"Man Riding West": Jim Gary had always tried to avoid trouble, but after he is forced to kill a Mexican gunman in a cantina showdown, trouble seems to seek him out. "Grub Line Rider": Most folks would call Kim Sartain an easygoing, peace-loving man, but the few who crossed the young drifter know there is nothing he likes better than a good fight. "Down the Pogonop Trail": Jeff Kurland didn’t have a gun; he didn’t have a chance. The rancher knew that even as he scanned the cabin for a weapon, any weapon. He was trapped with a killer who had a pistol in his hand and a bounty on his head

Four Card Draw - Allen Ring won the Red Rock Ranch in a poker game. But a man was shot in the back there a couple of years back. The murder is still unsolved, but someone seems convinced that Allen Ring has the missing answer. Ross Bilton was one of the men who found the body, and now he's the town marshall. Ring finds himself in the middle of a mysterious conflict–and maybe headed for a showdown with the marshall.

This set contains four thrilling dramatizations of Louis L'Amour's short stories, featuring all the excitement of the authentic West, the fierce passion and determination of the men and women who dared to tame the rugged terrain and call it their home, the villains who threaten their dreams, and all those who sought their own destinies across a vast western landscape.

"The Strong Shall Live": When they burned his home, he rebuilt it. When they shot at him, he shot back. But now the man they call Cavagan is in the worst bind of his life. "Keep Travelin', Rider": After an absence of several years, Tack Gentry heads home to his Uncle John's G-Bar Ranch. But when he arrives, the entire town has changed. What's more, strangers have taken over the G-Bar. "Strawhouse Trail": On a seldom-used smugglers' trail between Mexico and Austin, a man lies dying. Texas Ranger Chick Bowdrie takes the stranger's body to Valverde, the nearest town.

"Strange Pursuit": Bowdrie wants Charlie Venk. Shrewd and intelligent, Venk is riding hard on the sorrel he's stolen right out from under another man. "The Marshal of Sentinel": Tough and vicious, the Fred Henry Gang had been robbing banks all along the stage route from Santa Fe to Tularosa. It was only a matter of time before they hit the sleepy town of Sentinel, and Marshal Fitz Moore knew that day had come. "Booty for a Bad Man": Tell Sackett knew that gold spelled trouble faster than anything except a woman, and he had a lot of gold. Problem was, none of it was his.

"Killer from the Pecos": Texas Ranger Chick Bowdrie rides into the wild town of Almagre trailing a Pecos bank robber who has left two men dead. "Lit a Shuck for Texas": Johnny Buck is a young Texas cowboy working for the Bar W. In the process of roping an old stob-horned steer, Buck is thrown from his horse into a cleft where he encounters the mystery of a murdered man and a bag of ore that just might be gold. "Turkeyfeather Riders": Jim Sandifer had run Grey Bowen's ranch for years in his absence. When Bowen reappears with his newly betrothed, Rose Martin, and her grown son, Lee, Sandifer is glad to see his boss.

"A Trail to the West": Riding under an alias, Bowdrie joins up with Queen’s ruthless gang to rescue the pretty niece of a powerful Texas judge. "Love and the Cactus Kid": Folks far and wide know that the Cactus Kid can handle a pistol with the best of them. But for all his skill and coolness under fire, there’s just one small weakness he can’t seem to overcome.... "Medicine Ground": The Cactus Kid is on his way to the spring dance to meet his best girl, Bess O’Neal. As the Kid ambles through the lonely mountain trail toward town, two men emerge from the darkness - Miguel and Lobo Fernandez, of the menacing Fernandez brothers.

Bud Miles was a boy when he crossed the Mississippi. But Bud buried his father after an Indian attack, and as the wagon train pushed on through Sioux country, the boy stood as tall as any man....Tell Sackett killed cougars at 14 and fought a war at 15. Now Tell was hauling dangerous freight - a soldier's wife and a fortune in gold--knowing that someone wanted him dead....Laurie Bonnet was a mail-order bride who thought she was a failure on the frontier.

It was a name that caused the most hardened gunmen to break out in a cold sweat: Texas Ranger Chick Bowdrie. Pursuing the most wanted men in the Southwest, he knew all too well the dusty trails, the bitter cattle feuds, the desperate killers, and the quiet, weather-beaten towns that could explode into mayhem with the wrong word. He had sworn to carry out the law, but there were times when he had to apply justice with his fists and his guns.

In "A Man Called Trent," nester Dick Moffitt lies dead, killed by King Bill Hale's riders. His son Jack and adopted daughter Sally, who witnessed the murder, go for safety to a cabin owned by a man called "Trent" - an alias for Kilkenny, who is seeking to escape his reputation as a gunfighter. In "The Rider of Lost Creek," Lance Kilkenny is the fastest gun in the West, but once the gunfight is over, he disappears. Some time back, Mort Davis saved Kilkenny's life.

Overrun by hard-bitten miners, gamblers, and the kind of no-account drifters that follow the gold camps, Basin City is a place where no respectable citizen feels safe. That's why three of the town's foremost businessmen have gone and hired a new marshal. Tomorrow he'll be in charge of protecting a stagecoach carrying over a quarter million dollars in gold as it moves out of the Basin City depot. Tonight he'll be defending his life.

In a remote corner of Utah lies the secret outlaw kingdom of Ben Curry. For 15 years Curry has ruled supreme, as his men have pulled jobs from Canada to Mexico. But the king is getting old...he wants to turn his legacy over to someone younger, tougher. Mike Bastian is Ben's adopted son, a young man who can handle a knife, a gun, his fists, but a man who's never broken the law. Now, as treachery explodes among Ben's riders, and two honest lawmen - Tyrel Sackett and Borden Chantry - begin to zero in on the gang, Mike must choose....

"The Black Rock Coffin Makers": Cattleman Jum Gatlin isn't the kind of man who goes looking for a fight. But he never turns away when one comes looking for him. And that's just what happens when he finds himself mistaken for another man. "A Mule for Santa Fe": Scott Miles and his son Billy are on their way to a new life in New Mexico, but fate deals them a bad hand in the deceptive currents of the Missouri River. "Case Closed - No Prisoners": Ride with legendary Texas Ranger Chick Bowdrie as he helps out a small town with a big problem.

"Rain on a Mountain Fork": Lawman, manhunter, peacemaker - it takes a hard breed of man to survive as a Texas Ranger, but Chick Bowdrie stands head and shoulders above the rest. "A Ranger Rides to Town": Texas Ranger Chick Bowdrie is a good man to have on your side and a bad man to have on your trail. When an anonymous note alerts him to an impending bank robbery, he rides into a blazing gun battle. "Down Sonora Way": Chick Bowdrie and Tensleep Mooney, a tough, wily, Wyoming cowhand, are locked in a stalemate with nothing between them but 60 yards and a Winchester.

When Miguel Merrano first came to Mirror Valley, the land was green and lush...and off limits to Mexicans. Ranchers such as Tom Drake and Joe Stangle tried to drive Merrano out, to fence him out; and when he warned them that greed and overgrazing would ruin their land, they refused to listen.

When mystery author D. B. Ziegler is late delivering her book, Abi Schore steps in to help. Surely she can give her favorite author moral support over the holiday break and get the manuscript to her boss at Tea & Sympathy Publishing in time for the new year. When Abi shows up on Ms. Ziegler’s doorstep bearing holiday treats, she’s met by the author’s handsome grandson Dov, who reveals a startling plot twist. His grandmother isn’t able to finish the book and Dov promised he’d complete it so fans won’t be disappointed—a task that’s harder than he ever imagined.

Two little girls stand with their heads bowed in my living room. I’m told they’re my granddaughters. Daisy is nine, and Alice seven. Daisy is the spitting image of her mother. This is the first time I’ve met them since my daughter and I fell out after she married that waste of space, Vince. They’ve come to live with me because their mother — my daughter — was murdered. In her own home while they slept close by. I think Vince killed her. But the police can’t prove it. I’ve always known he was no good. He treated my daughter like dirt. I said he’d cheat on her — but she wouldn’t listen.

There's no place like home for the holidays ... especially for Lesley Carver. Life in the big city just wasn't her jam and now she's back in Hickory Falls, working at the family diner and helping her mom after she took a tumble. Lesley longs to build a life here, working at the cafe, selling her handmade ornaments and ... er, apparently reviving her high school crush on her best friend’s older brother. Only one problem, her mom wants her to leave Hickory Falls far behind.

First published in 1843, it tells the story of Ebenezer Scrooge, a mean and unpleasant man who dislikes people generally and Christmas especially. One Christmas Eve he is visited by the ghost of his former business partner Jacob Marley and the spirits of Christmas Past, Present and Yet to Come and given a glimpse of the many homes and lives which Scrooge has touched in his wretched life to date. After their visits, Scrooge is transformed into a kinder, gentler man.

A Signature Performance: Tim Curry rescues Charles Dickens from the jaws of Disney with his one-of-a-kind performance of the treasured classic. Our listeners loved this version so much that it inspired our whole line of Signature Classics.

It’s 1984, and life has changed beyond recognition. Airstrip One, formerly known as Great Britain, is a place where Big Brother is always watching, and nobody can hide. Except, perhaps, for Winston Smith. Whilst working at the Ministry of Truth, rewriting history, he secretly dreams of freedom. And in a world where love and sex are forbidden, where it’s hard to distinguish between friend and foe, he meets Julia and O’Brien and vows to rebel.

Clark Griswold was onto something...at least with his annual holiday meltdown. And since the last three weeks of my life have been riddled with humbug—another breakup, a broken toe, an office promotion I deserved and didn’t get—I’m not at all in the mood to celebrate nor have the happ, happ, happiest Christmas EVER.

My fiancé brought me tea and scrambled eggs in bed that morning, and we snuggled together, talking about buying our rings, and about our perfect wedding next year. Then we headed into town. He held my hand and gazed at the ring I liked best, a smile spreading slowly over his face. Then a glass of bubbly to celebrate. I felt flushed, excited and ready for the rest of my life with the man I loved. We race to get on the train home. It screams to a halt and I run towards its open doors. Made it. I think he’s right behind me — but when I turn around, he’s gone.

Academy Award nominee Rachel McAdams stars in Mary Jane, a poignant and intimate drama following a single mother’s journey caring for her chronically ill young son. Set in New York City, the play unfolds in two parts—Mary Jane's small Queens apartment and a pediatric hospital. With unflinching honesty and unexpected humor, we witness Mary Jane's tireless devotion, her interactions with medical professionals, and her struggle to maintain her sense of self.

When Heather McKinley dreamed of becoming a doctor, she imagined curing sick kids and sporting pink stethoscopes. She never anticipated the sleepless nights, grueling exams, and endless labs. And she certainly never knew that her medical school earned the nickname Dead Med thanks to the tragic history of students overdosing on illegal drugs. But Heather would never consider doing anything like that. That is, until her longtime boyfriend dumps her, she finds herself failing anatomy, and her world starts to crumble.

Lucas knows the perfect night entails just three things: video games, wine, and pad thai. Peanuts are a must! Other people? Not so much. Why complicate things when he’s happy alone? Then one day the apartment board, a vexing trio of authority, rings his doorbell. And Lucas’s solitude takes a startling hike. They demand to see his frying pan. Someone left one next to the recycling room overnight, and instead of removing the errant object, as Lucas suggests, they insist on finding the guilty party. But their plan backfires. Colossally.

Johnnie Rico never really intended to join up—and definitely not the infantry. But now that he’s in the thick of it, trying to get through combat training harder than anything he could have imagined, he knows everyone in his unit is one bad move away from buying the farm in the interstellar war the Terran Federation is waging against the Arachnids. Because everyone in the Mobile Infantry fights. And if the training doesn’t kill you, the Bugs are more than ready to finish the job.

After their mother passes, three estranged siblings reunite to sort out her estate. Beth, the oldest, never left home. She stayed with her mom, caring for her until the very end. Nicole, the middle child, has been kept at arm’s length due to her ongoing battle with a serious drug addiction. Michael, the youngest, lives out of state and hasn’t been back to their small Wisconsin town since their father ran out on them seven years before.

The 13 chapters of The Art of War, each devoted to one aspect of warfare, were compiled by the high-ranking Chinese military general, strategist, and philosopher Sun-Tzu. In spite of its battlefield specificity, The Art of War has found new life in the modern age, with leaders in fields as wide and far-reaching as world politics, human psychology, and corporate strategy finding valuable insight in its timeworn words.

As the days grow shorter and the temperature drops, Halloween approaches. Come, brave listener, pull up a chair, and spend some time with master storyteller Stephen Fry as he tells us some of his favourite ghost stories of all time, in truly terrifying spatial audio. From the headless horseman of Sleepy Hollow to the tortured spirits of M.R. James, from Edgar Allan Poe’s terrifying tale of a doppelganger to Charlotte Riddell’s Open Door that should definitely stay shut, join Stephen as he tells you some truly terrifying tales.

"The Strong Shall Live": When they burned his home, he rebuilt it. When they shot at him, he shot back. But now the man they call Cavagan is in the worst bind of his life. "Keep Travelin', Rider": After an absence of several years, Tack Gentry heads home to his Uncle John's G-Bar Ranch. But when he arrives, the entire town has changed. What's more, strangers have taken over the G-Bar. "Strawhouse Trail": On a seldom-used smugglers' trail between Mexico and Austin, a man lies dying. Texas Ranger Chick Bowdrie takes the stranger's body to Valverde, the nearest town.

"Man Riding West": Jim Gary had always tried to avoid trouble, but after he is forced to kill a Mexican gunman in a cantina showdown, trouble seems to seek him out. "Grub Line Rider": Most folks would call Kim Sartain an easygoing, peace-loving man, but the few who crossed the young drifter know there is nothing he likes better than a good fight. "Down the Pogonop Trail": Jeff Kurland didn’t have a gun; he didn’t have a chance. The rancher knew that even as he scanned the cabin for a weapon, any weapon. He was trapped with a killer who had a pistol in his hand and a bounty on his head

Four Card Draw - Allen Ring won the Red Rock Ranch in a poker game. But a man was shot in the back there a couple of years back. The murder is still unsolved, but someone seems convinced that Allen Ring has the missing answer. Ross Bilton was one of the men who found the body, and now he's the town marshall. Ring finds himself in the middle of a mysterious conflict–and maybe headed for a showdown with the marshall.

No one more vividly captures the rugged majesty and enduring spirit of the American West than Louis L'Amour. Collected for the very first time are seven unabridged frontier tales from a legendary master of the genre. Volume One celebrates this remarkable voice in American fiction with a captivating blend of some of his best-loved work.

"Killer from the Pecos": Texas Ranger Chick Bowdrie rides into the wild town of Almagre trailing a Pecos bank robber who has left two men dead. "Lit a Shuck for Texas": Johnny Buck is a young Texas cowboy working for the Bar W. In the process of roping an old stob-horned steer, Buck is thrown from his horse into a cleft where he encounters the mystery of a murdered man and a bag of ore that just might be gold. "Turkeyfeather Riders": Jim Sandifer had run Grey Bowen's ranch for years in his absence. When Bowen reappears with his newly betrothed, Rose Martin, and her grown son, Lee, Sandifer is glad to see his boss.

It was a name that caused the most hardened gunmen to break out in a cold sweat: Texas Ranger Chick Bowdrie. Pursuing the most wanted men in the Southwest, he knew all too well the dusty trails, the bitter cattle feuds, the desperate killers, and the quiet, weather-beaten towns that could explode into mayhem with the wrong word. He had sworn to carry out the law, but there were times when he had to apply justice with his fists and his guns.

In "A Man Called Trent," nester Dick Moffitt lies dead, killed by King Bill Hale's riders. His son Jack and adopted daughter Sally, who witnessed the murder, go for safety to a cabin owned by a man called "Trent" - an alias for Kilkenny, who is seeking to escape his reputation as a gunfighter. In "The Rider of Lost Creek," Lance Kilkenny is the fastest gun in the West, but once the gunfight is over, he disappears. Some time back, Mort Davis saved Kilkenny's life.

More than any other writer before or since, Louis L'Amour brought the American West to life. His action-packed stories deal with eternal themes: honor, deceit, passion, betrayal, loyalty, courage, love. His settings are historically accurate, his prose riveting, and his characters colorful: good guys, bad buys, toughs, roughs, sidekicks and saints.

After discovering six gold Roman coins buried in the mud of the Devil's Dyke, Barnabas Sackett enthusiastically invests in goods that he will offer for trade in America. But Sackett has a powerful enemy: Rupert Genester, nephew of an earl, wants him dead. A battlefield promise made to Sackett’s father threatens Genester’s inheritance. So on the eve of his departure for America, Sackett is attacked and thrown into the hold of a pirate ship.

"Rain on a Mountain Fork": Lawman, manhunter, peacemaker - it takes a hard breed of man to survive as a Texas Ranger, but Chick Bowdrie stands head and shoulders above the rest. "A Ranger Rides to Town": Texas Ranger Chick Bowdrie is a good man to have on your side and a bad man to have on your trail. When an anonymous note alerts him to an impending bank robbery, he rides into a blazing gun battle. "Down Sonora Way": Chick Bowdrie and Tensleep Mooney, a tough, wily, Wyoming cowhand, are locked in a stalemate with nothing between them but 60 yards and a Winchester.

“I am Johannes Verne, and I am not afraid.” This was the boy’s mantra as he plodded through the desert alone, left to die by his vengeful grandfather. Johannes Verne was soon to be rescued by outlaws, but no one could save him from the lasting memory of his grandfather’s eyes, full of impenetrable hatred. Raised in part by Indians, then befriended by a mysterious woman, Johannes grew up to become a rugged adventurer and an educated man. But even now, strengthened by the love of a golden-haired girl and well on his way to making a fortune in bustling early-day Los Angeles.