It is 1839 & tension has been rapidly mounting between China & British India following the crackdown on opium smuggling by Beijing. With no resolution in sight, the colonial government declares war. One of the vessels requisitioned for the attack, the Hind, travels eastwards from Bengal to China, sailing into the midst of the First Opium War. The turbulent voyage brings together a diverse group of travellers, each with their own agenda to pursue. Among them is Kesri Singh, a sepoy in the East India Company who leads a company of Indian sepoys; Zachary Reid, an impoverished young sailor searching for his lost love, & Shireen Modi, a determined widow en route to China to reclaim her opium-trader husband`s wealth & reputation. Flood of Fire follows a varied cast of characters from India to China, through the outbreak of the First Opium War & China`s devastating defeat, to Britain`s seizure of Hong Kong. Flood of Fire is a thrillingly realised & richly populated novel, imbued with a wealth of historical detail, suffused with the magic of place & plotted with verve. It is a beautiful novel in its own right, & a compelling conclusion to an epic & sweeping story
- it is nothing short of a masterpiece.
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The thrilling climax to the Ibis trilogy that began with the phenomenal Booker-shortlisted Sea of Poppies. It is 1839 & tension has been rapidly mounting between China & British India following the crackdown on opium smuggling by Beijing. With no resolution in sight, the colonial government declares war. One of the vessels requisitioned for the attack, the Hind, travels eastwards from Bengal to China, sailing into the midst of the First Opium War. The turbulent voyage brings together a diverse group of travellers, each with their own agenda to pursue. Among them is Kesri Singh, a sepoy in the East India Company who leads a company of Indian sepoys; Zachary Reid, an impoverished young sailor searching for his lost love, & Shireen Modi, a determined widow en route to China to reclaim her opium-trader husband`s wealth & reputation. Flood of Fire follows a varied cast of characters from India to China, through the outbreak of the First Opium War & China`s devastating defeat, to Britain`s seizure of Hong Kong. Flood of Fire is a thrillingly realised & richly populated novel, imbued with a wealth of historical detail, suffused with the magic of place & plotted with verve. It is a beautiful novel in its own right, & a compelling conclusion to an epic & sweeping story
- it is nothing short of a masterpiece.
...

Lystra, North Carolina. A fictional town full of very real people who survive the attack of Hurricane Hugo & then find their bearings in the aftermath--often in wild & hilarious ways. The days leading up to the impending disaster are not at all unusual--no portents of disaster, no signs of impending calamity. Bryce works his night shift at the hot dog factory, Isaac drives the bus to school, Evelyn attends a funeral. But when the electricity fails in the middle of the night on September 21, 1989, it marks the moment when everything will change: Hugo has arrived. The storm builds, the wind whips by faster & faster, & interpersonal dramas, grudges, & rivalries are dredged up along with the flotsam & debris. Meanwhile, a small bridge over Buffalo Creek has its own story to tell. Floodmarkers, painted red, track the height of the water from past rainstorms, & as the creek level rises higher than ever before, so do the emotions of the townspeople. Floodmarkers is an exquisitely crafted day-in-the-life of a town. & as Nic Brown has us look bravely at the eye of the storm, he cleverly shows us that human nature can stir up a spectacular tempest all its own. ...

The super soft Flopsy Bunny cuddly toy is styled on the fun-loving character from the Peter Rabbit Movie. The 24cm Flopsy Bunny cuddly toy wears a stylish red jacket & makes the perfect gift for any young fan of the adventurous Peter Rabbit & his friends. Suitable from birth. ...

For centuries, as Europe explored the New World, botanists sent back seeds & specimens of the thousands of plants they came across on their travels. The resulting experimentation that took place with each new arrival resulted in many of the garden flowers we know today. Beautifully illustrated with 300 artworks from the Royal Horticultural Society collection, this book dedicates a chapter to each principle area of geographical & botanical importance ...

This is a unique set of three mini notebooks from Cavallini & Co. with beautiful covers featuring vintage illustrations of flora & fauna from Cavallini’s archive. The set

Includes:: one blank, one lined & one graph notebook (100 pages each approximately). These are ideal travel companions to organise notes, thoughts & plans.

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The book considers the importance of plants in Tolkien`s conception of Middle-earth. It develops the theme that Middle-earth is our own world
- & will awaken the reader to the connection between the plants of Tolkien`s legendarium & those growing in our gardens & local natural areas of the Northern Hemisphere. It also demonstrates the connection between the various plant communities of Middle-earth & the elven & human cultures that occupy them, including those environments degraded by warfare, industrialization or pollution. The heart of the book is an alphabetical listing, arranged by common names, of all of the plants mentioned in Tolkien`s legendarium; for each of these plants the treatment will include: 1) common & scientific name, along with an indication of the family to which the plant belongs, 2) a brief"e from one of Tolkien`s works in which the plant is referenced, 3) a discussion of the significance of the plant in the context of Tolkien`s legendarium, 4) the etymology relating to both English common name & the scientific name, & where relevant, the name in one or more of the languages of Middle-earth, 5) a brief statement of the plant`s distribution & ecology (along with mention of major species), 6) economic uses, both traditional & current, & 7) an easy-to-understand description of the plant. The book provides guidelines to the use of plant descriptions, & the few technical terms used are carefully defined. Many plants are illustrated by original artwork, in the style of a woodcut print, & most are also represented by one to several photographs (showing their diagnostic characteristics). The description along with an identification key, when used with the illustrations & photos, allow easy identification of each plant, adding to the reader`s understanding & appreciation of Tolkien`s works. A glossary of descriptive terms is also included.
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Flora of Svalbard is an authoritative little hardback; an ideal reference to the geology of the island group of Svalbard. Colour photos & maps complement the detailed text description. It also

Includes:: a chapter on the vegetation of Svalbard, & colour photographs of some rare & little known plants. Focuses on native species found in Svalbard, but also

Includes:: some introduced species. It contains Latin, English, & Norwegion names of families, genera, & species; distribution; description; & information about regulations governing the area. Although originally published in 1993, this book is still an invaluable reference tool for a part of the world where similar books are few & far between.



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The Silk Road
- a name that has enchanted for centuries. Yet a well kept secret, even today, is that this fabled route linking
...

` Flora` contains 20 essays on the history of key plant families, including cacti, daffodils, iris, magnolia, poppies, roses, tulips & waterlilies. It explains how plants have adopted remarkable behaviours for survival in a variety of harsh habitats & also tells the remarkable stories of the adventurous botanist explorers who braved disease, slave traders, wars, jungles & other dangers to collect plants now commonly grown in our own gardens. ` Flora` is graced with hundreds of stunning colour illustrations selectedfrom the vast collection of original botanical paintings held at the Natural History Museum, London. ...