On growing up in the American South of the 1960s—an all-American white boy—son of a long line of Methodist preachers, in the midst of the civil rights revolution, and discovering the culpability of silence within the church. By the Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and columnist for The Birmingham News. "My dad was a Methodist preacher and his dad was a Methodist preacher," writes John Archibald. "It goes all the way back on both sides of my family. When I am at my best, I think it comes from that sermon place." Everything Archibald knows and believes about life is "refracted through the stained glass of the Southern church. It had everything to do with people. And fairness. And compassion." In Shaking the Gates of Hell, Archibald asks: Can a good person remain silent in the face of discrimination and horror, and still be a good person? Archibald had seen his father, the Rev. Robert L. Archibald, Jr., the son and grandson of Methodist preachers, as a moral authority, a moderate and a moderating force during the racial turbulence of the '60s, a loving and dependable parent, a forgiving and attentive minister, a man many Alabamians came to see as a saint. But was that enough? Even though Archibald grew up in Alabama in the heart of the civil rights movement, he could recall few words about racial rights or wrongs from his father's pulpit at a time the South seethed, and this began to haunt him. In this moving and powerful book, Archibald writes of his complex search, and of the conspiracy of silence his father faced in the South, in the Methodist Church and in the greater Christian church. Those who spoke too loudly were punished, or banished, or worse. Archibald's father was warned to guard his words on issues of race to protect his family, and he did. He spoke to his flock in the safety of parable, and trusted in the goodness of others, even when they earned none of it, rising through the ranks of the Methodist Church, and teaching his family lessons in kindness and humanity, and devotion to nature and the Earth. Archibald writes of this difficult, at times uncomfortable, reckoning with his past in this unadorned, affecting book of growth and evolution.

The door was not locked, and opened easily. He switched on the light, and Richard followed him into the room. Nella lay on the bed. She had on the nightdress she had been lent, but the bedclothes had been pulled halfway down. Her head was twisted back grotesquely. Her mouth gaped open and her tongue had been cut out. It had been carefully placed in the valley between her naked breasts. The Duke de Richleau and his friends had faced many dangers in Russia, Spain and Nazi Germany. Now, a new and unexpected menace confronts them: the fourth member of their group, Rex van Ryn, is missing – and he has made off with more than a million dollars from the Buenos Aires branch of his family bank. Behind the conventional courtesy of Argentinian society lies a conspiracy of terror and silence – and a trail that leads straight to the Devil himself . . .

The Gates of Hell is the follow up to Michael Livingston’s amazing The Shards of Heaven, a historical fantasy that reveals the hidden magic behind the history we know, and commences a war greater than any mere mortal battle. Alexandria has fallen, and with it the great kingdom of Egypt. Cleopatra is dead. Her children are paraded through the streets in chains wrought of their mother's golden treasures, and within a year all but one of them will be dead. Only her young daughter, Cleopatra Selene, survives to continue her quest for vengeance against Rome and its emperor, Augustus Caesar. To show his strength, Augustus Caesar will go to war against the Cantabrians in northern Spain, and it isn't long before he calls on Juba of Numidia, his adopted half-brother and the man whom Selene has been made to marry—but whom she has grown to love. The young couple journey to the Cantabrian frontier, where they learn that Caesar wants Juba so he can use the Trident of Poseidon to destroy his enemies. Perfidy and treachery abound. Juba's love of Selene will cost him dearly in the epic fight, and the choices made may change the very fabric of the known world. “Livingston has spiced real history with a compelling dose of fantasy! Wonderfully imaginative and beautifully told.” —Bernard Cornwell, bestselling author of The Pagan Lord, on The Shards of Heaven At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

In this raw and moving memoir, Claude Thomas describes his service in Vietnam, his subsequent emotional collapse, and his remarkable journey toward healing. At Hell's Gate is not only a gripping coming-of-age story but a spiritual travelogue from the horrors of combat to the discovery of inner peace—a journey that inspired Thomas to become a Zen monk and peace activist who travels to war-scarred regions around the world. "Everyone has their Vietnam," Thomas writes. "Everyone has their own experience of violence, calamity, or trauma." With simplicity and power, this book offers timeless teachings on how we can all find healing, and it presents practical guidance on how mindfulness and compassion can transform our lives. This expanded edition features: • Discussion questions for reading groups • A new afterword by the author reflecting on how the current wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are affecting soldiers—and offering advice on how to help returning soldiers to cope with their combat experiences

The Union of Arcana has become the most powerful civilization in human history, expanding through the portals linking parallel universes and laying claim to one uninhabited planet after another. But now the Union's scouts have discovered a new portal, on the far side of which lies a shattering revelation.

New York City politics have always been filled with intrigue and shady deals. Assistant DA Alex Cooper and her NYPD colleagues find themselves investigating a shipwreck involving human cargo - illegally trafficked immigrants - at the same time a sex scandal threatens the career of a promising young congressman. When Alex discovers that a young woman who died in the wreck and the congressman's murdered lover have the same tattoo - the brand of the mastermind behind the trafficking operation - she realizes that the city's entire political landscape hangs in the balance.

Michael Livingston's The Shards of Heaven reveals the hidden magic behind the history we know, and commences a war greater than any mere mortal battle Julius Caesar is dead, assassinated on the senate floor, and the glory that is Rome has been torn in two. Octavian, Caesar's ambitious great-nephew and adopted son, vies with Marc Antony and Cleopatra for control of Caesar's legacy. As civil war rages from Rome to Alexandria, and vast armies and navies battle for supremacy, a secret conflict may shape the course of history. Juba, Numidian prince and adopted brother of Octavian, has embarked on a ruthless quest for the Shards of Heaven, lost treasures said to possess the very power of the gods-or the one God. Driven by vengeance, Juba has already attained the fabled Trident of Poseidon, which may also be the staff once wielded by Moses. Now he will stop at nothing to obtain the other Shards, even if it means burning the entire world to the ground. Caught up in these cataclysmic events, and the hunt for the Shards, are a pair of exiled Roman legionnaires, a Greek librarian of uncertain loyalties, assassins, spies, slaves . . . and the ten-year-old daughter of Cleopatra herself. At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

Rake at the Gates of Hell: Shane MacGowan in Context is a mix of Irish history and culture, biography, and music criticism. It explores Shane MacGowan "s art by juxtaposing details of his life with those elements of Irish culture and history that inform the themes in his work. The book presents MacGowan "s life chronologically, supplementing information on Irish history and culture at those points where it can best illuminate MacGowan "s story. His career with the Nips, the Pogues, and the Popes is covered extensively. The book includes critical assessments of significant live performances and all studio recordings made with each of these three bands. MacGowan "s life story is told warts and all. His hedonistic lifestyle and history of substance abuse is reported in a way that neither sensationalizes nor minimizes the facts. The text is enlivened by extensive quotations, primarily from MacGowan himself, which were either taken from conversations with the author or culled from published interviews. The book explores several themes prominent in MacGowan "s work. Foremost among these are Irish Republicanism, the Irish Republican Army, Irish emigration, and various factors that contribute to Irish emigration. While the discussion of these topics is not exhaustive, it is detailed enough to enhance appreciation of Shane MacGowan "s art. Moreover, Rake at the Gates of Hell: Shane MacGowan in Context is the only book yet written that chronicles MacGowan "s remarkable comeback with the Pogues, the band that fired him nearly two decades ago.

Though the Body of Christ has faced persecution throughout its history, these attacks will never be victorious. In this book, the authors show how these attackers are on the wrong side of history--those opposed to Christianity have been destined to lose, as the Church continues to grow--and give readers hope for tomorrow and Christlike responses that can help make a difference.