Edgar Allan Poe was a writer of uncommon talent; in The Murders in the Rue Morgue" he created the genre of detective fiction while his genius for finding the strangeness lurking within us all has been an influence on everyone from Freud to Hollywood. This complete collection of all his short stories & novellas contains well-known tales The Pit & the Pendulum & The Tell-Tale Heart alongside hidden gems that both unsettle & enthrall the reader." ...

In AD 378 the Roman Empire had been the unrivalled superpower of Europe for well over four hundred years. & yet August that year saw a small group of German-speaking asylum-seekers rout a vast Imperial army at Hadrianople killing the Emperor & establishing themselves on Roman territory. Within a hundred years the last Emperor of the Western Empire had been deposed. What had gone wrong? In this ground breaking book Peter Heather proproses a stunning new solution to one of the greatest mysteries of history. Mixing authoratative analysis with thrilling narrative he brings fresh insight into the panorama of the empire's end from the bejewelled splendour of the imperial court to the dripping forests of Barbaricum". He examines the extraordinary success story that was the Roman Empire & uses a new understanding of its continued strength & enduring limitations to show how Europe's barbarians transformed by centuries of contact with Rome eventually pulled it apart. 'a colourful & enthralling narrative.. .an account full of keen wit & an infectious relish for the period.' Independent On Sunday 'provides the reader with drama & lurid colour as well as analysis.. .succeeds triumphantly. ' Sunday Times 'a fascinating story full of ups & downs & memorable characters' Spectator 'bursting with action.. .one can recommend to anyone whether specialist or interested amateur.' History Today 'a rare combination of scholarship & flair for narrative' Tom Holland" ...

Dramatic artist natural scientist & philosopher Plutarch is widely regarded as the most significant historian of his era writing sharp & succinct accounts of the greatest politicians & statesman of the classical period. Taken from the Lives" a series of biographies spanning the Graeco-Roman age this collection illuminates the twilight of the old Roman Republic from 157-43 bc. Whether describing the would-be dictators Marius & Sulla the battle between Crassus & Spartacus the death of political idealist Crato Julius Caesars harrowing triumph in Gaul or the eloquent oratory of Cicero all offer a fascinating insight into an empire wracked by political divisions. Deeply influential on Shakespeare & many other later writers they continue to fascinate today with their exploration of corruption decadence & the struggle for ultimate power." ...

Misha Glennys acclaimed account of the war in former Yugoslavia contains substantial new material that discusses the end of the five-year conflict & looks ahead to an uneasy future in this turbulent region. Writing in the Evening Standard" Fitzroy Maclean said Misha Glennys deeply disturbing book is to my mind essential reading for anyone trying to understand or even just follow events in what was once Yugoslavia." ...

Following the curves of the twentieth century FALL ON YOUR KNEES takes us from haunted Cape Breton island in Nova Scotia through the battlefields of World War I into the emerging jazz scene in New York City & immerses us in the lives of four unforgettable sisters. The children of a driven & ambitious father the sisters -Kathleen the oldest a beautiful talent intent on a career as an opera diva; Frances the drunken rogue & child prostitute; Lily the pseudo-saint cripple; & Mercedes the fervent Catholic & protector of the flock
- are swept along by the tumult of events & of their own desires. This is a story of family relationships racial strife miracles attempted murder birth & eath & an extraordinary love affair.
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Special Agent Faith Mitchell returns home to a nightmare. Her baby daughter Emma has been locked outside & there's a trail of blood to the front door. Without waiting for back-up Faith enters the house. Inside a man lies dead in a pool of blood. Most worrying of all her mother is missing. When the Atlanta police arrive Faith has some difficult questions to answer. But she has some desperate questions of her own. What were the killers searching for? & where is her mother? Suspended from duty Faith turns to her work partner Will Trent. Together he & Sara Linton must piece together the fragments of a brutal & complicated case & catch a vicious murderer with only one thing on his mind. To keep on killing until the truth is finally revealed. ...

Aaron's senior year has been anything but typical. Half angel & half human he has been charged to reunite the Fallen with Heaven. But the leader of the Dark Powers is determined to destroy Aaron
- & all hope of angelic reconciliation. Struggling to harness the incredible force within him Aaron trains for the ultimate battle. With the Dark Powers gaining in strength their clash may come sooner than he expects. & everyone who's ever mattered to Aaron is now in grave danger. Aaron must protect the girl he loves & rescue the only family he's ever known. Because if he can't save them from the Dark Powers how can he hope to save the Fallen?
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Voted the most popular Italian sportsman of the twentieth century Fausto Angelo Coppi was the campionissimo
- champion of champions.
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DI Stacey Collins has seen the darker side of humanity all too often. A single mum & former child from the grim Blenheim estate she knows only too well what terrors the world can hold. But even her jaded eyes have never witnessed a crime of such unspeakable horror. A body broken & lifeless is found in the gloom of a London church. Kidnapped & horrifically murdered young Daniel Wright never knew his tormentor. & it is only the beginning. Soon Collins finds herself both haunted by the demons of her past & battling in the name of innocence itself. Some angels never find their path to heaven.. . ...

Gabriel Allon master art restorer & assassin returns in a spellbinding 1 New York Times bestselling novel Bruised & war-weary following his secret war to bring down a terrorist mastermind Gabriel Allon returns to his beloved Rome to restore a Caravaggio masterpiece. But early one morning Gabriel is summoned by his friend & occasional ally Monsignor Luigi Donati the all-powerful private secretary to the Pope. The broken body of a beautiful woman lies beneath Michelangelos magnificent dome. Donati fears a public inquiry will inflict more wounds on an already-damaged Church so he calls upon Gabriel to use his matchless talents & experience to quietly pursue the truth
- was it suicide or something more sinister? Gabriel discovers that the woman revealed a dangerous secret that threatens powers beyond the Vatican. & an old enemy plots revenge in the shadows an unthinkable act of sabotage that will plunge the world into a conflict of apocalyptic proportions. Once again Gabriel must return to the ranks of his old intelligence service-and place himself & those he holds dear on the razors edge of danger.
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