Blood And Sand

FORGED IN BATTLE... FROM THE DUST OF THE ARENA... A LEGEND WILL RISE The action-packed tale of a 17-year-old warrior princess and a handsome gladiator who dared take on the Roman Republic—and gave rise to the legend of Spartacus... For teens who love strong female protagonists in their fantasy and historical fiction, Blood and Sand is a stirring, yet poignant tale of two slaves who dared take on an empire by talented debut author C. V. Wyk. Roma Victrix. The Republic of Rome is on a relentless march to create an empire—an empire built on the backs of the conquered, brought back to Rome as slaves. Attia was once destined to rule as the queen and swordmaiden of Thrace, the greatest warrior kingdom the world had seen since Sparta. Now she is a slave, given to Xanthus, the Champion of Rome, as a sign of his master’s favor. Enslaved as a child, Xanthus is the preeminent gladiator of his generation. Against all odds, Attia and Xanthus form a tentative bond. A bond that will spark a rebellion. A rebellion that threatens to bring the Roman Republic to its end—and gives rise to the legend of Spartacus... The story continues in Fire and Ash, coming soon from Tor Teen. At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

A revelatory popular history that tells the story of the Suez Crisis and the Hungarian Revolution of 1956—a tale of conspiracy and revolutions, spies and terrorists, kidnappings and assassination plots, the fall of the British Empire and rise of American hegemony under the heroic leadership of President Dwight D. Eisenhower—which shaped the Middle East and Europe we know today. The year 1956 was a turning point in history. Over sixteen extraordinary days in October and November, the twin crises of Suez and Hungary pushed the world to the brink of a nuclear conflict and what many at the time were calling World War III. Blood and Sand relates this story hour-by-hour, through an international cast of characters: Anthony Eden, the British prime minister, caught in a trap of his own making; Gamal Abdel Nasser, the bold young populist leader of Egypt; David Ben-Gurion, the strong-willed founding prime minister of Israel; Guy Mollet, the bellicose French prime minister; and Dwight D. Eisenhower, the American president, torn between an old world order and a new one in the very same week that his own fate as president was to be decided by the American people. This is a fresh new account of these dramatic events and people, one that for the first time sets both crises in the context of the global Cold War, the Arab-Israeli conflict, and the treacherous power politics of imperialism and oil. Blood and Sand resonates strikingly with the problems of oil control, religious fundamentalism, and international unity that face the world today, and is essential reading for anyone concerned with the state of the modern Middle East and Europe.

On the June 6, 2004, while on assignment in Riyadh, BBC security correspondent Frank Gardner and cameraman Simon Cumbers were ambushed by Islamist gunmen. Simon was killed outright. Frank was hit in the shoulder and leg. As he lay in the dust, a figure stood over him and pumped four more bullets into his body at point-blank range... Against all the odds, Frank Gardner survived. Today, although partly paralysed, Frank continues to travel the world, reporting and making documentaries for the BBC. This acclaimed memoir was brought up to date with a new chapter that recounted his return to Saudi Arabia for the first time since he was shot and the story he tells continues to move and inspire, and remains an affirmation of his deep understanding of - and affection for - the Islamic world in these uncertain times. ___ 'Gardner tells his remarkable tale well and bravely, with an astonishing lack of anger and enduring love and respect for the Islamic world' SUNDAY TIMES 'Brave, unsentimental and genuinely inspiring' EVENING STANDARD 'What makes Gardner's moving, often humorous, deeply personal story so important is the fact that he has woven into it a brilliantly dispassionate, clear-eyed account of the Islamic world' SCOTSMAN 'A witty, self-deprecating, inspiring testament' DAILY TELEGRAPH

In this adventure based on a true story, a Scottish soldier captured in the Napoleonic Wars converts to Islam and joins forces with the Ottoman Empire. 1807, Egypt. It is the height of the Napoleonic Wars. 6,000 British soldiers have invaded Alexandria in a bid to wrest the control of the country from the Ottoman Empire. Among their number is Private Thomas Keith of the 78th Highlanders. After the initial successful occupation of the city, however, the tide of the Alexandria campaign begins to turn against the British. At the Battle of El Hamed, Keith is captured by the Ottoman forces. While a prisoner of war, Keith is introduced to Islam and falls in love with the religion, making the decision to convert to the faith and join the Ottoman army. His conversion and skill with a sword impress the Ottoman general, who sends him to train with the Bedouin cavalry. So begins Keith’s unlikely journey up the ranks of the Ottoman military, which ultimately saw him become Emir of the Holy City of Medina . . . Praise of Blood and Sand: “[A] stirring native. . . . In this veteran British author’s hands, what might have become merely a harsh tale of violence in the deserts of Arabia becomes a memorable, sensitively rendered story.” —Publishers Weekly “An astonishing, exciting story with great imaginative power.” —The Daily Telegraph “The tone is dark and thoughtful, the detail carefully observed, and the flavor unmistakably exotic.” —The Lady

One of the secrets of the immense power exercised by the novels of Vicente Blasco Ibáñez is that they are literary projections of his dynamic personality. Not only the style, but the book, is here the man. This is especially true of those of his works in which the thesis element predominates, and in which the famous author of The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse appears as a novelist of ideas-in-action. It is, of course, possible to divide his works into the "manners" or "periods" so dear to the literary cataloguers, and it may thus be indicated that there are such fairly distinct genres as the regional novel, the sociological tale and the psychological study; a convenient classification of this sort would place among the regional novels such masterpieces as La Barraca and Cañas y Barro,—among the novels of purpose such powerful writings as La Catedral, La Bodega and Sangre y Arena,—among the psychological studies the introspective La Maja Desnuda. The war novels, including The Four Horsemen and the epic Mare Nostrum, would seem to form another group. Such non-literary diversions as grouping and regrouping, however, had perhaps best be left to those who relish the task. It is for the present more important to note that the passionate flame of a deeply human purpose welds the man's literary labors into a larger unity. His pen, as his person, has been given over to humanity. He is as fearless in his denunciation of evil as he is powerful in his description of it; he has lived his ideas as well as fashioned them into enduring documents; he reveals not only a new Spain, but a new world. While Blasco Ibáñez does not desire to be known as regional novelist—nor does a complete view of his numerous works justify such a narrow description—he[Pg vi] has nevertheless in his earlier books made such effective and artistic use of regional backgrounds that some critics have found this part of his production best.

Ancient vampire Rue keeps to herself. It makes it easier to fight the constant hunger that plagues her. That is, until the night she catches Grace-a not very good vampire hunter-stalking her through the streets of Dublin. Something about Grace is achingly familiar. And strangely irresistible. Rue soon learns that Grace is herself being hunted, and is thrown into a battle she never wanted, to save a woman who wants her dead. As Rue unravels the horrifying and treacherous plot, she also uncovers a secret about Grace that could change everything. Along the way, Rue finds herself drawn to the girl, and is forced to choose: Continue her solitary life of safety, or risk it all for love? Through it all, Rue recalls her creation and formative nights in an ancient world far from the rainy streets of Dublin, a world where she learned to live, love, hunt and kill.

Jae is a slave in a dying desert world. Once verdant with water from a magical Well, the land is drying up, and no one remembers the magic needed to keep the water flowing. If a new source isn’t found soon, the people will perish. Jae doesn’t mind, in a way. By law, she is bound by a curse to obey every order given her, no matter how vile. At least in death, she’ll be free. Elan’s family rules the fading realm. He comes to the estate where Jae works, searching for the hidden magic needed to replenish the Well, but it’s Jae who finds it, and she who must wield it. Desperate to save his realm, Elan begs her to use it to locate the Well. But why would a slave—abused, beaten, and treated as less than human—want to save the system that shackles her? Jae would rather see the world burn. Though revenge clouds her vision, she agrees to help if the realm’s slaves are freed. Then Elan’s father arrives. The ruler’s cruelty knows no limits. He is determined that the class system will not change—and that Jae will remain a slave forever. "Ferocious and intelligent." —Kirkus Reviews "Allen’s lush debut mixes current, pressing questions with fantasy while exploring systematic injustice and historical oppression...readers will clamor for the sequel." —Publishers Weekly

Kim Liggett's The Unfortunates, a haunting tale of privilege, guilt, and redemption from the author of the Bram Stoker Award winner, The Last Harvest When seventeen-year-old senator's son Grant Tavish is involved in a fatal accident, all he wants to do is face the consequences of what he's done. But those consequences never come, even if headlines of "affluenza" do. The truth soon becomes clear: due to his father's connections, Grant is going to get away with murder. As a family tradition approaches, a cave excursion on the Appalachian Trail, Grant seizes the opportunity to take justice into his own hands by staging an accident and never coming back. But before he has a chance to enact his plans, the cave system collapses, trapping him miles beneath the surface with four other teens from much less fortunate circumstances. As they struggle to survive, they share their innermost secrets and fears, and just when it seems they might be on track to finding a way out, they realize... There's something else down there. And it's hunting them. At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.