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Prizewinning historian Michael David-Fox traces the experiences of Smolensk residents between the interwar years and the end of World War II, a period during which the city and region passed from Stalinist rule to Nazi occupation and back. The result is a revelatory examination of choice and power under dueling forms of murderous totalitarianism. Exploring the life-and-death decisions of a fascinating cast of characters, David-Fox shows how deeply the Stalinist and Nazi regimes relied on the co-optation of average citizens motivated by greed and need, but always within the orbit of ideology.

In the rigid theocracy of Salem, Massachusetts, rumors that women are practicing witchcraft galvanize the town. In a searing portrait of a community engulfed by panic—with ruthless prosecutors, and neighbors eager to testify against neighbor—The Crucible famously mirrors the anti-Communist hysteria that held the United States in its grip in the 1950’s.

To restore broken magic and powers, Hal and his Guild brave Dungeons, facing nightmares made real. The dwarves and koblins of Brightsong seek new inventions to protect their growing settlement and its Manatree. Afflicted by a fatal essence, Hal turns to the crucible of the stars to break his shackles and reforge himself anew. Crafting an experimental new path is rife with dangers, but no kingdom of monsters and men is made without strife and sacrifice.