Wendy Syfret Popular Books
Wendy Syfret Biography & Facts
Pure Heroine is the debut studio album by New Zealand singer-songwriter Lorde. It was released on 27 September 2013 by Universal, Lava, and Republic Records. After several unsuccessful sessions with songwriters, Lorde was paired with Joel Little by A&R representative Scott Maclachlan, who assisted with the album's production. Recording took place at Golden Age Studios in Auckland. Pure Heroine has been described as an electronica, electropop, and dream pop album with minimalist production, deep bass and programmed beats. Pure Heroine received generally positive reviews from music critics, many of whom praised its songwriting, production, and Lorde's vocal performance. It appeared on several year-end critics' lists, and was nominated for Best Pop Vocal Album at the 56th Annual Grammy Awards. The album deals with themes of youth and critiques mainstream culture, exploring materialism, fame, consumer culture and social status. Pure Heroine has been noted for its influence on modern pop music. Lorde released the album's lead single, "Royals", to critical and commercial success; it was followed by "Tennis Court", "Team" and "Glory and Gore". The album debuted at number three on the US Billboard 200 chart, selling 129,000 album-equivalent units, and topped the charts in Australia and New Zealand. Pure Heroine was one of 2014's best-selling albums. It was certified platinum in the United Kingdom, double platinum in Canada, triple platinum in Australia, as well as quintuple platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America, selling more than 5 million copies worldwide. Background and development Since she was 14 years old, Lorde worked with Universal to develop her sound and artistic vision. She was signed to Universal by her manager, Scott Maclachlan, at age 13 and was paired with a succession of songwriters in unsuccessful attempts to develop her own music. Maclachlan told HitQuarters, "Fundamentally I think she understood that she was going to write her own music but would need someone to help with the production side of it." Lorde began writing songs on guitar at the age of "13 or 14". She was eventually paired with New Zealand writer and producer Joel Little in December 2011, and their working relationship clicked almost immediately. Lorde's debut extended play (2013's The Love Club EP) was praised by music critics, who compared the EP to work by other female alternative pop artists such as Sky Ferreira, Florence and the Machine, Lana Del Rey, and Grimes. It reached number one in New Zealand, number two in Australia, where it was certified five times platinum for shipments of 350,000 copies, and number twenty-three on the US Billboard 200. Before beginning work on Pure Heroine, Lorde said that she intended her debut album to be a "cohesive" work. Like The Love Club EP, Pure Heroine was recorded with producer Joel Little at Golden Age Studios, a small studio without expensive technology, in Auckland, and was completed in less than a year. Initially, Lorde and Little played demos to A&R Scott Maclachlan in which they discussed songs, exchanged comments and changed aspects of the songs. She later showed the lyrics to James Lowe, her boyfriend at the time, saying that sharing things with him inspired her to write most of the album. Recording of the album was overseen by Lorde and Little, and was described by Maclachlan as a fairly-short process; most of what Lorde played for him ended up on the album. Lorde wanted to write her own music, and the album's content was co-written with Little. Ten songs were included in the album's final track listing, with seven or eight tracks not making the cut. Lorde and Maclachlan decided to keep the final track listing at ten to avoid "filler material." Music and lyrics Lorde's vocals on Pure Heroine have been noted for her range and powerful delivery. She said that she felt it essential for her voice to be the album's focus, since she was unfamiliar with playing instruments. The A.V. Club editor Kevin McFarland called the singer's voice the "alpha and omega of her talent. ... Her voice isn't booming or overpowering, but rather mystifying and alluring, both floating on its own in a sea of reverb and digital blips and awash in an army of chorused overdubs." PopMatters's Evan Sawdey described Lorde's vocals as being "unique and powerfully intriguing", while Billboard noted her vocals for being "smoky and restrained". The album is built around Little's production, which incorporates deep bass, loops, and programmed beats. During its recording, Lorde said that she "didn't really have a specific sound in mind". She cited James Blake and minimalist music as the main inspirations for Pure Heroine. The album's song structures were influenced by hip hop, electronic and pop music as the singer listened to those genres to develop a "real taste" of the direction the production would follow. Several publications noted its minimalist production, and compared its arrangements to singers such as Robyn and Santigold. Pure Heroine has been described by critics as an electronica, dream pop, and electropop album. The album deals with themes of youth, and critiques mainstream culture, exploring materialism, fame, consumer culture, and social status. Classic teen pop themes such as social anxiety, romance, and "adolescent aggrievance and angst" are also present on the album. According to NME, its lyrics indicate that Lorde is "bored". In an interview with the magazine, she said that she used words of inclusion (such as "we" and "us") throughout the album. The singer's lyrics detail "the mundanity of teenage life" and celebrate the "often ignored intelligence of the next generation." Lorde also uses metaphors involving teeth, describing the "Hollywood smile", which several publications related to social class structures and economic inequality. In an analysis piece from i-D, writer Wendy Syfret states that Pure Heroine presented suburban dreams and a realistic teenage life, saying the record is "perhaps the most direct and eloquent statement about the eternal teen juxtaposition of wanting it all ... but knowing deep down that to leave this stage is to make an exit you can never undo." Songs Tracks 1–5 The album's opening track, "Tennis Court", addresses Lorde's new fame and criticises the "high life." Described by critics as a downtempo hip hop and EDM-influenced alternative pop, art pop and electropop song, it uses synthesisers and electronic pulses in its arrangement. Little and Lorde first wrote the music and beat, and the lyrics were written later. "400 Lux", named for the brightness of a sunrise or sunset, was interpreted by critics as the album's first love song, with lyrics detailing suburban life. Lipshutz of Billboard described its instrumentation as "over canyon-sized bass and popping percussion". Lorde wrote the lyrics to "Royals" in half an hour and recorded the song within a week during a school break. She was inspired aft.... Discover the Wendy Syfret popular books. Find the top 100 most popular Wendy Syfret books.
Best Seller Wendy Syfret Books of 2024
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School of Potential
W.J. MayUSA Today Bestselling author, W.J. May brings you a continuation of the international bestselling series, The Chronicles of Kerrigan! Come back and enjoy the famous characters, or ...
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The Seduction Series Boxset
Roxy Sloane“Sensual, thrilling and wild!”   Discover the bestselling series in one collection: THE SEDUCTION, THE BARGAIN, and THE INVITATION. Perfect for fans of Ana Huang, Sierra S...
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Dracula
Bram StokerAn Apple Books Classic edition. Few characters have seized readers’ imaginations quite like Count Dracula of Transylvania, the hero of Bram Stoker’s classic. The 1897 novel put vam...
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The Next Girl
Carla KovachIF YOU ONLY READ ONE BOOK THIS YEAR, MAKE IT THE NEXT GIRL... You thought he’d come to save you. You were wrong. ‘ Absolutely the best thriller I’ve read this year! ’ Goodreads Rev...
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Teased by Fire
Molly O'HareFrom USA Today bestselling author Molly O’Hare comes an enemiestolovers, older brother’s best friend, romantic comedy with a curvy, antisocial, supernaturalobsessed, allyearround h...
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Always Yours
Claire RayeSome things are just meant to be... Ellen Somerville and Will McIntyre met by accident and under unusual circumstances. Getting sprayed by a skunk in a parking lot wouldn’t normall...
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Whiskey Girl
Melissa BelleThey'll do anything for each other…except commit. Logan Wild isn’t just the hottest broncriding cowboy in Texas. He’s also my best friendwith benefits. And that’s all we’ll ev...
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A Bookshop to Die For
M.P. BlackDitching her fiancé at the altar, Alice Hartford bolts to her childhood hometown to reconnect with the last, happy remnant of her past: her mom's old bookstore. But the bookst...
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How to Choose a Guy in 10 Days
Lila MonroeThe only thing more hilarious than the movies is… real life?! Fall in love with the sizzling grumpysunshine romantic comedy perfect for fans of Sophie Kinsella and Ali Hazlewood! ...
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His Own Heaven
Jennie KewWinner of the 2021 Passionate Plume Award for BDSM Romance Finalist in the 2021 Stiletto Contest for Contemporary Romance He taught her to trust, she taught him to love. Lucy Bar...
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A Green Kind of Witch
Sierra CrossCinderella crossed with Mean Girls.   That's what Hazel's daily existence feels like. Born to a family of elegant yet shallow Beige Witches, seventeen y...
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Pride and Prejudice
Jane AustenAn Apple Books Classic edition. Jane Austen’s beloved classic opens with this witty and very memorable line: “It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possessio...
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The Art of War
Sun TzuAn Apple Books Classic edition. It’s believed that Sun Tzu wrote this Chinese military primer during the 5th century BChundreds of years before the Bible. The book’s 13 chapters ex...
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Rogue Alpha
Kimber WhiteOne touch made her crave him. But the pull of fate could be the path to ruin. College student Laura Prince lands a plum internship deep in the Michigan wilderness. When she discove...
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Teach Me
Cassandra DeanFrom awardwinning author Cassandra Dean comes a tale where lessons of pleasure between a curious, sunshine widow and a dissolute, grumpy earl leads to passion and allconsuming love...
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A Christmas Carol
Charles DickensAn Apple Books Classic edition. It’s Christmas Eve in Victorian England. While some families don’t know where their next meal will come from, Ebenezer Scrooge sits in his large hom...
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Tempting the King
Jessa YorkAn escaped Mafia Queen, hiding from her past. A Mafia King who wants to claim her… Giselle They think I'm lostbut I know better. I can never be found. The path I've creat...
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Silver Santa
Lacey SilksTrapped together on Christmas, their unintended onenight stand becomes a lifechanging encounter amidst the snow. Laura Young's professional role as a security guard at the Sil...
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Alpha
Sybil BartelBillionaire. Mercenary. Navy SEAL. The Teams trained me to be a killer. War taught me to be ruthless. Then an illfated mission proved I was human. Combat wounded, cut loose by the ...
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Good Guy
Kate MeaderHe's a Special Forces veteran making his pro hockey debut. She's a dogged sports reporter determined to get a scoop. She's also his best friend's widow . . . Fa...
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Enemies With Benefits
Roxie NoirI don’t love him. I don’t even like him. I just want him. Eli Loveless was my nemesis from the first day of kindergarten until we graduated high school. Everything I did, he had to...
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My Paper Heart
Magan VernonOne piece of paper can change everything After my parents received the letter I failed out of college, they didn't ask questions. They just sent me to work for my great aunt i...
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The Target
Lexy TimmsWhen you seek revenge be sure to dig two graves… Revenge was the only thing I had going for me. It kept me awake at night and drove me into desperate situations in dive bars across...
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Finding Cinderella
Colleen Hoover#1 New York Times bestselling author of It Starts with Us and It Ends With Us writes a free novella about the search for happily ever after. A chance encounter in the dark leads ei...
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Saltwater Cove
Amelia AddlerSecond chances...and the secrets that sabotage them. At 48 years old, Margie Clifton never expected to be starting her life all over again. But when her brother gifts her a propert...
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Peace on Earth
Maia RossCrime never takes a holiday. Why should Irma? Irma Abercrombie is an energetic retiree with a shadowy past, a mean right hook, and a profound love of Christmas. Surrounded by seaso...
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Nothing to Hide
Scarlett FinnPrize of a lifetime: travel the world with a celebrity billionaire. Come to LA with us, Roxie… It will be so much fun! We have tickets for a latenight talk show! What could possibl...
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Coffee Girl
Sophie SinclairMackenzie "Kiki" Forbes finds herself in a pickle. Either become her snarky sister's nanny, or move halfway across the country to work as assistanttothestylist of a ...
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Escape, A New Life
David J AntocciTo save herself, she had to lose everything. Trapped in a tropical paradise with no memory of how she got there, Abby is thrust into a fight for her life. Hunted by a madman, and c...
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The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes
Arthur Conan DoyleAn Apple Books Classic You get not one, not two, but 25 gripping mysteries in Arthur Conan Doyle’s first of five collections of Sherlock Holmes short stories. Follow the brilliant ...
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Hard Love
Peyton BanksHe was football royalty. Legendary quarterback. A champion.  Reiner Strickland had led his team to three national championships and playing a knight in shining armor was a...
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Become A Better Version of Yourself
Ben LeightonThis ebook contains golden nuggets on how to motivate, inspire and improve your current situation. It encompasses the holistic view of self improvement from mental& emotion...
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Dark Psychology and Manipulation
Margaret MorrisonTHE MENTAL MANIPULATOR WILL NO LONGER KEEP SECRETS FROM YOU! Are you fed up with the wool being pulled over your eyes?Are you prepared to stand up to those who believe they can man...
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The Four Loves
C. S. LewisThe Four Loves summarizes four kinds of human loveaffection, friendship, erotic love, and the love of God. Masterful without being magisterial, this book's wise, gentle, candi...
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Hot Off the Press
Lexy Timms"This is what really happened… reported by a free press, for a free people…" Wes Shaw leads a secret double life. As the secret owner of a billion dollar newspap...
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The Stoic Mind
Addy Osmani & GoLimitlesssDiscover the timeless wisdom of Stoicism in a modern context with "The Stoic Mind," an enlightening visual guide by Addy Osmani and GoLimitlesss. This rich exploration co...
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Think and Grow Rich
Greg Habstritt & Napoleon HillThink and Grow Rich is one of the most popular success book of alltime, having sold more than 60 million copies since it was first published more than 70...
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Wuthering Heights
Emily BrontëAn Apple Books Classic edition. If you’ve only ever seen Wuthering Heights on screen, you may have an image of Catherine and Heathcliff as the ultimate starcrossed lovers. But that...
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Assisting the Bosshole
Kristin MacQueenNo hot water? Check Missed the train? Check Broke my heel? Check Dropped my coffee? Check My first day of my new job can’t possibly go worse, right? Wrong. When I meet Parker Scott...
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Death at Hazel House
Betty Rowlands‘Riveting, can't put it down! I love this story… a wonderfully twisted tale of a crime that has more twists than I thought possible... fantastic.’ Goodreads Reviewer, 5 stars ...
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Man In The Water
Jon HillAn attempted murder. A missing spouse. And an international conspiracy that could change the world. Jack Green has always been skeptical of socalled facts. Though he's forced ...
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Once Upon A One-Night Stand
Zoey LockeAt first sight, there was electrifying chemistry.  So why not go for it? After all, Lynx Grove, the city's most eligible bachelor, wants to claim her, at least for th...
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Awaken Me
Jenna JacobHe was more than a ghost haunting my dreams…he was real. By day, I’m Julianna Garrett …a prim, proper accountant. By night, I’m tormented by dreams of an alpha, ambereyed Adonis wh...
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Little Women
Louisa May AlcottAn Apple Books Classic edition. Meet the Marches! Louisa May Alcott’s classic introduces us to four unforgettable sisters: beautiful Meg, tomboyish Jo, delicate Beth, and Amy, the ...
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Holy Bible
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day SaintsThe 2013 edition of the Holy Bible contains all of the study aids contained in the 1979 edition and includes revisions to the study aids, several new photos, updated maps, and adju...
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Becoming Lady Dalton
Carrie LomaxA dance of desire and deceit... In the glittering world of London's ton, Mrs. Viola Cartwright revels in her newfound freedom as a lady of leisureuntil a series of jewel theft...
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The Wonderful Wizard of Oz
L. Frank BaumAn Apple Books Classic edition. You’ve seen the iconic 1939 movie, but do you know about the talking field mice, the Winkies, and the Witch of the North that appear in the original...
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Salvation
Meghan O'FlynnIf you like mouthy detectives, serial killers, and suspenseful mysteries that don't quit, this chilling and actionpacked hardboiled detective series has you covered! Try this ...
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The Great Gatsby
F. Scott FitzgeraldAn Apple Books Classics edition. The Roaring Twenties are in full effect in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s riveting classic. Manabouttown Jay Gatsby seems to have it all, including loads of...
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Masters of Restraint
Ines JohnsonMy new boss is good at giving orders. But his latest demand is NSFW. Especially when his two business partners want in on our deal. My new boss My boss’s boss Their investor &#...