English Middle Ages

Like the shinobi, more commonly known as the ninja, the assassin is yet another fabled figure with ancient roots that remains astonishingly relevant to this day. Assassins in the context of contemporary pop culture often conjure up images of brooding, silver-tongued individuals in peak physique, equipped with impeccable style, flawless marksmanship, and exemplary hand-to-hand combat skills.

It is June in the Year of Our Lord 1143 when Elave, young clerk to William of Lythwood, returns from a pilgrimage to the Holy Land with his elderly master's body. His mission is twofold, to bury William in his home abbey of St. Peter and St. Paul, and to deliver a dowry to William's adopted daughter Fortunata. But Elave, suspected of harboring views inimical to church doctrine, is held for ecclesiastical trial. And when Aldwin, the Lythwood family clerk hired in Elave's absence, is stabbed to death, Elave is incarcerated not only for heresy, but for murder. Fortunata's dowry, an intricately carved box with mysterious contents, holds the key to the mysteries that spring up around Elave and the Lythwood family. Shrewd and patient, Brother Cadfael is at his best here. Performed by Tony Award-winning actor Derek Jacobi, this sixteenth chronicle of Brother Cadfael is sure to delight old friends and new fans.

Kevin and Ginny are best friends. They enjoy spending their summer vacations exploring Sharper's Woods, coming up with neat experiments, pretending to be Sherlock Holmes and Mister Watson, and sometimes just sitting in the clubhouse of The Holmes and Watson Mysterious Events and Objects Consortium. They are the only members of the club, but that doesn't stop them from having fun. Sometimes their exploring gets them into trouble, either for going somewhere they shouldn't have or by finding something that was better left unfound. In this case, it is a strange metal object, a talisman, which ...

7 Heroes of the Faith is a brief glimpse into the lives of people who have had a profound influence for Christ in the world. Their stories of courage, faithfulness, sacrifice and perseverance will inspire all who seek to follow in the footsteps of Christ.

There’s something you need to know about Colin Quigley—something he wished everyone knew—he’s just quiet, there’s nothing actually wrong with him. He’s not weird, he’s not creepy, and he doesn’t have a medical condition. Colin simply doesn’t talk much. In fact, his talk-capacity is only three-hundred and thirteen words. Once he reaches that limit, things get ugly. He becomes tired, grumpy, and eventually shuts down completely. Luckily, Colin has discovered a few tricks to keep his talk-capacity under control. He sits by himself on the bus, rushes through meals to avoid ...

Magic pulses bright in Arden, a world where humans who craft magic have been at war and separated for hundreds of years. Now a new era has dawned, the unicorns have returned, and the prime minister has decreed that apprentices from all four guilds will learn in the newly formed Unicorn Academy. But peace is tenuous: As rumors spread of dark magic and of unicorns disappearing, twelve-year-old apprentice Olivia Hayes is caught between her joy at newfound magical abilities at the academy and proving to everyone that her older sister, Laurel, is NOT a unicorn poacher.

If a knight captures a lady, can she steal his heart? With one careless roll of the dice, Baron Lindsey Fordyce gambles away his beautiful daughter Rowena. Spirited away to an imposing castle, Rowena finds herself pressed into the service of a dark and forbidding knight accused of murder…and much more. Handsome, brooding Sir Gareth of Caerleon has spent years waiting for his chance for revenge. But when he seeks to use the fair Rowena to slay the ghosts of his past, he finds himself ensnared in a tender trap of his own making…a trap he can only escape by surrendering his heart. Book 1 ...

Charlemagne was easily one of the most fascinating figures of Western civilization, as well as the most heroic and romantic. The 47 years of his reign marked some of the most significant and far reaching events of the Middle Ages. Undoubtedly, it was his enlightened vision for Europe that resulted in the Carolingian Renaissance, a period of cultural flowering that never really ceased to develop, and which led in a straight line directly to that period of astonishing achievement we now call the High Gothic. Even in the 21st century, we still hear the echoes of his deeds in the historical events that unfold today.

Charlie's perfectly ordinary life has been unraveling ever since his war journalist father was injured in Afghanistan. When his father heads from California to Virginia for medical treatment, Charlie reluctantly travels cross-country with his boy-crazy sister, unruly brothers, and a mysterious new family friend. He decides that if he can spot all the birds that he and his father were hoping to see someday along the way, then everything might just turn out okay.

A history of Burgundy could more accurately be described as the "history of the Burgundies", because at different points between 406 and 1795, there were at least 10 distinct entities known as "Burgundy". One of the least known of these was the Kingdom of the Burgundians, which lasted from 406-534. This early dominion developed into the Kingdom of Burgundy under the Merovingians and was finally subsumed into the next Kingdom of Burgundy, often known as Cis-Jurane Burgundy, founded in 877.

The Picts were an ancient nation who ruled most of northern and eastern Scotland during the Dark Ages. Despite their historical importance, they remain shrouded in myth and misconception. Absorbed by the kingdom of the Scots in the ninth century, they lost their unique identity, their language, and their vibrant artistic culture. Among their few surviving traces are standing stones decorated with incredible skill and covered with enigmatic symbols.

Strong-willed and free spirited, lady-in-waiting Marjory de Warenne long ago gave her body and soul to the charming and beguiling Earl of Warwick, Guy de Beauchamp. But her family never approved of the pairing. Now, on the eve of war and an arranged marriage to another suitor, Jory yearns for the man who could make all of her dreams come true.

Much has been written about Western intervention during the breakup of Yugoslavia, and whether it made matters worse, prevented worse atrocities, or was simply ineffective. In early 1992, however, what was clear was that Europe was hopelessly divided over the best course of action to take towards Yugoslavia, and after several years of fighting, the Bosnian War was one of the most violent conflagrations in Europe since the end of World War II.

This audiobook is perfect if you love history or just want to know more cool facts. It’s like a time machine that takes you back to amazing times in history! With 1500 interesting facts bringing history to life, you’ll see the past in a whole new way.

Jenny has it all planned - an exciting, seaside adventure for Jason and Sammy, with a cave, a boat, a dangerous enemy and lots of scary moments - and a happy ending too if they do what she says. But will they do what she says?

Kate McAllister is desperate for a change. Something to hit refresh and erase the pain of her mother leaving town without her. So when a group of popular girls folds Kate into their clique, it feels like the answer to all her problems - even if it means ditching Haddie, her childhood bestie. But when Kate’s new friends decide that Haddie is their next target, Kate becomes a passive participant in a cruel incident that could have killed Haddie...had Kate not stepped in, at the last minute, and saved her.

A historian and a psychologist meet a mysterious character in the Basilica of Santa Maria in San Sebastián, Spain: Hugo de Armagnac, a Templar who died in the Templar leper colony in Arizkun, Navarre. This encounter will lead the two protagonists to an exciting adventure and to discover all the mysteries of the Temple, thanks to the author's rigorous research.

The historical Merlin was no rough magician: he was a learned figure from the cutting edge of medieval science and adept in astrology, cosmology, prophecy, and natural magic, as well as being a seer and a proto-alchemist. His powers were convincingly real—and useful, for they helped to add credibility to the "long-lost" history of Britain which first revealed them to a European public. Merlin's prophecies reassuringly foretold Britain's path, establishing an ancient ancestral line and linking biblical prophecy with more recent times. Merlin helped to put British history into world history.

TOOTS. TREMORS. TOTAL CHAOS. Just when Max Muckworthy and Gertie McStumble (orGassy Gertie as she hates to be known) thought Gunkville couldn’t get any stinkier, a mysterious fartquake splits the town in two—and out stomps a monster with a backside so powerful it could flatten cities. Meet Fartypantszilla: a skyscraper-sized, thunderbutt lizard with chili-breath, burp-blast feet, and a bad attitude. As the government rolls in with soap cannons and lavender bombs, Max and Zara team up with their old gooey friend Sludge and a heroic warthog named Puddles to uncover the truth: ...

When Richard Fidler came across the account of Ibn Fadlan—a tenth-century Arab diplomat who travelled all the way from Baghdad to the cold riverlands of modern-day Russia—he was struck by how modern his voice was, like that of a 21st century time-traveller dropped into a medieval wilderness. On further investigation, Fidler discovered this was just one of countless reports from Arab and Persian travellers of their adventures in medieval China, India, Africa and Byzantium. Put together, he saw these stories formed a crazy quilt picture of a lost world.