John Lee

A secret treaty will determine whether England can survive against Napoleon, and Captain Grey races across the Atlantic to intercept a treasure fleet. Vienna-June 1804. At the glittering debut of Beethoven's Third Symphony, a Spanish diplomat meets with Captain Thomas Grey, agent of His Majesty's Secret Service. In exchange for a gigantic bribe, the Spaniard discloses Spain's darkest secret: the actual terms of the Treaty of San Ildefonso with France. Spain's...

A taut historical thriller for fans of The Queen's Gambit and James Bond. December 1803: A French invasion fleet is poised to cross the Channel and storm the beaches of southern England. A member of Napoleon's inner circle - disaffected by Napoleon's creeping tyranny - contacts the British naval intelligence service in hopes of defecting to London. His escape plan calls for a rendezvous at an international chess tournament in Frankfurt - a rare opportunity...

In September 1769, three thousand people descended on Stratford-upon-Avon to celebrate the artistic legacy of the town's most famous son, William Shakespeare. Attendees included the rich and powerful, the fashionable and the curious, eligible ladies and fortune hunters, and a horde of journalists and profiteers. For three days, they paraded through garlanded streets, listened to songs and oratorios, and enjoyed masked balls. It was a unique cultural...

A zombie crime boss. Powerful black magic. Demon assassins. Otherwise known as Tuesday. Meet Steve Firestone, late-night radio host and paladin. Since he joined the Arkane Academy for the Gifted and Strange, he's learned our world is full of supernatural monsters ripped from the pages of Dungeons & Dragons-and most of them want to eat or kill us. That's where Steve and his new friends come in. That is, if Steve can learn to channel the divine power...

What accounts for the rise of the state, the creation of the first global system, and the dominance of the West? The conventional answer asserts that superior technology, tactics, and institutions forged by Darwinian military competition gave Europeans a decisive advantage in war over other civilizations from 1500 onward. In contrast, Empires of the Weak argues that Europeans actually had no general military superiority in the early modern era. J....

After years of catastrophic fighting, the rebellion is over. The First Galactic Empire has fallen. Instead of liberation and a return to democracy, freedom, and new golden age, humanity has been plunged into darkness. Eighteen years after the Great Fall of civilization, stranded on the wrecked world Asherho, Keira Kane struggles to make her way. Adopted, protected, and raised by former Imperial Marines, Keira has been trained as a mechanic and technician....

First published in 1907, The Defence of Duffer's Drift is a classic essay on small unit tactics based on author Ernest Dunlop Swinton's experiences in the Boer War in South Africa. In a series of dreams, Swinton's character Lieutenant Backsight Forethought works through a number of possible approaches to defending a piece of land known as the Drift. Each time, he makes fatal errors, but with each successive dream, Forethought corrects his previous...

Trapped in an abandoned and quarantined Britain, forsaken by the rest of the world, the scattered survivors are forced into hibernation by the fast onset of a bitter winter. Struggling for supplies and battling the elements, the true nature of people shows through as they face adversity like they have never known before. Nevin, as charmed and untouchable as his toxic existence has been, finds a niche in his new home; still not enough for him, though,...

The bestselling author of Catch a Wave: The Rise, Fall and Redemption of the Beach Boys' Brian Wilson now presents an in-depth biography of the legendary musician and icon Paul McCartney, exploring his impact on music and culture, his personal triumphs and defeats, and his post-Beatles relationships with John Lennon, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr. The book explores McCartney through the perspective of his lyrics, spanning his career from his years...

When a woman's skeleton is discovered in a shallow grave, Detective Chief Inspector Andy Gilchrist is tasked with finding her murderer. But a psychic's warnings, coupled with markings on a rusted cigarette lighter found among the rotted remains, take Gilchrist on a journey into his own past-a journey that brings him closer to discovering the identity of the person who killed his brother in a hit-and-run case some thirty-five years before. When dental...