The battered, old book in her pack is the key, but Xyleena cannot remember why. In fact, all she can remember is waking up in the healer's wing of the Temple. As she struggles to make sense of it all and the dreams that haunt her, Dimitri, a man who knows exactly what he wants and is willing to do anything to get it, begins his quest for revenge. Disguised, Dimitri, together with his small band of cohorts, sneak into the Temple in search of the key that will unlock the greatest secret on all of Ithnez; the key which lies with Xyleena. A battle over the book in her possession forces Xyleena onto a quest for answers and her own retribution. Determined to stay one step ahead of Dimitri, she finds herself teaming up with the unlikeliest of allies in the hopes of finding the long lost Dragons of Light. Only with these fabled creatures will Xyleena and her friends be able to save their world from the clutches of Dimitri's evil plans.
Nearly five centuries ago, on a planet called Ithnez, a violent struggle between good and evil tore the world apart. The conflict lasted for several years and saw the creation of the greatest treasures the planet would ever know: Dragons. With the battle finally won, the evil Shadow Dragons were sealed away far beyond anyone's reach, and the heroic Dragons of Light were hidden in various places throughout the planet. Now, as Ithnez teeters on the edge of a great war between the predominant races of the world, that ancient evil once again begins to stir, threatening to free the Shadow Dragons and unleash a perpetual darkness that will consume the planet. It is up to Xyleena, an orphan raised as a Daughter of the Temple, and her band of unlikely allies to seek out and find the lost Dragons of Light before the world is forever destroyed.
For Jinx, the AEON Agency's only teenage Shadow Demon, the summer has been a never-ending stream of nightmares and little rest. So when a fuzzy, little messenger shows up with a message from the Queen of the Banshees asking for assistance, Jinx is glad for the distraction. But the case takes a turn for the worse right off the bat and Jinx is left scrambling for answers as to how to stop a deadly Lullaby. Just when everything is spiraling out of control and it seems the Netherworld has won the war for the Mortal Realm, an unexpected ally comes to Jinx's aid, but at a steep price. And, to make things even more frustrating, Jinx is about to discover a shocking secret: a revelation that will change her life forever.
When the mysterious Shadow-Fire Cross suddenly returns after weeks of laying low, AEON Agent Cybil "Jinx" Starr knows that sometimes a good girl has to be bad. And keeping his secret could make her wind up in AEON's prison - or worse: dead. But that's the least of her problems. Between a peculiar bombing, profound murders, and winning lottery tickets, AEON is left chasing their tails. The pressure is on Jinx and her still-developing psychic powers to find the connection to the crimes. No matter how hard she tries, the vicious killer always seems to be one step ahead. How can Jinx possibly hope to out-prophet the Prophet?
The new Dragon Diary novel from the author of Flying Blind. Zoë Sorensson yearns to come into her powers as the only female dragon shifter. But being part of two worlds is more complicated than she expected. It's bad enough that she's the target of the Mages's plan to eliminate all shifters-but she also has to hide her true nature from her human best friend, Megan. But when Megan gets a last-minute invite to the popular kids' Halloween party-hosted by an apprentice Mage-Zoë must save the day and her best friend without revealing her fire- breathing secrets...
"A must read for all young adult fiction fans!" -5-Star reviewer "D.C. and Michael pack a wealth of wonder and fantasy into this young adult adventure. Incorporating some of the most fascinating legends…I found myself being drawn to the depth of the characters and enjoyed watching their bonds grow as they explored the gifts hidden deep within them as well as the evil that hunts for them. I recommend this story for anyone who loves folklore and monstrous fun! From vampires to dragons, from witches to eerie ferrymen, this tale has it all." Solomon J. Inkwell, Author of Vickie Van Helsing The attack on Hunter’s Grove High School by a Greater demon and the bully Donnie Wickles delivered a crushing blow to Charlie Sullivan, his friends, their families, and their once quiet, peaceful community. Everyone soon discovers the demon terrorizing Hunter’s Grove is only the beginning of their troubles. A trail of destructive, sinister activity—including the theft of a dangerous artifact, the release of a bloodthirsty Greater from captivity, and the threat of all six main portal cities coming under siege—stretches Charlie Sullivan and a broken and tired team of monster hunters across the globe. The first team lands in Japan, at the site of one of the most embarrassing events in the country’s history—Rashomon, the Dragon Gate. There, Charlie Sullivan faces the King of Demons, his vengeful lieutenant, and an army of creatures rising from the worst of nightmares. What happens next triggers a series of global cataclysmic events that some will not survive. A new breed of monsters is released to level chaos against humanity as the master plan and purpose of evil in our world is revealed. Suffering loss, exhaustion, and being tested beyond the limits of human understanding, Charlie Sullivan and the Monster Hunters face their most dangerous task as they set out to quell an ancient darkness that has now been awakened. "I picked this book up for my oldest daughter. I thought she might enjoy it and asked her to let me know what she thought. She loved it! I ended up reading it with her and I have to say that I enjoyed the story as much, maybe more, than she did." -Amazon reviewer "The characters are real enough that I found myself cheering them on and hoping they succeed in their mission. I look forward to reading the next installment." Amazon reviewer From The Authors We began this journey together, as father and son, with the goal of writing a story that spoke to friendship, overcoming obstacles (and the ultimate evils in our world), and of the power of working together to face the biggest challenges in our lives. Yes, it's full of monsters, peril, and steeped in exciting mythology and folklore, but it centers around the powerful bonds formed between an unlikely group of friends as they face a unique set of challenges. We wanted to write a story that we would be proud to read aloud to our then newborn son/baby brother (who now, years later, has read them through twice more). It has turned into the adventure of a lifetime as we are meeting people from all over the world who are falling in love with Charlie Sullivan, Darcy Witherington, Nash Stormstepper, and the twins Lisa & Liev Vadinknov - along with a wild, often humorous, and mysterious cast of humans and monsters alike. Charlie Sullivan and the Monster Hunters: The Dragon Gate (Book 4) is the next adventure in the series, with Rise of the Ancients (Book 5) to be released soon, and a total of 6 books in the series! "In my opinion, this series deserves to be a huge hit ... I can guarantee you'll be hooked!"
The discovery of life on other planets would be perhaps the most momentous revelation in human history, more disorienting and more profound than either the Copernican or Darwinian revolutions, which knocked the earth from the center of the universe and humankind from its position of lofty self-regard. In Here Be Dragons, astronomer David Koerner and neurobiologist Simon LeVay offer a scientifically compelling and colorful account of the search for life beyond Earth. The authors survey the work of biologists, cosmologists, computer theorists, NASA engineers, SETI researchers, roboticists, and UFO enthusiasts and debunkers as they attempt to answer the greatest remaining question facing humankind: Are we alone? From their "safe haven of skepticism" the authors venture into the "rough seas of speculation," where theory and evidence run the gamut from hard science to hocus pocus. Arguing that the universe is spectacularly suited for the evolution of living creatures, Koerner and LeVay give us ringside seats at the great debates of Big Science. The contenitous arguments about what really happens in evolution, the acrimonious UFO controversy, and the debate over intelligence versus artificial intelligence shed new light on the wildly divergent claims about the universe and life's place in it. The authors argue that while no direct evidence of extraterrestrial life yet exists, habitats and chemical building blocks for life abound in the universe. A wealth of new astronomical techniques and space missions may provide this evidence early in the next century. Lucidly written and scientifically rigorous, Here Be Dragons presents everything we know thus far about the emergence of intelligent life here on earth and, perhaps, beyond.
Winner of the 2023 On the Brinck Book Award, presented by the University of New Mexico School of Architecture + Planning An auspicious political landscape, represented in image and text In 1702, the second emperor of the Qing dynasty ordered construction of a new summer palace in Rehe (now Chengde, Hebei) to support his annual tours north among the court’s Inner Mongolian allies. The Mountain Estate to Escape the Heat (Bishu Shanzhuang) was strategically located at the node of mountain “veins” through which the Qing empire’s geomantic energy was said to flow. At this site, from late spring through early autumn, the Kangxi emperor presided over rituals of intimacy and exchange that celebrated his rule: garden tours, banquets, entertainments, and gift giving. Stephen Whiteman draws on resources and methods from art and architectural history, garden and landscape history, early modern global history, and historical geography to reconstruct the Mountain Estate as it evolved under Kangxi, illustrating the importance of landscape as a medium for ideological expression during the early Qing and in the early modern world more broadly. Examination of paintings, prints, historical maps, newly created maps informed by GIS-based research, and personal accounts reveals the significance of geographic space and its representation in the negotiation of Qing imperial ideology. The first monograph in any language to focus solely on the art and architecture of the Kangxi court, Where Dragon Veins Meet illuminates the court’s production and deployment of landscape as a reflection of contemporary concerns and offers new insight into the sources and forms of Qing power through material expressions. Art History Publication Initiative
In a riveting narrative of daredevils and eccentrics, Fergus Fleming gives us the breathtaking story of some of history's greatest explorers as they conquer the soaring peaks of the Alps. Fleming recounts the incredible exploits of the men whose centuries-old fear of the mountain range turned quickly to curiosity, then to obsession, as they explored Europe's frozen wilderness. In the late eighteenth century French and Swiss scientists became interested in the Alps as a research destination, but in the 1850s the focus changed: the icy mountains now offered an all-out competition for British climbers who wanted to conquer ever higher and more impossible heights, and explorers fought each other on the peaks and in the press, entertaining a vast public smitten with their bravery, delighted by their personal animosities, and horrified by the disasters that befell them. "...excellent popular history, with its proper share of mad dogs and Englishmen....Fleming's rendition is dramatic and masterful." -- Anthony Brandt, National Geographic Adventure
