On the night of 10 February 1567 an explosion devastated the Edinburgh residence of Henry Stewart Lord Darnley second husband of Mary Queen of Scots. The noise was heard as far away as Holyrood Palace where Queen Mary was attending a wedding masque. Those arriving at the scene of devastation found in the garden the naked corpses of Darnley & his valet. Neither had died in the explosion but both bodies bore marks of strangulation. It was clear that they had been murdered & the house destroyed in an attempt to obliterate the evidence. Darnley was not a popular king-consort but he was regarded by many as having a valid claim to the English throne. For this reason Elizabeth I had opposed his family's longstanding wish to marry him to Mary Stuart who herself claimed to be the rightful queen of Engl&. Alison Weir's investigation of Darnley's murder is set against one of the most dramatic periods in British history. Her conclusions will shed a brilliant new light on the actions & motives of the conspirators & in particular the extent of Mary's own involvement. ...

This is the familiar tale of the enmity between Elizabeth I of England & Mary Queen of Scots but retold by Scotlands unofficial Poet Laureate with a ferocious iconoclasm. Needless to say the play ends when Mary Queen of Scots gets her head chopped off! A modern Scottish classic first staged at the Edinburgh Lyceum in 1987 Liz Lochheads Mary Queen of Scots" is republished here in a revised version with a new introduction by the author. The play is enormously popular with Scottish schools & drama groups. It was originally published by Penguin." ...

A paradise...tall slender grey-eyed possessing an extreme pallor. The contemporary view of Henry VIIIs younger sister Princess Mary Rose as one of the most beautiful princesses in Europe was an arresting one. Glorious to behold this Tudor Princess with her red hair flowing loose to her waist was also impossible for Henry to control. She first married the king of France a match of great importance to Henrys diplomatic plans. He was dead within three months. The talk of the European courts was that the teenage bride had killed the 51-year old Louis XII with her exertions of the king in his bedchamber. She then ran off with her new lover the great rake of the Tudors era Charles Brandon. After some uncomfortable arguments with Henry VIII she was officially sanctioned to marry the Duke of Suffolk in 1515 at Greenwich Palace. Yet Henry remained deeply fond of his sister he named his greatest warship after her & continued to support Mary despite her ignoring his every request. David Loades biography the first for almost 50 years brings the princess alive once more. Of all Tudor women this queen of France & later Duchess of Suffolk remains an elusive enigmatic figure.

Includes:: 40 Illustrations (20 Colour).

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The Greatest Black Briton in History triumphed over the Crimea & Victorian Engl&. The Times" called her a heroine Florence Nightingale called her a brothel-keeping quack & Queen Victorias nephew called her simply Mammy
- Mary Seacole was one of the most eccentric & charismatic women of her era. Born at her mothers hotel in Jamaica in 1805 she became an independent doctress combining the herbal remedies of her African ancestry with sound surgical techniques. On the outbreak of the Crimean War she arrived in London desperate to join Florence Nightingale at the Front but the authorities refused to see her. Being black nearly 50 rather stout & gloriously loud in every way she was obviously unsuitable. Undaunted Mary travelled to Balaklava under her own steam to build the British Hotel just behind the lines. It was an outrageous venture & a huge success
- she became known & loved by everyone from the rank & file to the royal family. For more than a century after her death this remarkable woman was all but forgotten. This the first full-length biography of a Victorian celebrity recently voted the greatest black Briton in history brings Mary Seacole centre stage at last."

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In the summer of 1553 against all odds Mary Tudor was the first woman to be crowned Queen of Engl&. Anna Whitelock's absorbing debut tells the remarkable story of a woman who was a princess one moment & a disinherited bastard the next. It tells of her Spanish heritage & the unbreakable bond between Mary & her mother Katherine of Aragon; of her childhood adolescence rivalry with her sister Elizabeth & finally her womanhood. Throughout her life Mary was a fighter battling to preserve her integrity & her right to hear the Catholic mass. Finally she fought for the throne. The Mary that emerges from this groundbreaking biography is not the weak-willed failure of traditional narratives but a complex figure of immense courage determination & humanity. ...

This new edition of Mary Wondrauschs classic book will be warmly welcomed by all her admirers as well as all those interested in slipware. In this book she traces the history of slipware & brings it up to the present showing how modern artists are exploring this beautiful medium. Now in a new format & printed 4-colour throughout this book is a glorious showcase for one of the more vibrant methods of ceramic decoration. Collectors will find this a useful reference book ceramicists a handy text & all will delight in this sumptuous colour overview of a fascinating subject. ...

The imagery of Michael Stokes is so pithy & irresistibly sexy that his photos graced the covers of two of our anthologies: Turnon: Sports" & " Turnon: Muscles". So it's about time to dedicate a whole photo book to his fabulous art. " Masculinity" sums up everything that makes Stokes' work special: strength sex appeal & the perfection of the male body
- staged in brilliant pictures that focus on the essential without denying the artist's eye for details. Michael Stokes certainly is a stunning talent to watch out for!"
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After establishing its name through racing success Maserati built some of the worlds most desirable sports cars during the 1960s & 70s. After a period in the doldrums in the 1980s & 90s the marque has emerged during the past ten years & is making some great cars again under the stewardship of parent company Fiat. The new Quattroporte in particular is one of the finest cars Maserati has ever built. This is an essential addition to the Haynes Classic Makes" series blending history & technical information with driving impressions & buying hints." ...

Another spine-chilling tale from the No. 1 bestselling master of suspense. She had appeared out of nowhere...in the middle of traffic on a busy day in front of Carols car. A teenager with no past no family
- & no memories. Carol & Paul were instantly drawn to her this girl they named Jane
- she was the daughter they never had. It was almost too good to be true. Then the hauntings began
- ghastly sounds in the dark of night; a bloody face in the mirror; a dim but persistent sense of fear...and the deja vu. Where had Jane come from? Was she just an orphan in need of love? Or was she hiding a more sinister purpose?


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English crime novelist Charles Latimer is travelling in Istanbul when he makes the acquaintance of Turkish police inspector Colonel Haki. It is from him that he first hears of the mysterious Dimitrios
- an infamous master criminal long wanted by the law whose body has just been fished out of the Bosphorus. Fascinated by the story Latimer decides to retrace Dimitrios' steps across Europe to gather material for a new book. But as he gradually discovers more about his subject's shadowy history fascination tips over into obsession. & in entering Dimitrios' criminal underworld Latimer realizes that his own life may be on the line.
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