Ro murmurs into my ear. "Don't be afraid, Dol. They're not coming for us." Still, he slips his arm around me and we wait until the sky is clear. Because he doesn't know. Not really. Everything changed on The Day. The day the Icon appeared in Los Angeles. The day the power stopped. The day Dol's family dropped dead. The day Earth lost a war it didn't know it was fighting. Since then, Dol has lived a simple life in the countryside with fellow survivor Ro-safe from the shadow of the Icon and its terrifying power. Hiding from the one truth she can't avoid. They're different. They survived. Why? When the government discovers their secret, they are forced to join faint-hearted Tima and charismatic Lucas in captivity. Called the Icon Children, the four are the only humans on Earth immune to the power of the Icons. Torn between brooding Ro and her evolving feelings for Lucas, between a past and a future, Dol's heart has never been more vulnerable. And as tensions escalate, the Icon Children discover that their explosive emotions-which they've always thought to be their greatest weaknesses-may actually be their greatest strengths. Bestselling author Margaret Stohl delivers a thrilling novel set in a haunting new world where four teens must piece together the mysteries of their pasts-in order to save their future.

If you can think differently about your personal problems, which might include the aftermath of traumatic events or deep feelings of rejection, you may find yourself in a positon to overcome hurtful memories that continue to upset you and interfere with your sense of self-worth. George Pugh, Ph.D., a practicing clinical psychologist, helps you find insight and direction in this new approach to understanding yourself and why you struggle with inner self-defeating voices that hold you back. After learning why you are resistant to changing problematic personality traits and why past efforts have left you at a loss and longing for more, you will be encouraged to take part in simple exercises that will remove the troubling inhibitions that prevent you from being who you truly are. In straightforward language you will achieve insights that will help you: understand that the personality forms around the basic principles of survival; recognize that survival strategies that served you well in the past hold you back in the present; release your true voice to speak from a position of honesty, integrity and personal strength; free what you have hidden your passion, connection and commitment to your personal journey. If you are willing to risk brief emotional upheaval and painful moments of reflection you will find your voice and release your true self. This book explains steps that will allow you to break free of a counterproductive lifestyle that binds you to a way of thinking and feeling that is safe but is lacking in joy and authenticity. The Icons Within helps the reader to understand the full effects of Iconic therapy. It provides a sense of hope in a multitude of dimensions hope that healing is possible, hope that life can hold so much more and hope that lifes potential can still be achieved. A. Thomas, therapist

Icons in Time, Persons in Eternity presents a critical, interdisciplinary examination of contemporary theological and philosophical studies of the Christian image and redefines this within the Orthodox tradition by exploring the ontological and aesthetic implications of Orthodox ascetic and mystical theology. It finds Modernist interest in the aesthetic peculiarity of icons significant, and essential for re-evaluating their relationship to non-representational art. Drawing on classical Greek art criticism, Byzantine ekphraseis and hymnography, and the theologies of St. Maximus the Confessor, St. Symeon the New Theologian and St. Gregory Palamas, the author argues that the ancient Greek concept of enargeia best conveys the expression of theophany and theosis in art. The qualities that define enargeia - inherent liveliness, expressive autonomy and self-subsisting form - are identified in exemplary Greek and Russian icons and considered in the context of the hesychastic theology that lies at the heart of Orthodox Christianity. An Orthodox aesthetics is thus outlined that recognizes the transcendent being of art and is open to dialogue with diverse pictorial and iconographic traditions. An examination of Ch’an (Zen) art theory and a comparison of icons with paintings by Wassily Kandinsky, Pablo Picasso, Mark Rothko and Marc Chagall, and by Japanese artists influenced by Zen Buddhism, reveal intriguing points of convergence and difference. The reader will find in these pages reasons to reconcile Modernism with the Christian image and Orthodox tradition with creative form in art.

Within the Eastern tradition of Christianity, the eikon, or religious image, has long held a place of honor. In the greater part of Western Christianity, however, discomfort with images in worship, both statues and panel icons, has been a relatively common current, particularly since the Reformation. In the Roman Catholic Church, after years of using religious statues, the Second Vatican Council’s call for “noble simplicity” in many cases led to a stripping of images that in some ways helped refocus attention on the eucharistic celebration itself but also led to a starkness that has left many Roman Catholics unsure of how to interact with the saints or with religious images at all. Today, Western interest in panel icons has been rising, yet we lack standards of quality or catechesis on what to do with them. This book makes the case that icons should have a role to play in the Western Church that goes beyond mere decoration. Citing theological and ecumenical reasons, Visel argues that, with regard to use of icons, the post–Vatican II Roman Catholic Church needs to give greater respect to the Eastern tradition. While Roman Catholics may never interact with icons in quite the same way that Eastern Christians do, we do need to come to terms with what icons are and how we should encounter them.

Icons shape the way we see the world around us in business, communication, entertainment, and much more. Now is your chance to learn to speak the textless language of icons with Thinking in Icons. From the most refined corporate visual systems to the ubiquitous emoji, icons have become an international language of symbols as well as a way to make a wholly unique statement. Without even realizing it, billions of people interpret the language of icons each day, this is the designer’s guide to creating the next great statement. In Thinking in Icons, artist and designer Felix Sockwell--logo developer for Appleand other high-profile companies, as well as GUI creator for the New York Times app--takes you through the process of creating an effective icon. You will cover many styles and visual approaches to this deceptively complex art. Sockwell also offers examples of his collaborations with Stefan Sagmeister, Debbie Millman, and other luminary designers. Thinking in Icons also features the work Sockwell has done with an impressive roster of blue-chip international brands, including Facebook, Google, Hasbro, Sony and Yahoo.

An enthralling Arabian Nights-style fantasy perfect for fans of Bradley Beaulieu and N. K. Jemisin. Eiren, the youngest daughter of the Aleynian royal family, has been living in exile in the deep desert of their kingdom. When the invading force from Ambar captures her family and demands that Eiren alone return with the Ambarians to their distant, mountainous lands, she agrees for the sake of her people. Gentle, perceptive, and able to sense the thoughts and feelings of those around her, Eiren is a storyteller—and unsure why the Ambarians have chosen her instead of her more brazen siblings. As she grows closer to the masked and enigmatic Gannet, one of her captors, on the journey to Ambar, Eiren learns that her special gifts mark her as an icon—the rare, living embodiment of a god. Gannet, too, is an icon, and when he awakens more abilities within her, Eiren discovers a bitter truth: She is host to Theba, the goddess of destruction. A dark and dangerous force, Theba awakens similar appetites in Eiren. But there’s more the Ambarians aren’t telling her, and secrets Eiren has to uncover for herself. To know the truth of why she was taken from her home, Eiren must become one of the monsters from her stories, whether she wants to or not.