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The last politician : inside Joe Biden's White House and the struggle for America's future / by Foer, Franklin,author.;
Includes bibliographical references (pages 379-397) and index."On January 20, 2021, standing where only two weeks earlier police officers had battled with right-wing paramilitaries, Joe Biden took his oath of office. The American people were still sick with COVID-19, his economists were already warning him of an imminent financial crisis, and his party, the Democrats, had the barest of majorities in the Senate. Yet, faced with an unprecedented set of crises, Joe Biden decided he would not play defense. Instead, he set out to transform the nation. He proposed the most ambitious domestic spending bills since the 1960s and vowed to withdraw American forces from Afghanistan, ending the nation's longest war and reorienting it toward a looming competition with China. With unparalleled access to the tight inner circle of advisers who have surrounded Biden for decades, Franklin Foer dramatizes in forensic detail the first two years of the Biden presidency, concluding with the historic midterm elections. The result is a gripping and high-definition portrait of a major president at a time when democracy itself seems imperiled. With his back to the wall, Biden resorted to old-fashioned politics: deal-making and compromise. It was a gamble that seemed at first disastrously anachronistic, as he struggled to rally even the support of his own party. Yet, as the midterms drew near, via a series of bills with banal names, Biden somehow found a way to invest trillions of dollars in clean energy, the domestic semiconductor industry, and new infrastructure. Had he done the impossible-breaking decisively with the old Washington consensus to achieve progressive goals? The Last Politician is a landmark work of political reporting-which includes thrilling, blow-by-blow insider reports of the botched withdrawal from Afghanistan and the White House's swift response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine-that is destined to shape history's view of a president in the eye of the storm."--
Subjects: Biographies.; Personal narratives.; Biden, Joseph R., Jr.; Political culture; Presidents;

Lone Jack Trail / by Laukkanen, Owen,author.;
When a body washes up outside Deception Cove, Washington, Jess Winslow--once a US Marine, now a trainee sheriff's deputy--is assigned to investigate. But when she realizes it's "Bad" Brock Boyd, a hometown celebrity lately fallen from grace, things become complicated. The last person seen with Boyd was her Jess's boyfriend, Mason Burke. An ex-convict and newcomer in town, Mason is one of the only people who can understand Jess's haunting memories of her time in Afghanistan--and her love for Lucy, her devoted service dog. Finding one another in Deception Cove has been the best thing to happen to either of them in years. So Jess knows Mason could never be guilty of murder--doesn't she? As the facts of the case point ever more squarely at Mason, Jess must face that everything she thinks she knows about him might be wrong. A thrilling sequel to Deception Cove, and a heart-pounding adventure all its own, Lone Jack Trail pushes Jess and Mason to a shocking confrontation and will test all they've come to love and trust in Deception Cove.
Subjects: Thrillers (Fiction); Veterans; Ex-convicts; Murder; Service dogs; Post-traumatic stress disorder;

The seventh floor : a novel / by McCloskey, David,author.;
Six CIA officers. Dear friends and cherished enemies. For a quarter century, they have stolen other people's secrets. Now they must steal each other's. A Russian arrives in Singapore with a secret to sell. When the Russian is killed and Sam Joseph, the CIA officer dispatched for the meet, goes missing, operational chief Artemis Procter is made a scapegoat for the disaster and run out of the service. Months later, Sam appears at Procter's doorstep with an explosive secret: there is a Russian mole burrowed deep within the highest ranks of the CIA. As Procter and Sam investigate, they arrive at a shortlist of suspects made up of both Procter's closest friends and fiercest enemies. The hunt requires Procter to dredge up her checkered past in the service of the CIA, placing the pair in the sights of a savvy Russian spymaster who will protect Moscow's mole in Langley at all costs. What happens when friendships forged by sweat and blood--from the Farm to Afghanistan and the executive "Seventh Floor" of CIA's Langley headquarters--are put to the ultimate test? What can we truly know about the people we love the most?
Subjects: Thrillers (Fiction); Spy fiction.; Novels.; United States. Central Intelligence Agency; Espionage, Russian; Intelligence officers; Moles (Spies);

Northwoods : a novel / by Pease, Amy,author.;
"Eli North is not okay. His drinking is getting worse by the day, his emotional wounds after a deployment to Afghanistan are as raw as ever, his marriage and career are over, and the only job he can hold down is with the local sheriff's department. And that's only because the sheriff is his mother--and she's overwhelmed with small town Shaky Lake's dwindling budget and the fallout from the opioid epidemic. The Northwoods of Wisconsin may be a vacationer's paradise, but amidst the fishing trips and campfires and Paul Bunyan festivals, something sinister is taking shape. When the body of a teenage boy is found in the lake, it sets in motion an investigation that leads Eli to a wealthy enclave with a violent past, a pharmaceutical salesman, and a missing teenage girl. Soon, Eli and his mother, along with a young FBI agent, are on the hunt for more than just a killer. If Eli solves the case, could he finally get the shot at redemption he so desperately needs? Or will answers to this dark case elude him and continue to bring destruction to the Northwoods?"--
Subjects: Thrillers (Fiction); Novels.; Drug addiction; Drug addicts; Missing persons; Mothers and sons; Murder; Opioid abuse; Sheriffs; Veterans;

Geographies of the heart : stories from newcomers to Canada /
Includes bibliographical references."A settlement worker recalls being a child soldier in Sudan; the child of undocumented migrants finds love in a coffee shop; a woman from Trinidad applies to over a hundred jobs; and a teacher from Afghanistan grapples with what it means to be a migrant in a colonized land. In Geographies of the Heart, eighteen newcomers to Canada tell their own stories, in their own voices. These accounts push back against misconceptions about immigration and immigrants by revealing that the paths into Canada are as diverse as the people who journeyed them. Canada itself plays a pivotal role in the collection, both as saviour and oppressor. The nation is a haven and place of opportunity, but also not entirely benevolent and welcoming. This collection of stories provides a place where readers can challenge their own assumptions about Canada, immigrants, and refugees. Each story is framed by evocative questions to better connect the experiences of the writers and readers and invite critical thinking about topics related to migration. In the face of both increasing migration around the world and growing xenophobia, Geographies of the Heart is a reminder of our shared humanity."--
Subjects: Biographies.; Personal narratives.; Immigrants; Immigrants;

On my watch : leading NATO in a time of war / by Stoltenberg, Jens,author.; Madsen, Per Anders,author.; McCullough, Alison,translator.; translation of:Stoltenberg, Jens.På min vakt.English.;
"From the former secretary general of NATO, an honest and candid account of a dramatic decade as the leader of the world's most important military alliance. When Jens Stoltenberg took office as secretary general of NATO in 2014, the world was already changing. What followed was a decade marked by war, diplomatic crises, and decisions that helped shape the West's shared security. On My Watch takes readers behind closed doors and offers rare insight into how the world's most powerful military alliance handles crises. Stoltenberg describes the effort to keep NATO united and addresses key issues, such as the war in Ukraine, NATO's withdrawal from Afghanistan, relations with Russia and China, and cooperation with world leaders including Angela Merkel, Donald Trump, and Volodymyr Zelenskyy. This is not a book about division. It is a story of unity, of friendship -- and of why NATO still matters. Through his reflections on disagreements and dilemmas, he offers a unique view into the art of diplomacy and the hard choices that must be made when global peace is at stake. He ultimately shows why openness is essential to preserve cohesion -- and to face the challenges of tomorrow"--
Subjects: Autobiographies.; Biographies.; Personal narratives.; Stoltenberg, Jens.; North Atlantic Treaty Organization.; Diplomacy.; Russian Invasion of Ukraine, 2022.; Security, International.;

The dead we honor / by Johnstone, William W.,author.; Johnstone, J. A.,author.;
Welcome to Maverick, Iowa. Once a thriving farm community, the peaceful little town is now a bristling hotbed of drugs, crime, and homelessness. Thanks to the misguided policies of a new state governor, the floodgates have been opened to a devastating and very unwelcome wave of newcomers, grifters, fentanyl dealers, thieves, and roving gangs of smash-and-grabbers--and one powerful billionaire who's buying up the farmland. Lifelong residents watch helplessly as their beloved Main Street becomes a bloody battleground in a divided America. This is more than a culture war; it's a hostile takeover. Returning home for the first time since Afghanistan, war veteran Bryan Branch barely recognizes his old stomping ground. Back in the day, he was the town hellraiser--until the military gave him a sense of purpose and appreciation for our hard-fought freedoms. Now those freedoms are under attack--and this time, it's personal. As the violence and destruction of Maverick spirals out of control, Bryan enlists the help of his army buddies, a group of veterans who call themselves "The Night Warriors." They're armed and ready to clean up the town. But their enemies are armed, too--and ready to blow the whole country straight to hell.
Subjects: Thrillers (Fiction); Novels.; Rural crimes; Small cities; Veterans;

The forgotten soldier / by Taylor, Brad,1965-;
"In New York Times bestselling author Brad Taylor's latest heart-stopping thriller, Pike Logan returns with his most dangerous and personal threat yet: a Taskforce Operator gone rogue. For years, the extralegal counterterrorist unit known as the Taskforce has worked in the shadows, anticipating and preventing attacks around the globe. Created to deal with a terrorist threat that shuns the civilized rule of law, it abandoned the same, operating outside of the US Constitution. Though wildly successful, it was rooted in a fear that the cure could be worse than the disease. And now that fear has come home. A Special Forces soldier is killed on an operation in Afghanistan, and complicit in the attack is a government official of an allied nation. While the US administration wants to forget the casualty, one Taskforce member will not. When he sets out to avenge his brother's death, his actions threaten to not only expose the Taskforce's activities, but also destroy a web of alliances against a greater evil. Pike Logan understands the desire, but also the danger. Brought in to eliminate the risk, he's now forced to choose between his friend and the administration he's sworn to protect, while unbeknownst to either of them, the soldier's death is only the beginning ..."--Provided by publisher.
Subjects: Adventure stories.; Suspense fiction.; Special forces (Military science); Special operations (Military science); Terrorism;

Truth and justice / by Michaels, Fern,author.;
The Sisterhood: a group of women from all walks of life bound by friendship and years of adventure. Armed with vast resources, top-notch expertise, and a loyal network of allies around the globe, the Sisterhood will not rest until every wrong is made right. Every stranger has a story. The women of the Sisterhood know firsthand that sometimes, that story is one filled with injustice. When Alexis Thorn encounters a distraught young woman, Bella Nolan, alone in a restaurant, crying instead of eating, she offers comfort--and soon uncovers a mission that will require the very particular skills of the Sisterhood. Alexis learns that the woman's husband was recently killed in action in Afghanistan. Before he reported for duty, they took steps to preserve their chances of having children. But when Bella visits the fertility clinic, she discovers her eggs are no longer there--and the circumstances are beyond suspicious. Heartbroken at this tale of shattered hopes, Alexis recruits the Sisterhood to investigate. Soon they uncover a con artist on an obsessive mission. Tracking down the culprit behind such a cruel scheme won't be easy. But with their combined grit, courage, and determination to overcome any obstacle, the Sisterhood will make sure that this story ends on a note of triumph.
Subjects: Thrillers (Fiction); Widows; Fertility clinics; Swindlers and swindling; Female friendship; Vigilantes;

Crazy blood / by Parker, T. Jefferson,author.;
"The Carson dynasty rules the ski resort town of Mammoth Lakes in the Sierra Nevada Mountains in California. Founded by patriarch Adam, the town is the site of the Mammoth Cup ski race-a qualifier for the Olympics. But when Wylie Welborn, Adam's illegitimate grandson, returns after a stint in Afghanistan, it reopens a dark moment in Carson family history: the murder of Wylie's father by his jealous and very pregnant wife, Cynthia. Her son Sky, born while his mother was in prison, and Wylie are half-brothers. They inherit not only superb athletic skills but an enmity that threatens to play out in a lethal drama on one of the fastest and most perilous ski slopes in the world. Three powerful and unusual women have central roles in this volatile family feud: Cynthia, bent on destroying Wylie; his mother Kathleen, determined to protect him; and April Holly, a beautiful celebrity snowboarder, on track to win Olympic Gold. But, as Wylie falls in love with April and they begin to imagine a life away from the violence that has shattered his family, history threatens to repeat itself and destroy them both. Combining exquisite writing with breathtaking scenes of high stakes skiing, CRAZY BLOOD is an unforgettable story of two brothers on a ruthless quest for supremacy"--Provided by publisher.
Subjects: Domestic fiction.; Sibling rivalry; Ski resorts; Skis and skiing;