Böcker av Raymond Leonard

We are born into an unequal world of wondrous dangers and opportunities. Where did we come from? To which destination might we one day depart? Why this particular bed at just this time? Male or female, poor or rich, talented or challenged? The list grows as our vision expands. Why this country, or even this planet? Why does life exist? What is the relationship of mortal man to an overwhelming Cosmos? Yet even with all our science, are the answers any nearer? The reply is a guarded yes regarding HOW. We now appreciate the realities of matter, the mechanisms of life, and the evolution of the Cosmos. But the question of WHY still remains tantalizingly resistant to analytic study. Most scientists concede that the Universe displays order, progression and intricate balance as it unfolds. But does it embody an overriding objective? An egg contains the complete blueprint for the individual. This forces seemingly mindless chemicals to combine and intertwine so that a new life can finally emerge, be it a man or a mouse. The Universe pursues its own blueprint, and one day......? But important as religion, science and philosophy may be, they are only aspects of life, not life itself. Life is for living. Humour, joy, comradeship, sadness and the challenge of adversity are the ingredients of all lives, but the proportions vary. A baby's smile, calm after the storm, the taste of a newly plucked apple, a kind act - these are the nectar of existence. And then the footlights again grow dim. This collection of poems therefore reflects the myriad thoughts, experiences and revelations that this particular traveller has encountered on the path. Are they simply poetry, one man's chronicles, anecdotal rambles, disguised preaching or a coherent theology - each individual must decide. Yet if they prove interesting and entertaining, the writer's task has been worthwhile. If they strike a chord, enjoy the resonance. And if the path is briefly illuminated, stride briskly on.

The date is the near future, where ten lucky guests are personally invited to help celebrate the opening weekend of the world's first Space Hotel, SPATEL. The guests themselves are as interesting as SPATEL itself. The world's leading brain transplant surgeon, who himself is enjoying his brand new body. A leading astronaut, and a wealthy couple who are there to plunder SPATEL's rich secrets. Then the bizarre, futuristic murders start, which somehow seem linked to the planets in the rooms which each guest has been allocated. With SPATEL refusing all contact with Earth for the weekend, the race is on to identify the true killer. Or is everything a costly illusion, devised by the elusive and mysterious owner, Mr. Howarth?

When reporter Lynn Fitzgerald runs a computer search to find the six greatest scientists of the twentieth century, an intriguing and unexpected name turns up. Joshua Benson was a rising star in the new science of genetics and cloning, until his sudden defection to Russia. With the help of 'Billy the Hack', and the CIA archives, Benson is traced to Turin, prior to his defection. Lynn discovers that during his mysterious stay in the city, the cathedral was robbed of two items. The first was a gem-encrusted crucifix, while the second was a fragment of cloth from the Turin Shroud - believed by worshippers to be the burial shroud of Christ - a fragment bearing the blood of the man it once draped.And now in Moscow, nearly 30 years after the cathedral's desecration, there are strange reports of a man with compelling powers of persuasion, leading the people to revolution.

One winter evening, before a television audience of millions, a scientist, famous for his chilling computer simulations of the future, makes a speech that will alter the course of history. Then, on the island of Malta, work soon begins on building a gargantuan computer. The OMEGA project brings together some of the world's most brilliant scientific minds. Eugene Grant, a Noble Prize Winner and Jesuit priest, Marie Singh, former head of Artificial Intelligence at I.B.M, and the petulant Chief Technician, Dave Tolley. Each have their own reasons for doubting the morality and wisdom of what they are creating. Soon OMEGA takes on a personality, with a superhuman capacity for ultimate good or evil. But no one can be sure whether OMEGA's coming signals a new age of enlightenment, or the beginning of a nightmare end for humanity. As the last moments of human independence tick away, two men begin a desperate battle to outwit OMEGA and perhaps save mankind from their new master.

Proof-read and Enhanced by a Nostradamus Scholar for 2020. A mysterious letter to a Professor of Archaeology, in Omaha, leads to the most momentous and chilling discovery of the age. Deep in a secret vault beneath Notre Dame Cathedral, Professor Frank Cooper discovers the true burial place of Nostradamus, and a trunk with his manuscripts hidden for centuries.With the help of the Titan computer, the Professor's small team start to unlock the ancient mysteries. What coming nightmare did Nostradamus foresee for our time? As the horror of the Seer's vision becomes plain, the Professor sets off on a desperate mission to change the future. This takes him to Washington and then Rome, where the most awesome prophesy from the vaults of the Vatican is revealed to him. Now, as the Circle of Doom begins to close, the race is on to avoid the last words of the final prophecy from being fulfilled."Raymond Leonard has woven facts from the prophecies of Nostradamus in to a novel of gripping readability and suspense. The Nostradamus Inheritance brilliantly blends sixteenth century mysticism with modern technology to chilling effect." "literally unputdownable" - City Life