is one of the most secure operating systems and defines the highest level of security as compared other operating system. Ubuntu server is a popular Linux distribution and the first choice when deploying a Linux server. It can be used with a $35 Raspberry Pi to top-notch, thousand-dollar-per-month cloud hardware. Built with lists that there are 4 million + websites built using Ubuntu. With its easy-to-use package management tools and availability of well-known packages, we can quickly set up our own services such as web servers and database servers using Ubuntu. This book will help you develop the skills required to set up high performance and secure services with open source tools. Starting from user management and an in-depth look at networking, we then move on to cover the installation and management of web servers and database servers, as well as load balancing various services. You will quickly learn to set up your own cloud and minimize costs and efforts with application containers. Next, you will get to grips with setting up a secure real-time communication system. Finally, we’ll explore source code hosting and various collaboration tools. By the end of this book, you will be able to make the most of Ubuntu’s advanced functionalities. Style and approach This easy-to-follow guide contains a series of step-by-step recipes ranging from simple to complex. Each topic will start with basic introduction to each technology followed by a detailed step-by-step installation guide and then a detailed explanation of the approach taken during installation and the various advanced options available.

Leverage frontend development skills to build impressive iOS and Android applications with React Native About This Book Apply flexbox to get layout and build rich animations that bring your React Native application to life Integrate third-party libraries and develop customized components that run natively on iOS and Android platforms Combine React Native with Redux, Redux middleware, and a remote API to build scalable data-driven applications Who This Book Is For This book is for anyone who wants to build cross-platform native mobile applications using only JavaScript and the React Native framework. In particular, this book is especially useful for front-end developers who want to use their current skillset to build mobile applications. An existing working knowledge of JavaScript will help you get the most out of this book. What You Will Learn Implement native React Native components and APIs Explore React’s JSX syntax Manage data using Redux and Redux middleware Build applications with React Native on both iOS and Android platforms Perform animations in your applications using the animation APIs Understand routing and Navigator comparison Create your own Native module In Detail React Native has completely revolutionized mobile development by empowering JavaScript developers to build world-class mobile apps that run natively on mobile platforms. This book will show you how to apply JavaScript and other front-end skills to build cross-platform React Native applications for iOS and Android using a single codebase. This book will provide you with all the React Native building blocks necessary to become an expert. We’ll give you a brief explanation of the numerous native components and APIs that come bundled with React Native including Images, Views, ListViews, WebViews, and much more. You will learn to utilize form inputs in React Native. You’ll get an overview of Facebook’s Flux data architecture and then apply Redux to manage data with a remote API. You will also learn to animate different parts of your application, as well as routing using React Native’s navigation APIs. By the end of the book, you will be able to build cutting-edge applications using the React Native framework. Style and approach This comprehensive guide will take your React Native skills to the next level. It shows you how to develop a clear workflow to build scalable applications, and how to implement the architectural concepts covered to build applications that shine in the real world.

Learn everything you need to know about object-oriented JavaScript with this comprehensive guide. Enter the world of cutting-edge development! About This Book This book has been updated to cover all the new object-oriented features introduced in ECMAScript 6 It makes object-oriented programming accessible and understandable to web developers Write better and more maintainable JavaScript code while exploring interactive examples that can be used in your own *s Who This Book Is For This book is ideal for new to intermediate JavaScript developers who want to prepare themselves for web development problems solved by object-oriented JavaScript! What You Will Learn Apply the basics of object-oriented programming in the JavaScript environment Use a JavaScript Console with complete mastery Make your programs cleaner, faster, and compatible with other programs and libraries Get familiar with Iterators and Generators, the new features added in ES6 Find out about ECMAScript 6’s Arrow functions, and make them your own Understand objects in Google Chrome developer tools and how to use them Use a mix of prototypal inheritance and copying properties in your workflow Apply reactive programming techniques while coding in JavaScript In Detail JavaScript is an object-oriented programming language that is used for website development. Web pages developed today currently follow a paradigm that has three clearly distinguishable parts: content (HTML), presentation (CSS), and behavior (JavaScript). JavaScript is one important pillar in this paradigm, and is responsible for the running of the web pages. This book will take your JavaScript skills to a new level of sophistication and get you prepared for your journey through professional web development. Updated for ES6, this book covers everything you will need to unleash the power of object-oriented programming in JavaScript while building professional web applications. The book begins with the basics of object-oriented programming in JavaScript and then gradually progresses to cover functions, objects, and prototypes, and how these concepts can be used to make your programs cleaner, more maintainable, faster, and compatible with other programs/libraries. By the end of the book, you will have learned how to incorporate object-oriented programming in your web development workflow to build professional JavaScript applications. Style and approach Filled with practical instructions, the book shows you how to implement object-oriented features of JavaScript in the real world. The to-the-point nature of the book will benefit developers who are looking for a fast-paced guide to learn object-oriented JavaScript.

Build modular applications that are easy to scale using the most powerful components and design patterns that React can offer you right now About This Book Dive into the core patterns and components of React.js in order to master your application's design Improve their debugging skills using the DevTools This book is packed with easy-to-follow examples that can be used to create reusable code and extensible designs Who This Book Is For If you want to increase your understanding of React and apply it to real-life application development, then this book is for you. What You Will Learn Write clean and maintainable code Create reusable components applying consolidated techniques Use React effectively in the browser and node Choose the right styling approach according to the needs of the applications Use server-side rendering to make applications load faster Build high-performing applications by optimizing components In Detail Taking a complete journey through the most valuable design patterns in React, this book demonstrates how to apply design patterns and best practices in real-life situations, whether that's for new or already existing projects. It will help you to make your applications more flexible, perform better, and easier to maintain – giving your workflow a huge boost when it comes to speed without reducing quality. We'll begin by understanding the internals of React before gradually moving on to writing clean and maintainable code. We'll build components that are reusable across the application, structure applications, and create forms that actually work. Then we'll style React components and optimize them to make applications faster and more responsive. Finally, we'll write tests effectively and you'll learn how to contribute to React and its ecosystem. By the end of the book, you'll be saved from a lot of trial and error and developmental headaches, and you will be on the road to becoming a React expert. Style and approach The design patterns in the book are explained using real-world, step-by-step examples. For each design pattern, there are hints about when to use it and when to look for something more suitable. This book can also be used as a practical guide, showing you how to leverage design patterns.

Learn to really THINK about CSS, and how to create CSS that endures continual iteration, multiple authors, and yet always produces predictable results About This Book Address the problems of CSS at scale, avoiding the shortfalls of scaling CSS. The shortfalls of conventional approaches to scaling CSS. Develop consistent and enforceable selector naming conventions with ECSS. Learn how to organize project structure to more easily isolate and decouple visual components. Who This Book Is For This is a book for working CSS authors involved in large projects. This is a book that tackles create enduring CSS for large-scale projects. What You Will Learn The problems of CSS at scale—specificity, the cascade and styles intrinsically tied to element structure. The shortfalls of conventional approaches to scaling CSS. The ECSS methodology and the problems it solves. How to develop consistent and enforceable selector naming conventions with ECSS. How to organise project structure to more easily isolate and decouple visual components. How to handle state changes in the DOM with ARIA or override selectors. How to apply ECSS to web applications and visual modules. Considerations of CSS tooling and processing: Sass/PostCSS and linting. Addressing the notion of CSS selector speed with hard data and browser representative insight In Detail Learn with me, Ben Frain, about how to really THINK about CSS and how to use CSS for any size project! I'll show you how to write CSS that endures continual iteration, multiple authors, and yet always produces predictable results. Enduring CSS, often referred to as ECSS, offers you a robust and proven approach to authoring and maintaining style sheets at scale. Enduring CSS is not a book about writing CSS, as in the stuff inside the curly braces. This is a book showing you how to think about CSS, and be a smarter developer with that thinking! It's about the organisation and architecture of CSS—the parts outside the braces. I will help you think about the aspects of CSS development that become the most difficult part of writing CSS in larger projects. You’ll learn about the problems of authoring CSS at scale—including specificity, the cascade and styles intrinsically tied to document structure. I'll introduce you to the ECSS methodology, and show you how to develop consistent and enforceable selector naming conventions. We'll cover how to apply ECSS to your web applications and visual model, and how you can organize your project structure wisely, and handle visual state changes with ARIA, providing greater accessibility considerations. In addition, we'll take a deep look into CSS tooling and process considerations. Finally we will address performance considerations by examining topics such as CSS selector speed with hard data and browser-representative insight. Style and approach Learn with me, Ben Frain, about how to really think about CSS. This is a book to deal with writing CSS for large-scale, rapidly changing web projects and applications. This isn't a book about writing CSS, as in the stuff inside the curly braces - this is a book about the organisation and architecture of CSS; the parts outside the braces!