Why would a man risk his life for a mother who abandoned him as an infant? Yet when Doug Sutherland is passed a scrawled note by a mortally-wounded Mexican, hes forced to overcome his resentment and related phobias to rescue her, recover a priceless pre-Hispanic artifact, and battle a ruthless smuggler to save himself. For Sutherland, a young Chicago entrepreneur, the dying mans note is meaningless and the warning that his Mexican mother is in danger presents a quandary. Even if true, why should he care? She deserted him thirty years earlier under suspicious circumstances. Besides, his life is already complicated by his love life, deadlines for his real estate project, and debilitating nightmares. In his dreams, hes stalked by a burning man, trapped in a small space, and thrown into an icy water grave, images he associates with his phobias, his mother, and her disappearance from his life. He tries to convince himself that the message was meant for someone else. But then his apartment is invaded, he receives threatening calls from a Mexican smuggler, the police accuse him of drug dealing, and a DEA agent harasses him. Sucked into a maelstrom, he must fight or become another victim.

Cuernavaca, often called the “Mexican Paradise” or “Land of Eternal Spring,” has a deep, rich history. Few visitors to this modern resort city near Mexico City would guess from its Spanish architecture and landmarks that it was governed by its Tlalhuican residents until the early nineteenth century. Formerly called Cuauhnahuac, the city was renamed by the Spanish in the sixteenth century when Hernando Cortés built his stone palacio on its main square and thrust Cuernavaca into the colonial age. In Visions of Paradise, Robert Haskett presents a history of Cuernavaca, basing his account on an important body of late-seventeenth-century historical records known as primordial titles, written by still unknown members of the Native population. Until comparatively recently, these indigenous-language documents have been dismissed as “false” or “forged” land records. Haskett, however, uses these Nahuatl texts to present a colorful portrait of how the Tlalhuicas of Cuernavaca and its environs made intellectual sense of their place in the colonial scheme, conceived of their relationship to the sacred worlds of both their native religion and Christianity, and defined their own history. Surveying the local history of Cuernavaca from precontact observations by the Aztecs through postclassic times to the present, with a concentration on early colonial times, Haskett finds that the Native authors of the primordial titles crafted a celebratory history proclaiming themselves to be an enduringly autonomous, essentially unconquered people who triumphed over the rigors of the Spanish colonial system.

Lisbon: City of the Sea is a beautifully written portrait of a much loved city, from its origins in Greek legend to the present day. Malcolm Jack vividly captures the rich and unique history of this haunting and attractive port whose prominent position on the Tagus estuary has inextricably bound its character with the sea. Lisbon is a city of steep inclines and complicated, unsymmetrical streets that criss-cross the hills only in the Baixa area near the river and in the more modern, northern part of the city does any form of a grid system appear. It has enjoyed a political history that has directed Portugal's focus more overseas than inland towards continental Europe, in part because of Spain's geographical position. Thus the city has been stretched in one direction toward Brazil and in another toward the Cape of Good Hope and from there to Asia and the East. Beginning with its earliest inhabitants, Jack traces the city's life through its imperial success in the sixteenth century and the devastating earthquake that humbled the city and shocked Europe in 1755 to its current position as a vibrant and successful European capital. Lisbon's romantic atmosphere has captured the imaginations of foreigners through the ages. Poets, writers and musicians have all drawn inspiration from different parts of Lisbon. This sensitive exploration of the city's many aspects draws out its cosmopolitan nature, as well as its colourful culture and self-image and brings us closer to understanding its true spirit. Engaging and accessible, this book will appeal to Lisbon's many visitors as well as anyone interested in European history.

Doug Sutherland considers himself lucky with a successful career, good health, and an attractive mate, Kelly. That luck is overturned when Sutherland’s best friend is murdered. Sam Baskin was an investigative journalist who was about to expose a conspiracy between an American drug company and a secret Cuban biological laboratory—a collaboration that both governments are determined to conceal. Baskin is murdered before revealing his findings but not before he hands his research over to Sutherland. Angered and provoked by their friend’s death, Sutherland and Kelly strive to complete his investigation, publish his shocking story, and avenge his brutal murder. Then, a series of near-fatal attacks persuade Sutherland that he can’t rely on luck and self-defense alone. Sutherland is convinced that his survival depends on crossing the line between self-defense and murder. He resolves to assassinate his antagonists and devises a risky plan to eliminate them. In his adopted role as executioner. Sutherland’s future hangs precariously on landing on the right side of luck. Now as a determined killer, he walks a thin wire between life and death.