The fourth generation of leaders of the People's Republic of China, while benefiting from the prestige of China's entry into the World Trade Organization and the honor of hosting the 2008 Olympic Games, also needs to contemplate the sobering side-effects of a rapid and internationally-interdependent economy and a troubled and only partly reformed political system. This important book approaches the study of the PRC under Hu Jintao in a two-fold manner: by examining the new political parameters within which the party-state functions and by analyzing the prominent issues ? at home and abroad ?...

About Straight from the Heart Writing is a gift from God. I thought I would first publish short stories and next a novel. When I was thirteen, I wrote my first poem. When I was seventeen, I had a poetic thought that was not completed until many years later. Straight from the Heart is a collection of poems written over a period of years. I began writing more frequently from 2003 to 2007, a total of fifty-five poems. My daughter made comments on how much she enjoyed them and that I should write more. . Many of these poems are about my daughter and family. These poems come from deep, heartfelt...

Dying in the middle of the summer in the Florida Keys is sweaty business. Welcome to Tarpon Cove. Madison Westin has inherited her aunt's beachfront motel in the Florida Keys. Trouble is she's also inherited a slew of colorful tenant's - drunks, ex-cons, and fugitives. Only one problem: First, she has to wrestle control from a conniving lawyer and shady motel manager. With the help of her new best friend, whose motto is never leave home without your Glock, they dive into a world of blackmail, murder, and drugs.

Madison Westin is back with her never-say-no style; smarter and packing an attitude not to mention her Glock. This time, trouble rolls into Tarpon Cove in the form of Madison's ex-husband, Jackson Devereaux, whom she hoped to never see again. His arrival brings unparalleled chaos and an uninvited corpse. Teaming up with her hot friend, Fabiana, the two women go from chasing the usual cast of misfits and weirdos to hunting down a murderer. The action turns deadly serious when they stir up a nasty enemy as they try to stay one-step ahead in a game of cat and mouse that threatens their lives.

When a man of questionable character's corpse is found at The Cottages, beaten to death with Madison's own gardening tools, she and her partner, Fab, set out to prove that the man's abused girlfriend did not kill him. Along the way, Madison finds herself behind bars twice, held hostage in a mansion, and running from flying bullets. There is no shortage of action, suspense, comedy, or romance in this edge-of-your-seat story of two friends with a knack for getting into-and somehow out of-trouble. This time they must answer one question: Who is responsible for getting their Revenge in Paradise?

In the Florida Keys, trouble is brewing along with the coffee. Friends Madison Westin and Fabiana Merceau search for the mastermind behind gruesome warnings showing up on their doorstep. Fab's infamous new partner and Madison's reappearing ex-husband complicate matters in this sexy and humorous action-adventure, the seventh installment of the Paradise series. Can they slip the bonds of protective custody and solve the mystery before they are Kidnapped in Paradise?

Sexy sleuths Madison and Fab race to uncover the truth behind a horrific crime... before a loved one pays the ultimate price. Beautiful Tarpon Cove has everything you'd expect from a paradise retreat: Blue waters, white sand and ... murder? With deadly secrets and dark dealings brewing beneath the surface of Tarpon Cove, Madison and Fab are caught in a race against time to uncover the truth behind the murder, which may only be the tip of the iceberg....

Discovered after her death, these poems were written over 30 years ago and are presented here in the order in which they were written. They are a fascinating insight into the inner life and development of a uniquely talented artist.