When Henry V became king of England in 1413 he inherited an exhausted realm. The coup d'etat in which Henry's father deposed his uncle Richard II had left deep political fault-lines; the impact of the Black Death still lingered; public finances and law and order were in crisis. To the outside world, England was irrelevant, the glorious victories over France won by Henry's grandfather Edward III at Cre¿cy and Poitiers largely forgotten.But, in less than a decade, Henry transformed England. He reunited the political community behind the crown, reformed the justice system, invested heavily in shipbuilding, put down rebellions and secured England's borders. In foreign diplomacy, he made England a serious player once more. And, by defeating a larger and better-equipped French army at the battle of Agincourt in 1415, he brought about the union of the crowns of England and France, an achievement which ranks Henry alongside medieval rulers such as Charlemagne, William the Conqueror and Frederick Hohenstaufen. In terms of his military genius and force of personality, Henry was arguably the closest thing England ever produced to a Napoleon Bonaparte. And Agincourt was his Austerlitz.
From one of the world's great science writers and biologists: a book that reflects on the vast arc of evolutionary history and what it tells us about life on earth.How much do we really know about our past?For centuries, we have yearned to learn more about our ancestors and piece together the story of how we came to be. But language can only record so much. And fossils can be even harder to decipher. We are left groping in the dark, forced to speculate and reconstruct ways of life based on fragments of information.But what if there was a better way?In The Genetic Book of the Dead, Richard Dawkins explores the untapped potential of DNA to transform and transcend our understanding of evolution. In the future, a zoologist presented with a hitherto unknown animal will be able to read its body and its genes as detailed descriptions of the world its ancestors inhabited. This 'book of the dead' would uncover the remarkable ways in which animals have overcome obstacles, adapted to their environments and, again and again, developed remarkably similar ways of finding solutions to life's problems. What biologists call ?convergent evolution', the way in which species separated by vast stretches of time have evolved surprisingly recognisable forms and functions, is one of the most powerful and least understood forces driving life on earth.From the bestselling author of The Selfish Gene comes a revolutionary book that unlocks the door to a past more vivid, nuanced and fascinating than anything we have ever seen.
A dark Christmas thriller from New York Times bestselling author Lisa Unger.Instead of presents this Christmas, a true crime podcaster is opening up a cold case...When true crime podcaster Harley Granger drifts into The Next Chapter Bookshop days before Christmas, he seems intent on digging up events that store owner Madeline Martin would much rather forget. Granger has a gift for seeing things that others miss, and his work on true crime has earned him fame and wealth ? and some serious criticism for his various unethical practices. Looking into Madeline's case, a case that many people think is closed but some want reopened, he has a lot of questions about the night Madeline was left for dead on the riverbank, nearly a decade ago. Madeline is the only surviving victim of Evan Handy, who murdered her best friend and is suspected in the disappearance of two local sisters. Since Handy went to jail, though, three other young women have gone missing in similar circumstances. Are the cases connected? Was Handy innocent after all... or was there someone else there that night? Another predator, still out there somewhere?As Christmas approaches and a blizzard bears down, Madeline must return to a past she hoped was dead, to answer questions that have haunted her and others since that day. Will she discover the truth... and is it more terrible than she could ever have imagined?Coupling a picturesque, cosy setting with a deeply unsettling and suspenseful plot, Christmas Presents is a chilling seasonal novella that can be enjoyed all year long.
The brilliant new crime novel from the award-winning writer of People of Abandoned Character explores the world of the real-life all-female crime gang, the Forty Elephants.This is a story about the 'haves' and 'have nots'. If the 'haves' must flaunt their riches, then the 'have nots' will take some for themselves...It's 1920, and 19-year-old Eleanor Mackridge is convinced there's more to life than her parents two-up two-down in Brighton. When she's recruited by the Forty Elephants, a notorious female crime gang led by the enigmatic Alice Diamond, Eleanor feels like she's finally living. Reinvented as 'Nell the Mack', she's soon drawn in by the gang's sisterhood, caught up in the swirl of glamorous parties and daring heists. The good times roll, but the party must end sometime...In Elephants and Diamonds, Clare Whitfield once again turns well-known history on its head, revealing the hidden underbelly of the 'roaring twenties'. Perfect for fans of Sara Collins, The Unspeakable Acts of Zina Pavlou and Weyward.
In the stuttering decay of climate-collapse London in the back half of the twenty-first century, Charlie and Parker are punks by night, biohackers by day. They pay for the beer they don't steal with the money from ZODIAC CODE, a DNA astrology site, and Charlie makes bio-bespoke augments for criminals, punks, and eco-warriors. They have to deal with disgruntled clients, scene kids who don't dig their band, and navigating a city owned wholly by the violence of corporate interest and criminality. Their world is split into three factions: GREEN - still trying to save the world; BLUE - trying to profit while they can, and BLACK - who see no hope left. When a group of extremist GREEN activists hire them for a series of jobs ranging from robbery to murder, Charlie knows they should walk away. But Parker wants to make a difference, and for Charlie maybe these are the jobs that will make them feel anything other than BLACK. Facing off against faceless corporations, amoral biohackers, and criminally insane cyberpunks in an escalating biological arms race, Charlie will have to choose what she believes in. Is there still hope, and does she have a right to grab it?
HE IS THE ICE-COLD DUKEJulian, the Duke of Hastings, is known for being aloof and utterly in control. For nine years, he's kept his distance from the only woman who ever cracked his icy exterior, burying himself in work as a top-secret government code-breaker. But when his latest assignment ensnares him in a lethal aristocratic plot, Julian has no choice but to enlist the help of his estranged wife.SHE IS THE PRIM DUCHESSTo all of society, Caroline Hastings is the perfect duchess. For years she's masked her pain over her husband's abandonment behind a poised facade. But when Julian unexpectedly returns and sweeps them into a dangerous, covert mission, Caroline discovers her frozen duke isn't quite so indifferent in the bedroom after all.Now, locked in a dangerous chase through London's glittering ballrooms and dark back alleys, Julian and Caroline must catch a killer?before he catches them first.
This is the story of girl meets boy. And then everything goes wrong . . .Ever since they first met at university, Beth and Nick have circled in and out of one another's lives: supporting each other through grief, marriage, divorce, career crises and family dramas. Fourteen years ago, when they were on the cusp of adulthood, they both survived a devastating fire that sent their lives in different directions. And they've been running ever since: from the pain, from the memories, and most devastatingly of all, from the guilt. But no matter how hard they try, there's something else they can't run from. The inescapable, terrifying truth: they're in love with each other. But how can they move forward, when neither of them can stop looking back?
Navola is a city built on trade.Its palazzos and towers are conjured from its merchant wealth: barley and rice, flax and wool, iron and silver, arms, armies, lives and kingdoms are all traded here.And presiding over it all, the Regulai bank. By guile, force of arms and the cast-iron might of their money and promises, in just three generations the Regulai family have risen far from their humble origins: merchants beg their backing, artists their patronage, princes an invitation to dine at their table. The di Regulai say they are not political, but their wealth buys cities and topples kingdoms. Soon, Davico di Regulai will be expected to take the reins of power. But the boy is not well-suited for his role. His heart is soft where it should be hard. He is credulous when he should be suspicious. He is tired of being tested and trained to inherit a legacy he is not sure he wants. But Davico is inextricably tangled in fate's net and his doubts can only summon ruin.In the shade of Navola's colonnaded porticoes, his family's enemies gather and plot.In the shadows of its deep catacombs, assassins sharpen their stiletto knives.In the kingdoms of Cerulean Peninsula, princes and despots muster their armies.Davico's only hope rests in the heart of a girl whose own family was destroyed by the di Regulai, and in a crystalline orb the size of a human head, said to be the eye of a long-dead dragon.
Bestselling author Sebastian Fitzek sends you on an ingeniously disturbing journey with his brand new psychological thriller.A missing child. A desperate father. A terrible secret.Guido T has already confessed to two horrific child murders and led Berlin police to the bodies. The police are sure he is also the kidnapper and murderer of six-year-old Max, who disappeared without trace a year ago.But now the killer is staying silent. The investigators have no reliable evidence, so Max's parents have no certainty and are unable to say goodbye to their son.Everything changes when one investigator makes an unbelievable offer: he can have Max's father placed in the psychiatric prison hospital where Guido T is imprisoned - as a fake patient.Max's father agrees. He plans to force the child killer into a confession. Because nothing is worse than uncertainty.Or so he thinks. Until he, as an inmate, learns the gruesome truth...Reviewers on Sebastian Fitzek:'Fitzek's thrillers are breathtaking, full of wild twists' Harlan Coben'Fitzek is without question one of the crime world's most evocative storytellers' Karin Slaughter
A simmering slow burn bursting with banter... This is a romance for anyone who's ever felt too messy to be loved.' Rosie Danan, author of The RoommateIn this fierce and funny battle of the exes, Ashley Winstead's Fool Me Once explores the chaos of wanting something you used to have.Lee Stone is a twenty-first-century woman: she kicks butt at her job as a communications director at a women-run electric car company (that's better than Tesla, thank you), and after work she is "Stoner,? drinking guys under the table and never letting any of them get too comfortable in her bed...That's because Lee's learned one big lesson: never trust love. Four major heartbreaks set her straight, from her father cheating on her mom all the way to Ben Laderman in grad school?who wasn't actually cheating, but she could have sworn he was, so she reciprocated in kind.Then Ben shows up five years later, working as a policy expert for the most liberal governor in Texas history, just as Lee is trying to get a clean energy bill rolling. Things get complicated?and competitive?as Lee and Ben are forced to work together. Tension builds just as old sparks reignite, fanning the flames for a romantic dustup the size of Texas.Don't miss The Boyfriend Candidate, Ashley Winstead's next laugh-out-loud rom-com about learning to embrace living outside your comfort zone!
For the Dogs, the war has only just begun.Caught up in the siege of Calais, in the midst a brutal eleven-month blockade of a small port on the French coast, they are no longer blindly walking into the unknown. But the men still have more questions than answers about what faces them - and why. What are they really fighting for? And why does the king care so much about taking such a small French town? The Dogs aren't paid to ask questions but in their work, they have the means to make people talk. Soon, their journey will reveal who really wants this war to last for a hundred years. And as the battle rages, they hear the first, faint, chesty rattle of a natural disaster that is sweeping towards the Dogs and their world . . .Spanning the siege city built outside Calais' walls, to the pirate ships patrolling the harbour, and into the dark corners of oligarchs' houses, where the deals that shape - and end - lives are made, this captivating and brutal story brings the 1300s effortlessly to life. About money, merchants and the medieval ?deep state', this is a must-read for fans of Bernard Cornwell and Conn Iggulden.Praise for Essex Dogs:'A new champion has entered the front line of historical fiction to stand shoulder to shoulder with Bernard Cornwell.' Jane Johnson 'Battle-bloody, brutal and perfectly pitched.' Daily Mail 'A busy, urgent little masterpiece.' Graham Hurley 'With a cast of unforgettable characters, written with irrepressible verve and historical accuracy, Dan Jones delivers a compelling novel that thrums with swordswinging energy.' Simon Sebag Montefiore
The New York Times and USA Today bestsellerFor fans of Practical Magic and Gilmore Girls this charming debut novel and TikTok sensation is packed full of romance, charm and plenty of magic . . .Revelare witches are cursed. As long as they use their magic, they are doomed to four heartbreaks.So far, Sadie Revelare has experienced three - the devastating departure of her mother and the loss of her brother. And the most painful heartbreak of all: Jake McNealy, her first love. Ever since, Sadie has done everything she can to protect herself from more pain.But now Sadie's beloved grandmother is sick. And without her, Sadie isn't sure she will have the strength to keep her family and her magic together.As Sadie's carefully structured life begins to unravel, Jake returns to town after a decade away. And in the face of a final heartbreak that could tear Sadie apart, she must decide once and for all: is love more important than magic?The perfect read for anyone looking for a cosy and warm, witchy novel to curl up with this autumn.
The first in a powerfully unsettling trilogy by the master of the psychothriller, Sebastian Fitzek.First he kills the mother, then he kidnaps the child. The grieving father is given 45 hours to search. If the child isn't found, they die, captive.The press call him the Eye Collector. Because the horror doesn't end with the murders. Every body discovered has had the left eye removed.When evidence implicates police officer turned journalist Alexander Zorbach, who has championed the case against the Eye Collector, he becomes the main suspect.Meanwhile, a mysterious witness comes forward. Alina Gregoriev, a blind physiotherapist, claims to be able to see into the lives of her patients simply by touching their body. She says she treated the Eye Collector yesterday.Perfect for fans of Adrian McKinty, John Marrs and Chris Carter.Reviews for Sebastian Fitzek'Fitzek's thrillers are breathtaking, full of wild twists' Harlan Coben 'Sebastian Fitzek is simply amazing. I truly hope that one day I will be able to create suspense and plot twists in the way only Sebastian can. A true Master of his craft' Chris Carter'Fitzek is without question one of the crime world's most evocative storytellers' Karin Slaughter
A philosphical journey hunting down the answers to who we are and what makes us human. With an ancient skull as his starting point, Westerman travels the globe, tracing the search for the first human being: the missing link between humans and apes.
Told from four different perspectives, Around the Breakfast Table is a story of hidden histories and family secrets, revealing the psychological consequences of the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire.
When her parents die in a terrible tragedy, Neva is adopted by an eccentric clock and automata maker who devises a machine to help her when she discovers she has a gift that will prove to be as dangerous as it is desirable: she can predict the weather. Now Neva must find a way to disguise her true identity from those who would destroy her.
The first instalment in a new Hundred Years War trilogy, following a tight-knit group of archers fighting the 1346 Crecy campaign in medieval France.
A woman wakes up to discover her new husband is missing and sets out on a wild race of power, politics, and revenge in this international thriller from New York Times bestselling author Chris Pavone.You think you know a person...Ariel Pryce wakes up in Lisbon, alone. Her husband is gone - no warning, no note, not answering his phone. Something is wrong.She starts with hotel security, then the police, then the US embassy, at each confronting questions she can't fully answer: What exactly is John doing in Lisbon? Why would he drag her along on his business trip? Who would want to harm him? And why does Ariel know so little about her new husband?The clock is ticking. Ariel is running out of time. But the one person in the world who can help her is the one person she doesn't want to ask...A complex, intelligent, multi-layered thriller, Two Nights in Lisbon is filled with twists, turns, husbands, wives, secrets and lies - and it will linger long after you turn the surprising final page.Praise for Two Nights in Lisbon: 'I defy anyone to read the first twenty pages of this breakneck novel, then try to put it down for five minutes. This is smart suspense at its very best' John Grisham 'Timely, important, layered with ticking suspense' Lee Child 'Two Nights in Lisbon is his best yet. This one is not to be missed' Karin Slaughter 'There's no such thing as a book you can't put down, but this one was close' Stephen King 'Brimming over with surprise, nuance, cunning' Megan Abbott 'An elegantly twisting, lyrical, rocket-paced international thriller of the first order' Lisa Unger
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