Showing results by narrator "Paul Brion" in All Categories

Convulsed by a civilizational crisis, the great thinkers of the Renaissance set out to reconceive the nature of society. Corrupt and reckless tyrants sowing discord and ruling through fear; elites who prized wealth and status over the common good; military leaders waging endless wars. Their solution was simple and radical. They would rebuild their city, and their civilization, by transforming the moral character of its citizens. Soulcraft, they believed, was a precondition of successful statecraft.

Nocturnal energies differ from those of Daylight and Witches have long known how to take advantage of Lunar Powers and the spiritual entities that prefer the darkness for particular magical operations. This innovative book explores special techniques for working with the Night Powers and the subtle effects of dark symbols to: cast a Nocturnal Magick Circle; invoke the Dark Gods and Goddesses; skry the night; open the Gates to the Underworld; cast spells through the Dark Ether; and explore the symbolic realm of shadow, illusion, and the mysteries of the unknown.

The sexy, powerful King Shade Medici intends to increase his coven and territories to include the US. The new Medici Queen proves she can hold her own beside her king. She carries rare abilities believed extinct by the vampire community. She also possesses something never seen in the vampire world. What will it mean to their kind? A male heir must be produced to carry on the Medici line. The royal couple has many new plans in business to advance their hold in the States. Not everyone is happy about it. The sprawling Medici estate is a threat to its neighboring coven, controlled by Max.

When he met her, he knew how it would end. Shade Medici, a warrior king and sole male heir to the dynasty, is expected to mate and produce an heir to secure the continuation of the Medici coven. He's waited over five hundred years for the right mate, and when he meets Kate Reese, his attraction is more than primal—it's merciless. She's also mortal.

The modern world faces religious, spiritual, and existential quandaries, as new technologies redefine the beginnings and ends of life. Excruciating choices arise about when to turn off the machines—whether and when we should "play God." The COVID-19 pandemic made these dilemmas ever more acute. Increasingly, however, public discourse on religion and spirituality is polarized, with evangelicals on one side and vehement atheists on the other.

When Dani gets a flat tire on her way home one evening, she is, at first, less than thrilled to be helped out by a man that is clearly too charming for his own good. Even if he is handsome. And buff. And the king of the thousand watt smile. However, prickly Dani is eventually charmed by her hottie knight in shining sunglasses. And a brief moment spent on the side of the road on a hot summer evening quickly leads to a first date.

Continue the journey in this dark fantasy with Shade and Kate Medici. Lorenzo discovers his mother isn't the only one born with unique powers. Alec makes his final bid for political power and is prepared to take down anyone who stands in his way. There is nothing more dangerous than a vampire with nothing more to lose. You won't believe what happens when he returns to exact his own revenge.

In Leveraging Latency, Tristan A. Volpe argues that having greater capacity to build weaponry doesn't translate to greater coercive advantage. Volpe finds that there is a trade-off between threatening proliferation and promising nuclear restraint. States need just enough bomb-making capacity to threaten proliferation, but not so much that it becomes too difficult for them to offer nonproliferation assurances. The boundaries of this sweet spot align with the capacity to produce the fissile material at the heart of an atomic weapon.

Today, neuroscientists are imaging, mapping, testing, and dissecting the source of the worst behavior imaginable in the brains of the people who lack a conscience: psychopaths. Neuroscientist Dean Haycock examines the behavior of real life psychopaths and discusses how their actions can be explained in scientific terms, from research that literally looks inside their brains to understanding how psychopaths, without empathy but very goal-oriented, think and act the way they do.

Not everyone can become a tyrant. It requires a particular confluence of events to gain absolute control over entire nations. First, you must be born with the potential to develop brutal personality traits. Second, your predisposition to antisocial behavior must be developed and strengthened during childhood. Finally, you must come of age when the political system of your country is unstable.

In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, trends already underway toward the future of work and the gig economy rapidly and unexpectedly accelerated. Physical isolation, travel restrictions, and social distancing challenged organizations to rethink how work gets done and by whom, with ramifications that will stretch beyond the pandemic. Punching the Clock explores how well workers are likely to both navigate and adapt to this new future of work, using the best of psychological science as a guide.

In Kilimanjaro Snow, Finn Pilar, the ne'er-do-well former Navy EOD specialist and disgraced Key West cop, faces his most complex case. A sailboat adrift off Wisteria Island near Key West crashes into the stern of his business partner's live-aboard boat. A deceased girl is found on board wearing nothing but a strange tattoo on her chest. Alarm bells go off for Finn, who has seen this tattoo before in Cuba. Thus begins a tale of deceit, murder, and intrigue stretching across the Florida Strait.

Ever since the virus took our women, we've been searching. Searching for their magical gift to create new life. Searching for the fire in their eyes when they scream our names in the heat of passion. So when I find Priya, a curvy, dark-eyed human stowaway, there's only one thing on my mind. Do I care if I'm royalty and she's a fugitive? Do I care if mating with her could risk everything? Of course not.

Chloe's brother Zander was given a second chance at life. When the Warrior Angel healed him he developed special abilities intended to help him rid the world of corruption. But now, those powers are causing him to question the difference between innocence and true evil.

A war is brewing between the hunters and the vampires and Chloe is determined to strike against the vampires before they have a chance to attack. Unfortunately, her plan goes all wrong and results in a massive takeover by the undead.

Single mom Rachel Hunter has not one second to spare in her day between rearing two daughters, running a thriving goat farm, and keeping tabs on her eccentric brother. Not to mention an ex-husband who's in prison for murder and a local gang leader harassing her at every turn! Then a gorgeous, tattooed man crashes into her fence and she finds out exactly what it means to have her hands full.

Finn Pilar returns with his dog Crutch, taking on the bad guys in the southernmost paradise. This novel won the 2016 Whodunit Award, an annual writing competition presented at Mystery Fest Key West. A diver, sailor, and Harley owner, author Lewis C. Haskell can be found riding his bicycle around the island most mornings or with a glass of wine at Grand Vin in the evening.

My name is Sophie Lynch. I've just become the leader for Single for Life. I'm spending three days vacationing on Biyaha with a hot alien who needs to get married before he turns 25. We can't keep our hands off each other. I've got a problem. This is the story of how I will create TerraMates.

When Mara found herself captured by a gang of vampires, she feared the worst. She felt it was a random kidnapping, and so she fully expected to end up as a meal but she had no idea that she was chosen. She was chosen by handsome Vampire Prince Lucien but Mara had no idea why. Is it for her blood? For her fertility? Information? Mara was about to discover the real answer was more important than she could have ever imagined.

If you love John D McDonald and Carl Hiassen mysteries you are going to love Square Grouper. For fans of Key West murder mysteries, laugh out loud funny storytelling, and great characters, this book delivers. Authentic locations, great humor, and compelling action, Key West author Lewis C. Haskell has captured the traditions of South Florida writers with a first novel that was a finalist for the Key West Mystery Writers 'Jeremiah Healy' Award. Here is your next winter vacation beach listen.