Riccardo Valla Books

The Principle of Simultaneity is a scientific breakthrough which will revolutionize interstellar civilization by making possible instantaneous communication. It is the life work of Shevek, a brilliant physicist from the arid anarchist world of Anarres. But Shevek's work is being stifled by jealous colleagues, so he travels to Anarres's sister-planet Urras, hoping to find more liberty and tolerance there. But he soon finds himself being used as a pawn in a deadly political game.

Longing to return to the magical land of Great Kettles, Sarah is happy to help Old Man Winter retrieve the Weather Mill, which has fallen into the hands of a madman, but when Old Man Winter is kidnapped, Sarah, along with Jack Frost, must race against time to find him before both worlds suffer a horrible fate. Reprint.

The third volume of Nicholl's critically acclaimed fantasy - tells the story from the Orc's point of view.

This deluxe series of Robert E. Howard's immortal character, Conan the Barbarian, is an attempt to preserve the Conan tales in their original form. These are quality volumes with a wealth of illustrations by award winning artists.The Hour of the Dragon is the only novel length story in Robert E. Howard's remarkable Conan series. It is issued here as a part of our deluxe Conan editions.This is a volume of Conan's greatest adventures. The massive Cimmerian finds himself pitted against werewolves, a giant ape, pirates and the malignant and mighty sorcerer who is risen from the dead -- the evil Xaltotun.

La storia di Varzy, che voleva unificare sotto il Patto tutto il suo mondo, e quella del suo avversario Bard di Asturien, il generale che voleva unificarlo conquistandolo con le sue armate.

Robert Langdon, Harvard Professor Of Symbology, Receives An Urgent Late-Night Call While In Paris: The Curator Of The Louvre Has Been Murdered. Alongside The Body Is A Series Of Baffling Ciphers. Langdon And A Gifted French Cryptologist, Sophie Neveu, Are Stunned To Find A Trail That Leads To The Works Of Da Vinci And Further. The Curator, Part Of A Secret Society Named The Priory Of Sion, May Have Sacrificed His Life To Keep Secret The Location Of A Vastly Important Religious Relic Hidden For Centuries. It Appears That The Clandestine Vatican-Sanctioned Catholic Sect Opus Dei Has Now Made Its Move. Unless Landon And Neveu Can Decipher The Labyrinthine Code And Quickly Assemble The Pieces Of The Puzzle, The Priory S Secret And A Stunning Historical Truth Will Be Lost Forever.

The political intrigue, secret treachery, and sinister deeds that have haunted Druid history for generations continue to thrive. Despite Grianne's devotion to the greater good, she still has bitter enemies who covet her seat of power.

50 years from now, our world looks very different. Governments have fallen. Thousands live in fortified strongholds; others roam the landscape as either predator or prey. Standing against the forces that have tipped the balance from good to evil are very few heroes, men and women imbued with magic and sworn to a high destiny.

Nella terra di Maras-Dantia la guerra tra umani e razze antiche sembra non conoscere sosta e i figli del Lupo sono nell'occhio del ciclone. Soli, braccati, bollati dall'infamante accusa di diserzione, vagano per le regioni che gli umani chiamano Centrasia alla ricerca di risposte a interrogativi sempre più pressanti: cosa sono in realtà i manufatti chiamati stelle? Qual è il loro effettivo potere? Perché l'ambizione di possederli ossessiona Jennesta, la spietata regina dell'Orda, così come Kimball Hobrow, capo della fanatica setta degli Uni? E ancora: quale significato attribuire ai sogni di cui è preda il capitano degli orchi Strike? Sono forse profezie? La speranza di un mondo in cui la magia occupi il posto che le compete nell'ordine naturale, un mondo nel quale le razze antiche possano finalmente convivere in pace, libere dalla pestilenziale minaccia dell'uomo, potrà realizzarsi solo dopo aver superato nemici letali e situazioni ai limiti dell'impossibile, in un crescendo di eventi che scateneranno forze oscure, terrificanti incantesimi e arcane potenze da troppo tempo sopite. Prima, però, gli orchi dovranno confrontarsi con le proprie ataviche paure, per porre fine a un'esistenza da mercenari e tornare a essere ciò che sempre sono stati: un popolo fiero, un popolo di guerrieri.

Gli umani sono arrivati nella terra di Maras-Dantia, e con essi la morte e la distruzione. Gli occhi terrorizzati delle creature fantastiche che abitano quel regno vedono cadere l'una dopo l'altra le razze antiche e mitologiche, esseri dai poteri magici, gnomi, elfi, e sfortunatamente anche orchi. Cacciati dalla loro foresta, da una natura che da millenni alimenta segretamente le loro vite, gli orchi devono rinascere e combattere la crudeltà degli uomini, mai così feroce, mai così memorabile come in questa storia. Sarà compito dell’orco Stryke guadagnarsi un riscatto che pare impossibile... Grande romanzo di pura azione, violento, diretto e pieno di rabbia, I guardiani dei lampi è il primo volume della trilogia Orchi, accolta in Inghilterra come l'avvento del fantasy barbarico, genere dove il consueto cast di dame e cavalieri eleganti - vagamente disneyano e politicamente corretto - non esiste più e dove i piani del rapporto fra uomo e creature mostruose vengono completamente ribaltati.

The New York Times bestseller A LOVE THAT TRANSCENDS HEAVEN AND HELL What happens to us after we die? Chris Nielsen had no idea, until an unexpected accident cut his life short, separating him from his beloved wife, Annie. Now Chris must discover the true nature of life after death. But even Heaven is not complete without Annie, and when tragedy threatens to divide them forever, Chris risks his very soul to save Annie from an eternity of despair. Richard Matheson's powerful tale of life---and love---after death was the basis for the Oscar-winning film starring Robin Williams.

The great epic of Darkover did not begin with the Terrans' arrival. For in those years, the power of the matrix was first learned--and misused in a power struggle that could have made Darkover a duplicate of Terra.

MAGIC KINGDOM FOR SALE/SOLD! is the first volume in a gripping fantasy of mystery, magic and adventure from the author of the bestselling Shannara series.

Determined to find out what happened to her former deputy chief, Jack Fielding, murdered six months earlier, Kay Scarpetta travels to the Georgia Prison for Women, where an inmate has information not only on Fielding, but also on a string of grisly killings.

A group of friends' leisurely Mexican holiday takes a turn for the worse when they, along with a fellow tourist embark on a remote archaeological dig in the jungle, where something evil lives among the ruins.

The title story, Supertoys Last All Summer Long, soon to be a major film directed by Steven Spielberg, tells of a young boy who, whatever he does, cannot please his mother. He is puzzled by this, not realising that he is an android, a cunning construct of artificial intelligence - as is his one ally, his teddy bear. It was a story that hugely affected Stanley Kubrick (director of 2001) and Steven Spielberg (who perhaps saw in his forthcoming movie AI (Artificial Intelligence) a complement to his ET!). This collection contains three SUPERTOYS stories, and they are the fabric of Spielberg's movie. The other stories in the collection, whether SF, utopian fantasy or dark fable show a master writer at the peak of his considerable powers.

Examines the century-old series of murders that terrorized London in the 1880s, drawing on research, state-of-the-art forensic science, and insights into the criminal mind to reveal the true identity of the infamous Jack the Ripper.

Al tramonto dell'Età dei Cento Regni, un antico conflitto tra i clan di Hammerfell e di Storn insanguina ancora la Terra di Darkover...

Il noto autore di science fiction descrive in questo libro un futuro ormai prossimo dove la fantascienza è diventata realtà: computer che leggono la mente umana, banche degli organi sempre fornite grazie alle tecniche di clonazione, viaggi interstellari effettuati tramite tunnel che attraversano i buchi neri...