Best History of England

Europe is in turmoil as high principles clash bloodily with friendship, loyalty and love, and Ned soon finds himself on the opposite side from the girl he longs to marry, Margery Fitzgerald. The shrewd, determined young monarch sets up the country's first secret service to give her early warning of assassination plots, rebellions and invasion plans. With Elizabeth clinging precariously to her throne and her principles, protected by a small, dedicated group of resourceful spies and courageous secret agents, it becomes clear that the real enemies - then as now - are not the rival religions. Washington Post "Fans of Follett's epic sagas The Pillars of the Earth and World Without End, set in the Middle Ages in the fictional city of Kingsbridge, will be thrilled by this latest installment." A Column of Fire is absorbing, painlessly educational, and a great deal of fun.” —The Washington Post “Follett’s historical epics, including this one, evoke the Romantic adventures of Alexandre Dumas. “Fans of Follett's epic sagas The Pillars of the Earth and World Without End , set in the Middle Ages in the fictional city of Kingsbridge, will be thrilled by this latest installment.” —New York Post “[Follett is a] master of the sweeping, readable epic.” —The Philadelphia Inquirer. As always, Follett excels in historical detailing, transporting readers back in time with another meaty historical blockbuster.” — Booklist “An immersive journey through the tumultuous world of 16th century Europe and some of the bloodiest religious wars in history. Ken Follett is one of the world’s best-loved authors, selling more than 160 million copies of his thirty books. Follett’s first bestseller was Eye of the Needle , a spy story set in the Second World War.

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • Perfect for fans of The Crown, this magisterial biography of Queen Elizabeth II is a close-up view of the woman we’ve known only from a distance—and a captivating window into the last great monarchy. Drawing on numerous interviews and never-before-revealed documents, acclaimed biographer Sally Bedell Smith pulls back the curtain to show in intimate detail the public and private lives of Queen Elizabeth II, who has led her country and Commonwealth through the wars and upheavals of the last sixty years with unparalleled composure, intelligence, and grace. We meet the thirteen-year-old Lilibet. as she falls in love with a young navy cadet named Philip and becomes determined to marry him, even though her parents prefer wealthier English aristocrats. We see the teenage Lilibet repairing army trucks during World War II and standing with Winston Churchill on the balcony of Buckingham Palace on V-E Day. Sally Bedell Smith brings us inside the palace doors and into the Queen’s daily routines—the “red boxes” of documents she reviews each day, the weekly meetings she has had with twelve prime ministers, her physically demanding tours abroad, and the constant scrutiny of the press—as well as her personal relationships: with Prince Philip, her husband of sixty-four years and the love of her life; her children and their often-disastrous marriages; her grandchildren and friends. As a five-year-old, I first glimpsed Queen Elizabeth II on the black and white screen in my parents’ mahogany television cabinet in 1953: a glamorous ingenue draped in gleaming robes and wearing a glittering crown during her coronation in Westminster Abbey. In a spirited conversation with my husband about the Kentucky Derby, she showed the animated gestures, sparkling blue eyes and flashing smile familiar to her friends but rare in public. I also wanted to explain how she has been so successful in her unique role, and how she became “the sheet anchor in the middle for people to hang on to in times of turbulence,” in the words of David Airlie, her lifelong friend and former senior adviser. I also wanted to describe for the first time her close relationship with the United States--her eleven visits, five of them private, and her friendships with an array of fascinating Americans including all the presidents since Harry Truman--except Lyndon Johnson, who desperately tried to meet her. There seemed to be a surprise around every corner: her physical courage when she was attacked by a wounded pheasant and charged by “dive bombing colts,” her compassion while mothering a teenaged cousin who had been nearly killed in a terrorist attack, her earthiness while crawling on her belly stalking deer, her joie de vivre while blowing bubbles at a friend’s birthday party, her fierce reaction to one of her top advisers in the days after the death of Diana, her tenderness toward Margaret Thatcher during the former prime minister’s 80th birthday party. I hope the result will enable readers to immerse themselves in her life--from the grouse moors of Scotland and kitchen tables of her friends to the state banquets and time-honored pageantry, where even in the middle of the solemn ritual of her coronation, the Archbishop of Canterbury could sneak the 27-year-old Queen sips from a hidden flask of brandy for a pick-me-up. Via interviews with a legion of royal watchers, from horse trainers to lords and ladies, Smith teases out a woman both austere and animated, duty-bound yet undeniably authentic.”. -- More “All the details are here for the reader to gather a comprehensive picture of a life so rarefied none of us could imagine it…. [Smith] brings into focus the personal side of the ordinary-extraordinary balancing act that has been not only the queen’s trademark style but also the cause for continued appreciation.”. -- Booklist “ A respectful, engrossing, and perceptive portrayal.”. -- Publishers Weekly “She was so young, and the task was so enormous.

A renowned scholar brings to life medieval England’s most celebrated knight, William Marshal—providing an unprecedented and intimate view of this age and the legendary warrior class that shaped it. “A rich and elaborate tapestry… a story about how medieval knighthood worked; the interlocking web of obligation and fealty, friendship and loyalty... [The Greatest Knight] will appeal to history buffs as well as fans of fiction set in the medieval period.” (Starred Library Journal). “A valuable biography of an important figure in a distant, violent, barely comprehensible era.” (Kirkus). “This is medieval history at its very best - a compelling story told by a historian whose knowledge is both thorough and extensive, and whose enthusiasm for the subject rings out on every page.” (Ian Mortimer, author of Time Traveler's Guide to Medieval England). Thomas Asbridge has written a page turner about William Marshal, the Zelig of English history, a man who was indispensable to five kings, and had a hand in practically every important event during those turbulent and eventful reigns.”- (Danny Danziger, author of 1215). This blood, guts, gore and gallantry romp through medieval history, following the great knight William Marshall . Meyer stumbled upon the sole surviving copy of an unknown text—the first contemporary biography of a medieval knight, later dubbed the History of William Marshal . In The Greatest Knight , renowned historian Thomas Asbridge draws upon the thirteenth-century biography and an array of other contemporary evidence to present a compelling account of William Marshal's life and times.

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • Perfect for fans of The Crown, this magisterial biography of Queen Elizabeth II is a close-up view of the woman we’ve known only from a distance—and a captivating window into the last great monarchy. Drawing on numerous interviews and never-before-revealed documents, acclaimed biographer Sally Bedell Smith pulls back the curtain to show in intimate detail the public and private lives of Queen Elizabeth II, who has led her country and Commonwealth through the wars and upheavals of the last sixty years with unparalleled composure, intelligence, and grace. We meet the thirteen-year-old Lilibet. as she falls in love with a young navy cadet named Philip and becomes determined to marry him, even though her parents prefer wealthier English aristocrats. We see the teenage Lilibet repairing army trucks during World War II and standing with Winston Churchill on the balcony of Buckingham Palace on V-E Day. Sally Bedell Smith brings us inside the palace doors and into the Queen’s daily routines—the “red boxes” of documents she reviews each day, the weekly meetings she has had with twelve prime ministers, her physically demanding tours abroad, and the constant scrutiny of the press—as well as her personal relationships: with Prince Philip, her husband of sixty-four years and the love of her life; her children and their often-disastrous marriages; her grandchildren and friends. As a five-year-old, I first glimpsed Queen Elizabeth II on the black and white screen in my parents’ mahogany television cabinet in 1953: a glamorous ingenue draped in gleaming robes and wearing a glittering crown during her coronation in Westminster Abbey. In a spirited conversation with my husband about the Kentucky Derby, she showed the animated gestures, sparkling blue eyes and flashing smile familiar to her friends but rare in public. I also wanted to explain how she has been so successful in her unique role, and how she became “the sheet anchor in the middle for people to hang on to in times of turbulence,” in the words of David Airlie, her lifelong friend and former senior adviser. I also wanted to describe for the first time her close relationship with the United States--her eleven visits, five of them private, and her friendships with an array of fascinating Americans including all the presidents since Harry Truman--except Lyndon Johnson, who desperately tried to meet her. There seemed to be a surprise around every corner: her physical courage when she was attacked by a wounded pheasant and charged by “dive bombing colts,” her compassion while mothering a teenaged cousin who had been nearly killed in a terrorist attack, her earthiness while crawling on her belly stalking deer, her joie de vivre while blowing bubbles at a friend’s birthday party, her fierce reaction to one of her top advisers in the days after the death of Diana, her tenderness toward Margaret Thatcher during the former prime minister’s 80th birthday party. I hope the result will enable readers to immerse themselves in her life--from the grouse moors of Scotland and kitchen tables of her friends to the state banquets and time-honored pageantry, where even in the middle of the solemn ritual of her coronation, the Archbishop of Canterbury could sneak the 27-year-old Queen sips from a hidden flask of brandy for a pick-me-up. Via interviews with a legion of royal watchers, from horse trainers to lords and ladies, Smith teases out a woman both austere and animated, duty-bound yet undeniably authentic.”. -- More “All the details are here for the reader to gather a comprehensive picture of a life so rarefied none of us could imagine it…. [Smith] brings into focus the personal side of the ordinary-extraordinary balancing act that has been not only the queen’s trademark style but also the cause for continued appreciation.”. -- Booklist “ A respectful, engrossing, and perceptive portrayal.”. -- Publishers Weekly “She was so young, and the task was so enormous.

In the aftermath of the Civil War, an aging itinerant news reader agrees to transport a young captive of the Kiowa back to her people in this exquisitely rendered, morally complex, multilayered novel of historical fiction from the author of Enemy Women that explores the boundaries of family, responsibility, honor, and trust. Johanna has forgotten the English language, tries to escape at every opportunity, throws away her shoes, and refuses to act “civilized.” Yet as the miles pass, the two lonely survivors tentatively begin to trust each other, forming a bond that marks the difference between life and death in this treacherous land. It’s a post-Civil War western, the good guys are good, the bad guys are bad, and you can be sure the former will ride off into the sunset at the story’s end (Womp, Womp). And that’s what News of the World is: Pure and good.

Set against the dramatic backdrop of the American Revolution, and featuring a cast of legendary characters, The Hamilton Affair tells the sweeping, tumultuous, true story of Alexander Hamilton and Elizabeth Schuyler, from passionate and tender beginnings of their romance to his fateful duel on the banks of the Hudson River. Skyhorse Publishing , as well as our Arcade, Yucca, and Good Books imprints, are proud to publish a broad range of books for readers interested in fiction--novels, novellas, political and medical thrillers, comedy, satire, historical fiction, romance, erotic and love stories, mystery, classic literature, folklore and mythology, literary classics including Shakespeare, Dumas, Wilde, Cather, and much more. " Cobbs's depiction of Hamilton will endear him in the hearts of readers and shed light on one of the most misunderstood figures in American history and the woman who shared his life." "Author and historian Elizabeth Cobbs' fictionalized spin on the life of the founding pops and his better half, Eliza Schulyer, is a juicy answer to Ron Chernow's Alexander Hamilton ..." -- Cosmopolitan. Highly recommended for both public library collections and personal or book club reading lists, The Hamilton Affair is all but impossible to put down. ". "With the expertise of an historian and the intimacy and immediacy of a gifted novelist, Elizabeth Cobbs plunges us into the cauldron of love, war, betrayal, slavery, blackmail, revolution, dueling, and banking in which our nation was brewed--and delivers us into the conflicted heart of one of its most passionate and misunderstood heroes. ". Don't despair, check out Elizabeth Cobbs' finely tuned fictional biography of one of America's most intriguing yet vastly underrated Founding Fathers. Born on the Caribbean Island of St. Croix, the illegitimate Hamilton survived impoverishment, the death of his beloved mother, and a devastating hurricane before emigrating to New York at the age of 16. Hamilton's close relationship to George Washington, his friendships and conflicts with his fellow revolutionaries, and the rise and fall of his political star are all detailed, but it is his courtship of and marriage to the beautiful, vivacious Elizabeth Schuyler, a member of one of the oldest and most distinguished colonial families, that serves as the centerpiece of Cobbs' page-turning historical novel.

From London’s inimitable mayor, Boris Johnson, the story of how Churchill’s eccentric genius shaped not only his world but our own. [Johnson] clearly admires his subject, and his book has a boyish, innocent quality that is also an essential part of Mr. Johnson’s political appeal.”. — The Wall Street Journal “Buoyant, quick-witted and vastly entertaining.” —The Economist. Johnson has painted his portrait of Churchill with light, learning, and good sense, a wise aggregation of present and past.” — The Weekly Standard “Fascinating . “A characteristically breathless romp through the life and times of our greatest wartime leader, Winston Churchill . Johnson’s distinctive writing style is unlike any other used in the countless books that have been written on Churchill . It reads at times like a mixture of Monty Python and the Horrible Histories.” — The Telegraph (4 stars). “An interesting study of a truly fascinating historical figure . The book amuses and educates in equal measure with a deftness of touch and lightness of learning that is beyond most people. Its stress on the importance of political bravery, and doing what is morally right, rather than what the polls and press dictate, is a timeless message.” — The Jewish Chronicle. Like Sir Winston—who somehow published 43 books (and won the 1953 Nobel Prize for Literature) while not busy leading the defeat of Hitler—Mr. Despite the heavy subject matter, The Churchill Factor is a light and quick read . helps keep the book moving, challenging readers with occasional get-out-your-dictionary words and rewarding them with the odd belly laugh.” — Globe and Mai l. “Like all Johnson’s work [ The Churchill Factor ] is beautifully written, particularly as, in this case, he rises to the linguistic standards set by his subject . “Churchill’s own energy—his indefatigable pursuit of excitement, glory, place and power—demands a writer of fizz and passion to do history justice. It would be a fascinating read [even] without the Johnson Factor—[but] Boris is a superb, accessible writer, with an easy, good-humoured touch. “While there are many accounts of Winston Churchill and his political savvy, one would be remiss to ignore this sprightly written volume. Johnson’s history of Churchill is well crafted, amply researched, and a pleasure to read.” — Library Journal. “Reading about Churchill is always a delight, and Johnson is an accomplished, accessible writer.”. — Kirkus Reviews. Educated at Oxford, he began his career as a journalist, writing for The Times and The Telegraph (for whom he still contributes a regular column), and working his way up to editor of The Spectator.

--This text refers to an alternate Kindle Edition edition. This 100th-anniversary edition includes not only the complete authoritative text of the novel with illuminating footnotes, but also four contextual essays, five reviews from the time of publication, five articles on dramatic and film variations, and seven selections from literary and academic criticism. The selection of criticism includes essays on how Dracula deals with female sexuality, gender inversion, homoerotic elements, and Victorian fears of "reverse colonization" by politically turbulent Transylvania.

Learning to read other people gives you a definite edge in terms of predicting behavior, modeling your actions to build a favorable rapport with people, forging more fulfilling personal relationships and excelling at building professional relationships. If you are a philosopher or someone who seeks to find principles of better ways of living, Stoicism is an interesting philosophy that guides one into a life that is full of fulfillment and happiness. Don’t get me wrong, it is not simple, philosophy is complex, but many people try to pick bits and pieces of it to make it work for them in some circumstances. In chapter two, we will cover the challenges and defenses of the average empath, and throughout the rest of the book, you will get tips on how to deal with this. Tools for a Healthy Life: Did you know that the chakra system is closely related to emotional health and that meditation can transform the way you deal with being an empath?

This is masterly work.” — New York Times Book Review In this exciting and illuminating work, National Book Award winner Timothy Egan delivers a story, both rollicking and haunting, of one of the most famous Irish Americans of all time. A dashing young orator during the Great Hunger of the 1840s, Thomas Francis Meagher led a failed uprising against British rule, for which he was banished to a Tasmanian prison colony for life. Meagher’s rebirth included his leading the newly formed Irish Brigade in many of the fiercest battles of the Civil War. Afterward, he tried to build a new Ireland in the wild west of Montana—a quixotic adventure that ended in the great mystery of his disappearance, which Egan resolves convincingly at last. “Without a shadow of doubt this is one of the finest Irish-American books ever written….What Egan has done is restore the reputation and uncovered a host of details on a man I would venture to say had no peer in our history of Irish America….Egan’s take on Irish-American history gives this book a breadth and significance that would be very hard to match.” — Niall O’Dowd, Irish America "This is marvelous stuff. Thomas F. Meagher strides onto Egan's beautifully wrought pages just as he lived — powerfully larger than life. — Daniel James Brown, author of The Boys in the Boat, Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Olympics. Egan's impeccable research, uncomplicated readability, and flowing narrative reflect his deep knowledge of a difficult and complex man." "Meagher lived life full-tilt, with old-fashioned honor as well as courage and dash, so inspiring Egan that the prose flashes and flares . — Booklist, starred review. "Just in time for St. Paddy's Day comes this sensational bio." The author tells Meagher’s exhilarating story with an Irishman’s flair for the tragic, poetic and dramatic . Egan combines deep reporting with masterful storytelling to chronicle this bigger-than-life figure.” -- Dallas Morning News. You may not have heard the name Meagher, but after reading Egan’s excellent biography, you’ll never forget it." Timothy Egan is a Pulitzer Prize–winning reporter, a New York Times columnist, a winner of the Andrew Carnegie Medal for excellence in non-fiction, and the author of seven books, most recently Short Nights of the Shadow Catcher.

In the second volume of his epic trilogy about the liberation of Europe in World War II, Pulitzer Prize winner Rick Atkinson tells the harrowing story of the campaigns in Sicily and Italy. The Italian campaign's outcome was never certain; in fact, Roosevelt, Churchill, and their military advisers engaged in heated debate about whether an invasion of the so-called soft underbelly of Europe was even a good idea. Amazon Best of the Month, November 2007 : Topping a Pulitzer Prize-winning effort is tough; finding originality in a World War II narrative is even tougher. Atkinson surpasses his Pulitzer-winning An Army at Dawn in this empathetic, perceptive analysis of the second stage in the U.S. Army's grassroots development from well-intentioned amateurs to the most formidable fighting force of World War II. The battles in Sicily and Italy developed the combat effectiveness and the emotional hardness of a U.S. Army increasingly constrained to bear the brunt of the Western allies' war effort, he argues.

A beautiful, stunningly ambitious novel about a blind French girl and a German boy whose paths collide in occupied France as both try to survive the devastation of World War II. Werner is a German orphan, destined to labour in the same mine that claimed his father’s life, until he discovers a knack for engineering. Yes, there is fear and fighting and disappearance and death, but the author’s focus is on the interior lives of his two characters. Never mind that their paths don’t cross until very late in the novel, this is not a book you read for plot (although there is a wonderful, mysterious subplot about a stolen gem). It is through their individual and intertwined tales that Doerr masterfully and knowledgeably re-creates the deprived civilian conditions of war-torn France and the strictly controlled lives of the military occupiers.High-Demand Backstory: A multipronged marketing campaign will make the author’s many fans aware of his newest book, and extensive review coverage is bound to enlist many new fans.

Mr. Bascomb’s research and, especially, his storytelling skills are first-rate.”— The Wall Street Journal “Weaving together his typically intense research and a riveting narrative, Neal Bascomb’s The Winter Fortress is a spellbinding piece of historical writing.” — Martin Dugard, author of Into Africa and co-author of the Killing series. In 1942, the Nazis were racing to complete the first atomic bomb. All they needed was a single, incredibly rare ingredient: heavy water, which was produced solely at Norway’s Vemork plant. Based on a trove of top-secret documents and never-before-seen diaries and letters of the saboteurs, The Winter Fortress is an arresting chronicle of a brilliant scientist, a band of spies on skis, perilous survival in the wild, Gestapo manhunts, and a last-minute operation that would alter the course of the war. "Weaving together his typically intense research and a riveting narrative, Neal Bascomb's The Winter Fortress is a spellbinding piece of historical writing." –Martin Dugard, author of Into Africa and co-author of the " Killing " series. "Neal Bascomb's The Winter Fortress is a riveting, high-action World War II thriller with nothing less than the fate of Planet Earth on the line. In The Winter Fortress , Neal Bascomb brilliantly tells the extraordinary true story of arguably the most important and daring commando raid of WWII: how an amazing band of men on skis made sure Hitler never got to drop the ultimate bomb." “Brilliantly written, The Winter Fortress cinematically captures a commando team’s efforts to destroy one of the most important secret facilities in World War II. Bascomb’s riveting prose puts the reader into one of the more daring missions of the war and the Allies’ efforts to sabotage a crucial aspect of Germany's nuclear program. "This well-told and deeply researched account sheds light on an aspect of World War II that is little known or remembered, creating a valuable history that will be beneficial for most collections." "Bascomb, a WWII historian and former journalist, thrillingly recounts the commando effort to destroy the Norwegian Vemork hydroelectric plant . A fascinating read about how a small group of Norwegians refused to submit to the brutal occupation of their country and contributed significantly to Allied victory." “Bascomb brings this overlooked tale of wartime nuclear sabotage to life while taking care to explain the science behind the story.” -- Scientific American. .Bascomb interweaves the stories of Hitler’s ‘Uranium Club’ and of atomic chemist Leif Tronstad, who directed the Allied operation, with the thriller-esque tale of the commandos who put the plant out of action in 1943."

He consults and quarrels with Barack Obama, Emmanuel Macron, Christine Lagarde, the economists Larry Summers and Jeffrey Sachs, and others, as he struggles to resolve Greece’s debt crisis without resorting to punishing austerity measures. "Timely, fascinating and important" -- Evaggelos Vallianatos, Huffington Post. "Varoufakis’s account has the narrative drive of a rollicking detective novel .... very good, very readable, and ought to be on all the important “notable books of the year” lists." An extraordinary account of low cunning at the heart of Greece's 2015 financial bailout . [Varoufakis is] a motorcycling, leather jacketed former academic and self-styled rebel who took pleasure in winding up the besuited political class . ―John Kampfner, The Guardian " Adults in the Room is a book that anyone interested in modern European politics should read. It is a devastating indictment of [the] current state of Europe and a fascinating inside account of the logic of reformist politics and its limits and why it keeps going anyway . He delivers a truly shocking anatomy of an apparatus bent on perpetuating its own bad logic and excluding alternatives." ―Adam Tooze, Shelby Cullom Davis Chair of History and Director of the European Institute at Columbia University, and author of The Deluge. Yanis Varoufakis is the former finance minister of Greece and the cofounder of an international grassroots movement, DiEM25, that is campaigning for the revival of democracy in Europe. After teaching for many years in the United States, Britain, and Australia, he is currently a professor of economics at the University of Athens.

The astonishing, never before told story of the greatest rescue mission of World War II—when the OSS set out to recover more than 500 airmen trapped behind enemy lines in Yugoslavia... During a bombing campaign over Romanian oil fields, hundreds of American airmen were shot down in Nazi-occupied Yugoslavia. Told in riveting detail for the first time, The Forgotten 500 is a tale of unsung heroes who went above and beyond.”—James Bradley, New York Times bestselling author of Flags of Our Fathers and Flyboys “The operation’s story is an exciting tale...Evoking the rescuees’ successive desperation, wild hope, and joy, and their gratitude to the Serbians who risked their lives to help, Freeman produces a breathtaking popular account.”— Booklist “[F]ascinating…full of romance, action, and adventure...This untold story of World War II has finally been told with skill and grace.”— America in WWII magazine “Greg Freeman has written a riveting account of the greatest escape during World War II. It has been buried for too long…”—Tony Koltz, New York Times bestselling author of The Battle for Peace “[A] gripping, true-life narrative of one of the most heroic and inspiring—but virtually unknown—military operations of World War II....Freeman chronicles it with a master’s touch for detail.

From the New York Times bestselling author and master of martial fiction comes the definitive, illustrated history of one of the greatest battles ever fought—a riveting nonfiction chronicle published to commemorate the 200th anniversary of Napoleon’s last stand. In his first work of nonfiction, Bernard Cornwell combines his storytelling skills with a meticulously researched history to give a riveting chronicle of every dramatic moment, from Napoleon’s daring escape from Elba to the smoke and gore of the three battlefields and their aftermath. With historical accounts like this, who needs novels for excitement?” ( Wall Street Journal ). “Waterloo may be a well-mined topic, but this new presentation is bound to satisfy lovers of military history…. “Bernard Cornwell proceeds at a brisk canter and his descriptions of the fighting are as gripping as any in his splendid Sharpe novels.” ( The Times (London)). “Brings a shrewd military historian’s mind to his subject…thrilling to read…Cornwell’s is from start to finish a gripping account, red in tooth and claw. “As you would expect from a writer who is the acknowledged expert on the Napoleonic Wars he is superb on the tiny details as well as on the bigger picture.” ( Daily Express (London)). “Cornwell has found deserved popularity with his Sharpe series of historically accurate novels set in the Napoleonic Wars. In his first work of nonfiction, Bernard Cornwell combines his storytelling skills with a meticulously researched history to give a riveting chronicle of every dramatic moment—from Napoleon’s daring escape from Elba to the smoke and gore of the three battlefields and their aftermath. Cornwell brings to life how it actually felt to fight those famous battles—as well as the moments of amazing bravery on both sides that left the outcome hanging in the balance until the bitter end.

The World of Yesterday, mailed to his publisher a few days before Stefan Zweig took his life in 1942, has become a classic of the memoir genre. ( Publishers Weekly ). "When I opened it, I immediately felt that rare thrill one experiences when meeting a great book. In this remarkably fine new translation, Anthea Bell perfectly captures Stefan Zweig’s glorious evocation of a lost world, Vienna’s golden age, in which he grew up and flourished.”—Ronald Harwood, award-winning author, playwright, and screenwriter. (Ronald Harwood). “The very success with which this book evokes both the beauty of the past and the fatality of its passing is what gives it tragic effectiveness.

The epic story of the fall of the Inca Empire to Spanish conquistador Francisco Pizarro in the aftermath of a bloody civil war, and the recent discovery of the lost guerrilla capital of the Incas, Vilcabamba, by three American explorers. Although the Incas fought a deadly, thirty-six-year-long guerrilla war, the Spanish ultimately captured the last Inca emperor and vanquished the native resistance. MacQuarrie, who writes with just the right amount of drama ("After the interpreter finished delivering the speech, silence once again gripped the square"), is to be commended for giving a balanced account of those events. In 1911, a young Yale professor of Latin American history named Hiram Bingham identified Machu Picchu as the nerve center of the empire. Although MacQuarrie dedicates just a few chapters to modern research, the archeologists who made the key discoveries emerge as well-developed characters, and the tale of digging up the empire is as riveting as the more familiar history of Spanish conquest. The author, who lived in Peru for five years, chronicles the adventures of Hiram Bingham, who, in 1911, discovered Machu Picchu and believed it was the Incan capital.

The only other surviving memoir by this author is 'The Last Panther' - an astonishing account of panzer warfare in the final hours of the Third Reich - also available on Amazon. The rarely-heard voice of a World War 2 panzer crewman, now in a modern English translation.

But the surprising truth is that Genghis Khan was a visionary leader whose conquests joined backward Europe with the flourishing cultures of Asia to trigger a global awakening, an unprecedented explosion of technologies, trade, and ideas. Fighting his way to power on the remote steppes of Mongolia, Genghis Khan developed revolutionary military strategies and weaponry that emphasized rapid attack and siege warfare, which he then brilliantly used to overwhelm opposing armies in Asia, break the back of the Islamic world, and render the armored knights of Europe obsolete. In Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World , Jack Weatherford resurrects the true history of Genghis Khan, from the story of his relentless rise through Mongol tribal culture to the waging of his devastatingly successful wars and the explosion of civilization that the Mongol Empire unleashed. Apart from its inapt title, Genghis Khan dies rather early on in this account and many of the battles are led by his numerous offspring. In researching this book, Weatherford (Savages and Civilization), a professor of anthropology at Macalaster College, traveled thousands of miles, many on horseback, tracing Genghis Khan's steps into places unseen by Westerners since the khan's death and employing what he calls an "archeology of movement." Although Khan's death occurs at the midpoint of this book, the tales of his survivors' exploits and the gradual fall of the Mongol dynasties are engaging and informative. Weatherford's efforts to credit Genghis Khan and his descendants with the ideas and innovations that created the Renaissance are a bit bewildering, but readers will be left with a new appreciation of a maligned culture, and a desire to learn more.

Mr. Bascomb’s research and, especially, his storytelling skills are first-rate.”— The Wall Street Journal “Weaving together his typically intense research and a riveting narrative, Neal Bascomb’s The Winter Fortress is a spellbinding piece of historical writing.” — Martin Dugard, author of Into Africa and co-author of the Killing series. In 1942, the Nazis were racing to complete the first atomic bomb. All they needed was a single, incredibly rare ingredient: heavy water, which was produced solely at Norway’s Vemork plant. Based on a trove of top-secret documents and never-before-seen diaries and letters of the saboteurs, The Winter Fortress is an arresting chronicle of a brilliant scientist, a band of spies on skis, perilous survival in the wild, Gestapo manhunts, and a last-minute operation that would alter the course of the war. "Weaving together his typically intense research and a riveting narrative, Neal Bascomb's The Winter Fortress is a spellbinding piece of historical writing." –Martin Dugard, author of Into Africa and co-author of the " Killing " series. "Neal Bascomb's The Winter Fortress is a riveting, high-action World War II thriller with nothing less than the fate of Planet Earth on the line. In The Winter Fortress , Neal Bascomb brilliantly tells the extraordinary true story of arguably the most important and daring commando raid of WWII: how an amazing band of men on skis made sure Hitler never got to drop the ultimate bomb." “Brilliantly written, The Winter Fortress cinematically captures a commando team’s efforts to destroy one of the most important secret facilities in World War II. Bascomb’s riveting prose puts the reader into one of the more daring missions of the war and the Allies’ efforts to sabotage a crucial aspect of Germany's nuclear program. "This well-told and deeply researched account sheds light on an aspect of World War II that is little known or remembered, creating a valuable history that will be beneficial for most collections." "Bascomb, a WWII historian and former journalist, thrillingly recounts the commando effort to destroy the Norwegian Vemork hydroelectric plant . A fascinating read about how a small group of Norwegians refused to submit to the brutal occupation of their country and contributed significantly to Allied victory." “Bascomb brings this overlooked tale of wartime nuclear sabotage to life while taking care to explain the science behind the story.” -- Scientific American. .Bascomb interweaves the stories of Hitler’s ‘Uranium Club’ and of atomic chemist Leif Tronstad, who directed the Allied operation, with the thriller-esque tale of the commandos who put the plant out of action in 1943."

Raised by her aunt and uncle amidst the rolling hills of the Tuscan countryside, young orphan Virginia Tacci has always harbored a deep love for horses—though she knows she may never have the chance to ride. “An epic and richly textured tale of Renaissance Tuscany...If you enjoy really good historical fiction, stories that move and snap with life, stories that make you feel deeply for the characters and their struggles, then you will love [ The Shepherdess of Siena ].” — Aspen Daily News. She completed her PhD in bilingual special education and went on to work in that field, as well as teaching English as a second language and bilingual American history.