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The Road to Samarcand
The Road to Samarcand
Patrick O’Brian
¥61.51
A classic Patrick O’Brian novel, back in print after many years. When Derrick’s missionary parents are tragically murdered he is entrusted to his gruff uncle Sullivan, Captain of The Wanderer. After surviving a killer typhoon on the South China Sea, and accompanied by their eccentric elderly cousin, they set off across land to discover the treasures of Central Asia. Derrick befriends a fierce Mongol warrior and must help him battle a ruthless Chinese warlord. Given a gift of priceless jade, the group is pursued into the inhospitable mountains of Tibet where they are caught between fierce mountain monks and a terrifying unnamed creature that stalks them through the snow.
Rogue Lion Safaris
Rogue Lion Safaris
Simon Barnes
¥53.76
A funny, romantic, evocative novel set against the safari tourism business in East Africa, written by an award-winning journalist. After the death of his beloved, bankrupt gambler of a father, Dan Lynch follows his university degree in zoology to a run-down safari camp, where he can work as a trainee guide and, most important, be near George Sorensen, the owner. George is a wildlife genius, but no great businessman, and the camp is threatened by lack of visitors, competition from the much more luxurious set-up across the valley, and corrupt local politicians. In learning about the majestic landscape and fauna of Africa, Dan learns a lot about people – and about himself. A beautiful evocation of place, a warmly observant love story, a suspenseful battle against the odds, Rogue Lion Safaris marks the debut of a very bright new voice in fiction.
The Cracking Code Book
The Cracking Code Book
Simon Singh
¥53.56
How to make it, break it, hack it, crack it. The secret history of codes and code breaking. Simon Singh’s best-selling title The Code Book now re-issued for the young-adult market. The Science of Secrecy from Ancient Egypt to Quantum Cryptography. Simon Singh brings life to an amazing story of puzzles, codes, languages and riddles – revealing the continual pursuit to disguise and uncover, and to work out the secret languages of others. Codes have influenced events throughout history, both in the stories of those who make them and those who break them. The betrayal of Mary Queen of Scots and the cracking of the enigma code that helped the Allies in World War II are major episodes in a continuing history of cryptography. In addition to stories of intrigue and warfare, Simon Singh also investigates other codes, the unravelling of genes and the rediscovery of ancient languages and most tantalisingly, the Beale ciphers, an unbroken code that could hold the key to a $20 million treasure.
The Final Solution
The Final Solution
Michael Chabon
¥70.44
A brilliant reworking of the detective story by the much-acclaimed Michael Chabon, author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning THE AMAZING ADVENTURES OF KAVALIER & CLAY. In the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel ‘The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay’, Michael Chabon conjured up the golden age of comic books, intertwining history, legend and storytelling verve. In ‘The Final Solution’ he has crafted a short, suspenseful tale of compassion and wit that reimagines the classic 19th-century detective story. In deep retirement in the English countryside, an 89-year-old man, vaguely remembered by locals as a once-famous detective, is more concerned with his beekeeping than with other people. Into his life wanders Linus Steinman, nine years old and mute, who has escaped from Nazi Germany with his sole companion: an African grey parrot. What is the meaning of the mysterious strings of German numbers the bird spews out – a top-secret SS code? The keys to a series of Swiss bank accounts perhaps? Or something more sinister? Is the solution to this last case – the real explanation of the mysterious boy and his parrot – beyond even the reach of the once-famed sleuth? Subtle revelations lead the reader to a wrenching resolution. This brilliant homage is the work of a master storyteller at the height of his powers.
World War One:History in an Hour
World War One:History in an Hour
Rupert Colley
¥18.05
Love history? Know your stuff with History in an Hour. The ‘Great War’, from July 1914 to November 1918, was without parallel. It brought to an end four dynasties, ignited revolution, and forged new nations. It introduced killing on an unprecedented scale, costing an estimated nine million lives. It was the war that destroyed any notion of romance or chivalry in battle; it pulled in combatants from nations across the globe and shattered them, body and mind. The War involved all of the world’s great powers – the Central Powers, dominated by Germany and Austria-Hungary; the Triple Entente, lead by Britain, France and Russia; and America. World War One: History in an Hour explains the unprecedented battles on land, sea and in the air and describes the Home Front, espionage, and the politics behind them. This, for the first time in history, was ‘total war’. Love history? Know your stuff with History in an Hour…
The Siege of Leningrad:History in an Hour
The Siege of Leningrad:History in an Hour
Rupert Colley
¥18.05
Love history? Know your stuff with History in an Hour. The Siege of Leningrad was one of the longest sieges in history and it inflicted some of the worst civilian casualties of World War Two. When Hitler declared his intention to obliterate the key city of Leningrad on 22 September 1941, he could not have foreseen the grim determination of its citizens. Over the course of 900 days, the city resisted the Germans pounding at its gates. Its survival contributed to the defeat of Nazism. But the price was heavy – over 1 million died in Leningrad from German bombs and artillery, or from disease, the cold or starvation. In its suffering Leningrad became a source of symbolic national pride, of good conquering evil. The story of the siege is one of heroic resistance and stoical survival but it also one of unimaginable suffering and extreme deprivation. THE SIEGE OF LENINGRAD: HISTORY IN AN HOUR is essential reading for all history lovers. Know your stuff: read about the Siege of Leningrad in just one hour.
Araby
Araby
Gretta Mulrooney
¥66.22
A funny and intensely moving portrait of childhood, death and a man’s relationship with his larger-than-life mother. This poignant, witty, warm-hearted yet unsentimental novel charts the turbulent relationship of a mother and son. As a young boy, Rory Keenan finds his mother bewilderingly and embarrassingly eccentric as his childhood is punctuated by hilarious, cringe-making episodes caused entirely by her unpredictable behaviour and bizarre habits and exploits. Kitty has a huge appetite – for food, for mysterious imaginary illnesses and for strange hobbies. Her irrespressible, opinionated nature ensures that she (and, against his will, Rory too) is the centre of any attention to be had. At the end of Kitty’s life, Rory, now a grown man, begins to come to terms with his confused feelings for Kitty – he loves her devotedly, but nevertheless her cussedness still infuriates him. As memories and secrets from his family’s stormy past in Ireland and London echo through the tragedy of her final, very real illness we are given an outstandingly vivid and compassionate vision of life, love and death.
Drop a Size in Two Weeks Flat!
Drop a Size in Two Weeks Flat!
Joanna Hall
¥73.58
The kick-start fat loss programme from This Morning’s Diet and Fitness presenter. How to lose fat quickly and, more importantly, how to keep it off using Joanna’s own starch curfew plan and special exercises Everyone has those times when they want to lose their love handles quickly- to get back in their jeans, lose weight put on over Christmas, or look fantastic for a special occasion or a holiday. Joanna Hall, the UK’s hottest fitness presenter, shows people how to achieve this and, more importantly, how to make sure the weight doesn’t go straight back on! Tried and tested on 12 volunteers, Drop A Size In 2 Weeks Flat! includes: ? A 14 day ‘Get a Grip’ plan ? A great ‘maintenance’ system: how to keep your body trim in the long term using a simple points system, so you can eat the foods you want while following Joanna’s no carbs after 5pm rule ? ‘Damage Limitation’ tips: how to minimize the harm when away on business trips, cooking for a family, entertaining or eating out.
One Thing Leads to Another
One Thing Leads to Another
Jamie Holland
¥46.11
One Thing Leads to Another is Four Weddings and a Funeral in book form. Three friends, post university, two men and a girl, take up a year’s lease on a house. Sitting in the pub, they make a bet – a challenge to them all – that they will find perfect (if temporary) partners and real jobs by the end of a year. As each season unfolds, with highlights of themed parties (for the girls) and rugby matches (for the boys), romantic holidays in Italy (disastrous), New Year’s Eve’s festivities (even worse), Flin, Geordie and Jessica find (and in some cases, lose) new friends, new jobs and even themselves. The year’s challenge ends completely differently than they – or the readers – anticipate. One Thing Leads to Another has a wonderful warmth and humour, which gives readers a real feel-good factor.
Terror Firma
Terror Firma
Matthew Thomas
¥46.11
‘Blessed are the meek, for they shall be stamped upon.’ From the massively successful author that brought you exploding sheep (Before & After) comes the conspiracy theory to end them all. If you’re a cynic, you’re a sucker. ‘They’ want you to believe in aliens, UFOs and ghosts, because if you go chasing lies, you never get to the truth. ‘They’ are the ultra-secret world ‘Committee’ – the real decision makers who tell governments what to do, dictate which way the stock market’s heading, start up a few wars when things get boring. They’ve had five centuries’ experience at the top to know that nothing spreads a rumour faster than a carefully worded denial. Unfortunately, the ‘Committee’ have been so busy manipulating the entire globe they haven’t realised that they themselves are being manipulated. From opposite sides of the globe, former US commando Frank MacIntyre, and UFO enthusiast Dave Pierce, are about to stumble on the biggest conspiracy theory of all. And it’s a discovery that threatens to destabalise the whole planet. The meek have just put on their boots, and they’re ready to do a bit of stamping themselves.
The Taken
The Taken
Vicki Pettersson
¥57.09
The first book in a new sexy, supernatural mystery series, from New York Times bestselling urban fantasy author Vicki Pettersson. Griffin Shaw used to be a PI, but that was back when gumshoes hoofed the streets . . . and he was still alive. Fifty years later, he’s a celestial Centurion, assisting the recently, and violently, dead. Yet just because he’s an angel doesn’t mean he’s a saint. One small mistake has altered fate, and now he’s been dumped back onto to the mortal mudflat to collect another soul – Katherine “Kit” Craig, a journalist whose latest investigation is about to get her clipped. Bucking heavenly orders, Grif refuses to let this sable-haired siren with hairpin curves come to harm. Besides, protecting her offers a chance to find the truth about his own mysterious death – and wreak some vengeance for the murder of his beloved wife, Evie. Joining forces, Kit and Grif’s search for answers leads beyond the blinding lights of the Strip into the dark heart of an evil conspiracy. But a ruthless killer determined to destroy them isn’t Griffin’s biggest threat. His growing attraction to Kit could cost them both their lives, as well as the answer to the greatest mystery of his long afterlife … Who killed Griffin Shaw?
Crowbone (The Oathsworn Series, Book 5)
Crowbone (The Oathsworn Series, Book 5)
Robert Low
¥58.86
The long awaited return to Robert Low’s Oathsworn series Island of Mann, 979AD. A man lies dying with a message he cannot take to his grave, a sworn secret that must be passed on only to Olaf Tryggvasson, kin of Harald Fairhair of the Yngling line and true prince of Norway, also known as Crowbone. When the message finally arrives, so begins a quest to discover its meaning, and for Crowbone to gain what is rightfully his: the crown of Norway. With a band of Chosen Men, Crowbone begins an unforgiving journey that will see him face the challenge of new enemies and confront his suspicions of treachery from old friends. Looming over all is his ultimate rival; Gunnhild, the Witch Mother of Kings, Crowbone’s arch-enemy who will stop at nothing to prevent him from knowing what and where this secret is. In the fifth installment of his Oathsworn series, Robert Low is back to his full-blooded Viking best, this time visiting the harsh terrain of the North Sea coast, in a tale about one man’s quest for survival and the unexpected alliances that emerge, as the very bonds that tie the Oathsworn together are put to the test.
The Idol House of Astarte:A Miss Marple Short Story
The Idol House of Astarte:A Miss Marple Short Story
Agatha Christie
¥9.71
A classic Agatha Christie short story, available individually for the first time as an ebook. Years ago, a murder was committed on the night of a costume party thrown by Sir Richard Haydon, a man who was a rival of his cousin Eliot for the affections of the lovely Diana Ashley. Sir Richard’s estate contained the grove of Astarte, which held a mysterious stone summer house. The summer house was rumoured to have been the site of numerous sacred rites in years long past, and in a surprise act, Diana enacted the role of Astarte, startling Sir Richard who stumbled and fell. When the others reached him body, he was found dead of a knife wound to the heart. After all these years, can the Club still solve the case?
The Adventure of the Sinister Stranger:An Agatha Christie Short Story
The Adventure of the Sinister Stranger:An Agatha Christie Short Story
Agatha Christie
¥9.71
A classic Agatha Christie short story, available individually for the first time as an ebook. Tommy and Tuppence Beresford wait anxiously for a letter from Russia that may contain information of international importance, surreptitiously hidden beneath the stamp. The letter is anticipated by more than just the Beresford’s, and they must fight to keep the information from getting into the wrong hands.
The Shadow on the Glass:An Agatha Christie Short Story
The Shadow on the Glass:An Agatha Christie Short Story
Agatha Christie
¥9.71
A classic Agatha Christie short story, available individually for the first time as an ebook. When invited to Mr and Mrs Unkerton’s party in Greenway’s House, Mr Satterthwaite learns of a haunted window, which no matter how many times it is replaced always contains the image of a cavalier in a plumed hat. When gunshots are heard, Satterthwaite finds that two of the guests have been shot dead, which is shortly followed by a sighting of the cavalier in the newly-replaced window pane. Can Mr Quin shed light on the mystery?
Karren Brady’s 10 Rules for Success
Karren Brady’s 10 Rules for Success
Karren Brady
¥9.71
Karren Brady’s 10 Rules for Success are the secret to getting ahead for working women everywhere! Combining advice on how to balance a family and career with tips on how to embrace ambition, this short guide boils down Karren’s advice for women everywhere into a manageable list of ten key rules for work and life that have helped her become successful, independent and Britain’s best-known business woman. These ten rules reflect Karren’s belief that being a successful woman isn’t about aiming for the mythical ‘having it all’, it’s about working what you want, aiming high and digging in your heels. “Over my working life, I have learnt that certain skills, habits and attributes are essential to achieving success. You will not instantly master them all. It will take time and practice. But if you follow these ten rules – and importantly keep trying to follow them – you will get very far along the road to where you want to go. That I can promise you.” Karren Brady Karren Brady’s 10 Rules for Success is an extract from Karren Brady’s business autobiography, Strong Woman.
Choir:Gareth Malone
Choir:Gareth Malone
Gareth Malone
¥68.67
The hugely popular Gareth Malone recounts the heart-warming stories and transformations behind the award-winning BBC2 series The Choir For the first time, Gareth reveals everything he has learned from working with so many groups of memorable people, including the record-breaking Military Wives and latest series of The Choir being shown this Autumn. Gareth was an unknown Choirmaster when he arrived on British TV screens five years ago. Boyish, irrepressible and determined, Gareth took on a collection of kids from the most unlikely comprehensive and turned them into a talented performing choir. This was the beginning of a national love affair with a bow-tied and undeniably charming young man, and it was also the start of a national rediscovery of the joy to be found in choirs. Since then, each series of The Choir has gone on to even more demanding challenges, taking young offenders to Glyndebourne, regenerating disparate and far from affluent communities, and finally in an extraordinarily emotional journey, Gareth took a group of women whose partners were serving in Afghanistan to a Christmas Number One. This Autumn, in a new four-part series, The Choir: Sing While you Work, Gareth will be challenging four new Choirs to compete against each other. This is his memoir of a period in which he transformed the lives of thousands but also gained a lifetime’s worth of experience in human frailty and strength. Written with real joy, emotion and amusement, the twenty chapters each deal with an individual moment – both break-throughs and disasters – or an individual character that has contributed to this extraordinary adventure. Whether he is explaining the importance of biscuits or the role of the elderly in a community undertaking, remembering the scrappy kid who never quite delivered or the mother who had most to prove this is an incredibly moving journey. It is his adventure… and ours.
Ice Creams at Carrington’s
Ice Creams at Carrington’s
Alexandra Brown
¥63.77
The third book in the delightful series set in Carrington’s Department Store - with extra character interviews exclusive to the ebook! Georgie Hart and Carrington’s Department Store have got the world at their feet. Since a reality TV series put them both on the map, life has been amazing! Carrington’s profits are in the pink, Georgie has carved herself a place in the nation’s heart and even better, her romance with Tom, the store’s boss, has finally blossomed after a shaky start. Now summertime has come to Mulberry-on-Sea and Georgie is in great demand. The town is holding a big summer festival and she and her mates from Carrington’s are planning on making sure that Mulberry puts on the show of its life! But Georgie is about to get the offer of a lifetime – one that is just too good to turn down and something that will test her loyalties to their limits… Will Georgie be able to pull off it off once again, or has her luck finally run out?
The Gravity of Birds
The Gravity of Birds
Tracy Guzeman
¥52.19
How do you find someone who wants to be lost? Sisters Alice and Natalie were once close, but adolescence has wrenched them apart. Alice loves books and birds in equal measure whilst Natalie, the beautiful one, is sexy and manipulative, effortlessly captivating men. On their lakeside family holiday, Alice falls under the thrall of the enigmatic next-door-neighbour, a struggling young painter. Natalie seems strangely unmoved by the charismatic stranger in their midst. She tolerates the family sittings for the portrait Thomas is painting with a barely disguised distaste. But as the family portrait nears completion, the family dynamics shift irrevocably. And by the end of the summer, three lives are shattered. Four decades later, the only thing that remains of that fateful summer is a painting of the sisters. The artist is determined to take the secrets of the girls to the grave, but his close friend decides to use the painting to beat a path to the past before it closes the door on them all for good… A haunting, unforgettable debut about family, forbidden love and long-buried secrets.
The Double Life of Cassiel Roadnight
The Double Life of Cassiel Roadnight
Jenny Valentine
¥51.50
Two boys. One identity. He can change his life if he says yes… An explosive new mystery from the award-winning author Jenny Valentine, The Double Life of Cassiel Roadnight is the story of a boy who assumes the identity of a missing teenager and in-so-doing unearths a series of shattering family secrets – and the truth about who he really is. With all the classic hallmarks of a Jenny novel – a fantastically strong, sensitive and memorable first person narration; themes of loss and betrayal, family secrets and personal identity; truly quality writing that is 'literary' but never inaccessbile or pretentious, this is the thrilling new novel from the author of Finding Violet Park.
Vile Visitors
Vile Visitors
Diana Wynne Jones
¥44.15
Two hilarious stories from the bestselling and well-loved author Diana Wynne Jones, about the worst visitors in the world coming to stay. In VILE VISITORS, we meet Angus Flint and Chair Person – the worst guests in the world. In Who Got Rid of Angus Flint? We meet a man so mean, he even insults the furniture! Despite the children’s best pranks, he just won’t leave. But when the furniture has had enough, it’s time to rise up and get rid of this most vile of visitors… In Chair Person, that old armchair with the broken crystal ball spilled on it has been locked in the shed. But then the children find a mysterious visitor… Transformed into the most annoying visitor ever, they are desperate to get rid of him. But can they turn him back into a chair before he ruins them forever?