Bøker av Marshall Riggan

NEW HISTORY BOOK REVEALS UNKNOWN TEXAS HERO He came to the western frontier under a cloud and under an assumed name, a man seriously in debt, fleeing a murder indictment with nothing but the clothes on his back and a beautiful woman some called a "Devil" on his arm. His name was Samuel May Williams. And in time, although he would risk all in the service of Texas, he would become the most controversial, the most hated, and the most misunderstood character to walk the pages of Texas history. Sam was the son and grandson of sea captains, and as a young man, sailed as Supercargo on his family's Baltimore Clipper, venturing to Buenos Aires where he stayed for awhile learning Spanish and the perils and possibilities of doing business in a country torn by revolution - skills that would serve him well later when he would find himself center stage in the conflicts between Texas and Mexico. Still in his early twenties, he settled for a few years in New Orleans where he became fluent in the French language, made and lost a fortune speculating in land recently obtained from France in the Louisiana Purchase. It was in New Orleans that he was rumored to have killed a man in a dispute over a woman, perhaps the woman that historians have identified as either an actress, the wife of a circus owner or a high-born Cuban lady. Together, pursued by the law and debtors, he and this woman escaped to the wilderness of mid-19th century Texas. Because of his adventurous spirit, his business acumen and his gift of languages, Sam Williams became indispensable to Stephen F. Austin, first as his assistant, then later as Austin's partner. Together, they created what has been called the "most successful colonization movement in American history." As time passed, Williams became the major bureaucrat in Anglo-American Texas, a man of considerable substance. During the Texas Revolution, Williams continued his entrepreneurial ways and to many it seemed he was lining his pockets at the Colony's expense. Yet, behind the scenes, he was purchasing warships and recruiting officers and men for the Texas Navy, ships which assured victory over Santa Anna at San Jacinto and without which Texas could never have won and maintained its Independence. Williams purchased the ships and armed them on his own credit, a debt that would not be repaid in his lifetime. His life was interwoven with some of the great men of the time, the gentleman pirate Jean Laffite, Sam Houston, Stephen Austin, José Navarro, Juan Seguín, Antonio López de Santa Anna. After the Mexican general was defeated at San Jacinto, Williams saved him from an angry mob and hid him away, even though Santa Anna had earlier placed a price on Sam's head for seeking to steal away Texas from Mexico. Forsaken Patriot is the story of a remarkable life, a man who was viewed by many as a scoundrel and by others as a patriot. Father of the Texas Navy, he also built a mercantile empire, created the first bank in Texas, and spearheaded development of the port city of Galveston which, in his time, was the richest city per capita in the United States. Yet, while so many of his peers, like Sam Houston, Stephen Austin, even Jean Lafitte, went on to be memorialized, Sam Williams went on to be forgotten. After all he accomplished for Texas, it is ironic that no street, Even the pirate Laffite has an elementary school, several streets and a city named after him. Unlike the other major players in Texas history, Sam Williams passed from our memory into the shadows from which he came.(813)

The Last Traveler is the story of Tom Pendergast, a young alien from a distant galaxy who becomes separated from his parents and is marooned on the planet Earth. There is only one way he can find his way back home. He must find a fellow alien known as a Traveler, the last of a number of great philosophers and teachers sent to Earth to help humans live peaceably with each other and to triumph over the darker side of their natures. Only this Last Traveler knows the secret process that can help the young alien reunite with his parents.To Tom Pendergast, Earth is a frightening and bewildering world. Yet he is befriended by a number of engaging characters, including a beautiful young human girl named Jennifer Dancing and a black cat named Winterpine Number 5, descendent of the great Mau, sacred cat of the ancient Egyptian pharaohs.Their quest leads them on a storm-tossed sea voyage and to the mysterious shores of India and hurls them into many dangers and perilous adventures. They encounter and are pursued by a number of evil characters including the awful Captain Blood, skipper of the tramp freighter Admiral Ming, his profane parrot Tamerlane, and his powerful first mate Jack Hammer. Once they arrive in India, they are pursued by the darkly deceitful clowns of the Bombay Circus.The story ends with an unexpected twist when, in the company of a troop of wandering sacred cows, our heroes arrive at the Last Traveler's ashram in rural India. Will Tom Pendergast find his way home? Will Jennifer Dancing win his heart? Will Winterpine Number Five save the world from meanness? These are the questions that can only be answered on the pages of The Last Traveler. The book will be a favorite of middle-grade readers, age 9 to 13, who are fans of fantasy adventure. However, the book also contains many useful truths, including the relationship between fear and courage, the possibility of triumphing over the darker side of human nature, and the connections that exist between all living things.Written by Marshall RigganPublished by Blocker PublishingBook Illustrations by Jordan WorleyCover Design by Gordon Blocker Authorized version of Blocker Publishing

NEW HISTORY BOOK REVEALS UNKNOWN TEXAS HERO He came to the western frontier under a cloud and under an assumed name, a man seriously in debt, fleeing a murder indictment with nothing but the clothes on his back and a beautiful woman some called a "Devil" on his arm. His name was Samuel May Williams. And in time, although he would risk all in the service of Texas, he would become the most controversial, the most hated, and the most misunderstood character to walk the pages of Texas history. Sam was the son and grandson of sea captains, and as a young man, sailed as Supercargo on his family's Baltimore Clipper, venturing to Buenos Aires where he stayed for awhile learning Spanish and the perils and possibilities of doing business in a country torn by revolution - skills that would serve him well later when he would find himself center stage in the conflicts between Texas and Mexico. Still in his early twenties, he settled for a few years in New Orleans where he became fluent in the French language, made and lost a fortune speculating in land recently obtained from France in the Louisiana Purchase. It was in New Orleans that he was rumored to have killed a man in a dispute over a woman, perhaps the woman that historians have identified as either an actress, the wife of a circus owner or a high-born Cuban lady. Together, pursued by the law and debtors, he and this woman escaped to the wilderness of mid-19th century Texas. Because of his adventurous spirit, his business acumen and his gift of languages, Sam Williams became indispensable to Stephen F. Austin, first as his assistant, then later as Austin's partner. Together, they created what has been called the "most successful colonization movement in American history." As time passed, Williams became the major bureaucrat in Anglo-American Texas, a man of considerable substance. During the Texas Revolution, Williams continued his entrepreneurial ways and to many it seemed he was lining his pockets at the Colony's expense. Yet, behind the scenes, he was purchasing warships and recruiting officers and men for the Texas Navy, ships which assured victory over Santa Anna at San Jacinto and without which Texas could never have won and maintained its Independence. Williams purchased the ships and armed them on his own credit, a debt that would not be repaid in his lifetime. His life was interwoven with some of the great men of the time, the gentleman pirate Jean Laffite, Sam Houston, Stephen Austin, José Navarro, Juan Seguín, Antonio López de Santa Anna. After the Mexican general was defeated at San Jacinto, Williams saved him from an angry mob and hid him away, even though Santa Anna had earlier placed a price on Sam's head for seeking to steal away Texas from Mexico. Forsaken Patriot is the story of a remarkable life, a man who was viewed by many as a scoundrel and by others as a patriot. Father of the Texas Navy, he also built a mercantile empire, created the first bank in Texas, and spearheaded development of the port city of Galveston which, in his time, was the richest city per capita in the United States. Yet, while so many of his peers, like Sam Houston, Stephen Austin, even Jean Lafitte, went on to be memorialized, Sam Williams went on to be forgotten. After all he accomplished for Texas, it is ironic that no street, Even the pirate Laffite has an elementary school, several streets and a city named after him. Unlike the other major players in Texas history, Sam Williams passed from our memory into the shadows from which he came.(553)

One night, off the coast of Nicaragua, the luxury liner Sulu Sea runs aground on a reef and sinks with great loss of life. Her captain, Joaquin O'Hara, is blamed for the disaster. His reputation ruined, he goes into decline, drinking to excess. Eventually he is reduced to being skipper of a little tramp steamer carrying cargo between the islands and ports of the Caribbean. While delivering a consignment to a dealer in Cartagena, he is approached by a beautiful woman who offers him $30,000 to take her and several crates of her personal belongings from Cartagena to Miami. Once at sea, O'Hara discovers that the woman, Gabriella Torres, is the runaway wife of one of Colombia's most powerful drug lords, and one of the crates she brought aboard contain millions of dollars she has stolen from her husband and the cartel. The chase is on. Juan Torres wants his wife back, but he wants his money more. O'Hara initially eludes pursuit by sailing directly into the path of a hurricane, but then he decides that if they are to survive, they must become the hunter, not the hunted. When they reach Cuba, using some of Gabriella's stolen money, they purchase powerful weapons intended to defend their little ship against their enemies. As they battle against the forces of the drug cartel, Haitian pirates, Guatemalan bandits, and O'Hara's inner demons, an unexpected bond develops between Gabriella, the sophisticated Colombian aristocrat, and O'Hara, the dishonored, oft-drunken, sea captain. Together they return to the reef where the Sulu Sea went down and dive on the wreck seeking clues to clear O'Hara's name Sulu Sea is a story of adventure, romance and redemption.