Although Chandra’s father Professor Barnard Wardell is the world’s most distinguished Sanskrit scholar, his earnings are barely enough to support him, his daughter and their faithful servant Ellen. So when the dashing Lord Damon Frome invites him on a highly paid expedition to Nepal it is a Godsend. But, having spent much of his advance, the Professor is struck down by a heart attack. So, to the fury of the woman-hating Lord Frome, demure young Chandra arrives in Nepal in her father’s place. An arduous journey through Nepal’s mountains follows, during which Chandra is entrusted with a sacred treasure by a mysterious wise man. Soon the haughty Lord and the scholarly girl find another treasure that cannot be measured in money – the precious love that lies hidden in the Himalayan clouds.

When fog leaves the Duke of Marazion stranded at a bleak inn, he soothes his restless soul with a brandy, a book and a roaring fire. A glittering figure amongst London Society, the rich and handsome Duke has everything he could ever want – apart from true love. As he sits, determined to continue his journey as soon as possible, he cannot foresee the consequences of answering a late night knock at his door. Astonished to find a young woman alone and in distress, he naturally takes on the role of her rescuer. Calming her frightened tears, he discovers that lovely runaway, Ilitta, is not only a talented artist but also a perceptive girl whose judgment he can immediately trust. Offering his protection and an introduction into the coveted London art world in exchange for her instinctive response to his new business partners, they set off together. As refreshing as a spring morning in comparison to the worldly-wise beauties he usually spends time with, the Duke is amused and then enchanted by his unlikely new friend. Determined to discover the secrets behind Ilitta’s decision to run away, the Duke hopes that soon she will accept his sensible advice and return home. But just as the Duke discovers his true feelings, the seductive charm of a tempting Comtesse forces him to make a decision that will change his life forever.

The handsome and debonair Marquis of Raventhorpe is known throughout the Beau Monde as something of a ladies’ man until he falls under the spell of Society beauty Lady Sarah Chessington. But when he arrives at the Earl of Chessington-Crewe’s house to propose, he realises that Lady Sarah wants him only for his wealth and position and he leaves in a fury, vowing that he will never marry. By the wayside he encounters a young exquisite beauty utterly different from any woman he has ever met, in fact she looks like an angel who has just fallen from Heaven by mistake. She is the Earl’s niece and ward, Ula Forde, who is running away from her Guardian, who mistreats and beats her savagely. Outraged, the Marquis rescues her and plots to punish Lady Sarah and the Earl by making Ula the belle of every ball and the toast of London Society. It is only when the despicable Earl kidnaps the terrified girl that love for Ula blossoms in the Marquis’s heart. He must rescue her – if he is not already too late –

Amidst the exciting preparations for the grand opening of Prince Albert’s prized Crystal Palace, a young orphan, Sorilda, is being forced into marriage by her recently cuckolded uncle, the Duke of Nuneaton. Having sheltered lovely Sorilda since the tragic death of her parents, the usually fair-minded Duke has been driven to jealous retaliation by his deceitful new Duchess. Suspecting his close neighbour, the Earl of Winsford, of ungentlemanly conduct with his beautiful wife, the Duke issues an ultimatum. The Earl must renounce the Duchess and marry the Duke’s flame-haired niece or face the public embarrassment of a scandal. Handsome, intelligent and fabulously wealthy, the Earl makes his choice and reluctantly marries Sorilda, his helpless bride. Angry at being pressured into such a union and aghast that he does not know, let alone love, his wife, the Earl remains distant and determined not to let Sorilda into his life. Enjoying the freedom from the miserable prison of her uncle’s home, Sorilda’s natural charm and positive nature soon force their way to the surface, despite the coldness of her bridegroom. Delighted by everything around her, it is not long before she has made her way into the hearts of everyone she meets. But, as London Society eagerly awaits the Great Exhibition, a spurned Duchess is busy plotting. Furious at being caught in a compromising situation, and filled with hatred for Sorilda, who has married the man she desires, she will not rest until she has her revenge.

The Marquis of Elvington, heartbroken to discover the woman he intended to marry has deceived him, decides to leave England and put as many miles as possible between them. Handsome, intelligent and a great favourite at the Court of King William IV and Queen Adelaide, the Marquis is used to the admiration of women and respect of men, so the duplicity of his intended wife strikes him a cruel blow. However, a thick fog makes it impossible for his yacht to leave Dover Harbour, so he is forced to remain on British soil another night. Anger swiftly chasing his sadness, he decides to visit a cheap quayside inn to escape the loneliness he feels and drown his sorrows. Sitting alone, his mind firmly fixed on how the woman he loved has betrayed him, he vows never to love or trust again. But Fate seems determined to challenge him as almost immediately he is forced to act as a ‘Good Samaritan’ to protect a young lady, Ola, intent on escaping the clutches of her hateful stepmother and dishonourable cousin. Blaming his act of charity on the vast quantities of brandy he consumed and against his better judgement, he offers to sail her in his yacht, The Sea Wolf, to Calais. Ola is brave, opinionated and daring – as well as possessing the most flaming red hair he has ever seen. From the moment she steps aboard, decrying men and their dastardly intentions, the Marquis is hard put to keep in step with her wild ideas and brave deeds. In turn admiring her free spirit and amazed at her lack of understanding of the ways of the world, they form a strange truce based on the fact that both vow never to marry. But Fate has not finished meddling yet and they are soon embroiled in incredible adventures, too fantastic for either of them ever to have imagined, that push their friendship to its very limits.

The handsome and aristocratic, thirty-five year old diplomat Lord Athelstan knows that he is heading for trouble on his mission to the Caucasus to investigate how long the legendary Shamyl, the Imam of Daghestan, can hold out against the invading Russians. But little does he expect to be faced with another kind of conflict – with a beautiful young hostage imprisoned in the Imam’s stronghold. The lovely Natasha is only nineteen and she was seized along with a Royal party by the Imam’s followers and held to ransom against the release of the Imam’s only son by the Russians. Orphaned, she has no hope of raising a ransom and instead has reluctantly agreed to be given to the Sultan of Turkey as a ‘wife’ for his vast harem in return for the release of her nine-year-old brother. The Imam implores Lord Athelstan to escort Natasha safely to Constantinople – a favour he cannot grant lest it anger the Russians and compromise Great Britain. But then he meets her – undoubtedly the most glorious woman he has ever seen, with fire in her eyes, when he informs her that he cannot agree to Shamyl’s request. Ultimately Natasha gives him no choice and, when she appears among his party in disguise, Lord Athelstan is furious. Soon their mutual hatred turns to all-consuming love – a love surely doomed by Natasha’s pledge to sacrifice herself to the Sultan’s harem for the sake of her brother –

With her flaming red hair and emerald green eyes, Xenia’s unusual beauty makes her stand out in any crowd – that is until she unexpectedly meets her long lost cousin, Johanna, amidst the wreckage of a railway accident. Incredulous at finding her mirror image and desperate for a friend, Xenia’s initial joy is soon replaced by misgivings when Johanna suggests an outrageous plan to swap lives for two weeks. However, these are soon swept aside by her forceful cousin and Xenia finds herself agreeing to help Johanna enjoy ten final days of freedom with the Englishman she loves before her arranged Royal marriage. As her cousin steals away from the site of the train crash, Xenia suddenly realises all that impersonating Johanna, even for a short while, will entail. Especially as her cousin was travelling to meet and marry her fiancé, King István of Luthenia, and the journey must continue so suspicions are not aroused. Surrounded by servants and diplomats, Xenia struggles to assume the Royal role that Johanna inhabits so easily and prays that her true identity will not be discovered. Arriving in Luthenia, Xenia is instantly plunged into a world of political intrigue and drama a million miles away from the quiet life she previously enjoyed in the English countryside. With a Constitutional crisis threatening and rumours of revolution, Luthenia desperately needs this arranged wedding to go ahead to cement allegiances and maintain the balance of power in Europe. As the Luthenian Court prepares for a grand State wedding and the nuptial date grows ever nearer, it seems that the beautiful cousins have only one desire in common – they both want to marry for love. But who shall be their bridegrooms?

Beautiful, young, impoverished Parson’s daughter, Hermia Brooke, is happy with her simple country life, despite being shunned by her wealthy uncle the Earl of Millbrooke and her cousin, the spoilt and selfish Marilyn. In a chance encounter with a raffishly handsome gentleman, whom she decides resembles the Devil himself, she nevertheless helps him with a stone stuck in his horse’s hoof. Rewarded with a golden guinea and a shocking kiss, Hermia finds her world turned topsy turvy when she meets the mysterious stranger once more at the behest of Marilyn, who is determined to trap this ‘Devil’ – namely the Marquis of Deverille – into marriage. Just as Hermia’s innocent heart warms to the gentler side of this hard-bitten aristocrat and he falls under her guileless spell, the Marquis is embroiled in a murderous plot and Hermia must fight for his life, even as all hope of the love she dreams about for herself seems lost.

John Clare (1793-1864) was born at a time of great social upheaval, just months after the beheading of Louis XVI and the outbreak of war with France which was to last till the defeat of Napoleon at Waterloo in 1815. He also lived through the upheavals of the land enclosure movement and agricultural revolution which changed the face of the countryside and the way of life in rural England. His father was a farm worker who managed to pay for his son’s schooling, though this was cut short as conditions worsened, but at least Clare had by then learnt to read and write so he could continue his own education, reading whatever books he could lay his hands on. At the age of sixteen he witnessed the social dislocation caused by the local enclosure Act and observed how the landscape was gradually transformed. Drawing on Clare’s writing, this extensively researched study gives the modern reader an appreciation of the divisive effects of these policies. Structured chronologically, this exploration of John Clare’s life highlights the socio-economic and environmental aspects of his observations and includes his reports on an insidious revolution taking place in the English countryside. Parliament, dominated by landowners, authorised the enclosure of large tracts of common land by private acts without considering the effect on those who had enjoyed rights of use and pasturage for centuries. Land enclosures, and the improved agricultural techniques which this permitted, was important in increasing food production at a time when the population of England was growing rapidly. While additional work was initially provided for agricultural labourers in the fencing and walling needed, this was temporary. The introduction of new, labour-saving machinery further reduced the opportunities for work. Insufficient attention, the author argues, has been given to the consequences. Those driven out of their homes in the country were left with no option but to migrate to the towns and sell their labour to whoever would pay for it. In effect, land enclosure created a market in land; landlessness created a market in labour. These are the foundations of our modern market economy. The author asserts that the harshness of the early years of the industrial revolution were the product of land enclosure which the welfare state has to some extent mitigated, although at the cost of creating a dependency culture in contrast to the sturdy independence of Clare’s parents’ generation of farm workers.

‘The Gustav Holst Way’ is the first guidebook to describe the 35-mile rambling route across the Cotswolds to celebrate the life and work of the composer Gustav Holst. Published exactly 100 years after Holst began work on The Planets, the route visits many of the places that were important to the young Holst as his musical career took wing. Among the highlights are the house in Cheltenham where he was born (now the Holst Birthplace Museum) and several venues in the Cotswolds where he played, conducted and taught music. The richly illustrated guidebook divides the walk into five easy/moderate sections (with four optional detours) and includes detailed maps, points of historical interest and all the practical information you need to follow in Gustav Holst’s footsteps from Cranham to Wyck Rissington. The Holst Birthplace Museum Gustav Holst, one of England’s greatest composers, was born in a Regency terraced house in Cheltenham in 1874. The house has been carefully restored and converted into a ‘living museum’ that captures the atmosphere of the era, both above and below stairs. The most eye-catching of the museum’s collection of 3,000 items is the piano on which Holst composed The Planets, as popular as ever nearly 100 years after it was published. Step inside the Museum and see the piano Holst used to compose The Planets. Find out how he developed into a world-class composer by examining and listening to original manu*s written when he was a schoolboy in Cheltenham. "

Even if there is a realm beyond mortality, would finding it improve our lives on earthWhat use is Spirit to a troubled worldDo prayer and meditation workAs a young man in search of love and a purpose to live for, the author could not fit within the world he found. Longing to be useful but unwilling to conform, he went out to South America. It wasn’t so easy. Alone on a mountainside one day, an inner voice said, ‘To make whole, be whole’. This was a turning point. He realised that, before being able to help others, he first had to work on himself. Once back in England, he found a method of meditation. Love of nature led him to become one of the first organic farmers but, when asked what he really wanted in life, he answered ‘God’. He’d been schooled in the Christian faith but was not at this time attracted to the Church. Meditation proved an ideal accompaniment as further adventures took him to Africa and, in particular, the desert. Later, at a low ebb in the USA, he ‘met Jesus’, which brought his practice of meditation and Christianity together. At the age of 51, he re-entered university to study Russian prior to visiting his mother’s homeland for the first time in 1991. This led to several years living in Russia, where he realised the similarity between his own practice and traditional Orthodox ‘prayer of the heart’. The book is based on notes of the author’s unfolding spiritual experience, which taught him that the wholeness he sought is actually – Spirit. How is it attainedWith many encouraging examples he shows how, with patient perseverance, the grip of the ego with all the restrictive unhappiness it brings, can be released. Being then more open to the influence of Grace, we may come to discover the Kingdom of God – our original, spiritual and perfect home. Dear John, ‘I hope you won’t mind my addressing you by your Christian name but having read your book twice as well as highlighting many paragraphs to study, I feel you are a dear friend. I am writing to say that your profound insights are enormously encouraging, an awakening, a wonderful inspiration for me, and I feel so fortunate to have found them. Your experiences in Spirit are conveyed so clearly and simply ‘ I find them truly uplifting. Every day I read some pages and always seem to find something new. I feel extremely grateful that you chose to write of your experience ‘ your legacy is to inspire countless other people, and to enrich their lives as you have mine.’ ML, 2011 Dear Mr Butler, ‘I am over half-way through your book ‘Wonders of Spiritual Unfoldment’ and feel I would like to express my gratitude to you for helping me gain clarity in the process of awakening. It is difficult to express in words the way your writings from personal experience have helped crystallise my sense of ‘Being’ in Reality. Your notes on waking from the dream or illusion we mistake for life and the sense of non-attachment to the world this engenders ‘ greatly assist me in releasing my conditioned perception. It is wonderful to find that someone living so near me, geographically, can write with such clarity and, knowing that you are here in the flesh confirming the truth of the possibility of waking up, has been a great affirmation to me and is supporting me in my own journey of awaking or coming home. Thank you so much.’ L, 2011 ‘This is a moving, honest ‘ and long ‘ spiritual autobiography, interestingly given in two voices: contemporary notebooks interlaced with present day ruminations. Butler met the meditation early and it colours his early days of self-sustaining farming after Cambridge, and his many adventures described in detail and with compassion in South America, Africa (sharing keenness of hunger and the haunting splendour of the night skies) and India, culminating in coming ‘home’ to his core way in the Russia of his mother and its Christian orthodoxy. It was love that led him through the labyrinth of his life ‘ a path we all recognise. As he says, ‘to surrender myself and let the spirit act.’ Throughout it is his honesty which makes the book valid for us. His spiritual insights have all been gained through the experience of this varied life which he seems to have accepted with the innocence and enthusiasm of a child. His way is our way. It is a book of vivid de*ion and some very helpful insights.’ Contact 55 – Summer 2011

為什麼我們要道德？死亡讓我們找到人生意義？什麽是理想的教育？為何要環保？愛是什麼？何謂真實？我是誰？一個個發人深省的哲學問題，全部來自我們視為娛樂的電影。哲學是一個古老的學科，電影則是現代的娛樂；無論是哲學借電影「翻生」，走進日常生活，還是電影靠哲學來增加「深度」，對觀眾來說，都是好事。在增加欣賞的趣味之餘，又可以引發大眾對哲學的興趣。作者通過由逾七十部新舊中外電影組成的光影世界，引領讀者探討「道德」、「死亡」、「教育」、「環保」、「自我」、「情愛」、「自由」等八個議題，在閒聊電影的同時，思索人生的種種疑問。

《蘭齋舊事》不是食譜書，但這是江獻珠生前喜歡的一本著作，書中她以細膩的文筆，娓娓道出兒時家族及太史第的故事，寫出上世紀的廣州風華韻味，隨著江獻珠的逝世，留下的是令人回味無窮的好文章。江獻珠承傳了祖父江太史的識食，這是她與生俱來的背景，但並非她日後成功的主要因素。江獻珠勤奮好學、尋根究柢的精神，和做事力求完美的作風，使她成為近代香港粵菜食譜著作的名師，做人處世之道是年輕人學習的好榜樣。

"屹立於港島山巔的何東花園，可說是香港獨特歷史與文化的「The One」與「The Icon」。它不但記錄了英國殖民管治時期的種族歧視政策，還折射出早期香港的公共衞生惡劣和瘟疫頻頻。而大宅糅合中西的建築風格，又與香港屬中國領土但被割讓為英國殖民地的背景同工異曲，並與何東家族屬歐亞混血族裔的性質理氣相通。同樣不容忽略的是，大宅象徵了何東家族紮根香港、社會地位往上流動，以及何東平妻張靜蓉的特立獨行和貢獻社會。本書的一段一句、一畫一圖，既描繪了歷史的一鱗半爪，亦展示了時代的不斷變貌。由購地畫則興建大宅，到物業易主後進行加建，又曾遭逢劫難，被戰火摧殘破毁，然後是修葺，以及不同年代的擴建，何東花園不但訴說了香港的非凡故事，亦勾勒了中國近代史的迂迴跌宕。"

2014年是廣九直通車來往廣州至九龍開行35周年，現時來往廣州至九龍之列車班次頗為頻密，安坐車內，不用兩小時便到廣州，可謂是從香港到廣州快舒適的交通工具。商務旅客更可利用車廂內提供的WiFi上網處理業務。車上的餐飲種類繁多，為旅客帶來極大方便。本書推薦旅客選乘直通火車達北京、上海、廣州這三大城市，並詳細介紹京、滬、廣著名景點三地美食。 作者簡介： 黃照康，從事旅遊業三十多年，現任香港外遊旅行團代理商協會名譽會長、前香港旅遊業議會理事、香港旅遊業會領隊課程導師、旅行社顧客服務及親善技巧課程導師、廣東省增城等市、縣的旅遊形象大使公職。黃照康（Sunny）自小喜愛背囊式自助遊，遊遍中國各省、東南亞、印度、中東、歐美澳紐，以至於中南美洲及北極與北韓等神秘地域。由1993年起曾為港、甹的紙張媒體和電子媒體任嘉賓主持。

女人天生購物狂？不懂理財為何物？其實花錢可以是一種投資，消費可以令資產增值，這些東西女人懂。本書從女性角度出發，以她們日常的消費模式、生活習慣為基礎，用簡單易明的方式，帶出正確的理財概念和方法，提供專業資訊和數據分析，讓你創造出屬於自己的煉金術，並將之發揚光大。

The Call of the Wild is a novel by Jack London published in 1903. The story is set in the Yukon during the 1890s Klondike Gold Rush—a period when strong sled dogs were in high demand. The novel's central character is a dog named Buck, a domesticated dog living at a ranch in the Santa Clara Valley of California as the story opens. Stolen from his home and sold into service as sled dog in Alaska, he reverts to a wild state. Buck is forced to fight in order to dominate other dogs in a harsh climate. Eventually he sheds the veneer of civilization, relying on primordial instincts and learned experience to emerge as a leader in the wild.

本書收錄著名詩人戴望舒在抗日戰爭期間於香港翻譯的文學著作，包括法國著名左翼作家馬爾羅長篇小說《希望》及其他英法小說家作品。相關篇章的整理和出版不僅為戴望舒的翻譯研究提供豐富卻長期被忽略的文獻材料，也將為戴望舒的詩學理念與翻譯、抗日時期戴望舒與香港文學及大眾媒體、中國現代派與歐洲左翼文藝思潮、戰爭歷史以及跨文化語境（從巴黎、上海到香港）下法國現代主義文學的譯介等研究課題，提供重要資料。同時，讀者亦可從中了解抗戰時期詩人香港的文學活動。

Iro and Iona, two little bears who are best friends, live deep in the forest and spend their days playing happily with all the other little animals. But Iro wants some adventure and so she decides to take her friend Iona and set off on a trip to the mysterious Silver Mountain that everyone is so afraid of. This is the story of what happens when two naughty little bears disobey their parents and get themselves into all sorts of sticky situations. The Silver Mountain is an exciting place full of mystery and we follow Iro and Iona on their adventures in a magical world where in the end, goodness and bravery win the day. A great bedtime story with gorgeous illustrations for children aged 4 to 8 years old.

In the two and a half years since the first edition appeared (April 2005), events have unfolded as predicted. Then the consensus among forecasters was that the boom in house prices would cool to an annual 2 or 3% rise over the following years. In fact, in keeping with the ‘winner’s curse’ phase of the cycle described by the author, prices rose by more than 10% per annum in Britain. Harrison’s first book, The Power in the Land, predicted the early 1990s recession. Boom Bust, warned that investing in property is not always a safe bet, because the housing market is subject to a sharp downturn at the end of a remarkably regular 18-year cycle. The crash of 2007/8 occurred exactly as predicted. His forecast was based on a careful study of the evidence from property markets in many countries over the last 200 years. Gordon Brown’s claim, last made in his 2007 Budget speech, that ‘we will never return to the old boom and bust’ has been proved false. The reason for the instability, Harrison explains, is not the housing market itself but the land market on which all buildings stand. Land is in fixed supply ‘ as Mark Twain noted: ‘They’re not making any more of it’. Therefore, as the demand for land for new homes and offices rises with population growth and economic expansion, market forces, which normally increase supply to reduce prices, have the reverse effect: prices rise. This encourages speculation, with banks lending more against escalating asset values and reinforcing the upward spiral. Under existing government policies, the only way land prices can be brought back to affordable levels is a slump, undermining the banking system and causing widespread unemployment and repossessions. This is exactly what happened in America with the collapse of the sub-prime mortgage market. The run on Northern Rock showed the UK economy is not immune. The author reveals that the government’s monetary policy only has a marginal impact on land speculation, but as the Bank of England raises interest rates to curb house price inflation, the main victim is the first-time buyer and the productive economy, especially small businesses. The only way to neutralise the boom bust cycle in the housing market is through a reform of taxation, he claims. ‘This book is an important contribution to an overdue debate.’ Martin Ricketts, Chairman of the Academic Advisory Council of the Institute of Economic Affairs and Professor of Economic Organisation, University of Buckingham. Endorsing the thrust of Harrison’s argument, Prof. Ricketts goes on to acknowledge ‘that insufficient attention has been given by policymakers to the rent of land as socially the most efficient source of public revenue’, and that that will ‘have important practical consequences … for the stability of the economic system’. Economic stability is the objective of Gordon Brown and most governments around the world. Harrison explains how this may be achieved.

Destitute after the death of her beloved Papa, Carmela is miserable working as Nanny to the brattish children of the local vicar. So when her closest friend Felicity asks her to take her place in the home of her guardian, the dictatorial Earl of Galeston, she nervously agrees. The subterfuge is necessary to ensure Felicity can marry the love of her life – and possible firstly because none of Felicity’s feuding family have set eyes on her since she was a child... And secondly because both young women are blue-eyed, blonde and beautiful. The Earl’s ancestral home is awe-inspiring – but it is the Earl himself who makes the greatest impression on Carmela. Growing to appreciate the profound kindness behind his steely fa?ade, she falls deeply, utterly in love... But can true love live when it’s based on a lieThe Earl finds the answer in his heart when Carmela’s life – and any hope of love – is at stake...