My Lady Scandalous: The Amazing Life and Outrageous Times of Grace Dalrymple Elliott, Royal Courtesan


Jo Manning - 2005
    As an impressionable bride of seventeen who married a man more than twice her age, Grace's remarkable beauty (likened by journalists to "a May morning") soon attracted the attentions of other men. A disastrous liaison with a consummate rake not only branded Grace as a demi-rep - a woman with half a reputation - but the scandal provoked Dr. John Eliot, her philandering husband, to pursue a divorce.Grace became mistress of the most infamous peer in England, George James, Lord Cholmondeley, whose "secret perfections" were reputed to inspire "female enthusiasm." Cholmondeley commemorated the relationship by commissioning two works from eminent portraitist Thomas Gainsborough, first in 1778 and later in 1782, the same year Grace gave birth to a daughter, Georgiana (who may, in fact, have been the child of the Prince of Wales). Had Grace been an aristocrat, she and Cholmondeley might have had a future together, but it was not to be.The tabloids broke the news: "Miss Dalrymple has embarked for France, and it is said parted with her noble gallant." Grace was soon to find a new protector in that nation's richest man, Philippe, Duc d'Orleans. Though Grace was ensconced as "one of the most brilliant and popular among the fashionable 'impures,'" her liaison with the duke turned perilous when Orleans fell to the Revolution's guillotine, just as she narrowly escaped with her life."People die, but love may not," declares author Jo Manning of her subject's romantic and historic misadventures. A connoisseur of the times, Manning ably demonstrates - through contemporary newspapers, magazines, prints, and portraits as well as Grace's posthumously published journal - how life in George III's England and Marie Antoinette's France can seem strangely familiar, especially when history turns to affairs of the heart.

Long Live the Queen: 23 Rules for Living from Britain's Longest-Reigning Monarch


Bryan Kozlowski
    Now officially the longest reigning monarch in British history, Elizabeth II has spent over half a century on the throne, rarely taking a sick day and, in her tenth decade, remains amazingly comfortable in her own skin. How does she do it?For the first time, step behind palace doors to unlock the little-known secrets behind the Queen's remarkable self-preservation and continued radiance. Investigating the six lifestyle spheres that have kept her going strong for decades, you'll learn how to channel your inner royal - whether at work or at the table - in this fascinating plunge into the House of Windsor's famous fountain of youth.Extensively researched and delightfully revelatory, it's the story of how one strong queen can make stronger, happier, healthier subjects of us all. Long live you!

Forbidden Wife: The Life and Trials of Lady Augusta Murray


Julia Abel Smith - 2020
    The wedding of the sixth son of King George III to the daughter of the Earl of Dunmore would not only be concealed – it would also be illegal.Lady Augusta Murray had known Prince Augustus Frederick for only three months but they had already fallen deeply in love and were desperate to be married. However, the Royal Marriages Act forbade such a union without the King’s permission and going ahead with the ceremony would change Augusta’s life forever. From a beautiful socialite she became a social pariah; her children were declared illegitimate and her family was scorned.In FORBIDDEN WIFE Julia Abel Smith uses material from the Royal Archives and the Dunmore family papers to create a dramatic biography set in the reigns of Kings George III and IV against the background of the American and French Revolutions.

The Death of Trotsky (Kindle Single)


Cecelia Holland - 2015
    In The Death of Trotsky, Cecelia Holland brings this fated and fatal day to life, from its quotidian beginnings to its dramatic close. Between Trotsky’s waking and his final rest, she probes the outer-workings and inner thoughts of those who were with him till the end, illuminating a man who exited life as he lived it: defiantly. Cecelia Holland, author of more than 30 books and articles, lives in northern California with her family.Cover Design by Adil Dara.

Louie, Take a Look at This!: My Time with Huell Howser


Luis Fuerte - 2017
    He lives with his wife in Rialto, CA. Writer David Duron is a writer and longtime television-news producer who lives in Yucaipa, CA.

The Private Realm of Marie Antoinette


Marie-France Boyer - 2006
    This text turns aside from the official portraits and great historical events to rediscover the private places and objects that reflect Marie Antoinettes personality and reveal her more directly to our modern gaze.

A Concise History of Ireland


Patrick Weston Joyce - 2017
    A writer may accomplish all this while sympathising heartily, as I do, with Ireland and her people.” A Concise History of Ireland by P. W. Joyce is a seminal work covering the history of the nation from ancient times through to the political turmoil of the nineteenth century. Joyce provides a detailed look at the customs and culture of ancient Ireland, its language, literature, art, and religion. Before the first Anglo-Norman invasion in 1169, Ireland was ruled by high kings who variously ruled all or parts of Ireland. The struggle for power between these kings resulted in many conflicts and produced such famous Irish war-kings as Brian Boru, Malachi and Dermot MacMurrogh. The book tracks the development of religion in Ireland from the pagan beliefs of ancient Ireland to the coming of St Patrick and the spread of Christianity. It also follows the religious effects of centuries of plantations and the religious divides that emerged as a result. Joyce examines the development of Anglo-Irish relations spanning from 1169, through to the Plantations of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries to the rebellions of the nineteenth century. A Concise History of Ireland is a fascinating account at the complex history of this small country. P. W. Joyce was an Irish historian and writer who specialized in creating histories of localities all throughout Ireland. As a result of his efforts, he became one of the most important Irish cultural figures of the late 19th century, producing works about the languages, music, literature, folklore, and the background of the names of places all throughout Ireland. This work was published in 1893 and he passed away in 1914.

Russia's Last Romanovs: In Their Own Words


Helen Azar - 2013
    The entire family, including their personal physician, retainers, and even their pets, became tragic victims of the Bolshevik revolution. They were arrested, exiled, and ultimately secretly murdered in a small cellar of a house in the Urals, in the summer of 1918. In this book, you will follow the events which led up to their eventual tragic fate through personal words of each family member, as well as their close friends and associates. Their letters, diaries, and postcards - many of which have been translated into English here for the first time - tell a unique story, and have yet a lot to reveal. Translated from Russian by Helen Azar, along with Eva and Dan McDonald, who translated most of the 1918 letters from French, this book offers an extraordinary glimpse into the very private world, and the final years, of the last Russian imperial family - which they chronicle in their own words.

The French Revolution A Short History


Robert Matteson Johnston - 1909
    You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery.

Skyway: The True Story of Tampa Bay's Signature Bridge and the Man Who Brought It Down


Bill DeYoung - 2013
    Directly in the ship’s path was the Sunshine Skyway Bridge--two ribbons of concrete, steel, and asphalt that crossed fifteen miles of open bay.  Suddenly, a violent weather cell reduced visibility to zero at the precise moment when Lerro attempted to direct the 20,000-ton vessel underneath the bridge. Unable to stop or see where he was going, Lerro drove the ship into a support pier; the main span splintered and collapsed 150 feet into the bay. Seven cars and a Greyhound bus fell over the broken edge and into the churning water below. Thirty-five people died.Skyway tells the entire story of this horrific event, from the circumstances that led up to it through the years-long legal proceedings that followed. Through personal interviews and extensive research, Bill DeYoung pieces together the harrowing moments of the collision, including the first-person accounts of witnesses and survivors. Among those whose lives were changed forever was Wesley MacIntire, the motorist whose truck ricocheted off the hull of the Summit Venture and sank. Although he was the lone survivor, MacIntire, like Lerro, was emotionally scarred and remained haunted by the tragedy for the rest of his life. Similarly, DeYoung details the downward spiral of Lerro’s life, his vilification in the days and weeks that followed the accident, and his obsession with the tragedy well into his painful last years. DeYoung also offers a history of the ill-fated bridge, from its construction in 1954, through the addition of a second parallel span in 1971, to its eventual replacement. He discusses the sinking of a Coast Guard cutter a mere three months before Skyway collapsed and the Department of Transportation’s dire warnings about the bridge’s condition. The result is a vividly detailed portrait of the rise and fall of a Florida landmark.

Strange and Obscure Stories of the Revolutionary War


Tim Rowland - 2015
    He digs into the war’s major events and reveals the unknown, bizarre, and often wildly amusing things the participants were doing while breaking away from Great Britain.For example, conventional wisdom says that “no taxation without representation” was an important reason for the revolution, but not in the way we’ve been told. Colonists paid the wages of common-court judges, who were reluctant to rule against the men who paid their salaries. Therefore, duties on molasses (the key ingredient in rum) were generally unenforced until the British cut the tariff in half. Strange but true, the spark that touched off the revolution was in fact a tax cut.During the French and Indian War and then again in the first year of the revolution, the British were accused of biological warfare, infecting blankets with smallpox and then concealing them in Indian camps. So feared was the disease that soldiers began to illegally inoculate themselves before widespread vaccination was finally ordered for the army. Washington himself was immune, thanks to a Caribbean trip taken as a young man when his brother Lawrence sought a cure for tuberculosis. Lawrence wasn’t cured, but George was infected with smallpox in Barbados. As a young man in a warm climate, he survived. As an older man in a northern winter, however, the story of the father of our country might have had a different ending.Skyhorse Publishing, as well as our Arcade imprint, are proud to publish a broad range of books for readers interested in history--books about World War II, the Third Reich, Hitler and his henchmen, the JFK assassination, conspiracies, the American Civil War, the American Revolution, gladiators, Vikings, ancient Rome, medieval times, the old West, and much more. While not every title we publish becomes a New York Times bestseller or a national bestseller, we are committed to books on subjects that are sometimes overlooked and to authors whose work might not otherwise find a home.

The French Revolution


Emma Moreau - 2016
    New York Times bestselling historian Emma Moreau exposes and analyzes the events that turned ordinary French citizens into revolutionaries - from the attack on the Bastille to the executions of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette to the bloodthirsty Reign of Terror that claimed the lives of more than 40,000 people.

Tiger in the Sea: The Ditching of Flying Tiger 923 and the Desperate Struggle for Survival


Eric Lindner - 2021
    They all expected to die.Murray radioed out "Mayday" as he attempted to fly down through gale-force winds into the rough water, hoping the plane didn't break apart when it hit the sea.Only a handful of ships could pick up the distress call so far from land. The closest was a Swiss freighter 13 hours away. Dozens of other ships and planes from nine countries abruptly changed course or scrambled from Canada, Iceland, Ireland, Scotland, and Cornwall, all racing to the rescue--but they would take hours, or days, to arrive.From the cockpit, the blackness of the Atlantic grew ever closer. Could Murray do what no pilot had ever done--"land" a commercial airliner at night in a violent sea without everyone dying? And if he did, would rescuers find any survivors before they drowned or died from hypothermia in the icy water?The fate of Flying Tiger 923 riveted the world. Bulletins interrupted radio and TV programs. Headlines shouted off newspapers from London to LA. Frantic family members overwhelmed telephone switchboards. President Kennedy took a break from the brewing crises in Cuba and Mississippi to ask for hourly updates.Tiger in the Sea is a gripping tale of triumph, tragedy, unparalleled airmanship, and incredibly brave people from all walks of life. The author has pieced together the story--long hidden because of murky Cold War politics--through exhaustive research and reconstructed a true and inspiring tribute to the virtues of outside-the-box-thinking, teamwork, and hope.Learn more at TigerintheSea.com

Letters from Provence


Vincent van Gogh - 1990
    It reproduces extensive extracts from his correspondence and is illustrated with his paintings, drawings and facsimile letters. Van Gogh's letters are a testimony to his struggle to survive and work. Here, the combination of letters and illustrations, concentrating on the period when he painted his greatest works, aims to provide an insight into his daily life in Arles and St-Remy, his spiritual torment and the process of artistic creation itself. The author is an "Observer" journalist specializing in the arts, and has published four previous books, including "Young Vincent: The Story of Van Gogh's Years in England".

Charles: Victim or villain?


Penny Junor - 1988
    Now available complete with an updated epilogue, it will change the way you think about Charles, his Princess and his mistress.As the Prince of Wales turned fifty at the end of 1998, the media focused on the publication of Charles: Victim or Villain?, Penny Junor’s controversial biography of the heir to England’s throne. Directing the spotlight onto ‘the three people’ in the Royal marriage, this book has turned popular understanding on its head. But although Junor’s unique insight into these endlessly intriguing relationships caused fierce speculation, even outrage, nothing has been denied. Nobody has disputed that this is the true portrait of a marriage.Sourced from those closest to the Prince, the Princess and Camilla – some of whom have never spoken before – Penny Junor explodes and explains the popular myths. The result is a provocative new portrait of the man who will be King.