After almost twenty years as a math professor, Archie Dauphine was ready for something new-and perhaps a little strange.Enter the Curiousium: a sprawling space that's equal parts library and magical warehouse, filled with everything from ancient scrolls to dwarven novels to magical artifacts. Long used exclusively by the Faekind, the mystical beings who live alongside the mortal world, the Curiousium is now opening its doors to everyone. As the first human employee, Archie's new ro...

At 16 years old, Jen stumbled out of the forest and into the woods that fringe the small midwestern town of Groverton, remembering nothing about her life except her first name and age. She was soon adopted by the Aston family, whose young daughter Ellie was thrilled to get a sibling.Now, twelve years later, Jen is living a good life as a news anchor, raising Ellie after their parents were killed in a house fire. Jen still can't remember her past, but that doesn't really bother her,...

"When two worlds collide, only one may survive."Since ending Mathon's tyrannical reign several days ago, these words have echoed in Jen DuAston's mind. Determined to get the residents of Groverton out of harm's way and onto Bar Truga, Jen uses a dimensional rift and returns to the tiny midwestern town that raised her for twelve years.... just before the Chiami strike with a devastating attack.When Mathon's full diabolical plan is revealed, the Tayamu face an evil that hasn'...

Moments ago, Ellie and Jen Aston were in their small midwestern town of Groverton, but now, they find themselves on a parallel Earth, in the magical land of Kiamada. Accompanied by Alistair Doyle, his twin sister Kira, Kira's husband Jerry, and the giant Wiler, Theonus, Ellie and Jen have to adapt to their new lives in this similar, yet still different, world. Weird plants and strange animals aren't that surprising, but Bar Truga, the sentient island that is home to the Tayamu, is unlike a...

Que signifie ce drôle de titre, C**asse-moi l’os ! ? Vous avez besoin d’un indice ?Indice 1 : Faisons la paix !Indice 2 : Mais rassure-moi, tu t’es lavé les mains ?Cette expression veut dire, au Cameroun, « serre-moi la main ». Référence à la façon particulière qu’on a de se serrer la main en Afrique : on fait claquer ses deux doigts – le majeur et le pouce – avec ceux de la personne saluée. Cela produit un bruit sec qu’on assimile à un craquement, comme un o...

This book focuses on strategic special operations and how these have led to the achievement of major foreign policy goals, which is illustrated by six case studies.The study specifically focuses on the alignment of the policies, strategies, and tactics that dominated these operations, providing a fresh perspective. Theoretically, the work underscores the continued relevance of relative superiority as the dominant theory in the field. Importantly, it aligns the potential ways of ach...

When pop megastar Zach Crystal dies in a fire at his remote mansion, his mysterious demise rips open the bitter divide between those who adored his music and his endless charity work, and those who viewed him as a despicable predator, who manipulated and abused young and vulnerable girls. Online journalist, Scott King, whose Six Stories podcasts have become an internet sensation, investigates the accusations of sexual abuse and murder that were levelled at Crystal before he died. But as Sc...

This book sets out the major social scientific approaches to the study of Special Operations Forces.Despite consistent downsizing, over the past two decades the armed forces of the industrial democracies have seen a huge growth in Special Operations Forces (SOF). Through increasing numbers of personnel and more frequent deployments, SOF units have wielded considerable influence in conflicts around the world, with senior SOF officers having led major strategic operations. This incre...

This book offers a comparative study of military reserves in contemporary democracies.A combination of budgetary pressures, new missions and emerging military roles during the past three decades has led the armed forces of democracies to rethink the training and use of reserve forces. Moreover, reservists have become central to the armed forces as part of moves towards "total" or "comprehensive" defense. Despite this, a scholarly bias towards studying regulars and conscripts means ...

This volume explores and develops new social-scientific tools for the analysis and understanding of contemporary military missions in theatre.Despite the advent of new types of armed conflict, the social-scientific study of militaries in action continues to focus on tools developed in the hey-day of conventional wars. These tools focus on such classic issues as cohesion and leadership, communication and unit dynamics, or discipline and motivation. While these issues continue to be ...

**What happens when an estranged father and son unwittingly fall in love with the same woman?'**If ever a book was a mood-lifter, it’s this one. Full of caustic wit, I cried laughing!' MILLY JOHNSON, Sunday Times bestselling author'Smart, clever and engaging - the perfect ‘what-if’ novel' PENNY PARKES'What a treat this novel is! Compulsively readable, and with surprising twists and turns right to the end. And who knew that such a ni...

This book seeks to chart and evaluate the impact of social research on the military itself.By "impact", the authors in this volume simply mean that which has a marked effect or influence on changing military policy, practices, knowledge, skills, behaviour, or living conditions. The book comprises a series of reflective contributions from scholars who have conducted research on the military as external scholars with no formal ties to the armed forces, as "native" researchers formall...