Here, historian Alexander Ivanov reveals their fears and betrayals, privilege and debauchery, conspiracies and rivalries, love and tragedy as they forged Russia into one of the world's greatest empires. No ruler in history has embodied the oppressive domination of these rulers more vividly than Alexander Ivanov's opening subject, Tsar Ivan IV, the first of all the Russian tsars, known to history as Ivan the Terrible. Although a gifted ruler who did much to unite and improve the conditions in his primitive country, Ivan was also a notorious sadist who delighted in torturing and murdering anyone who displeased him. Ivan's death in 1584 ushered in the Time of Troubles, thirty-five years of famine, plague, and war that crippled the nation. A series of rulers attempted to cope with the devastation, beginning with Ivan's successor Boris Godunov. Finally, grasping for stability, Russia's nobles begged young Michael Romanov, the great-nephew of Ivan's beloved wife Anastasia, to take the throne. Michael successfully united the war-torn and ravaged nation and founded a dynasty that would rule for 300 years. The Romanov line produced Russia's most brilliant yet most unconventional sovereign: Peter the Great, a towering figure of a man whose restless, creative mind led him on an inexorable quest to modernize and civilize the still backward nation. The reforms he enacted so enraged nobles and peasants alike that Peter had to quash a series of rebellions to keep his crown. Ruthlessly stifling dissent and massacring rebels, he ultimately cowed the Russian people into submission, achieving a legacy that nearly equaled his ambitions. It was left to a woman - and a foreigner, at that - to lead the nation further out of the darkness. German princess Sophie Friederike Auguste of Anhalt-Zerbst, known to the world as Catherine the Great, absorbed the principles of the eighteenth-century Enlightenment and applied them to a country built on the backs of millions of serfs. However ineffective some of her policies, in the end, she made Russia a major player on the European stage. Serfdom was finally abolished in the nineteenth century, but it would be decades before Russian peasants could own land of their own and learn to farm it productively. The boyars and tsars clung to power until the Bolshevik revolution of 1917. The sad fate of the last tsar, Nicholas II, and his family, marked the end of the absolute power that Ivan the Terrible had so exploited. The abuses would continue but under a new and drastically different form of government.

    air can pass through them if a child ever swallows one? In these 1144 facts you're going to learn more than you learnt from all your high school teachers combined. It's full of interesting information that you can whip out in any conversation. You'll never be lost for words and always have the perfect ice breaker. ★★You're going to learn more about the world you live in & some of the topics include:★★-Science-Economics-Human Anatomy-Space-Animal Species-Many, Many More!What’re you waiting for? Knowledge is power! Come on in and we’ll delve into the interesting and fascinating facts about the world around us. Scroll up and click the ‘add to cart’ button now!Get the e-book absolutely FREE when you get the paperback!

    Her trust issues have made her vow to swear off relationships completely, but deep down she knows her heart is in need of a good man. 
 The once perfect relationship Keyon Jones shared with his ex-girlfriend changed dramatically overnight and left him with a broken heart and a promise to be a player for the rest of his days, but whether he wants to admit it or not, deep down he knows he is in need of a woman who will love him and never leave. 
 Sounds like they’re the perfect match, doesn’t it? 
Too bad getting together won’t be an easy task for the two. 
Bria and Keyon’s broken hearts and trust issues limit their wills to love again and leave them with the choice to love or to lose each other. Which one will they choose?

    This diary became the secret place where Ellen could confess her fears of the new marriage, her confusion over her emerging sexuality, and the nightmare that her life would become. The diary not only follows the development of a girl into womanhood, it follows the construction of the Rimbauer mansion called Rose Red; an enormous home that would be the site of so many horrific and inexplicable tragedies in the years ahead. The Diary of Ellen Rimbauer: My Life at Rose Red is a rare document, one that gives us an unusual view of daily life among the aristocracy in the early 1900s, a window into one woman's hidden emotional torment, and a record of the mysterious events at Rose Red that scandalized Seattle society at the time - events that can only be fully understood now that the diary has come to light. Edited by Joyce Reardon, Ph.D. as part of her research, the diary is being published as preparations are being made by Dr. Reardon to enter Rose Red and fully investigate its disturbing history.

    In this awesome follow-up to the hugely successful Hard Bastards and Hard Bastards 2, Kate Kray, who was married to Ronnie Kray, gets the answers to questions nobody else would dare to ask. We learn the truth about what drives some of these characters to live on the edge of the law, whether it be a matter of gaining respect or striving for survival.

    With bitter endings come new beginnings. The cast of Seasons is back and in the same place we left them – within their individual worlds yet again without the delirium their coexistence brings. That is, until a blow knocks the cosmos out of synch and unites them under punishing circumstances for another round of emotional TAG. Justice, Dice, Aleeya, and Yael will all have to share space again. What will happen when they come face-to-face with such unfinished affairs? Meanwhile Ray and Regina are suffering a devastating loss that will either bring them closer together – despite already being in committed relationships with spouses to lean on – or put more distance between two old friends who haven’t quite learned one another again. Season 2 is a Ferris wheel of emotions, that in the end, will leave some brought back down to solid ground and some left sitting in the clouds. Others just may be let off the ride altogether. Get comfortable and fall back into the world of this complex cast. Seasons of Fidelity has been renewed for a second season!

    

    Thousands settled in Homestead, Pennsylvania, a city where the skies were always black, the steel mills were always roaring, and life was bleak and harsh. One of them, Ewa Piekos, an orphan girl of 15 from Poland, wants simply to be loved and to feel like she is not alone. On the voyage to America, Ewa’s beloved sister dies, throwing her into an emotional tailspin. It’s only after arriving at Ellis Island that Ewa learns the real reason she was brought to the Land of Golden Opportunity. This secret is almost as crushing to her as the moment her sister died. From the time she arrives at Ellis Island, Ewa's life is never an easy one. It is filled with heartache and loss. But her life in America enables her to plant roots which eventually grow with the family she establishes there.

    Discover over three dozen fabulous articles, grouped by element. Organize your life with a convenient calendar section—shaded for easy "flip to" reference—featuring world festivals, holidays, and 2015 sabbats. You'll also find the Moon's sign and phase, plus each day's color and incense to help you maximize the power of your magical work. Published annually for over 20 years

    Yet they are engaging and fascinating at the same time.We all had evil thoughts throughout our lives. What is it that makes us different from those who actually act upon it? Is it the act alone? These are questions that many ask themselves, and these stories will help dig into the elements and psychology behind some of the most terrifying killers in history.This collection includes four true crime books, volumes 1-4, and each is filled with a variety of murder cases, from spree killers to massacres to even cannibals. You will explore the background, the act, and the aftermath of their violent acts. Some pages will be painful to read, due to the detailed description of the violent acts and the emotions behind them.

    If you have not yet bought David Baldacci’s novel, make sure to purchase it before buying this unofficial Sidekick. A prison break from a seemingly inescapable prison could be fodder for a whole novel…but in David Baldacci’s The Escape, it’s just the beginning. As John Puller tracks down the escaped convict—who just so happens to be his brother—he rapidly finds himself being drawn into a world of intrigue and danger, where everyone has their own agenda and no one is willing to reveal the truth. Baldacci’s a prolific author; The Escape marks his twenty-ninth novel. Every one of them has been a bestseller, and for good reason. See why this is arguably his most riveting yet. With this Sidekick, you’ll: • Discover some of the novel’s fascinating hidden gems • Spend some more time with the characters you’ve come to know and love • Learn what you might have missed on your first read of The Escape • Explore a possible alternate ending and imagine ideas for a sequel • Get a chance to discuss David Baldacci’s The Escape with other readers on our Facebook forum Sidekicks are entertaining and insightful reading companions, filled with delightful commentary and thought-provoking questions. Readers have raved that they "really put you in touch with the many layers of the novel," "keep you entertained even longer," and are "perfect if you want a vivid understanding of the story." Designed to be read side by side with the novels they complement, they’ll give you even more reasons to love some of today’s best books.

    This Cockney saga set in late 1920s Rotherhithe tells the story of a young girl who always seems to be caught in the crossfire between her out-of-work father and her harassed, bitter mother.

    None of them needed a man to give them anything but love; yet each of them had standards that no man could measure up to. Meadow who is the oldest of the three gave up on men her freshman year in college when her ex cheated on her; causing her to lose focus and ending up on academic probation. She swore men off for the next few years because of it. Now that she's graduated, she decided to find someone to occupy her lonely nights. The man she falls for is a Boss with a secret that can destroy everything he was trying to build with her. Melina found her knight and shining amour; however when she reveals something that she's been holding to he will turn his back on her, leaving her with a broken heart.Maci is the youngest of the crew who is finally finished with high school and finds herself falling for her first bad boy. He is a few years older but can't seem to get enough of her and vows to make her his no matter what the cost. These three sisters will take you on a ride with them and their men that will have you wondering what the hell just happened.

    

     A paranormal cozy mystery from #1 Best Selling Author Susan Harper Monica Montoya is the owner of the Back Room Bookstore, an ordinary bookstore with a back door to the supernatural realm. She’s settled into her live in the mortal realm but finds herself continuously pulled into the supernatural realm. And murder mysteries. Can Monica keep her secret, solve the string of murders that keep popping up, and protect her friends, both mortal and supernatural? The Back Room Bookstore Cozy Mystery Boxed Set contains books four through six in the Back Room Bookstore Cozy Mystery series. If you like fun paranormal mysteries, you will love Monica and her friends, both human and supernatural. Stories Included: A Gruesome Goal An Eye for Murder Holidays and Homicide Get the Back Room Bookstore Cozy Mystery Boxed Set and start solving your next paranormal mystery today – or three! Always FREE on Kindle Unlimited