Who-or what-will you become, when the power to rule all is in your hand?Whoever holds a scepter, rules a gate. Whoever holds the scepter that rules all others, rules the world. A ruthless shadow magi, a cunning thief, a loyal fugitive, and a charming rogue will hunt-and be hunted-for the most powerful object in the land. But only one hand can hold the scepter-and a legacy of blood follows its grip. Take care in what you desire. Be careful in what you reach for. Beware the House of Scepters.

What would you do to save someone you love? In a world where layers of magic create worlds on top of our own, a girl desperately searches for a cure for death. From the hallowed halls of the magic world's most elite institution to the criminal underworld seething beneath it--where art comes alive and unimaginable power waits to be claimed--Ren will find the answer to who and what she is.

Unmasked, hunted, devastated, revealed... Kaveh, Nin, Taline, and Rone must decide what is worth fighting for-and who can be trusted to change the world.Brother against brother. Slayer against survivor. Tormentor against victim. Trust against hatred.Hope, betrayal, family, and love.... The end has come, the scepter demands payment, and only one can wear the crown.

From the bestselling author of Great Circle—for years Joan has been trying to forget her past, to find peace and satisfaction in her role as wife and mother. Few in her drowsy California suburb know her thrilling history: as a young American ballerina in Paris, she fell into a doomed, passionate romance with Soviet dance superstar Arslan Rusakov. After playing a leading role in his celebrated defection, Joan bowed out of the spotlight for good, heartbroken by Arslan and humbled by her own modest career. But when her son turns out to be a ballet prodigy, Joan is pulled back into a world she thought she'd left behind—a world of dangerous secrets, of Arslan, and of longing for what will always be just out of reach. “The inner lives of [Shipstead’s] characters feel as real and immediate as the shifting settings they inhabit: still-gritty mid-1970s Manhattan, shabbily elegant Paris, the sunbaked suburban sprawl of Southern California.” —Entertainment Weekly

The Tournament Trilogy follows the rise of the Tournament, a secretive, state-sponsored war game...and the stakes couldn't be higher. This collection contains the first three books in the series and is over 1000 pages of conspiracy, warfare, and murder! _____ Blue Fall (Book 1) If you knew about The Tournament, you'd know why they want it kept secret. People don't like to hear that state-sponsored war games are going on under their noses, in their cities, and on their streets. The world isn't ready to know that the most powerful among us can shape the future by wagering on these fights. People wouldn't understand if they learned that teams in The Tournament have the freedom to do almost anything, anywhere, to win. The Tournament was supposed to be the perfect game, and the perfect secret. Frank Youngsmith, a hapless insurance agent, was supposed to be a nobody, none the wiser. But sometimes things just don't work out like they're supposed to. When Frank stumbles into the dark world of The Tournament when the game is on, it's up to him to expose the secret...or die trying. Grey Winter (Book 2) Two players have been murdered. Two killers are on the loose. Nothing is what it seems. The world is awake now. The Tournament has captivated everyone, but no winner can be declared until the mystery of what happened to Team Blue is solved. Meanwhile, three new players are chosen to rebuild the fallen team, but they are young and inexperienced, and instantly targeted. Their survival is dependent upon their existence remaining a secret. But in the Tournament, secrets are hard to keep. New alliances are formed, old enemies are confronted, and the truth is finally revealed in Grey Winter. Black Spring (Book 3) The Black House gathers power and the remaining teams are divided. The Tournament will fall into the hands of Eddie Mazaryk and Team Black unless Ellie Willmore and Team Blue can stop them. But to stop Black, Ellie needs to pull off a miracle: unite sworn enemies to beat the best of the best. The stakes have never been higher. The winners own the Tournament. The losers forfeit everything...even their lives. Ties of friendship, love, and hate are put to the test under a hail of gunfire in Black Spring, the spectacular conclusion to The Tournament Trilogy.

When Alexander the Great died at the age of thirty-two, his empire stretched from the Adriatic Sea in the west all the way to modern-day India in the east. In an unusual compromise, his two heirs—a mentally damaged half brother, Philip III, and an infant son, Alexander IV, born after his death—were jointly granted the kingship. But six of Alexander’s Macedonian generals, spurred by their own thirst for power and the legend that Alexander bequeathed his rule “to the strongest,” fought to gain supremacy. Perhaps their most fascinating and conniving adversary was Alexander’s former Greek secretary, Eumenes, now a general himself, who would be the determining factor in the precarious fortunes of the royal family. James Romm, professor of classics at Bard College, brings to life the cutthroat competition and the struggle for control of the Greek world’s greatest empire.

Spiritual Rites, Spell Work, and Folk Practices to Enhance Your Well-Being and Personal Power Learn to better express your spirituality and build up your magical practice with this book's powerful spells, rituals, and tools. Designed to help you navigate whatever ups and downs life throws your way, Good Juju is your perfect choice for learning to embrace nature, the old ways, and the magick all around you. Using simple practices that don't interfere with any religions, Good Juju helps you lay a foundation for daily ritual work. You'll also learn how to craft mojos, create and work with altars, tune in to your intuition, and much more. Author Najah Lightfoot guides you in keeping your mind, body, and spirit strong as you discover your magical work and align with your higher power.

An in-depth look at the British monarchy that’s “a superb synthesis of historical analysis, politics, and top-notch royal gossip” (Kirkus Reviews). Since William the Conqueror, duke of Normandy, crossed the English Channel in 1066 to defeat King Harold II and unite England’s various kingdoms, forty-one kings and queens have sat on Britain’s throne. “Shining examples of royal power and majesty alongside a rogue’s gallery of weak, lazy, or evil monarchs,” as Tracy Borman describes them in her sparkling chronicle, Crown & Sceptre. Ironically, during very few of these 955 years has the throne’s occupant been unambiguously English—whether Norman French, the Welsh-born Tudors, the Scottish Stuarts, and the Hanoverians and their German successors to the present day. Acknowledging the intrinsic fascination with British royalty, Borman lifts the veil to reveal the remarkable characters and personalities who have ruled and, since the Restoration of the monarchy in 1660, more ceremonially reigned. It is a crucial distinction explaining the staying power of the monarchy as the royal family has evolved and adapted to the needs and opinions of its people, avoiding the storms of rebellion that brought many of Europe’s royals to an abrupt end. Richard II; Henry VIII; Elizabeth I; George III; Victoria; Elizabeth II: their names evoke eras and the dramatic events Borman recounts. She is equally attuned to the fabric of monarchy: royal palaces; the way monarchs have been portrayed in art, on coins, in the media; the ceremony and pageantry surrounding the crown. Elizabeth II is already one of the longest reigning monarchs in history. Crown & Sceptre is a fitting tribute to her remarkable longevity and that of the magnificent institution she represents. “Crown & Sceptre brings us in short, vivid chapters from William the Conqueror to Elizabeth herself, much of it constituting a dark record of bumping off adversaries, rivals and spouses, confiscating vast estates and military invasions…. [A] lucid, character-rich book.” —Minneapolis Star-Tribune “Borman’s deep understanding of English royalty shines.” —Chris Schluep, Amazon Editors’ Picks, The Best History Books of February 2022

Return to the the epic tale of the Lord of the Isles, David Drake's saga of magic and might. For the first time in a thousand years, the Kingdom of the Isles has a government and a real ruler: Prince Garric of Haft. The enemies joining against him intend to destroy not only the kingdom but humankind as well. The rebels gathering in the West outnumber the royal army and the magic they wield can strike into the heart of the palace itself, but far greater dangers lie behind those. On the far fringes of the Isles, ancient powers ready themselves for a titanic struggle in which human beings are mere pawns--or fodder! Reptilian and insect monsters from out of the ages march on the kingdom, commanded by wizards no longer human or never human at all. If unchecked, their ravening slaughter will sweep over the Isles as destructively as a flood of lava. Garric, ripped from his time and body, must make new allies if he and his kingdom are to survive. Watching them all from the blackness of a tomb walled off in time and space, the Mistress waits... And her fangs drip poison! At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.