This 1946 novel, originally published under a pseudonym, is about sex in wartime. At the beginning, Deborah and her husband are in bed, saying goodbye to each other before he is posted overseas. They swear eternal loyalty. But Deborah is very soon bored by her life in the country with her young son and gets a job in London. She then acquires a lover, and when he is posted overseas another, and another - This is the fourth novel by Marghanita Laski to be published by Persephone Books. Juliet Gardiner writes in her Preface: 'The fascination of TO BED WITH GRAND MUSIC is its unusual recreation of one aspect of the Home Front in the Second World War. It is an exaggerated, near harlot's tale without doubt, but it has a wry authenticity and provides a refreshing counterpoint to all the usual wartime novels of sterling women making do and mending. The book's appeal lies in its portrayal of someone who signally failed the test of warA", and in its evocation of a fractured and transient society during the exigencies and contingencies of wartime.'

'Discovering Eva Ibbotson's books is one of the nicest things that's ever happened to me. The most beautiful, delicious, wry read' - Marian Keyes Curl up with a collection of romantic short stories taking you from nineteenth-century Vienna, over the wild moors of Northumberland to the snowy streets of pre-revolutionary St Petersberg. A collection of eighteen romantic short stories from the award-winning and much-loved Eva Ibbotson, A Glove Shop in Vienna will show you the great passions and astute observations of everyday life. Join Great-Uncle Max, torn between his grand and secret love for Susie, the enchanting glove shop assistant, and the devotion of his opera-singing wife. Meet Miss Bennett, drama mistress at the fading Markham Street Primary School, whose search for a baby Jesus for the nativity play yields unexpected and miraculous results. And agonise with Kira, a dancer in Russia's Imperial Ballet school, thrown out onto the streets of St. Petersburg, and found by Edwin, a lonely dreamer. A chocolate-box collection of deliciously romantic, atmospheric and witty stories to lose yourself in this Christmas. 'Eva Ibbotson is such a good writer that her characters break the bonds of the romantic novel' Washington Post

When the young Ishmael gets on board Captain Ahab's whaling ship, little does he suspect that the mission on which he is about to embark is the fulfilment of his master's obsessive desire for revenge on Moby Dick, a white whale who has already claimed countless human victims and destroyed many fleets. With some sinister crew members in their midst and the hazardous conditions of the sea to contend with, the expedition becomes increasingly dangerous the closer it gets to its quarry.One of the great American novels, if not the greatest, Moby Dick epically combines rip-roaring adventure, a meticulously realistic portrayal of the whaling trade and a profound philosophical disquisition on the nature of good and evil.

ABOUT THE SERIES: Alma Evergreens is a series of popular classics. All the titles in the series are provided with an extensive critical apparatus, extra reading material including a section of photographs and notes. The texts are based on the most authoritative edition (or collated from the most authoritative editions or manuscripts) and edited using a fresh, intelligent editorial approach. With an emphasis on the production, editorial and typographical values of a book, Alma Classics aspires to revitalize the whole experience of reading the classics.

In The Pickwick Papers we are introduced not just to one of the greatest writers in the English language, but to some of fiction's most endearing and memorable characters, starting with the 'illustrious, immortal and colossal-minded' Samuel Pickwick himself. It is a rollicking tour de force through an England on the brink of the Victorian era. Reform of government, justice and commercial life are imminent, as are rail travel, social convulsion and the death of deference, but Pickwick sails through on a tide of delirious adventure, fortifying us for the future - whatever it might throw at us. This Macmillan Collector's Library edition is illustrated by H. K. Browne ('Phiz'), with an afterword by Ned Halley. Designed to appeal to the book lover, the Macmillan Collector's Library is a series of beautiful gift editions of much loved classic titles. Macmillan Collector's Library are books to love and treasure.

'The masterwork of a great genius' William Makepeace Thackeray A novel of intense emotional power, heightened atmosphere and fierce intelligence, Jane Eyre dazzled and shocked readers with its passionate depiction of a woman's search for equality and freedom on her own terms. Its heroine Jane endures loneliness and cruelty in the home of her heartless aunt and the cold charity of Lowood School. Her natural independence and spirit prove necessary when she takes a position as governess at Thornfield Hall. But when she finds love with her sardonic employer, Rochester, the discovery of a shameful secret forces her to make a terrible choice. Edited with an Introduction and notes by STEVIE DAVIES

Rivkah is weer swanger. Terwyl die terreuraanvalle toeneem, wonder beide Marc en Rivkah: Is hierdie die tyd en die plek om nog ’n kind in die wereld te bring? Dit raak net gevaarliker in Jerusalem se strate. Soos die geboortepyne van sy ma begin, vind Yoshi egter troos in Yeshua se woorde dat sy terugkoms ook soos ’n geboorte gaan wees en dit sal beteken dat die tyd naby is vir Hom om weer Hanukkah shel David op te rig …

HarperCollins is proud to present its range of best-loved, essential classics.

Alice was beginning to get very tired of sitting by her sister on the bank, and of having nothing to do: once or twice she had peeped into the book her sister was reading, but it had no pictures or conversations in it, and what is the use of a book, thought Alice, without pictures or conversations?

So begins the tale of Alice, following a curious White Rabbit down a rabbit-hole and falling into Wonderland. A fantastical place, where nothing is quite as it seems: animals talk, nonsensical characters confuse, Mad Hatter's throw tea parties and the Queen plays croquet. Alice's attempts to find her way home become increasingly bizarre, infuriating and amazing in turn. A beloved classic, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland has continued to delight readers, young and old for over a century."

Acclaimed illustrator Peter Kuper delivers a visually immersive and profound adaptation of Joseph Conrad's controversial classic that "doesn't just retell the book [but] destabilizes it, forcing a reconsideration" (Etelka Lechoczy, NPR). Longtime admirers of the novella will appreciate his innovative interpretations, while new readers will discover a brilliant introduction to a canonical work of twentieth-century literature.

Winner of BBC Book of the Year, Ukraine Jura finds that the favourite rooms in his house, each designed to reflect an aspect of his personality, are disappearing one by one. He remembers perfectly well playing the piano in `The Grand Piano Room'. However, the other members of his family deny the room ever existed. In `The Last Day' a family discovers an app that tells them on which day one of them will die. A man receives letters from God giving him choices which throw him into a moral dilemma. In this award-winning collection of stories, `Melnikas questions the taboos that limit human freedom.' Lire Jaroslavas Melnikas is one of the most inventive and interesting Ukrainian and Lithuanian writers today. La Croix wrote of him, `He meditates, like Dostoyevsky, on the relationship between sin and freedom.'

With an Introduction by A. M. de Medeiros, University of Kent at Canterbury. A year after the publication of The Three Musketeers,/em>, Alexandre Dumas produced a sequel worthy in every respect of the original. In Twenty Years After the much beloved D'Artaganan, Athos, Porthos and Aramis reunite to fight the forces of evil. In the original novel they defeated Milady, a formidable foe; now they need to face her vengeful son Mordaunt, as well as countering the machinations of the sinister Cardinal Mazarin. Their adventures also take them to England, where Cromwell is about to topple Charles I. Meanwhile, they must overcome the obstacles which the passing of time has placed between them. Rediscovering strength in unity, they fight for Queen and country. The Musketeer novels were a huge success in Dumas' own lifetime, and have lost none of their original appeal. Translated into many languages and adapted for cinema and television, they have helped to make Dumas arguably the most successful exporter of French culture to the wider world. Our edition is based on the William Robson translation first published by Routledge in 1856.

Arturo Bandini arrives in Los Angeles with big dreams. But the reality he finds is a city gripped by poverty. When he makes a small fortune from the publication of a short story, he reinvents himself, indulging in expensive clothes, fine food and downtown strip clubs. But Bandini's delusions take a worrying turn when he is drawn into a relationship with Camilla Lopez, a beautiful but troubled young woman who will be responsible for his greatest downfall. Ask the Dust is an unforgettable novel about outsiders looking in on a town built on celluloid dreams.

When tourism transforms a fishing village on the green and beautiful Greek island of Corfu, old hatreds, envy and greed threaten to tear the community apart. Behind the scenes, personal demons fuel division while guardian angels battle to neutralize their influence... Hotelier Jason - planning to get rich - ruthlessly chases his goal, unaware of the trouble and danger he is stirring up. Three visitors from Ireland, America and Wales bring their own problems. Clare, running from a broken relationship, is drawn into a love triangle with Jason. Aeron, battling a mid-life crisis, is closer to despair than he realizes - while Bethany, jolted by a Big Birthday into doing a Shirley Valentine, is hoping it will sort her life out. As the sizzling summer unfolds, each faces make-or break-challenges. Extra help is at hand though, with the arrival of Gabriella, angel of Greece. When meddling demons prevail, and smouldering greed and vengeance reach flashpoint, can she avert disaster?

A collection to whet the appetite of anyone wishing to learn more about a region rich in history, folklore and (her)stories. Telling it like a woman does not mean literature for women only: it provides an insight into half of humanity, a window onto the lives of citizens who work, love and develop their inner lives. This collection brings together the voices of a wide selection of prize-winning and established authors

HarperCollins is proud to present its range of best-loved, essential classics. 'One thing is certain, - that there is a mustering among the masses, the world over; and there is a dis irae coming on, sooner or later.' Viewed by many as fuelling the abolitionist movement of the 1850s and laying the groundwork for the Civil War, Harriet Beecher Stowe's sentimental and moral tale of slaves attempting to secure their freedom was one of the most popular books of the nineteenth century. Centred round the long-suffering Uncle Tom, a devout Christian slave who endures cruelty and abuse from his owners, Tom is often celebrated as the first black hero in American fiction who refuses to obey his white masters. With other strong protagonists such as Eliza, a courageous slave who flees to the North with her son when she learns that he is to be sold, Beecher Stowe highlighted the plight of southern slaves and the breaking up of black families. Not without its controversy, more recent criticism has suggested that the novel contributed negatively to the stereotyping of the black community.

HarperCollins is proud to present its range of best-loved, essential classics. 'The woman who first gives life, light, and form to our shadowy conceptions of beauty, fills a void in our spiritual nature that has remained unknown to us till she appeared.' One of the earliest works of 'detective' fiction with a narrative woven together from multiple characters, Wilkie Collins partly based his infamous novel on a real-life eighteenth century case of abduction and wrongful imprisonment. In 1859, the story caused a sensation with its readers, hooking their attention with the ghostly first scene where the mysterious 'Woman in White' Anne Catherick comes across Walter Hartright. Chilling, suspenseful and tense in mood, the novel remains as emotive for its readers today as when it was first published.

'No Surrender' describes minor aristocrats and mill girls as they struggle together as part of the suffrage movement.

'A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds.' Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803 - 1882) was an American essayist and poet. One of the young nation's first recognised public intellectuals, he championed the writing of Henry David Thoreau and Walt Whitman and opined on everything from the evils of slavery to the glories of solitude. His essays such as Self-Reliance argued for a distinctly American style of philosophical individualism, untethered to hidebound traditions and prejudices. Edited by professor David Mikics (The Annotated Emerson) and enhanced with gorgeous woodcuts by Charles W. Smith, this collection of Emerson's essays and poetry is a beautiful introduction to one of America's greatest writers and thinkers.

"Gentle reader, may you never feel what I then felt!" Throughout the hardships of her childhood - spent with a severe aunt and abusive cousin, and later at the austere Lowood charity school - Jane Eyre clings to a sense of self-worth, despite of her treatment from those close to her. At the age of eighteen, sick of her narrow existence, she seeks work as a governess. The monotony of Jane's new life at Thornfield Hall is broken up by the arrival of her peculiar and changeful employer, Mr Rochester. Routine at the mansion is further disrupted by mysterious incidents that draw the pair closer together but which, once explained, threaten Jane's happiness and integrity. A flagship of Victorian fiction, Jane Eyre draws the reader in by the vigour of Jane's voice and the novel's forceful depiction of childhood injustice, of the restraints placed upon women, and the complexities of both faith and passion. The emotional charge of Jane's story is as strong today as it was more than 150 years ago, as she seeks dignity and freedom on her own terms. In this new edition, Juliette Atkinson explores the power of narrative voice and looks at the striking physicality of the novel, which is both shocking and romantic.

Colombia's Pacific coast, where everyday life entails warding off the brutal forces of nature. Damaris lives with her fisherman husband in a shack on a bluff overlooking the sea. Childless and at that age 'when women dry up,' as her uncle puts it, she is eager to adopt an orphaned puppy. But this act may bring more than just affection into her home. The Bitch is written in a prose as terse as the villagers, with storms - both meteorological and emotional - lurking around each corner. Beauty and dread live side by side in this poignant exploration or the many meanings of motherhood and love.

Gems of literature in a luxurious and unique design by Marjolein Bastin. The Marjolein Bastin Classics Series is a chance to rediscover classic literature in collectible, luxuriously illustrated volumes. For the first time ever, the internationally celebrated artwork of Marjolein Bastin graces the pages of a timeless classic, Sense and Sensibility, the story of the Dashwood sisters. Beyond bringing these stories to life, Bastin's series adds elaborately designed ephemera, such as four-color maps, letters, family trees, and sheet music. Discover anew the dramatic world of Sense and Sensibility. The happy and carefree childhood of sisters Elinor and Marianne Dashwood comes to an abrupt end with the death of their father. The family is suddenly penniless and pushed out of their home, leaving the two young ladies with one sole hope: a good marriage. After moving into the cottage of a remote relative, the spirited Marianne falls in love much too quickly. In the meantime, the more intellectual Elinor sees her chances for a happy marriage fade when she discovers the man for whom she's fallen is already engaged. Sense and Sensibility is the story of two dissimilar sisters fighting for their happiness in the face of the strict social conventions of early eighteenth-century England.

In the town of Birch Creek where the only danger is getting swept off your feet, Katharine Miller hides the secrets of her past . . . until she meets Ezra Bontrager and is forced to face the greatest risk of all-opening her heart to true love After fleeing her hometown, Katharine finds peace and anonymity while working at Stoll's Inn and keeping to herself. As long as her guard is up, she can protect herself and others from her past, with the hope that one day her family will forgive her for leaving. Ezra Bontrager has never shared a love of farming with his brothers and father, and when he takes a job at Stoll's Inn, he quickly finds even more reason to come to work every day. Although he has no intention of marrying anytime soon, Ezra can't help but want to learn more about the quiet and mysterious newcomer who doesn't appear to have come to Birch Creek looking for a husband, as so many have done after the want ad that advertised Birch Creek's many bachelors. As Katharine and Ezra continue to cross paths, Katharine feels her defenses lower, and Ezra no longer scoffs at the idea of marriage. Just as they start to hope for the future, the past comes roaring back-not just for Katharine and Ezra but for the entire community of Birch Creek. Confronting that past won't be easy, but it brings the opportunity for love and grace to abound. Praise for Love in Plain Sight "Katharine Miller has everything she ever wants, until she realizes what she's gotten. Love in Plain Sight is Kathleen Fuller at her best. She shines the spotlight on an unlikely heroine who runs away to find herself...and discovers what true love looks like." -Suzanne Woods Fisher, bestselling author of Mending Fences. "Kathleen Fuller's emotional and evocative writing draws readers into her complex stories and keeps them cheering for her endearing characters even after the final page." -Patricia Davids, USA TODAY bestselling author Sweet Amish romance The third book in the Amish Mail-Order Bride series but can be read in any order Book One: A Double Dose of Love Book Two: Matched and Married Book Three: Love in Plain Sight Book length: 84,000 words Includes discussion questions for book clubs

Seven stories, seven whispers into the ears of life: A Yi's unexpected twists of crime burst from the everyday, with glimpses of romance distorted by the weaknesses of human motive. A Yi employs his forensic skills to offer a series of portraits of modern life, both uniquely Chinese, and universal in their themes. His years as a police officer serve him well as he teases the truth from simple observation, now brought into the English language in a masterful translation by Alex Woodend. The stories include Two Lives, Attic, Spring, Bach, Predator. The first in the new Flame Tree Press series, Stories from China. FLAME TREE PRESS is the new fiction imprint of Flame Tree Publishing. Launching in 2018 the list brings together brilliant new authors and the more established; the award winners, and exciting, original voices.

After spending several years in a sanatorium recovering from an illness that caused him to lose his memory and ability to reason, Prince Myshkin arrives in St Petersburg and is at once confronted with the stark realities of life in the Russian capital - from greed, murder and nihilism to passion, vanity and love. Mocked for his childlike naivety yet valued for his openness and understanding, Prince Myshkin finds himself entangled with two women in a position he cannot bring himself to resolve. Dostoevsky, who wrote that in the character of Prince Myshkin he hoped to portray a "wholly virtuous man", shows the workings of the human mind and our relationships with others in all their complex and contradictory nature. Populated by an unforgettable cast of characters, from the beautiful, self-destructive Nastasya Filippovna to the dangerously obsessed Rogozhin and the radical student Ippolit, The Idiot is one of Dostoevsky's most personal and intense works of fiction.

Secrets are like pennies. Everybody's got one, even the poorest among us. For generations, the Jensens have raised their families in the small Montana town of Moose Creek, where gossip spreads faster than the wind. Yet some secrets need to be told. When twenty-one-year-old Bea discovers she's pregnant on the heels of her husband losing his job, she's forced to admit she needs help and asks her dad for a place to stay. But past resentments keep her from telling him all that's going on. Mitch Jensen is thrilled to have a full house again, though he's unimpressed with Bea's decisions: dropping out of college, marrying so young--and to an idealistic city kid, of all things. Mitch hopes to convince Bea to return to the path he's always envisioned for her, but she's changed since her mom died. And he refuses to admit how much he's changed, too, especially now that he might be losing his mother as well. Grandma June is good at spinning stories, but there's one she's never told. Now that her mind is starting to fade, her time to tell it is running out. But if she reveals the truth before her memories are gone forever, the Jensen family will never be the same. "Powner will be the next big star in Christian fiction."--Library Journal starred review