In the early years of the 18th century, a band of French scientists set off on a daring, decade-long expedition to South America in a race to measure the precise shape of the earth. Like Lewis and Clark's exploration of the American West, their incredible mission revealed the mysteries of a little-known continent to a world hungry for discovery. Scaling 16,000foot mountains in the Peruvian Andes, and braving jaguars, pumas, insects, and vampire bats in the jungle, the scientists barely completed their mission. One was murdered, another perished from fever, and a third-Jean Godin-nearly died of heartbreak. At the expedition's end, Jean and his Peruvian wife, Isabel Gramesón, became stranded at opposite ends of the Amazon, victims of a tangled web of international politics. Isabel's solo journey to reunite with Jean after their calamitous twenty-year separation was so dramatic that it left all of 18th-century Europe spellbound. Her survival-unprecedented in the annals of Amazon exploration-was a testament to human endurance, female resourcefulness, and the power of devotion.Drawing on the original writings of the French mapmakers, as well as his own experience retracing Isabel's journey, acclaimed writer Robert Whitaker weaves a riveting tale rich in adventure, intrigue, and scientific achievement. Never before told, The Mapmaker's Wife is an epic love story that unfolds against the backdrop of "the greatest expedition the world has ever known."From Publishers WeeklyAs was customary for girls from elite families in 18th-century colonial Peru, Isabel Gramesón was barely a teenager when she married Jean Godin, a Frenchman visiting the territory as an assistant on a scientific expedition. Planning to bring his wife back to France, Godin trekked across South America to check in with the French colonial authorities, but was refused permission to return up the Amazon back into Spanish territory to retrieve Isabel. So they remained a continent apart for 20 years until 1769, when Isabel started making her way east. Her party ran aground on the Bobonaza River (which feeds into the Amazon), and though almost everyone perished, she managed to survive alone in the rainforest for weeks. Although science journalist Whitaker doesn't directly refer to his own modern trek following Isabel's route down the Bobonaza, his descriptions of the conditions she would have encountered convey his familiarity with the territory, often quite viscerally, ("There are giant stinging ants, ants that bite, and ants that both bite and sting"). His account of the French expedition that brought Godin to Peru and then separated him from his new wife is equally vivid, with exhilarating discoveries and petty squabbles-and richly illustrated with contemporary drawings. Though an early, long digression tracing the history of attempts to measure the size of the earth may establish the context a little too solidly, making some readers impatient, they'll certainly be hooked once the story really begins. Isabel and Jean's adventures are riveting enough on their own, and colonial South America's largely unfamiliar history adds another compelling layer to this well-crafted yarn. Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. From School Library JournalAdult/High School–Whitaker merges a gripping account of scientific exploration with an amazing story of survival in the wilderness. For those who think of the Enlightenment only in terms of sedate Paris salons, this book will alter that image forever. The best minds of Europe in the 1730s knew that the Earth was not perfectly round, but the exact size and shape were in hot debate. Someone figured out that to nail down the answer certain data was needed, and that the best place to get that data was at the equator. Given the technological and political realities of the time, that meant one place: Peru. A scientific expedition was organized in Paris and sent to the New World in 1735. After 10 years of incredible hardships and setbacks, it accomplished its mission (and a host of other enlightenments along the way). As captivating as this story proved to be, another developed: a young member of the party met, fell in love with, and married an upper-class, 13-year-old Peruvian girl. Due to a tangled swirl of unfortunate events, this couple became separated for 20 years (beginning just before the birth of their only child). Finally, in 1769, Isabel Gramesón set off on a trek through the most inhospitable of jungles to rejoin her husband in French Guiana. The author's depiction of that harrowing journey is the crowning jewel of this outstanding volume.–Robert Saunderson, Berkeley Public Library, CA Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. 

For five months in the thin air of Tibet and Western China I made my way over dirt tracks and around Chinese police checkpoints. Throughout most of history this part of the planet has remained closed to Western travelers. During the spring and summer of 1994 only a few short portions of my 3300-mile bicycle trip crossed sections of Tibet and China that were officially open to foreigners. My 3300-mile bicycle trip is the subject of the ebook, A Different Kind of Freedom.

They call him Reguiba. Moroccan death merchant extraordinaire. With an army of desert jackals who live to kill-and kill to live-he's got the manpower, the hardware and the petrodollars to pull any job… no matter how bloody. His target: American allies in the Middle East. His goal: the total breakdown of Western alliances. His biggest obstacle: Agent N3 — Nick Carter!

Anna Ixstassou is looking for the fast track to the top. Unfortunately, she found what she was looking for and is back for another session at the hands of her boss, Ewan Crest. A witch who just wants to be like everyone else, Anna exalts in the lust that Ewan awakens within her, only hoping that she will not be forced to call upon black magic to save her before the point of no return.

A TEENAGE FUGITIVE--Youthful master of disguise Fawn Morrison comes to Hideaway seeking refuge. Now that her dangerous game has turned deadly, she must entrust her safety to strangers.A DOUBTING DOCTOR--Karah Lee Fletcher relishes the challenges offered by Hideaway's new clinic, until an unsettling discovery shakes her confidence. Despite self-doubt, she reaches out to Fawn and finds unexpected grace.A LONELY RANGER--Their first meeting leaves Ranger Taylor Jackson vowing to avoid strong-willed Karah Lee. Yet, observing her interact with patients, Taylor begins to feel admiration. Could it lead to something deeper?

Isabella arrived in London in 1308, the spirited twelve-year-old daughter of King Philip IV of France. Her marriage to the heir to England's throne was designed to heal old political wounds between the two countries, and in the years that followed, she would become an important figure, a determined and clever woman whose influence would come to last centuries. But Queen Isabella's political machinations led generations of historians to malign her, earning her a reputation as a ruthless schemer and an odious nickname, “the She-Wolf of France.” Now the acclaimed author of Eleanor of Aquitaine, Alison Weir, reexamines the life of Isabella of England, history's other notorious and charismatic medieval queen. Praised for her fair looks, the newly wed Isabella was denied the attentions of Edward II, a weak, sexually ambiguous monarch with scant taste for his royal duties. As their marriage progressed, Isabella was neglected by her dissolute husband and slighted by his favored male courtiers. Humiliated and deprived of her income, her children, and her liberty, Isabella escaped to France, where she entered into a passionate affair with Edward II's mortal enemy, Roger Mortimer. Together, Isabella and Mortimer led the only successful invasion of English soil since the Norman Conquest of 1066, deposing Edward and ruling in his stead as co-regents for Isabella's young son, Edward III. Fate, however, was soon to catch up with Isabella and her lover. Many mysteries and legends have been woven around Isabella's story. She was long condemned as an accessory to Edward II's brutal murder in 1327, but recent research has cast doubt on whether that murder even took place. Isabella's reputation, then, rests largely on the prejudices of monkish chroniclers and prudish Victorian scholars. Here Alison Weir gives a startling, groundbreaking new perspective on Isabella, in this first full biography in more than 150 years. In a work of extraordinary original research, Weir effectively strips away centuries of propaganda, legend, and romantic myth, and reveals a truly remarkable woman who had a profound influence upon the age in which she lived and the history of western Europe. Engaging, vibrant, alive with breathtaking detail and unforgettable characters, Queen Isabella is biographical history at its finest.

After Gavin Pyre steps down from his position as crime lord, he and Lyla focus on picking up the pieces of their lives and creating the paradise they deserve.Note: This novella intersects with book 4, Awakened by Sin, so books should be read in sequence. 

At the boss's pleasure… Billionaire Curtis Diaz is determined to uncover why his new executive assistant, prim and proper Tessa Wilson, fuels his desire like no other woman. Is there life beneath her sensible, shapeless business suits? One smoldering kiss from her boss and Tessa's professional exterior crumbles. The sensual woman in her is unleashed and soon she's swapped business for a steamy bedroom affair… Until Tessa discovers just what else is on Curtis's agenda….

The men I love are gone. This time Loki's not to blame. This time, if anything bad happens It's only one person's fault: Mine.

PURE FANTASY In order to help the Texas Cattleman's Club in their sting operation, Alexander Kent needed a make- believe wife. The notorious playboy was reluctant to let any woman play Mrs. Kent—even temporarily. This made high school drama coach Stephanie Firth the perfect choice since the plain Jane was only putting up with him for the sake of the assignment. Plain Jane or not, Alex soon found himself drawn to her quiet beauty, and once he slipped a ring on her finger, he wanted to prove to his reluctant wife just how charming and seductive he could be. But once Cinderella shed her inhibitions, would Alex want to make their fantasy…into a reality?