Isabel Dalhousie philosopher & amateur solver of other people's problems meets an old foe Minty Auchterlonie at a birthday party attended by their young children. Ambitious Minty now the head of a small investment bank is in trouble with her shareholders. Isabel becomes involved & is drawn into a murky world of financial concealment. Minty is not the only high-flier in Isabel's life; her niece Cat has just become engaged to a tightrope-walking stuntman. Isabel fears his next job
- & the engagement
- could end in disaster. Meanwhile her own boyfriend Jamie has marriage in mind too.. .

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THE LOST ART OF KEEPING SECRETS was selected for the Richard & Judy Book club when it was published in paperback. Set in the 1950s in an England still recovering from the Second World War it is the enchanting story of Penelope Wallace & her eccentric family at the start of the rock'n'roll era. Penelope longs to be grown-up & to fall in love; but various rather inconvenient things keep getting in her way. Like her mother a stunning but petulant beauty widowed at a tragically early age her younger brother Inigo currently incapable of concentrating on anything that isn't Elvis Presley a vast but crumbling ancestral home a severe shortage of cash & her best friend Charlotte's sardonic cousin Harry... ...

Jon Ronson has been on patrol with Americas real-life superheroes & to a UFO convention in the Nevada desert with Robbie Williams. Hes interviewed a robot & asked her if she has a soul. Hes travelled to the Alaskan theme town of North Pole (where every day is Christmas Day) to investigate a high school mass-murder plot. Hes met a man who tried to split the atom in his kitchen & another whos preparing to welcome the aliens to earth. Jon Ronson is fascinated by madness strange behaviour & the human mind & he has spent his life exploring mysterious events & meeting extraordinary people. Collected here from various sources (including the Guardian & GQ) are the best of his adventures. Frequently hilarious sometimes disturbing always entertaining these compelling stories of the chaos that lies on the fringe of our daily lives will have you wondering just what were capable of. ...

UPDATED EDITION INCLUDING TWO EXTRA STORIES Jon Ronson has been on patrol with Americas real-life superheroes & to a UFO convention in the Nevada desert with Robbie Williams. Hes met a man who tried to split the atom in his kitchen & asked a conscious robot if shes got a soul. Fascinated by madness strange behaviour & the human mind Jon has spent his life exploring mysterious events & meeting extraordinary people. Collected here from various sources (including the Guardian & GQ) are the best of his adventures. Frequently hilarious sometimes disturbing always entertaining these fascinating stories of the chaos that lies on the fringe of our daily lives will have you wondering just what were capable of. ...

The region north of Aberdeen & east of Moray is difficult to define. Neither highland or lowland depopulated or populous it is a land of surprising contrasts. In this book Daniel Mac Cannell uncovers many aspects of lost Banff & Buchan. In addition to buildings transport networks industries & ways of life which now no longer exist from whaling to open-air market trading he also considers other elements which have been forgotten over time. There are lost people
- those whose lives have been of enormous significance but are now forgotten
- such as the member of the Barclay family who became a Russian field marshal & architect of the scorched earth strategy used against Napoleon in 1812 & the pilots of the Banff Strike Wing who fought valiantly against the German Navy during World War II. There is also the lost University of Fraserburgh founded in 1595 but defunct by 1605; the village of Burnhaven destroyed to make room for Peterhead Prison; & a lost literary master
- the Turriff man who wrote Argenis arguably the first novel ever written by a British person. The book also offers a new take on the history of smuggling in the area
- of whisky from Cabrach down North Donside to Aberdeen as well as of brandy & a surprisingly wide range of other commodities. The result is a compelling & imaginative journey into the past packed with anecdote fact & fascinating characters.



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Philip Sabin's book offers a unique & dynamic insight into ancient warfare combining academic rigour with the accessibility of simulation gaming. Taking a new & innovative approach to the battles of antiquity Phil Sabin draws together ancient evidence & modern scholarship to create a whole new means of examining the great clashes of the ancient world. Having developed a model to capture the movement & combat of the opposing armies we are able to actually interrogate the lessons of history. The book develops detailed 'scenarios' for individual battles such as Marathon & Cannae to cast light on which particular interpretations of the ancient conflict are realistic. Readers can use the model to experiment for themselves by refighting engagements of their choice tweaking the scenarios to accord with their own judgements of the evidence trying out different tactics from those used historically & seeing how the battle then plays out. The book thus offers a unique dynamic insight into ancient warfare combining academic rigour with the interest & accessibility of simulation gaming. ...

Many beers have now gone but they are not forgotten. They may have been swept away by a tide of takeovers & closures their rich heritage casually spilt on the boardroom floor but their powerful presence still lingers in the air. & some famous names have even risen from the dead to haunt the bars once more. Barnsley Bitter was a name to conjure with in Yorkshire & beyond for years. When Courage decided to close the Oakwell Brewery in 1973 thousands of protest marchers poured on to the streets & questions were asked in the House of Commons
- all to no avail. But the beers pulling power was so strong that a number of new breweries have tried to revive the revered recipe & two still trade on this liquid legend today. Brian Glover provides a nostalgic look at the breweries which have vanished packed with colourful illustrations showing the fine art of selling beer. Its a rare chance to drink in the past.
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A series of child-murders that took place in Yorkshire in the 1960s shocked & scandalised the country. The two people responsible Myra Hindley & Ian Brady were tried in a sensational case & have become notorious as the human face of evil. It is a story that has captivated for forty years. Four children were murdered by Hindley & Brady the body of one of their victims Keith Bennett has never been found. In The Lost Boy" Duncan Staff has produced the nearest to a definitive book on the subject we will ever read. In 1999 Duncan Staff made a documentary on the Moors murders for BBC2. In the course of producing this programme he as a matter of course invited Myra Hindley to put across her side of the story. Much to his surprise she agreed. What followed was a correspondence in which Hindley spoke candidly about some aspects of her crimes. The programme aired concluding unquestioningly with a reaffirmation of her guilt. After her death her estate sent Duncan Myra Hindleys unpublished papers
- which proved a window into the disturbed world of Hindley & Brady. Drawing on this unique resource & combined with extensive research the co-operation of the families of the victims the police & expert witnesses Duncan Staff has written this authoritative investigation into these infamous crimes. " The Lost Boy" is the compelling story of some of the twentieth-centurys most notorious crimes. Duncan Staff has undertaken an exhaustive & sensitive exploration into all aspects of these murders & their long-felt aftermath. It also presents for the first time a compelling theory about the location of the final resting place of the Moors Murderers last victim Keith Bennett."
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As a child Dave Pelzer was brutally beaten & starved by his mother. The world knew nothing of his living nightmare & he had nothing & no one to turn to. But his dreams kept him alive ' dreams of someone taking care of him loving him & calling him their son. Finally his horrific plight could no longer be hidden from the outside world & Dave's life radically changed. THE LOST BOY is the harrowing ' but ultimately uplifting ' true story of a boy's journey through the foster-care system in search of a family to love. The continuation of Dave Pelzer's story is a moving sequel & inspirational read for all. ...

No. 1 international bestseller & Swedish crime sensation Camilla Lackberg's new psychological thriller
- irresistible for fans
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