"A personal how-to guide for investigative journalists, a twisted tale of a scam of huge proportions, and a really good read" (Bethany McLean, author of The Smartest Guys in the Room), this spellbinding true story follows a pair of award-winning CNN investigative journalists as they track down the mysterious psychic at the center of an international scam that stole tens of millions of dollars from the elderly and emotionally vulnerable. While investigating financial crimes for CNN Money, Blake Ellis and Melanie Hicken were intrigued by reports that elderly Americans were giving away thousands of dollars to mail-in schemes. With a little digging, they soon discovered a shocking true story. Victims received personalized letters from a woman who, claiming amazing psychic powers, convinced them to send money in return for riches, good health, and good fortune. The predatory scam had been going on unabated for decades, raking in more than $200 million in the United States and Canada alone--with investigators from all over the world unable to stop it. And at the center of it all--an elusive French psychic named Maria Duval. Based on the five-part series that originally appeared on CNN's website in 2016 and was seen by more than three million people, A Deal with the Devil picks up where the series left off as Ellis and Hicken reveal more bizarre characters, follow new leads, close in on Maria Duval, and connect the dots in an edge-of-your-seat journey across the US to England and France. A Deal with the Devil is a fascinating, thrilling search for the truth that will suck you "deep into the heart of a labyrinthine investigation that raises bigger questions about greed, manipulation, and the desperate hunger to believe" (Megan Abbott, author of You Will Know Me).

There is no doubt science is currently suffering from a credibility crisis. This thought-provoking book argues that, ironically, science's credibility is being undermined by tools created by scientists themselves. Scientific disinformation and damaging conspiracy theories are rife because of the internet that science created, the scientific demand for empirical evidence and statistical significance leads to data torturing and confirmation bias, and data mining is fuelled by the technological advances in Big Data and the development of ever-increasingly powerful computers. Using a wide range of entertaining examples, this fascinating book examines the impacts of society's growing distrust of science, and ultimately provides constructive suggestions for restoring the credibility of the scientific community.

A stirring work that offers a chilling glimpse into the negligence, greed, murder, and, at times, comical disorganization behind some of the CIA's most controversial secret operations, this book collects the first five issues of the zine. Summarizing the influence the CIA had in the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr.; the AIDS virus; the killing of Filiberto Ojeda Rios, a Puerto Rican independence movement leader; the Patriot Act; and the Iran-Contra affair, this forthright representation provides an behind the scenes look at the United States' foreign and domestic policies. The radical claims presented are built on fact and posit an accessible alternative to mainstream histories that help to contextualize current events and the worldwide anti-American backlash.

From the journalist behind hit Netflix documentary Fyre comes an eye-opening look at the con artists and serial scammers of the digital age-and why we can't stop falling for them. 'Juicy, sharp, savage and wildly entertaining' CAT MARNELL, New York Times bestselling author of How to Murder Your Life We live in an age where scams are the new normal. A charismatic entrepreneur sells thousands of tickets to a festival that never happened. Respected investors pour millions into a start-up centered around fake blood tests. Reviewers and celebrities flock to London's top-rated restaurant that's little more than a backyard shed. These unsettling stories of today's viral grifters have risen to fame and hit the front-page headlines, yet the curious conundrum remains: Why do these scams happen? Drawing from scientific research, marketing campaigns, and exclusive documents and interviews, Vice reporter Gabrielle Bluestone delves into the irresistible hype that fuels our social media ecosystem, whether it's from the trusted influencers that peddled Fyre or the consumer reviews that sold Juicero. A cultural examination that is as revelatory as it is relevant, Hype pulls back the curtain on the manipulation game behind the never-ending scam season-and how we as consumers can stop getting played. 'Scams are hot right now, and Bluestone covers the hottest here.' BOOKLIST

This no-nonsense guide to one of our most enduring mysteries presents a short history of the strangest encounters, looks carefully at explanations from the blunt to the truly bizarre, offers insights into the strongest evidence that we are being visited by beings from another world and sources the best sceptical arguments that it can all be explained rationally. Concise, balanced and - occasionally - hilarious this is a story that has as much to tell you about the human race as it does about aliens.

In Discovering the Mysteries of Ancient America, the author of The Atlantis Encyclopedia turns his sextant towards this hemisphere. Here is a collection of the most controversial articles selected from seventy issues of the infamous Ancient American magazine. They range from the discovery of Roman relics in Arizona and California's Chinese treasure, to Viking rune-stones in Minnesota and Oklahoma and the mysterious religions of ancient Americans.

Allegations of Russian conspiracies meddling in the affairs of Western countries have been a persistent feature of Western politics since the Cold War - allegations of Russian interference in the US presidential election are only the most recent in a long series of conspiracy allegations that mark the history of the twentieth century. But Russian politics is rife with conspiracies about the West too. Everything bad that happens in Russia is traced back by some to an anti-Russian plot that is hatched in the West. Even the collapse of the Soviet Union - this crucial turning point in world politics that left the USA as the only remaining superpower - was, according to some Russian conspiracy theorists, planned and executed by Russia's enemies in the West. This book is the first-ever study of Russian conspiracy theories in the post-Soviet period. It examines why these conspiracy theories have emerged and gained currency in Russia and what role intellectuals have played in this process. The book shows how, in the new millennium, the image of the 'dangerous, conspiring West' provides national unity and has helped legitimize Russia's rapid turn to authoritarianism under Vladimir Putin.

Jesse Walker's The United States of Paranoia presents a comprehensive history of conspiracy theories in American culture and politics, from the colonial era to the War on Terror.

The fear of intrigue and subversion doesn't exist only on the fringes of society, but has always been part of our national identity. When such tales takes hold, Walker argues, they reflect the anxieties and experiences of the people who believe them, even if they say nothing true about the objects of the theories themselves.With intensive research and a deadpan sense of humor, Jesse Walker's The United States of Paranoia combines the rigor of real history with the punch of pulp fiction.

This edition includes primary-source documentation in the form of archival photographs, cartoons, and film stills selected by the author.

21 December 2012 was believed to mark the end of the thirteenth B'ak'tun cycle in the Long Count of the Mayan calendar. Many people believed this date to mark the end of the world or, at the very least, a shift to a new form of global consciousness. Examining how much of the phenomenon is based on the historical record and how much is contemporary fiction, the book explores the landscape of the modern apocalyptic imagination, the economics of the spiritual marketplace, the commodification of countercultural values, and the cult of celebrity.

A first-hand account of how public officials and other well-connected individuals have been compromised or blackmailed by their sexual improprieties, Confessions of a DC Madame relates the authors time running the largest gay escort service in Washington, DC, and his interactions with VIPs from government, business, and the media who solicited the escorts he employed. The book details the federal governments pernicious campaign waged against the author to ensure his silence and how he withstood relentless, fabricated attacks by the government, which included incarceration rooted in trumped up charges and outright lies. This fascinating and shocking facet of government malfeasance reveals the integral role blackmail plays in American politics and the unbelievable lengths the government perpetrates to silence those in the know.

Michael Cremo, an international authority on human antiquity, has justly earned the 'forbidden archaeologist' title. For over twenty-seven years he's been digging up documented, credible findings that mainstream archaeologists don't want you to know about - discoveries in the fossil record that tell a completely different story from Darwinian evolution. This book presents his research at international scientific conferences, comments on the latest discoveries and 'missing links', examines famous archaeological sites such as the Sterkfontein Caves - the alleged cradle of humanity - and responds to mixed reactions to his books, now translated into twenty-six languages. This collection of forty-nine articles published in "Atlantis Rising" magazine is like the Cliff Notes on his best-selling, encyclopaedic "Forbidden Archaeology" and formidable "Human Devolution". Readers will quickly understand the strongest arguments and remarkable discoveries that reveal evolution as a failing theory.

Capital punishment for murder was suspended in Great Britain in 1965, an Act finally made permanent in 1969, but remained as the punishment for treason until as recently as 1998, demonstrating how seriously we take the crime of betraying your country. But even with the threat of the noose hanging over them, many still chose the path of treachery during the cataclysmic events of last century. British Traitors examines the lives and motivations of a number of the perpetrators of this most heinous of crimes, following the footsteps of Fascist traitors such as William Joyce (Lord Haw-Haw) and John Amery to the gallows, investigating what drove men such as Wilfred Macartney and John Herbert King to betray their country during the war to end all wars and delving into the mysterious web of espionage and subterfuge surrounding the Cambridge Spy Ring that spied for the Soviet Union from the nineteen-thirties until the early nineteen-fifties. People commit treason for many reasons - some seek adventure, some seek reward, some are motivated by political philosophy, while others are sucked into it by their own foolishness. British Traitors provides a fascinating look at the lives and impulses of those who chose to betray their country.

Do we, the human species, really know who we are or where we came from or how we originated or our place in the cosmos? Or is much of what we have been taught wrong or misguided or possibly even blatant lies intended to keep people in power and everyone else in line? Exploring alternative theories on the establishment of society and civilisation, Hidden History: Ancient Aliens and the Suppressed Origins of Civilization looks at a variety of dissenting, suppressed, and forbidden accounts of history and the origins of humanity.

How is public morality understood in the twenty-first century, and what effect does this have on legislation and social policy? Public Morality and the Culture Wars is a strictly non-polemical analysis of the intellectual and ideological conflicts at the heart of the 'culture wars'. Taking debates on human nature, sexuality, gender identity, abortion, censorship, and free speech, Bryan Fanning offers an accessible analysis of modern public morality, identifying a 'triple divide' between conservative, liberal and progressive viewpoints. A nuanced analysis of 'culture wars' now dividing Anglophone democracies is badly needed. Public Morality and the Culture Wars makes a vibrant and invigorating contribution to the debate, essential reading for scholars and students in the fields of social policy, law, politics, philosophy, sociology and social justice.

Atlantis, ancient astronauts, and pyramid power. Archaeologists are perennially bombarded with questions about the "mysteries" of the past. They are also constantly addressing more realistic controversies: origins of the First Americans, the ownership of antiquities, and national claims to historical territories. Alice Beck Kehoe offers to introductory students a method of evaluating and assessing these claims about the past in this reader-friendly, concise text. She shows how to use the methods of science to challenge the legitimacy of pseudoscientific proclamations and develop reasonable interpretations on controversial issues. Not one to shy away from controversy herself, Kehoe takes some stands-on transpacific migration, shamanism, the Kensington Runestone-which will challenge instructor and students alike, and foster class discussion.

THE TRUTH IS OUT THERE . . . Who was Jack the Ripper? Where did the Nazis stash their gold? Who are the real Men in Black? Did aliens send the 'WOW' signal? And how will the world end? 100 Things They Don't Want You to Know sets out to uncover the truth behind the world's most mysterious cover-ups and unexplained events that have been shrouded in secrecy for generations. From suspicious deaths and disappearances to enigmatic identities, from Cold War cover-ups to puzzling paranormal phenomena and from ancient artefacts to coded documents, 100 Things They Don't Want You to Know takes you on a quest to solve the greatest mysteries, strange disappearances, suspicious cover-ups and conspiracy theories. Including: Black Dahlia, the Marfa Lights, the Turin Shroud, Spontaneous Combustion, Lost Literature of the Mayan Civilisation, Disappearance of Jean Spangler, Shakespeare's True Identity, the Turin Shroud, the Easter Island Glyphs, the Death of Lee Harvey Oswald, the Mothman, The Flying Dutchman, the Secret Mission of Ruldolph Hess, the 'WOW" signal, Lewis Carroll's Lost Diaries, the Man in the Iron Mask and the Beast of Bodmin Moor.

'A first class book' Sunday Times We're all conspiracy theorists. Some of us just hide it better than others. Conspiracy theorists do not wear tin-foil hats (for the most part). They are not just a few kooks lurking on the paranoid fringes of society with bizarre ideas about shape-shifting reptilian aliens running society in secret. They walk among us. They are us. Everyone loves a good conspiracy. Yet conspiracy theories are not a recent invention. And they are not always a harmless curiosity. In Suspicious Minds, Rob Brotherton explores the history and consequences of conspiracism, and delves into the research that offers insights into why so many of us are drawn to implausible, unproven and unproveable conspiracy theories. They resonate with some of our brain's built-in quirks and foibles, and tap into some of our deepest desires, fears, and assumptions about the world. The fascinating and often surprising psychology of conspiracy theories tells us a lot - not just why we are drawn to theories about sinister schemes, but about how our minds are wired and, indeed, why we believe anything at all. Conspiracy theories are not some psychological aberration - they're a predictable product of how brains work. This book will tell you why, and what it means. Of course, just because your brain's biased doesn't always mean you're wrong. Sometimes conspiracies are real. Sometimes, paranoia is prudent.

Well-being, happiness and quality of life are now established objects of social and medical research. Does this science produce knowledge that is properly about well-being? What sort of well-being? The definition and measurement of these objects rest on assumptions that are partly normative, partly empirical and partly pragmatic, producing a great diversity of definitions depending on the project and the discipline. This book, written from the perspective of philosophy of science, formulates principles for the responsible production and interpretation of this diverse knowledge. Traditionally, philosophers' goal has been a single concept of well-being and a single theory about what it consists in. But for science this goal is both unlikely and unnecessary. Instead the promise and authority of the science depends on it focusing on the well-being of specific kinds of people in specific contexts. Skeptical arguments notwithstanding, this contexual well-being can be measured in a valid and credible way - but only if scientists broaden their methods to make room for normative considerations and address publicly and inclusively the value-based conflicts that inevitably arise when a measure of well-being is adopted. The science of well-being can be normative, empirical and objective all at once, provided that we line up values to science and science to values.

Great Wines and Great Writers are a Wonderful Blend"Guides to the wide world of wine are many but this is the first book on the market to pair books with wine by an author who is a preeminent expert on both." -Thriftbooks.com #1 Best Seller in Wine & Spirits Buying Guides A fact-filled, jargon free guide to wine, bursting with entertaining anecdotes, literary quotes and compelling humor that teaches you everything you always wanted to learn about wine but were too scared to ask. The pleasures of great wine and great writers. Under the careful guidance of his father, Patrick Alexander began drinking wine with his meals at the age of five. At the same age, encouraged by his mother, he began a lifelong love-affair with books. The twin pleasures of wine and writing remained his passion up to this day. He has raised his own children in many of the world's great wine growing regions, from Bordeaux and Piedmont in Europe to the Santa Cruz mountains of California while researching and writing his definitive guide to the novels of Marcel Proust. History of wine and some of the best wines. For several years, Patrick has been teaching a sold-out wine appreciation class at the nation's No.1 independent bookstore, Books & Books in Coral Gables, Florida. The Booklovers' Guide to Wine is based on this very successful class and blends Patrick's passion for the culture and history of wine and his love of literature for the world's great writers. A literary twist on traditional food and wine pairings, this book explores how great wines and great writers can be combined to enhance the enjoyment of both. The book describes the history of wine from the time of Noah to the birth of two-buck Chuck. If you are a fan of wine books such as Cork Dork, Wine Folly, Wine Simple, or The Wine Bible, and appreciate great literature, you will love The Booklovers' Guide to Wine.

All that was left of Doctor Linda Hazzard's sanitorium was the foundation and the masonry incinerator that swelled from the ground like a huge grave marker. A perfect row of old firs and pines lined up like sentinels along the road. Every one of the trees marked the spot where the doctor had buried each of her victims. In 1911 two wealthy British heiresses, Claire, and Dora Williamson, arrived at an unfinished sanitorium in the forests of Olalla, Washington to undergo the revolutionary "fasting treatment" of Doctor Linda Burfield Hazzard. It was supposed to be a holiday for the two sisters, but within a month of arriving at what the locals called 'Starvation Heights', the women underwent brutal, evasive procedures and became emaciated shadows of their former selves. How did Hazzard persuade the sisters to undergo such monstrous treatments? And why, on Claire's deathbed, did Dora, near to death herself, still hold such an extreme belief in Hazzard's methods? In this chilling true story of deception and murder, Gregg Olsen brings us inside the disturbing world of Hazzard who would stop at nothing to achieve her dream of creating the most renowned sanatorium in the world - but ended up a convicted serial killer. A gripping and fascinating account of the most unusual and disturbing criminal cases in American history that will hook fans of The Five and The Devil in the White City. What readers are saying about Starvation Heights: "A fascinating turn-of-the-century story of medical malpractice and murder. If you liked The Alienist, you'll find Starvation Heights all the more gripping because this story is true." Michael Connelly "An engrossing and compelling look at a shocking crime in another era. Olsen's deft touch takes us back to the early 1900s so cleverly that reading Starvation Heights is akin to stepping into a time machine." Ann Rule "Even the most devoted true-crime reader will be shocked by the maddening and mind-boggling acts of horror that Gregg Olsen chronicles in this book. Olsen has done it again, giving readers a glimpse into a murderous duo that's so chilling, it will have your head spinning. I could not put this book down!" Aphrodite Jones, New York Times bestselling author "One of today's true-crime masters." Caitlin Rother, New York Times bestselling author "An account of real-life villainy that outdoes anything a novelist might concoct." Les Standiford, author of Meet You in Hell

More than 700 'utopian' novels are published in Russia every year. These utopias - meaning here fantasy fiction, science fiction, space operas or alternative history - do not set out merely to titillate; instead they express very real Russian anxieties: be they territorial right-sizing, loss of imperial status or turning into a 'colony' of the West. Contributors to this innovative collection use these narratives to re-examine post-Soviet Russian political culture and identity. Interrogating the intersections of politics, ideologies and fantasies, chapters draw together the highbrow literary mainstream (authors such as Vladimir Sorokin), mass literature for entertainment and individuals who bridge the gap between fiction writers and intellectuals or ideologists (Aleksandr Prokhanov, for example, the editor-in-chief of Russia's far-right newspaper Zavtra). In the process The Post-Soviet Politics of Utopia sheds crucial light onto a variety of debates - including the rise of nationalism, right-wing populism, imperial revanchism, the complicated presence of religion in the public sphere, the function of language - and is important reading for anyone interested in the heightened importance of ideas, myths, alternative histories and conspiracy theories in Russia today.

In recent decades, as women entered the US workforce in increasing numbers, they faced the conundrum of how to maintain breastfeeding and hold down full-time jobs. In 2010, the Lactation at Work Law (an amendment to the US Fair Labor Standards Act) mandated accommodations for lactating women. This book examines the federal law and its state-level equivalent in Indiana, drawing on two waves of interviews with human resource personnel, supervising managers, and lactating workers. In many ways, this simple law - requiring break time and privacy for pumping - is a success story. Through advocacy by allies, education of managers, and employee initiative, many organizations created compliant accommodations. This book shows legal scholars how a successful civil rights law creates effective change; helps labor activists and management personnel understand how to approach new accommodations; and enables workers to understand the possibilities for amelioration of workplace problems through internal negotiations and legal reforms.

Space travel . . . Genetic engineering . . . Computer science . . . Astounding achievements as new as tomorrow. But stunning recent evidence proves that as these ultramodern advances were known to our forfathers millions of yrsterdays ago . . . as early as 3,000 years before the birth of Christ!

In this remarkable companion volume to his landmark EARTH CHRONICLES series, author Zecharia Sitchin reexamines the teachings of the ancients in the light of mankind's latest scientific discoveries -- and uncovers breathtaking, never-before-revealed facts that challenge long-held, conventional beliefs about our planet and our species.

The UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities promotes ability equality, but this is not experienced in national laws. Australia, Canada, Ireland, the UK and the US all have one thing in common: regulatory frameworks which treat workers with psychosocial disabilities less favorably than workers with either physical or sensory disabilities. Ableism at Work is a comprehensive and comparative legal, practical and theoretical analysis of workplace inequalities experienced by workers with psychosocial disabilities. Whether it be denying anti-discrimination protection to people with episodic disabilities, addictions or other psychological impairments, failing to make reasonable accommodations/adjustments for workers with psychosocial disabilities, or denying them workers' compensation or occupational health and safety protections, regulatory interventions imbed inequalities. Ableism, sanism and prejudice are expressly stated in laws, reflected in judgments, and perpetuated by workplace practices and this book enables advocates, policy makers and lawmakers to understand the wider context in which systems discriminate workers with psychosocial disabilities.