Elaborate schemes set in motion over a millennium ago are coming to fruition. Nemhain, youngest of the Morrigan, is pregnant. Incensed when Thor, the god of thunder, refuses to publicly acknowledge their dalliance, the Celtic sorceress confronts Odin and the other ruling gods of Asgard to foretell the destruction of their pantheon by her as yet unborn child. That his empire might survive, Marduk, the Babylonian god of gods, creates a multitude of warriors to battle on his behalf against the invading Sumerians. Two thousand years later, his descendants are preparing to celebrate the impending marriage of the king’s eldest son. Amun Ra, titular head of the Egyptian pantheon, appears before Paxton, king of the fire demons, to announce that his mate, Kindra, is with child. As the gods plot, the nexus of their intrigue is a teenager by the name of David Peterson. His life, and those closest to him, will be thrown into turmoil. And it all starts with a glass of orange juice . . .

A novel theory of pain, according to which pains are imperatives—commands issued by the body, ordering you to protect the injured part. In What the Body Commands, Colin Klein proposes and defends a novel theory of pain. Klein argues that pains are imperative; they are sensations with a content, and that content is a command to protect the injured part of the body. He terms this view “imperativism about pain,” and argues that imperativism can account for two puzzling features of pain: its strong motivating power and its uninformative nature. Klein argues that the biological purpose of pain is homeostatic; like hunger and thirst, pain helps solve a challenge to bodily integrity. It does so by motivating you to act in ways that help the body recover. If you obey pain's command, you get better (in ordinary circumstances). He develops his account to handle a variety of pain phenomena and applies it to solve a number of historically puzzling cases. Klein's intent is to defend the imperativist view in a pure form—without requiring pain to represent facts about the world. Klein presents a model of imperative content showing that intrinsically motivating sensations are best understood as imperatives, and argues that pain belongs to this class. He considers the distinction between pain and suffering; explains how pain motivates; addresses variations among pains; and offers an imperativist account of maladaptive pains, pains that don't appear to hurt, masochism, and why pain feels bad.

A dedicated Pinkerton agent, Sarah Margaret "Yancey" Calhoun can't ignore an impassioned summons from the Dowager Duchess of Somerset, who believes Yancey is her son's estranged wife. Nothing could be further from the truth. But another woman named Sarah Calhoun has been murdered in Chicago. And Yancey could be next. Traveling to England alone is hardly intimidating for a woman who works undercover. But when Yancey arrives at the remote country estate of Stonebridge, she is shaken to find that Samuel Treyhorne, the Duke of Somerset, is a force to be reckoned with--and a man who trusts her as little as she trusts him. Masquerading as Sam's wife may be the only way to untangle the web of deceit that threatens both their lives. As Yancey's feigned affection for Sam becomes all too real, she must risk everything she holds dear...if she hopes to save the man she's come to love.

Raptors have intrigued and inspired artists and naturalists for thousands of years. Floyd Scholz's own fascination with these winged hunters began when he took up bird carving in the 1970's, but he was long frustrated by the lack of close up, detailed reference photographs of these birds. He decided to team up with photographer Tad Merrick to fill that void.