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History in a Hurry: Ancient Egypt (History in a Hurry #16)
by John FarmanJohn Farman, the genius (for want of a better word) responsible for the best-selling A VERY BLOODY HISTORY OF BRITAIN (WITHOUT THE BORING BITS), now tackles all the great periods of history - in less than 10,000 words.History in a Hurry is so short that there just isn't room for any boring bits!All you need to know (and a little bit less*) about Ancient Egypt.(*Quite a lot less, actually. Ed.)
History in a Hurry: The Future (History in a Hurry #17)
by John FarmanJohn Farman, the genius (for want of a better word) responsible for the best-selling A VERY BLOODY HISTORY OF BRITAIN (WITHOUT THE BORING BITS), now tackles all the great periods of history - in less than 10,000 words.History in a Hurry is so short that there just isn't room for any boring bits!All you need to know (and a little bit less*) about The Future.(*Quite a lot less, actually. Ed.)
Killing the Rising Sun: How America Vanquished World War II Japan (Bill O'reilly's Killing Ser.)
by Bill O'Reilly Martin DugardAutumn 1944. World War II is nearly over in Europe but is escalating in the Pacific, where American soldiers face an opponent who will go to any length to avoid defeat. The Japanese army follows the samurai code of Bushido, stipulating that surrender is a form of dishonor. Killing the Rising Sun by Bill O'Reilly and Martin Dugard takes readers to the bloody tropical-island battlefields of Peleliu and Iwo Jima and to the embattled Philippines, where General Douglas MacArthur has made a triumphant return and is plotting a full-scale invasion of Japan.Across the globe in Los Alamos, New Mexico, Dr. J. Robert Oppenheimer and his team of scientists are preparing to test the deadliest weapon known to mankind. In Washington, DC, FDR dies in office and Harry Truman ascends to the presidency, only to face the most important political decision in history: whether to use that weapon. And in Tokyo, Emperor Hirohito, who is considered a deity by his subjects, refuses to surrender, despite a massive and mounting death toll. Told in the same page-turning style of Killing Lincoln, Killing Kennedy, Killing Jesus, Killing Patton, and Killing Reagan, this epic saga details the final moments of World War II like never before.
Sisters of Gold (Birmingham Jewellery Quarter Ser. #1)
by Annie MurraySisters Margaret and Annie lost their mother years ago, they long for her every day. Their protective and devout father keeps the girls close. But he can’t protect them all the time . . . When a scandal rocks this family unit to their core, the girls are forced to leave their home under a shadow of secrecy. The girls arrive in the Birmingham’s famous jewellery quarter one stifling August evening to stay with their uncle, goldsmith Ebenezer Watts. Annie takes up work at a nearby factory, but it’s not the work that interests her. Her kind and soft nature, means that her attention is drawn to the immediate need of her impoverished colleagues and the wretched lives they lead. Meanwhile, Ebenezer employs Margaret as a chain maker. When Margaret meets silversmith Philipp Tallis, she is drawn to him instantly. Margaret is forced closer to this mysterious man in the cramped workshop, as they create objects of beauty.But what is it the Sisters of Gold are hiding? Even though they’ve escaped their past once, it can’t stay hidden forever . . .Sisters of Gold is an emotional and heart-warming story with a richly imagined Birmingham setting, from Annie Murray, author of The Doorstep Child.
A Wartime Secret
by Annie MurrayA Wartime Secret is the moving short story of a family torn apart by war, from bestselling author Annie Murray.Some lies are harder to hide . . .Grace and Ted Chapman married at the beginning of the war, but then Ted was called up to fight . . . Grace was left alone, fearful that her beloved Ted would never return. With the passage of time, Grace began to create a new life and found comfort in the arms of another man. Then along came the birth of a little girl, baby Barbara.One morning, Grace receives a telegram out of the blue, she learns that Ted is alive and on his way home. News of his return sends Grace into a sick panic and she begs her sister Joan to look after her daughter. When Ted returns back to Birmingham, he is shell-shocked and fragile - all the while Grace is tormented. Just how far is Grace willing to go, in order to protect her secret?
Wartime at Woolworths (Woolworths #4)
by Elaine EverestThe Woolworths girls have come a long way together . . .Fun loving Maisie, is devoted to her young family and her work at Woolworths. But her happy life with her RAF officer husband, their baby daughter leads her to think of the family she left behind . . . With the war now into its fourth year, what will she find when she sets about searching for them?Sarah and her husband, Alan, are blissfully happy and long for a sibling for their daughter. But dark days lay ahead for this close family.Freda heads home to Birmingham, to go in search of her family, back to the life she fled – far from the safety of Woolworths and her new friends.With families’ separated by war, will the Woolworths girls be able to pull together?Wartime at Woolworths is the third moving installment in the much-loved Woolworths series by bestselling author Elaine Everest.
The Greenlanders
by Jane SmileySet in the fourteenth century in Europe's most far-flung outpost, a land of glittering fjords, blasting winds, sun-warmed meadows, and high, dark, mountains, The Greenlanders is the story of one family - proud landowner Asgeir Gunnarsson; his daughter Margret, whose wilful independence leads her into passionate adultery and exile; and his son, Gunnar, whose quest for knowledge is at the compelling centre of this unforgettable book.Jane Smiley takes us into this world of farmers, priests, and lawspeakers, of hunts and feasts and long-standing feuds, and by an act of literary magic, makes a remote time, place, and people not only real, but dear to us.
Les Misérables: Part First: Fantine, Volume 1 (Macmillan Collector's Library #82)
by Victor HugoA major BBC television series starring Dominic West and Olivia Coleman.Les Misérables is a magnificent, sweeping story of revolution, love and the will to survive set amidst the poverty stricken streets of nineteeth-century Paris.Escaped convict Jean Valjean turns his back on his criminal past to build his fortunes as an honest man. He takes in abandoned orphan Cosette and raises her as his own daughter. But Jean Valjean is unable to free himself from his previous life and is pursued to the end by ruthless policeman Javert. As Cosette grows up, young idealist Marius catches a glimpse of her and falls desperately in love. The fates of all the characters await them during the violent turmoil of the June Rebellion in 1832.This abridged version of Victor Hugo's masterpiece was published in 1915 with the aim to provide 'a unified story of the life and soul-struggles of Jean Valjean'. Published as a gift edition with a new introduction by Paul Bailey.Designed to appeal to the book lover, the Macmillan Collector's Library is a series of beautiful gift editions of much loved classic titles. Macmillan Collector's Library are books to love and treasure.
On the Origin of Species: First Edition (Macmillan Collector's Library #116)
by Charles DarwinOn the Origin of Species outlines Charles Darwin's world-changing theory that life on Earth had not been brought into being by a creator, but had arisen from a single common ancestor and had evolved over time through the process of natural selection. Received with both enthusiasm and hostility on its publication, it triggered a seismic shift in our understanding of humanity's place in the natural world. It is not only a brilliant work of science but also a clear, vivid, sometimes moving piece of popular writing that reflects both Darwin's genius and his boundless enthusiasm for our planet and its species.This beautiful Macmillan Collector's Library edition of On the Origin of Species is complete and unabridged, and features an afterword by Oliver Francis.Designed to appeal to the booklover, the Macmillan Collector's Library is a series of beautiful gift editions of much loved classic titles. Macmillan Collector's Library are books to love and treasure.
The Scarlet Letter: The House Of The Seven Gables (Macmillan Collector's Library #120)
by Nathaniel HawthorneRoger Chillingworth arrives in New England after two years' separation from his wife, Hester Prynne, to find her on trial for adultery. She refuses to reveal her lover and is sentenced to wear a scarlet letter 'A' sewn onto her clothes. Resolving to discover the man's identity, Roger sets out to destroy his rival, while Hester desperately tries to protect her illegitimate daughter from a society determined to condemn them both.A smash hit in its day, The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne is the gripping tale of three New England settlers at odds with the seventeenth-century Puritan society in which they live, and remains one of literature's most evocative portraits of a love triangle.This beautiful Macmillan Collector's Library edition of The Scarlet Letter features an afterword by broadcaster Jonty Claypole.
Move Fast and Break Things: How Facebook, Google, and Amazon Have Cornered Culture and What It Means For All Of Us (Expert Thinking Ser.)
by Jonathan TaplinA Financial Times 'Best Thing I Read This Year' LONGLISTED FOR THE FT & MCKINSEY BUSINESS BOOK OF THE YEAR AWARDGoogle. Amazon. Facebook. The modern world is defined by vast digital monopolies turning ever-larger profits. Those of us who consume the content that feeds them are farmed for the purposes of being sold ever more products and advertising. Those that create the content – the artists, writers and musicians – are finding they can no longer survive in this unforgiving economic landscape. But it didn’t have to be this way. In Move Fast and Break Things, Jonathan Taplin offers a succinct and powerful history of how online life began to be shaped around the values of the entrepreneurs like Peter Thiel and Larry Page who founded these all-powerful companies. Their unprecedented growth came at the heavy cost of tolerating piracy of books, music and film, while at the same time promoting opaque business practices and subordinating the privacy of individual users to create the surveillance marketing monoculture in which we now live.It is the story of a massive reallocation of revenue in which $50 billion a year has moved from the creators and owners of content to the monopoly platforms. With this reallocation of money comes a shift in power. Google, Facebook and Amazon now enjoy political power on par with Big Oil and Big Pharma, which in part explains how such a tremendous shift in revenues from creators to platforms could have been achieved and why it has gone unchallenged for so long.And if you think that’s got nothing to do with you, their next move is to come after your jobs. Move Fast and Break Things is a call to arms, to say that is enough is enough and to demand that we do everything in our power to create a different future.
The Three Musketeers: Classics Illustrated (Macmillan Collector's Library #133)
by Alexandre DumasIt is 1625 and France is under threat. D’Artagnan, a young nobleman, sets off to Paris to seek his fortune as a member of the King's Guard and befriends three musketeers - the mysterious Athos, ambitious and romantic Aramis, and bumbling Porthos. Together the friends must use all their guile and ingenuity to outwit the dastardly schemes of Cardinal Richelieu and the glamorous spy, Milady.As fresh and entertaining today as when it was first written, Alexandre Dumas's The Three Musketeers is a gripping adventure story of daring sword fights, romances, espionage and murder.This sensitively abridged Macmillan Collector’s Library edition of The Three Musketeers features an afterword by playwright, screenwriter and actor, Peter Harness.Designed to appeal to the booklover, the Macmillan Collector's Library is a series of beautiful gift editions of much loved classic titles. Macmillan Collector's Library are books to love and treasure.
Orlando: Two Renderings For The Stage (Macmillan Collector's Library #135)
by Virginia WoolfOrlando is a young Elizabethan nobleman whose wealth and status afford him an extravagant lifestyle. Appointed ambassador in Constantinople, he wakes one morning to find he is a woman. Unperturbed by such a dramatic transformation, and losing none of his flamboyance and ambition, the newly female Orlando charges through life and English history so that by the end of this extraordinary biography she is a modern, 1920s woman. Virginia Woolf’s wildly imaginative, comic novel was inspired by the life of her lover, Vita Sackville West. This beautiful Macmillan Collector’s Library edition of Orlando is published with the original illustrations and with an introduction by the academic and novelist, Professor Susan Sellers.Designed to appeal to the booklover, the Macmillan Collector's Library is a series of beautiful gift editions of much loved classic titles. Macmillan Collector's Library are books to love and treasure.
The Best of Times, The Worst of Times: A History of Now
by Michael BurleighIn the decades since the end of the Second World War, it has been widely assumed that the western model of liberal democracy and free trade is the way the world should be governed. However, events in the early years of the twenty-first century – first, the 2003 war with Iraq and its chaotic aftermath and, second, the financial crash of 2008 – have threatened the general acceptance that continued progress under the benign (or sometimes not so benign) gaze of the western powers is the only way forwards. And as America turns inwards and Europe is beset by austerity politics and populist nationalism, the post-war consensus looks less and less secure. But is this really the worst of times? In a forensic examination of the world we now live in, acclaimed historian Michael Burleigh sets out to answer that question. Who could have imagined that China would champion globalization and lead the battle on climate change? Or that post-Soviet Russia might present a greater threat to the world’s stability than ISIS? And while we may be on the cusp of still more dramatic change, perhaps the risks will – in time – bring not only change but a wholly positive transformation.Incisive, robust and always insightful, The Best of Times, The Worst of Times by Michael Burleigh is both a dazzling tour d’horizon of the world as it is today and a surprisingly optimistic vision of the world as it might become.
The Wizard's Daughter (Americana Ser.)
by Barbara MichaelsIn The Wizard's Daughter beautiful and spirited Marianne Ransom has to use all her wits and looks to survive the cruel life of an orphan on the perilous backstreets of Victorian London. But it is her gift of second sight that carries her into the world of money and privilege – a power brought on by a strange twist of fate . . .In the opulent Scottish castle of a wealthy duchess, Marianne is being called upon to summon her late father – a noted mystic – from the grave. But her exceptional abilities have become a perilous trap. And suddenly knowing too much could prove fatal.Séances, ghostly apparitions and romantic intrigues abound in this wonderful Gothic suspense by New York Times bestseller Barbara Michaels.
Black Rainbow (Someone In The House Ser. #1)
by Barbara MichaelsSet in the turbulent North of England during the Crimean War, Black Rainbow is a thrilling Gothic romance by New York Times bestseller Barbara Michaels.When Megan O’Neill arrives at Greyhaven Manor one moonlit night, an ominous black rainbow hangs in the sky. It seems like a sinister warning to stay away, but her fears are soon banished by the warmth and kindness of the aristocratic Mandeville family – and her growing obsession with her handsome, mysterious new employer blinds her to the darkness within . . .But the price of desire is more than she could ever have imagined. And the shocking secrets enclosed in Grayhaven's walls threaten to pull Megan into the terrifying shadows, never to emerge again.
Greygallows
by Barbara MichaelsFull of intrigue and mystery, Greygallows is a gripping Gothic romance by New York Times bestseller Barbara Michaels.Lucy Cartwright placed her life and future into the hands of the dashing Baron Clare, despite the rumours of his dark, unsavory past. Trusting his kind words and gentle manner, she agreed to be his wife and followed the enigmatic lord to Greygallows, his sprawling Yorkshire estate. But mystery, deception, betrayal, and danger surround the magnificent manor – a ghostly secret charges the atmosphere and horror reigns in its shadowed hallways.Lucy entered Greygallows willingly . . . and now she may never leave.
Poetry of the First World War (Macmillan Collector's Library #141)
by Marcus ClaphamThe First World War was one of the deadliest conflicts in modern history and produced horrors undreamed of by the young men who cheerfully volunteered for a war that was supposed to be over by Christmas. Whether in the patriotic enthusiasm of Rupert Brooke, the disillusionment of Charles Hamilton Sorley, or the bitter denunciations of Siegfried Sassoon and Wilfred Owen, the war produced an astonishing outpouring of powerful poetry. Edited by author and editor Marcus Clapham, the major poets are all represented in this beautiful Macmillan Collector’s Library anthology, Poetry of the First World War, alongside many others whose voices are less well known, and their verse is accompanied by contemporary motifs.Designed to appeal to the booklover, the Macmillan Collector's Library is a series of beautiful gift editions of much loved classic titles. Macmillan Collector's Library are books to love and treasure.
The Poppy Girls (The Maitland Trilogy #1)
by Margaret DickinsonThe Poppy Girls is the first title in The Maitland Trilogy, by bestselling author Margaret Dickinson.Even amidst the horror of the trenches, friendship will survive . . .Thwarted in her desire to become a doctor like her brother Robert, Pips Maitland rebels against her mother’s wishes that she settle down and raise children. However, when Robert brings home a friend from medical school, Giles Kendall, it seems perhaps Pips might fall in love with an acceptable suitor after all. But the year is 1914 and the future is uncertain. Hearing that her father’s friend, Dr John Hazelwood, is forming a flying ambulance corps to take to the front lines, Pips is determined to become one of its nurses and asks Alice Dawson, her maid, to go with her. Robert and Giles offer their services as doctors, and Alice’s brother William joins them as a stretcher bearer. Nothing could have prepared them for the horrific sights they encounter. Moving their unit close to the fighting to offer first aid as quickly as possible puts them all in constant danger. But even amidst the barrage of shelling and gunfire, the unending stream of injured being brought to their post, the love between Pips and Giles survives and blossoms just like the poppies of Flanders fields.
The Brooklands Girls (The Maitland Trilogy #2)
by Margaret DickinsonThe Brooklands Girls is the heartfelt sequel to The Poppy Girls from Margaret Dickinson, the Sunday Times top ten bestselling ‘Queen of Saga’ (Daily Express)It is the early 1920s and the Maitland family are still coming to terms with the aftermath of the Great War. After her brave work as an ambulance driver and nurse close to the Front, Pips is restless and without purpose. Determined to enjoy life after the years of misery, and to help her forget a broken love affair, she seeks excitement in the London parties and balls of the Roaring Twenties.No family or community escaped the ravages of this war, and Pips knows her own has its share of troubles. Her brother, Robert, returned injured and is now battling demons of his own. Struggling to find a purpose in life, he is convinced his career as a doctor is over. It is Pips’s young niece, Daisy, on whom the family dotes, who brings them joy and hope for the future.But when faces from the past reappear, Pips is posed with a dilemma. Can she ever trust a man’s promises and allow herself to love again?Fans of Dilly Court and Rosie Goodwin will love The Brooklands Girls.
We Were Warriors: One Soldier's Story of Brutal Combat
by Johnny MercerAs seen on Channel 4's Celebrity Hunted 2018.'An adrenalin-fuelled, gritty story of heroism on the frontline in Afghanistan' Andy McNabThe rounds were single shot from the same two enemy positions, trying to pick me off. They were kicking up the dirt around me. Then all hell broke loose as the gunship's Gatling vomited ammo right over my head. The sound was deafening. It was now or never. I got up and ran. A captain in 29 Commando, Johnny Mercer served in the army for twelve years. On his third tour of Afghanistan he was a Joint Fires Controller, with the pressurized job of bringing down artillery and air strikes in close proximity to his own troops. Based in an area of northern Helmand that was riddled with Taliban leaders, he walked into danger with every patrol, determined to protect them. Then one morning, in brutal close quarter combat, everything changed . . . In We Were Warriors Johnny takes us from his commando training to the heat, blood and chaos of battle. With brutal honesty, he describes what it is like to risk your life every day, pushing through the fear that follows watching your friends die. He took the fight back to the enemy with a relentless efficiency that came at a high personal cost. Back in the UK, seeing the inadequate care available for veterans and their families, he was inspired to run for Parliament in the hope he could improve their plight. Unflinching, action-packed and laced with wry humour, We Were Warriors is a compelling read.
The Poldark Cookery Book
by Jean M. GrahamIt was a meal worthy of the age, the house and the season . . . This beautiful edition of The Poldark Cookery Book, by author Winston Graham's wife, Jean M. Graham, presents the recipes and the wherewithal for you to cook up your very own Poldark feast. Along with dozens of festive treats inspired by the Poldark novels, here you will find ample homely recipes for traditional West Country fare. From Figgy ’Obbin Pudding to the Nampara staple of Baked Pilchards, there are both inventively thrifty and sumptuously indulgent recipes aplenty that will delight fans of the Poldark series starring Aidan Turner and food enthusiasts alike.
The Young Melbourne & Lord M
by Lord David CecilModern Library’s 100th best non-fiction book of all time, and John F. Kennedy’s favourite book.A masterful biography of the life of Lord Melbourne – Queen Victoria’s Prime Minister and devoted mentor, and one of England’s most controversial statesmen – whose turbulent marriage to Lady Caroline Lamb was one of the greatest scandals of the era. A charming, curious and altogether idiosyncratic figure, Melbourne is the perfect subject for a biography and David Cecil – with his elegant, thoughtful style and perfect scholarship – was his ideal biographer. The resulting work is a true classic of the genre and remains the most important and comprehensive account of Britain’s most beguiling and individual Prime Minister.This volume contains the entirety of David Cecil's two seminal biographies of Lord Melbourne - The Young Melbourne and Lord M - in one definitive book. “A superb work of art” – Harold Nicholson“A historian of the heart” – L. P. Hartley
Strangers: Homosexual Love in the Nineteenth Century
by Graham RobbA perceptive, vivid and sometimes startling re-evaluation of homosexuality in the Victorian era
Amy's Seaside Secret
by Pam WeaverAn uplifting short story following on from Amy's Wartime Christmas, Amy's Seaside Secret is an engaging read, exclusive to eBook from Pam Weaver, author of Always in My Heart.Worthing, 1944.Police Woman Amy Hobbs has been patrolling the streets of the seaside town for six months, upholding the law for its residents. But as the only female officer in the constabulary, dealing with old-fashioned attitudes from senior officers is a daily battle. When a call comes in from local fishermen who have spotted a woman’s body floating in the River Rife, Amy accompanies Sergeant Goble to investigate. With an opportunity to prove she’s just as good an officer as the men, Amy launches into the case to solve the mystery and apprehend the perpetrator.Meanwhile, a spate of thefts have been reported across the town with everything from coal and milk, to food and bikes, mysteriously disappearing. A strange tramp has been spotted by locals and it seems he may be connected to the stolen items. But with a possible murder to solve, a visit from her sister and an imminent pancake race to train for on the upcoming Shrove Tuesday, Amy has her hands more than full.What’s for certain is that Amy will have to dig deep if she is determined to make a real difference to the coastal town she now calls home . . .