Strange Heaven is tearfully hilarious, as funny and appalling as reality. Bridget Murphy, almost eighteen, has come to Halifax from industrial Cape Breton, had her baby, and given it up for adoption. Transferred to the psych ward of the children's hospital, she's incarcerated with five seriously disturbed teenagers and a flock of wan children. She's depressed, they say. Apathetic. Bridget is a bit detached, but Four South is peaceful compared with the chaos back home. Her grandmother, Margaret P., raves and prays from her bed, banging the wall with her bedpan. Bridget's parents, Robert and Joan, take care of her and her mentally handicapped son, Rollie. Joan tries to keep the lid on, but she's no match for Robert's wild profanity, Margaret's dementia, and Rollie's efforts to join the fray. Uncle Albert, a kind man who saves his eloquent wrath for outsiders, springs Bridget from the hospital for Christmas. But home is more chaotic than ever, and she's sick of her boozy friends and the whining of the baby's father. She had half planned to hibernate at home till kingdom come, but it's become like a lurid movie she saw eons ago and she's forgotten the plot. Her future may be unclear, but she has a good idea of the direction it won't take.
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From the critically acclaimed author of In Darkling Wood comes a spine-tingling novel inspired by Frankenstein with more than a hint of mystery and suspense. One stormy June evening, five friends meet at Villa Diodati, the summer home of Lord Byron. After dinner is served, they challenge each other to tell ghost stories that will freeze the blood. But one of the guests--Mary Shelley--is stuck for a story to share. Then there's an unexpected knock at the front door. Collapsed on the doorstep is a girl with strange scars on her face. She has traveled a long way with her own tale to tell, and now they all must listen. Hers is no ordinary ghost story, though. What starts as a simple tale of village life soon turns to tragedy and the darkest, most dangerous of secrets. Sometimes the truth is far more terrifying than fiction . . . and the consequences are even more devastating. Praise for Emma Carroll's In Darkling Wood: "A haunting and poignant exploration of family, loss, and redemption." --Booklist, Starred "A tale brimming with emotion and atmosphere. . . . [In Darkling Wood] is absorbing and well written. Hand this to readers who enjoy fantasy, fairy tales, and magical realism."--School Library Journal, Starred "Magic and mystery adds appeal to this already compelling family drama...and Carroll manages to wrap all of the threads into a wholly satisfying ending."--Bulletin
The Heaven's Gate suicides were part of a series of major violent incidents involving New Religions in the 1990s. Despite the major attention that Heaven's Gate attracted, there have been few scholarly studies. This anthology on Heaven's Gate includes a combination of articles previously published in academic journals, some new writings from experts in the field, and some original Heavens Gate documents. All the material is expertly brought together under the editorship of George Chryssides.
Heaven's Own is a suspense story about the next stage in human evolution, about a young man in a useless body who is swiftly and methodically being pulled into its dark mental undertow, and the evil man who purports to own his soul. It is about a sister who he loves more than life itself and a mystical neighbor who searches him out then starts him on a road towards enlightenment. It includes a hard nosed detective who begins to waver towards believing in the unknown, a planned and purposeful murder, attacks on innocent lives in a plot that has only begun to thicken, and a dangerous evil that needs to be stopped or else.
The Nephilim were kicked out of heaven and now wander the earth looking for forgiveness and a new purpose among both angels and people. Summary: "Heaven's Outcasts" is a moving story about the Nephilim, who were sent out of heaven for breaking the rules of the realm. Imagine being locked out of your house and not knowing what to do. This is how the Nephilim felt when they first came to Earth. Heaven was not at all like the world, which had mountains, rivers, and lots of animals. The Nephilim were scared and wondered if they would ever be happy or fit in again. After that, something amazing happened. As they explored this new world, they met many different kinds of animals and people. Their first meeting was with Bella, a friendly bird who showed them around Earth and introduced them to her friends. People who were Nephilim started to use their special abilities for good. For example, they helped farms with their crops, saved animals in danger, and cheered up kids who were sad. So, they did great things and felt like they had a purpose in their new life on Earth. But not everything was easy. Before, there was a mistake that made the Nephilim feel alone in a group. However, the villagers realized they were wrong and were happy to see the Nephilim because of a little girl named Lily, who saw the Nephilim's good traits. Even though kindness and patience can change people's thoughts, this showed the Nephilim that people can be afraid of things they don't understand. Then, when an angel from heaven visited, their trip took a turn they didn't expect. The angel told them that their good deeds on Earth made God happy. They were told they had a new job: to protect Earth with kindness and hope. It was exciting and clear to the Nephilim what they had to do. Even though they had a lot of problems, they were never alone. They had each other and their new friends to help them get through anything. Protecting the town from a strong storm was a big problem they had to deal with. The Nephilim worked together to protect each other and used their skills. People in the area thanked them for being brave and kind, which cemented their place in the community. They were no longer outsiders; they were now dear friends. In the end, the Nephilim decided to stay on Earth instead of going back to heaven. They were determined to reach their goal because they loved their new home so much. They lived with people and other animals and shared kindness, love, and hope. We can learn a lot from "Heaven's Outcasts" about how to understand, accept, and value second chances. It shows that everyone can make a change and find their place in the world, no matter where they come from. We can learn to be brave, kind, and selfless from the story of the Nephilim. Moving, making new friends, and realizing that everyone deserves a second chance to do things right are all parts of this story. Chapter 1: The Fall Heaven was a place of unmatched beauty and peace, perched high above clouds that sparkled with golden light in the enchanted world of the deep blue sky. There were many angels living in this heavenly world, and they were all nice and helpful. There was also a strange race of animals called the Nephilim. Heavenly beings loved the Nephilim for their amazing skills, kind hearts, beautiful wings, and eyes. But their journey suddenly went in a different direction, starting a new era in Heaven's past full of strange events. Nephilim, who were always interested in new things and seeking excitement, had to make a tough choice one day. They broke Heaven's most important rule without meaning to, at a time that would change their fate forever. This law was made by the highest authority to keep the peace and order in this celestial place. This rule was broken because people didn't follow it, and it also upset the delicate balance that kept Heaven and its people in perfect peace. What they did had terrible results right away. Because the Nephilim were so bad, they were sent out of Heaven as a punishment. Even though this choice was bad for everyone, it had to be made to follow the rules that guide the celestial worlds. Even though the angels used to admire the Nephilim, they now found themselves falling from the sky, going through the clouds, and landing on Earth. They were filled with fear and uncertainty. Once the Nephilim arrived on Earth, they found a world that was very different from the paradise they had experienced in heaven. They were in a place with lush woods, huge oceans that seemed to whisper secrets from deep within, and mountains that reached for the sky. The Nephilim, on the other hand, felt lost in this amazing beauty, as if they had lost their way. While they were traveling around the world, they felt very alone and couldn't figure out why they were there. To fall from Heaven wasn't just to hit the ground; it was a journey into the unknown, full of obstacles and lessons to be learned. It was the start of a trip that would test their bravery, make them question their beliefs, and change them completely by the end. When the Nephilim came into contact with people and nature, they started a trip to learn more about them. It was their hope to find a new mission that would give their time on Earth for purpose and for forgiveness. Even though they were scared and didn't trust each other, their fall from Heaven was the beginning of an amazing journey. It was an invitation to find the strong bonds of friendship, to look inside themselves, and to learn what it really means to forgive. There were challenges in this new part of their lives, but there was also hope. It was like a lighthouse pointing them toward a time when they would be able to find their place in the world again, this time as valued guardians of a brand-new home instead of misfits.
A trio of mismatched mercenaries is hired by a young woman to evaluate the safety of a boy who may have been taken against his will to a New Mexico backwoods settlement, where the mercenaries encounter paranoia, mistrust, and insanity in the shadow of a monolithic idol.
An unknown masterpiece of visionary art—as daring as Blake or Goya, but utterly different—reproduced in full color, with a commentary by one of our most original art historians Somewhere in Europe—we don't know where—around 1700. An artist is staring at something on the floor next to her worktable. It's just a log from the woodpile, stood on end. The soft, damp bark; the gently raised growth rings; the dark radial cracks—nothing could be more ordinary. But as the artist looks, and looks, colors begin to appear—shapes—even figures. She turns to a sheet of paper and begins to paint. Today this anonymous artist's masterpiece is preserved in the University of Glasgow Library. It is a manuscript in a plain brown binding, whose entire contents, beyond a cryptic title page, are fifty-two small, round watercolor paintings based on the visions she saw in the ends of firewood logs. This book reproduces the entire sequence of paintings in full color, together with a meditative commentary by the art historian James Elkins. Sometimes, he writes, we can glimpse the artist's sources—Baroque religious art, genre painting, mythology, alchemical manuscripts, emblem books, optical effects. But always she distorts her images, mixes them together, leaves them incomplete—always she rejects familiar stories and clear-cut meanings. In this daring refusal to make sense, Elkins sees an uncannily modern attitude of doubt and skepticism; he draws a portrait of the artist as an irremediably lonely, amazingly independent soul, inhabiting a distinct historical moment between the faded Renaissance and the overconfident Enlightenment. What Heaven Looks Like is a rare event: an encounter between a truly perceptive historian of images, and a master conjurer of them.
