Kirjahaku

A brief yet detailed introduction to the life and controversies surrounding one of England's best known Kings; Richard III reigned for only 2 years, but his reputation has grown and intrigued generations over the centuries. His body was discovered in an amazing twist of fate in 2012, and his re-internment in Leicester Cathedral in 2015 created yet more controversy for this most enigmatic King of England.This new pocket sized edition was updated in 2023

This guide, How to Survive in Ration-Book Britain, will help the time-traveller who journeys back to mid-twentieth century Britain. From 1939 to 1945, the country is involved in World War Two and even after victory is achieved, Britain is cash-strapped and years of austerity follow. Throughout, food, clothing, fuel, furniture and items we take for granted today are rationed and people are scrimping, scraping and using their imagination just to get by. As cities and towns are bombed, lives lost and homes destroyed, men are called to serve the country, children are evacuated and women are expected to ‘do their bit’ on the ‘Home Front’, maintaining the house as a place of welcome, boosting morale and stretching meagre food allowances to keep everyone fed and fit. This is no easy life yet people find lighter moments and ‘carry on carrying on’. Whatever the disaster, somebody will find a way to make tea. The English ‘cuppa’ is the answer to almost every problem. You have to admire their spirit. Enjoy the experience as this book helps you to survive the hazards and live life to the full in Ration-Book Britain.

Imagine you were transported back in time to Tudor England and had to start a new life there, without smartphones, internet or social media. When transport means walking or, if you’re lucky, horseback, how will you know where you are or where to go? Where will you live and where will you work? What will you eat and what shall you wear? And who can you turn to if you fall ill or are mugged in the street, or God forbid if you upset the king? In a period when execution by beheading was the fate of thousands how can you keep your head in Tudor England? All these questions and many more are answered in this new guidebook for time-travellers: How to Survive in Tudor England. A handy self-help guide with tips and suggestions to make your visit to the 16th century much more fun, this lively and engaging book will help the reader deal with the new experiences they may encounter and the problems that might occur. Enjoy interviews with the celebrities of the day, and learn some new words to set the mood for your time-travelling adventure. Have an exciting visit but be sure to keep this book to hand.

THIS BOOK COULD SAVE YOUR LIFE! If you are planning to travel back to the England of Anglo-Saxon times and begin a new life without technology, how will you manage? If you were a king, a thegn or even a slave, what rights do you have under the law? Are women treated well by their husbands, and if you become sick, what are your chances of recovery? How might you earn your living, and the biggest worry: what to do about those fearsome Vikings? All these questions and more are answered in this self-help guide for time-travellers. It explores the difficulties you may encounter and the problems that might occur, especially as you are a newcomer in this very different world. Fear not: keep this little volume by you; it will help you find your place in society, learn the language and make friends. You will also meet some of the celebrities of the day, from Alfred the Great to the Venerable Bede, and more humble folk such as Tatberht of Lundenwic and Ardith the local baxter. Learn how to make bread and tell a great story; enjoy the mead, and the beauties of Anglo-Saxon art and jewellery. And if you do find yourself involved in a Viking attack, at least you will know your assailants are well groomed - and afterwards, both sides know how to have a great time in the mead-hall. So join in, but keep this book handy, just in case.

Have you ever wondered what life was like for the ordinary housewife in the Middle Ages? Or how much power a medieval lady really had? Find out all about medieval housewives, peasant women, grand ladies, women in trade and women in the church in this fascinating book. More has been written about medieval women in the last twenty years than in the two whole centuries before that. Female authors of the medieval period have been rediscovered and translated; queens are no longer thought of as merely decorative brood mares for their royal husbands and have merited their own biographies. In the past, historians have tended to look at what women could not do. In this book we will look at the lives of medieval women in a more positive light, finding out what rights and opportunities they enjoyed and attempting to uncover the real women beneath the layers of dust accumulated over the centuries.

Our capital city has always been a thriving and colourful place, full of diverse and determined individuals developing trade and finance, exchanging gossip and doing business. Abandoned by the Romans, rebuilt by the Saxons, occupied by the Vikings and reconstructed by the Normans, London would become the largest trade and financial centre, dominating the world in later centuries. London has always been a brilliant, vibrant and eclectic place – Henry V was given a triumphal procession there after his return from Agincourt and the Lord Mayor’s river pageant was an annual medieval spectacular. William the Conqueror built the Tower, Thomas Becket was born in Cheapside, Wat Tyler led the peasants in revolt across London Bridge and Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales was the first book produced on Caxton’s new printing press in Westminster. But beneath the colour and pageantry lay dirt, discomfort and disease, the daily grind for ordinary folk. Like us, they had family problems, work worries, health concerns and wondered about the weather.

Conjuring up a time when butchers and executioners knew more about anatomy than university-trained physicians, the phrase ‘medieval medicine’ sounds horrific to those of us with modern ideas on hygiene, instant pain relief and effective treatments. In those days no one could allay the dread of plague or the many other horrible diseases we have now forgotten. However, the medieval medical profession provided patients with everything from cosmetic procedures and dietary advice to life-saving surgeries and post-operative antibiotics. Intriguingly, alongside such expertise, some still believed that unicorns, dragons and elephants supplied vital medical ingredients and that horoscopes could predict the sex of unborn babies. This book explores the labyrinth of strange ideas and unlikely remedies that make up the weird, wonderful and occasionally beneficial world of medieval medicine.

Isaac Newton and the England he knew: the people, places and events that shaped history’s greatest scientist. Across nine decades, Isaac Newton bestrode the world of science, becoming a colossus of experimentation, discovery and philosophy. How did a seventeenth-century Lincolnshire farm-boy become one of the most influential scientists of all time, his work still relevant to us today and for our future? This fascinating new biography explores not only Newton’s world and his times but the earlier ideas that were the foundation for his breakthroughs in science and those people around him who influenced his work. His later career at the Royal Mint and his heretical views on religion are considered as extensions of his philosophy. Newton’s ideas underpinned the Enlightenment that gave birth to the modern world of science and material progress. From school mathematics to space exploration, from laser surgical techniques to artificial intelligence, Newton is here in our everyday lives: the man who changed the world.

The medieval era is often associated with dynastic struggles, gruesome wars and the formidable influence of the Church. But what about the everyday experience of the royal subjects and common people? Here, alongside the coronations, diplomatic dealings and key battles, can be found the fabric of medieval life as it was really lived, in its folk songs, recipes and local gossip. With a diverse range of entries - one for each day of the year - historian Toni Mount provides an almanac for lovers of all things medieval. A detailed picture is gathered from original sources such as chronicles, manor court rolls, coroners’ rolls and the records of city councils. We learn not only of the royals and nobles of official history but also the quarrels of a miscellany of characters, including William and Christopher of York, Nalle Kittewritte who stole her neighbours’ washing, and Margery from Hereford who was murdered by an Oxford student. The world in which they laboured, loved and lived is vividly reimagined, one day at a time.

When Seb Foxley discovers a child's body in his workshop and another lad goes missing, our medieval sleuth is perplexed at every turn. His investigations take him across London Bridge to Bankside in Southwark, where he becomes embroiled in the sinister shadows of the city's underworld. Bankside is a labyrinth of depravity and crime where every harlot intends the downfall of respectable men and every scoundrel has a secret. In a netherworld unlike anything he's experienced before, can Seb unravel the murky mysteries of The Mermaid Tavern, recover the stolen lad and restore him to his family?Meanwhile, all is not as it should be in the Foxley household and lives are in danger as Seb's old nemesis returns to London. More than one noble lord is mad, bad and dangerous to know. About to become a father for the second time, Seb is arrested as a murder suspect. With his apprentices behaving badly, how is our hero ever going to win the day?The eighth Sebastian Foxley medieval murder mystery from bestselling author Toni Mount takes us deep into a dark world once again.

When fellow craftsmen with debts to pay are found dead in the most horrid circumstances, fears escalate. Can Seb Foxley solve the puzzles that baffle the authorities with his latest adventure in the filthy streets of medieval London?

Murder lurks at the heart of the royal court in the rabbit warren of the Palace of Westminster. The year is 1480. Treason is afoot amongst the squalid grandeur and opulent filth of this medieval world of contrasts. Even the Office of the King's Secretary hides a dangerous secret.Meeting with lords and lackeys, clerks, courtiers and the mighty King Edward himself, can Seb Foxley decipher the encoded messages and name the spy?Will Seb be able to prevent the murder of the most important heir in England?All will be revealed as we join Seb Foxley and his abrasive brother Jude in the latest intriguing adventure amid the sordid shadows of fifteenth-century London.AUTHOR INTERVIEW1) How do you manage to keep the excitement going in your murder mystery series? I hope I am keeping the excitement going now we're on to the 10th novel in the Seb Foxley series of murder mystery books. Fortunately, the late 15th century was a vibrant period in English history with a lot happening so it's easy to find interesting challenges for my hero, his friends and family and quite often these can be based on true events. I'll let you into a secret - the characters often invent the ideas, saying and doing things that surprise me and the story can go in an unexpected direction which, if it excites me, I hope with excite the readers. 2) Were there any specific challenges when writing The Colour of Rubies? There were some challenges in this historical novel because I had to use some Italian phrases. These present two problems. Firstly, I can't speak medieval Italian which varied from one city state to another in those times, so I had to use modern Italian and I apologise if I've made any errors. Secondly, I also have to allow for readers who don't know any Italian, modern or otherwise, so it's just as well my English characters need a translation as well. 3) Do you prefer writing or researching the history behind your novels? The writing and researching of any books for adults are two distinct parts of an author's work. I love researching not just the period in which the novel is set but centuries on either side. For example, in 'The Colour of Cold Blood', a prison escape method was based on a true event that took place in the 17th century. The events in 'The Colour of Betrayal' closely followed a murder that was made to look like death by suicide in the 13th century. 'Rubies' evolved from my research into the life and mysteries of the playwright-cum-spy Christopher Marlowe in the 1590s. Once a good chunk of research is done, then I can lose myself in building the fictional narrative which is great fun and there's always the chance - we're ever hopeful - of coming up with a "best seller". 4) Have any characters in your book stolen your heart, or is Sebastian Foxley still your favourite? Oh, Seb Foxley still holds my heart but he's been criticised for being a bit too perfect, though I've noticed he's maturing into a bolder character recently, more assertive since his wife Emily's death. I've always liked Jude, though he's an utter pain in the neck and young Jack was fun in the earlier books, both adding their own dimension to life in medieval London. Rose is very likeable and good for Seb so these two are evolving together. Life is moving on as Seb becomes a respectable citizen with greater responsibilities but still with a nose for any murders, mysteries and historical intrigues. I hope readers enjoy my Seb Foxley series as much as I enjoy writing them.

It's May 1480 in the City of London.After workmen discover a nun's body in a newly-opened tomb, talented artist and bookseller Seb Foxley is persuaded to assist in solving the mystery of her death.Evil is once more abroad in the crowded, grimy streets of medieval London and even in the grandest of royal mansions, where a member of the Duke of Gloucester's household meets an untimely end. And some wicked rogue is setting fires in the city. No house is safe from the hungry flames.Will Seb and his loved ones come to grief when a man returns from the dead and Seb has to appear before the Lord Mayor?Join our hero as he feasts with royalty, struggles to save his business and attempts to unravel this latest medieval murder mystery.

Come with Seb Foxley, Rose and their enigmatic friend Kit, a priest with a shadowy past, as they join a diverse group of pilgrims on what should be an uplifting spiritual journey to Canterbury Cathedral.Beset by natural disasters and unexplained deaths, the dangers become apparent. Encountering outlaws and a fearsome black cat, every step is fraught with peril.Amidst the chaos, Seb finds himself grappling with the mysteries surrounding him, as well as his own demons, while Rose's reunion with her family sets off a chain of events with unforeseen consequences.But the greatest threat lies in the shadows, where sinister forces unleash evil upon the unsuspecting pilgrims. In a world where trust is a scarce commodity and even allies may harbour dark intentions, Seb must uncover the truth and protect his fellow travellers.Prepare to be enthralled by a tale of betrayal, intrigue and redemption as Seb Foxley races against time to unravel the malevolent secrets hidden within the heart of the pilgrimage. Who can you trust when even friends prove false?