Showing results by narrator "Dave Courvoisier" in All Categories

As two friends are sharing stories together, the story of the man in the box comes up. The man in the box, Byelikov, was an eccentric professor who often made his coworkers feel uneasy. One day, Byelikov finds himself enamored with the sister of a new teacher at the school, Kovalenko. The prospect of a relationship between Byelikov and the sister, Varinka, excited his colleagues as they thought it might help to make him more normal and approachable. However, when someone takes it upon himself to draw a humorous caricature of the couple, things fall apart.

A deadly flu pandemic has decimated humanity. Now, the remaining 20 percent of the population must rise from the ashes to rebuild. The losses are great and no one is immune to the residual heartache that lingers in the air of the barren cities. Life goes on. Mick Owens, struggling to come to terms with his own grief, takes his surviving young sons away from their hometown and the memories it holds. But their short trip to clear their minds turns ugly when the world outside of Lodi, Ohio, isn’t what they expected.

Miguev, a married, intelligent collegiate assessor, is haunted with anxiety and worry. Miguev has a secret that he doesn't want his wife, the town, or his colleagues to discover. His mistress, after becoming pregnant and having his child, has recently tried to extort money from him in exchange for her silence. She threatens to ruin his reputation and divulge his secret shame to everyone unless he pays her. In the height of his fear and worry about his present situation, his fears seem to come alive....

About Love is the musings of several friends about love and the great mystery surrounding it. After trying to figure out the love existing between an abusive, ugly cook and the lovely girl that doted on him, one of the men, Alehin, begins sharing his story of love and heartbreak. He recounts the tale of his love for the beautiful Anna Alexyevna, a young woman married to his friend. Alehin describes the way in which their relationship developed, returning again and again to the strange mysteries of love.

This is the first book in the long out of print Five Worlds Trilogy by award-winning author Al Sarrantonio. As the 25th century draws to a close, Prime Cornelian, a ruthless usurper of Martian rule, will do anything to control all of human civilization, and the fate of all humankind is in the hands of the exiled King of Earth, Dalin Shar. Find more novels by Al Sarrantonio at Audible.com. Search Crossroad Press to find more titles by Al Sarrantonio and many other science-fiction, fantasy, horror, mystery, western and mainstream authors.

A tragic father, Old Musatov, finds himself lucky to have very dedicated children. Musatov is a drunkard and is constantly seeking out money from his sons, which they routinely give to him over and over again. Musatov is drunkenly relating the pride and appreciation he feels for all of his sons to one of his sons, Boris, while also admitting his own flaws.

After Nadya, a 16 year old girl, returns home from seeing a play, she is happily consumed with its plot of unrequited love. To Nadya, unrequited love is the most interesting type of love, as love is boring if everyone is happy. Quickly, Nadya's thoughts turn to her two suitors, Gorny and Guzdev. Although they have both declared their love for her, she, more than anything, wants to believe that they do not love her. Trying to emulate the unrequited love from the play, she writes a letter to Gorny, like the heroine in the play....

What drives someone to become a suicide bomber? Who are al-Qaeda and what do they want? What happens when the media becomes part of the story? Author and UN Security advisor Leonard Weinberg answers these and other questions in an exploration that ranges from the French Revolution to the death squads of Colombia, and reveals how terrorism has become an invasive presence that affects government policy, military actions, and holiday destinations.

As Maxim and Lizaveta, a young married couple, drive home from church on Easter, Maxim finds the joy and beauty in everything. As the newly married couple drives home on their first Easter together, carrying a blessed Easter cake, they see a Cossack at the side of the road. They soon learn that he is sick and too weak to make it home, and he asks for some food if they have any. Maxim immediately wants to share the Easter cake with him; however, his wife refuses to allow this, ripping the cake away from her husband.

The Five Worlds of humanity were powerless to stop Prime Cornelian, High Leader of Mars, from decimating Venus with his legions of plasma soldiers. Now he turns to the settled moon of Saturn under the control of Wrath-Pei. Millions of lives face a horrible fate as the forces of these two madmen battle each other across the vastness of space...

How far would you go for justice? Rob and Beth are very much in love. He has just proposed to her, but she won’t live to see the wedding. Instead, Beth is intentionally sideswiped by an angry driver and knocked off her bike - to her death. Rob witnesses the whole thing, but he can only stand by helplessly as the driver gets off with a slap on the wrist. Rob is devastated. He becomes obsessed with making Beth’s killer pay. Then, one day, a strange man approaches Rob with what seems to be the answer....

Companies make headline news all the time for decisions that make many of us scratch our heads in wonder, even companies that are smart and successful. Here, Neil Smith, with more than 20 years of experience leading large-scale performance improvements, reveals the hidden barriers that cause excellent companies to do dumb things, and smart people within companies to act in dumb ways. Smith has identified 8 barriers that prevent organizations from achieving and maintaining sustainable success.

Despite its guise as a space pirate, the Dread Remora is still a ship of Her Majesty's Royal Navy, so when Captain Nate Demming and his crew discover a brutally savaged ship, they are appalled. When a second ship appears and attacks, Demming assumes these must be the predators and retaliates. The events that unfold lead to new discoveries for the Dread Remora, including some potential allies - and a ferocious new enemy.

The story is set on a Russian ship which is filled with ill and injured soldiers heading home after a trip to the Far East, as it follows two very different passengers aboard. One is very ill and delirious and can only envision his life on his family's farm, and is also consumed with the concern for the well-being of his family. The other is stubborn, rude and in denial of his current illness.

Dalin Shar's dream for the 26th Century is to bring Earth's poisoned Lost Lands back to life and restore his home planet to its former glory. Until that happens, relocation to a more inhabitable planet is his people's last chance for survival. But the last free place in the Five Worlds is desired by more than one warrior of the stars.... Prime Cornelian, alien High Leader and conqueror of Mars and Titan, needs new ground to plant his seeds of evil.

Ivan Lyashkevsky, a Polish lieutenant who suffered a head injury, spends a large amount of time grumbling about the native people of the town he's living in. He thinks them to be lazy and useless and is quick to express his views. On this particular day, he is visiting with his friend Franz Finks and studying his native landlord out the window. Lyashkevsky grows more and more angry with the natives as he discusses their flaws with Finks throughout the entire day, and simple Finks takes all his complaints in stride.

The fate of Prometheus rests in the hands of Richard Mariner, the tanker’s new captain. It is his responsibility to battle human treachery and the dangers of the open sea to bring Prometheus to safe harbor. From the Persian Gulf to the storm-tossed Atlantic, Mariner and his crew will struggle against the elements while trying to uncover the elusive—and cunning—enemy in their midst.

On a quiet, still night when the stars speckle the sky, two shepherds, one old and one young, watch over their flock of sheep. While the two shepherds are laying down keeping watch, a wealthy overseer pays them a visit. The overseer, who has come from Kovylyevsky fields, reminds the old shepherd of the evil and mysterious man who died there. While talking about the evil man, who seems magical, the overseer and young shepherd learn that there are treasures buried in the lands surrounding them.

Here is a tapestry of stories about the complex and unique relationship that exists between brothers. In this book, some of our finest authors take an unvarnished look at how brothers admire and admonish, revere and revile, connect and compete, love and war with each other. With hearts and minds wide open, and, in some cases, with laugh-out-loud humor, the writers tackle a topic that is as old as the Bible and yet has been, heretofore, overlooked.

Natalya was once a happy and radiant young woman. Now an older woman, she reflects about her youth. In particular, she thinks about the heavy emphasis she put on her wealth and the relationships and experiences that it cost her. One man, Pyotr, loved her, but they both let their different statuses in society prevent their love from having a chance. After years of unhappiness and regret, Pyotr comes to visit Natalya.