Was she the bereft widow of legend who was driven mad by her loss, or has history misjudged a woman who was ahead of her time? In his stunning new novel, C. W. Gortner challenges the myths about Queen Juana, unraveling the mystery surrounding her to reveal a brave, determined woman we can only now begin to fully understand.The third child of Queen Isabel and King Ferdinand of Spain, Juana is born amid her parents’ ruthless struggle to unify their kingdom, bearing witness to the fall of Granada and Columbus’s discoveries. At the age of sixteen, she is sent to wed Philip, the archduke of Flanders, as part of her parents’ strategy to strengthen Spain, just as her youngest sister, Catherine of Aragon, is sent to England to become the first wife of Henry VIII. Juana finds unexpected love and passion with her handsome young husband, the sole heir to the Habsburg Empire. At first she is content with her children and her life in Flanders. But when tragedy strikes and she inherits the Spanish throne, Juana finds herself plunged into a battle for power against her husband that grows to involve the major monarchs of Europe. Besieged by foes on all sides, her intelligence and pride used as weapons against her, Juana vows to secure her crown and save Spain from ruin, even if it could cost her everything.With brilliant, lyrical prose, novelist and historian C. W. Gortner conjures Juana through her own words, taking the reader from the somber majesty of Spain to the glittering and lethal courts of Flanders, France, and Tudor England. The Last Queen brings to life all the grandeur and drama of an incomparable era, and the singular humanity of this courageous, passionate princess whose fight to claim her birthright captivated the world.

    At this charged moment, Giles Tremlett embarked on a journey around the country and through its history to discover why some of Europe’s most voluble people have kept silent so long.  Ghosts of Spain is the fascinating result of that journey. In elegant and passionate prose, Tremlett unveils the tinderbox of disagreements that mark the country today. Delving  into such emotional questions as who caused the Civil War, why Basque terrorists kill, why Catalans hate Madrid, and whether the Islamist bombers who killed 190 people in 2004 dreamed of a return to Spain’s Moorish past, Tremlett finds the ghosts of the past everywhere. At the same time, he offers trenchant observations on more quotidian aspects of Spanish life today: the reasons, for example, Spaniards dislike authority figures, but are cowed by a doctor’s white coat, and how women have embraced feminism without men noticing.  Drawing on the author’s twenty years of experience living in Spain, Ghosts of Spain is a revelatory book about one of Europe’s most exciting countries.

    For years it has been run by local woman Maria who rarely sees the Irish owner from one summer to the next. But things are about to change. Now Maria has an assistant, Kevin Joyce from Galway. He is escaping the ‘trap’ of his family’s business in favour of working in the sun, and he’s not the only one. Maria had better get ready because more Irish are about to touch down in this seaside paradise. Emma Dunne, a successful businesswoman from Dublin, spent her twenties running her father’s printing company with plenty of hard work but little fun. Now she has a reason to celebrate as she takes over the ownership of Pedro’s Bar, but has she been given a poisoned chalice? Mark Chambers, a successful advertising executive, has come to Spain to overcome a personal tragedy and find a reason to enjoy life again. And Claire Greene who, much to the chagrin of her mother, passed over a legal career to sell Spanish property, has some unfinished business to deal with. Each hopes Fuengirola will give them a new lease of life, but they soon get more than they bargained for.

    J.H. Elliott, one of the most distinguished and versatile historians working today, offers us history on a grand scale, contrasting the worlds built by Britain and by Spain on the ruins of the civilizations they encountered and destroyed in North and South America.Elliott identifies and explains both the similarities and differences in the two empires’ processes of colonization, the character of their colonial societies, their distinctive styles of imperial government, and the independence movements mounted against them. Based on wide reading in the history of the two great Atlantic civilizations, the book sets the Spanish and British colonial empires in the context of their own times and offers us insights into aspects of this dual history that still influence the Americas.

    Barcelona and Modernity examines this remarkable seventy-one-year period, when Barcelona also reigned as one of the most dynamic centers of modernist art and architecture in Europe. Focusing on the Catalan Renaixença, Modernisme, Noucentisme, avant-garde movements of the early 20th century, and artistic reactions to the Spanish Civil War, essays by an extraordinary international team of scholars offer new insights into the work of such Catalan artists as Antoni Gaudí, Pablo Picasso, Joan Miró, and Salvador Dalí, among others, by setting them in context with the art of their teachers, colleagues, and rivals.With approximately 350 works in a variety of media—painting, sculpture, photography, furniture, decorative arts, and architectural design—this intriguing book also explores how Catalan artists derived inspiration from local traditions while contributing their own innovations to international modernism. Broader in scope than any previous treatment of the subject, this book is sure to alter popular perceptions of Catalonia and become a fundamental text for years to come.

    Towards the end of his life, embittered by the appalling cruelty of the Napoleonic Wars in Spain, Goya decorated the walls of his house outside Madrid with a series of 14 terrifying murals that depicted the underbelly of life and the remorselessness of human existence. Known as the Black Paintings, this series of murals is recognized as one of Goya's greatest masterpieces and now hangs in the Prado. Fully illustrated, this is the only book on the Black Paintings currently in print in English. A controversial narrative gives new interpretations of the artist's intention behind these grotesque works and shows how this period of Goya's work anticipated Surrealism and other aspects of 20th century artistic vision.

    G. Sanchez's critically acclaimed short story sequence, takes us back to the late 80s and early 90s - a time when large quantities of tobacco were being smuggled from Gibraltar into Spain, the British government was threatening the colony with direct rule, and the Spanish authorities were subjecting the Gibraltarians to a concerted campaign of political harassment. Within its pages we find an almost anthropological gallery of types': reluctant tobacco smugglers, drunken English squaddies, small-town hedonists, Costa del Sol prostitutes, passing hippie travellers, as well as the constantly resurfacing figure of the jobless Gibraltarian teenager Peter Rodriguez. 'M. G. Sanchez forms part of a small collective of authors who are making strides in taking back their own representation and lashing back at outside attempts to tell their homeland's story.' Dr Amanda Gerke, English Department, University of Salamanca. 'A necessary corrective after a prolonged period of silence.' Dr Rob Stanton, Department of English, South University.

    Old Christians, those whose families had always been Christian, defined themselves in opposition to forcibly baptized Muslims ( moriscos) and Jews ( conversos). Here historian Benjamin Ehlers studies the relations between Christians and moriscos in Valencia by analyzing the ideas and policies of archbishop Juan de Ribera.Juan de Ribera, a young reformer appointed to the diocese of Valencia in 1568, arrived at his new post to find a congregation deeply divided between Christians and moriscos. He gradually overcame the distrust of his Christian parishioners by intertwining Tridentine themes such as the Eucharist with local devotions and holy figures. Over time Ribera came to identify closely with the interests of his Christian flock, and his hagiographers subsequently celebrated him as a Valencian saint.Ribera did not engage in a similarly reciprocal exchange with the moriscos; after failing to effect their true conversion through preaching and parish reform, he devised a covert campaign to persuade the king to banish them. His portrayal of the moriscos as traitors and heretics ultimately justified the Expulsion of 1609–1614, which Ribera considered the triumphant culmination of the Reconquest.Ehler's sophisticated yet accessible study of the pluralist diocese of Valencia is a valuable contribution to the study of Catholic reform, moriscos, Christian-Muslim relations in early modern Spain, and early modern Europe.

    Official court painter to King Philip IV (1605–1665), he created astounding effects of illusion in his minimalist and elegantly composed works––which range from genre and history scenes to portraits. His paintings had an enormous impact on 19th- and early-20th-century artists such as Degas, Renoir, and Picasso, and Manet famously first described him as “the painter’s painter.”With over 150 illustrations and an in-depth chronology, this beautifully produced and comprehensive book surveys Velázquez’s entire career and explores his universal popularity. Fascinating essays by world-class Velázquez scholars address the artist’s life and technique, examining his studies in Seville and Italy to his final great works at the court of Philip IV. They also place his works in the context of 17th-century European painting and discuss how and why his works have resonated so strongly with the generations of Post-Impressionist and modernist artists.

    The most important collection of Spanish masters in the world.

    Becoming a "local" has provided Mendel with the unique opportunity to explore the authentic foods of her adopted country, and to bring the best recipes to American kitchens. Now, in Cooking from the Heart of Spain, she turns her attention to the region of La Mancha.Mendel has taken part in the harvesting of saffron, wine grapes, and garlic. She has made marzipan in Toledo, joined in a partridge shoot, and prepared trout caught fresh from the streams in Cuenca. She tells stories of artisanal cheesemakers and wine producers. Her own home in an olive grove gives her special insight into world-class Spanish olive oil.Cooking from the Heart of Spain features traditional foods from the country's heartland, a region of vineyards, olive groves, and wheat fields. From here come Spain's most famous products -- Manchego cheese, saffron, serrano ham, and olive oil. These ingredients, along with its rich and diverse Moorish and Sephardic heritages, give Manchegan cooking an air of refinement and delicate complexity beyond its sturdy simplicity.The recipes in Cooking from the Heart of Spain include simple pisto, a medley of summer vegetables sautéed in olive oil; lamb stuffed with spinach and pine nuts; a robust peasant garlic soup; and a delightfully subtle saffron ice cream. Mendel also includes sophisticated dishes such as cheese and ham flan and partridge braised in wine sauce, as well as fun food, such as "fried milk," a sweet custard with a crisp-fried exterior. Oh, yes -- and Madrid tapas too.Laced with quotes from Cervantes' Don Quixote -- which had lots to say about the food of La Mancha -- Janet Mendel´s cookbook provides recipes for delicious dishes, both traditional and modern.

    With new material gleaned from the Russian archives and numerous other sources, this brisk and accessible book (Spain's #1 bestseller for twelve weeks), provides a balanced and penetrating perspective, explaining the tensions that led to this terrible overture to World War II and affording new insights into the war-its causes, course, and consequences.

    Could the divisions that led to the conflict still be simmering under the surface, and is it possible they could erupt again?From the Hardcover edition.

    They contain not only important military information, but fascinating political, social and personal commentaries that are critical to understanding Napoleon the man as well as Napoleon the soldier. Presented complete for the first time in English, and supported by Markham's historical and biographical notes, the bulletins cover the key period between the Battle of Austerlitz in 1805 and the collapse of Napoleon's Empire in 1814. The bulletins describe military operations, pick out distinguished officers and units, and present Napoleon's own interpretation of battles lost and won. Also included are various key reports from marshals and others, including the bulletins of the Army of Italy commanded by Massena in 1805. Most of this additional material has never been published in English until now. Imperial Glory is an invaluable contribution to literature on the Napoleonic Wars and a key book for anyone who would like to learn more about one of history's most remarkable and colorful leaders.

    The manuscript is of paramount importance as it contains the only known surviving version, both in terms of text and of image, of the love story of Bayad wa Riyad.This study will place this manuscript within the context of late medieval Mediterranean courtly culture, offering:an annotated translation into English of the entire text reproductions of its images an analysis of both text and images in a series of progressively broader contexts including that of al-Andalus(Arabic-speaking); of "reconquista" Iberia; and the larger Mediterranean world.Cynthia Robinson broadens understanding of the Mediterranean region during the Middle Ages, making this text an invaluable resource for scholars with interests in Medieval Spain, art and Mediterranean courtly culture.

    As well as relating the histories of the great political and military figures of the war, Fraser brings to life the nonymous masses — the artisans, peasants and women who fought, suffered and died — and restores their role in this barbaric war to its rightful place while overturning the view that this was a straightforward military campaign. This vivid, meticulously researched book offers a distinct and profound vision of "Napoleon’s Vietnam” and shows the reality of the disasters of war: the suffering, discontents and social upheaval that accompanied the fighting.

    A definitive biography of Simon Bolivar, a central figure of Latin American history, this comprehensive and critical work separates the man from the legend, and portrays Bolivar as orator, writer, politician and freedom fighter.