Mystery Cults

Mystery cults are one of the most intriguing areas of Greek and Roman religion. In the nocturnal mysteries at Eleusis, participants dramatically reenacted the story of Demeter's loss and recovery of her daughter Persephone; in the Bacchic cult, bands of women ran wild in the Greek countryside to honor Dionysus; in the mysteries of Mithras, men came to understand the nature of the universe and their place within it through frightening initiation ceremonies and astrological teachings.

Torchlight. Drumbeat. A crowded hall breathes in unison as a priest lifts an object only initiates can see. Outside, empires rise and fall. Inside, someone believes death just lost. Mystery Religions of the Ancient World takes you inside the three most intoxicating cults of the classical Mediterranean. Walk the Sacred Way to Eleusis. Swear oaths in a Mithraic cave beneath a Roman granary. Sail at dawn with the priests of Isis as they launch a ceremonial ship and promise safe passage in this life and the next. This is history with a pulse, told with the urgency of a thriller and the rigor of...

In the early Roman Empire, as Christianity struggled to gain a foothold and survive in the polytheistic pool of Roman theology, its greatest rivals weren't the Caesars or the Roman aristocracy but rather the faith and devotion of the common Roman legionary. The faith of these men was centered on the god Mithras, who, they believed, led them to victory upon the field of battle and had done so for nearly four centuries.

Tribulation is a twisted mystery about an end-of-days religious cult manipulating space and traveling across planes of existence on electricity and radio signals. Cult members willingly accept seven brutal years of torture, known as their “tribulation,” to atone for their earthly sins and come out on the other side saved (or thoroughly brainwashed?). The hero of this thriller, Stacy Carlson, must uncover the mystery of the Tribulation cult after her husband Greg is kidnapped by its leader, Brother Elijah (Josh Charles), through a bizarre AM radio broadcast.

A distraught mother seeks her kidnapped child. A young boy languishes in jail, facing a trial that could change his life forever. The 3M Detective Agency has been nearly dismantled by sudden death and an unrelenting campaign by an out-of-control district attorney. How will Natalie McMasters and the fam fight against overwhelming odds to keep from being destroyed for good? Cult! is a story that spans the U.S.A., as Nattie infiltrates a soul-sucking cult trying to take over Los Angeles to hunt for her newly discovered sister and her missing newborn son, while a couple of ancient Tai Chi ...

She came to heal. What she uncovered might just destroy her instead. Tessa Rowan checked into Eversage Ridge hoping to heal. What she found was something far more insidious. Behind the tranquil façade of the exclusive wellness retreat were secrets, surveillance, and a carefully curated web of psychological manipulation. As the staff peeled back her layers, Tessa began to question everything—her memories, her sanity, even her own guilt. But the deeper she dug, the more dangerous the truth became. And when she finally uncovered the real reason she was brought to Eversage, Tessa was forced ...

When Riley Matthews (niece of Daniel Matthews from the book Without Warning in the Elite Guardians series) heads to North Carolina to rescue her best friend from the Swiss Saints cult, she quickly runs into trouble. Steve Patterson, home from Afghanistan and ready to adjust to civilian life, wants that life to include Riley Matthews. But first, he has to find her, help her rescue her friend--and convince her that he's a changed man. Only Riley's not so sure she believes him. Truthfully, her heart wants to say all is forgiven, but her head won't let her forget the pain he caused her when he ...

Africa may have given rise to the first human beings, and Egypt probably gave rise to the first great civilizations, which continue to fascinate modern societies across the globe nearly 5,000 years later. From the Library and Lighthouse of Alexandria to the Great Pyramid at Giza, the Ancient Egyptians produced several wonders of the world, revolutionized architecture and construction, created some of the world’s first systems of mathematics and medicine, and established language and art that spread across the known world.

Historians Cameron Thorne and Amanda Spencer-Gunn discover a fourteenth-century journal which confirms a long-rumored historical heresy: The medieval Church outlawed the Knights Templar because the warrior monks were secretly worshiping the ancient Goddess. The journal also sucks Cam and Amanda into the orbit of a ruthless cabal of modern-day pagans intent on pushing America into the loving arms of the Goddess—whether America wants succor there or not.

In 1632, an entire convent in the small French village of Loudun was apparently possessed by the devil. After a sensational and celebrated trial, the convent's charismatic priest Urban Grandier - accused of spiritually and sexually seducing the nuns in his charge - was convicted of being in league with Satan. Then he was burned at the stake for witchcraft. A remarkable true story of religious and sexual obsession, The Devils of Loudun is considered by many to be Brave New World author Aldous Huxley's nonfiction masterpiece.

Demons, jinn, possession, sinister artifacts, and gruesome archaeological discoveries haunt this new book by Dr. Heather Lynn. Evil Archaeology investigates the archaeological record for artifacts and evidence of evil entities, revealing how demons from the ancient world may be dwelling among us. It also looks at the history and lore behind real relics believed to be haunted and includes historical accounts of demonic possession that go as far back as King Solomon invoking demons to help him build his famed temple.

The galaxy is vast, and worship of the God-Emperor by His faithful takes many forms. The Spiral Dawn is one of the countless sanctioned sects of the Imperial Cult. As a gathering of Spiralytes make their holy pilgrimage to Redemption, the sect's world of origin and a shrine world of the Imperium, they find not a haven of enlightenment and introspection, but a soot-choked hellhole where their order's founders and an unorthodox regiment of Astra Militarum maintain an uneasy coexistence.

Big messages come from the smallest things. And sometimes, the smallest things are the most dangerous. When Gabby McAllister receives a mysterious package in the mail, she doesn't think much of it—until she opens the box and finds a handful of coins. At first glance, they seem ordinary. But her psychic senses flare to life, revealing something far more disturbing: these coins are connected to a murder. A murder that hasn’t happened yet. As visions grow darker and more intense, Gabby realizes she’s being drawn into a carefully orchestrated trap. Someone is watching her. Studying her. ...

Hidden Jihad opens at mid-century, in 2050, two years after the election of Jefferson Rhodes. At a lavish extravaganza at the Western White House, President Rhodes asks his old college friend Mark Forster to join his administration as head of a Commission on Religious Unity, his disingenuous attempt to appear inclusive toward religion. A significant encounter takes place between Heather Marshall and journalist Todd Stewart, who, unlikely opposites, hit it off and fall in love as the story progresses. Mike Bardolf is at President Rhodes' s side, working toward Palladium' s secret agenda.

“My husband was so excited about this book that I also read it.” – Linda Olinger, Amazon Reviewer “Eeek! I loved this book so much!” – Amanda Felton, Book Blogger “I binged and splurged the entire series.” – J.L. Lux, Author “I read all ten books in this series in one go.” – Matt S., Amazon reader BRONZE MEDAL AWARD WINNER! - 2022 Epic Fantasy - Readers' Favorite Murders, magic, and secrets. A knighted outcast and a tantalizing witch. The conflicted son of a witch was knighted by the king. Knighted to repay a debt to his father. His name is Calec. He alone holds ...

In this New York Times bestselling installment of the "outrageously entertaining" Strike series (Financial Times), detective duo Cormoran and Robin must rescue a man ensnared in the trap of a dangerous cult.​ Private Detective Cormoran Strike is contacted by a worried father whose son, Will...

A New York Times Bestseller “This suspenseful YA thriller is yet another testament to Jackson’s talent.”—ELLE New York Times bestselling author Tiffany D. Jackson delivers another stunning, ripped-from-the-headlines thriller, following a freshman girl whose college life is turned upside...

A bestselling dystopian novel that tackles surveillance, privacy and the frightening intrusions of technology in our lives—a “compulsively readable parable for the 21st century” (Vanity Fair). When Mae Holland is hired to work for the Circle, the world’s most powerful internet company...

This is a story based on a true story, with an added twist. A woman goes missing in a small rural town in the mountains. As she awaits her fate unraveling the truth of her life's mysteries. She is mentally ill, desperately trying to take control by seizing the opportunity to figure out what, or who has been following her. She advances her studies trying to plant her feet, but is unsuccessful. She must go through a windy, troubling path, to move on, and find peace. Uncovering the truth she would never would have known what was making her sick, all along.

Something terrible has happened in the snowbound village of Kingdom Come, Wyoming, where 12 eerily identical houses stand dark and abandoned. Meals remain untouched on dining room tables, cars are still in garages, and the town's residents have vanished into thin air. This is the disturbing setting where vacationing medical examiner Maura Isles and her traveling companions find themselves trapped during a ferocious snowstorm.