Only Jack would start a breakup-worthy argument in a hot tub. Jack Horwood. Vigilante, hacker, security specialist. Partner to Gareth Flynn. Adoptive father to their two teenage boys. Happily juggling long days and short nights. Gareth Flynn. Ex-army officer. Ace negotiator. Righter of wrongs. Away from home more often than he likes. When Jack treats Gareth to a romantic getaway, Sweden's frigid peace gives them the break they both need. But Jack's a trouble magnet and the next dead body is just a wild skidoo ride away. Can love, teamwork, and trust survive the troubles that follow them around? Can Jack save what's become so important to him? Expect action, drama, and hot romance in book 4 of the Power of Zero series. Praise for Swings & Roundabouts "I love this series so much, it would make a brilliant TV show." "Fast pace, characters you connect with, and a cracking story." "Swings & Roundabouts is a superbly written novel about parenthood and the changes that affect the lives of two loving men. "

From the award-winning author of A Rose for the Crown, Daughter of York, and The King's Grace comes another masterful Wars of the Roses historical novel —the story of Cecily Neville, duchess of York , mother of two kings, and the heroine of one of history's greatest love stories. Anne Easter Smith's novels are beloved by readers for their ability “to grab you, sweep you along with the story, and make you fall in love with the characters.” In Cecily Neville, duchess of York and ancestor of every English monarch to the present day, she has found her most engrossing character yet. History remembers Cecily Neville of York standing on the steps of the Market Cross at Ludlow, facing an attacking army while holding the hands of her two young sons. Queen by Right reveals how she came to step into her destiny, beginning with her marriage to Richard, duke of York, whom she meets when she is nine and he is thirteen. Raised together in her father's household, they become a true love match and together face personal tragedies, pivotal events of history, and deadly political intrigue. All of England knows that Richard has a clear claim to the throne, and when King Henry VI becomes unfit to rule, Cecily must put aside her hopes and fears and help her husband decide what is right for their family and their country. Queen by Right marks Anne Easter Smith's greatest achievement, a book that every fan of sweeping, exquisitely detailed English royal historical fiction will devour.

In 1942 Ernest Jennings Ford married nineteen-year-old Betty Jean Heminger, whom he had met at Victorville Army Air Base in California. River of No Return: Tennessee Ernie Ford and the Woman He Loved is the recounting of their life together, of Ernie's spectacular success as an entertainer, of their growing spiral of self-destruction as his career flourished, and of their two sons' despair as they watched the light slowly fade from their parents' eyes and the joy vanish from their lives. For Betty it was vodka, valium, and tranquilizers. For Ernie, it was beer for breakfast, Cutty for lunch at the club, and whatever later in the day. In River of No Return, their son Jeffery remembers when his family's joy of being together was infectious, when the promise of every day and the thrill of being at the center of the spotlight was rapturous. It was a time when the name Ernie Ford was in the air and his fame worldwide. nOriginalBarCode: 9781581826531

In July 1937, the Marco Polo Bridge Incident sparked a bloody conflict between Chinese and Japanese forces that would rage across China and beyond for more than eight years. The two sides' forces brought very different strengths and limitations to the conflict. In 1937 China was divided into factions, each controlled by warlords with independent forces, and there was no unified Chinese army. In order to fight the Japanese Chiang Kai-shek, the nominal leader of Nationalist China, was compelled to do deals with these regional powers. For their part, the Japanese employed ground forces broadly comparable to those fielded by Western powers, including modern artillery and tanks. Featuring specially commissioned artwork and drawing upon an array of sources, this study investigates the origins, training, doctrine, and armament of the Chinese and Japanese forces who fought in the opening stages of the Second Sino-Japanese War.

The epic romance of Lei and Wren comes to a breathtaking conclusion in the explosive finale to the acclaimed, New York Times bestselling Girls of Paper and Fire series. 'Don't struggle, Lei-zhi. It's time to take you back to the Hidden Palace. You're going home.' The jaw-dropping conclusion to Girls of Storm and Shadow left the fates of Lei and Wren hanging in the balance. There's one thing Lei knows - she can never return to the Hidden Palace. The trauma and tragedy she suffered behind those opulent walls will plague her forever. She cannot be trapped there with the sadistic king again, especially without Wren. The last time Lei saw the girl she loved, Wren was fighting an army of soldiers in a furious battle to the death. With the two girls torn apart and each in great peril, will they reunite at last, or have their destinies diverged forever?

A bundle of books Realm of Dragons (#1), Throne of Dragons (#2), Born of Dragons (#3), Ring of Dragons (#4), Crown of Dragons (#5), and Dusk of Dragons (#6) in Morgan Rice's fantasy series AGE OF THE SORCERERS (REALM OF DRAGONS and THRONE OF DRAGONS). REALM OF DRAGONS (Age of the Sorcerers—Book One) tells the story of the epic coming of age of one very special 16 year old boy, a blacksmith's son from a poor family who is offered no chance of proving his fighting skills and breaking into the ranks of the nobles. Yet he holds a power he cannot deny, and a fate he must follow. It tells the story of a 17 year old princess on the eve of her wedding, destined for greatness—and of her younger sister, rejected by her family and dying of plague. It tells the tale of their three brothers, three princes who could not be more different from each other—all of them vying for power. It tells the story of a kingdom on the verge of change, of invasion, the story of the dying dragon race, falling daily from the sky. It tells the tale of two rival kingdoms, of the rapids dividing them, of a landscape dotted with dormant volcanoes, and of a capital accessible only with the tides. In THRONE OF DRAGONS (Age of the Sorcerers—Book Two) King Godwin mobilizes his army to cross the great bridge and invade the South to rescue his 17 year old daughter, Lenore. But Lenore is imprisoned deep in the South, under the watchful and hateful eye of King Ravin. Her brother Rodry, though, is way ahead of the King's men, deep in hostile territory, alone on a mission to save his sister—while her other brother, Vars, offers a lesson in cowardice and betrayal. Devin follows Gray, eager to learn more about how to harness his powers and about who he is. Greave travels to remote regions to find the house of scholars and to try to save his sister, Nerra. But Nerra, sickened by the scale sickness, is dying on a remote isle once touched by dragons. And her only chance of survival may just compel her to risk it all. And all of this will culminate in an epic battle that may just determine the fate of the two kingdoms. In BORN OF DRAGONS (Age of the Sorcerers—Book Three) Lenore is safely returned to the North—but not without a price. Her bother Rodry is dead and her father, King Godwin, lies in a coma. With the rulership of the North in question, her treacherous brother Vars may just find an opening to rule. But Vars is a coward, and King Ravin, smarting from defeat, mobilizes the entire South to invade. The northern capital, never defeated, lies protected by tides and canals—but Ravin can happily lose scores of men. The most epic battle, it seems, is yet to come. In RING OF DRAGONS (Age of the Sorcerers—Book Four), Ravin has the capital surrounded. With the cowardly Vars at the helm, and with only tides and walls left to protect it, the city lies in chaos and near ruin. Just one battle remains between survival and destruction. The boy, meanwhile, holds the secret of the King's assassination. Will he reveal it in time and change the fate of the capital? Will Devin finish the unfinished sword? Will Lenore pursue her love for Devin? Will Greave find the cure in time to save his sister? And will Nerra rise up to lead an army of dragons? In CROWN OF DRAGONS (Age of the Sorcerers—Book Five), Ravin has finally taken complete control of the capital, crushing all those in his way and subjecting its citizens to slavery and brutality. Yet not everyone is under Ravin's thumb: Lenore, finally jolted out of her despondent state by the death of her mother, realizes it is time to step into her destiny. Instead of allowing herself to become Ravin's plaything, she realizes she must summon an army to defeat him.

Tom Hanks introduces the “remarkable” (Publishers Weekly) true story of two inseparable friends and soldiers portrayed in the HBO® miniseries Band of Brothers. Look for the Band of Brothers miniseries, now available to stream on Netflix! William “Wild Bill” Guarnere and Edward “Babe” Heffron were among the first paratroopers of the U.S. Army—members of an elite unit of the 101st Airborne Division called Easy Company. The crack unit was called upon for every high-risk operation of the war, including D-Day, Operation Market Garden in Holland, the Battle of the Bulge, and the capture of Hitler’s Eagle’s Nest in Berchtesgaden. In his own words, Guarnere gives a gripping account of D-Day from the paratrooper’s perspective. Both men vividly re-create dropping into Holland to capture the roads and bridges between Eindhoven and Arnhem, known as Hell’s Highway. Through much of 1944 both friends fought side by side—until Guarnere lost his right leg in the Battle of the Bulge and was sent home. Heffron went on to liberate slave labor and concentration camps and capture Hitler’s Eagle’s Nest hideout. United by their experience, the two reconnected at the war’s end and were inseparable up until their deaths. Brothers in Battle, Best of Friends is a tribute to the lasting bond forged between comrades in arms under fire and to all the brave men who fought fearlessly for freedom. Includes photographs

Tom Hanks introduces the “remarkable” (Publishers Weekly) true story of two inseparable friends and soldiers portrayed in the HBO® miniseries Band of Brothers. Look for the Band of Brothers miniseries, now available to stream on Netflix! William “Wild Bill” Guarnere and Edward “Babe” Heffron were among the first paratroopers of the U.S. Army—members of an elite unit of the 101st Airborne Division called Easy Company. The crack unit was called upon for every high-risk operation of the war, including D-Day, Operation Market Garden in Holland, the Battle of the Bulge, and the capture of Hitler’s Eagle’s Nest in Berchtesgaden. In his own words, Guarnere gives a gripping account of D-Day from the paratrooper’s perspective. Both men vividly re-create dropping into Holland to capture the roads and bridges between Eindhoven and Arnhem, known as Hell’s Highway. Through much of 1944 both friends fought side by side—until Guarnere lost his right leg in the Battle of the Bulge and was sent home. Heffron went on to liberate slave labor and concentration camps and capture Hitler’s Eagle’s Nest hideout. United by their experience, the two reconnected at the war’s end and were inseparable up until their deaths. Brothers in Battle, Best of Friends is a tribute to the lasting bond forged between comrades in arms under fire and to all the brave men who fought fearlessly for freedom. Includes photographs

From an award-winning scholar comes this definitive, single-volume history that illuminates the tensions and transformations of the Russian Revolution. In The Russian Revolution, acclaimed historian Sean McMeekin traces the events which ended Romanov rule, ushered the Bolsheviks into power, and introduced communism to the world. Between 1917 and 1922, Russia underwent a complete and irreversible transformation. Taking advantage of the collapse of the Tsarist regime in the middle of World War I, the Bolsheviks staged a hostile takeover of the Russian Imperial Army, promoting mutinies and mass desertions of men in order to fulfill Lenin’s program of turning the “imperialist war” into civil war. By the time the Bolsheviks had snuffed out the last resistance five years later, over twenty million people had died, and the Russian economy had collapsed so completely that communism had to be temporarily abandoned. The first comprehensive history of these momentous events in over two decades, The Russian Revolution combines cutting-edge scholarship and a fast-paced narrative to shed new light on one of the most significant turning points of the twentieth century.

Operation Barbarossa, the German invasion of the Soviet Union, began the largest and most costly campaign in military history. Its failure was a key turning point of the Second World War. The operation was planned as a Blitzkrieg to win Germany its Lebensraum in the east, and the summer of 1941 is well-known for the German army's unprecedented victories and advances. Yet the German Blitzkrieg depended almost entirely upon the motorised Panzer groups, particularly those of Army Group Centre. Using archival records, in this book David Stahel presents a history of Germany's summer campaign from the perspective of the two largest and most powerful Panzer groups on the Eastern front. Stahel's research provides a fundamental reassessment of Germany's war against the Soviet Union, highlighting the prodigious internal problems of the vital Panzer forces and revealing that their demise in the earliest phase of the war undermined the whole German invasion.

Count Dracula is reborn as a katana-wielding young vampiress in a new, never-seen-before action manga set in a gritty, alternate-history Europe. Fans of cinematic, gory, supernatural alternate histories, like Vampire Hunter D, Hellsing, and Dance in the Vampire Bund, will want to sink their fangs into BLOOD BLADE. Made in Japan, first published in English! Having fallen in battle long ago, Count Vlad Dracula is reborn as a katana-wielding young vampiress in an alternate-history Europe. After the reincarnated Dracula rescues a girl named Clara from a mysterious stranger, Clara explains that she is the creation of a certain Victor Frankenstein. She also reveals that she is fleeing from an organization called Cerberus, which seeks to capture and study "monsters" such as herself in order to create an army of human-monster hybrids. Clara begs the vampiress to flee with her to an island of monsters where the two of them will be safe...but as they set out for Monster Island, the sinister forces of Cerberus are in hot pursuit.

Forty years after the Oblivion crisis, the empire of Tamriel is threatened by a mysterious floating city, Umbriel, whose shadow spawns a terrifying undead army. Reeling from a devastating discovery, Prince Attrebus continues on his seemingly doomed quest to obtain a magic sword that holds the key to destroying the deadly invaders. Meanwhile, in the Imperial City, the spy Colin finds evidence of betrayal at the heart of the empire-if his own heart doesn't betray him first. And Annaïg, trapped in Umbriel itself, has become a slave to its dark lord and his insatiable hunger for souls. How can these three unlikely heroes save Tamriel when they cannot even save themselves? Based on the award-winning Elder Scrolls® series, Lord of Souls is the second of two exhilarating novels that continue the story from The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, named 2006 Game of the Year by numerous outlets, including Spike TV, the Golden Joystick Awards, and the Associated Press.

In the years between 31 BC and AD 500 the Romans carved out a mighty empire stretching from Britain to the deserts of North Africa. The men who spearheaded this expansion were the centurions, the tough, professional warriors who led from the front, exerted savage discipline and provided a role model for the legionaries under their command. This book, the second volume of a two-part study, reveals the appearance, weaponry, role and impact of these legendary soldiers during the five centuries that saw the Roman Empire reach its greatest geographical extent under Trajan and Hadrian, only to experience a long decline in the West in the face of sustained pressure from its 'barbarian' neighbours. Featuring spectacular full-colour artwork, written by an authority on the army of the Caesars and informed by a wide range of sculptural, written and pictorial evidence from right across the Roman world, this book overturns established wisdom and sheds new light on Rome's most famous soldiers during the best-known era in its history.

Late April, 1945. The war is over, yet Dr Doll, a loner and 'moderate pessimist', lives in constant fear. By night, he is haunted by nightmarish images of the bombsite in which he is trapped — he, and the rest of Germany. More than anything, he wishes to vanquish the demon of collective guilt, but he is unable to right any wrongs, especially in his position as mayor of a small town in north-east Germany that has been occupied by the Red Army. Dr Doll flees for Berlin, where he finds escape in a morphine addiction: each dose is a 'small death'. He tries to make his way in the chaos of a city torn apart by war, accompanied by his young wife, who shares his addiction. Fighting to save two lives, he tentatively begins to believe in a better future. Written with Fallada's distinctive power and vividness, Nightmare in Berlin captures the demoralised and desperate atmosphere of post-war Germany in a way that has never been matched or surpassed.

Forty years after the Oblivion crisis, the empire of Tamriel is threatened by a mysterious floating city, Umbriel, whose shadow spawns a terrifying undead army. Reeling from a devastating discovery, Prince Attrebus continues on his seemingly doomed quest to obtain a magic sword that holds the key to destroying the deadly invaders. Meanwhile, in the Imperial City, the spy Colin finds evidence of betrayal at the heart of the empire-if his own heart doesn't betray him first. And Annaïg, trapped in Umbriel itself, has become a slave to its dark lord and his insatiable hunger for souls. How can these three unlikely heroes save Tamriel when they cannot even save themselves? Based on the award-winning Elder Scrolls® series, Lord of Souls is the second of two exhilarating novels that continue the story from The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, named 2006 Game of the Year by numerous outlets, including Spike TV, the Golden Joystick Awards, and the Associated Press.

In the years between 31 BC and AD 500 the Romans carved out a mighty empire stretching from Britain to the deserts of North Africa. The men who spearheaded this expansion were the centurions, the tough, professional warriors who led from the front, exerted savage discipline and provided a role model for the legionaries under their command. This book, the second volume of a two-part study, reveals the appearance, weaponry, role and impact of these legendary soldiers during the five centuries that saw the Roman Empire reach its greatest geographical extent under Trajan and Hadrian, only to experience a long decline in the West in the face of sustained pressure from its 'barbarian' neighbours. Featuring spectacular full-colour artwork, written by an authority on the army of the Caesars and informed by a wide range of sculptural, written and pictorial evidence from right across the Roman world, this book overturns established wisdom and sheds new light on Rome's most famous soldiers during the best-known era in its history.

Count Dracula is reborn as a katana-wielding young vampiress in a new, never-seen-before action manga set in a gritty, alternate-history Europe. Fans of cinematic, gory, supernatural alternate histories, like Vampire Hunter D, Hellsing, and Dance in the Vampire Bund, will want to sink their fangs into BLOOD BLADE. Made in Japan, first published in English! Having fallen in battle long ago, Count Vlad Dracula is reborn as a katana-wielding young vampiress in an alternate-history Europe. After the reincarnated Dracula rescues a girl named Clara from a mysterious stranger, Clara explains that she is the creation of a certain Victor Frankenstein. She also reveals that she is fleeing from an organization called Cerberus, which seeks to capture and study "monsters" such as herself in order to create an army of human-monster hybrids. Clara begs the vampiress to flee with her to an island of monsters where the two of them will be safe...but as they set out for Monster Island, the sinister forces of Cerberus are in hot pursuit.

Guerilla Days in Ireland' is a fascinating memoir of the Irish struggle for Independence from the commander of the Third West Cork Flying Column. Guerilla Days in Ireland is the extraordinary story of the fight between two unequal forces, which ended in the withdrawal of the British from twenty-six counties. Seven weeks before the truce to the Anglo-Irish War of July, 1921, the British presence in County Cork consisted of 8,800 front line infantry troops, 1,150 Black & Tan soldiers, 540 Auxiliaries, 2,080 machine gun corps, artillery and other units; a total of over 12,500 men. Against these British forces stood the Irish Republican Army whose Flying Columns never exceeded 310 riflemen in the whole of County Cork. These flying columns were small groups of dedicated volunteers, severely commanded and disciplined. Constantly on the move, their paramount objective was merely to ∃ to strike when conditions were favorable, to avoid disaster at all costs. In Guerilla Days in Ireland Tom Barry describes the setting up of the West Cork Flying Column, its training, and its plan of campaign. Tom Barry was born in 1898. In June 1915 he joined the British Army, not to secure home rule for Ireland or to fight for Irish freedom of for freedom of small nations - just to see what war was like. In the summer of 1920 he became Training officer to the Third (West) Cork Brigade. Tom Barry fought on the republican side of the Civil War, was imprisoned and escaped. In the late 1930s he was Chief of Staff of the IRA He died on 02 July 1980.

Bloomsbury presents The Northern Bank Job by Glenn Patterson, read by Aidan O'Neill. The true story of one of the biggest bank heists in Irish and British history – and the questions that remain. On a Sunday evening in December 2004, two young men were at home with their families. Both worked for the Northern Bank's cash centre in Belfast. They heard knocks on their front doors. Within a few minutes, masked men invaded their homes, overpowered their loved ones and disabled their electronic devices. It was made clear to the two bank officials that they had a choice: do what they were told or their families would die. Over the course of the following day, £26.5 million was stolen from the Northern Bank: the biggest cash heist in Irish and British history. The two men whose families were held hostage simply re-labelled vast amounts of cash as rubbish and wheeled huge bags to a van waiting outside in the street, yards from Belfast's City Hall. The robbers' knowledge of the inner workings of the bank was astonishing. They deployed a large crew of drivers, guards, watchers and gunmen. It was immediately obvious that only one organization had the ability to plan and execute such an audacious, minutely-planned robbery: the Irish Republican Army. But the IRA was supposed to be demobilized as a result of the Good Friday Peace Agreement signed six years earlier. The leaders of Sinn Féin (who were also leaders of the IRA) vehemently denied they had anything to do with it. No-one believed them. The governments in London, Dublin and Washington were outraged. Yet no one was ever been convicted of any crime relating to the heist and little more than two years later, Sinn Féin was in government in Northern Ireland. In the wake of the twentieth anniversary of this bizarre robbery, Glenn Patterson builds on his popular BBC podcast to shed new light on the story of the infamous heist, the victims, the organizers and the abortive, at times comically inept, attempts to find the people who carried it out.

COBRA seeks world domination; and when put to the test, any world will do. Now loose on Valhalla, hordes of COBRA Troopers swarm the beaten grass and choppy air to follow the lead of their high command. This expansion includes one Common Hero, one 4-figure Common Squad, and two army cards. COBRA Troopers strengthen each other when fighting alongside unique COBRA heroes and can activate their powerful leaders before their own turn. Above the battlefield, the COBRA Flight Pod rains down explosive air-to-ground missiles while ready to jump into action at a moment's notice. Together, these forces bring ruthless precision and aerial superiority to your Heroscape battles. Requires a Heroscape Battle Box of Master Set to play. Compatible with all Heroscape releases.