<p>&nbsp;</p><br><br><p>THE OLD BATTLE-AX</p><br><br><p>&nbsp;</p><br><br><p>It all starts with a lie.&nbsp; Mrs. Herriott&rsquo;s sister Madge has come back from Europe for a visit, but is found dead on the sidewalk outside the gate the next morning.&nbsp; Mrs. Herriott is only trying to protect her sister&rsquo;s reputation when she tells the police that she has no idea who the dead woman is.&nbsp; But one lie leads to another.&nbsp; Silas, her chauffeur, aids her in the lie.&nbsp; Her niece Carla even dresses up like her sister to continue the deception.&nbsp; But why is everyone trying to keep Madge&rsquo;s death such a secret? Before long Mrs. Herriott is caught up in a web of deception that seems to have no end. In this world of lies, is there anyone who can be trusted? &nbsp;And more importantly, is there anyone who <em>should</em> be trusted? &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p><br><br><p>&nbsp;</p><br><br><p>DARK POWER&nbsp;</p><br><br><p>&nbsp;</p><br><br><p>'The Ch&acirc;let was a house easy to get into, but not so easy to leave. . .' Diana Leonard comes to the Ch&acirc;let at the invitation of her long-lost uncle, but soon finds that her visions of a family reunion are shattered by feelings of dread and suspicion. Her</p><br><br><p>Aunt Emma is a stern, domineering woman, a professor of psychology who conducts experiments on two cretin children who live with her.&nbsp; Uncle Peter himself is either a fool or a sadist, and Di can&rsquo;t figure out which.&nbsp; Their son, her cousin Miles, is a guilt-ridden alcoholic, his confidence long ago destroyed by his manipulating mother.&nbsp; And then there&rsquo;s her grandfather Rufus, a rich eccentric who comes to stay but who spends every moment in fear for his life from the rest of the family.&nbsp; It will take every ounce of Diana&rsquo;s courage to survive her stay in the Ch&acirc;let&mdash;and an even greater act of will to survive her family.</p>