This is the story of an ordinary English family that, partly because of the times through which they lived but more probably because of the choices they made, became an extraordinary family. The characters are drawn from life, but much poetic license has been taken, and the order of events and conversations of necessity, fictitious; but their stories are true. They are taken from the diaries, letters, and recollections of those who experienced them. Dates, times, and names have been changed to protect identities and privacy. It tells of the beautiful, gentle Catherine Hamilton, whose romantic dreams saw her caught up in a loveless marriage to an English policeman in Ceylon, manipulated into a web of deceit and cruelty. Her beloved sister, Victoria, talented, ambitious, and vivacious, who became the darling of the West End in prewar London, and of the trials and tribulations of the two young English women in the 1920s, in Ceylon. It tells of the heat, leopards, snakes, and the inherent dangers in the colony. Also of the men in their lives, and of the children, whose lives were so influenced by the choices of their parents. My father wanted this story told.

Becoming a Christian at a young age is common in many sects of Christianity. Andrea Hovet lived a destructive life under the assumption she was a Christian. Through abuse, hardships, and self-hatred, she blamed her misfortunes on God. She strayed form His path and became lost in the abyss of her sorrow. This story is based on the journal kept during the year she learned how deeply God loves her. This is her story. It portrays the grief as well as the joy and love she discovered when she finally laid her doubt and self-hatred before the Lord. She went from being a nonbeliever living in sin to committing herself to Gods holy name. The changes she went through and the changes in her perspective on life are just a few of the different ways God healed her brokenness. Facing the Waterfall is the metaphor God gave her in order to help her visualize the love He is pouring over her each and every day. All she need do is lift her face and allow Him to fill every crevice of her heart and soul with His unwavering love.

In this poetic and haunting tale set in contemporary Appalachia, New York Times bestselling author Ron Rash illuminates lives shaped by violence and a powerful connection to the land. Les, a long-time sheriff just three-weeks from retirement, contends with the ravages of crystal meth and his own duplicity in his small Appalachian town. Becky, a park ranger with a harrowing past, finds solace amid the lyrical beauty of this patch of North Carolina. Enduring the mistakes and tragedies that have indelibly marked them, they are drawn together by a reverence for the natural world. When an irascible elderly local is accused of poisoning a trout stream, Les and Becky are plunged into deep and dangerous waters, forced to navigate currents of disillusionment and betrayal that will force them to question themselves and test their tentative bond—and threaten to carry them over the edge. Echoing the heartbreaking beauty of William Faulkner and the spiritual isolation of Carson McCullers, Above the Waterfall demonstrates once again the prodigious talent of “a gorgeous, brutal writer” (Richard Price) hailed as “one of the great American authors at work today” (Janet Maslin, New York Times).

NAMED A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR BY ESQUIRE, THE IRISH TIMES AND THE TIMES LITERARY SUPPLEMENT A provocative history of men who were worshipped as gods that illuminates the connection between power and religion and the role of divinity in a secular age Ever since 1492, when Christopher Columbus made landfall in the New World and was hailed as a heavenly being, the accidental god has haunted the modern age. From Haile Selassie, acclaimed as the Living God in Jamaica, to Britain’s Prince Philip, who became the unlikely center of a new religion on a South Pacific island, men made divine—always men—have appeared on every continent. And because these deifications always emerge at moments of turbulence—civil wars, imperial conquest, revolutions—they have much to teach us. In a revelatory history spanning five centuries, a cast of surprising deities helps to shed light on the thorny questions of how our modern concept of “religion” was invented; why religion and politics are perpetually entangled in our supposedly secular age; and how the power to call someone divine has been used and abused by both oppressors and the oppressed. From nationalist uprisings in India to Nigerien spirit possession cults, Anna Della Subin explores how deification has been a means of defiance for colonized peoples. Conversely, we see how Columbus, Cortés, and other white explorers amplified stories of their godhood to justify their dominion over native peoples, setting into motion the currents of racism and exclusion that have plagued the New World ever since they touched its shores. At once deeply learned and delightfully antic, Accidental Gods offers an unusual keyhole through which to observe the creation of our modern world. It is that rare thing: a lyrical, entertaining work of ideas, one that marks the debut of a remarkable literary career.

This book is a real romance from our era. Lovers lost their way and made choices that cost them their relationship to grow. They travel to Costa Rica, meeting an ancient man who gives them a lot of information piques their curiosity. How does this man know them so well? Each does not know of the other being there. It has been about twenty years since their youth that they have seen one another. For Liana, it is a vacation to Costa Rica on her husband’s birthday. For Paolo, something drew him from North America to go there alone.as they are convinced to go to the jungle, they stand by the Waterfall and feel the long-forgotten past of this place. With the promise they are given by that ancient man, they go there to find their answers. They will have to make decisions. They will either revive their relationship or have closure and leave in peace. The place behind the Waterfall is another reality. It is in Costa Rica, or have they traveled in time and place? Neither one knows what the future will be like. Through the pages of this book, we will learn what life became for them. They were called to this place simultaneously; it was a coincidental meeting. Their experiences beyond the Waterfall and the other alternative realities were unknow to them. The many decisions they needed to make for the good of the tribe did not come easy; here was a price to pay; it was not without inner pain. The adventures that they would have never believed in without living them. Made the stronger, closer, and ready to meet any adversity. There was no reason to ask Princess Inguina and Abuelito for explanations and advice. To Paolo and Liana, there is no better place than life beyond the Waterfall. Paolo was happier, and Liana loved what they accomplished; the only fear she had was would Paolo abandon them? Will it work for them in this other reality? Will they stay there together? Will they go back to their own existence and separate or be together despite everything from the past still being in their lives? Will they grow stronger together? This reality will provide them the tools and the wisdom to make the right decisions or separate forever. This book also covers COVID-19 and climate change. The situation in their world in 2020 is not affecting and alternate reality, will it? That is a question they need to research. Can they help their world? Their families are there. Either one affects the people living beyond the Waterfall for over two thousand years.

Explore the power of male archetypes by calling upon the energies of specific godforms. This guidebook and companion volume to Invoke the Goddess shows you how to activate a positive and powerful connection to fifteen gods from three different pantheons--Hindu, Greek, and Egyptian--with ritualized meditations and visualizations. ·To increase initiative-elicit the dynamic energy of Hermes ·For greater power-invoke the might of Zeus ·For career success-seek the business savvy of Ganesh ·For magickal prowess-call upon the prophetic wisdom of Thoth The gods live in our very midst, inside as well as outside of our own psyches. Invoke the Gods presents the history, lore, and instruction you need to incorporate their archetypal powers into your life.

Gabriella has never spent a summer in Italy like this one. Remaining means giving up all she's known and loved . . . and leaving means forfeiting what she's come to know--and love itself. Most American teenagers want a vacation in Italy, but the Bentarrini sisters have spent every summer of their lives with their parents, famed Etruscan scholars, among the romantic hills. In Book One of the River of Time series, Gabi and Lia are stuck among the rubble of medieval castles in rural Tuscany on yet another hot, boring, and dusty archeological site . . . until Gabi places her hand atop a handprint in an ancient tomb and finds herself in fourteenth-century Italy. And worse yet, in the middle of a fierce battle between knights of two opposing forces. And thus she comes to be rescued by the knight-prince Marcello Falassi, who takes her back to his father's castle--a castle Gabi has seen in ruins in another life. Suddenly Gabi's summer in Italy is much, much more interesting. But what do you do when your knight in shining armor lives, literally, in a different world?

It was said that there was a stream of sword Qi in the myriad realms of heaven and earth, which could be condensed into the most tyrannical sharp sword. As long as a person completely possessed of this sword, they would be able to sweep across the world, ignore the limitations of any realm, and become the strongest and most arrogant person in the world. The youth, Ling Jian, encountered a natural disaster during the Shaolin trial in his previous life. His soul transmigrated to another world and accidentally encountered this sword energy. He desired to step onto the peak of all worlds! I have one pupil that can accommodate all living things, but Na Baichuan can control all swords. If you give me a sword, I can break through the firmament. I can suppress all lands, and I can control the heavens. If you give me a single blade, I can bury the Heavens and the Earth, I can cut down outstanding individuals, and I can break through ten thousand worlds. If you shoot me, you can point to heaven, you can pass through hell, and you can stir up the winds and clouds. Close]

If God is all-knowing and all-powerful, can he in any way be vulnerable to his creation? Can God be in control of anything at all if he is not constantly in control of everything? John Sanders says yes to both of these questions. In The God Who Risks, he mounts a careful and challenging argument for positive answers to both of these profound theological questions. In this thoroughly revised edition, Sanders clarifies his position and responds to his critics. His book will not only contribute to serious ongoing theological discussion but will enlighten pastors and laypersons who struggle with questions about suffering, evil and human free will.

The transcendent divine might and ten million martial spirits, who could be invincible? The trash of the family, once he awakened, he destroyed the genius! In this life, those who did not run errands had to use their hot blood to exchange for invincible Tao techniques. They had to climb to the top, be proud and proud throughout the ages, and become a Martial God! — — Lin Yue