Her eighth grade year changes Serena Moore's life forever. A chance meeting introduces her to Kori Kitzler, known to the students as "The Dark Angel" of her school. The two girls soon become inseparable, even as Kori begins to spiral out of control several years later. When a tragic car accident leaves Serena alone she has to find a way to cope. That is when she discovers a list that Kori left behind. The cryptic list contains five things Kori wanted to accomplish. Serena sets out to finish her best friend's tasks.
It is September of 2007, and the world is in turmoil. Major religions all agree on one thing: the end of days is fast approaching. What roles do an expert linguist, a geneticist, and a professor of archaeologist play in the heavenly drama? This question and others are answered in a flashback to the summer of 2006. Myla de Naci is searching for the first genetically modern human, an individual that she believes revolutionized the human race almost overnight. Her research leads to her to Dr.
When Jacob Smithson starts class at St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Boarding School for Boys, he is skeptical about the calming effect it's supposed to have on his temperament. Jacob already doesn't like his roommate, Mike; he doesn't intend to study; and he anticipates trouble right from the start. Jacob doesn't know just how much trouble he'll be in, however, until, during mass, his eyes meet those of Avery Dendritch. His attraction to the altar boy is almost instantaneous and the two are swept up in a romantic whirlwind.
When Milton Fauster goes to the mall with his juvenile delinquent sister Marlo, he doesn't expect to be tricked into shoplifting and he certainly doesn't expect to die in a tragic marshmallow accident. But perhaps the most unexpected thing is Dale E. Basye's bizarre twist on the usual concepts of heaven and hell. Once dead, Milton and Marlo enter Heck, one of the many levels of the afterlife where they are to stay for all eternity, or until they turn eighteen.
The Nebula Awards Showcase 2008 is a collection of essays, poems, and short pieces by the top names in science fiction and fantasy. One notable piece is "Echo" in which an isolated woman copes with losing her few methods of communication. In the story "Burn" a war is fought through fires and a man discovers that his society's view of the world doesn't encompass as much as he thought. Another well written piece is the essay "Quo Vadis?" by Orson Scott Card.
