Kafkas final novel was written during 1922 when the tuberculosis that was to kill him was already at an advanced stage. Fragmentary & unfinished it perhaps never could have been finished; perhaps the tensions between K. the Castle & the village K.s struggle for acceptance or recognition by the mysterious Castle authorities or by the people of the village never will & never can be resolved. Like much of Kafkas work The Castle is enigmatic & polyvalent. Is it an allegory of the sprawling Austro-Hungarian Empire as it disintegrates into modern nation states or a quasi-feudal system giving way to a new freedom for the subject? Is it the search by a central European Jew for acceptance & integration into a dominant culture? Is it a spiritual quest for grace or salvation or an individuals struggle between his sense of independence & his need for approval? Is K. is an opportunist a victim or an outsider battling against an elusive authority? Is the Castle a benign source of authority or a whimsical system of control? Like K. the reader is presented with conflicting perspectives that rehearse the existential dilemmas & uncertainties of literary modernity. ...

Beginning with their introduction in the eleventh century & ending with their widespread abandonment in the seventeenth Marc Morris explores many of the country's most famous castles as well as some spectacular lesser-known examples. At times this is an epic tale driven by characters like William the Conqueror King John & Edward I full of sieges & conquest on an awesome scale. But it is also by turns an intimate story of less eminent individuals whose adventures struggles & ambitions were reflected in the fortified residences they constructed. Be it ever so grand or ever so humble a castle was first & foremost a home. To understand castles
- who built them who lived in them & why
- is to understand the forces that shaped medieval Britain.

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A magical Arabian Nights tale from the captivating creator of fantasy Diana Wynne Jones. The dazzling sequel to Howls Moving Castle now a major animated film. Far to the south in the Land of Ingary lives a young carpet merchant called Abdullah. In his dreams he is the long-lost son of a great prince. This dream is a complete castle in the air...or is it? Abdullahs day-dreams suddenly start to come true when he meets the exquisite Flower-in-the-Night daughter of the ferocious Sultan of Zanzib. Fate has destined them for each other but a bad-tempered genie a hideous djinn & various villanous bandits have their own ideas. When Flower-in-the-Night is carried off Abdullah is determined to rescue her
- if he can find her.
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Why is everyone so afraid of the castle on the hill & what dark secrets lurk inside its walls? When flashing lights are seen in a distant tower Philip Dinah Lucy-Ann & Jack decide to investigate -- & discover a very sinister plot concealed within its hidden rooms & gloomy underground passages. ...

A group of travellers chance to meet first in a castle then a tavern. Their powers of speech are magically taken from them & instead they have only tarot cards with which to tell their stories. What follows is an exquisite interlinking of narratives & a fantastic surreal & chaotic history of all human consciousness. ...

No clue about why the Queen vanished had ever been found. Until now..." The day Charlie discovers a scrap of paper that could solve the dark mystery of her mothers disappearance her world changes. Forever. Charlie & her friend Toby must race against time on a dangerous mission to uncover the sinister truth. But in this shadowy world of secrets & lies there is more to fear than they can possibly imagine..." ...

BOOK 4 OF THE BELGARIAD the worldwide bestselling fantasy series by master storyteller David Eddings. Discover the epic story that inspired thousands
- from Raymond Feist's The Riftwar Cycle series to George R. R. Martin's A Game of Thrones. Fate gives no choice... Slay or be slain... The Orb is regained the quest near its end. Garion & his companions have only to reach Riva & return the Orb to allow peace to reign once more. But fate still has a card to play for Garion. & it is his life that must be gambled...
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During the 1790s with Ireland in political crisis Maria Edgeworth made a surprisingly rebellious choice: in Castle Rackrent her first novel she adopted an Irish Catholic voice to narrate the decline of a family from her own Anglo-Irish class. Castle Rackrent's narrator Thady Quirk gives us four generations of Rackrent heirs
- Sir Patrick the dissipated spendthrift; Sir Murtagh the litigating fiend; Sir Kit the brutal husband & gambling absentee; & Sir Condy the lovable & improvident dupe of Thady's own son Jason. With this satire on Anglo-Irish landlords Edgeworth pioneered the regional novel & inspired Sir Walter Scott's Waverly (1814). She also changed the focus of conflict in Ireland from religion to class & boldly predicted the rise of the Irish Catholic Bourgeoisie. ABOUT THE SERIES: For over 100 years Oxford World's Classics has made available the widest range of literature from around the globe. Each affordable volume reflects Oxford's commitment to scholarship providing the most accurate text plus a wealth of other valuable features including expert introductions by leading authorities helpful notes to clarify the text up-to-date bibliographies for further study & much more.
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No British statesman of the nineteenth century reached the same level of international fame as Lord Castlereagh or won as much respect from the great powers of Europe or America. Yet no British statesman has been so maligned by his contemporaries or hated by the public. His career took him from the brutal suppression of a bloody rebellion in Ireland to the splendour of Vienna & Paris. He imprisoned his former friends abolished the Irish parliament created the biggest British army in history & redrew the map of Europe. At a time when the West turns from idealism to realism in its foreign policy Castlereaghs reputation is being revived. Yet neither his detractors nor his defenders have truly understood this shy inarticulate but sometimes passionate man. In this book John Bew tells the story of Castlereagh from the French Revolution through the Irish rebellion the Napoleonic Wars the diplomatic power struggles of 1814-5 & the mental breakdown that ended his life. John Bew paints a magisterial portrait not only of his subject but the tumultuous times in which he acted. Rather than the tyrant of legend Castlereagh was a man whose mind captured the complexity of the European Enlightenment as much as any other. His mind was conservative & enlightened at the same time
- & no less the one for being the other.
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Orpahned & besieged Princess Alesandra knew that only hasty marriage to an Englishman could protect her from the turmoil in her own l&. To the amusement of her makeshift guardian Colin younger brother of the Marquess of Cainwood the bold raven-haired beauty instantly captivated London society. But when Alesandra was nearly abducted by her unscrupulous countrymen the fighting instincts that won Colin a knighthood for valor were kindled. Deceiving himself that he wanted only to protect her Colin swept her into a union meant to be a marriage in name alone... yet Alesandras tender first kiss & hesitant caress ignited a wildfire in his soul. As the lovely princess dashed headlong into unforseen dangers Colin would follow knowing he must claim her as his own forever. Now he would risk life itself before he would lose this sweet tempestuous angel. ...