Hoaxes And Hexes

The Canadian Oxford Dictionary defines hoax as a “humorous or malicious deception,” and hex as “a magic spell.” In Hoaxes and Hexes, Barbara Smith explores these intriguing reflections of human nature, showing our curious desire to believe in the impossible and explain the inexplicable. Here are tales of swindlers, charlatans and imposters, among them the flamboyant 19th-century financier known as Lord Gordon-Gordon; David Walsh, author of the horrendous Bre-X gold-mine hoax of the 1990s; and the eccentric Josef Papp, who claimed to have crossed the Atlantic in a homemade submarine. The persistent power of hexes is recorded in stories of cursed places— including a strange haunting in the Cypress Hills and a deadly Lake Superior lighthouse—and weird coincidences, such as the legendary Hollywood hex on Oscar-winning actresses. Whether you believe in the power of hoaxes or hexes or not, these bizarre stories show them to be a fascinating part of our history.

What if a book existed that gave answers to everything you've ever wondered about? What would you do to learn its secrets? Tales of such books have abounded for millennia and are legend in occult history. One of the most pervasive modern iterations is that of the Necronomicon, said to be a genuine occult text from the 8th century. The Necronomicon really is the creation of science fiction writer H.P. Lovecraft (1891-1937), in whose books the magic volume first appears in print. In The Necronomicon Files two occult authorities explore all aspects of The Necronomicon, from its first appearance in Lovecraft's fiction to its ongoing pervasive appearance in cult and occult circles. The Necronomicon Files, revised and expanded further, reveals the hoax of the Necronomicon. Harms and Gonce show that the apocryphal history of the Necronomicon was concocted by Lovecraft to lend it verisimilitude in his fiction. The magical text was transformed into an icon among Lovecraft's literary circle, who added to the book's legend by referring to it in their own writing. People became convinced that it was a real book and its references in literature and film continue to grow. The book also examines what people have undergone to find the Necronomicon and the cottage industry that has arisen over the past three decades to supply the continuing demand for a book that does not exist. Scholarly yet accessible, humorous and intriguing, The Necronomicon Files illuminates the depth of the creative process and the transformations of modern myth, while still managing to preserve much of the romance and fascination that surrounds the Necronomicon in our culture.

Vacation with the characters you love from the Hollywood Whodunit series in a top-secret summer spinoff. Tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the lie. What’s a girl to do when she’s swept up in a Hollywood courtroom drama with an over-the-hill lawyer and a defendant who claims innocence by hypnosis? Despite the implausible alibi, amateur sleuth Becky Robinson believes him. The career criminal and notorious jewel thief has already been convicted in the press and the trial is nothing but a forgone conclusion. OBJECTION! Calling Perry Mason, Matlock, even the fake lawyer from Suits. Send help. Innocent until proven guilty. Becky must uncover whodunit before the state calls their next witness. Or will the real thief snap their fingers and cast a spell on the judge, jury, and executioner? ---------------- A Hoax & a Hex is the third installment in the Robinson Family Detective cozy mystery series. If you love best friend shenanigans, quirky suspects, and adorable animals this series is for you! Robinson Family Detective Agency Series Order Book 1: Red Herrings & Pink Flamingos Book 2: McGuffins & Birdies Book 3: A Hoax & a Hex Book 4. A Patsy & a Pastry Book 5: A Trick & a Pony Book 6: A Masterpiece & a Murder -------------------------------- Keywords: cozy mystery, cozy mystery series, murder mystery, animal mysteries, dog mysteries, female sleuth mysteries, amateur sleuth mysteries, clean mysteries, mysteries with humor, funny cozy mystery, whodunit cozy mysteries, murder, Los Angles, Hollywood, actress, pop culture references, witty dialog, quirky characters, friendship, Jack Russell terrier, chasing your dream, wrongly accused, finding your place, inheritance, flamingo, courtroom drama, court, lawyer

Jack the Ripper is a gothic tale of Victorian conspiracies, the supernatural, secret societies and the police. Scotland Yard hunted a serial killer shrouded in politics as the mutilator of East End prostitutes. This book uses historic sources and rare official reports to reveal dark and supernatural aspects of the Ripper case.

"A chronicle of living literature"--No. 16, cover

Byron was—to echo Wordsworth—half-perceived and half-created. He would have affirmed Jean Baudrillard's observation that "to seduce is to die to reality and reconstitute oneself as illusion." But among the readers he seduced, in person and in poetry, were women possessed of vivid imaginations who collaborated with him in fashioning his legend. Accused of "treating women harshly," Byron acknowledged: "It may be so—but I have been their martyr. My whole life has been sacrificed to them and by them." Those whom he spell bound often returned the favor in their own writings tried to remake his public image to reflect their own. Through writings both well known and generally unknown, James Soderholm examines the poet's relationship with five women: Elizabeth Pigot, Caroline Lamb, Annabella Milbanke, Teresa Guiccioli, and Marguerite Blessington. These women participated in Byron's life and literary career and the manipulation of images that is the Byron legend. Soderholm argues against the sentimental depictions of biographers who would preserve Byron's romantic aura by diminishing the contributions of these women to his social, sexual, and literary identity. By restoring the contexts in which literary works charm or bedevil particular readers, the author shows the consequences of Byron's poetic seductions during and after his life.