Buried in the sands of time, when history was written in blood, three men - who either by birth, circumstances or murder - sat upon the throne of Israel in 884 B.C. As a kingdom drowned in poverty and despair, one man rose up and rescued the nation from its downward spiral of negligent, psychopathic rule. The forgotten kings of ancient Israel are slowly uncovered as the journey from the ashes of Tirzah to the splendor of Samaria begins.

‘This Hindu Sahiya dynasty is now extinct, and of the whole house there is no longer the slightest remnant in existence. We must say that, in all their grandeur, they never slackened in the ardent desire of doing that which is good and right, that they were men of noble sentiment and noble bearing.’ People and their acts of bravery are often lost to the annals of history. But what of mighty lineages? Generations of kings and the lands and people they fought for? What of kings who fought against their own people? The Hindu Sahi kings, to whom honour and pride were more important than their own survival, fought a near 150 year rear-guard action as they continued to be pushed east from Kabul, their original homeland, changing their capitals and defending themselves from their own countrymen. The last of their house had the misfortune of confronting the juggernaut that was Sultan Mahmud of Ghazni. Where obedience to the Sultan would have allowed their house to endure, their honour would have them confront him over and over. But who were they? This book tries to piece together their story from the limited sources that are available from an age where historical sources were few and, in the case of the Sahis, mostly from the point of view of their enemies. This is the story of a dynasty that represented a resurgent Hindu faith in a land that was long dominated by Buddhism but also coincided with the arrival of the Muslims.

Learn the little-known history of the turning-point battle of Kings Mountain, one of the most decisive American victories in the Revolutionary War. The Battle of Kings Mountain was the most remarkable, unexpected, and unorthodox patriot victory of supreme importance that was fought during the course of the American Revolution. The victors of Kings Mountain were South Carolina, Virginia, and North Carolina Backcountry volunteers (including men from today’s Tennessee) of a ghost army that suddenly materialized practically out of thin air from both sides of the Appalachian Mountains on its own and without authorization from the Continental Congress or Continental officers. To defend their farms and families and the land they loved, on October 7, 1780, this ad hoc force of Backcountry volunteers from remote settlements across the frontier suddenly descended upon a well-trained and well-equipped force of more than one thousand Royal Provincial and Loyalist troops, who defiantly made their last stand on the summit of Kings Mountain, after having been caught by surprise. During one of the hardest fought and bloodiest battles of the American Revolution, this one-sided (the entire enemy force—the vital left wing of Lord Charles Cornwallis’ Army—was killed, wounded, and captured) patriot victory at Kings Mountain was a major turning point of not only the war in the South, but also of the American Revolution. Ironically, no battle of the American Revolution more forcefully demonstrated the lethal effectiveness of Southern militia and the future surreal horrors of America’s first civil war. This decisive battle in northwest South Carolina was fought between fellow Americans, including not only neighbors but also relatives, even fathers and sons, nearly three-quarters of a century before the Battles of First Manassas, Antietam, and Gettysburg, when young Americans once again slaughtered each other for what they believed was right. When it appeared at the time that the war in South Carolina had been lost to the British, the patriots of Kings Mountain rose splendidly to the challenge to win an amazing success that best personified the essence and spirit of the revolution, which the victors kept alive during one of the darkest periods of the American Revolution. Most importantly, the dramatic patriot victory at Kings Mountain on October 7, 1781 helped to set the stage and pave the way for the surrender of Cornwallis’ Army at Yorktown only a year later, which was an event that all but ended the war and ensured the independence of a new nation.

Insight into Tutankhamun’s commander in chief and rightful heir.

When the gods return to claim their world, the Five Realms will fall, in this earth-shaking epic fantasy thriller following on from the author's seminal debut, Lost Gods For centuries the Five Lands have been at peace, but now a nameless enemy is tearing apart their borders. When a young assassin, Neythan, is summoned to Súnam, he expects to help uncover the enemy, but is instead confronted with secrets from his forgotten childhood, all somehow linked to the ancient scroll he has always carried. As the invasion continues, and the supernatural forces responsible are unveiled, Neythan must learn the truth about the power that lies in his blood... before it is too late. File Under: Fantasy [ Monsters and Men | False Myths | Priest-Killers | Unravelling Truth ]