As the clock chimed the turn of the twentieth century Lilly Nelly Aphrodite took her first breath. Born to a cabaret dancer & soon orphaned in a scandalous double murder Lilly finds refuge at a Catholic orphanage coming under the wing of the at times severe Sister August the first in a string of lost loves. There she meets Hanne Schmidt a teen prostitute & forms a bond that will last them through tumultuous love affairs disastrous marriages & destitution during the First World War & the subsequent economic collapse. As the century progresses Lilly & Hanne move from the tawdry glamour of the tingle-tangle nightclubs to the shadow world of health films before Lilly finds success & stardom in the new medium of motion pictures & ultimately falls in love with a man whose fate could cost her everything she has worked for or help her discover her true self. Gripping & darkly seductive The Luminous Life of Lilly Aphrodite showcases all the glitter & splendour of the brief heyday of the Weimar Republic & the rise of Hollywood to its golden age. As it foreshadows the horrors of the Second World War the novel asks what price is paid when identity becomes unfixed & the social order is upended. ...

Amateurs wedding photographers & portrait photographers of all kinds learn how to maximise the beauty of natural light in this first-ever technique book from acclaimed photographer Elizabeth Messina. Natural light is by far the favourite choice of most amateur wedding & portrait photographers but many stick to conventional approaches leaving the myriad gorgeous possibilities of natural light unexplored. This first-ever book by popular wedding lifestyle & portrait photographer Elizabeth Messina shares her secrets on capturing flattering natural light in any lighting scenario to create luminous portraits that appear lit from within. ...

This is the second book in The Lunar Chronicles" series by Marissa Meyer. This is not the fairytale you remember. But it's one you won't forget. Scarlet Benoit's grandmother is missing. The police have closed her case. The only person Scarlet can turn to is Wolf a street fighter she does not trust but they are drawn to each other. Meanwhile in New Beijing Cinder will become the Commonwealth's most wanted fugitive
- when she breaks out of prison to stay one step ahead of vicious Queen Levana. As Scarlet & Wolf expose one mystery they encounter Cinder & a new one unravels. Together they must challenge the evil queen who will stop at nothing to make Prince Kai her husband her king her prisoner... Red Riding Hood-meets-Percy Jackson in a thrilling new spin on Grimm by Marissa Meyer the author of " Cinder"."
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In the 1760s a group of amateur experimenters met & made friends in the Midlands. Most came from humble families all lived far from the centre of things but they were young & their optimism was boundless: together they would change the world. Among them were the ambitious toy-maker Matthew Boulton & his partner James Watt of steam-engine fame; the potter Josiah Wedgewood; the larger-than-life Erasmus Darwin physician poet inventor & theorist of evolution (a forerunner of his grandson Charles). Later came Joseph Priestley discoverer of oxygen & fighting radical. With a small band of allies they formed the Lunar Society of Birmingham (so called because it met at each full moon) & kick-started the Industrial Revolution. Blending science art & commerce the Lunar Men" built canals launched balloons named plants gases & minerals changed the face of England & the china in its drawing rooms & plotted to revolutionize its soul. This exhilarating account uncovers the friendships political passions love affairs & love of knowledge (and power) that drove these extraordinary men. It echoes to the thud of pistons & the wheeze & snort of engines & brings to life the tradesmen artisans & tycoons who shaped & fired the modern age." ...

Deep within the heart of the Moiraean Mountains lies the town of Opum Oppidulum
- home to the freezing Lake Beluarum & it's rumoured
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Has a meal ever changed your life? Part love story part wine-splattered cookbook Lunch in Paris" is a deliciously tart forthright & funny story of falling in love with a Frenchman & moving to the world's most romantic city
- not the Hollywood version but the real Paris a heady mix of blood sausage pains aux chocolats & irregular verbs. From gutting her first fish (with a little help from Jane Austen) to discovering the French version of Death by Chocolate Elizabeth Bard finds that learning to cook & building a new life have a lot in common. Peppered with recipes this mouth-watering love story is the perfect treat for anyone who has ever suspected that lunch in Paris could change their life."
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This excellent new book tells the story of the Lancashire witches in detail fleshing out the characters & events in a way which really helps us to understand what sort of people they were & what their world was like at the time of their persecution. Uniquely the author also explores how the witches have been portrayed through the centuries revealing that their image has changed dramatically over the 400 years since the infamous trials. In folklore literature art theatre & elsewhere they have been variously seen as demons objects of pity figures of fun cartoonish caricatures & beautiful temptresses. But what has remained constant is our fascination with them. The lure of the Lancashire witches it seems is as strong as ever. ...

Is he the man to melt the ice queen? Nothing in Sydney Haywards background of wealth & privilege has prepared her to take the helm of her familys company. The pressure leaves no room for complications... Mikhail Stanislaski is definitely a complication. The rugged carpenter comes from a world so different to her own & he challenges her on every decision she makes. Sydney likes being in control & shes keeping her distance from Mikhail
- but opposites cant help attracting!
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No artist has been more ruthlessly driven by his creative urge nor more isolated by it from most ordinary sources of human happiness than Vincent Van Gogh. A painter of genius his life was an incessant struggle against poverty discouragement madness & despair. Lust for Life skilfully captures the exciting atmosphere of the Paris of the Post-Impressionists & reconstructs with great insight the development of Van Goghs art. The painter is brought to life not only as an artist but as a personality & this account of his violent vivid & tormented life is a novel of rare compassion & vitality. ...

Great for boys with a huge collectability factor bolstered by the cards in the back of the books & links to an excellent interactive website. Something horrible lurks in the Yellow Marshes! Malvel has created Lustor the Acid Dart to fight Tom. This giant Beast can shoot acid
- & his aim is fixed on Tom! Is our hero fast enough to win?
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