Medieval City

Life in a Medieval City is the classic account of the year 1250 in the city of Troyes, in modern-day France. Acclaimed historians Frances and Joseph Gies focus on a high point of medieval civilization - before war and the Black Death ravaged Europe - providing a fascinating window into the sophistication of a period we too often dismiss as backward. Urban life in the Middle Ages revolved around the home, often a mixed-use dwelling for burghers with a store or workshop on the ground floor and living quarters upstairs.

For many, the medieval world seems dark and foreign - a miraculous, brutal, and irrational time of superstition and strange relics. The pursuit of heretics, the Inquisition, the Crusades, and the domination of the "Holy Land" come to mind.

Every hero must be tested . . . Dragonfly Falling is the second book in the critically acclaimed epic fantasy series Shadows of the Apt by Adrian Tchaikovsky, author of the Arthur C. Clarke Award-winning Children of Time. The Wasp Empire’s armies are on the move – and the city of Tark will...

Ancient powers are waking . . . The Scarab Path is the fifth book in the critically acclaimed epic fantasy series Shadows of the Apt by Adrian Tchaikovsky. The war with the Wasp Empire has ended in a bitter stalemate, and Collegium has nothing to show for it but wounded veterans. Cheerwell Maker...

Recent research has revealed that the richest person of all time lived in the 14th century in West Africa and went by many names, including Kankan Musa Keita, Emir of Melle, Lord of the Mines of Wangara, Conqueror of Ghanata, and the Lion of Mali II, but today he is usually referred to as Mansa Musa. Adjusting his wealth to modern values, he was worth about an estimated $400 billion as the Sultan of ancient Mali, which controlled the trade routes across the Sahara Desert.

What happens when merchants become powerful enough to influence kings, control trade routes, and shape the fate of entire cities? For centuries, the Hanseatic League connected the ports of northern Europe through a remarkable commercial network stretching from England to Russia. It had no king, no permanent capital, and no centralized government—yet its merchants dominated vital trade routes, negotiated privileges with rulers, defended their ships, and helped transform the Baltic and North Sea into some of medieval Europe’s busiest commercial highways. The Hanseatic League for Beginners...

Darya has discovered the perfect gift for her daughter's twenty-fifth birthday: an ideal husband. Mina, however, is fed up with her mother's endless matchmaking and grading of available Iranian American bachelors. After Darya's last ill-fated attempt to find Mina a husband, mother and daughter...

Albrech Miller is the younger child of the town of Larroggio’s miller. He has grown up learning the mill’s operation. Al’s mom has also been teaching him to be an adventurer, helping him gain experience for when he can first see his status sheet and start limited adventuring on his own. During the first two times Al and his two friends, Lyr and Charlie, are allowed to go adventuring alone in their zone of the forest, the monsters are highly abnormal for that area. It all points toward a monster surge coming against their town. **** Tales of Morla is based on a system world. A world ...

*A New York Times Book Review Editors’ Choice* From celebrated Yale professor Valerie Hansen, a “vivid” and “astonishingly comprehensive account [that] casts world history in a brilliant new light” (Publishers Weekly, starred review) and shows how bold explorations and daring trade...

An empress demands her birthright . . . The Air War is the eighth book in the critically acclaimed epic fantasy series Shadows of the Apt by Adrian Tchaikovsky. All is in turmoil as the world moves towards war. In Solarno, spies eye one another and ready their knives – while the people of Myna...

All must face the end of days . . . Salute the Dark is the fourth book in the critically acclaimed epic fantasy series Shadows of the Apt by Adrian Tchaikovsky, winner of the Arthur C. Clarke Award. As spymaster Stenworld makes a stand in his home city, others must choose where their loyalties...

Año 1284. Cae la noche en una de las ciudades medievales más bellas del mundo. Poderosas montañas y murallas inexpugnables la protegen de los reinos que la rodean y codician. ¿Te atreves a caminar por sus estrechas calles, por sus empinadas cuestas y sus asombrosos rincones? Empieza a oscurecer. Sientes frío. Escuchas los rumores acerca de las inexplicables muertes que se están sucediendo. De los secretos que esconden los gremios. De la peligrosa mujer encerrada en las mazmorras.

The days of peace are over. Empire in Black and Gold is the first instalment in the critically-acclaimed epic fantasy series Shadows of the Apt by Adrian Tchaikovsky. It is a world populated by kinden – species of human that have taken on the characteristics of animals, from spiders and ants...

Gold, Betrayal, and the "Day Again" King: A True Story of the Battle of Visby. Imagine a king with no land, a puzzle of a country broken into pieces, and a burning desire to rule them all. How a Danish King Stole a City’s Treasure tells the incredible true story of Valdemar Atterdag, the "King Without a Kingdom," who pieced Denmark back together through clever deals and brute force. In the summer of 1361, King Valdemar turned his eyes toward the "Jewel of the Baltic"—the wealthy city of Visby on the island of Gotland. Visby was a city paved with gold, a key member of the powerful ...

Baghdad, 812. A boy chooses a chest of records over his trapped father—and spends the rest of his life insisting the choice was the other way around. Samir ibn Nadir believes violence begins when words fail. His gift for reconciling Arabic, Syriac, and Greek texts carries him from his family's ruined paper workshop into the scholarly and political circles of the Abbasid court. He marries Mariam, a Christian healer who records what patients say when learned books are wrong. He befriends Tughan, a soldier taken into a military system that calls bondage service and service honor. And he ...

Watch a muddy river settlement explode into the ultimate global epicenter of European history and violent revolution. Perfect for your daily commute, this atmospheric journey sweeps you from enlightened grand salons to the barricaded streets of fierce insurrection. Experience the relentless...

A dread ritual casts a deadly shadow . . . Blood of the Mantis is the third novel in Adrian Tchaikovsky's richly imagined Shadows of the Apt series, following Dragonfly Falling. Stenwold must rally his allies for battle against the Empire, even as it seeks a dangerous artifact of enormous power...

Gritty medieval history reveals the shocking reality of everyday survival in a filthy, bustling city. Ditch the shining armor and romantic myths to plunge into a darkly humorous, immersive journey through mud, waste, and deafening noise. Perfect for a gripping daily commute, this rich narrative...

Join the legendary Alexander the Great on one of his most amazing adventures in The Unconquerable City! This exciting installment of the Medieval Battles for Kids series tells the true story of the Siege of Tyre in 332 BC. Alexander has conquered mountains and deserts, but he faces a new challenge: the island city of Tyre. This mighty fortress sits half a mile out to sea, with walls rising 150 feet straight out of the water. When the proud Tyrians refuse to let him enter, Alexander points his sword and declares, "I will build a road to your city and take it!". Discover the incredible ...

The greatest foe is the enemy within . . . Heirs of the Blade is the seventh book in the critically acclaimed epic fantasy series Shadows of the Apt by Adrian Tchaikovsky. Tynisa is on the run, but she cannot escape the demons of her own mind. Amidst the fragmenting provinces of the Dragonfly...