Remember tonight...for it's the beginning of forever. - Dante Alighieri

Sometimes, divine revelation simply means adjusting your brain to hear what your heart already knows." Angels and Demons p. 484

Although I studied Dante's Inferno as a student, it wasn't until recently, while researching in Florence, that I came to appreciate the enduring influence of Dante's work on the modern world.

In 325 A.D., the Roman Emperor Constantine decided to unify Rome under a single religion ... Historians still marvel at the brilliance with which Constantine converted the sun-worshipping pagans to Christianity. By fusing pagan symbols, dates, and rituals into the growing Christian tradition, he created a kind of hybrid religion that was acceptable to both parties.

I will not write a lame follow-up. It could take me 20 years. But I will never turn in a book that I'm not happy with.

Books make great gifts because they can unveil hidden secrets.

Look, you runny-nosed little runt. You're going to back off right now, or I'm going to rip that safety pin out of your nose and pin your mouth shut.