Witches of Cahokia
Something's turned up at a road construction site near Alton, Illinois. A pair of skeletal remains is causing a sensation in the local papers, and it falls on archaeologists Daniel and Lauren French to determine whether the project can go forward. But when further excavation turns up dozens of graves - each containing female remains - an ordinary dig turns into a major archaeological expedition. Quickly dubbed by the local press, Ancient Queens of Alton, the gravesites represent an irresistible professional challenge to Daniel and Lauren.
Who were these women? What do they tell us about ancient beliefs, culture, and even migration patterns? The answers might be too incredible to believe.
Slowly Daniel and Lauren's research reveals a remarkable line of shamanic women bound by an ancient promise to wait, watch, and remember. It is a tale filled with passion, sacrifice, love, and loss. It is the tale of an ancient civilizations rise and fall. It is the tale of the women who shaped the development of the city of Cahokia.
The novel explores the growth of the mound city of Cahokia, an actual archaeological site along the Mississippi River. Circa A.D. 1200, Cahokia reached the pinnacle of its power and prestige. With a population of approximately 20,000 it was at the time larger than Paris, and no other North American city reached its equivalent size until 1800. At is zeneth, Cahokia was a major political and religious center for the Native American Mississippian Culture. Situated near its center stood a massive truncated pyramid, covering more than 14 acres, which rose in four terraces to a height of 100 feet. Archaeologists calculate that the mound contains 22 million cubic feet of dirt making it the largest prehistoric earthen structure in the Western Hemisphere. Cahokia is a city of superlatives: Largest earthen structures, largest population, widest territorial influence, and unfortunately, among its graves are the largest number of human sacrifices north of Mexico. The novel, Witches of Cahokia, is a sequel to the archaeological fiction, Flight of the Piasa, which examines the creation of the enigmatic Piasa Bird pictograph overlooking the Mississippi River near Cahokia in Alton, IL.
As Daniel and Lauren unravel the mystery, they're on the cusp of an incredible discovery that will change our archaeological knowledge forever. Spanning the continents and the ages, Witches of Cahokia is a thought-provoking novel that will keep you guessing right up to the shocking conclusion.

The Piasa Puzzle
Daniel looked up at the wall clock. "Well that brings us to the end of our time, but I should tell you that the last sighting of the Piasa Bird was April 1948. Guy named Coleman, while riding on horseback about four miles from Alton, claimed to have sighted a bird "bigger than an airplane." The students were now standing, packing their bags, adjusting their coats, readying themselves to leave."Oh, by the way, be careful out there," Daniel laughed. "And remember to look up now and then, you never know when Daniel French, a graduate student of archaeology, sets out for a romantic picnic under a mysterious local cliff painting known as the Piasa Bird, he unwittingly finds himself involved in an ancient tale filled with passion, sacrifice, love, and loss. The Piasa is a famous petroglyph overlooking the Mississippi River near Alton, Illinois. First described by French explorers Marquette and Joliet in 1673 and later called "America's most fascinating free roadside attraction," the origin of the Piasa is shrouded in legend and obscured by time, with no known date of creation, name of creator, or purpose. As Daniel French seeks to unravel the mystery surrounding the ancient work of art, he learns that there is more to the Piasa than meets the eye.

Witches of Cahokia
Something's turned up at a road construction site near Alton, Illinois. A pair of skeletal remains is causing a sensation in the local papers, and it falls on archaeologists Daniel and Lauren French to determine whether the project can go forward. But when further excavation turns up dozens of graves - each containing female remains - an ordinary dig turns into a major archaeological expedition. Quickly dubbed by the local press, Ancient Queens of Alton, the gravesites represent an irresistible professional challenge to Daniel and Lauren.
Who were these women? What do they tell us about ancient beliefs, culture, and even migration patterns? The answers might be too incredible to believe.
Slowly Daniel and Lauren's research reveals a remarkable line of shamanic women bound by an ancient promise to wait, watch, and remember. It is a tale filled with passion, sacrifice, love, and loss. It is the tale of an ancient civilizations rise and fall. It is the tale of the women who shaped the development of the city of Cahokia.
The novel explores the growth of the mound city of Cahokia, an actual archaeological site along the Mississippi River. Circa A.D. 1200, Cahokia reached the pinnacle of its power and prestige. With a population of approximately 20,000 it was at the time larger than Paris, and no other North American city reached its equivalent size until 1800. At is zeneth, Cahokia was a major political and religious center for the Native American Mississippian Culture. Situated near its center stood a massive truncated pyramid, covering more than 14 acres, which rose in four terraces to a height of 100 feet. Archaeologists calculate that the mound contains 22 million cubic feet of dirt making it the largest prehistoric earthen structure in the Western Hemisphere. Cahokia is a city of superlatives: Largest earthen structures, largest population, widest territorial influence, and unfortunately, among its graves are the largest number of human sacrifices north of Mexico. The novel, Witches of Cahokia, is a sequel to the archaeological fiction, Flight of the Piasa, which examines the creation of the enigmatic Piasa Bird pictograph overlooking the Mississippi River near Cahokia in Alton, IL.
As Daniel and Lauren unravel the mystery, they're on the cusp of an incredible discovery that will change our archaeological knowledge forever. Spanning the continents and the ages, Witches of Cahokia is a thought-provoking novel that will keep you guessing right up to the shocking conclusion.

The Piasa Puzzle
Daniel looked up at the wall clock. "Well that brings us to the end of our time, but I should tell you that the last sighting of the Piasa Bird was April 1948. Guy named Coleman, while riding on horseback about four miles from Alton, claimed to have sighted a bird "bigger than an airplane." The students were now standing, packing their bags, adjusting their coats, readying themselves to leave."Oh, by the way, be careful out there," Daniel laughed. "And remember to look up now and then, you never know when Daniel French, a graduate student of archaeology, sets out for a romantic picnic under a mysterious local cliff painting known as the Piasa Bird, he unwittingly finds himself involved in an ancient tale filled with passion, sacrifice, love, and loss. The Piasa is a famous petroglyph overlooking the Mississippi River near Alton, Illinois. First described by French explorers Marquette and Joliet in 1673 and later called "America's most fascinating free roadside attraction," the origin of the Piasa is shrouded in legend and obscured by time, with no known date of creation, name of creator, or purpose. As Daniel French seeks to unravel the mystery surrounding the ancient work of art, he learns that there is more to the Piasa than meets the eye.