Jim Kirkwood's visit to an antique shop in Queens, New York, starts with an invitation and ends in a hail of bullets. Kirkwood, a self-indulgent, self-confident, and at times unsympathetic connoisseur of human nature, finds himself swept into a bottomless pit of betrayal and malice in his hunt for perhaps the greatest archeological find of all time. At a clandestine auction held at a mansion in southern England, the situation quickly turns deadly, throwing Kirkwood into a cat and mouse game of deception, greed, and murder. In his search for what has been lost for hundreds of years, Kirkwood chases a man of the Church who just may be the most evil person he has ever encountered, and a woman who is by far the most beautiful and mysterious. Along with Iain MacLeod, Chief of the Clan MacLeod, Kirkwood crisscrosses Scotland and England in pursuit of a murderer and the treasure that may hold secrets associated with the Gnostic Gospels. Reunited with an old comrade, Kirkwood must settle old scores, but it may cost him his life. The Ebony Coffin, author B. Eugene Ellison's fifth Jim Kirkwood novel, is an exhilarating, fast-paced adventure filled with history and intrigue.

Macabre tales of death and mourning in Victorian America.

What kind of a makeover has the power to change a person, inside and out? These stories, specially written for this collection, delve into our culture’s fascination with beauty and present different views about all kinds of makeovers. Sometimes funny, sometimes serious, and always thought provoking, this anthology will open eyes and minds. Authors include Joseph Bruchac, Marina Budhos, Evelyn Coleman, Peni R. Griffin, Margaret Peterson Haddix, Norma Howe, Jess Mowry, René Saldaña, Jr., Marilyn Singer, Joyce Sweeney, and Terry Trueman.

Based on the Museum's records of excavations from 1906 to 1934 at the pyramid site of Lisht, revised and augmented by results of recent excavations (1985 to present). Further volumes are in preparation. -- Metropolitan Museum of Art website.