Amatore's Restaurant: The international cast of the Recreative Theatre Company meet for their end-of-season dinner at Ristorante Amatore. As the evening progresses, each guest recalls a past liaison, an encounter which has made an impression in their life: narratives of love and tales of deceit.

Will Prudence ever discover the identity of the elusive stranger she meets on a train? Just how much of a con-man is Monsieur Raul? Has Cordelia's unconventional approach to men proved to be a success? A common theme begins to unfold: hidden truths behind the motives for seduction.

As the evening draws to a close, emotions rise to the surface. Declarations of love are expressed, jealousies and resentments run deep. Who will think back to the evening as a success and who will regard it as nothing more than a disaster?

Intriguing, erotic, insightful and perceptive. This novel explores the relationship between characters with a refreshing approach to the theme of seduction.

Part Two: Sensual Desires - Another seven episodes from Amatore's Restaurant. New characters come into play: The imaginative wife Samantha, the mysterious Frau Eisler, and the psychopathic Nicole, each manipulating the situation to suit their own purpose.

From the stormy atmosphere of Spain to the exotic forests of Brazil and the rolling countryside of Brittany; evocative settings which provide a perfect background for these engrossing characters.

Note: This book contains adult content; there are passages which describe sex explicitly.

Horse Heaven is a funny, passionate, and brilliant novel by Jane Smiley that dives into the world of horse racing. The story is woven into a marvelous tapestry of joy and love, chicanery, folly, greed, and derring-do.

The characters are as exquisite as they are haunting. Rosalind Maybrick, the wife of a billionaire owner, suddenly finds her life transformed in ways she never anticipated. Then there's Tiffany Morse, a 20-year-old stuck in her job at Wal-Mart, who prays for a change and gets more than she bargained for.

Meet Farley, a good trainer in a bad slump, and Buddy, a ruthless trainer who can't seem to lose even when he wants to. Roberto, an apprentice jockey, faces the challenge of outgrowing his dream career. Leo the gambler and his son Jesse try to understand why their "system" doesn't work.

Don't forget Elizabeth, a 62-year-old theorist of sex and animal communication, and her best friend, Joy, the mare manager. They all revolve around the horses: two colts and two fillies with the potential for greatness. Justa Bob, the plain brown horse who wins by a nose, and Mr. T., a horse with amazing talents, add to the mix.

Even Eileen, the Jack Russell terrier with real convictions, plays a significant role in this strange, compelling, and sparkling universe of horse racing. This book is a veritable celebration of the sport, depicted with verve, originality, tenderness, and sheer exuberance.

Palace Walk is the first volume of the masterful Cairo Trilogy by Nobel Prize-winning Egyptian author Naguib Mahfouz. This engrossing saga unfolds in the early 20th century, during Egypt's occupation by British forces.

The story intricately portrays a traditional Muslim family in Cairo, led by a domineering patriarch who demands strict adherence to Islamic principles from his wife and children. Yet, he indulges in the pleasures of music, wine, and courtesans, unbeknownst to him, his eldest son shares similar tastes.

Set against the backdrop of a turn-of-the-century Cairo, the novel vividly recreates an era of both discipline and sensuality, offering readers a captivating glimpse into the life and culture of a bygone time.

Anthony Burgess, author of A Clockwork Orange, is regarded as one of the most original and daring writers in the English language. His work is illuminated by a dazzling imagination, a gift for character and plot, and a talent for surprise. In Earthly Powers, Burgess created his masterpiece.

At its center are two twentieth-century men who represent different kinds of power—Kenneth Toomey, eminent novelist, a man who has outlived his contemporaries to survive into honored, bitter, luxurious old age as a celebrity of dubious notoriety; and Don Carlo Campanati, a man of God, eventually beloved Pope, who rises through the Vatican as a shrewd manipulator to become the architect of church revolution and a candidate for sainthood.

Through the lives of these two modern men, Burgess explores the very essence of power. As each pursues his career—one to sainthood, one to wealthy exile—their relationship becomes the heart of a narrative that incorporates almost everyone of fame and distinction in the social, literary, and political life of America and Europe.

This astonishing company is joined together by the art of a great novelist into an explosive and entertaining tour de force that will captivate fans of sweeping historic fiction.