Perfect for fans of Practical Magic and The Lager Queen of Minnesota: a coming-of-age novel following three generations of witches in the 1960s, this enchanting and heartwarming debut explores the importance of family and the delight and heartbreak of discovering who you truly are. It’s 1968, and the Watry-Ridder family is feared and respected in equal measure. The local farmers seek out their water charms, and the teenagers, their love spells. The family’s charms and spells, passed down through generations of witches descending from the Black Forest, have long served the small town of Friedrich, Minnesota. Eldest daughter Elisabeth has just graduated high school—she is expected to hone her supernatural abilities to take over for her grandmother, the indomitable Magda. She’s also expected to marry her high school sweetheart and live the rest of her life in Friedrich. But all she can ask is, why her? Why is her path set in stone, and what else might be out there for her? She soon discovers that magic isn’t the only thing inherited in her family. That magic also comes with a great price—and a big family secret. The more she digs, the more questions she has, and the less she trusts the grandmother she thought she knew. Who is Elisabeth without her family? She must ultimately decide what she’s willing to sacrifice for her family, for their secrets and their magic, or risk it all to pave her own way. Navigating the bittersweet tension between self-discovery and living up to familial expectations, What We Sacrifice for Magic is a touching look at coming into one’s own.

Take a journey to the dark side of hip hop where the independent researcher, Isaac Weishaupt, lays out the global Illuminati agenda for all to see. In this explicit exposé he'll explain the origins of hip hop and tell you who the key players are that allow this manipulation to transpire. Examples of powerful occult secrets and magic rituals are presented to the reader, with an explanation of why they're being subjected to such disorder. Learn about the mind control and demonic possession that plagues today's most popular rap and R&B artists as you acquire the skills necessary to become aware of the plan the music industry has to instill occultist Aleister Crowley's ushering of the New Age of Horus.Explore the dark corners of conspiracy theories revolving around the murder of musicians for the ancient practice of sacrifice to the blood thirsty pagan gods and selling of one's soul in exchange for fame and fortune. The codex for decoding all of the major Illuminati symbols is revealed in the Appendix that provides rich detail of symbols such as the All Seeing Eye, Jay-Z's power diamond, the black cube of Saturn, and much more.Topics include* Origins of hip hop* How the Illuminati manipulates the black culture through an industrial prison complex and negative messages in rap music* The use of magical spells used in lyrics and music videos* Demonic possession and MKULTRA mind control* Magician Aleister Crowley and his occult agenda* The ancient practice of blood sacrifice being perpetuated to this day.Learn the REAL truth about:* Eminem and Jay-Z's 'Rain Man' demonic entity* The reason Tupac, BIG, Aaliyah, Left Eye, ODB and Michael Jackson were murdered* Death Row Records involvement with the Illuminati* The black Skull & Bones known as 'The Boule'* How an FBI COINTELPRO secret program assassinated black leaders with positive messages (e.g. MLK)* Prince and Jay-Z predicting 9/11* Dr. Dre's Illuminati power move to become rap's first billionaire* Beyonce's spiritual channeling of Sasha Fierce* The crossover into the Age of Aquarius with pop stars like Katy Perry, Miley Cyrus, and Justin Bieber* Kabbalah secrets in the music industry* How DMX, Kanye West, and Lauryn Hill all revealed the true nature of the music industry* ...and MUCH more!The author, Isaac Weishaupt, is the publisher for IlluminatiWatcher.com and author of "A Grand Unified Conspiracy Theory: The Illuminati, Ancient Aliens, and Pop Culture." He's been interviewed on several radio shows and featured on numerous major news & media websites for his explanations of Illuminati symbolism and conspiracy theories in the realm of music, television, film, and pop culture.

This volume provides a thorough introduction to the major classic and modern writings dealing with religious sacrifice. Collected here are twenty five influential selections, each with a brief introduction addressing the overall framework and assumptions of its author. As they present different theories and examples of sacrifice, these selections also discuss important concepts in religious studies such as the origin of religion, totemism, magic, symbolism, violence, structuralism and ritual performance. Students of comparative religion, ritual studies, the history of religions, the anthropology of religion and theories of religion will particularly value the historical organization and thematic analyses presented in this collection.

Death has come knocking, but is Ace ready to pay the price? Fresh out of prison, Ace returns to Saint Augustine to find that his victory over the Sunset King has fueled unintended consequences. The dead wander the streets of the ancient city, and it's up to him to stop them from dragging away the population, one by one. But can he do it alone? His new partner, Araceli, continues to cling to her secrets. History buff Caleb isn't ready for primetime when it comes to facing the forces of evil. And Atofo? His crude mentor is MIA as the dead patrol the streets. Ace can only rely on his magic and the mysterious force known as Kibaga's Cloak. But even those magics have been affected by the necromantic wave. With no way to hold back the disease ravaging his insides, this might just be Ace's final mission. Only a grave sacrifice will see him through. But is he ready to pay the price?

Marcel Mauss was the nephew and most distinguished pupil of mile Durkheim, whose review L'Ann e sociologique he helped to found and edit. Henri Hubert was another member of the group of sociologists who developed under the influence of Durkheim. The present book is one of the best-known essays pulbished in L'Ann e sociologique and has been regarded as a model for method and mode of interpretation. Its subject is at the very center of the comparative study of religion. The authors describe a basic sacrifice drawn from Indian sources and show what is fundamental and constant, comparing Indian and Hebrew practices in particular, then Greek and Roman, then additional practices from many eras and cultures.

Scope: theology, philosophy, ethics of various religions and ethical systems and relevant portions of anthropology, mythology, folklore, biology, psychology, economics and sociology.

Traditional philosophy places a singular emphasis on tragedy, acting under the assumption that tragedy is more profound than comedy. Gelven argues that comedy deserves equal if not greater attention from philosophy. Through the interpretative readings and concrete analysis of three classical works, Gelven shows that comedy provides an access to truth unavailable by any other means. Silvius in Shakespeares's As You Like It, Cherubino in Mozart's The Marriage of Figaro, and Lord Goring in Wilde's An Ideal Husband are examined in terms of why and how they are comic, along with how and why they are seen both as fools and yet as graced. Gelven finds that in revealing the spirit of graced folly, comedy teaches us about our own essence, the fundamental nature of our finitude. This will undoubtedly be of considerable importance not only to philosophical aestheticians or literary critics, but also for those seeking to understand the nature of truth itself.

The demon Lailoken, as old as time, is tricked by angels and trapped in a human body. He becomes Merlinus, a wandering wise man expert in magic, destined to work for good among humans, opposed by the Furor (Odin). An encounter with the unicorn, a spirit similarly earthbound, brings Merlinus to Ygrane, queen of the Celts, and she sets him a task to find her king, a man seen in vision and fated to be her love-match. Merlinus-Lailoken seeks and finds him: Theodosius, a stable worker. But Ygrane has commanded the demon-wizard to bring her a king, so Merlinus sets to work making one.