One of our most distinguished historians delivers an authoritative and vivid account of the devastating WWI battle that claimed more than 300,000 lives.At 7:30 am on July 1, 1916, the first Allied soldiers climbed out of their trenches along the Somme River in France and charged out into no-man’s-land toward the barbed wire and machine guns at the German front lines.By the end of this first day of the Allied attack, the British army alone would lose 20,000 men; in the coming months, the fifteen-mile-long territory along the river would erupt into the epicenter of the Great War. The Somme would mark a turning point in both the war and military history, as soldiers saw the first appearance of tanks on the battlefield, the emergence of the air war as a devastating and decisive factor in battle, and more than one million casualties (among them a young Adolf Hitler, who took a fragment in the leg). In just 138 days, 310,000 men died.In this vivid, deeply researched account of one history’s most destructive battles, historian Martin Gilbert tracks the Battle of the Somme through the experiences of footsoldiers (known to the British as the PBI, for Poor Bloody Infantry), generals, and everyone in between. Interwoven with photographs, journal entries, original maps, and documents from every stage and level of planning, The Somme is the most authoritative and affecting account of this bloody turning point in the Great War.“A steadily astonishing piece of work that acts as a worthy remembrance.” —New York Post“His superbly written, absorbing re-creations of innumerable small life-and-death struggles make this book a fitting commemoration of the tragedy.” —Publishers Weekly (starred review) Read more

This historical study of Napoleonic battles and tactics examines firsthand accounts from soldiers’ memoirs, diaries, and letters: “A major work” (David Seymour, Military Illustrated).   In this illuminating volume, historian Rory Muir explores what actually happened in battle during the Napoleonic Wars, putting special focus on how the participants’ feelings and reactions influenced the outcome. Looking at the immediate dynamics of combat, Muir sheds new light on how Napoleon’s tactics worked. This analysis is enhanced with vivid accounts of those who were there—the frightened foot soldier, the general in command, the young cavalry officer whose boils made it impossible to ride, and the smartly dressed aide-de-camp, tripped up by his voluminous pantaloons. Muir considers the interaction of artillery, infantry, and cavalry; the role of the general, subordinate commanders, staff officers, and aides; morale, esprit de corps, soldiers’ attitudes toward death and feelings about the enemy; the plight of the wounded; the difficulty of surrendering; and the way victories were finally decided. He discusses the mechanics of musketry, artillery, and cavalry charges and shows how they influenced the morale, discipline, and resolution of the opposing armies.  "Muir has filled an important gap in the study of the Napoleonic era."—Library Journal Read more

A former New York Times Paris bureau chief explores the Louvre, offering an intimate journey of discovery and revelation.The Louvre is the most famous museum in the world, attracting millions of visitors every year with its masterpieces. In Adventures in the Louvre, Elaine Sciolino immerses herself in this magical space and helps us fall in love with what was once a forbidding fortress.Exploring galleries, basements, rooftops, and gardens, Sciolino demystifies the Louvre, introducing us to her favorite artworks, both legendary and overlooked, and to the people who are the museum’s lifeblood: the curators, the artisans producing frames and engravings, the builders overseeing restorations, the firefighters protecting the aging structure.Blending investigative journalism, travelogue, history, and memoir, Sciolino walks her readers through the museum’s front gates and immerses them in its irresistible, engrossing world of beauty and culture. Adventures in the Louvre reveals the secrets of this grand monument of Paris and basks in its timeless, seductive power. Read more

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Discover the remarkable history of the Napoleonic Wars... Free BONUS Inside! The Napoleonic Wars were a series of conflicts fought between France and various coalitions in Europe between 1803 and 1815 (though some put the start date at 1799). The prelude to the rise of Napoleon Bonaparte and the Napoleonic Wars is the French Revolution, and the conflicts that continued after Napoleon seized power would radically affect Europe and indeed political philosophies not confined by artificial boundaries. When Napoleon rose to power, he had first to get his country on stable financial ground. After he did so, he created a professional, well-trained army that would go on to dominate Europe for years to come. And, it wasn’t only his army that changed the continent; it was also the liberal ideals—including democracy, the abolition of serfdom, and the reduction in power of the church—that would change the course of history and leave an enduring legacy. Discover a plethora of topics such as Prelude to Revolution The Third Coalition: War Breaks Out The Invasion of Russia The Battle of Waterloo Military Legacy Napoleonic Innovations And much more!So if you want a concise and informative book on the Napoleonic Wars, simply scroll up and click the "Buy now" button for instant access! Read more

Soon to be a major motion picture starring Haley Bennett, Tom Sturridge, and Sam Riley!"Narrative history that fizzes with life and feeling.” — Benjamin Wallace, New York Times bestselling author of The Billionaire's VinegarThe New York Times bestselling biography of the visionary young woman who built a champagne empire, became a legend, and showed the world how to live with styleVeuve Clicquot champagne epitomizes glamour, style, and luxury. In The Widow Clicquot, Tilar J. Mazzeo brings to life—for the first time—the fascinating woman behind the iconic yellow label: Barbe-Nicole Clicquot Ponsardin, who, after her husband's death, defied convention by assuming the reins of the fledgling wine business they had nurtured together. Steering the company through dizzying political and financial reversals, she became one of the world's first great businesswomen and one of the richest women of her time.As much a fascinating journey through the process of making this temperamental wine as a biography of a uniquely tempered woman, The Widow Clicquot is the captivating true story of a legend and a visionary. Read more

Petken delivers a compelling story. As the outbreak of war approaches, the spectre of fascism rears its head in England. A rollercoaster story of action and intrigue, I had trouble putting this one down.... Eoin Dempsey, Bestselling author of White Rose, Black Forest, and the Longest Echo.Brinley Knight has a photographic memory. Bored with his mundane job, he accepts an offer from MI5 to become a full-time spy in a shadowy world of espionage. As Britain stands at the edge of war, Brin learns to his cost that ‘defending the realm’ means duty before family.London, 1937. A sniper kills an accountant in a quiet London neighbourhood. Weeks later, the police find two dead German agents in a disused warehouse across the river.South of France, 1938. An English diplomat is found dead at the hotel hosting the Jewish Refugee Crisis Conference. MI5 believe the Abwehr is responsible for all four deaths.Berlin, 1938. Ursula Engel, an ambitious German actress, is out of a job after the Gestapo detain her Jewish cast members and close the theatre. On a trip to France, she meets the charming Gregg Talbot, but is he what and who he claims to be?Hitler’s fifth columnists in Britain emerge from the darkness, as Germany’s military might eyes new territories east of the Rhine. German spies: aristocrats, politicians, wealthy businessmen, anti-Semites, and fascist groups operate in opulent dining rooms and in the back alleys of London’s East-End. Menacing predators, they hunt for information that could aid the Führer’s ambitions and stoke fires of division between the Jews, Communists, and British fascists.Britain is already at war, as the government tries to hold the political parties and British public together before the streets of England burn with hatred and revenge....Petken delivers a high-octane spy thriller. Nobody in this story is who they seem to be. The reader will be stunned by one shocking revelation after another.Marion Kummerow... author of the USA Today bestselling series, Margarete's Journey.“Petken delivers a knockout spy thriller. Fast-paced and filled with suspense, this book has all the ingredients to keep readers enthralled from the first page to last. Epic in scope, it’s another winner.”…Alexa Kang, USA. Today Bestselling author of the “Rose of Anzio series.”“Jana Petken is a master of WWII fiction. Well-researched, her books never disappoint. The Man from Section Five is a powerful and captivating suspense that grabs you from the first page and does not let go until the very end. A true page-turner.”… Kathryn Gauci #1 Bestselling author of The Secret of the Grand Hôtel du Lac. Read more

“Here is the first full translation into English of one of the twentieth century’s few undoubted classics of history.” —The Washington Post Book WorldThe Autumn of the Middle Ages is Johan Huizinga’s classic portrait of life, thought, and art in fourteenth- and fifteenth-century France and the Netherlands. Few who have read this book in English realize that The Waning of the Middle Ages, the only previous translation, is vastly different from the original Dutch, and incompatible will all other European-language translations. For Huizinga, the fourteenth- and fifteenth-century marked not the birth of a dramatically new era in history—the Renaissance—but the fullest, ripest phase of medieval life and thought. However, his work was criticized both at home and in Europe for being “old-fashioned” and “too literary” when The Waning of the Middle Ages was first published in 1919. In the 1924 translation, Fritz Hopman adapted, reduced and altered the Dutch edition—softening Huizinga’s passionate arguments, dulling his nuances, and eliminating theoretical passages. He dropped many passages Huizinga had quoted in their original old French. Additionally, chapters were rearranged, all references were dropped, and mistranslations were introduced. This translation corrects such errors, recreating the second Dutch edition which represents Huizinga’s thinking at its most important stage. Everything that was dropped or rearranged has been restored. Prose quotations appear in French, with translations preprinted at the bottom of the page, mistranslations have been corrected.   “A once pathbreaking piece of historical interpretation . . . This new translation will no doubt bring Huizinga and his pioneering work back into the discussion of historical interpretation.” —Rosamond McKitterick, The New York Times Book Review Read more

Book Five coming Summer 2024!May 1940. The phoney war ends and the violence begins.“Petken has a way of making her readers believe they are in the thick of the action, and in ‘Under the Blanket of War,’ she continues to deliver a visual landscape that is both terrifying and insightful. I look forward to the next instalment of Brinley Knight, the MI5 officer who breaks all the rules to fulfil his duty.”Alexa Kang, USA Today bestselling author.Brin continues to fight a silent war flooded with conspiracies and intrigue. As political tensions in Britain rise, he witnesses the fascists’ plans to conduct a violent coup. If successful, they would bring down the government and replace King George VI with the Duke of Windsor. Yet even with this imminent threat, the new home secretary refuses to intern the British plotters hiding amongst the aristocracy and Parliament benches.Furious with Home Secretary Anderson's delay, Brin continues to go above his superiors’ heads and reaches out to the only man with the power to act now to destroy the fascist movements and bring them down forever.Tommy finds himself surrounded by German forces as he tries to make a run for Dunkirk. The situation is hopeless. He cannot outrun the German Panzers or infantry units sweeping through Northern France. Will he reach the beach before the last British warship sails away and leaves him to his fate?The Americans are not at war, but an American diplomat spying for the Germans has stolen top secret telegrams between Winston Churchill and President Roosevelt. In them is information that could end all cooperation between the US and Britain, and once again, MI5 employs the services of Jameson Weldon, the international correspondent for the New York Times.“In this the fourth book in the ‘Man from MI5’ series, Jana Petken ramps up the tension and produces a compelling fast-paced story set in London, Berlin and Paris. A superb read." Read more

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WINNER OF THE PULITZER PRIZEONE OF THE MOST ACCLAIMED WORKS OF HISTORY IN RECENT YEARSWinner of the Francis Parkman Prize from the Society of American Historians • Winner of the American Library in Paris Book Award • Winner of the Council on Foreign Relations Arthur Ross Book Award • Finalist for the Cundill Prize in Historical Literature NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BYThe Washington Post • The Christian Science Monitor • The Globe and Mail Written with the style of a great novelist and the intrigue of a Cold War thriller, Embers of War is a landmark work that will forever change your understanding of how and why America went to war in Vietnam. Tapping newly accessible diplomatic archives in several nations, Fredrik Logevall traces the path that led two Western nations to tragically lose their way in the jungles of Southeast Asia. He brings to life the bloodiest battles of France’s final years in Indochina—and shows how, from an early point, a succession of American leaders made disastrous policy choices that put America on its own collision course with history. An epic story of wasted opportunities and deadly miscalculations, Embers of War delves deep into the historical record to provide hard answers to the unanswered questions surrounding the demise of one Western power in Vietnam and the arrival of another. Eye-opening and compulsively readable, Embers of War is a gripping, heralded work that illuminates the hidden history of the French and American experiences in Vietnam.  Praise for Embers of War “A balanced, deeply researched history of how, as French colonial rule faltered, a succession of American leaders moved step by step down a road toward full-blown war.”—Pulitzer Prize citation   “This extraordinary work of modern history combines powerful narrative thrust, deep scholarly authority, and quiet interpretive confidence.”—Francis Parkman Prize citation   “A monumental history . . . a widely researched and eloquently written account of how the U.S. came to be involved in Vietnam . . . certainly the most comprehensive review of this period to date.”—The Wall Street Journal   “Superb . . . a product of formidable international research.”—The Washington Post Read more

NATIONAL BESTSELLER • In this witty and warm-hearted account, Peter Mayle tells what it is like to realize a long-cherished dream and actually move into a 200-year-old stone farmhouse in the remote country of the Lubéron with his wife and two large dogs. He endures January's frosty mistral as it comes howling down the Rhône Valley, discovers the secrets of goat racing through the middle of town, and delights in the glorious regional cuisine. A Year in Provence transports us into all the earthy pleasures of Provençal life and lets us live vicariously at a tempo governed by seasons, not by days. Read more

The unparalleled, classic work of history that recreates the battle that changed World War II—the Allied invasion of Normandy.The Longest Day is Cornelius Ryan’s unsurpassed account of D-Day, a book that endures as a masterpiece of military history. In this compelling tale of courage and heroism, glory and tragedy, Ryan painstakingly recreates the fateful hours that preceded and followed the massive invasion of Normandy to retell the story of an epic battle that would turn the tide against world fascism and free Europe from the grip of Nazi Germany. This book, first published in 1959, is a must for anyone who loves history, as well as for anyone who wants to better understand how free nations prevailed at a time when darkness enshrouded the earth. Read more

Book Six Coming January 2025Jana Petken continues her Brinley Knight series, ‘The Man from MI5’ with a fast-paced story that doesn't fail to shock and surprise its readers.“Petken delivers another compelling and evocative thriller has all the ingredients to keep readers enthralled from the first page to last. Epic in scope, it’s another winner.”…Alexa Kang, USA. Today Bestselling author of the “Rose of Anzio series.”Britain buckles under a Luftwaffe Blitz, but its population does not break.After Japan attacks Pearl Harbor, Brin accompanies Winston Churchill across the Atlantic for historic meetings with President Roosevelt. While in Washington D.C., he receives devastating news about a colleague and friend, and of a suspected German spy operating within section five’s top secret double-cross programme.Anton Ziegler, Gerhardt von Kessler's replacement in the Abwehr, possesses the same enthusiasm for his job as his predecessor. No one crosses him and lives.“From London, Paris and Berlin, Jana Petken brings a fast-paced story of action and intrigue. I had trouble putting this one down.”... Eoin Dempsey, Bestselling author of White Rose, Black Forest, and the Longest Echo. Read more

“Cadbury lays out in fascinating detail the historical mystery of the royal heir . . . and uses modern science to try to solve it.” —The Wall Street JournalIn 1793, when Marie Antoinette was beheaded at the guillotine during the French Revolution, she left her adored eight-year-old son, Louis Charles, imprisoned in the Temple Tower. Far from inheriting a throne, the orphaned boy-king had to endure the hostility and abuse of a nation. Two years later, the revolutionary leaders declared Louis XVII dead. No grave was dug, no monument built to mark his passing.Immediately, rumors spread that the prince had, in fact, escaped from prison and was still alive. Others believed that he had been murdered, his heart cut out and preserved as a relic. As with the tragedies of England’s princes in the Tower and the Romanov archduchess Anastasia, countless “brothers” soon approached Louis-Charles’s older sister, Marie-Therese, who survived the revolution. They claimed not only the dauphin’s name, but also his inheritance. Several “princes” were plausible, but which, if any, was the real heir to the French throne?The Lost King of France is a moving and dramatic tale that interweaves a pivotal moment in France’s history with a compelling detective story that involves pretenders to the crown, royalist plots and palace intrigue, bizarre legal battles, and modern science. The quest for the truth continued into the twenty-first century, when, thanks to DNA testing, the strange odyssey of a stolen heart found within the royal tombs brought an exciting conclusion to the two-hundred-year-old mystery of the lost king of France.“A winning and highly readable account of the French Revolution.” —Publishers Weekly Read more

A New York Times Book Review Editors' Choice • A Washington Post Notable Nonfiction Book of 2024 • A Kirkus Reviews Best Book of 2024 • One of The Boston Globe's “20 Books We Can’t Wait to Read This Fall” • A Next Big Idea Club “Must-Read Book for September 2024”The Pulitzer Prize–winning art critic’s gripping account of the “Terrible Year” in Paris and its monumental impact on the rise of Impressionism. From the summer of 1870 to the spring of 1871, famously dubbed the “Terrible Year” by Victor Hugo, Paris and its people were besieged, starved, and forced into surrender by Germans—then imperiled again as radical republicans established a breakaway Commune, ultimately crushed by the French Army after bloody street battles and the burning of central Paris. As renowned art critic Sebastian Smee shows, it was against the backdrop of these tumultuous times that the Impressionist movement was born—in response to violence, civil war, and political intrigue.In stirring and exceptionally vivid prose, Smee tells the story of those dramatic days through the eyes of great figures of Impressionism. Édouard Manet, Berthe Morisot, and Edgar Degas were trapped in Paris during the siege and deeply enmeshed in its politics. Others, including Pierre-August Renoir and Frédéric Bazille, joined regiments outside of the capital, while Claude Monet and Camille Pissarro fled the country just in time. In the aftermath, these artists developed a newfound sense of the fragility of life. That feeling for transience—reflected in Impressionism’s emphasis on fugitive light, shifting seasons, glimpsed street scenes, and the impermanence of all things—became the movement’s great contribution to the history of art.At the heart of it all is a love story; that of Manet, by all accounts the father of Impressionism, and Morisot, the only woman to play a central role in the movement from the start. Smee poignantly depicts their complex relationship, their tangled effect on each other, and their great legacy, while bringing overdue attention to the woman at the heart of Impressionism.Incisive and absorbing, Paris in Ruins captures the shifting passions and politics of the art world, revealing how the pressures of the siege and the chaos of the Commune had a profound impact on modern art, and how artistic genius can emerge from darkness and catastrophe. Read more

Two women in Nazi-occupied Paris created a daring escape line that rescued dozens of Allied servicemen. With one still in a German prison camp, the other wrote a book about it—a memoir built on fabrications. Now the bestselling author of Eighty Days shares their incredible, never-before-told full story.“Goodman’s gripping account chronicles the events—both courageous and horrifying—and illustrates how loyalty and betrayal can coincide in wartime and its aftermath.”—The Washington Post“A heart-pounding tale that is impossible to put down.”—Lynne Olson, author of Madame Fourcade's Secret WarEtta Shiber and Kate Bonnefous are the unlikeliest of heroines: two seemingly ordinary women, an American widow and an English divorcée, living quietly together in Paris. Yet during the Nazi occupation, these two friends find themselves unexpectedly plunged into the whirlwind of history. With the help of a French country priest and others, they set out to rescue British and French soldiers trapped behind enemy lines—some of whom they daringly smuggle through Nazi checkpoints hidden inside the trunk of their car. Ultimately the Gestapo captures them both. After eighteen months in prison, Etta is returned to the United States in a prisoner exchange. Back home, hoping to bring attention to her friend Kitty’s bravery, she publishes a memoir about their work. Paris-Underground becomes a publishing sensation and Etta a celebrity. Meanwhile Kate spends the rest of the war in a Nazi prison, entirely unaware of the book that has been written about her—and the deeds that have been claimed in her name. In researching this story, Matthew Goodman uncovered military records and personal testimonies that reveal, for the first time, the shocking truth behind Etta’s memoir and the unexpected, far-reaching consequences of its publication. More than just a story of two women’s remarkable courage, Paris Undercover is a vivid, gripping account of deceit, betrayal, and personal redemption. Read more

From an award-winning historian, a “vivid” (Wall Street Journal) account of the revolution that created the modern worldThe French Revolution’s principles of liberty and equality still shape our ideas of a just society—even if, after more than two hundred years, their meaning is more contested than ever before. In A New World Begins, Jeremy D. Popkin offers a riveting account of the revolution that puts the reader in the thick of the debates and the violence that led to the overthrow of the monarchy and the establishment of a new society. We meet Mirabeau, Robespierre, and Danton, in all their brilliance and vengefulness; we witness the failed escape and execution of Louis XVI; we see women demanding equal rights and Black slaves wresting freedom from revolutionaries who hesitated to act on their own principles; and we follow the rise of Napoleon out of the ashes of the Reign of Terror.Based on decades of scholarship, A New World Begins will stand as the definitive treatment of the French Revolution. Read more

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The spellbinding and revealing chronicle of Nazi-occupied Paris. On June 14, 1940, German tanks entered a silent and nearly deserted Paris. Eight days later, France accepted a humiliating defeat and foreign occupation. Subsequently, an eerie sense of normalcy settled over the City of Light. Many Parisians keenly adapted themselves to the situation-even allied themselves with their Nazi overlords. At the same time, amidst this darkening gloom of German ruthlessness, shortages, and curfews, a resistance arose. Parisians of all stripes -- Jews, immigrants, adolescents, communists, rightists, cultural icons such as Colette, de Beauvoir, Camus and Sartre, as well as police officers, teachers, students, and store owners -- rallied around a little known French military officer, Charles de Gaulle. When Paris Went Dark evokes with stunning precision the detail of daily life in a city under occupation, and the brave people who fought against the darkness. Relying on a range of resources -- memoirs, diaries, letters, archives, interviews, personal histories, flyers and posters, fiction, photographs, film and historical studies -- Rosbottom has forged a groundbreaking book that will forever influence how we understand those dark years in the City of Light. Read more