The most renowned of all works of Scandinavian literature and our most extensive source of Norse mythologyWritten in Iceland a century after the close of the Viking Age, The Prose Edda tells ancient stories of the Norse creation epic and recounts the battles that follow as gods, giants, dwarves and elves struggle for survival. In prose interspersed with powerful verse, the Edda shows the gods' tragic realization that the future holds one final cat...

Composed in medieval Iceland, Hrolf's Saga is one of the greatest of all mythic-legendary sagas, relating half-fantastical events that were said to have occurred in fifth-century Denmark. It tells of the exploits of King Hrolf and of his famous champions, including Bodvar Bjarki, the 'bear-warrior': a powerful figure whose might and bear-like nature are inspired by the same legendary heritage as Beowulf. Depicting a world of wizards, sorceresses and 'berserker' fighters - originally member...

Medieval Iceland was unique amongst Western Europe, with no foreign policy, no defence forces, no king, no lords, no peasants and few battles. It should have been a utopia yet its literature is dominated by brutality and killing. The reasons for this, argues Jesse Byock, lie in the underlying structures and cultural codes of the islands' social order. 'Viking Age Iceland' is an engaging, multi-disciplinary work bringing together findings in anthropology and ethnography interwoven with hist...

The epic Viking Age stories that inspired J. R. R. Tolkien and Wagner's Ring cycleWritten in thirteenth-century Iceland but based on ancient Norse poetry cycles, The Saga of the Volsungs combines mythology, legend and sheer human drama. It tells of the cursed treasure of the Rhine, a sword reforged and a magic ring of power, and at its heart are the heroic deeds of Sigurd the dragon slayer, who acquires magical knowledge from one of Odin's Valkyries. One of the great books...

In a land of ice, great warriors search for glory...When a dragon threatens the people of the north, only one man can destroy the fearsome beast. Elsewhere, a mighty leader gathers a court of champions, including a noble warrior under a terrible curse. The Earth's creation is described; tales of the gods and evil Frost Giants are related; and the dark days of Ragnarok foretold.Journey into a realm of legend, where heroes from an ancient age do battle with savage monsters, a...

Part of a new series Legends from the Ancient North, Beowulf is one of the classic books that influenced JRR Tolkien's The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings'So the company of men led a careless life,All was well with them: until One beganTo encompass evil, an enemy from hell.Grendel they called this cruel spirit...'J.R.R. Tolkien spent much of his life studying, translating and teaching the great epic ...

**Brimming with life and drama, this is a magnificent journey into two thousand years of history, from the acclaimed historian of Europe'Epic and witty'** Observer'Erudite, entertaining' Helena Attlee'Charming' *Wall Street Journal**'***Delightful and authoritative' Judith Herrin'Compelling...enjoyable' Financial Times**'**All roads lead to Rome.' It's ...

Dawn is breaking over the Guilleries, a rugged mountain range in Catalonia frequented by wolf hunters, brigands, deserters, race-car drivers, ghosts, and demons. In a remote farmhouse called Mas Clavell, an impossibly old woman lies on her deathbed. Family and caretakers drift in and out. Meanwhile, all the women who have lived and died in that house are waiting for her to join them. They are preparing to throw her a party.As day turns to night, four hundred years’ worth of stories...

A panicked man turns to Maigret for help—and dies before the detective can learn his identity. Who was he, and what led to his brutal murder?One morning, Maigret receives several phone calls from an increasingly panicked man. He’s being followed, he says, and his pursuers want to kill him. Before Maigret can track down the caller, his lifeless body is thrown from a car. Yet his identity remains a mystery. Who was he, and what led to his brutal murder?As Mai...

**Discover the page-turning true story of the most iconic Cold War spy killing of all time, perfect for fans of Ben Macintyre, Henry Hemming and the novels of John Le Carre.London, 1978: exiled Bulgarian dissident Georgi Markov is murdered on Waterloo Bridge with what appears to be a poison-tipped umbrella. It would become the most infamous unsolved killing of the Cold War.**Many years later, young journalist Ulrik Skotte is approached with explosive new information about a...

Ancient shipwrecks in crystal seas, mythical princesses preserved in ice and astonishing lost rituals - this is the story of archaeology as you've never seen it before . . .'If you love Indiana Jones, this is the real thing' - DAN SNOWProfessor Michael Scott uncovers the true stories behind history's most monumental discoveries, unearthing traps, curses and buried treasure along the way. Full of extraordinary characters - from glory hunters to forg...

Beowulf is the greatest surviving work of literature in Old English, unparalleled in its epic grandeur and scope. It tells the story of the heroic Beowulf and of his battles, first with the monster Grendel, who has laid waste to the great hall of the Danish king Hrothgar, then with Grendel's avenging mother, and finally with a dragon that threatens to devastate his homeland. Through its blend of myth and history, Beowulf vividly evokes a twilight world in which men and supernatural forces ...