The Memory Bones

An analysis of the intellectual and emotional life of ancient Mesoamerican people through studies of figural works and inscriptions. All of human experience flows from bodies that feel, express emotion, and think about what such experiences mean. But is it possible for us, embodied as we are in a particular time and place, to know how people of long ago thought about the body and its experiences? In this groundbreaking book, three leading experts on the Classic Maya (ca. AD 250 to 850) marshal a vast array of evidence from Maya iconography and hieroglyphic writing, as well as archaeological findings, to argue that the Classic Maya developed an approach to the human body that we can recover and understand today. Starting with a cartography of the Maya body as depicted in imagery and texts, the authors explore how the body was replicated in portraiture; how it experienced the world through ingestion, the senses, and the emotions; how the body experienced war and sacrifice and the pain and sexuality; how words, often heaven-sent, could be embodied; and how bodies could be blurred through spirit possession. From these investigations, the authors convincingly demonstrate that the Maya conceptualized the body in varying roles, as a metaphor of time, as a gendered, sexualized being, in distinct stages of life, as an instrument of honor and dishonor, as a vehicle for communication and consumption, as an exemplification of beauty and ugliness, and as a dancer and song-maker. Their findings open a new avenue for empathetically understanding the ancient Maya as living human beings who experienced the world as we do, through the body.

Looking down at the familiar, pale and lifeless face floating in the salty waters of the marsh, her blood freezes. It's a face she hasn't seen for years, but used to know so well... When Detective Casey White is called to a murder scene in the Outer Banks saltmarshes, she's devastated to find the strangled body of her ex-husband-father of her missing daughter Hannah. And nearby, an older, unidentifiable body is buried too... but how are these bones linked to her ex? Painful memories flood back as Casey desperately searches his apartment, surrounded by photos of them happy with their little girl. Finding a notepad with the name of the hospital where Hannah was last seen scrawled on it, Casey realizes her ex recently discovered something about their child's disappearance. But who was trying to silence him? Then forensics show the bones belong to a sweet young nurse who worked at the same hospital. Delving into hospital records, Casey is shocked to learn she once held Hannah as a little baby... Her boss insists she can't work such a personal investigation, but Casey is in too deep. Interviewing all the staff at the hospital, she's sure one of the doctors is acting suspiciously... and that night, Casey wakes up barely able to breathe as flames devour her home. Now she's in the killer's sights. To finally catch this twisted monster and learn what happened to her stolen girl, Casey will have to risk everything... An absolutely unputdownable thriller that will have you gasping at the twists and turns. Fans of Karin Slaughter, Lisa Gardner and Robert Dugoni will be completely addicted. Read what everyone's saying about B.R. Spangler: "WOW!!! Explosive page-turner with so many twists and turns!... I loved this book!!" Goodreads reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ "Oh wow. What a fantastic book! I was totally hooked... I couldn't turn the pages fast enough. It was full of tension, twists and turns that kept me totally engrossed... I read it in one day as I just couldn't put it down." NetGalley reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ "A real thrill ride... literally blew me away. Everything and more you expect from a real gritty crime thriller. LOVED IT!!!!" Goodreads reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ "This fabulous crime thriller with its super mix of characters will keep you on the edge of your seat and deeply engrossed from the very first page to the nail-biting twist at the end... Loved it and deserves all of its 5 stars from me." NetGalley reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ "Absolutely phenomenal... devoured in practically one sitting!... I would recommend this one to crime thriller and police procedural enthusiasts everywhere!... keeps the reader frantically turning the page!" Misty's Corner Reviews, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ "Wow! What a story!... suspense, intrigue, action, and lots of crazy twists and turns!... Definitely gave me goosebumps!" Sassysouthernbook

An African tightrope walker who can’t die gets embroiled in a secret society’s deadly gladiatorial tournament in this “bloodily spectacular” (Chloe Gong, New York Times bestselling author of These Violent Delights) historical fantasy set in an alternate 1880s London, perfect for fans of The Last Magician and The Gilded Wolves. As an African tightrope dancer in Victorian London, Iris is used to being strange. She is certainly an unusual sight for leering British audiences always eager for the spectacle of colonial curiosity. But Iris also has a secret that even “strange” doesn’t capture…​ She cannot die. Haunted by her unnatural power and with no memories of her past, Iris is obsessed with discovering who she is. But that mission gets more complicated when she meets the dark and alluring Adam Temple, a member of a mysterious order called the Enlightenment Committee. Adam seems to know much more about her than he lets on, and he shares with her a terrifying revelation: the world is ending, and the Committee will decide who lives…and who doesn’t. To help them choose a leader for the upcoming apocalypse, the Committee is holding the Tournament of Freaks, a macabre competition made up of vicious fighters with fantastical abilities. Adam wants Iris to be his champion, and in return he promises her the one thing she wants most: the truth about who she really is. If Iris wants to learn about her shadowy past, she has no choice but to fight. But the further she gets in the grisly tournament, the more she begins to remember—and the more she wonders if the truth is something best left forgotten.

A life hangs in the balance of memory in this poignant, witty and “effective feminine counterpoint to . . . Philip Roth’s 2006 novel, ‘Everyman’” by the award-winning author (The Washington Post). Born on the same day as Queen Elizabeth II, Canadian Georgina Danforth Witley is one of ninety-nine lucky Commonwealth residents invited to Her Majesty’s eightieth birthday lunch at Buckingham Palace. But en route to the airport to board the plane for London, Georgina’s car slips off the road and plunges into a thickly wooded ravine. Thrown from the car, injured, and unable to move, she must rely on her full store of family memories, her no-nonsense wit, and a recitation of the names of the bones in her body—an exercise from childhood—to remind her that she is still very much alive. But what has the entirety of her life meant? As Georgina lies stranded and helpless, she reflects on her eighty years as a daughter, mother, sister, wife, and widow, on lost loves and secrets, and on painful moments of the past she struggles not to recall. With this exquisite, suspenseful, and surprising tale of the staying power of family through time and memory, “Itani exposes the richness and depth beneath the surface of one ordinary life” (The New Yorker).

Fundamentally concerned with the means by which translation ensures the afterlife of literary and cultural texts, this book examines multiple processes of translation, temporal and spatial, through acts of intercultural exchange and intergenerational transmission.

A respected journalist describes the abuse he suffered at the hands of a close family relative, the effect this had on his formative years and how he overcame the anger and self-doubt it left behind.

A serial killer is on the loose in Sacramento River Delta. When Sara Mason returns to her hometown to start a new life, she learns that a murderer is terrorizing its residents. Despite battling difficult childhood memories, Sara is determined to make peace with her past. But she soon learns that the elusive psychopath is now stalking her. Sara's attempt to rebuild her life is hindered even more by the discovery of skeletal remains on her property. As the investigation focuses on several suspects, Sara discovers critical clues and bravely volunteers to be a decoy for the sheriff's department. Sara's destiny has brought her back home, but will her decision lead her down a path lined with danger... and straight into the arms of a madman?