Greek poet Homer established the standard for tales of epic quests and heroic journeys with the Odyssey. Crowded with characters, both human and nonhuman, and bursting with action, the Odyssey details the adventures of Ulysses, king of Ithaca and hero of the Trojan War, as he struggles to return to his home and his waiting, ever-faithful wife, Penelope.Along the way Ulysses encounters the seductive Circe, who changes men into swine; the gorgeous water-nymph Calyps...

On a cold January day in 1851, twelve-year-old Patrick O'Connell huddles on the deck of the Robert Peel. He is leaving his impoverished home behind in Ireland, while in America, his father is waiting with the promise of a new life. But as Patrick watches the shoreline fade from view, he feels torn with worry. His new friend Laurence Kirkle, who is running away from home, waits for food in the ship's hold. If the captain finds the young stowaways, both boys will be arrested. Will Patrick an...

In December 1850, the dark hours before dawn make 12-year-old Patrick O'Connell shiver. He lives with his mother and older sister in a wet and drafty shack. Patrick has been the man of the family ever since Da, his father, sailed from Ireland to America. But now he has a problem he can't solve: there isn't enough money to pay the rent. Suddenly, the village priest pounds on their door. He brings a bank draft with a letter from Da telling them to come to America. Soon Patrick and his family...

This is a new reading of the thrilling account of one of the most astonishing feats of exploration and human courage ever recorded.In August of 1914, the British ship Endurance set sail for the South Atlantic. In October, 1915, still half a continent away from its intended base, the ship was trapped, then crushed in the ice. For five months, Sir Ernest Shackleton and his men, drifting on ice packs, were castaways in one of the most savage regions of the wo...

From New York Times bestselling author Susanna Clark, the audiobook of the Hugo-winning, epic Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, the basis for the BBC miniseries.At the dawn of the nineteenth century, two very different magicians emerge to change England's history. In the year 1806, with the Napoleonic Wars raging on land and sea, most people believe magic to be long dead in England-until the reclusive Mr Norrell reveals his powers, and becomes a cele...

Jasper Fforde's bestselling Thursday Next series has delighted readers of every genre with its literary derring-do and brilliant flights of fancy. In The Big Over Easy, Fforde takes a break from classic literature and tumbles into the seedy underbelly of nursery crime. Meet Inspector Jack Spratt, family man and head of the Nursery Crime Division. He's investigating the murder of ovoid D-class nursery celebrity Humpty Dumpty, found shattered to death beneath a wall in a sha...

How can an honourable lady like Lady Catriona Hennessy unite with a rake like Richard Cynster? Though charmed by his commanding presence, she cannot give up her independence. Marriage had not previously been on Richard's agenda, but perhaps taming the lady was just the challenge he needs—if he can have the rights of the marriage bed without making any revealing promises of love?

He vowed he'd never marry.To Vane Cynster, Bellamy Hall seems like the perfect place to temporarily hide from London's husband hunters. But when he encounters irresistible Patience Debbington, Vane realises he's met his match …She vowed no man would catch her.Patience isn't about to succumb to Vane's sensuous propositions. Yes, his kisses leave her dizzy and his caresses made her melt; but Patience has promised herself she'll never become vulnerable to a broken hear...

When Devil, the most infamous member of the Cynster family, is caught in a compromising position with plucky governess Honoria Wetherby, he astonishes the entire town by offering his hand in marriage. No one dreamed this scandalous rake would ever take a bride. And as society mamas swooned at the loss of England's most eligible bachelor, Devil's infamous Cynster cousins began to place wagers on the wedding date.But Honoria wasn't about to bend society's demands and marry a man "jus...

“Fabulously entertaining….Laurens adds a dash of exotic spice to her always reliable mix of sexy romance and risky intrigue.”—BooklistThe third book in New York Times bestselling author Stephanie Laurens’s sensational Black Cobra Quartet, The Brazen Bride ingeniously blends intrigue and danger with sizzling, passionate love. With ties to Laurens’s wildly popular Cynster novels, The Brazen Bride—and the other breathtaking installments in h...

This acclaimed best-seller from popular historian Alison Weir is a fascinating look at the Tudor family dynasty and its most infamous ruler. The Six Wives of Henry VIII brings to life England's oft-married monarch and the six wildly different but equally fascinating women who married him. Gripping from the first sentence to the last and loaded with fascinating details, Weir's rich history is a perfect blend of scholarship and entertainment.

Stephanie Laurens, the phenomenal New York Times bestselling superstar is back with The Elusive Bride—the second book in her magnificent Black Cobra Quartet. Never before in print, this masterful blend of passion and intrigue follows The Untamed Bride, the first in the four-part historical romance series that Booklist calls, “fabulously entertaining.” A spellbinding tale of destiny, duty, desire, and peril—with ties to her popular Bastion Club novels and...