A fresh look at the Albigensian Crusade, highlighting its effects upon the indigenous nobility. The Albigensian Crusade was called by Pope Innocent III in 1208 against the Count of Toulouse in response to the murder of the papal legate Pierre des Castelnau. The Pope's aim was to force the Count and other nobles in Languedocto take action against the Cathar heretics in their lands, but in the end, the defeat of Catharism in the south of France was achieved through the establishment of the Inquisition and the extension of French royal authority to thearea. While some Occitan noble families survived the crusade, others were destroyed and the behaviour of the crusaders towards the local nobility has often been regarded as rather arbitrary, unconnected to how these families related to each other before 1209. This study takes the case of the Trencavel Viscounts of Beziers and Carcassonne, who were the only members of the higher nobility to lose their lands to the crusade, and argues that an understandingof how the Occitan nobility fared in the crusade years must be based in the context of the politics of the noble society of Languedoc, not only in the thirteenth century but also in the twelfth. ELAINE GRAHAM-LEIGH gained her Ph.D. from the University of London.

War is coming, but will it bring freedom, or disaster? The planet of Benan Ty is just another poor and violent ex-Terran colony. Now the Chi!me, the major power in the galaxy, are coming to broker a peace deal between guerrilla group ViaVera and the government. For Quila, a rising figure in the Chi!me diplomatic service, the posting to Benan Ty could be the making of her career. Meanwhile Terise, one of ViaVera's inner circle, is just trying to get her lover out with his life. But in a conflict where no side's motivations are pure, they are both about to discover how much they have to lose. Set in a future where humanity has gone to the stars, but taken exploitation and oppression with them, this is a story of imperialism, resistance, friendship and ultimately, liberation. 'Glitteringly good' The Morning Star'...an entertaining and exciting book about a serious subject, with a female hero whose optimism gives us everything to root for' Theaker's Quarterly Fiction'A remarkable achievement... Graham-Leigh has written a book that stands with the unremarked, the overlooked, the dispossessed' Counterfire 'Artfully spun, marvellously executed... A virtually flawless SF tale' The Prairies Book Review'...an engaging tale that resonates with contemporary issues' The Fantasy Hive.

Received wisdom is increasingly that we all have to eat less to save the planet, but received wisdom is wrong. A Diet of Austerity argues that, just as the poor are blamed for the economic crisis, Malthusian conceptions about food and ecology are being used to hold the working class responsible for climate change and global hunger. Challenging existing dogmas about overconsumption and personal responsibility, it shows that what we need to stop climate change is system change.