Their legends contain near-identical descriptions of fiery objects that arrived from the sky, of wise beings that brought them knowledge, and of a great flood that destroyed their cities long, long ago. Modern archaeology dismisses these legends as myths. Ethan Warner knows better. Peru, 1571: On mountain high in the Andes in the last days of the Inca Empire, six children are ritually sacrificed to the Inca God Inti. Entombed in the icy wastes, they have lain awaiting discovery for centuries. They are remarkable for one reason: their skulls are elongated almost beyond recognition. In 1914, intrepid American explorer Hiram Bingham III discovers the lost Inca citadel of Macchu Picchu, and in doing so starts a race to discover one of the greatest secrets mankind has ever known… Present day: Former US Marine and investigative journalist Ethan Warner has shunned civilization after five investigations with the Defense Intelligence Agency. Living alone in the wilderness, he is tracked down by Dr Lucy Morgan, a scientist who once found the seven thousand year-old remains of an extra-terrestrial species entombed deep in the deserts of Israel. She brings ominous news: there are more remains being found, and there are people willing to kill to obtain them. Hurled into a global conspiracy that will take them from the deep waters of the East China Sea to the sweltering jungles of Cambodia, from the deserts of Egypt to the soaring heights of the Andes mountains, Ethan and Lucy must locate and excavate the remains of ancient people whose DNA carries both a message and a cure for a disease born of a species not of this Earth, and in doing so save the life of one young child and change the course of human history… REVIEW Praise for Dean Crawford: "The fossilized remains of a 7,000-year-old creature dug from the sands of the Negev Desert in Israel become the bones of contention in Dean Crawford's fast-paced debut thriller... The book neatly threads together a wild variety of plotlines." - Wall Street Journal “… cleverly introduced premise… assured pacing and plotting…” - Publishers Weekly “The action is frenetic, in the vein of Matthew Reilly’s Scarecrow series. Crawford is an able storyteller who smoothly orchestrates the plot’s twists and turns… ” – Kirkus Reviews “… brilliant high-concept, high-octane thriller….” - The Guardian "A fast-paced and entertaining yarn." - Melbourne Age "Partly mythical read, part thriller this pacy tale is a page turner guaranteed to keep you up late." - The Sun "Get the cameras rolling—Indiana Jones meets Alien. What a combination of mystery, suspense, and unspeakable horror. I loved it!" - R.L. Stine “This is an amazingly good, intelligently told novel by an exciting new British author.” - Eurocrime "Earth-shattering intrigue, hyperdrive action and a desperate race to save humanity, cranked up to the max with scarily realistic science and apocalyptic religion thrown in for good measure . . .

    Their corruption spreads from the highest points of government to the assassins they hire to commit their crimes. They will kill for the ancient knowledge contained in the Library. And Emily Wess has exactly what they want.

    Built in the 1780's to hide an aristocratic family and a mad duke during the French Revolution, the palace has lain hidden and forgotten ever since. Anouk, along with several other gifted teenagers, will be the first to set foot in it in over two centuries.Or so she thought.But nothing is as it seems, and the teens soon find themselves embroiled in a game far more sinister, and dangerous, than they could possibly have imagined. An evil spanning centuries is waiting for them in the depths. . .

    Legends tell of an ancient code no mortal man can read. Summoned from grad school in Boston, brilliant Ava Fischer might be the only person alive with the skills and attributes necessary to unlock a secret that's slept for centuries. Chased by ruthless criminals, terrorists, and fanatics, Ava must rely on her keen wits and her few loyal companions to survive. Can she evade danger long enough to solve The Cana Mystery?

    Almost five centuries later, former Navy SEAL Logan Dodge finds a mysterious gold coin off of a secret ledge in the Florida Keys. When he learns the origin of the coin, he goes on a mission to find and secure the treasure for the people of Mexico. But he’s not the only one who’s caught the scent of gold. A notorious Mexican drug cartel known as Black Venom is right on his heels and will stop at nothing to take the treasure for themselves. With the help of one of his old Navy buddies, a notorious mercenary, a beach bum Key West charter captain and a marine geologist, Logan races to find the treasure and take down the drug cartel while he’s at it. Gold in the Keys is a shoot ‘em up, beat ‘em up, speedboat chasing, get the girl, treasure hunting romp in the Florida Keys.

    With no idea how to cure himself of this odd new compulsion, he decides to let it take its course and go for a drive, hoping that once he proves to himself that there is nowhere to go, he can return to his normal life. Instead, he finds himself hurled headlong into a nightmare adventure across a fractured Wisconsin as the dream reveals itself one heart-pounding detail at a time. <br><br>Horror, science fiction, dark fantasy. From the author of The Temple of the Blind. 84,000 words.

    Incorporating the latest research and new evidence, that leads to real answers concerning the Loch Ness monster's identity, bestselling author Steve Alten weaves a tale of horror about the most publicized and controversial creature ever imagined.

     Its cargo: a complement of rich Jewish families carrying their most valuable possessions. One such item amongst them was as dangerous as it was priceless. The airship never reached its destination. In 2015 Sam Reilly, a marine biologist and wealthy son of shipping mogul James Reilly discovers a missing clue about the lost airship and what follows is a violent treasure hunt, kept secret by the most powerful men in the world today, driven by their greed and need for that which all are motivated: the opportunity for unlimited power.

    . . Deep in the jungles of Central America, an indigenous man discovers a unique and priceless treasure - a beautifully painted codex that has survived for centuries within the ruins of an undiscovered ancient Maya city. Knowing that this rare artifact could be worth millions, the looter smuggles it into the US - but unbeknownst to him, he has brought something far more dangerous across the border . . . In the first week of December 2012, the codex finds its way into the hands of the Antiquities Curator of the Getty Museum, Chel Manu, the world authority on ancient Mayan inscriptions. She is torn between her duty to alert the authorities and this once in a lifetime chance to translate the codex herself.Meanwhile - in an LA hospital, an unidentified man is dying of Fatal Insomnia, a rare and highly infectious neurological disease. The patient speaks only in a garbled Mayan dialect - and Chel Manu is called in to interpret his dying words . . . just as countless others in the city begin to show signs of infection. Within days the world seems to be unravelling, hurtling towards the prophesied apocalypse . . . and deciphering the codex is the only hope for humanity . . .

    “They didn’t have to kill him…He never drank from the altar of bones.”  Cryptic dying words from a murdered homeless woman in present day San Francisco unlock a decades-buried secret that changed history.  Now a pair of ruthless assassins are sent to cut the few living "loose ends."  And a young, resourceful woman on the run encounters a determined man with his own connected past and vengeful agenda.  Forced to partner for survival and answers, a fast-paced and deadly game of cat and mouse ensues, taking them across the globe from the winding streets of Paris to the faded palaces of Budapest to the frozen lakes of Mongolia...where destiny, passion, and further betrayal await them.  The Altar of Bones has it all: The Russian mob.  KGB spies.  Presidential assasination.  A doomed Hollywood legend.  Deathbed confessions.  Corrosive power.  Shattered families.  Guardians of an ancient religious icon housing a secret others will kill to possess.  The dark promise of immortality. And it delivers on its ambitious premise to leave you stunned and breathless at the end.

    An infamous poet living in self-imposed exile. An ancient treasure about to fall into the wrong hands.Melanie Karsak's Chasing the Star Garden takes readers on a thrilling adventure from the gritty opium dens of gaslamp London to the gem-coloured waters of the ancient world. Lily Stargazer, a loveable but reckless airship racer with a famous lover and shattered past, reluctantly plunges into a centuries-old mystery in a romantic adventure best described as Dan Brown meets Mary Shelley.It all begins on one of the worst days of Lily’s life. She just lost the London leg of the 1823 Airship Grand Prix. To top it off, a harlequin fleeing from constables shoved a kaleidoscope down her pants, told her to fly to Venice, then threw himself from her airship tower. What’s a girl to do? For Lily, the answer is easy: drink absinthe and smoke opium. Lily’s lover, Lord Byron, encourages her to make the trip to Venice. Lily soon finds herself at the heart of an ancient mystery which has her running from her past and chasing true love and the stars along the way.

    But it is also the subject of one of history's most intriguing mysteries. Originally commissioned in 1701 by Frederick I of Prussia, the Room was later perfected Tsarskoe Selo, the Russian imperial city. In 1941, German troops invaded the Soviet Union, looting everything in their wake and seizing the Amber Room. When the Allies began the bombing of Germany in August 1944, the Room was hidden. And despite the best efforts of treasure hunters and art collectors from around the world, it has never been seen again." Now, two powerful men have set their best operatives loose in pursuit, and the hunt has begun once more. . . . Life is good for Atlanta judge Rachel Cutler. She loves her job, loves her kids, and remains civil to her ex-husband, Paul. But everything changes when her father, a man who survived the horrors of World War II, dies under strange circumstances--and leaves behind clues to a secret he kept his entire life . . . a secret about something called the Amber Room. Desperate to know the truth about her father's suspicious dealings, Rachel takes off for Germany, with Paul close behind. Shortly after arriving, they find themselves involved with a cast of shadowy characters who all claim to share their quest. But as they learn more about the history of the treasure they seek, Rachel and Paul realize they're in way over their heads. Locked in a treacherous game with ruthless professional killers and embroiled in a treasure hunt of epic proportions, Rachel and Paul suddenly find themselves on a collisioncourse with the forces of power, evil, and history itself. A brilliant adventure and a scintillating tale of intrigue, deception, art, and murder, "The Amber Room" is a classic tale of suspense--and the debut of a strong new voice in the world of the international thriller. "From the Hardcover edition.

    When a mysterious accident transports Simon and his new assistant, Elizabeth West, back in time, Simon finally finds both the proof that he's been looking for, and the romance that he hasn't.In 1920s Manhattan, they find that are more than mobsters vying for power in the city's speakeasies. Will Simon and Elizabeth's developing relationship survive the vampires' teeth? Will they survive to make it back? Or will they be forever out of time?From the AuthorDon't miss the sequel,"When the Walls Fell", now available for Kindle. Look for more books in the Out of Time Series coming in 2012.

    This multi-faceted work of history, conspiracy and religion will gain favour among fans of Dan Brown and Steve Berry."-Publishers WeeklyIn 1958, a young Bible scholar stumbles upon a version of the Gospel of Mark far older than that recorded in the New Testament. Unfortunately, his discovery brings him nothing but vilification and accusations of forgery. Eventually, the Secret Gospel simply disappears.Fifty-one years later, the scholar is dead, the victim of an apparent heart attack. However, evidence found in his room, coupled with a letter to Cairo-based journalist Alex Fisher, suggests murder-and hints that the missing gospel harbors deep secrets.Alex, his girlfriend Sadie, and British diplomat Aubrey Bairstow's attempts to locate the gospel quickly turn deadly. An Islamic terrorist group, an Israeli intelligence agent, and the head of a scandalous Christian sect also want the gospel. In Egypt's Western Desert, in the midst of a massive sandstorm, the fate of the Secret Gospel will be decided in blood.As the hunt grows increasingly dangerous, it becomes apparent the lost manuscript has ties to both Nazi Germany and the Vatican's refusal to condemn the Holocaust. More is at stake than a lost text: the Secret Gospel could spell disaster for the Catholic Church-and change the balance of power in the Middle East.A rousing religious conspiracy thriller, The Secret Gospel ties religion, politics, and history into a tangled skein of intrigue. It has at its heart a true story - the discovery in 1958 of fragments of a previously unknown account of the life of Jesus by Morton Smith. The rest is pure fiction.It was shortlisted in the Rethink Press New Novels competition in 2014 and a quarterfinalist in the 2013 Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award."A well-written and engaging plot keeps readers going...""Thoroughly researched, this novel is steeped in history..."-Publishers Weekly

    But what if this transcendent level of intelligence brings with it a ruthless megalomania? David Desh left the special forces after his team was brutally butchered in Iran. Now he has been reactivated for one last mission: find Kira Miller, the enigmatic genius behind a bioterror plot that threatens millions. But when Desh learns that the bioterror plot is just the tip of the iceberg, he is thrust into a byzantine maze of deception and intrigue, and he becomes a key player in a deadly game he can't begin to understand. A game that is certain to have a dramatic impact on the future course of human history. . .