The story of the Renaissance city and palace of Urbino, and the life of the extraordinary man who created it: Federico da Montefeltro.'Painstakingly researched and yet unfailingly readable' Ross King'An insight into one of Renaissance Italy's most glamorous courts' Catherine Fletcher'The perfect tour guide to the past' Literary Review'A fabulous merging of seductive design with bravura scholarship'

An authoritative, richly illustrated history, and affectionate celebration, of Siena, one of the best-loved and most-visited cities in Italy.Occupying a hilltop site in the midst of a vast, undulating landscape, Siena is as much a magnet for contemporary tourism as Florence. However, its proud republican past presents an intriguing contrast with its Medici-dominated northern Tuscan rival, with which it tussled for local supremacy for much of the High Middle Ages. F...

Old Mortality (1816), which many consider the finest of Scott's Waverley novels, is a swift-moving historical romance that places an anachronistically liberal hero against the forces of fanaticism in seventeenth-century Scotland, in the period infamous as the `killing time'. Its central character, Henry Morton, joins the rebels in order to fight Scotland's royalist oppressors, little as he shares the Covenanters' extreme religious beliefs. He is torn between his love for ...

The blueprint for achieving growth and driving shareholder value by embedding support for innovation into every facet of your businessBreaking Away is one of the first books to bridge the gap between leadership and innovation by revealing what it takes to create both breakthrough ideas and the leaders who make them happen.Written by the chief innovation officer for Coca-Cola and a leading recruiter of innovation leaders, Breaking Away pr...

"The Heart of Mid-Lothian" by Walter Scott is a gripping historical novel that delves deep into the social and political dynamics of 18th-century Scotland. Set against the backdrop of Edinburgh, it explores themes of justice, love, loyalty, and sacrifice, offering a vivid portrayal of Scottish life during a time of political unrest. The novel follows the tumultuous lives of its characters as they navigate the complexities of law, morality, and family loyalty.The st...

This is a great Scottish novel, with all of the lovely scenery and steadfast heroes desired in this type of book. Even a bit of the Gaelic! I love the tragic character of Helen McGregor, and the classic brutal honor of Robert Roy.The scottish scenary is a vital character. I read this book when I was living in Glasgow, and the descriptions of the citys early days were amazing. I also fell in love with Loch Lomand.Francis Osbaldistone forgoes a position in his fathers firm to...

'Powerful' The Economist'Fascinating, panoramic . . . Roach brings an expert eye and page-turning energy' Helen Castor, bestselling author of She Wolves'Narrated with pace, clarity, authority and style, Roach's book is a bracing tour of the world that the Normans made their own' Thomas Williams, bestselling author of Viking Britain'A fresh retelling . . . written with enthusiasm an...

The definitive and comprehensive edition of Robert Graves's classic retelling of the Greek myths'Icarus disobeyed his father's instructions and began soaring towards the sun, rejoiced by the lift of his great sweeping wings. Presently, when Daedalus looked over his shoulder, he could no longer see Icarus; but scattered feathers floated on the waves below...'These are the greatest stories ever told - the labours of Hercules, the voyage of the Argona...

THE INSTANT #1 SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER'BURSTING WITH PERSONALITY' XIRAN JAY ZHAO'ABSOLUTELY ROOTING FOR LADY JING FOREVER' HANNAH KANER'THE MUST-READ DEBUT' TASHA SURI'A GRITTY, GLITTERING TALE' SAARA EL-ARIFIA richly told adult fantasy debut teeming with Chinese deities and demons cavorting in jazz age Shanghai.Half vampire, half fox-spirit, and all tr...

'A great storyteller and a fabulous actor. Well done, sir!' DAVID HAREWOOD'Phenomenal! Highly recommended.' MALORIE BLACKMAN'An absolutely thrilling, throat-catching wonder of a historical novel. Hugely recommended.' STEPHEN FRYFor fans of The Miniaturist and The Confessions of Frannie Langton comes this award-winning novel of illuminating historical fiction.Meet Charles Ignatius Sa...

The bestselling biography of Britain's 'Queen of Crime' by acclaimed historian Lucy Worsley OBE'Every Christie fan should read this' - THE TIMESTo Lucy Worsley, Agatha Christie was 'thrillingly, scintillatingly modern'. She went surfing in Hawaii, she loved fast cars, and she was intrigued by the new science of psychology, which helped her through devastating mental illness. Born in 1890, Christie defied societal expectations the w...

A SCOTSMAN BOOK OF THE YEAREDINBURGH, 1853.In a city of science, discovery can be deadly . . .Body parts have been found at Surgeons’ Hall, and they’re not anatomy specimens. Dr Will Raven is able to identify a prime suspect, but the individual he seeks happens to be an accomplished actor, a man of a thousand faces and a renowned master of disguise.Meanwhile, mesmerism, spiritualism and other unexpla...