I have read every book in this series, but this is my favorite. We are treated to the usual ambiance of Martha's Vineyard (Craig really makes me want to go there!) with fishing trips followed by gourmet blue-fish and crab dinners, but this also includes some real suspense and action with our hero being pursued by a mysterious bad guy. If you want to be convinced to read the rest of the series, read this one first!

Yes it is out of print, but look for it in used bookstores. In fact look for the whole series. These are very good light reading. The characters are good and the stories keep you interested. I no longer fish, but I enjoy reading about these characters who do love fishing, cooking, nude sunbathing, and other island type lifestyles. I don't think a lifestyle of this type would be for everyone, and I know it's not for me, I enjoy air conditioning, television, and the middle of the country, although a visit to Martha's Vineyard isn't beyond hope.

Find all of the out of print ones if you can, visit the library and find those you can and then plunge in and enjoy.

I am a Director of Training and communication is a pervasive concern. Unlike other books that focus on skill-building, this one addresses more fundamental communication issues. What I found particularly valuable was that the strategic discussions were directly linked to specific action plans that I could implement. For instance, the book discusses the principles behind effectivly communicating change along with providing some concrete suggestions. I enthusiastically recommend this book to anyone charged with addressing communication problems in their organization.

Communicating for Managerial Effectiveness is a book aimed at executives and managers. However, employees at all levels will benefit from Clampitt's suggestions and recommendations.

The book is comprised of 11 chapters and covers communication breakdowns and challenges that I can certainly relate to, such as using the correct communication channels, communicating change, giving performance feedback, and communicating the corporate culture. In each chapter, Clampitt analyzes common problems that occur in organizations, defines why these problems occur and offers concrete recommendations and suggestions. Clampitt is skilled at using great metaphors, case studies, examples, statistical evidence, and experience to form his recommendations. Every day I apply the knowledge I've gained from this book to my career at Rockwell Automation; I highly recommend this book to you so you can benefit from it in your career as well.

This cook book offered a wide variety of grilled items and practical sauces, rubs and accompanying dishes. It will definitely be used all summer long at our house.

This is a very good cookbook. The directions are awesome and it has high quality pictures of everything so you know what it should look like when you are done cooking. Lots of good recipies. A+

The Confederacy's Fighting Chaplain, Father John B. Bannon by Phillip Thomas Tucker, is an excellent biography and Civil War History. The book gives the background of Father Bannon, beginning with his education in Ireland and his service in St. Louis. The conflicts which were tearing St. Louis, as well as the nation, apart are well reflected in the life of Bannon as he was making his decision as to how to respond to the gathering storm. Not limiting his narrative to a mere recitation of facts, Tucker acquaints the reader with the factors working on, and the thoughts going on within Bannon's mind which led him to his conclusion that the Confederacy represented the cause of freedom and Christian civilization in America. The chapters covering Bannon's service as chaplain for the First Missouri Confederate Brigade skillfully blend the details of the chaplain's life with the greater history of the War in general. The final section of the book relates Bannon's unique service as a diplomatic agent on behalf of the Confederacy and his role as personal emissary from President Davis to Pope Pius IX. Davis had asked Bannon to undertake a mission to Ireland to attempt to dissuade Irish from enlisting in the Union Army. It was Bannon's initiative to undertake the overture which almost resulted in recognition of the Confederacy by the Vatican. The unique intertwining of Bannon's roles as chaplain and diplomat within the larger story in which he played a part, make this a very worthwhile addition to the Civil War literature

The Confederacy's Fighting Chaplain, Father John B. Bannon by Phillip Thomas Tucker, is an excellent biography and Civil War History. The book gives the background of Father Bannon, beginning with his education in Ireland and his service in St. Louis. The conflicts which were tearing St. Louis, as well as the nation, apart are well reflected in the life of Bannon as he was making his decision as to how to respond to the gathering storm. Not limiting his narrative to a mere recitation of facts, Tucker acquaints the reader with the factors working on, and the thoughts going on within Bannon's mind which led him to his conclusion that the Confederacy represented the cause of freedom and Christian civilization in America. The chapters covering Bannon's service as chaplain for the First Missouri Confederate Brigade skillfully blend the details of the chaplain's life with the greater history of the War in general. The final section of the book relates Bannon's unique service as a diplomatic agent on behalf of the Confederacy and his role as personal emissary from President Davis to Pope Pius IX. Davis had asked Bannon to undertake a mission to Ireland to attempt to dissuade Irish from enlisting in the Union Army. It was Bannon's initiative to undertake the overture which almost resulted in recognition of the Confederacy by the Vatican. The unique intertwining of Bannon's roles as chaplain and diplomat within the larger story in which he played a part, make this a very worthwhile addition to the Civil War literature.

This book will function as an excellent cookbook on industrial construction contract administration. Contract language, field notices, change orders, scheduling, etc. are all covered in great detail with easy to follow fill in the blanks forms. This book is a "must have" for plant managers, plant purchasing agents, plant engineers, and construction company managers and supervisors. It is focused on the latest non-computer based communication systems and will work well in most industrial construction settings.

While not directly geared to commercial, and highway and heavy construction, it has lessons presented that will clearly apply to these other construction situations. This book is well-worth the price.

This book was written as a useful guide and reference to help Owner and Contractor personnel, students, and others associated with privately awarded construction contracts to achieve the often elusive goal of completing their contracts successfully (safely, on time, within the budget, meeting design limits, and with no unresolved claims).

The author has worked with Owners and Contractors over the past 50 years in offshore and domestic mining, process, refinery, smelter, petro-chemical, and environmental improvement, reclamation, and remediation facilities in the fields of engineering, operations, maintenance, design, estimating, construction, startup and shakedown, and claims resolution.

Contents are presented in three parts. Part one addresses the identification, selection, production, and assembly of the many elements required to produce bid packages, qualify and select bidders, and award construction contracts. Part two reviews the requirements for a reasonable, fair, practical, logical, and orderly contract administration system based on the sample bid package included in appendix B. Part three presents four case studies of construction project contracts that have difficulties; hopefully readers may use them to recognize and correct potential problem areas in their own contracts before they become claims. Some of the latest advances in information technology that can be used for construction contract management applications are also identified and discussed in part three.

Appendix A, Checklist for Processing from Start to Start-up, by Lester F. Engle, and first published in Mining Engineering magazine in May of 1966, presents an excellent checklist of items that must be considered or accomplished when preparing, writing, and awarding, contracts right through the construction, acceptance, and start-up phases.

Charles S. Phillips, P.E.

This is an easy to read with information and instructions on use, appearance, when to plant, and how to plant Chinese greens, beans, melons, cabbages, herbs, peas, and even water plants.

If you're interested in growing Chinese vegetables, this is a great one for the library. Also includes English and Chinese names, planting table, and instructions for container gardening.

This is a good book--nice color illustrations of Chinese vegetables, descriptions of both common and uncommon varieties, Chinese characters and latin names added. Simple recipes I found to be not that useful, having many cookbooks, but novice Chinese cooks may find them appealing.

I was curious as to how to go about creating a Japanese garden, and this book not only answered my questions, it gave me inspiration with its pages of gorgeous photographs. A must have for any aspiring Japanese gardener, or just for anyone interested in Japan.

I always had an interest in Japanese gardens and always wantes to have one and if not experiance them. The book helped with both accounts. I am now seriously thinking of establishing a small garden and want to know more.

Being an articulate person, yet not an interior decorator, I found this book most useful. After buying a new home, a budget to fix it was minimal. Yet, I faux painted walls and used furniture in techniques that I would never have believed. The author is very good in verbalizing how to paint with a flair of Rembrandt (and clear photos of each technique). When I applied each technique I truly felt accomlpished. I am not a salesman ,but it true, this book worked for what I was looking for - some artistic assistance!

This book has it all. The text and photos are clearly presented. The book begins with the proper prepartion steps in decorating a variety of surfaces from furniture, accessories to interiors surfaces- walls, floors, ceilings. If you ever consider painting or decorating your walls, floors or furniture- this is the book for you. Techniques are broken down into easy, intermediate to advanced-- so you can grow with the book. Paint and faux finish techniques from A to Z are covered... sponging, ragging, glazing, marbleizing, woodgraining, gilding, stenciling, tortoiseshell, malachite, trompe l'oeil and more. After reading this book, you can wait to get some brushes wet with paint and transform your home

Hot Blood: Stranger By Night is Gelb and Garrett's 9th book in the Hot Blood series, but it is by no means stale, or stories you've read before. Where most of the other Hot Blood books sample a variety of erotic horror, this volume leans more towards crime mixed with sex and violence, and probably served as a model for the current Flesh and Blood series.

This volume sports stories from such noted authors as Brian Lumley (Necros), Mike W. Barr (A Real Woman), Jeff Gelb (Tricks or Treat), and Ramsey Campbell (The Limits of Fantasy).

So if you feel like an demonic roller coaster ride into the nights and lows of human depravity, if you want a sexual charge on the way, then get in line to ride the Hot Blood: Crimes of Passion express.

I have read all of the books in this series. However, I was "dying" to read this one, specifically because of Greg Kihn's and Brian Lumley's stories. Kihn mixes horror, erotica and the Summer of Love in the Haight perfectly for his freaky concoction. Brian Lumley did not disappoint either. I can always see what he has written, and he never fails to give me the chills. Of the others: the longer stories will entice you along with a lump in your throat and the shorter ones will surprise you with their twisted endings. A must read for fans of the series (no arm twisting here), and a good one for "beginners". Enjoy.

The publication of this book is very timely since it appears right before the happening of the first "International Conference on Multiscale Materials Model(l)ing", which has been held in June 2002 at the Queen Mary University of London. But it is the subtitle (Modeling Across Scales), not the title, that conveys you what the book's content is about. In other words, the author engages himself in the (difficult) task of showing you how real materials can be modeled (or thought of) by mean of a multiscale approach bridging the atomistic to the macroscopic structure & behavior. As you can well imagine, this is an outstanding task!

The book is organized in four parts and it contains 13 chapters:

Part I: Thinking about the Material World
1. Idealizing Material Response
2. Continuum Mechanics Revisited
3. Quantum and Statistical Mechanics Revisited

Part II: Energetics of Crystalline Solids
4. Energetic Description of Crystalline Solids
5. Thermal and Elastic Properties of Crystals
6. Structural Energies and Phase Diagrams

Part III: Geometric Structures in Solids: Defects and Microstructures
7. Point Defects in Solids
8. Line Defects in Solids
9. Wall Defects in Solids
10. Microstructure and its Evolution

Part IV: Facing the Multiscale Challenge in Real Material Behavior
11. Points, Lines and Walls: Defect Interactions and Material Response
12. Bridging Scales: Effective Theory Construction
13. Universality and Specificity in Materials

Considering the difficulty of the subject and how it has been presented throughout the book, the clarity of language and the good quality of both graphs and figures, this book deserves five stars.

This is the absolutely best book I have seen in the general materials science field--the writing is clear, the explanations excellent, and detail sufficient. The books title is correct, but I think a bit unfair--the book really shines as a general, graduate level introduction to all of materials science, if you take the quite reasonable view that the ability to better model crystals, defects, and microstructures forms the core of the field.

As the author staes in the introduction, this books teaches you habits of the mind and modes of thought that help link up the disparate fields that make up materials, mechanics, and condensed matter physics.

There is no book in my (admittedly limited) library I got more out of during the course of my studies.

Final note: the book has excellent references, and is typset beautifully.