Secret Societies: Inside the World’s Most Notorious Organizations

Does a sinister cabal actually control international affairs? Were William Shakespeare and Abraham Lincoln secretly involved with a group founded to discover and preserve the principles of alchemy? Has an ancient mystical religion really been reduced to a length of red string that sells for a dollar an inch? Secret societies surround us, yet they often remain a mystery. Their secrecy suggests sacrilege and crime, and their loyalties stand accused of undermining the worldÕs governments. They generate fear, suspicion, andÑabove allÑfascination. From the parched wadis of the Middle East to the crowded boutiques of Beverly Hills, award-winning author John Lawrence Reynolds peels away centuries of speculation and paranoia and shines a brilliant light on organizations that have been shrouded in secrecy for ages, from the Templars and the Mafia to the Priory of Sion and Skull & Bones. He offers a smart and surprising behind-the-scenes exploration of the talesÑconfirmed and fabricatedÑthat surround the best known and often least understood secret societies.

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The Assassins

The Assassins is a comprehensive, accessible, and authoritative account of history’s first terrorists. An offshoot of the Ismaili Shi’ite,sect of Islam, the Assassins were the first group to make systematic use of murder as a political weapon. Established in Iran and Syria in the 11th and 12th centuries, they aimed to overthrow the exixting Sunni order in Islam and replace it with their own, by terrorizing their goes with a series of dramatic murders of Islamic leaders, as well as some of the Crusaders, who brought their name and fame back to Europe.

Profess Lewis traces the history of this radical Islamic sect, studying its teachings and its influence on Muslim thought. Particularly insightful in light of the rise of the terrorist attacks in the US and in Israel, this account of the group that lent its name to politically motivated murder places recent events in historical perspective and sheds new light on the fanatic mind.

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At the Heart of Darkness: Witchcraft, Black Magic and Satanism Today

I was unable to fine a cover of this book off the internet. It is by John Parker.  A Citadel Press Book, Published by  Carol Publishing Group. Copyright dates says 1993.

In AT the Heart of Darkness, John Parker delves deep into the mysterious current practices of withces, occultists, black magic devotees, and Satanists. He has spoken to many of those involved in all brances of the occult and observed their rituals. By placing the occult firmly in its historical context, he shows that, though it has had a long tradition, it has been largely recreated in the twentieth cenurty. Parker reveals the existence of a massive network of occult organizations, based in the United States and Britain, and names the leaders.

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An Encyclopedia of Occultism

A compendium of information on the occult sciences, magic, demonology, superstitions, spiritism, mysticism, metaphysics, psychical science and parapsychology. Containing reference information relative to animals; birds and insects; demons; gems; geographical (places of phenomena); gods; paranormal phenomena; periodicals; plants and flowers; and societies and organizations

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An Encyclopedia of Claims, Frauds, and Hoaxes of the Occult and Supernatural

IN this encyclopedia, complete from A to Z, James  Randi casts his cynical eye on the dubious genres of the occult and the supernatural. With 666 entries and hundreds of illustrations throughtout, this book, which has been fueling hundreds of lively Internet controversies, examines the shady world of manipulators, occultists, and shamanists in microsopic detail.

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