Simon Prebble

It is Christmastime, 1914, and World War I rages. A young French soldier named Pierre who had quietly left his regiment to visit his family for two days is imprisoned when he returns. Now he faces execution for desertion, and as he waits in isolation, he meditates on big questions: the nature of patriotism, the horrors of war, the joys of friendship, the love of family, and how, even in times of danger, there is a whole world inside every one of us-and...

Corduroy Mansions is the nickname given to a building in London's vibrant Pimlico neighborhood, home to a captivating collection of quirky characters, from nasty Liberal Democrat MP Oedipus Snark to the newest resident, Pimlico Terrier Freddie de la Hay, who insists on wearing a seat belt and is almost certainly the only avowed vegetarian canine in London.

When the world's deadliest terrorist organization, Scorpia, stirs up trouble in the Middle East, it is up to fourteen-year-old MI6 agent Alex Rider to thwart their plans.

First published in Russian in 1866, "The Gambler", by Fyodor Dostoyevsky, is a gripping narrative of the dangers of gambling. As was common with Dostoyevsky's other writings, he draws upon his own life in a semi-autobiographical way. Dostoyevksy himself suffered from a compulsion to gambling and had to complete "The Gambler" under a strict deadline to pay off his own debts. These first-hand experiences bring a depth of realism to the novel and to...

"The immense talent, passion and literary brilliance that Conan Doyle brought to his work gives him a unique place in English letters."-Stephen Fry "Doyle's modesty of language conceals a profound tolerance of the human complexity"-John Le Carré "Holmes has a timeless talent, passion and literary brilliance that puts him heads, shoulders and deerstalker above all other detectives."- Alexander McCall Smith Arthur Conan Doyle's The Memoirs...

Allan Quatermain relates the events of his safari into the interior of South Africa in search of the legendary lost treasure mines of King Solomon.

Chief Inspector Brian Leslie, a respected colleague of Ian Rutledge's, is sent to Avebury, a village set inside a great prehistoric stone circle not far from Stonehenge. A young woman has been murdered next to a mysterious, hooded, figure-like stone, but no one recognizes her--or admits to it. And how did she get there? Despite a thorough investigation, it appears that her killer has simply vanished. Rutledge, returning from the conclusion of...

An astonishing tip from a grateful ex-convict seems implausible--but Inspector Ian Rutledge is intrigued and brings it to his superior at Scotland Yard. Alan Barrington, who has evaded capture for ten years, is the suspect in an appalling murder during Black Ascot, the famous 1910 royal horserace honoring the late King Edward VII. His disappearance began a manhunt that consumed Britain for a decade. Now it appears that Barrington has returned to England,...

Arthur Conan Doyle's The Valley of Fear (1915) is the fourth and final installment of the Sherlock Holmes crime novels. This work of riveting suspense and intrigue is loosely based on the infamous 18th Century Irish secret society, The Molly Maguires. First published in serial form in The Strand Magazine in 1914 and 1915, this novel brings Sherlock Holmes face-to-face with the evil Professor Moriarty, one of the most nefarious characters of crime...

From a New York Times–bestselling "master of crime fiction and equine thrills," an aristocratic amateur jockey gets involved in a criminal investigation (Newsday). Dick Francis, Edgar Award–winning master of mystery and suspense, takes you into the thrilling world of horse racing. The youngest child of rich, neglectful parents, Henry Grey was occasionally accused of being an overgrown brat. But all Henry wanted was a career that would...