Rudi Mackenzie has won the battle that expelled the enemy from the new High Kingdom of Montival. Now he must free the people who live in the state once known as Idaho from occupation by the legions of the Church Universal and Triumphant and pursue them to their lair over the mountains. There he will finally confront the forces behind the Church—the Powers of the Void. Yet even a victory will not end the conflict forever. The Powers of the Void are malevolent and infinitely patient, and the struggle is one that involves the entire world. They threaten not only Rudi in the present, but also the future represented by his children, Órlaith and John. Rudi knows this. And as his heir Princess Órlaith grows up in the shadow of her famous father, she also realizes that the enemy will do anything to see that she does not live to fulfill her parents’ dream….

To bring peace and order to a galaxy at war, Jacen Solo will sacrifice anything - or anyone. Now the moment of choice is at hand. Jacen must pass one final test before he can gain the awesome power of a true Sith Lord: he must bring about the death of someone he values dearly. Who will he choose?

The idea and practice of sacrifice play a profound role in religion, ethics, and politics. In this brief book, philosopher Moshe Halbertal explores the meaning and implications of sacrifice, developing a theory of sacrifice as an offering and examining the relationship between sacrifice, ritual, violence, and love. On Sacrifice also looks at the place of self-sacrifice within ethical life and at the complex role of sacrifice as both a noble and destructive political ideal. In the religious domain, Halbertal argues, sacrifice is an offering, a gift given in the context of a hierarchical relationship. As such it is vulnerable to rejection, a trauma at the root of both ritual and violence. An offering is also an ambiguous gesture torn between a genuine expression of gratitude and love and an instrument of exchange, a tension that haunts the practice of sacrifice. In the moral and political domains, sacrifice is tied to the idea of self-transcendence, in which an individual sacrifices his or her self-interest for the sake of higher values and commitments. While self-sacrifice has great potential moral value, it can also be used to justify the most brutal acts. Halbertal attempts to unravel the relationship between self-sacrifice and violence, arguing that misguided self-sacrifice is far more problematic than exaggerated self-love. In his exploration of the positive and negative dimensions of self-sacrifice, Halbertal also addresses the role of past sacrifice in obligating future generations and in creating a bond for political associations, and considers the function of the modern state as a sacrificial community.

The concept of sacrifice has been part of the human condition since before recorded time. Dating back to the earliest civilizations, sacrifices have been made for personal, religious, or social reasons. From archaeological records, evidence of the sacrifice of food, grains, animals, and even humans is well documented. From Mesopotamia to Egypt, from the Mayans to the Aztecs, they all exhibited some forms of sacrifice for a variety of reasons. As citizens of the United States, we have a unique perspective on the concept of sacrifice. Sacrifice has been engrained into the minds of Americans for over three hundred years, resulting in the forging of an American culture and eventually a nation based on the principles of freedom, justice, and liberty. Then there are those Americans who have given the last full measure of sacrifice for our country, our way of life, and the ideals upon which this country was founded. In his first published work, John Abell has taken a fresh look at the concept of sacrifice. In Sacrifice, the Essence of Life, John Abell gives numerous examples of heroic personal sacrifices made throughout American history. There are many true stories. From the American Revolution to modern-day acts of sacrifice, Abell helps us to be reminded that our country exists today because there have been literally millions throughout our nation's history who made extreme sacrifices that were the foundation for the blessings of liberty that we experience every day. Finally, Abell brings the reader to a predetermined place of reckoning, focusing on the concept of sacrifice and the mystery behind it all. What is the greatest example of sacrifice that we can learn from history? Is sacrifice a basic, fundamental, or even necessary ingredient to the human experience? John Abell believes sacrifice is fundamental to human existence, and in Sacrifice, the Essence of Life, he will explain why.

The shocking and affecting memoir from a gold-star widow searching for the truth behind her Green Beret husband's death, this book bears witness to the true sacrifices made by military families. When Green Beret Bryan Black was killed in an ambush in Niger in 2017, his wife Michelle saw her worst nightmare become a reality. She was left alone with her grief and with two young sons to raise. But what followed Bryan's death was an even more difficult journey for the young widow. After receiving very few details about the attack that took her husband's life, it was up to Michelle to find answers. It became her mission to learn the truth about that day in Niger--and Sacrifice is the result of that mission. In this heartbreaking and revelatory memoir, Michelle uses exclusive interviews with the survivors of her husband's unit, research into the military leadership and accountability, and her own unique vantage point as a gold-star widow to tell a previously unknown story. Sacrifice is both an honest, emotional look inside a military marriage and a searing investigation of the people and decisions at the heart of the US military.

This introduction to the imaginative world of the Mexica (or Aztec) explores sacrifice in the richly textured life of 16th-century Mexico. Kay Almere Read describes a universe in which every object was timed by a given lifespan and in which sacrifice was the mechanism by which time functioned. This book makes a convincing case for what sacrifice meant religiously and for how it came to be that human sacrifice of staggering proportions could be accepted, matter-of-factly, by the Mexica people.

"First published in the United States of America by Viking, an imprint of Penguin Random House LLC, 2018"--Title page verso.

Helius, Nero’s most trusted adviser, anticipates the death of his sworn enemy, the legendary warrior Gallus Sergius Vitas, scheduled to die a gruesome death in the arena. However, the badly beaten man who appears in the amphitheater is not who he seems. Rescued by a stranger and given a mysterious scroll, Vitas is told he must decipher this letter to find the answers he needs—a letter that Helius is also determined to decipher and to keep hidden from Nero. As Nero’s reign of terror grows, so does his circle of enemies.

The TROJAN WAR SONG OF PRINCES, Book One of the Homeric Chronicles Sing Muse. Sing of the shining citadel of Troy rising from the hot sands of Asia. Sing of the Greek palaces ascending from their rocky hilltops. Sing of one woman's dream heralding the madness of men and the murder of innocents. From bull dancing rings and wild meadows, the Forgotten Prince must choose between love and a golden crown. From seclusion and safety, the Golden Warrior must choose between his honor and his life. From behind the Great Wall, the Golden Prince must choose between his family and his city. And from a rugged realm on the far side of Greece, the Warrior King must choose between his son's life and certain exile. Here shepherds and princes, warriors and kings, and seers and lovers seek to conquer their passions, outwit destiny or surrender to it. PARIS, the FORGOTTEN PRINCE. ACHILLES, the GOLDEN WARRIOR. HEKTOR, the GOLDEN PRINCE. ODYSSEUS, the WARRIOR KING. Where did their legends begin before their lives converged at Troy in one of the most famous battles of all time? The HOMERIC CHRONICLES tell the stories of Paris, Achilles, Hektor, and Odysseus in one chronological tale, beginning before the ILIAD and ending long after the ODYSSEY. Blending both history and myth, the Homeric Chronicles will satisfy your love of Greek mythology, while paying homage to the original storyteller, Homer. SONGS OF PRINCES begins with the birth of Paris and Achilles, and introduces us to a young Hektor and Odysseus. The journey of the princes begins... Fall in love with Greek mythology for the first time or all over again. ...READ THEM ALL... #songofprinces #riseofprinces #returnofkings #homericchronicles THE BIRTH OF PARIS The labor began with the pull of the full moon. Hecuba's eyes opened. She recognized the familiar dull ache. The squeeze tightened down her lower back and wrapped itself around her lower hips and belly like a merciless snake. It begins, she thought. The child whose destiny she'd agonized over these many weeks pressed his entrance into a hostile world. She rolled onto her side to ease the progressing pains. She knew precious little time remained before she would be forced to call Tessa to fetch the midwife. Hecuba planned to endure as much pain as she could bear buying time with her unwelcomed son...unwelcomed by all, except for her. She loved the child despite the prophecy. Tears filled her eyes for the child pushing his way to the light. Hecuba wept into her pillow. His innocence would be her life's burden. She would never know the burn of the first milk passing to her breasts as his little mouth suckled for the first time. She would not know the smell of his baby skin. She would not feel the weight of him in her arms as she cradled him to sleep, or the weight of his little body as it grew to fill the circle of her arms, making them ache with his increasing size. She would not know him at all. He would be stolen away from her and lost forever. With each new tug on her body, she clenched her teeth and tried to breathe as quietly as possible. In between the pains, she shifted to the opposite side to keep the mounting pressure from making her cry out. As the moonlight shifted past the high window, the birthing process accelerated. A piercing pain below Hecuba's pelvis forced a shrill scream into the stillness shattering the silver calm. The warm sticky wetness washed down her thighs. Eleithyia wasted no time bringing the child along. Why goddess? Let him stay with me a while longer, I beg you. Her plea hung unheeded in that space between earth and sky.

Bound Hearts - Wicked Intent By Lora Leigh Control has meant everything to Tally Raines. Control of the office she ran as Jesse Wyman's secretary, and now control of Lucian Conover's office as well. But Lucian isn't content to be controlled by his fiery secretary. As a matter of fact, Lucian thinks she needs to loosen up and let the sexy, sensual woman hiding beneath her cool exterior free. And he will dare her to do just that...With a little help. Bound Hearts - Sacrifice By Lora Leigh Book five of the Bound Hearts series. Kimberly has run from Jared for a year now, sensing the weakness he could be to her future. But she never expected the sacrifice he would make for her. One that will rock her soul, and destroy the very foundations of all her beliefs. Her sexuality, her heart, and all she's fought for in the last six years will be tested when an assignment takes her to Jared's farm, and into his bed. There she will learn the true meaning of hunger, of love¿as well as the deception and the lies that have governed her life for so long. Anything worth having is worth sacrificing for. Kimberly is about to find out if she can pay the price, and risk not only the inheritance that should be hers, but also her heart to the one man who can still the fires that rage in her soul.