Alan McDonald

Alan Melville

Alan Moore

Alan Moorehead was born in Melbourne, Australia. He travelled to England in 1937 and became a renowned foreign correspondent for the London Daily Express. Writer, world traveller, biographer, essayist, journalist, Moorehead was one of the most successful writers in English of his day. During World War II he won an international reputation for his coverage of campaigns in the Middle East and Asia, the Mediterranean and Northwest Europe. He died in 1983.

Alan Moorehead

Alan Paton

Alan Pattullo

Alan Pauls

Alan Pollock is a playwright, translator and screenwriter. His numerous plays include One Night in November, Pigs and All Tomorrow's Parties.

Alan Pollock

Alan Root was born in London in 1937 but moved to Kenya as a young boy. He dropped out of school at sixteen but soon found himself behind the camera. He married Joan Thorpe in 1961 and together they produced an array of award-winning wildlife films including Baobab: Portrait of a Tree, commissioned by David Attenborough, Safari by Balloon, The Year of the Wildebeest and Castles of Clay, which was nominated for an Oscar. Alan won over sixty awards during his career, including an Emmy, three Lifetime Achievement Awards an OBE. Alan Root died in August 2017.

Alan Root

Alan Rosenthal

Alan Ruddock

Alan Rugman

Alan Rusbridger

Alan Ryan

Alan S. Blinder

Alan Shearer CBE  grew up in Newcastle, leaving home as a  teenager to pursue a career in professional football with his first  team, Southampton. He went on to  reach football stardom, winning the Premier League with Blackburn in  1995, breaking the world transfer record by signing to Newcastle United  in 1996 and achieving international success as the Captain of England.  Alan also holds the record for most goals scored in Premier League history.

Alan Shearer

Alan Siegel

Alan Simpson

Alan Spence

Alan Stewart

Alan Taylor

Alan Tennant

Alan Thompson

Alan Titchmarsh MBE is known to millions through his career as a television presenter of shows including Love Your Weekend, Love Your Garden, Ground Force, Gardeners' World, The Alan Titchmarsh Show and Spring Into Summer. He has written more than forty gardening books, as well as twelve novels and three volumes of memoirs. He was made MBE in the millennium New Year Honours list and holds the Victoria Medal of Honour, the Royal Horticultural Society's highest award.

Alan Titchmarsh

Alan Unterman

Alan Watts was a British philosopher, writer and speaker who was best known for his expertise in Eastern philosophies including Zen Buddhism and Taoism. He wrote over 25 books and numerous articles on subjects such as personal identity, the true nature of reality, higher consciousness, the meaning of life, concepts and images of God and the non-material pursuit of happiness.

Alan W Watts

Alan Warner is the author of eight novels: Morvern Callar, These Demented Lands, The Sopranos, The Man Who Walks, The Worms Can Carry Me to Heaven, The Stars in the Bright Sky, which was longlisted for the 2010 Man Booker Prize, The Deadman's Pedal and Their Lips Talk of Mischief. He is Writer in Residence at Edinburgh University.

Alan Warner

Alan Watts

Alan Weisman is an award-winning journalist and the author of several books, including the global bestseller The World Without Us, which has been translated into 34 international languages and was nominated for numerous awards. His writing has appeared in Harper's, The New York Times Magazine, The Atlantic Monthly, Vanity Fair, The Los Angeles Times Magazine and many other places. Alan has worked on all seven continent and reported from 58 countries, and lives in western Massachusetts.

Alan Weisman

Alanna Mitchell

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Colleen McCullough

Let international bestselling author Colleen McCullough sweep you away with this enthralling, evocative and emotional saga of one woman's quest to come to terms with a new life. If you like Victoria Hislop, Lucinda Riley and Fiona Valpy, you'll love this! 
 
'Fast-moving and immensely readable... Back to the open spaces, merciless climate and sheer pioneering stance of the magical THE THORN BIRDS, this book is a page turner from start to finish' -- Maeve Binchy 
'A compelling, passionate and gritty saga that was well worth the wait' -- She 
'A powerful saga' -- Mirror 
'Absorbing' -- Sunday Telegraph 
'I could put this book down. I was consumed with it' -- ***** Reader review 
'This book is utterly compelling and quite simply, I loved it. I wanted to finish it, but, didn't want it to end. Beautifully written, descriptive passages. A truly Master author. Thank you' -- ***** Reader review 
'One of the best reads I've had in years' -- ***** Reader review 
'Thoroughly loved this book, I was hooked from the first page!' -- ***** Reader review 
 
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Alexander Kinross is remembered in his native Scotland only as a shiftless boilermaker's apprentice. But when he writes from Australia to summon his bride, his relatives realize he is now a man to be reckoned with. 
 
Arriving in Sydney after a difficult voyage, sixteen-year-old Elizabeth Drummond meets her husband-to-be and discovers that he frightens and repels her. 
 
Isolated in Alexander's great house, Elizabeth finds that marriage does not prompt her husband to enlighten her about his past life - nor his present one, in which his mistress, the sensuous, tough, outspoken Ruby Costevan, still plays a part... 
 
Will she be able to forge a happy new life in this new world?

The Touch

a powerful, sweeping family saga from the international bestselling author of The Thorn Birds

Georgette Heyer

When Fate and a chivalrous impulse combine to saddle Viscount Desford with a friendless homeless waif named Cherry Steane, to whom else should he turn in such a scrape but his old childhood playmate, Henrietta Silverdale? For all they refused to oblige their parents by marrying, they have always been the best of friends. But as Desford pursues Cherry's lickpenny grandfather and reprobate father around unfashionable watering places and the seedier fringes of society, Hetta is forced to wonder whether he might not, at last, have fallen in love. Without the timely intervention of his scapegrace brother Simon, and Hetta's worthy suitor Gary Nethercott, Desford is in danger of making a rare mess of his affairs. 
 
Charity Girl is a wonderful romantic novel by the queen of the Regency romance , and one of the most popular historical novelists of all time.

Charity Girl

Diana Gabaldon

Set in the turbulent eighteenth century, Lord John is the lonely, tormented and courageous English officer first seen in the Outlander novels. He is a man who fights for the crown, his honour and his own secrets.

The year is 1757. On a bright June day, Lord John Grey emerges from his club, his mind in turmoil. A nobleman and a high-ranking officer in His Majesty's Army, Grey has just witnessed something shocking. But his efforts to avoid a scandal that might destroy his family are interrupted by something still more urgent: the Crown appoints him to investigate the brutal murder of a comrade-in-arms, who might well have been a traitor. 
 
Obliged to pursue two inquiries at once, Major Grey finds himself ensnared in a web of treachery and betrayal that touches every level of society - and threatens all he holds dear. From the bawdy-houses of London's night world to the drawing rooms of the nobility, from the blood of a murdered corpse to the thundering seas of the East India Company, Lord John follows the elusive trail of the woman in green who may hold the key to everything - or to nothing at all. 
 
The early days of the Seven Years War come brilliantly to life in this historical adventure mystery by the acclaimed author whose unique and compelling storytelling has engrossed millions of readers worldwide.

Lord John And The Private Matter

Neal Stephenson

As extraordinary an achievement as Cryptonomicon, Quicksilver is Neal Stephenson's first novel in his acclaimed Baroque Cycle. 
 
 
Neal Stephenson follows his international bestseller, the WWII thriller Cryptonomicon, with a novel set in the 16th and 17th centuries, in a world of war, scientific, religious and political turmoil. 
 
With a cast of characters that includes Newton, Leibniz, Christopher Wren, Charles II, Cromwell and the young Benjamin Franklin, Stephenson again shows his extraordinary ability to get inside a place and time; as he did for the futures of his science fiction (Snowcrash,The Diamond Age) and for WWII (Cryptonomicon), here he does for the England of the Civil War and the Europe of the Wars of Religion and the Scientific Revolution. Quicksilver is yet another tour-de-force from a writer who is simply unique.

Quicksilver

Maggie Bennett

From the pen of much loved author Maggie Bennett comes this engrossing and emotional story of prejudice, passion and one woman's struggle to fight for what she wants in life. Perfect for fans of Dilly Court, Rosie Harris, Nancy Revell and Catherine Cookson. 
 
READERS ARE LOVING A CHILD OF HER TIME! 
'It's a lovely story from the start. I was hooked.' -- ***** Reader review 
'Wonderful story'-- ***** Reader review 
'[Maggie Bennett] is a real story teller who makes you want to turn each page' -- ***** Reader review 
'Maggie Bennett is a brilliant writer' -- ***** Reader review 
 
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HAS SHE THE STRENGTH TO FIGHT FOR THE LIFE SHE'S ALWAYS YEARNED FOR? 
 
Phyllis Bird is twenty - five, a teacher, and still living with her parents in a quiet Hampshire village. With so many young men lost in the Great War, her future is without hope until she is offered the position of nursery maid in the London home of acclaimed playwright Harold Berridge. Desperate to break out of her mundane existence, she decides to take it up. 
 
 Befriended by the actress Maud Ling and thrown into the glamorous world of the cinema, Phyllis falls passionately in love with Maud's younger brother Teddy. But Teddy's heart lies elsewhere. 
Things go from bad to worse when tragedy strikes the Berridge household, and a heartbroken Phyllis is forced to leave. 
 
 Six months later, when Phyllis has started to rebuild her life, her world is turned upside down once more when she is invited to a party at Maud Ling's film studios. 
 
For there she falls under the spell of the charming but devious American actor Denver Towers, with disastrous consequences...

A Child Of Her Time

a beautifully moving coming of age saga you won’t be able to put down

Candace Robb

Let much-loved author Candace Robb sweep you back in time to thirteenth-century Edinburgh in this captivating and compelling Medieval mystery. Perfect for fans of Ellis Peters, S J Parris, Conn Iggulden and Bernard Cornwell. 
 
'Thirteenth-century Edinburgh comes off the page cold and convincing - most enjoyable' -- The List 
'Brilliant - Robb presents a feisty new heroine who proves to be no fool' -- Woman &amp; Home 
'A superb historical novel from a most interesting and unknown period' -- ***** Reader review 
 
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IN UNSETTLING AND TURBULENT TIMES, THE TRUTH IS HARD TO FIND... 
 
1297: Margaret Kerr, fiercely loyal to the deposed king John Balliol, has come to Edinburgh in search of her absent husband Roger - a man in the service of Balliol's enemy Robert the Bruce. But terrifying raids and a brutal murder bring the wrath of the English to Margaret's door. 
 
 Roger's sudden disappearance enables Margaret to escape from the city, but she soon suspects that his new-found concern is nothing more than a charade. And then her father returns from Bruges, bringing trouble and discord in his wake. 
 
 What was it the raiders sought from Margaret's property? And what of her mother's visions, which all sides are keen to interpret? 
 
Who can Margaret really trust in these troubled times...?

The Fire In The Flint

a gripping medieval Scottish mystery from much-loved author Candace Robb

David Ball

Nico and Maria, Maltese brother and sister, are separated when young Nico is abducted by Moorish slavers. Taken to Algiers to be the personal slave of a wealthy merchant, he becomes a pawn in household politics and sets out to escape. Extraordinary events lead him to the court of Suleiman the Magnificent, Sultan of the Ottomans. Stranded alone on Malta, Maria must learn to survive helped only by a group of Jewish refugees. A sweeping historical epic set against the backdrop of the desperate conflict between Christian Europe and the Islamic Ottoman Empire, The Sword and the Scimitar vividly portrays an irresistible and fast-moving world of adventure, war, treachery and love.

Sword And The Scimitar

James Holland

Joss Lambert has always been a loner, constrained by a secret from his past, until he finds friendship and solace firstly with Guy Liddell, a friend from school, and then with Guy's family, who welcome him into their farmhouse home. Joss increasingly comes to depend upon the Liddells and treats Alvesdon Farm as the one place where he feels not only appreciated but also truly happy. But in late 1930s England, the idyll cannot last. 
 
With war looming, Joss is forced to confront the past. He escapes through flying, becoming a fighter pilot in the RAF. But with the onset of war, even the Liddells' world is crumbling. As Joss is fighting for his life in the Battle of Britain, so he begins to fall madly in love with Stella - Guy's twin - but with tragic consequences. Leaving England and the Liddells far behind, he continues to fly amid the sand and heat of North Africa's deserts, flying above the 'Desert Rats' of the 8th Army, until his hopes and dreams are seemingly shattered for good...

The Burning Blue

Luther Blissett

Set in Reformation Europe, Q begins with Luther's nailing of his 95 theses on the door of the cathedral church in Wittenberg. Q traces the adventures and conflicts of two central characters: an Anabaptist, a member of the most radical of the Protestant sects and the anarchists of the Reformation, and a Catholic spy and informer, on their thrilling journey across Germany, Italy and the Netherlands. The four young writers who shelter behind the pseudonym Luther Blissett have created a world of intrigue, violence and intense political and religious passion. Far from the traditional example of historical fiction, Q is the stuff of which cults are made.

Takashi Matsuoka

Warrior clans nursing ancient grudges. Western missionaries brandishing pistols. Beautiful geishas who are deadly ninjas. 
 
1861 - after two centuries of isolation Japan has been forced to open its doors. Now new influences are tearing apart the old order. Japan is as unprepared for outsiders as missionaries are for samurai assassins, executions and honour killings. Genji's life is at risk. He plans his escape to the Cloud of Sparrows but the road is long and there are many places along the way for brutal samurai to attack -The demons of the past, the treachery of the present, an uncertain future are about to collide in the most terrifying ways.

Cloud Of Sparrows

Clare Colvin

Louis XIV, at the height of his powers and grandiose ambitions, dreams of constructing a great Hall of Mirrors in the palace of Versailles. But the only craftsmen who know the secret are in Murano, prisoners of the Venetian Republic. The promise (via Louis XIV's controller of finances, Jean-Louis Colbert) of riches, adventure, a new life, prompts Andrea Allegri and a renegade group of mirror-makers, to risk not only his father's wrath but the severest punishment by the Venetian authorities. And, once in the Sun King's Court, Andrea finds himself caught up, not only with dangerous palace politics, but with one of the King's mistresses. Inventive, romantic and exciting, Clare Colvin's novel is a magical evocation of a glittering period of history.

The Mirror Makers

Spanning sixty years of Roman history, Masters of Rome is Colleen McCullough's brilliant reimagining of the tumultuous years that led to the rise of Julius Caeser, his time in power and his ultimate demise.

The fifth book in the epic Masters of Rome series. 
 
Gaul. 54 BC. Julius Caesar sweeps across Gaul, brutally subduing the united tribes who defy the Republic. But, at home, his enemies are orchestrating his downfall and disgrace. Vindictive schemers like Cato and Bibulus, the spineless Cicero, the avaricious Brutus. Even Pompey the Great, Caesar's former ally. 
 
But all have underestimated Caesar. And when the Senate refuse to give him his due he marches upon his own country, an army prepared to die for him at his back. For rome is his destiny - a destiny that will impel him triumphantly on to the banks of the Rubicon, and beyond, into legend, as the noblest Roman of them all.

Caesar

Book four in the epic Masters of Rome series. 
 
Rome. 68 BC. Julius Caesar has proved himself a brilliant general. But when he returns to Rome he lays down arms only to take up another battle: this time for political power. This is a war waged with words, plots, schemes, metaphotical assassinations - but also with seduction and guile. 
 
Love is just another weapon in Caesar's political arsenal, for the key to political glory lies with Rome's noblewomen: powerful, vindictive Servilia, whose son Brutus deeply resents his mother's passionate, destructive relationhshiop with Caesar; Rome's revered Vestal Virgins; and even Caesar's own daughter, sacrificed on the altar of his ambition.

Caesar's Women

The first book in the epic Masters of Rome series. 
 
Rome. 110BC. A city which is home to Gaius Marius, prosperous but lowborn, a proud and disciplined soldier emboldened by his shrewdness and self-made wealth. It is also home to Lucius Cornelius Sulla, a handsome young aristocrat corrupted by powerty, a shameless pleasure seeker. 
 
Two men of extraordinary vision, men of ruthless ambition, both blessed and cursed by the special favour of Fortune. men fated to lay the foundations of the most awesome empire ever known, and to play out a mighty struggle for power and glory - for Marius and Sulla share a formidable ambition: to become First Man in Rome.

First Man In Rome

The third novel in the epic Masters of Rome series. 
 
Fortune's Favourites witnesses the power, mastery and cunning of two enigmatic rulers of Rome - Sulla, returning from exile, and the 22-year-old Pompey, who designates himself Magnus 'the Great'. And in the background is the young soldier, Caesar, who begins to show the expert qualities that will one day culminate in him becoming an unparalleled leader of ancient Rome. And at the heart of this sumptuous tale is the unforgettable story of Spartacus and his doomed slave revolt - the true story, as no modern reader has ever before encountered it.

Fortune's Favourites

The second book in the epic Masters of Rome series. 
 
Rome. 97 BC. Gaius Marius is one of the greatest generals Rome has ever known. under him, Rome has conquered the Western world, withstood invasion and crushed its enemies. But when the ageing Marius grows weak, the stability of the mighty Republic looks uncertain. 
 
Ambitious, tormented Lucius Cornelius Sulla, once Marius's right hand man, withdraws from his commander's circle to prepare his own bid for power. Marius is determined not to relinquish his control over the Republic, but with his closest ally now his most dangerous rival, the stakes are higher than ever before. And as a deadly enmity develops between the two men, Rome must fight its own battle for survival.

The Grass Crown

Let international bestselling author Colleen McCullough transport you back in time to Rome to 48 BC: scene of one of the greatest political battles and one of the most passionate love affairs of all time. This is an evocative and enthralling historical novel that will have you gripped. Fans of Conn Iggulden, Madeleine Miller and Simon Scarrow will not be disappointed. 
 
'An enormous rich mountain of a book, which will appeal to people who like their history in great succulent dollops' -- Sunday Times 
'Incomparable... Engrossing... Breathtakingly detailed... McCullough has triumphed again' -- Chicago Tribune 
'Intrigue, political manoeuvring, grandstanding, gossip, sex, both affectionate and calculated, and wholesale slaughter... McCullough works to charge history with the current of personality.' -- Booklist 
'A really engrossing read' -- ***** Reader review 
'A masterpiece' -- ***** Reader review 
'In a peerless class of its own' -- ***** Reader review 
'Entertaining and engrossing' -- ***** Reader review 
 
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Rome, 48 BC: Julius Caesar is in the prime of his life and at the height of his powers. 
 
But behind the myth lies a man beset with contradictions - happily married, he is also the lover of the enigmatic Egyptian queen, Cleopatra; a great general, he wishes to bring to an end Rome's endless wars; conscious of his own power and contemptuous of lesser men, he is determined not to be worshipped as a living god or crowned emperor. 
But Caesar is a man whose very greatness attracts envy and jealousy to a dangerous degree, and as the political intrigues which surround him reach their climax, his destruction becomes inevitable... 
 
The October Horse is the sixth book in the Masters of Rome series.

The October Horse

a marvellously epic sweeping historical novel full of political intrigue, romance, drama and war

William Diehl

Young Thomas Culhane grows up in the small Californian town of Eureka. But, although he is adopted by one of the town's wealthy families, he knows he must escape Eureka to make his own way in the world. Then World War I intervenes and Culhane ships to Europe to join the American forces in Europe, where he proves himself a hero. On his return to Eureka, he soon becomes deputy sheriff to the town's legendary lawman. In the early 1920s, he steps into his boss's shoes after the sheriff is killed in a shootout. Some twenty years later, Sheriff Culhane is a powerful man about to run as state governor. One hundred miles south of Eureka in Los Angeles, Verna Wilensky has been electrocuted in her bathtub. At first her death looks accidental. But as the police investigate further, and discover that she had almost $100,000 in her bank account, they begin to dig deeper. Who was this woman, where did she come from, how did she get all this money, and what was her connection to Eureka, to Thomas Culhane and to the bloody events of the 1920s that saw Culhane's political star begin to rise? Bestselling author William Diehl has written a compelling crime novel set in the golden state of California and revealing its seamy and corrupt underbelly.

Eureka

Jess Foley

Lose yourself in this captivating and heart-wrenching saga from much loved author Jess Foley, written in the bestselling tradition of Josephine Cox, Catherine Cookson and Dilly Court. You will not want to put it down... 
 
READERS ARE LOVING TOO CLOSE TO THE SUN 
'Good story couldn't put it down' -- ***** Reader review 
'Keeps you gripped to the end'-- ***** Reader review 
'A stunning read'-- ***** Reader review 
'An emotional rollercoaster of a book'-- ***** Reader review 
 
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HOW HIGH A PRICE MUST SHE PAY TO KEEP HER FAMILY SAFE? 
 
Grace Harper's world falls apart when she is orphaned and she and her little brother Billy are left homeless and alone. Putting her grief and fear aside, she must think practically. 
 
When she finds a job as companion to the wealthy, lonely Mrs Spencer, she and Billy are relieved to have a roof over their heads again, but just as Grace starts to find her feet disaster strikes again. 
 
Things look desperate, and when she is offered marriage and a good life for herself and Billy, Grace is tempted. 
 
But is her suitor to be trusted? Or is she, desperate in her search for safety for her little family, flying too close to the sun?

Too Close To The Sun

the passionate and uplifting saga of an orphan’s struggle to forge a better life for herself

Mo Yan

Spanning three generations, this novel of family and myth is told through a series of flashbacks that depict events of staggering horror set against a landscape of gemlike beauty as the Chinese battle both the Japanese invaders and each other in the turbulent 1930s. 
 
As the novel opens, a group of villagers, led by Commander Yu, the narrator's grandfather, prepare to attack the advancing Japanese. Yu sends his 14-year-old son back home to get food for his men; but as Yu's wife returns through the sorghum fields with the food, the Japanese start firing and she is killed. 
 
Her death becomes the thread that links the past to the present and the narrator moves back and forth recording the war's progress, the fighting between the Chinese warlords and his family's history.

Red Sorghum

Douglas Reeman

The mine is an impartial killer, and a lethal challenge to any volunteer in the Special Countermeasures of the Royal Navy during the naval battles of the Second World War. They are brave, lonely men with something to prove or nothing left to lose. Lieutenant-Commander David Masters, haunted by a split second glimpse of the mine that destroyed his first and only command, H. M. Submarine Tornado, now defuses 'the beast' on land and teaches the same deadly science to others who too often die in the attempt. Lieutenant Chris Foley, minelaying off an enemy coast in ML366, rolls on an uneasy sea with a release bracket sheared and a lie mine jammed, and hears the menacing growl of approaching E-boats. And Sub-Lieutenant Michael Lincoln, hailed as a hero, dreads exposure as a coward even more than the unexpected booby-trap, or the gentle whirr of the activated fuse marking the last twelve seconds of his life. 
 
This thrilling book from the master storyteller of the sea transports readers back to the terrifying life of the British seamen of the Royal Navy during World War Two.

Twelve Seconds To Live

Lee Jackson

A young woman, Natalie Meadows, jumps from Blackfriars Bridge, escaping from the horror she has just witnessed.  But she is rescued and feels duty-bound to find out who murdered her best friend, the music hall star Nellie Warwick, and why. Natalie reinvents herself as Flora Thorne and finds a position as housemaid to the Reverend Wallace and his daughter.  From the sanctuary of their home, she is able to investigate the circumstances of Nellie's murder.  What she uncovers is a conspiracy of silence and corruption, and of unscrupulous men preying on women like herself and Nellie.  Her attempts to unmask the killer and to bring him to justice exact a heavy price on Natalie. LONDON DUST is a powerful evocation of the underbelly of Victorian London, full of flavour, completely convincing and utterly gripping.

London Dust

Much-loved author Candace Robb has penned another compelling and captivating medieval mystery that magically brings 14th Century York to life and pushes the reader relentlessly onwards to uncover the truth. Fans of Ellis Peters, S J Parris, Conn Iggulden and Bernard Cornwell will not be disappointed. 
 
'Hugely, but subtly, detailed... complex, ambiguous and gripping. The solution had me guessing almost to the very end' -- Historical Novels Review 
'A gripping whodunnit full of colour and atmosphere' -- Time Out 
'Meticulously researched, authentic and gripping' -- Yorkshire Evening Post 
'Story-telling of a top-notch quality' -- ***** Reader review 
'Thoroughly enjoyable' -- ***** Reader review 
'Spellbinding' -- ***** Reader review 
'I stayed up most of the night to finish the book and could not put it down' -- ***** Reader review 
 
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ANOTHER QUEST TO FIND THE TRUTH AMIDST SECRETS AND SUSPICION - AND THIS TIME IT'S PERSONAL... 
 
1371: a solemn convoy wends its way into York. William of Wykeham, Bishop of Winchester, is bringing home the remains of local magnate Sir Ranulf Pagnell, who has died in France. The family hold the bishop responsible for Sir Ranulf's death, and ill feeling surrounds his arrival - mysteriously, an accident in the grounds of York Minster nearly kills him. 
 
Then, only a few days after, his townhouse is found ablaze. When the body of a young woman is discovered in the undercroft of the house, scandal threatens to destroy Wykeham. The Archbishop of York, John Thoresby, asks Owen Archer for his help. 
 
The spy is troubled. Was the fire an accident or arson? Was the woman trapped or the fire started to conceal a corpse? Stationing guards in front of the smouldering remains, he starts to ask questions... 
 
When it appears the dead woman was a midwife known to many of the city's women, including Lucie, Owen's wife, his quest for answers becomes even more pressing...

The Cross Legged Knight

(The Owen Archer Mysteries: book VIII): a mesmerising Medieval mystery full of twists and turns that will keep you turning the pages…

Perfect for fans of Dilly Court, Rosie Harris, Nancy Revell and Catherine Cookson, this is the richly moving and powerful story of one girl's struggle to protect her family, come what may, from much loved author Maggie Bennett. 
 
READERS ARE LOVING A CHILD'S VOICE CALLING! 
'A great story full of every emotion' -- ***** Reader review 
'Very capturing' -- ***** Reader review 
'Riveting' -- ***** Reader review 
'Great story, couldn't put it down' -- ***** Reader review 
'[Maggie Bennett] is a real story teller who makes you want to turn each page' -- ***** Reader review 
'Maggie Bennett is a brilliant writer' -- ***** Reader review 
 
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SHE'LL NEED TO DO ALL SHE CAN TO SAVE HER FAMILY...AND HERSELF 
 
London, 1900s: Young Mabel Court, child of a hasty marriage and spendthrift parents, has always been a mother to her brothers and sisters. 
 
With poverty never far from the door, the battle to stay respectable is finally lost when the family breaks up in tragic circumstances, and Mabel is thrown upon the dubious mercy of her grandmother, the sinister Mimi Court. Mimi has her own dark secrets and is not all she seems... 
 
 When Mimi falls foul of the law and Mabel has to fight for her own survival, faithful Harry Drover of the Salvation Army, in love with Mabel, gets an opportunity to prove his devotion. 
 
Is a happy ending on the cards?

A Child's Voice Calling

a gritty, engrossing and ultimately uplifting London saga that you won’t be able to forget…

Josephine Humphreys

Brought up in a mixed-race community - part Scots, part Native American - in the forests of North Carolina in the mid-nineteenth century, Rhoda is the first of her family to be able to read and her parents have plans for her. But the coming of the Civil War brings labour conscription for her brothers, who become outlaws, unwilling to fight for the Confederacy; and when Rhoda falls in love with the outlaw leader Henry, her mother fears the relationship can only lead to disaster-Beautifully written and stunningly observed, Nowhere Else on Earth takes the reader into the backwaters of the American South and the chaos and anarchy of civil war, in the heart-breaking story of one of the most appealing heroines of recent fiction.

Nowhere Else On Earth

Fans of Victoria Hislop, Lucinda Riley and Fiona Valpy will absolutely love this captivating and beautifully atmospheric historical saga rich in romance, adventure and unforgettable characters from international bestselling author Colleen McCullough. 
 
'Fast-moving and immensely readable... Back to the open spaces, merciless climate and sheer pioneering stance of the magical THE THORN BIRDS, this book is a page turner from start to finish' -- Maeve Binchy 
'A rich, compelling epic' -- Daily Mail 
'Graphically created... [McCullough is] at her best when at the heart of a relationship' -- Daily Express 
'A good yarn... based on rigorous, historical research' -- Belfast Telegraph 
'Colleen McCullough is a great storyteller' -- Sunday Mail 
'Spellbinding' -- ***** Reader review 
'Beautifully written' -- ***** Reader review 
'Absolutely loved this book could not put it down' -- ***** Reader review 
 
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It was one of the greatest human experiments ever undertaken: to populate an unknown land with the criminal, the unloved and the unwanted of English society. 
 
Amid conditions of brutality that paralleled those of slavery, 'The First Fleet' was sent to a land no European but the legendary Captain Cook had ever seen. 
 
These convicts - and their equally isolated guards - were left to live or die on the hostile Australian continent. 
Richard Morgan - a convicted felon and educated, intelligent, resourceful man - finds the will to survive, experience the joys of love, and finally make an indelible mark upon the new frontier. 
 
His story is both inspirational and heartwarming and will stay with you long after you finish the last page...

Morgan's Run

a breathtaking and absorbing family saga from the international bestselling author of The Thorn Birds

With meticulous attention to detail, thirteenth-century Edinburgh is brought to life in this engrossing and enthralling Medieval mystery from much-loved author Candace Robb. Intrigue coupled with vivid characterisation and expert plotting all serve to make this a perfect read for fans of Ellis Peters, S J Parris, Conn Iggulden and Bernard Cornwell. 
 
'Thirteenth-century Edinburgh comes off the page cold and convincing - most enjoyable' -- The List 
'Brilliant -- Robb presents a feisty new heroine who proves to be no fool' -- Woman &amp; Home 
'This is history as it should be told!' -- GoodBook Guide 
'History and mystery at their best' -- Northern Echo 
 
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WHEN TRYING TO UNTANGLE A VICIOUS WEB OF SECRETS, WHO CAN YOU TRUST? 
 
1297: Young wife Margaret Kerr is desperately afraid. Her merchant husband Roger has been missing since Martinmas. Has he been caught up in the swelling rebellion against the English? Is he even alive? 
 
Jack Sinclair, her husband's cousin, has pledged to try to locate Roger in the city. When he is found stabbed to death, Margaret resolves she must ride to Edinburgh herself to uncover the truth. 
 
But Scotland is a country at war, Edinburgh an occupied city: it is no place for a woman alone. 
 
Margaret's mission is frowned upon, her arrival at her uncle's tavern unwelcome. And when she starts to ask questions, she finds a city rife with closely guarded secrets and dangerous loyalties. Soon violence erupts outside the tavern and there is murder on their doorstep. 
 
Margaret discovers how little she had known either of Roger or Jack...

A Trust Betrayed

(The Margaret Kerr Trilogy: I): a captivating blend of history and mystery set in medieval Scotland from much-loved author Candace Robb

Multi-million copy bestselling author Douglas Reeman expertly combines vivid characterisation with detailed and authentic naval experience to create a jaw-droppingly atmospheric and absorbing action thriller you won't be able to put down. Perfect for fans of Clive Cussler, Bernard Cornwell and Wilbur Smith. 
 
'One of our foremost writers of naval fiction' -- Sunday Times 
'Mr Reeman writes with great knowledge about the sea and those who sail on it' -- The Times 
'Suspense from start to finish' -- ***** Reader review 
'Great story - you will not want to put it down' -- ***** Reader review 
'Top quality' -- ***** Reader review 
'Fantastic' -- ***** Reader review 
 
*********************************************************************************** 
 Commander Graham Martineau was awarded the Victoria Cross for pressing home an attack against impossible odds. Few survived, and crimson ribbon remains a haunting symbol of the sacrifice of ship and men. 
 
 Now, as captain of the crack Tribal Class destroyer H.M.S. Hakka, Martineau must once again call from ordinary seamen the ultimate in courage, and prepare to defend to the death vital convoys to Russia. 
 
There is no hiding place in these bitter Arctic seas, where a pitiless enemy awaits a fatal rendezvous. 
 
 
ALL ARE HEROES, AND NO MAN NOR SHIP IS IMMORTAL.

For Valour

an all-guns-blazing naval action thriller set at the height of WW2 from Douglas Reeman, the all-time bestselling master storyteller of the sea

Edward Rutherfurd

A remarkable and ambitious novel whose central character is not a man or a woman, but the ancient New Forest of England. 
 
Few places lie closer to the heart of the nation's heritage than the New Forest. Now Edward Rutherfurd weaves its history and legends into compelling fiction, from the mysterious killing of King William Rufus to treachery and witchcraft, smuggling and poaching: this is an epic tale of well-born ladies, lowly woodsmen, sailors, merchants and Cistercian monks. 
 
The feuds, wars, loyalties and passions of generations reach their climax in a crime that shatters the decorous society of Jane Austen's Bath, and whose ramifications continue through the age of the Victorian railway builders to the ecologists of the present day.

The Forest

Let Candace Robb take you back in time to Medieval York in this enthralling, authentic and gripping mystery, full of incident and intrigue. Fans of Ellis Peters, S J Parris, Conn Iggulden and Bernard Cornwell will love this! 
 
'Gripping and believable... you can almost smell the streets of fourteenth-century York as you delve into an engrossing plot' -- Prima 
'Robb is uncommonly good at period atmosphere, immersing the reader in the everyday horrors of the plague... she distinguishes herself by putting together an engrossing puzzle' -- Publishers Weekly 
'Hugely, but subtly, detailed... complex, ambiguous and gripping' - Historical Novels Review 
'An excellent and enjoyable read' -- ***** Reader review 
'A ripping good yarn!' -- ***** Reader review 
'A most addictive read' -- ***** Reader review 
'A fascinating, realistic and vivid read' -- ***** Reader review 
 
************************************************************************************* 
AN UNEXPLAINED SPATE OF DEATHS CAUSES SUSPICION...ARE THEY ACCIDENTAL OR METICULOUSLY PLANNED? 
 
1369: The much loved Queen Philippa lies dying at Windsor, and the plague has returned to the city of York. In an atmosphere of fear and superstition, rumours spread that a spate of deaths at St Leonard's Hospital in York is no accident. The hospital is in debt and has suffered thefts: Sir Richard de Ravenser, Master of the Hospital, returns from Winchester painfully aware that scandal could ruin his own career. Anxious to avert a crisis, he requests the services of Owen Archer, spy for the Archbishop. 
 
 With plague rife and the city's inhabitants besieging his wife, the Apothecary, for new cures, Owen Archer is unwilling to become involved. There is too little to link the victims to each other: the riddle seems unsolvable. 
 
But careful enquiries reveal a further riddle, connected to one of the victims. Is this where the truth lies?

The Riddle Of St Leonard's

(The Owen Archer Mysteries: book V): a compelling and evocative Medieval murder mystery…

Find Spot

Finn Fitzpatrick Series

First Favourite Tales

The First Festivals series invites children to explore the world's culture from the comfort of their home, encourages the development of hand-eye coordination and is recommended for children aged 2 and over.

First Festivals

First Impressions

First Steps with Spot

Five Minute Mum

Flaptastic

Fluffy

Folk Art

Foolproof

Football Academy

Football Skills

Forbidden Spaces Trilogy

Fortuna Sworn

Foul Play

DICK FRANCIS was one of the most successful post-war National Hunt jockeys and author of forty-three bestselling novels, a volume of short stories (Field of 13), the biography of Lester Piggott and his own autobiography (The Sport of Queens). He was rightly acclaimed as one of the greatest thriller writers in the world. 
 
 Since his death, his son FELIX FRANCIS has taken over the literary reigns from his father and Dick's legacy lives on through the Dick Francis novels. The Francis flair is clear for all to see in these national treasure thrillers, and readers will appreciate the sporadic reappearance of beloved series characters Sid Halley and Jeff Hinkley.

Francis Thriller

Frank Behr

Once a Detective Inspector in the Nottinghamshire Force, Frank Elder has retired to an isolated cottage in Cornwall, and is trying to live the quiet life. The past, however, is never far behind him.

Frank Elder

Fred

Free Collars Kingdom

Jean Plaidy combines imagination with facts to bring the French Revolution alive in this dynamic historical fiction series. From Louis XV’s debauchery to Marie Antionette’s demise, it is clear there was only one way this was going to end.

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