A compendium of the greatest heroes of Middle-earth, all in one volume. J. R. R. Tolkien's fictional world of Middle-earth is filled with great heroes who rose in the face of crisis to shape the course of that world's history. This volume examines the complexities surrounding Tolkien's portrayal of good and evil, analyzing the most celebrated heroes from the earliest days of Arda to the end of the War of the Ring. Men, elves, dwarves, and their allies are covered in detail, and each hero's role in the battle against the forces of evil is discussed at length. This work is unofficial and is not authorized by the Tolkien Estate or HarperCollins Publishers.
Over half of Americans believe in a literal heaven, in a literal hell. Most people who hold these beliefs are Christian and assume they are the age-old teachings of the Bible. Ehrman shows that eternal rewards and punishments are found nowhere in the Old Testament, and are not what Jesus or his disciples taught. He recounts the long history of the afterlife, ranging from The Epic of Gilgamesh up to the writings of Augustine, focusing especially on the teachings of Jesus and his early followers. Ehrman shows that competing views were intimately connected with the social, cultural, and historical worlds out of which they emerged. -- adapted from jacket
Since the appearance of Theosophical literature in England, it has become customary to call its teachings “Esoteric Buddhism.” And, having become a habit—as an old proverb based on daily experience has it—“Error runs down an inclined plane, while Truth has to laboriously climb its way up hill.” Old truisms are often the wisest. The human mind can hardly remain entirely free from bias, and decisive opinions are often formed before a thorough examination of a subject from all its aspects has been made. This is said with reference to the prevailing double mistake (a) of limiting Theosophy to Buddhism; and (b) of confounding the tenets of the religious philosophy preached by Gautama, the Buddha, with the doctrines broadly outlined in Esoteric Buddhism. Any thing more erroneous than this could hardly be imagined. It has enabled our enemies to find an effective weapon against Theosophy, because, as an eminent Pâli scholar very pointedly expressed it, there was in the volume named “neither Esotericism nor Buddhism.” The esoteric truths, presented in Mr. Sinnett's work, ceased to be esoteric from the moment they were made public; nor did the book contain the religion of Buddha, but simply a few tenets from a hitherto hidden teaching, which are now explained and supplemented by many more in the present volumes. And even the latter, though giving out many fundamental tenets from the Secret Doctrine of the East, raise but a small corner of the dark veil. For no one, not even the greatest living Adept, would be permitted to, or could—even if he would—give out promiscuously to a mocking, unbelieving world that which has been so effectually concealed from it for long æons and ages. Esoteric Buddhism was an excellent work with a very unfortunate title, though it meant no more than does the title of this work, The Secret Doctrine. It proved unfortunate, because people are always in the habit of judging things by their appearance rather than by their meaning, and because the error has now become so universal, that even most of the Fellows of the Theosophical Society have fallen victims to the same misconception. From the first, however, protests were raised by Brâhmans and others against the title; and, in justice to myself, I must add that Esoteric Buddhism was presented to me as a completed volume, and that I was entirely unaware of the manner in which the author intended to spell the word “Budh-ism.”
To gain the only thing he truly wants, he’ll have to risk everything. A high fantasy paranormal romance by NYT Award Winning Author Michelle M. Pillow Juliana, newly appointed Queen of the Unblessed, has realized there is a bit more to her position than she first thought. Sure, it has its perks: a sinfully sexy husband who is also a king, growing powers, and a magical life that’s never boring, but the drawbacks are considerable. To save her kingdom from war, Juliana accepts assistance from a witch. But when her reality turns upside down, she realizes she’s been betrayed. For a brief time, Merrick knew happiness, as much happiness as the king of necessary evil could ever feel. Juliana has become the light in his darkness. Though he can never tell his wife he loves her—or risk upsetting the balance of both the mortal and immortal realms—the words are understood between them. Or so he thought. When she falls prey to a wayward spell, becoming encased in stone, he knows he’ll have to risk everything to gain the only thing he truly wants. Warning: This book contains sexy times, violence, an evil witch, a blundering wizard, meddling sprights, a new queen and the lustful king who plans on showing her just how fun it is to be in charge. Book Three of the Realm Immortal Series ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Praise For Stone Queen 5 Stars! "Ms. Pillow approaches the magical realm from a refreshingly new angle. Magic and myth are enhanced by mystery and romance with a topping of hot and steamy topping. I hope this book is not the last of the Realm Immortal as I'd love to read more." LASR "Twists abound in Pillow's third Realm Immortal tale, which boasts drama, intrigue and unique characters." Romantic Times Magazine "Michelle M. Pillow has created a fantastic series overflowing with magic and a plot so thick I found myself rereading different chapters to make sure I hadn't missed a thing. Lovers of Ms.Pillow's work will enjoy her latest book as it is enchanting and full of everything needed to keep you coming back for more." FAR Realm Immortal series: King of the Unblessed Faery Queen Stone Queen Length: Long Novel Plus Genres: Dark, High Fantasy, Epic, Medieval, Historical, Paranormal, Other-World Romance, fairies, elves, demons, fanciful creatures, shapeshifter, Psychic, paranormal romance, elf, fantasy romance, Wizards, Sorcery, action and adventure, alpha male, bad boy hero, damaged hero, dark romance, fae, fantasy, hea, kick ass heroine, kick butt chick, legends, labyrinth, magic, myths, romantic adventure, Wizards & Witches, sprights, knights, nobility, royalty, curse, morally gray hero, supernatural romance novels for adults, fairy tale fantasy
