England Scotland

In the first full-scale biography of Mary Stuart in more than 30 years, John Guy creates an intimate and absorbing portrait of one of history's most famous women, depicting her world and her place in the sweep of history with stunning immediacy. Bringing together all surviving documents and uncovering a trove of new sources for the first time, Guy dispels the popular image of Mary Queen of Scots as a romantic leading lady - achieving her ends through feminine wiles - and establishes her as the intellectual and political equal of Elizabeth I.

Eighteenth-century Scotland is famed for generating many of the enlightened ideas which helped to shape the modern world. But there was in the same period another side to the history of the nation. Many of Scotland's people were subjected to coercive and sometimes violent change, as traditional ways of life were overturned by the "rational" exploitation of land use. The Scottish Clearances is a superb and highly original account of this sometimes terrible process, which changed the Lowland countryside forever, as it also did, more infamously, the old society of the Highlands.

Who formed the first literate society? Who invented our modern ideas of democracy and free market capitalism? The Scots. As historian and author Arthur Herman reveals, in the 18th and 19th centuries Scotland made crucial contributions to science, philosophy, literature, education, medicine, commerce, and politics - contributions that have formed and nurtured the modern West ever since. This book is not just about Scotland: it is an exciting account of the origins of the modern world.

During the first millennium AD the most northerly part of Britain evolved into the country known today as Scotland. The transition was a long process of social and political change driven by the ambitions of powerful warlords. At first these men were tribal chiefs, Roman generals, or rulers of small kingdoms.

Strange Tales of Scotland all deal with a particular aspect of Scottish mysteries. You'll learn of the ghost that appeared at the wedding of King Alexander II, and of monsters such as the Shellycoat and Water-horse that were thought to inhabit Scotland’s lochs...Finally, we have a look at the legend of the phantom armies of Scotland; soldiers who refuse to fade away even centuries after their wars have been fought, and their causes faded in history. Welcome to the Strange Tales of Scotland.

Experience the sweeping saga of Scotland's history in a whole new way with this audiobook narrated by Graham Mack. Through Mack's passionate and eloquent voice, you will be transported to the rugged landscapes and vibrant cities of Scotland, where centuries of history come to life. From the ancient kingdoms of the Picts and Scots to the rise of the clans and the battles for independence, this audiobook covers it all.

Want to discover how a small country on the edge of Northern Europe packs an almighty historical punch? Scottish History for Dummies is your guide to the story of Scotland and its place within the historical narratives of Britain, Europe, and the rest of the world. You'll find out how Scotland rose from the ashes to forge its own destiny, understand the impact of Scottish historical figures such as William Wallace, Robert the Bruce, and David Hume and be introduced to the wonderful world of Celtic religion, architecture, and monuments.

Covering the Ice Age to the recent Scottish Referendum, the acclaimed historian and author explores the history of the Scottish nation. Focusing on key moments such as the Battle of Bannockburn and the Jacobite risings, Moffat also features other episodes in history that are perhaps less well documented. From prehistoric timber halls to inventions and literature, Moffat's epic explores the drama of battle, change, loss, and innovation interspersed with the lives of ordinary Scottish folk, the men and women who defined a nation.

Kit Adderley is the worst man in England, a bored libertine who’ll do anything to entertain himself, including kidnapping the strong-minded, freckled dab of a girl promised to his partner in crime. Bryony Marton is trapped in a quiet life and looking for escape, when her awful fiancé’s best friend inadvertently offers it. Everything would be fine if he hadn’t kidnapped her pretty young cousin as well. And now there’s a handsome young Bow Street Runner chasing them..!

His priceless discovery will make history… if someone doesn’t steal it first. Darwin Lacroix needs to avenge his family’s disgrace. Archaeologists dismissed their claims of Roman treasure buried in the far north, laughing off an ancient scroll found under Mt. Vesuvius. Until now. A recently uncovered diamond cache in Iceland proves the existence of a long-lost fortune. Darwin rushes to Reykjavik, but when a powerful cartel joins the hunt, his quest becomes a race to reveal the mother lode first. With a volcanologist and an unsavory diamond expert on board, Darwin’s search for riches...

NEW FOR 2022 – STAND-ALONE, #19 IN THE SERIES. MEET MAVERICK BRITISH DETECTIVE DI SKELGILL... "A COMPELLING BRITISH CRIME MYSTERY." EVIL LIES UNDETECTED. When shepherd Jud Hope finds an American passport in a fox’s earth, a connection is made to an unidentified fatality – an elderly female walker who fell to her death in a treacherous rocky gill near Ambleside. Meanwhile, a spate of ‘nighthawker’ incidents sees ancient monuments desecrated under cover of darkness. The spotlight falls upon Derek Shaw, a museum curator exploring Cumbria’s Roman heritage. Onto this stage emerges a ...

NEW FOR 2024 – STAND-ALONE, #22 IN THE SERIES. MEET MAVERICK BRITISH DETECTIVE DI SKELGILL... "A COMPELLING BRITISH CRIME MYSTERY." DRIFTING ABSENTLY in The Doghouse on Bassenthwaite Lake, Skelgill has a feeling that he is being watched. From a wheelchair in the adjoining grounds of Duck Hall Nursing Home an elderly man looks on. They exchange a wave; it becomes a regular occurrence. And when later Skelgill engages with his bankside supporter he learns of his tragic circumstances. The helpless man has surely fallen prey to unscrupulous next of kin. As Father Time looms, there ensues a ...

Ghosts walk among us—dare to uncover their stories? From fog-drenched castles and haunted graveyards to restless spirits in historic inns, the United Kingdom is home to some of the world’s most chilling ghost stories. Across England, Scotland, Wales, and Ireland, spectral figures and whispered legends have left their mark on history—and continue to terrify visitors to this day. Inside Haunted UK, you’ll discover: 👻 The Tower of London’s Ghostly Prisoners – Apparitions of Anne Boleyn and the Princes in the Tower still roam the infamous stronghold. 👻 Leap Castle’s Sinister...

STAND-ALONE MURDER MYSTERY, #11 IN THE SERIES. MEET MAVERICK BRITISH DETECTIVE DI SKELGILL... "MAD, BAD AND JUST A LITTLE BIT COZY."WHEN BEAUTIFUL YOUNG SOCIALITE Scarlett Liddell apparently commits suicide during a ‘Murder Mystery Weekend’, extravagantly staged at a Lakeland castle, the coroner calls in DI Skelgill to tie up the loose ends. Post mortem results, however, cast doubt upon the provisional verdict – and circumstantial evidence begins to point to one obvious suspect – the woman’s multi-millionaire husband, Will Liddell. And when Will Liddell is accused of a separate ...

STAND-ALONE MURDER MYSTERY, #15 IN THE SERIES. MEET MAVERICK BRITISH DETECTIVE DI SKELGILL... "MAD, BAD AND JUST A LITTLE BIT COZY."VIRILE; HANDSOME; RUTHLESS. When gamekeeper Lawrence Melling takes over at traditional Lakeland sporting estate Shuteham Hall he soon ruffles the feathers of not only elderly Lord Edward Bullingdon and his younger model wife Miranda, but also their adult offspring and fellow estate workers. Meanwhile local conservationists perceive an existential threat to rare hen harriers nesting on nearby Over Moor. And when Miranda’s jewellery worth a six-figure sum goes ...

Her plans for her Europe trip didn’t include falling in love! When Tiffany Gallagher flies to London to spend the holidays with her family, volunteering at a homeless shelter on Christmas Day isn’t part of her plan. Nor is having to travel to Edinburgh with Mac, the grump and cynical wounded Scottish photojournalist also volunteering at the shelter, to get the New Year's Eve she'd dreamed of, a Scottish Hogmanay. Returning to London, she sets up an ambitious back-to-work partnership between the shelter and Pettett & Mayfield's department store. But her scheme means she and Mac are ...

STAND-ALONE MURDER MYSTERY, #3 IN THE SERIES. MEET MAVERICK BRITISH DETECTIVE DI SKELGILL... "MAD, BAD AND JUST A LITTLE BIT COZY."WHEN A MAN IS FOUND STRANGLED by a climbing rope beneath the Lake District's notorious Sharp Edge, it is assumed he is the victim of a tragic accident. But Detective Inspector Skelgill suspects otherwise, and his fears are borne out when a second corpse is discovered close to Striding Edge. Soon it appears that a ritualistic serial killer stalks Cumbria's fells. As the body count increases, Skelgill must determine the connection between the seemingly randomly ...

STAND-ALONE, #18 IN THE SERIES. MEET MAVERICK DETECTIVE DI SKELGILL... "A COMPELLING BRITISH CRIME MYSTERY." A BLIND EYE TURNED, AN INJUSTICE DONE. High in lonely Swinesdale, notorious burglars Jake and Boris Baddun perish in a burnt-out stolen Mercedes. Known associate Dale Spooner leaves his biological signature and the predatory DI Alec Smart moves in for the kill. Spooner is convicted, and now languishes in jail. A rumour reaches Skelgill: Spooner is innocent and can prove it – a cast-iron alibi, a video on a hidden mobile phone. But Spooner will not talk. At stake is the safety of ...

THE LAST WOMAN TO BE TRANSPORTED FROM CUMBRIA BARELY OF AGE, eighteen-year-old Flora Mary Graham was found guilty by a jury of twelve good Kendal men and true of the murder in his prime of the Seventh Earl of Fellside, by striking him about the head and sending him to his death in Blind Beck, the town’s stream running in violent spate on the stormy night of Halloween, 1852. Apprehended at the scene bearing a babe in arms, the child swaddled and soaked, three gold sovereigns were found in Flora’s possession, half a year’s wages for a servant girl such as she. The motive ascribed was ...

Amidst the turmoil of the battle for the Scottish throne, bonny red-haired Meghan Innes and darkly handsome Black William meet at a Mayday celebration. They delight in the blush of newfound love until Meghan learns that Black William is actually William Bruce, cousin to the self-proclaimed king of Scotland, and enemy to her own clan. But when Meghan’s father is captured by the English, she must swallow her pride and appeal to King Robert and his cousin William for help in freeing her father. Forced into each other's company, can they conquer their differences and rekindle their love? War ...