During Mexico's first century of independence, European and American explorers rediscovered its pre-Hispanic past. Finding the jungle-covered ruins of lost cities and artifacts inscribed with unintelligible hieroglyphs—and having no idea of the age, authorship, or purpose of these antiquities—amateur archaeologists, artists, photographers, and religious writers set about claiming Mexico's pre-Hispanic patrimony as a rightful part of the United States' cultural heritage. In this insightful work, Tripp Evans explores why nineteenth-century Americans felt entitled to appropriate Mexico's cultural heritage as the United States' own. He focuses in particular on five well-known figures—American writer and amateur archaeologist John Lloyd Stephens, British architect Frederick Catherwood, Joseph Smith, founder of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, and the French émigré photographers Désiré Charnay and Augustus Le Plongeon. Setting these figures in historical and cultural context, Evans uncovers their varying motives, including the Manifest Destiny-inspired desire to create a national museum of American antiquities in New York City, the attempt to identify the ancient Maya as part of the Lost Tribes of Israel (and so substantiate the Book of Mormon), and the hope of proving that ancient Mesoamerica was the cradle of North American and even Northern European civilization. Fascinating stories in themselves, these accounts of the first explorers also add an important new chapter to the early history of Mesoamerican archaeology.

An illuminating look at the myriad communities who have engaged with the ancient Maya over the centuries. This book reveals how the ancient Maya—and their buildings, ideas, objects, and identities—have been perceived, portrayed, and exploited over five hundred years in the Americas, Europe, and beyond. Engaging in interdisciplinary analysis, the book summarizes ancient Maya art and history from the preclassical period to the Spanish invasion, as well as the history of outside engagement with the ancient Maya, from Spanish invaders in the sixteenth century to later explorers and archaeologists, taking in scientific literature, visual arts, architecture, world’s fairs, and Indigenous activism. It also looks at the decipherment of Maya inscriptions, Maya museum exhibitions and artists’ responses, and contemporary Maya people’s engagements with their ancestral past. Featuring the latest research, this book will interest scholars as well as general readers who wish to know more about this ancient, fascinating culture.

Enjoy all of Maya’s wisdom in one handy volume. This free ebook includes fun sketches, hilarious quotes, and a few special sneak peeks at Maya and Alex today.

A woman defiant of her clan’s traditions. A man trying to live up to his peers. Can these two step up against a powerful enemy? Ned is tired of being underestimated. He's a motorcycle-riding dragon shifter who kicks ass and bakes a mean cheesecake. When a mission for his biker club, the Iron Claws, leads Ned to the famously promiscuous tiger shifter clan, he finds much more than he bargained for. Maya's a cunning tiger shifter and her clan's head of security. She has always defied her clan’s sex-obsessed ways, but meeting handsome, sensitive Ned makes her question her cynical views. When Ned's family is attacked, Maya and Ned are thrown into a battle with deadly stakes. Will Maya and Ned have what it takes to save each other? Her Delicious Dragon is an adult paranormal romance novella. If you like daring rescues, drool-worthy desserts, and love that can’t be whisked away, then you’ll love the second installment of the sizzling Her Biker Dragon series. Buy Her Delicious Dragon to be part of the adventure today! The HER BIKER DRAGON books may each be read as standalones. However, you may find they are best enjoyed in the following order: 1 Her Valiant Dragon 2 Her Delicious Dragon 3 Her Rock Star Dragon 4 Her Hacker Dragon 5 Her Alpha Dragon

Four dads find the men of their dreams just in time for the holidays. (Four book box set.) A Bookworm for Christmas Miles is reunited with his former crush, a bookstore owner whose life now includes a young son. A Christmas Boyfriend Ben asks for a boyfriend for Christmas, and his little girl gives him her preschool teacher as a gift. A Christmas Manny Gary needs help after an injury. In Wayne he gets an assistant, a manny for his son, and everything he could ever want in a man. A Christmas Reunion After years of being apart, Holden and Ryan meet up again for the holidays. Sparks fly and secrets are revealed.

What would you do if you found a magical board game that magically transformed you in some VERY surprising ways? Would you dare to keep playing? Could you uncover its mysteries? And how would the rest of your life turn out? In My Very Own Exchanji, YOU get to make all of these choices and more as you return to the world of Alyson Belle's classic book Exchanji, joining four young friends on the magical and hilarious romantic transformation adventure of a lifetime and seeing all the different ways their fateful night might have turned out. You play the book as Connor, one of the men, and when you find a dusty old board game called Exchanji (An Exciting Game of Changes for Consenting Adults) in a closet, things start to get wild as soon as the dice start rolling! Swapped bodies and surprising transformations are only the start of this crazy night... Not only can you pick which romantic encounters happen to Connor throughout the book, but you also get to choose from dozens and dozens of branching paths as the night gets crazier and crazier: Will you go along with the board game's magic or fight it every step of the way? Will you wind up with your girlfriend Maya, the hotheaded Kelsey, or even your best friend Frank? Do you dare to step beyond the portal and enter the magical realms of Exchanjia? With over 400 pages of possibilities and sixteen completely unique endings, the choices you make on this fateful day will affect Connor and every one of his friends for the rest of their lives (or maybe beyond)! Can you make the right choices to have fun, stay alive, and uncover all of the mysteries of the world of Exchanji? There's only one way to find out! Unlike traditional books, this is a branching narrative story that can be read multiple times with different events throughout. At the end of each section there are several hyperlinks indicating choices you can make for Connor, just like a game. You can tap your e-reader/tablet or click the link in your browser (depending on where you’re reading this) to make the selection you want, and you’ll be transported to that section to continue the story. While it’s possible to use your back buttons to go back a step, you’ll probably have the most fun if you treat the decisions as permanent until your next read-through, just like Connor and his friends would have to do!

"Can you get me a man for Christmas?" When he said those fateful words, Ben didn't know what he was setting in motion. Ben is a busy dad to a four year old little girl. He doesn't have much time for a social life, but he wasn't serious when he asked for a man for Christmas. His daughter, Maya, doesn't know that. She is determined to play Santa and get her dad the gift he asked for. The man she picks for her dad is her preschool teacher, Jason Kenney. Neither Jason nor Maya think he's the right man to be a present for Ben, so why is he standing there on Christmas Eve with a gift bow in his hair? Smarting from a recent breakup, Jason isn't looking forward to the holidays. Despite his reservations, Jason gets tangled up with Ben. There is something about Ben that he just can't resist. As their feelings intensify, will spending Christmas together turn into something more?

Two wickedly delicious series come together in one steamy bundle. Battle for freedom and love with the royal vampire family, the Dals, and the badass dragon shifters of the Iron Claws motorcycle club! Royal Blood Collection: These vampire royals will risk everything to save their kingdom and the people they love. Set in a world of intrigue, power, and lust, the Royal Blood Collection will make your pulse race and your toes curl! The Vampire's Throne: Christopher Dal is a vampire prince fighting to liberate his people. When Alice Jones, a stunning photographer, enters his perilous world, they must fight to save the vampire kingdom…or die trying. The Vampire's Lair: Danny Dal is searching for truth. Robin Ballard is protecting what she loves. Together, they’ll run hand-in-hand towards danger, no matter what the cost. The Vampire's Escape: Benjamin Dal is a vampire inventor trying to help humanity. When Lauren Vaughan, a gorgeous widow, is thrust into danger, they must risk everything to defeat their darkest foe. The Vampire's Choice: Valerie Dal, a vampire princess, is desperate to atone for her past mistakes. A hunky hermit, Mickey Shive, has a plan to change the world. In their quest to save their people, can they also save themselves? Her Biker Dragon Collection: Cast out from their clans, these badass dragon shifters must use their cunning and strength to defy the laws of their people and stay one step ahead of those determined to keep life-saving cures out of the hands of humans. Her Valiant Dragon: Sexy dragon shifter Dylan Masters seeks redemption for his dark past. Curvaceous Marie rides alongside the Iron Claws as their human medic. When Marie’s dangerous past resurfaces, will Dylan be caught in the crossfire? Her Delicious Dragon: Ned is a motorcycle-riding dragon shifter who kicks ass and bakes a mean cheesecake. Maya's a cunning tiger shifter and her clan's head of security. When these two come together, it’s a tasty recipe for love. Her Rock Star Dragon: Punk rocker Caesar de la Vega is a dragon shifter on the cusp of his big break. Nina Alvarez is a successful freelance programmer who loves the freedom of her nomadic life. When the former groupie Nina stumbles across the rock god she once worshiped, will this rocker’s big break destroy their newly-kindled romance? Her Hacker Dragon: Brilliant, transgender shifter Alec Harper is trying to atone for his dark past by dedicating his life to healing humans. Vampire scientist Penelope O'Hara has been fascinated by all things supernatural for three hundred years. When Alec saves her from a sudden attack by dragon shifter goons, Penelope is pulled into a dangerous world of hackers, killers, and conspiracies. Her Alpha Dragon: Big Joe Silver is the Alpha of the Iron Claws, and a man with a secret. Emma Hernandez is the badass ex-military strategist who’s been in love with Joe since the day they met. When Joe's past catches up with him, he is forced to face the decisions he thought he outran long ago. Will the mistakes of his past drive him away from the Iron Claws and his forbidden love, Emma? Buy Freed by Love to fight for love today!

Curl up with a sizzling holiday-themed romance novel in this collection. Snowbound with the Billionaire (The Romero Brothers Book 7) The Billionaire’s Bride for a Day (previously titled The Belmont Christmas Bride) The Billionaire’s Lost & Found Love (Billionaires of Belmont Book 4)

PREVIEW A devastating affair. An unexpected pregnancy. A new love waiting to be explored. An old flame longing to be rekindled. Could there possibly be Love after Betrayal? *** How do you flush twelve years of marriage down the drain? Can you flush twelve years of marriage down the drain? When Gunner, Bria's husband of a dozen years, tells her that he's fathered a child outside of their marriage, her whole life plan is turned upside down. While she freely admits that she's been married to her career, she thought they were on the same page: she'd make partner at her corporate law firm, his construction firm would thrive, and then they'd start a family. They'd be financially secure – creating a life without the money worries they both grew up with. That's why Bria couldn't process what Gunner was telling her. *** "I'm sorry, but I had to tell you. I'm sorry, Bria. You have to believe me," Gunner pleaded. "I want to work through this. I'm hoping that in time you can forgive me. I love you. You're the only woman I've ever loved. You know this." He looked sincere. He sounded sincere. She knew this man. She loved this man. But … "Work through this?" Bria laughed humorlessly, drowning out the voices in her head and the love in her heart. "Let me get this straight. You‘re telling me that you've been cheating on me; that you have a one-month old baby with whoever the slut is, and you want me," she said, putting her index finger to her chest, "to somehow find it in me to work things out with you? Have you lost your ever-loving mind?!" she exploded. *** It couldn't be true. It just couldn't. But it was. And she had to accept it. But when Bria suddenly finds herself pregnant, will she and her ex-husband find their way back to each other? Or, will she find lasting love with a new flame?