Get the most out of your Qlik Sense investment with the latest insight and guidance direct from the Qlik Sense team About This Book Updated with new coverage on Qlik Cloud, Qlik Sense Modeling, and Extending the Qlik Analytic Platform. Get insider insight on Qlik Sense and its new approach to business intelligence Explore practical demonstrations for utilizing Qlik Sense to discover data for sales, human resources, and more Who This Book Is For Learning Qlik Sense?: The Official Guide Second Edition is for anyone seeking to understand and utilize the revolutionary new approach to business intelligence offered by Qlik Sense. Familiarity with the basics of business intelligence will be helpful when picking up this book, but not essential. What You Will Learn Understand the vision behind the creation of Qlik Sense, and the promise that data discovery offers to you and your organization Get to grips with the life cycle of a Qlik Sense application Load and manage your data for app creation Visualize your data with Qlik Sense's engaging and informative graphing Administer your Qlik Sense system and monitor its security Build efficient and responsive Associative Models Extend the Qlik Analytic Platform with the Dev Hub Optimize Qlik Sense for sales, human resources, and demographic data discovery In Detail The intuitive and powerful Qlik Sense visual analytics software allows anyone to engage in data discovery, to explore your data, and find meaningful insights to empower your business. Qlik Sense lets you easily create personalized reports and visualizations and reveal essential connections to show new opportunities from every angle. Written by members of the Qlik Sense team, this book is the official guide from Qlik to understanding and using their powerful new product with fully updated coverage to the latest features of the most modern edition of Qlik Sense. Benefit from the vision behind the development of Qlik Sense and get to grips with how Qlik Sense can empower you as a data discovery consumer. Learn how to create your own applications for Qlik Sense to customize it to meet your personal needs for business intelligence, and how to oversee and administer the Qlik Sense data architecture. Finally, explore utilizing Qlik Sense to uncover essential data, with practical examples on finding and visualizing intelligence for sales figures, human resources information, travel expense tracking, and demographic data discovery. Style and approach This book is a practical guide to understand what Qlik Sense is and how to implement it. This is an example-rich, step-by-step book to implement and optimize Qlik Sense for sales, human resources, and demographic data discovery.

Learn to code like a professional with Python – an open source, versatile, and powerful programming language About This Book Learn the fundamentals of programming with Python – one of the best languages ever created Develop a strong set of programming skills that you will be able to express in any situation, on every platform, thanks to Python’s portability Create outstanding applications of all kind, from websites to *ing, and from GUIs to data science Who This Book Is For Python is the most popular introductory teaching language in U.S. top computer science universities, so if you are new to software development, or maybe you have little experience, and would like to start off on the right foot, then this language and this book are what you need. Its amazing design and portability will help you become productive regardless of the environment you choose to work with. What You Will Learn Get Python up and running on Windows, Mac, and Linux in no time Grasp the fundamental concepts of coding, along with the basics of data structures and control flow. Write elegant, reusable, and efficient code in any situation Understand when to use the functional or the object oriented programming approach Create bulletproof, reliable software by writing tests to support your code Explore examples of GUIs, *ing, data science and web applications Learn to be independent, capable of fetching any resource you need, as well as dig deeper In Detail Learning Python has a dynamic and varied nature. It reads easily and lays a good foundation for those who are interested in digging deeper. It has a practical and example-oriented approach through which both the introductory and the advanced topics are explained. Starting with the fundamentals of programming and Python, it ends by exploring very different topics, like GUIs, web apps and data science. The book takes you all the way to creating a fully fledged application. The book begins by exploring the essentials of programming, data structures and teaches you how to manipulate them. It then moves on to controlling the flow of a program and writing reusable and error proof code. You will then explore different programming paradigms that will allow you to find the best approach to any situation, and also learn how to perform performance optimization as well as effective debugging. Throughout, the book steers you through the various types of applications, and it concludes with a complete mini website built upon all the concepts that you learned. Style and approach This book is an easy-to-follow guide that will take you from a novice to the proficient level at a comfortable pace, using a lot of simple but effective examples. Each topic is explained thoroughly, and pointers are left for the more inquisitive readers to dig deeper and expand their knowledge.

Learn and explore the fundamentals of data analysis with power of Mathematica About This Book Use the power of Mathematica to analyze data in your applications Discover the capabilities of data classification and pattern recognition offered by Mathematica Use hundreds of algorithms for time series analysis to predict the future Who This Book Is For The book is for those who want to learn to use the power of Mathematica to analyze and process data. Perhaps you are already familiar with data analysis but have never used Mathematica, or you know Mathematica but you are new to data analysis. With the help of this book, you will be able to quickly catch up on the key points for a successful start. What You Will Learn Import data from different sources to Mathematica Link external libraries with programs written in Mathematica Classify data and partition them into clusters Recognize faces, objects, text, and barcodes Use Mathematica functions for time series analysis Use algorithms for statistical data processing Predict the result based on the observations In Detail There are many algorithms for data analysis and it’s not always possible to quickly choose the best one for each case. Implementation of the algorithms takes a lot of time. With the help of Mathematica, you can quickly get a result from the use of a particular method, because this system contains almost all the known algorithms for data analysis. If you are not a programmer but you need to analyze data, this book will show you the capabilities of Mathematica when just few strings of intelligible code help to solve huge tasks from statistical issues to pattern recognition. If you're a programmer, with the help of this book, you will learn how to use the library of algorithms implemented in Mathematica in your programs, as well as how to write algorithm testing procedure. With each chapter, you'll be more immersed in the special world of Mathematica. Along with intuitive queries for data processing, we will highlight the nuances and features of this system, allowing you to build effective analysis systems. With the help of this book, you will learn how to optimize the computations by combining your libraries with the Mathematica kernel. Style and approach This book takes a step-by-step approach, accompanied by examples, so you get a better understanding of the logic of writing algorithms for data analysis in Mathematica. We provide a detailed explanation of all the nuances of the Mathematica language, no matter what your level of experience is.

Create, analyze, maintain, and share 2D and 3D maps with the powerful tools of ArcGIS Pro About This Book Visualize GIS data in 2D and 3D maps Create GIS projects for quick and easy access to data, maps, and analysis tools A practical guide that helps to import maps, globes, and scenes from ArcMap, ArcScene, or ArcGlobe Who This Book Is For This book is for anyone wishing to learn how ArcGIS Pro can be used to create maps and perform geospatial analysis. It will be especially helpful for those that have used ArcMap and ArcCatalog in the past and are looking to migrate to Esri’s newest desktop GIS solution. Though previous GIS experience is not required, you must have a solid foundation using Microsoft Windows. It is also helpful if you understand how to manage folders and files within the Microsoft Windows environment. What You Will Learn Install ArcGIS Pro and assign Licenses to users in your organization Navigate and use the ArcGIS Pro ribbon interface to create maps and perform analysis Create and manage ArcGIS Pro GIS Projects Create 2D and 3D maps to visualize and analyze data Author map layouts using cartographic tools and best practices to show off the results of your analysis and maps Import existing map documents, scenes, and globes into your new ArcGIS Pro projects quickly Create standardized workflows using Tasks Automate analysis and processes using ModelBuilder and Python In Detail ArcGIS Pro is Esri’s newest desktop GIS application with powerful tools for visualizing, maintaining, and analyzing data. ArcGIS Pro makes use of the modern ribbon interface and 64-bit processing to increase the speed and efficiency of using GIS. It allows users to create amazing maps in both 2D and 3D quickly and easily.This book will take you from software installation to performing geospatial analysis. It is packed with how-to’s for a host of commonly-performed tasks. You will start by learning how to download and install the software including hardware limitations and recommendations. Then you are exposed to the new Ribbon interface and how its smart design can make finding tools easier.After you are exposed to the new interface, you are walked through the steps to create a new GIS Project to provide quick access to project resources. With a project created, you will learn how to construct 2D and 3D maps including how to add layers, adjust symbology, and control labeling. Next you will learn how to access and use analysis tools to help you answer real-world questions.Lastly, you will learn how processes can be automated and standardized in ArcGIS Pro using Tasks, Models, and Python Scripts.This book will provide an invaluable resource for all those seeking to use ArcGIS Pro as their primary GIS application or for those looking to migrate from ArcMap and ArcCatalog. Style and approach This book includes detailed explanations of the GIS functionality and workflows in ArcGIS Pro. These are supported by easy-to-follow exercises that will help you gain an understanding of how to use ArcGIS Pro to perform a range of tasks.

Design, build, and create your own applications using the full range of features available in Android 6 About This Book Learn how to utilize the robust features of Android 6 to design, develop, and publish better Android applications Get useful guidance on creating new apps or migrating existing apps to support features such as app permissions, app links, fingerprint authentication, etc A fast paced guide, packed with hands-on examples that ties all the features such as API, audio, video, camera, tab customization together under a single cover Who This Book Is For This book is for Android developers who are looking to move their applications into the next Android version with ease. What You Will Learn Familiarize yourself with the features of Android 6 Code with the new Android permissions model Use apps auto backup and restore lost data automatically Increase user engagement with apps through an assistant using triggers and providing contextual assistance Assess and handle proper usage of the API Work with Audio, Video,Camera in Android 6 Utilize the new features in Android for professional purposes Understand and code Chrome’s custom tabs In Detail Android 6 is the latest and greatest version of the Android operating system, and comes packed with cutting edge new features for you to harness for the benefit of building better applications. This step-by-step guide will take you through the basics of the Android Marshmallow permissions model and beyond into other crucial areas such as the Audio,Video,Camera API and Android’s at work features. Learn how to create, deploy, and manage Android applications with Marshmallow’s API and the latest functionalities. The combination of instructions and real-world examples will make your application deployment and testing a breeze. Style and approach This easy-to-follow, step-by-step tutorial provides explanations and examples to add the new Android 6 features to your skill set. Each chapter provides sequential steps and detailed information about the API, as well as best practices and testing options.

Gather, analyze, and decode data to reveal hidden facts using Python, the perfect tool for all aspiring secret agents About This Book Discover the essential features of Python programming: statements, variables, expressions, and many of the built-in data types Use Python’s standard library to do more sophisticated data gathering and analysis Written by a Python programming expert, with over 35 years' experience as a consultant, teacher, author and software developer Who This Book Is For This book is for Secret Agents who have some exposure to Python. Our focus is on the Field Agents who are ready to do more sophisticated and complex programming in Python. We'll stick to simple statistics for the most part. A steady hand with a soldering iron is not required, but a skilled field agent should be able to assemble a working Arduino circuit to gather their own sensor data.What You Will Learn Upgrade Python to the latest version and discover its latest and greatest tools Use Python libraries to extract data from log files that are designed more for people to read than for automated analysis Summarize log files and extract meaningful information Gather data from social networking sites and leverage your experience of analyzing log files to summarize the data you find Extract text and images from social networking sites Parse the complex and confusing data structures in a PDF file to extract meaningful text that we can analyze Connect small, intelligent devices to our computer to use them as remote sensors Use Python to analyze measurements from sensors to calibrate them and use sensors efficiently In Detail Python is easy to learn and extensible programming language that allows any manner of secret agent to work with a variety of data. Agents from beginners to seasoned veterans will benefit from Python's simplicity and sophistication. The standard library provides numerous packages that move beyond simple beginner missions. The Python ecosystem of related packages and libraries supports deep information processing. This book will guide you through the process of upgrading your Python-based toolset for intelligence gathering, analysis, and communication. You'll explore the ways Python is used to analyze web logs to discover the trails of activities that can be found in web and database servers. We'll also look at how we can use Python to discover details of the social network by looking at the data available from social networking websites. Finally, you'll see how to extract history from PDF files, which opens up new sources of data, and you’ll learn about the ways you can gather data using an Arduino-based sensor device. Style and approach Each chapter will include a background briefing that covers an essential Python technology. After some in-depth exploration of the features, the chapter will conclude with a mission that is a concrete application of the Python tools and techniques covered.

Master the skills required to implement CitrixXenApp7.6 to deploy a complete Citrix?-hosted application from scratch About This Book Learn to implement and configure components of CitrixXenApp7.6, which are XenServer?, XenApp?, CitrixLicense server, PVS, Storefront, CitrixReceiver, and Netscaler to secure WAN traffic Build the XenApp7.6 environment independently and perform tests to make sure the components are working as expected for internal and external traffic Implement advanced tools in CitrixXenAppto build and manage a cost effective, secure, and high-performing application delivery infrastructure with this comprehensive guide Who This Book Is For This is book is for administrators who are currently managing the implemented environment and want to learn how to deploy the CitrixHosted virtualization solution for the application in a windows server 2012 R2 environment. A reasonable knowledge and understanding of core XenAppelements and concepts used during virtualizing applications are assumed. What You Will Learn Understand how to set up Hypervisor, install the management console, configure the storage repository, and create a virtual machine on hypervisor Set up an Infrastructure component and explore ways to tune them up so that they can be used for Citrixenvironment Set up a Domain controller, DHCP, Certificate authority, and SQL server for static database for CitrixXenAppValidate the CitrixXenApp7.6 solution to make sure components are communicating properly Manage the essential Citrixcomponents – Director, Licensing, and Policies with the Help of Citrixstudio Optimize the behavior of an Application and share desktop via Policies Installing and configuring CitrixProvisioning services to deliver CitrixXenApp7.6 virtual machines Secure the external Delivery of an application and shared desktop via netscaler to enjoy mobility In Detail CitrixXenAppis one of the leading pieces of Application delivery software that delivers Windows compatible apps to users on any device, anywhere. CitrixXenAppalso gives administrators the ability to manage and control the freedom of mobility by increasing the security and saving costs at the same time. This book will provide you with all the knowledge required to successfully deploy and master a complete Citrixhosted application. First, it will cover essential concepts of the architecture of XenApp?. You will then learn how to set up Hypervisor and how to set up Infrastructure components. Next you will learn how to Set up CitrixComponents, XenAppresources, PVS, and Netscaler. We will further look at how to prepare the environment for Rollout. Additionally, you will learn how to configure the Citrixcomponents such as CitrixDirector. Moreover, you’ll learn about shared desktop for delivery to end users and the application of policies for effective and secure delivery. Finally, you will learn how to implement provisioning services for a CitrixXenApp7.6 environment. Style and approach This book is based on a course outline and hence takes a very practical approach so you will understand how to implement the components of XenAppin a production environment. Complemented with many best practices and troubleshooting concepts of XenApp?, this book will help you master XenAppswiftly.

Monitor your Docker containers and their apps using various native and third-party tools with the help of this exclusive guide!About This Book Get the only book that covers multiple methods to monitoring Docker Containers -your one-stop solution to all your Docker monitoring needs Learn how to implement third-party tools such as Datalog, cAdvisor, and more with this example-rich, hands-on guide Learn how to efficiently monitor Docker containers and get an edge over other administrators while maintaining apps on these containers Who This Book Is For This book is for DevOps engineers and system administrators who manage Docker containers and want to better manage these containers using expert techniques and methods and better maintain applications built on Docker. What You Will Learn Discover the tools built into Docker to gain an insight into your containers’ performance Augment Docker’s built-in tools with modern tools such as cAdvisor from Google, SysDig by Draios, and Soundcloud’s Prometheus Integrate the monitoring of your containers with more traditional monitoring solutions such as Zabbix Take advantage of the various SaaS offerings from third parties to move monitoring away from your local infrastructure and into the cloud Discover the various ways to ship your applications’ logs from the container to a central logging service Get the most out of your application and resources with the right implementation of your monitoring method In Detail This book will show you how monitoring containers and keeping a keen eye on the working of applications helps improve the overall performance of the applications that run on Docker. With the increased adoption of Docker containers, the need to monitor which containers are running, what resources they are consuming, and how these factors affect the overall performance of the system has become the need of the moment. This book covers monitoring containers using Docker's native monitoring functions, various plugins, as well as third-party tools that help in monitoring. Well start with how to obtain detailed stats for active containers, resources consumed, and container behavior. We also show you how to use these stats to improve the overall performance of the system. Next, you will learn how to use SysDig to both view your containers performance metrics in real time and record sessions to query later. By the end of this book, you will have a complete knowledge of how to implement monitoring for your containerized applications and make the most of the metrics you are collecting Style and approach This is an easy-to-follow guide with plenty of hands-on examples that can be executed both on your local machine and externally hosted services.

Create powerful applications to interact with popular service providers such as Facebook, Google, Twitter, and more by leveraging the OAuth 2.0 Authorization Framework About This Book Learn how to use the OAuth 2.0 protocol to interact with the world's most popular service providers, such as Facebook, Google, Instagram, Slack, Box, and more Master the finer details of this complex protocol to maximize the potential of your application while maintaining the utmost of security Step through the construction of a real-world working application that logs you in with your Facebook account to create a compelling infographic about the most important person in the world—you! Who This Book Is Fo If you are an application developer, software architect, security engineer, or even a casual programmer looking to leverage the power of OAuth, Mastering OAuth 2.0 is for you. Covering basic topics such as registering your application and choosing an appropriate workflow, to advanced topics such as security considerations and extensions to the specification, this book has something for everyone. A basic knowledge of programming and OAuth is recommended. What You Will Learn Discover the power and prevalence of OAuth 2.0 and use it to improve your application's capabilities Step through the process of creating a real-world application that interacts with Facebook using OAuth 2.0 Examine the various workflows described by the specification, looking at what they are and when to use them Learn about the many security considerations involved with creating an application that interacts with other service providers Develop your debugging skills with dedicated pages for tooling and troubleshooting Build your own rich, powerful applications by leveraging world-class technologies from companies around the world In Detail OAuth 2.0 is a powerful authentication and authorization framework that has been adopted as a standard in the technical community. Proper use of this protocol will enable your application to interact with the world's most popular service providers, allowing you to leverage their world-class technologies in your own application. Want to log your user in to your application with their Facebook accountWant to display an interactive Google Map in your applicationHow about posting an update to your user's LinkedIn feedThis is all achievable through the power of OAuth. With a focus on practicality and security, this book takes a detailed and hands-on approach to explaining the protocol, highlighting important pieces of information along the way. At the beginning, you will learn what OAuth is, how it works at a high level, and the steps involved in creating an application. After obtaining an overview of OAuth, you will move on to the second part of the book where you will learn the need for and importance of registering your application and types of supported workflows. You will discover more about the access token, how you can use it with your application, and how to refresh it after expiration. By the end of the book, you will know how to make your application architecture robust. You will explore the security considerations and effective methods to debug your applications using appropriate tools. You will also have a look at special considerations to integrate with OAuth service providers via native mobile applications. In addition, you will also come across support resources for OAuth and credentials grant. Style and approach With a focus on practicality and security, Mastering OAuth 2.0 takes a top-down approach at exploring the protocol. Discussed first at a high level, examining the importance and overall structure of the protocol, the book then dives into each subject, adding more depth as we proceed. This all culminates in an example application that will be built, step by step, using the valuable and practical knowledge you have gained.

A Young Dwarf's Dream Corporal Carrot has been promoted! He's now in charge of the new recruits guarding Ankh-Morpork, Discworld's greatest city, from Barbarian Tribes, Miscellaneous Marauders, unlicensed Thieves, and such. It's a big job, particularly for an adopted dwarf.But an even bigger job awaits. An ancient document has just revealed that Ankh-Morpork, ruled for decades by Disorganized crime, has a secret sovereign! And his name is Carrott... And so begins the most awesome epic encounter of all time, or at least all afternoon, in which the fate of a city—indeed of the universe itself!—depends on a young man's courage, an ancient sword's magic, and a three-legged poodle's bladder.

In a battery of events that will make a hero out of an illiterate private, a young Richard Sharpe poses as the enemy to bring down a ruthless Indian dictator backed by fearsome French troops. The year is 1799, and Richard Sharpe is just beginning his military career. An inexperienced young private in His Majesty's service, Sharpe becomes part of an expedition to India to push the ruthless Tippoo of Mysore from his throne and drive out his French allies. To penetrate the Tippoo's city and make contact with a Scottish spy being held prisoner there, Sharpe has to pose as a deserter. Success will make him a sergeant, but failure will turn him over to the Tippoo's brutal executioners -- or, worse -- his man-eating tigers. Picking his way through an exotic and alien world. Sharpe realizes that one slip will mean disaster. And when the furious British assault on the city finally begins, Sharpe must take up arms against his true comrades to preserve his false identity, risking death at their hands in order to avoid detection and thus to foil the Tippoo's well-set trap.

Take a wonderfully crazed excursion into the demented heart of a tropical paradise—a world of cargo cults, cannibals, mad scientists, ninjas, and talking fruit bats. Our bumbling hero is Tucker Case, a hopeless geek trapped in a cool guy's body, who makes a living as a pilot for the Mary Jean Cosmetics Corporation. But when he demolishes his boss's pink plane during a drunken airborne liaison, Tuck must run for his life from Mary Jean's goons. Now there's only one employment opportunity left for him: piloting shady secret missions for an unscrupulous medical missionary and a sexy blond high priestess on the remotest of Micronesian hells. Here is a brazen, ingenious, irreverent, and wickedly funny novel from a modern master of the outrageous.

Imogene is young, beautiful . . . and dead, waiting in the Rosebud Theater one afternoon in 1945. . . . Francis was human once, but now he's an eight-foot-tall locust, and everyone in Calliphora will tremble when they hear him sing. . . . John is locked in a basement stained with the blood of half a dozen murdered children, and an antique telephone, long since disconnected, rings at night with calls from the dead. . . .Nolan knows but can never tell what really happened in the summer of '77, when his idiot savant younger brother built a vast cardboard fort with secret doors leading into other worlds. . . .The past isn't dead. It isn't even past. . . .

Daredevil Dennis Lenahan has brought his act to the Tishomingo Lodge & Casino in Tunica, Mississippi -- diving off an eighty-foot ladder into nine feet of water for the amusement of gamblers, gangsters, and luscious belles. His riskiest feat, however, was witnessing a Dixie-style mob execution while atop his diving platform. Robert Taylor saw the hit also. A blues-loving Detroit hustler touring the Southland in a black Jaguar, Taylor's got his own secret agenda re the "Cornbread Cosa Nostra," and he wants Dennis in on the game. But there's a lot more in Robert Taylor's pocket than a photo of his lynched great-grandfather. And high-diver Dennis could be about to take a long, fatal fall -- right into a mess of hoop skirts, Civil War play-acting ... and more trouble than he ever dreamed possible.

The master of the new noir, Dennis Lehane delivers a shattering tale of evil, depravity, and justice that captures the dark realism of Boston’s gritty blue-collar streets.Private Investigator Patrick Kenzie wants to know why a former client, a perky woman in love with life, could, within six months, jump naked from a Boston landmark—the final fall in a spiral of self-destruction. What he finds is a sadistic stalker who targeted the young woman and methodically drove her to her death. A monster the law can’t touch. But Kenzie can. He and his former partner, Angela Gennaro, will fight a mind-twisting battle against this psychopath even as he turns his tricks on them.

After one triumph and one flop, Mafia loanshark-turned-Hollywood producer Chili Palmer is desperate for another hit...of the celluloid sort. And when a similarly relocated former mob associate takes a hit of the bullet-in-the-brain variety while they're power-lunching, Chili begins to see all kinds of story possibilities. The whacked recording company mogul's midday demise is leading Chili into the twisted world of rock stars, pop divas, and hip-hop gangstas, which is rife with drama, jealousy, and betrayal -- all the stuff that makes big box office. Tinsel Town had better take cover, because Chili Palmer's working on another movie. And that's when people tend to die.

The universe has fallen into bloody chaos now that the dread empire of the tyrannical Shaa is no more -- at the mercy of the merciless insectoid Naxid, who now hunger for domination. But the far-flung human descendants of Terra have finally tasted liberty, and their warrior heroes will not submit. Separated by light-years, Lord Gareth Martinez and the mysterious guerrilla fighter Caroline Sula each pursue a different road to victory in tomorrow's ultimate battle -- for the new order will be far more terrible than the old ... unless one last, desperate stratagem can hold a shattered galaxy together.

Nobody knows better than Matthew Scudder how far down a person can sink in this city. A young prostitute named Kim knew it also—and she wanted out. Maybe Kim didn't deserve the life fate had dealt her. She surely didn't deserve her death. The alcoholic ex-cop turned p.i. was supposed to protect her, but someone slashed her to ribbons on a crumbling New York City waterfront pier. Now finding Kim's killer will be Scudder's penance. But there are lethal secrets hiding in the slain hooker's past that are far dirtier than her trade. And there are many ways of dying in this cruel and dangerous town—some quick and brutal ... and some agonizingly slow.

The Lethal Stuff of LegendsFor Jessica Tregarth, an unexpected invitation to visit her grandfather in England is a wonderful surprise—an opportunity to open doors to a family past that have always been closed to her. But sinister acts greet her arrival. A stranger tries to steal her luggage and later accosts her in Salisbury Cathedral. Mysterious villains pursue her through Cornwall, their motive and intentions unknown. Jessica's only clue is an antique heirloom she possesses, an ancient ring that bears the Tregarth family crest. And her only ally is handsome gothic novelist David Randall—her self-proclaimed protector—who appears from seemingly out of nowhere to help her in her desperate—attempt to solve a five hundred-year-old, puzzle. For something from out of the cloudy mists of Arthurian lore has come back to plague a frightened American abroad. And a remarkable truth about a fabled king and a medieval treasure could ultimately make Jess Tregarth very rich...or very dead.

On the surface she's a sexy, sophisticated socialite, at home among the beautiful people of the Las Vegas upper crust. But Joanna Archer inhabits another world: a place ordinary humans cannot see . . . a dangerous dimension where an eternal battle rages between the agents of Light and Shadow. And Joanna is both.Stalked by an enigmatic doppelganger from a preternatural realm, Joanna can feel the Light failing—which is propelling her toward a terrifying confrontation with the ultimate master of evil, the dark lord of Shadow: her father.Vegas is all about winning big . . . or losing everything. To save her friends, her future, her worlds, Joanna Archer must gamble it all by fully embracing the darkness inside her.

It's murder in Discworld! -- which ordinarily is no big deal. But what bothers Watch Commander Sir Sam Vimes is that the unusual deaths of three elderly Ankh-Morporkians do not bear the clean, efficient marks of the Assassins' Guild. An apparent lack of any motive is also quitetroubling. All Vimes has are some tracks of white clay and more of those bothersome "clue" things that only serve to muck up an investigation. The anger of a fearful populace is already being dangerously channeled toward the city's small community of golems -- the mindless, absurdlyindustrious creatures of baked clay who can occasionally be found toiling in the city's factories. And certain highly placed personages are using the unrest as an excuse to resurrect a monarchy -- which would be bad enough even if the "king" they were grooming wasn't as empty-headed as your typical animated pottery.