The Rands Conspiracy takes the reader on a Bourne-style chase as Josh and his development team run for their lives after creating an experimental spyware program for the powerful government funded Rands Group. Josh Borland was taking unemployment rather well. His sudden termination from the Rands Group was unexpected, but he was vacationing in the sun and the sand with others in the same virtual boat. In the morning Josh finds himself hung over but alive. In fact, he is the only one still alive. Josh does his best to gather his friends from Rands in order to unravel the mystery, but more importantly, to keep them alive. The Rands Conspiracy is a short, fast-paced and absorbing novel foreshadowing what may well become the experience of citizens worldwide a mere five years down the road. Beverly Eakman, columnist & award-winning author. Vist the author at JonBatson

"Filled with suspense, action, and political intrigue, The Rand Conspiracy is an enthralling mix of historical fiction and nail-biting thriller" - Pikasho Deka, Readers Favorite 5 Star Review In 1895 the British Empire stands at its zenith, surrounded by jealous rivals. Cecil Rhodes, the Cape Colony Prime Minister, plots an audacious coup - to annex the Boer South African Republic, where nearly half of the world's gold lies. Peter Leroux learns that his father's death was not an accident. His investigations draw him reluctantly into Rhodes's scheme. Leroux knows too much, but not enough. An attempt is made on his life, and his enquiries run into a dead end. Someone is conspiring to thwart Rhodes and seize power in the Transvaal. As the world teeters unknowingly on the brink of war, Leroux must stop his father's killers before it is too late. In gold rush Johannesburg, nobody is innocent. Cecil Rhodes's attempt to annex the South African Republic, known as the Jameson Raid, ended in a fiasco.To this day, no one really knows why...

In the last decade over 6,000 rhinos have been killed in South Africa. Relentless poaching for their horns has led to a catastrophic fall in black rhino numbers. Meanwhile a corrupt South African government turns a blind eye to the international trade in rhino horn. This is the background to Peter Hain's brilliantly pacey and timely thriller. Battling to defend the dwindling rhino population, a veteran freedom fighter is forced to break his lifetime loyalty to the ANC as he confronts corruption at the very highest level. The stakes are high. Can the country's ancient rhino herd be saved from extinction by state-sponsored poaching? Has Mandela's 'rainbow nation' been irretrievably betrayed by political corruption and cronyism?

They killed the king. They pinned it on two men. They chose poorly.#13;#13;There's no ancient evil to defeat, no orphan destined for greatness, just two guys in the wrong place at the wrong time...Royce Melborn, a skilled thief, and his mercenary partner, Hadrian Blackwater make a profitable living carrying out dangerous assignments for conspiring nobles until they become the unwitting scapegoats in a plot to murder the king. Sentenced to death, they have only one way out--and so begins this epic tale of treachery and adventure, sword fighting and magic, myth and legend.#13;#13;AWARDS#13;2009 National Indie Excellence Award Finalist#13;2008 ReaderViews Literary Award Finalist#13;2007 Foreword Magazine Book of the Year Finalist#13;Named One of the 2008 Notable Indie Books by Fantasy Book Critic #13;Named Top Five Fantasy of Books of 2009 by Dark Wolf's Fantasy Reviews#13;#13;ABOUT THE SERIES#13;The Crown Conspiracy is book one of the multi-book saga: The Riyria Revelations. Instead of a string of sequels, this six-book fantasy series was conceived as a single epic tale divided into individual novels. While one book may hint at building mysteries and thickening plots, these threads are not essential to reach a satisfying conclusion to the current episode--which has its own beginning, middle, and end. It should be noted that all six were written before the first was released to ensure continuity across a complex plot filled with twists, turns, and page-turning mysteries. Characterization occur across the whole series allowing readers to build friendships with likeable characters that are shaped as events unfold. The Riyria Revelations is written for adults but has no sex and limited violence centered on swordplay and is therefore, appropriate for younger audiences and a movie version based on the novels would garnish a PG-13 rating.

"Nina knows the night follows the adventures of Nina Richardson, a mild-mannered law school dropout who becomes a kick-butt heroine after innocently acquiring a metal case filled with military-like weapons. Determined to knock out the growing crime in her formerly posh urban neighborhod, now run-down, she discovers her superpowers to be her own inner strength and purpose"--Page 4 of cover.

Everything you think you know is a lie. Or is it? The Rough Guide to Conspiracy Theories is the definitive guide to the world's most controversial theories. With updated information on all the most infamous conspiracies, from phony crucifixions to who really did kill JFK, this fully up-dated guide also covers the murders of Alexander Litvinenko and Benasir Bhutto, the London bombings and the Iraq War, as well as the inquest into Princess Diana's death. The guide is a thoroughly researched exploration into this fascinating and, at times, amusing phenomenon, with fascinating discourse and a keen sense of the satirical. For both the believers and the cynics, The Rough Guide to Conspiracy Theories sorts the myths from the realities.

'A first class book' Sunday Times We're all conspiracy theorists. Some of us just hide it better than others. Conspiracy theorists do not wear tin-foil hats (for the most part). They are not just a few kooks lurking on the paranoid fringes of society with bizarre ideas about shape-shifting reptilian aliens running society in secret. They walk among us. They are us. Everyone loves a good conspiracy. Yet conspiracy theories are not a recent invention. And they are not always a harmless curiosity. In Suspicious Minds, Rob Brotherton explores the history and consequences of conspiracism, and delves into the research that offers insights into why so many of us are drawn to implausible, unproven and unproveable conspiracy theories. They resonate with some of our brain's built-in quirks and foibles, and tap into some of our deepest desires, fears, and assumptions about the world. The fascinating and often surprising psychology of conspiracy theories tells us a lot – not just why we are drawn to theories about sinister schemes, but about how our minds are wired and, indeed, why we believe anything at all. Conspiracy theories are not some psychological aberration – they're a predictable product of how brains work. This book will tell you why, and what it means. Of course, just because your brain's biased doesn't always mean you're wrong. Sometimes conspiracies are real. Sometimes, paranoia is prudent.

When the rand collapsed from 7.60 to 13.84 to the US dollar in 2001, Kevin Wakeford blew the whistle, accusing three big corporates and one global bank of being party to manipulation in the currency markets. Wakeford predicted that the rand was on its way to 20, 30, 40 and possibly 50 to the dollar, which would have thrown the seven-year-old democracy into economic and political turmoil. As a result of his intervention, a Rand Commission was set up by President Mbeki to investigate his claims, and the rand’s collapse was arrested and reversed. The Rand Commission was, however, shut down prematurely and Wakeford was fired as CEO of the South African Chamber of Business. While the Enron and WorldCom scandals in the United States triggered comprehensive corporate reform, it seemed that South African authorities were determined to cover up any wrongdoing. In The Assault on the Rand, Barry Sergeant tells the explosive story of the rand’s collapse and the events that followed. He also explores more recent banking scandals around the world, giving a hard-hitting exposé of greed, collusion and manipulation in the markets.

The Wall Street meltdown in 2008 brought the country to its knees and spawned nationwide protests against the lack of regulation and oversight in the financial industry. But the average American still fails to fully grasp what was--and still is--happening: that the inmates run the asylum. Larry Doyle exposes how financial executives, politicians, and even the regulators charged with overseeing the banks have conspired for personal gains while deceiving largely unprotected investors, consumers, and American taxpayers. He details the shocking corruption of the SEC, FINRA, and other "financial police, " painting them as meter maids who assess nominal fines and look the other way at even the most egregious abuses. Most importantly, he unveils the revolving door of Wall Street, where countless regulators (and plenty of legislators) are former or future employees of the very firms they're tasked with overseeing. Recent bombshells--such as multi-billion dollar trading losses at JP Morgan Chase, the manipulation of interest rates via the LIBOR scandal, and money laundering with North American drug cartels and rogue nations such as Iran--are symptomatic of this corrosive culture, which has decimated consumer and investor confidence. As the big banks fight tooth and nail to avoid real reforms, this book is a timely, important, and shocking look at a hopelessly compromised system, still defenseless against the next great crash.--From publisher description.