The Cotswolds the ridge of limestone hills that runs the fifty miles from Chipping Campden in the north to Bath in the south make up Englands largest designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The regions unspoilt countryside unrivalled architectural heritage & proximity to Bath Oxford & Stratford-upon-Avon make it the countrys most popular tourist destination outside of London. Drawing on Country Life magazines unrivalled picture archive
- a unique repository of architectural history
- Nicholas Mander has selected two hundred of the very finest photographs to illustrate his fascinating survey of the Cotswolds country house through the ages. Grouped by period & style the properties featured reveal the historical & architectural importance of the region. Divided into three main sections the book looks first at the castles such as Sudeley with its royal connections spanning a thousand years as well as magnificent examples of early manor houses including Owlpen & Snowshill Manors & Daneway House; & important Jacobean houses like Stanway & Chastleton House. The second section focuses on the great Classical country houses & noblemens palaces of the eighteenth century including Badminton House & Dyrham Park. The book concludes with a survey of the twentieth century & beyond documenting the work of leading practitioners of the Arts & Crafts movement including Ernest Barnsleys Rodmarton Manor & William Morriss Kelmscott -both superb embodiments of the Arts & Crafts ideal. A final chapter covers some of the most recent houses & gardens. A beautifully illustrated book Country Houses of the Cotswolds is a wonderful celebration of one of some of Britains most treasured architecture: an essential companion for the armchair sightseer & prospective tourist alike.

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People who want to learn to paint without relying on their drawing skills have everything they need in this book. Terry Harrison has painted five beautiful country scenes from an open gate leading to a farm a country church next to a bluebell wood spring blossom reflected in a stream a snow scene & a bridge over a ford in an autumn wood. The tracings & clear step-by-step photographs explain the painting process in great depth & make it easy for readers to reproduce all of the projects. ...

Country Lives Remembered" contains stories of Britains most colourful countrymen & women from the past lovingly edited by best selling countryside author Ruth Binney. The tales are packed with amusing anecdotes informative facts & folklore providing a valuable & evocative insight into what life was like in the countryside over many decades. Bygone Days sections source information & activities on country pursuits demonstrating the joy & satisfaction that can still be found in country living today. Beautifully illustrated throughout with specially commissioned artwork " Country Lives Remembered" celebrates a traditional way of life that so many people aspire to." ...

Successful city accountant Stevie receives two surprises in one week: a proposal of marriage from her boyfriend Nick & a phone call begging her to return to the family farm in Devon to help out after her father has a stroke. But what she thought would be a long weekend in the country turns into much longer as she struggles to bring order to her father's rundown farm. Finally she decides to give up her job
- & her fiance
- & take on the farm permanently. She dreams of turning it into a tourist attraction never realising it would be so difficult. But with the help of many of Talyton St George's local residents & the locum vet Leon she is starting to make progress. Until a life-changing complication throws all her plans into disarray & destroys her growing romance with Leon...

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The murder of a media moghul in his country mansion appears to be the result of him disturbing a gang of would-be thieves. The robbers are swiftly caught but when they are unexpectedly moved to a different prison they escape. Back in Edinburgh a young solicitor reveals to the press that one of the subjects had left a letter with her some time before the break-in which proves his innocence. Jack Parlabane journo-extraordinaire is intrigued but when he approaches the lawyer he discovers someone else is trying to get near her
- someone with evil intent political connections of the highest order & a corrupt agenda. Fast-moving blackly humorous & intriguingly credible.
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One lousy Monday Jenna loses her gorgeous job her even more gorgeous boyfriend & her home. In an attempt to put aside her personal woes Jenna goes to catalogue books for an elderly cousin Kitty Everest at her country mansion. Horrified to discover that Kitty may be forced to sell Holtby House Jenna throws herself into a scheme to save it. But when an attempt is made on her life Jenna finds herself in a race to save Holtby Kitty
- & herself.
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The gorgeous women of Churchminster know exactly what they want
- a constant flow of champagne (on tap at the local pub) & the
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Possibly read more than any other railway book The Country Railway has sold over 170 000 copies. This is a redesigned edition of the original text & photographs. Everyone loved the country railway with its neat stations & colourful gardens the shining brasswork of its tank engines viaducts daringly built over gushing rivers embankments carpeted with flowers & guards whose appearance & voice as well as the traffic they carried in their vans reflected exactly the character of the terrain being served. Basing his work on deep historical research & rich personal experience David St John Thomas lovingly portrays the branch & cross-country railway in all its nostalgic technical & commercial aspects. He tells of the days of high expectation when the local promoters first met & chose the architectural style for their stations sees the navvies at work hacking through the countryside reports the arrival of the first trains recalls the troubled realisation when traffic receipts failed to provide enough for dividends. Stations signalboxes engines & their men coaches & trucks cattle docks & railway pubs junctions & termini varied landscapes special occasions & disasters... In words & pictures here is a unique study for railway enthusiasts & for those who just miss the passing of the country railway. ...

' Cuckolds like lovers should themselves deceive' So concludes one of Wycherley's most revived & much discussed plays. It is a satirical comedy sharply focussed on the follies vices & hypocrisies of Restoration London through its central characters: the desperate Pinchwife; his naive wife; the sex-obsessed Horner & Lady Fidget's 'virtuous gang' of town ladies. Wycherley's strong wit informs almost every speech & his alarmingly familiar revelations of character leave us to draw our own conclusions. It remains a controversial play admired as satire or farce condemned as immoral & frivolous & appreciated again as a serious work of dramatic art. Modern critics have much debated its central themes & question marks remain: is Horner hero or villain? This student edition contains a fully annotated version of the playtext in modern spelling. The Introduction

Includes:: an account of Wycherley's life & a detailed discussion of The Country Wife's interpretation & stage history.

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Theres trouble afoot in Barleybridge. The vets Practice which normally runs so smoothly is disrupted by the new locum Dan who seems to be annoying just about everyone with his abrupt manner & unreasonable demands. & when he succeeds in losing an important client through his arrogant attitude the wives connected to the Practice are determined that something has to be done. But Kate who works at the Practice finds she rather likes Dans no-nonsense approach despite what everyone thinks about him. Then when she is suddenly confronted by a devastating tragedy at home it is Dan with a sad secret of his own who helps her come to terms with her new situation... ...