Showing results by author "A. Rivers" in All Categories

On New Year’s Day 1993, Czechoslovakia broke into two separate countries, the Czech Republic and Slovakia. Thus ended one of the creations brought about by the Treaty of Versailles after World War I, and as a country that had existed for just under 75 years, Czechoslovakia spent most of its time under the tyranny of fascism or communism. The Dissolution of Czechoslovakia examines how the multicultural nation was founded, the inherent tensions there, and how it eventually came apart. You will learn about Czechoslovakia like never before.

The early history of Earth covers such vast stretches of time that years, centuries, and even millennia become virtually meaningless. Instead, paleontologists and scientists who study geochronology divide time into periods and eras. The current view of science is that Earth is around 4.6 billion years old, but despite all of the scientific advances made in the past few centuries, including an enhanced understanding of Earth’s geological past, relatively little is known about the planet’s early history.

FBI agent Emma Griffin has seen her share of dark and twisted murders. When she's called onto a new case, Emma finds herself baffled and horrified by the crime scene. Cream-colored tags. Mysterious spirals. Words with seemingly no meaning. Victims with tags that don’t seem to correspond to their “sin”. As Emma dives deeper into the case, other mysteries that impact her life start closing in. The more truths Emma uncovers the more bizarre turns this “Seven Deadly Sins” case takes, and the more of a target Emma becomes.

Sherwood is a sleepy little town. A town full of friendly faces and even friendlier neighbors. Which is why FBI agent Emma Griffin isn't surprised when her new neighbor starts stopping by to chat. Turns out her neighbor has a dark past and secrets that made her run. As much as Emma wished it wasn’t true, a dark past and secrets are things that she is far too familiar with, especially now more than ever.

Patagonia is in the southernmost region of South America, comprising about 400,000 square miles going from the Colorado River in the north to the Tierra del Fuego archipelago in the south. Longitudinally, it covers the whole continental soil, going from the Atlantic shore to the Pacific’s waters, including a few islands near the coast, part of the South American plate.

Camile is tired of being overlooked because she's shy and plus-size. She's ready to reclaim her life, and she intends to start with a kiss from a legendary MMA playboy. Unfortunately, his grumpy teammate, Leo, has other plans.

John Dee was one of the greatest scientific minds of his time, but also one of the most controversial. He was a learned man in fields as varied as mathematics and astronomy, centuries before they became formalized fields of study, but he is better remembered for performing magic and alchemy. Instead of astronomy, he became renowned across England for astrology, and he was one of the country’s most notorious occult writers during his life.

After his victory in 1939, General Francisco Franco ruled Spain with an iron fist for 36 years. Franco’s rapid yet unlikely rise to power in Spain came to define a country for several generations. Franco was influenced by the wider trends and forces of the 20th century, yet he would indelibly make his mark on Spain in his own right, and in the process become one of the most widely derided figures in contemporary history.

Saladin is widely considered one of the greatest generals in history and one of the most famous leaders of the Middle Ages, but he remains a paradox, both in personal and in historical terms. A military genius, he first served other generals and was overshadowed, late in life, by his greatest rival, Richard I of England. He was far more admired by his Christian enemies, who extolled his chivalry, than some of his Muslim rivals, who fought him for control of Egypt and Syria in the 12th century.

The name's Kore, daughter of Demeter, crown goddess of spring, but you can call me Kory. Along with my invitation to attend the elite Olympus Academy where all the top deities send their brats for training, comes the news that I'm betrothed to Hades, tall, dark, and brooding god of the underworld. I'd much rather be Queen Bee of my girl gang back home, slinging panaceas to spoiled rich Olympians, but I have three years to enjoy my life before I'm ruling the denizens of hell at Hades' side and I refuse to waste it making him look good. Turns out, my betrothed has a gang of his own.

The waters of the Pacific Ocean - stretching deep blue under the tropical sun, or scourged by typhoons - provided World War II's most far-flung battlefield. Two of the world's premier mid-20th century maritime powers, the United States of America and the Empire of Japan, grappled for supremacy across that pelagic expanse. In the process, they forcefully sounded the death knell of battleships and naval gunnery, ushering in the era of the aircraft carrier and the submarine.

Krampus: The History and Legacy of the Mythological Figure Who Punishes Children During the Christmas Season examines the pagan and Christian influences of the yuletide villain and dives into the riveting and frightening history behind the creature. You will learn about Krampus like never before.

Marie was young, beautiful, and vibrant. Her life was cruelly taken from her. Her murderer still roams this world, potentially looking for a new prey. With Sam devoting himself to finally bringing an end to Marie's case, Emma dives further into the twisted worlds of corruption and brutality, to finally bring an end to the mystery behind Miley's disappearance….

There are few characters in Egyptian myth whose image and name are more widely known than Horus. His name most probably means “The Distant One”; as the celestial falcon, his wings were believed to span the length of the distant sky, and his eyes were the sun and the moon. This name betrays the connection Horus shared with Re, the “all-powerful” sun god, and also hints at his earlier incarnation as one of the earliest celestial gods in Egyptian religious belief.

After the horrific killings of two young people, the murder investigation immediately took on another twisted turn as the killings are linked to bloody and cryptic passages within books from the college library.

With shocking clues leaving the local police bewildered and desperate, they called on the FBI to spearhead the investigation.

What happens when you put good people in a bad place? That was the question that an experiment in 1971 set out to answer when Stanford University professor and psychologist Philip Zimbardo used funding provided by the U.S. Office of Naval Research to create a make-believe prison in the basement of a university building. Male students were offered the chance to take part in the two-week experiment (and to make $15 per day). All applicants were carefully screened to ensure that they were healthy, emotionally and psychologically stable. 24 men were selected out of 75 that had applied.

'Twas the night before Christmas when all through the house, not a creature was stirring inside Agent Emma Griffin's house. But then out of nowhere a dark shadow appeared. And all of a sudden this holiday season was no longer filled with cheer....

Of all the authors and poets American schoolchildren may be exposed to over the course of their education, Robert Frost is often one of the first, and on rare occasions that he is not, it is still a near certainty that some of his most famous poems will be discussed at some point. Frost may not be as remembered or influential as other American literary giants, or even poets such as Emily Dickinson and Walt Whitman, but his career was historic in terms of its length and breadth of accomplishments.

“Pancho Villa,” people whispered at the beginning of the 20th century, "can march 100 miles without stopping, live 100 days without food, go 100 nights without sleep, and kill 100 men without remorse." The legend of Francisco Villa is full of heroism, tragedy and romance. It is the story of a poor farmer boy who became a bandit out of necessity, after avenging an injustice on his family; a military genius who flew from an oppressive government to lead the largest revolutionary army in his country's history, and defeated dictatorship to become Mexico´s liberator, only to fall again in disgrace when his troops abandoned him or were massacred by the enemy. Pancho Villa and his cavalry, Mexicans point out with a certain amount of pride, invaded the United States, and although they came and tried to capture him, they never found him. This is, at least, the version that most of them know, but it's certainly not the same as in their textbooks. The story of Francisco Villa bypassed official censorship from generation to generation, like leaves sailing at full speed on the surface of a stream.

When the Spaniards "discovered" Yucatán, they thought it was an island. Although they later realized that it was part of the vast country that Cortés had conquered, they were not very wrong to think of it as an isle, considering the zealous and independent spirit that has characterized its inhabitants then and now. Although it has been part of Mexico for 170 years, it was encouraged by the example of Texas, compelling the peninsula to twice proclaim its independence and create the short-lived Republic of Yucatán.