“Viral Mythology: How the Truth of the Ancients was Encoded and Passed Down through Legend, Art, and Architecture” by Marie D. Jones and Larry Flaxman

"Behind every myth, fairy tale, and legend—hidden within the art, song, and structures of ancient times—is an encoded layer of wisdom, science, and truth passed down throughout history. This book will examine how information went “viral” long before the Internet, and served as the foundation for mythology, sacred architecture, and symbolic imagery throughout the ancient world. Viral Mythology reveals: * How primitive and ancient cultures conveyed cutting-edge scientific knowledge in their origin stories and myths * Why esoteric knowledge was hidden in symbols, art, and architecture during times of religious oppression and persecution * How stories, songs, and art served to describe actual historical events * Why diverse civilizations told the same stories and created the same art with...>>

“The Oxford Handbook of the Apocrypha” edited by Gerbern S. Oegema

"The Oxford Handbook of the Apocrypha addresses the Old Testament Apocrypha, known to be important early Jewish texts that have become deutero-canonical for some Christian churches, non-canonical for other churches, and that are of lasting cultural significance. In addition to the place given to the classical literary, historical, and tradition-historical introductory questions, essays focus on the major social and theological themes of each individual book. With contributions from leading scholars from around the world, the Handbook acts as an authoritative reference work on the current state of Apocrypha research, and at the same time carves out future directions of study. This Handbook offers an overview of the various Apocrypha and relevant topics related to them...>>

“The Ghost Studies: New Perspectives on the Origins of Paranormal Experiences” by Brandon Massullo

"You’ve just laid down for the night when suddenly doors slam and the curtains shift. The lights begin to flicker and a white mist forms in front of you. You shut your eyes and keep muttering, “ghosts aren’t real.” But then you open your eyes and realize that “harmless” mist has shifted into the form of a man, staring intensely at you, as he floats above your bed. What causes ghostly experiences? Are ghosts real? Why do certain people report numerous ghostly encounters and others none? For centuries these questions have intrigued, puzzled, and bedeviled science, skeptics, and even believers. Based on cutting-edge research and new theories, The Ghost Studies provides insight into some of life’s...>>

“Vampire Forensics: Uncovering the Origins of an Enduring Legend” by Mark Collins Jenkins

"Mark Jenkins’s engrossing history draws on the latest science, anthropological and archaeological research to explore the origins of vampire stories, providing gripping historic and folkloric context for the concept of immortal beings who defy death by feeding on the lifeblood of others. From the earliest whispers of eternal evil in ancient Mesopotamia, Greece, and Rome, vampire tales flourished through the centuries and around the globe, fueled by superstition, sexual mystery, fear of disease and death, and the nagging anxiety that demons lurk everywhere. In Vampire Forensics, Mark Jenkins probes vampire legend to tease out the historical truths enshrined in the tales of terror: sherds of Persian pottery depicting blood-sucking demons; the amazing recent discovery by...>>

“John Dee’s Five Books of Mystery: Original Sourcebook of Enochian Magic” edited by Joseph H. Peterson (kindle ebook version)

"Discovered in a hidden compartment of an old chest long after his death, the secret writings of John Dee, one of the leading scientists and occultists of Elizabethan England, record in minute detail his research into the occult. Dee concealed his treatises on the nature of humankind's contact with angelic realms and languages throughout his life, and they were nearly lost forever. In his brief biography of John Dee, Joseph Peterson calls him a "true Renaissance man"-- detailing his work in astronomy, mathematics, navigation, the arts, astrology, and the occult sciences. He was even thought to be the model for Shakespeare's Prospero. All this was preparation for Dee's main achievement: five books, revealed and transcribed...>>