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The politics of empire-building and the hypocrisies, back-stabbings, and corruptions of Rome's first family come to light. First published in 1934, the book retains a marvelously modern and often comic tone, and is written in the form of Claudius' autobiography. This is gripping stuff, read by one of our finest actors, who also starred as Claudius in the classic television series.

After her brother’s dramatic fall from power and banishment for treason, Lady Margaret’s husband threw her out to save himself. Now her ambitious brother is back in Scotland with the support of Henry VIII - and a plan to again marry off his beautiful, compliant sister to forge an alliance. But Margaret refuses to ever wed again, and she’s desperate to escape.

The Dark has nearly consumed the planet. Men and beasts have been stripped of their minds, their bodies twisted to serve the Master's will. Her army now numbers in the trillions and is led by two supreme generals. Even the mages have no power to stop her. Driving the survivors to a last bastion of freedom, she calls for the decimated army to surrender.

After escaping from the English soldiers who attacked her home and imprisoned her in a dungeon, Lady Elysande de Valance is grateful for the rugged Scots who are escorting her to safety in the Highlands. Even with danger dogging their every step, she hadn’t expected to welcome the strong comforting embrace of their leader, Rory Buchanan. They say he’s a healer, but she finds the heat of his touch does so much more....

The Republic of Venice was the first great economic, cultural, and naval power of the modern Western world. After winning the struggle for ascendency in the late 13th century, the Republic enjoyed centuries of unprecedented glory and built a trading empire which at its apogee reached as far afield as China, Syria, and West Africa. This golden period only drew to an end with the Republic's eventual surrender to Napoleon. The Venetians illuminates the character of the Republic during these illustrious years by shining a light on some of the most celebrated personalities of European history.

Seventy years ago, Erwin Schrdinger posed a simple, yet profound, question: What is life?. How could the very existence of such extraordinary chemical systems be understood? This problem has puzzled biologists and physical scientists both before, and ever since. Living things are hugely complex and have unique properties, such as self-maintenance and apparently purposeful behaviour which we do not see in inert matter. So how does chemistry give rise to biology?

Famed and brilliant, Lady Alexandra Lane has always known how to look out for to herself. But nobody would ever expect that she has darkness in her past - one that she pays a blackmailer to keep buried. Now, with her family nearing bankruptcy, Alexandra strikes upon a solution: Get married to one of the empire’s most wealthy eligible bachelors. Even if he does have the reputation of a devil.

Spirit and Sacrament by pastor and author Andrew Wilson is an impassioned call to join together two traditions that are frequently and unnecessarily kept separate. It is an invitation to pursue the best of both worlds in worship, the Eucharistic and the charismatic, with the grace of God at the center. Wilson envisions church services in which healing testimonies, creeds, exuberant praise, and ancient liturgy coexist, and in doing so, deepen our worship and increase our joy.

Towards the end of his life and his career as one of the leading politicians and orators in Rome, Marcus Tullius Cicero (106 BCE-43 BCE) was exiled to his country house. It was a time of political turmoil in the capital of the empire, caused by the power-grab of Julius Caesar. In the quiet of the countryside, Cicero began to write on philosophy. In On the Ends of Good and Evil, he set out to consider three major traditions of Greek philosophy - Epicureanism, Stoicism and a branch of Platonism.

The sixth book in James Clavell's epic Asian Saga tells the story of three weeks in Tehran in February 1979 - three weeks of passion, self-sacrifice, and heartbreak. When the shah is thrown out of Iran, the nation's turmoil becomes world headlines. Caught in this shifting world of fanaticism, ambition, duplicity, and violent death are the foreign helicopter pilots who have been servicing the oil fields up and down the country. Their one objective is to make a bold, concerted escape to safety across the Gulf.

The Doctor ventures into alternative dimensions in these four exciting novelisations of TV stories.

With the thrones of the Sovereign Five broken, the Kingdom sits on the brink of ruin. A new threat rises from the north - an alliance between two rulers. While the Earl and the Countess plot for the throne, King Crevan slips deeper into madness. All of their fates are intertwined...and may yet be tied to a boy from the mountains. Forced to choose between avenging his village and protecting those he loves, Kael begins the long journey home.

Matthew is the first human wizard to possess the true heritage of the Illeniels, a secret gift no one fully understands. Alone, he travels to another world, seeking the source of their mysterious enemies. There he will discover the origin of their ancient foe, the mysteries of the past, and possibly the future of humankind. If he can survive long enough. In a land beyond death and suffering, he finds the true source of evil, within the heart of humanity, and their newest creation.

In this short, accessible account of the Eastern Orthodox Church, John McGuckin begins by tackling the question "What is the Church?" His answer is a clear, historically and theologically rooted portrait of what the Church is for Orthodox Christianity and how it differs from Western Christians' expectations.

The fragments of Draeken battle foes on two fronts. Wylyn, head of a powerful krey house, seeks the fabled Shard of Midnight, a massive tower rumored to have fallen during the Dawn of Magic. If it rises, she will bring her vast army to the shores of Lumineia. Her plan depends on Tardoq, her sworn protector, and the one with betrayal in his heart.

Carefully culled from her past work, The Abundance is quintessential Annie Dillard, delivered in her fierce and undeniably singular voice, filled with fascinating detail and metaphysical fact. The pieces within will exhilarate both admiring fans and a new generation of readers and listeners, having been “re-framed and re-hung”, with fresh editing and reordering by the author, to situate these now seminal works within her larger canon.

As its neighbors muster for war, the city-state of Kantor clings desperately to neutrality. Suraan, the queen regent, is beset on all sides, her son Rahuul still too young to take the throne. As his elder sister and guardian, Adaali’s only purpose is to protect Rahuul from would-be usurpers. But dark forces are at play from within and without, and she must seek help from the most unlikely of places - or be consumed by the war of the gods that threatens to destroy the very fabric of her world.

London, June 1860: When an assassination attempt is made on Queen Victoria, and a petty thief is gruesomely murdered moments later - and only a block away - Chief Detective Inspector Charles Field quickly surmises that these crimes are connected to an even more sinister plot. Was Victoria really the assassin's target? Are those closest to the Crown hiding something? Soon, Field's investigation exposes a shocking conspiracy in which the publication of Charles Darwin's On the Origin of Species sets off a string of murders, arson, kidnapping, and the pursuit of a diabolical madman.

Next Level Sales Coaching offers insights to sales executives, customer-service managers, business owners, and other professional managers on strategies to overcome common challenges in building a "best in class" sales team. Sales performance can impact a company's revenue, profits, market share, and employee retention. The question is, how do you positively impact those goals? The answer is simple: Sales improve when your team is better trained, coached, and supported.

More people than ever are turning to podcasts for on-demand, mobile entertainment and information. Podcasting for Dummies offers a fast and easy way to get the know-how you need to produce and distribute one of your very own. Written by a pair of podcasting pioneers, this book shares insight on the technology behind recording, editing, and sharing podcasts, along with tips and tricks on how to produce a pro-level podcast.