Born and brought up in Suffolk, Ronald Blythe produced an instant classic with Akenfield. Only a man who had lived all his life in Suffolk could produce such a vivid and accurate portrayal of Akenfield and its inhabitants. Ronald Blythe recounts the personal recollections of, among others, the local school keeper, doctor, blacksmith, saddler, district nurse and magistrate as they discussed farming, education, welfare, class, religion and death. Originally published in 1969, 'Arkenfield' fo...

Set in the tiny hamlet of Little Hintock, The Woodlanders tells of love, deception, ambition and tragedy, all unfolding themselves against the background of the majestic forest where the simple inhabitants live in harmony with nature. Two sets of characters, the woodlanders and the sophisticated outsiders, meet and interact, and learn too late to distinguish emotional truth from falsehood. Filled with his familiar themes and characters, this is a classic Hardy novel in which human care and...

Jude Fawley is a stone mason with a passion for scholarship who longs to study at the nearby university town of Christminster. Then Arabella Donn comes into his life. His longing for her eclipses all else for a time, and they marry but unhappily. Meeting his spirited and intelligent cousin, Sue Bridehead, Jude dares to dream again. But in acknowledging their feelings for one another, Jude and Sue risk becoming social outcasts. In defying conventional morality, their lives become plagued by...

Brought to you by Penguin.Winston Churchill towers over every other figure in 20th-century British history. By the time of his death at the age of 90 in 1965, many thought him to be the greatest man in the world.There have been over a thousand previous biographies of Churchill. Andrew Roberts now draws on over 40 new sources, including the private diaries of King George VI, used in no previous Churchill biography, to depict him more intimat...

August, 1983. Denton is preparing for a wedding. DS Waters should be on top of the world with less than a week to go until he marries Kim Myles. But the Sunday before the big day, the body of a young woman is found in the churchyard, and their wedding venue becomes a crime scene. DS Jack Frost has been homeless for the past three months. He's been staying with DC Sue Clarke but with a baby to take care of and the imminent arrival of her mother, she's given him his marching orders. But as b...

The start of a brand new WWII series from Iain Gale, author of Alamein.A masterly portrayal of World War Two heroism, with vivid action and stirring personal journeys.A small team of soldiers, left behind to cover the British retreat, are ordered to blow the bridge as late as possible to stem the German tank pursuit. Although successful, the operation kills desperate refugees fleeing the scene. Who will be made to face the court-martial: the men carrying out the orders or t...

Gervase Bonel, with his wife and servants, is a guest of Shrewsbury Abbey of Saint Peter and Saint Paul when he is suddenly taken ill. Luckily, the Abbey boasts the services of clever and kindly Brother Cadfael, a skilled herbalist. Cadfael hurries to the man's bedside, only to be confronted by two very different surprises. In Master Bonel's wife, the good monk recognises Richildis, whom he loved many years ago before he took his vows. And Master Bonel has been fatally poisoned by a dose o...

In the summer of 1138, war between King Stephen and the Empress Maud takes brother Cadfael from the quiet world of his garden to the bloody battlefield. Not far from the safety of the Abbey walls, Shrewsbury Castle falls, leaving its ninety-four defenders loyal to the empress to hang as traitors. With a heavy heart, Brother Cadfael agrees to bury the dead, only to make a grisly discovery: ninety-five bodies lie in a row, and the extra corpse tells Cadfael that the killer is both clever and...

The authorised biography of one of the greatest storytellers of all time."Irresistible. I thought I knew quite a lot about Roald Dahl, but now I know much much more. Donald Sturrock's book lucidly describes a complicated life and relates it to the richness of Dahl's storytelling."Quentin BlakeRoald Dahl is one of the greatest storytellers of all time. He pushed children's literature into uncharted territory and almost twenty years after his death his popularity continues to ...

Brought to you by Penguin.A few years it became possible, for this first time, for a foreigner to travel Siberia almost at will. This is the account of Thubron's 15, 000-mile journey through this astonishing country - one twelfth of the land surface of the whole earth. He journeyed by train, river and truck among the people most damaged by the breakup of the Soviet Union, traveling among Buddhists and animists, radical Christian sects, reactionary Communists and th...

In 1137 the ambitious head of Shrewsbury Abbey has decided to acquire the remains of Saint Winifred for his Benedictine order. Brother Cadfael is part of the expedition sent to her final resting place in Wales, where they find the villagers passionately divided by the Benedictines' offer for the saint's relics.Canny, wise and all too worldly, Cadfael isn't surprised when this taste for bones leads to bloody murder. The leading opponent to moving the grave has been shot dead with a ...

**Brought to you by Penguin.Political skullduggery, passion and ambition clash in this intriguing, evocative and compelling novel by much loved author Candace Robb. Vividly conjuring up the medieval world, it's the perfect treat for fans of** Ellis Peters, S J Parris, Conn Iggulden and Bernard Cornwell.POLITICS, PASSION AND AMBITION COMBINE WITH MURDEROUS RESULTS...1369: a pilgrimage wends its way ...