A Stroke of Midnight: A Meredith Gentry Novel

Book Description

I am Meredith Gentry, P.I., solving cases in Los Angeles, far from the peril and deception of my real home–because I am also Princess Meredith, heir to the darkest throne faerie has to offer. The Unseelie Court infuses me with its power. But at what price does such magic come? How much of my human side will I have to give up, and how much of the sinister side of faerie will I have to embrace? To sit on a throne that has ruled through bloodshed and violence for centuries, I might have to become that which I dread the most.

Enemies watch my every move. My cousin Cel strives to have me killed even now from his prison cell. But not all the assassination attempts are his. Some Unseelie nobles have waited centuries for my aunt Andais, Queen of Air and Darkness, to become weak enough that she might be toppled from her throne. Enemies unforeseen move against us–enemies who would murder the least among us.

The threat will drive us to allow human police into faerie for the first time in our history. I need my allies now more than ever, especially since fate will lead me into the arm of Mistral, Master of Storms, the queen’s new captain of her guard. Our passion will reawaken powers long forgotten among the warriors of the sidhe. Pain and pleasure await me–and danger, as well, for some at that court seek only death.

I will find new joys with the butterfly-winged demi-fey. My guards and I will show all of faerie that violence and sex are as popular among the sidhe as they are among the lesser fey of our court. The Darkness will weep, and Frost will comfort him. The gentlest of my guards will find new strength and break my heart. Passions undreamed of await us–and my enemies gather, for the future of both courts of faerie begins to unravel.

From the Hardcover edition.

Download Description

Enemies watch my every move. My cousin Cel strives to have me killed even now from his prison cell. But not all the assassination attempts are his. Some Unseelie nobles have waited centuries for my aunt Andais, Queen of Air and Darkness, to become weak enough that she might be toppled from her throne. Enemies unforeseen move against us–enemies who would murder the least among us.

The threat will drive us to allow human police into faerie for the first time in our history. I need my allies now more than ever, especially since fate will lead me into the arm of Mistral, Master of Storms, the queen’s new captain of her guard. Our passion will reawaken powers long forgotten among the warriors of the sidhe. Pain and pleasure await me–and danger, as well, for some at that court seek only death.

I will find new joys with the butterfly–winged demi–fey. My guards and I will show all of faerie that violence and sex are as popular among the sidhe as they are among the lesser fey of our court. The Darkness will weep, and Frost will comfort him. The gentlest of my guards will find new strength and break my heart. Passions undreamed of await us–and my enemies gather, for the future of both courts of faerie begins to unravel.

Customer Reviews:

Merry Gentry tries some new tricks.......2007-09-07

A Stroke of Midnight is the fourth in Laurell K Hamilton's Merry Gentry series. They are best read in order, so I recommend you go back and start with A Kiss of Shadows (Meredith Gentry Novels). The series is a fun ride, so you might as well start from the beginning.

Merry Gentry is a princess of Faerie, where the Faerie are an ancient magical race that had powers which caused humans to think of them as gods. The Faerie are faded from their ancient glory and live among us, with unearthly beauty and superhuman powers bound by their treaty with our government. This fourth installment takes place over the course of a few days before the Yule holiday, when Merry returns from Los Angeles to her Faerie home.

Although Merry herself is mortal (dubious heritage on her mother's side), mysteriously she is belatedly awakening into a power that has not been seen for centuries in Faerie. Her power is manifested through sex - she is able to catalyze power in others and in her surroundings during lovemaking. This makes for erotic reading as Merry's primary mission, set by her Queen, is to have as much sex as possible with as many eligible Faeries in order to get pregnant. Pregnancy will secure Merry's place in the succession.

What makes this not pornography is that there actually is a plot and character development. The reader ends up caring about Merry and the future of the Faerie people. Even the internal Faerie politics, normally a snoozer for me, was well done and kept my interest. However, this is not a book for people who only want to read about sex inside committed relationships.

Not Free SF Reader.......2007-09-03

Meredith's Sidhe bodyguards, of all types and flavors are keen to have
sex with her as much as possible, as if any of them win the faerie bun
in the oven lottery, prestige awaits.

Also, it appears that doing so, brings back long unused and dormant
powers from the time when the Sidhe were top dog, not the humans.

Apart from this, they have to solve the murder, in public, at a press conference, of two people, and the Sidhe are involved.

Overly fragmentary, and slow plot advancement, but still enjoyable.......2007-08-20

Princess Meredith, the private detective and not-so-private Princess of Faerie, is back in this 4th installment in the Merry Gentry series.

The race for the throne is underway, and Merry gets busy fulfilling her royal duties of trying to get pregent by one or more of her royal guards (all of the previously celtic dieties in centures and millenia past, when the primal forces of magic were much stronger in the world) ... and in the process, the Goddess (and the presence of magic along with her) begins to show more signs of returning, and restoring vitality to the faerie realm ... a vitality that has withered over the millennia under the cruel sadism of the Queen of Air and Darkness.

Prince Cel is still in prison, but his followers (and other elements opposed to having a half-breed like Meredith take the throne) have not been idle ... there has been foul murder done within the halls of the sidhe, and further murders are attempted - and neither Princess Merry nor her Elite Guards (even as they begin to reclaim some of their old strength from ages long past) are safe.

The author tells her tale with her usual mix of steamy magically-enhanced sex, mythological fantasy, court intrigue, and forensics. It's a highly enjoyable romp.

My only memorable nit is the authoress' tendency to write, at times, in extremely short and fragmentary chapters ... such as breaking up a single continuous scene into 5 chapters, of only 3-5 pages each. There's no apparent rhyme or reason to her chapter divisions, and her plot advancement is slow.

Reading this as I am hot on the heels of George R. R. Martin's excessively long-winded and overly complex "A Song of Ice and Fire", encountering back-to-back chapters of only 3-5 pages each, and all of them a seemingly unbroken continutation of the parahraphs immediately before ... it caused an involuntary nervous twitch, and I had to repress the urge to laugh hysterically.

Not great, but not nearly as bad as the last two.......2007-08-16

The Meredith Gentry series makes me wish I were not such a nice person. I don't want to keep reading these books. Truthfully, they keep disappointing me. But I am a person who finishes what she starts, and four books into a series I won't give up. I just won't.

That being said, A Stroke of Midnight is by far the second best Meredith Gentry novel after the first. The last two books were more a "Faerie Court Politics for Dummies" course rather than actual novels. I get so sick of reading about how the fey will never lie. Really? I've only had it beat into my head 1,000 times, I almost forgot. Also, you should always compliment a sidhe who is trying to look nice. And when they look for comfort they touch one another. I get it! Can we get on with the story now please?

A Stroke of Midnight almost went on with the story. I'll say... about 50 pages out of the entire 366, which is a lot considering the drivel contained in the last two stories. At least this book gave me a little info about why faerie started fading, what the sithen means to the future queen, and FINALLY a taste of what Queen Andais is all about. I'm still not satisfied. I still think I'm being strung along so that I will continue to shell out $8-$20 (depending on whether I spring for the hardback) for a series that has no clue where it's going and just expects me to go along for the ride. I have to be honest, though. This ride is a little boring and I might try to get off at the next station.

Debbie Does Fairyland.......2007-07-19

Laurell Hamilton used to write fiction with the occasional steamy scene - now all she writes is porn with just enough storyline for a back-cover synopsis. I wouldn't even call it "soft" porn.

This particular book was especially disappointing because the resident PI character (Meredith Genry) does absolutely no detective work on what by now has become the story's token murder. She decides to call in human police because the fey, over the centuries that they've had to live, are apparently unable to hide their mischief from forensic science. At this point, because with all there is for Merry to do, there just isn't enough time for her to have all the sex she wants, time within the sithen speeds up so that she can. That's all which takes place until the last chapter, when we learn that the Queen has solved the crime in her unique psychopathic idiom...she picked a suspect and tortured a confession out of him, making the entire investigation moot.

I've been reading Hamilton's work since the beginning of the Anita Blake series, when I lived in St. Louis myself. The local flavor and the unique blend of genres was extremely attractive. The memory of the experience held me to the series, and the author, long past the point of enjoyment.

And at this point in her career, I doubt that Hamilton could stop writing porn. She has already alienated the audience which enjoyed her books for the stories - if she were to try to go back to that style, then she'd stop selling books altogether. So I propose that she pull out all the stops with an Anita Blake/Meredith Gentry crossover, consisting entirely of swapping sex partners surrounding a lesbian love-fest centerpiece. The fanbois will love it.

Average customer rating:

At the Stroke of Midnight
John K. Butler
Manufacturer: Adventure House
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 1886937257

Book Description

In the 1930s and '40s, he wrote about the otherworldly landscape of Southern California with a tough elegance themes bordered on poetry, driving his tarnished but noble knight through a neon-lit neverland. After a few years, a call from Hollywood sprung him from the pulpwood pages of the detective-fiction magazines and onto a movie lot, where he began crafting features that would light up the screens during Tinsletown's golden age. It wasn't Raymond Chandler. It was Chandler's compadre from the pages of Black Mask and Dime Detective magazines, John K. Butler, whose star shone as brightly as Chandler's in the pages of the pulps. Chandler went on to movies and best-selling novels; Butler stayed in the picture business, his work never reaching book form. Until now.

A Stroke of Midnight (Meredith Gentry Novels)

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A Stroke of Midnight (Meredith Gentry Novels)
Laurell K. Hamilton
Manufacturer: Brilliance Audio
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000N6CSKQ

Book Description

This unauthorized biography traces Celine Dion's Cinderella-like rise to fame from singing on her family's restaurant table-tops to her grand Las Vegas debut in the Colosseum at Caesar's Palace. Despite her humble beginnings in the small Quebec town of Charlemagne, Celine was determined to become an international star. And, despite her extraordinary achievements, she remains humble, loyal and thankful. Celine Dion's five-octave voice has become the soundtrack of our age. A multiple Juno, Grammy, and Oscar Award winner, she has sold 160 million CDs, surpassing all other artists in history to become the brightest star in the pop culture pantheon. There is no limit for me, and there never will be. Celine Dion

Customer Reviews:

The 5 stars are because she is the best nobody can replace.......2003-08-06

I wish I could give you a review, however I have been waiting for this book, since last year October. How can you put up a book for sale, when did you know you didn't have it? Or were you thinking the books were being delivered? I am very MAD, Cause I have ordered books from here before, and they have NEVER BEEN THIS LATE. Get to poking them publishers, and tell them to make people happy, especially me, A VERY FINE.AND LOVING FAN OF MISS C'ELINE. To me she is more than Life itself. A Goddess of Song and Beauty. Please get this book, so I can READ IT!!!!!!!!! Oh by the way, since its taking so long, it should be mine FREE!!!!!

Book Description

This book argues that radical transformations in media and technology have reinvigorated debate about McLuhan's famous dictum, 'the medium is the message'.

Book Description

The renowned NPR correspondent offers a fresh perspective of the sixties, in a candid memoir of civil-rights work, the Free Speech Movement, and her correspondence with a young American soldier in Vietnam.

Customer Reviews:

From MacCarthyism to Paganism.......2003-06-07

Margot Adler is what's known in some circles as a "VIP" (Very Important Pagan), and that's why I read this book. What I found is that what little it had to say about the author's conversion to neo-paganism was disjointed and unrelated to the rest of the book. This is mainly a life history spanning the author's early life as the child of fringe American communists, through her college years at Berkley in the midst of the Free Speach and Viet Nam war protests. To me it included interesting history but I didn't see all the conections Ms Adler was making

Newfound respect after a look at my parent's world........2000-05-03

Ms. Adler's book gave me an insight into a time that (I am embarrased to say) I never cared about before. The era that my parents grew up in seemed totally unknown to me before I read this book. All I knew were antiseptic text book notations and footage from Vietnam that seemed less realistic that "Apocalypse Now." I can't thank Ms. Adler enough for letting us into her life, thereby making the 1960's a human experience for me.

Boomers, Read This Book!.......1998-05-15

I loved this book. I am a few years younger than Margo Adler--and I was always about four years years too young to experience the high points of the Sixties directly. Too young to hitch to Woodstock or go to San Francisco for the Beatles last performance, let alone the Summer of Love! Yet, reading Adler's book, I felt I was there. She is articulate and well-spoken, and can breathe life into those years for those of us who were a little too young to participate, and were always left out. Her correspondence with Mark Anderson made my hair stand up on end, not only because of its evocation of the era (and its "The Way We Were" pairing of two very different people), but because it played out like a precursor of a modern Internet romance. Despite the distance between Margot and Mark, despite the fact that they could not meet in person for years, they "connected," and formed formed a strong, passionate bond that enriched both their lives. I highly recommend this book for more reasons that I have space to describe here. Older boomers, read it to recall a time you lived through; younger boomers, read it to experience a time you may have missed; the rest of you guys, just read it! It's not "just" about the Sixties, it's about love and friendship having the power to transcend even a war that was tearing the country apart.

A brave and revealing biography..........1998-02-01

It was a curious, somewhat humorous thing at first... that police car with the flattened out roof being used for a speakers platform in the middle of campus. It was the beginning of a painful awakening and an angry rebellion for me that Ms Adler does not quite capture, perhaps because it was no shock to her that "liberty and justice for all" was a lie they'd made us pledge. Nevertheless, it is a brave and revealing story of youthfull struggle against injustice in the world and insecurity in oneself. I'm giving it to my daughter, who hopes to enter UC this fall. Venceremos!

Heretic's Heart Reveals the Past I Remember Myself!.......1997-09-24

I'm a few years younger than Margot Adler, and only got to the shores of the seas she swam in and observed so trenchantly, but what she writes agrees with my memories of what I saw. It was a time when black and white just wouldn't do any more,and when learning to see the greys of life could be an initiatory journey in itself. Margot's earlier book, Drawing Down the Moon, brought me to the feet of the Goddess. The new book will help me teach my students and coven members what it's like to live in two worlds at once. I'm profoundly grateful. And on a lighter note, the portraits of the Zells jibe quite well with friends of mine who knew them well (in all senses of the word). Thanks, Margot!!

Heretic's Heart: A Journey Through Spirit & Revolution

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Heretic's Heart: A Journey Through Spirit & Revolution
Margot Adler
Manufacturer: Beacon Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000V1WNBW

Amazon.com

It's so unfair--we have to compete in the age of information with brains left over from the Stone Age! However, if you've discovered the power of Microsoft Outlook, you've already got an edge. You can sharpen it keenly with Mastering Microsoft Outlook 2000, a guide for all but the most advanced users of the premier desktop information-management application.

You'll learn in depth about handling e-mail and faxes, appointments, contacts, and more, as well as head-of-the-class topics like customization and Visual Basic. The text flows well and tells you exactly what to do in stepwise fashion, the illustrations are clear and plentiful, and the organization makes finding the right page a snap.

While it does seem odd that there's no CD-ROM included--now a standard among books like this--the combination of breadth, depth, and accessibility to intermediate users is still highly appealing and useful. If you want to get the most out of Outlook without devoting your life to it, try Mastering Microsoft Outlook 2000. --Rob Lightner

Book Description

Master the Power of Microsoft Outlook 2000!

The latest version of Microsoft's popular desktop information manager is loaded with enhancements designed to improve your productivity at home, in the office, and on the road. Written by two Outlook experts, Mastering Microsoft Outlook 2000 teaches you everything you need to know to manage correspondence, organize contacts, and maintain your schedule -- along with all the other everyday tasks that are essential to getting your work done. You'll quickly reap all the new benefits offered in Outlook 2000, including enhanced integration with other Office applications, improved contact management tools, ways to customize Outlook using VBA, and much more.

Become a Master:
* Send, receive, and organize Internet and network mail
* Schedule meetings and other important events
* Maintain a daily journal of your work, including task lists and accomplishments
* Organize and automatically archive important data and files
* Identify and filter spam and other unwanted e-mail
* Customize your work environment
* Make Outlook work effectively with other Office applications
* Use Outlook to improve your productivity while on the road
* Improve workgroup workflow and collaboration
* Set up Outlook as an Exchange server client
* Use Outlook to get the most out of your handheld computing devices
* Develop custom Outlook programs using Visual Basic for Applications and VB Script

Customer Reviews:

Excellent Resource!.......2004-08-19

Anything and everything you ever wanted to know about Outlook 2000 is easily explained in this book. Whether you consider yourself a beginner, intermediate, or expert, this book should be one kept by your computer.

A pleasant and thorough introduction to Outlook 2000.......2001-01-19

If you feel that you don't really grasp the full potential of Outlook, this book will tell you how to use it better.

The really good thing about this book is how everything is neatly put together. Nice layout and easy to read. It starts with explaining basic matters (exploring most of the functionality with every form) and gradually dig deeper, eventually describing how to design forms. In that respect it can also be used as a reference for the casual Outlook user.

If you want to explore Outlook 2000, teach others about it or if you are a beginner, this is a pleasantly good buy - if anything like that exists.

Not at the right level for me.......2000-05-15

I can see this being an appropriate book for some but I ended up reading half of this book, not learning much new, and then giving up. I had used Outlook for about 1 year before picking this up and was hoping to take my knowledge of the software to a new level. It seemed to spend way too much time explaining straightforward stuff. It's not that I mind having this stuff explained, it just seemed the author went into stuff in exasperating detail (which may be for some). Even if I was a beginner I would prefer something more concise.

Good for beginers.......2000-04-04

This book does a very good job of introducing you to this powerful e-mail tool. However, it doesn't adequatly explain some of the more advanced groupware/scheduling features of Outlook 2000. Look elsewhere for this type of info.

Mastering Microsoft Office 2000: Premium Edition

Average customer rating:

so far so good

Mastering Microsoft Office 2000: Premium Edition
Gini Courter , and Annette Marquis
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: B00006AVRE

Book Description

Written for the real Office productivity seeker, this definitive solutions-oriented reference takes you to the highest skill level. Building on the superior foundation of Mastering Office 2000, this Premium Edition delivers expanded coverage of hot and advanced topics such as VBA programming, Web publishing, and Office integration. Create timesaving, productivity-enhancing macros based on VBA and write your own VBA code. Build dynamic Web pages, publish interactive database systems on the Web, import and analyze information from the Internet or your company intranet. Featuring advanced tips and methods, this book goes way beyond the norm--a must-have for every Internet-savvy Office user. The CD provides a wealth of Web-related software, Office and Windows productivity software, sample applications, development tools, and more.

Customer Reviews:

so far so good.......1999-10-14

very specific for interapplication collaboration, workgroup collaboration, and intranet communications.

Book Description

Written for business people who want to move beyond the basics, this Premium Edition delivers all the basic concepts plus expanded coverage of hot and advanced topics. This definitive guide to Microsoft Outlook tackles challenging topics such as security, e-mail decoding, using Outlook with the Web, integrating Outlook with other Office applications, compatibility with email services, and setting up Outlook for a LAN and as an Exchange Server client. With a comprehensive troubleshooting section, this is the Outlook book users will turn to for answers to the tough questions. It covers Outlook for stand-alone LANs and Exchange Server environments, plus Outlook Express. Includes special bonus section--300 pages on using Outlook to build custom applications! CD contains productivity-enhancing software.

Customer Reviews:

MCSE Test Success SQL Server 7 Administration 70-028.......2000-05-19

Excellent book to get you door to SQL 7 in depth. I use it as desktop reference in my work ,and test prep for my MCDBA certified exams.

Mastering Outlook Made Easy v. 2007 through 2000

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Mastering Outlook Made Easy v. 2007 through 2000

Manufacturer: TeachUcomp, Inc.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: CD-ROM

Scheduling & E-mail | Microsoft | Computers & Internet | Subjects | Books

General | Software | Computers & Internet | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 1934131210

Product Description

Full-motion, animated instruction with crystal-clear audio in Microsoft Outlook. 177 individual lessons in Outlook 2007 through 2000. The best Outlook tutorial available. Designed by software training professionals. Learn at your office or home - at your own pace. Includes all of the topics covered in a comprehensive classroom training. Deluxe Training includes two printable instruction manuals (in PDF), along with practice exercises & keyboard shortcuts! Customize your training with the easy-to-use menu. Clear, easy-to-follow, step-by-step instruction. Watch the training sessions as many times as you want while you practice in Outlook. No messy set-up, no internet connections needed. The best way to learn Outlook on your own.

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