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By Jules Verne. 2024
A stolen hot air balloon lands an unlikely crew on a mysterious island far from everything they know in this…
action-packed Jules Verne classic—now with an arresting new look!Five prisoners of war steal a hot air balloon and escape capture in Virginia during the American Civil War. They fly for several thousand miles before a storm forces them to crash land on an unknown island in the Pacific. There, the marooned men must work together to pool all their knowledge and skill if they wish to survive. But the island has its secrets, and the castaways discover it&’s not as deserted as they thought. A mysterious figure has been watching them. Does it bring salvation or even more danger?By Kim Sherwood. 2024
An elite team of MI6 agents must go undercover to unravel a smuggling network funding violent terror in the second…
thrilling adventure in the acclaimed Double O series by Kim Sherwood.James Bond is alive.Or at least, he was when he left a clue at the black site where the insidious private military company Rattenfänger held him captive. MI6 cannot spare any more lives attempting to track down one missing agent—no exceptions, even for Bond. But Johanna Harwood, 003, has her own agenda. Sidelined by her superiors while she grieves the loss of a loved one, Harwood goes on an unsanctioned mission: to find 007. Meanwhile, MI6 has another problem…A bomb has detonated in London.Double O agents on the trail of the terrorists responsible acted quickly to prevent mass destruction and save lives. But MI6 failed to neutralize the nation’s enemies before they could strike, and one of their own was seriously injured in the blast.They won’t fail again.Assigned to root out the source of the terrorists’ funding, Joseph Dryden, 004, and Conrad Harthrop-Vane, 000, enter the field. Tracing clues from Sotheby’s auction house to Crete to Venice, they uncover a money laundering scheme involving diamonds, black market antiquities, and human trafficking. Once a major sale is made, a six-day countdown to the next terror attack begins. As the Double O’s follow the twisting trail, they find themselves unexpectedly inching closer to Bond…By John Brownlow. 2024
Ian Fleming Steel Dagger Award Winning-Author of AGENT SEVENTEEN&“John Brownlow is a master of suspense.&” —Jeff Abbott, New York Times bestselling author of Traitor&’s DanceI…
am waiting for someone to kill me. Tonight would be a good night for it.Agent Seventeen, the most infamous hit man in the world, has quit. But whoever wants to become Assassin Eighteen must track him down and kill him first. So when a bullet hits the glass inches from his face, he knows who fired it—doesn't he?It turns out that the sniper isn't the hardened killer he was expecting. It's Mireille—a mysterious silent child abandoned in the woods with instructions to pull the trigger. Reuniting with his spiky lover, Kat, Seventeen has to protect Mireille and discover who sent her to kill him and why. But the road he must travel is littered with bodies. And the answer, when it comes, will blow apart everything Seventeen thought he knew."The most action-packed spy thriller that fans of the genre will read this year." —Irish Examiner"Brownlow is an accomplished screenwriter, and it shows in his style." —Financial TimesBy John Buchan. 1915
The novel of international intrigue and adventure that set the standard for the modern spy thrillerOne May evening in 1914,…
an ordinary Londoner named Richard Hannay receives word of an anarchist plot to assassinate the prime minister of Greece. A few nights later, the eccentric American who revealed the conspiracy is found stabbed to death in Hannay&’s flat. With only the dead man&’s encrypted notes to guide him, Hannay must try to foil the assassination attempt while outpacing both the police and the conspirators, whose dastardly plans extend far beyond one Greek politician. The fate of England, it seems, rests on one mysterious phrase repeated throughout the American&’s notebook; just what exactly are the thirty-nine steps?Buchan&’s groundbreaking novel, the first in a series featuring Richard Hannay, was adapted by Alfred Hitchcock and paved the way for Graham Greene, Robert Ludlum, John le Carré, and many other masters of literary espionage. Lightning-paced, relentlessly clever, and politically insightful, The Thirty-Nine Steps is just as thrilling today as when it was first published a century ago.This ebook has been professionally proofread to ensure accuracy and readability on all devices.By Maria Kuzniar. 2021
PREPARE FOR PUZZLES, PERIL, AND PLENTY OF CAKE IN THE SECOND THRILLING ADVENTURE FOR ALEJA AND THE CREW OF THE…
LEGENDARY SHIP OF SHADOWSAleja and her fellow pirates are eager to embark on a new adventure to find the second piece of the missing magical map. But they soon find themselves panicking, bewildered by a series of confusing clues. And time is running out - fast.When she starts experiencing strange visions, Aleja realizes that someone is trying to tell her something. But can this new knowledge be trusted? And what will it cost her to find out? With the crew's loyalties tested and more secrets to unlock than ever, Aleja must find a way to beat the clock and prove herself truly worthy of her place on the ship's crew . . .Praise for The Ship of Shadows:"A sumptuous delight of a book" - Sophie Kirtley, author of The Wild Way Home"A feast for the imagination . . . an enthralling adventure." - Abi Elphinstone, author of Sky Song"This swashbuckling tale has it all . . . I loved it." - Alex Bell, author of The Polar Bear Explorers' Club READERS CAN'T WAIT FOR SECRETS OF THE STARS:"With a strong protagonist and a likeable crew of characters, I couldn't stay away from the story for long, and now I CRAVE a follow-up." Gavin Hetherington, waterstones.com"Thrilling, exciting and intriguing and I can't wait for the next instalment!" Rhiannon, waterstones.com"What a fantastic spellbinding book . . . A truly fascinating tale and we cannot wait for the second book to be released!" Eva Sneep, amazon.co.uk"Ship of Shadows was a fantastic book . . . I just loved everything that happened and it ended in such a way where you need the sequel asap." Emma Thompson, waterstones.com"The real treasure in this gem of a book lies in the crew . . . I can't wait to join the crew again for the next instalment of this thrilling tale." Stephanie, amazon.co.uk"I highly recommend diving into this novel. It's highly likely that you won't be able to wait for the next instalment." Tracy Curran, waterstones.comBy Geoffrey Archer. 1989
One renegade captain threatens disasterHMS Truculent is a nuclear-powered, hunter-killer submarine, and one of the most deadly weapon systems in…
the world. Phil Hitchens is its distinguished British commander - who has broken away from a NATO exercise and embarked on his own darkly vengeful and deadly mission.Shadowhunter is the codename of the desperate sonar search for HMS Truculent, last seen heading for the Kola Inlet where the cream of Soviet sea power lies unsuspecting at anchor. Shadowhunter is Geoffrey Archer's nail-biting, authentic thriller of undersea battle and international tension - a chillingly credible account of the world brought to the brink of catastrophe.By Herman Melville. 2011
A PBS Great American Read Top 100 PickMelville’s classic tale of obsession and the sea, one of the most important…
and enduring masterworks of nineteenth-century literature, Moby Dick is a riveting drama, exploring rage, hope, destiny, and the deepest questions of moral truth. “Call me Ishmael.”Thus begins one of the most famous journeys in literature—the voyage of the whaling ship Pequod and its embattled, monomaniacal Captain Ahab. Ishmael quickly learns that the Pequod’s captain sails for revenge against the elusive Moby Dick, a sperm whale with a snow-white hump and mottled skin that destroyed Ahab’s former vessel and left him crippled. As the Pequod sails deeper through the nights and into the sea, the divisions between man and nature begin to blur—so do the lines between good and evil, as the fates of the ship’s crewmen become increasingly unclear. . . .By Tom Morton. 2009
A name from the murkiest corners of Britain's secret war in Ireland: Serpentine. At first it's just gossip and fearful…
whispers. But then people begin to die and all hell breaks loose from Palestine to the remote Highlands of Scotland. Fresh from the toughest assignments in the mercenary world comes former SAS officer Murricane. Can he find Serpentine before it's too late and before the horrific secrets of the past threaten to cause chaos not just in Ireland but in the Middle East too?In a trail of mayhem that leads through Scotland, Gaza and Ireland, Murricane battles his own demons, as well as a monstrous former RUC officer, a disgraced policeman and a series of unreliable Land Rovers, until Serpentine plays his final, devastating game . . .Serpentine is an explosive, bitterly funny journey into the darkest heart of the Irish Troubles and the violence that lurks in Scotland's most scenic Highland communities.Fans of Dan Brown, Clive Cussler and Scott Mariani will love this high-octane, edge-of-your-seat international thriller from the pen of…
prizewinning author Tom Harper. It has everything you could want: great plot, great pace, great suspense and a great twist...'In the tradition of The Da Vinci Code, a page-turner of a novel. Like Dan Brown, Tom Harper knows how to ratchet up the tension.' -- Choice'FANTASTIC FANTASTIC FANTASTIC' -- ***** Reader review'A page-turner: not a single moment of boredom' -- ***** Reader review'Could not put it down!' -- ***** Reader review**********************************************************************************A BRUTAL MURDER. A DAMAGED SURVIVOR. A RACE AGAINST TIME...In a villa on the coast of Montenegro, Abby Cormac witnesses the brutal murder of her lover, diplomat Michael Lascaris. The last thing she remembers is a gun pointed directly at her and wakes to find herself alone and at the centre of a diplomatic nightmare. Everyone wants an answer but no one wants to listen. Even her employers at the Foreign Office believe she's hiding something.As Abby tries to piece together the last few months of Michael's life in order to get at the truth, she soon realises that he wasn't quite what he seemed. What exactly was his relationship with one of the most ruthless men in the Balkans? And what links Michael's gift to her of a gold necklace, a 4th century manuscript left in the shadow of Emperor Constantine's palace at Trier and an inscription on a tomb in Rome?When Abby investigates further, it becomes clear that someone wants to suppress a secret, one that has been kept hidden for centuries. And they will stop at nothing to do so...By Joseph Conrad. 2012
With a note by the author.'Madness and despair! Give me that for a lever, and I'll move the world'In the…
only novel Conrad set in London, The Secret Agent communicates a profoundly ironic view of human affairs. The story is woven around an attack on the Greenwich Observatory in 1894 masterminded by Verloc, a Russian spy working for the police, and ostensibly a member of an anarchist group in Soho. His masters instruct him to discredit the anarchists in a humiliating fashion, and when his evil plan goes horribly awry, Verlac must deal with the repercussions of his actions.The Penguin English Library - 100 editions of the best fiction written in English, from the eighteenth century and the very first novels, to the beginning of the First World War.By Joseph Conrad. 1984
In the only novel Conrad set in London, The Secret Agent; communicates a profoundly ironic view of human affairs. The…
story is woven around an attack on the Greenwich Observatory in 1894 masterminded by Verloc, a Russian spy working for the police, and ostensibly a member of an anarchist group in Soho. His masters instruct him to discredit the anarchists in a humiliating fashion, and when his evil plan goes horribly awry, Verlac must deal with the repercussions of his actions.By Matthew Richardson. 1992
THE BOOK THOSE IN THE KNOW ARE CALLING THE BEST SPY NOVEL OF THE YEAR*** One of the 50 BEST…
BOOKS OF THE YEAR 2023 in the Daily Telegraph ****** A SUNDAY TIMES BOOK OF THE YEAR 2023 ****** A GUARDIAN BOOK OF THE YEAR 2023 ***‘Superbly constructed in an elaborate twisty spy yarn. It's highly unlikely that there will be a better espionage novel this year’ THE SUNDAY TIMES'A breathtaking thriller. A classic in the making' PETER JAMES'Hugely impressive and compelling' WILLIAM BOYD‘A natural-born storyteller’ JEFFERY DEAVER___________London, present dayHistorian Max Archer is invited to a clandestine meeting with legendary Cold War spymaster, Scarlet King.Her offer to share the explosive secrets born of over half a century at the heart of global espionage would be life-changing. But Max has little reason to trust a woman whose name is a byword for deceit and ruthlessness.Soon he is on the wrong side of the law and on the run. As the net closes tighter around him he must somehow discover the truth. Because it’s not just his life on the line – but also the fate of the Western world . . .___________‘Intricate and fast moving, it weaves a thrilling spell’ DAILY MAIL'Smart, slick and totally gripping . . . The Scarlet Papers is always credible, always startling and almost painfully human. A total triumph' TONY PARSONS'A masterpiece' TIM GLISTER*** DISCOVER MY NAME IS NOBODY AND THE INSIDER, FURTHER SPY NOVELS BY MATTHEW RICHARDSON ***Let bestselling author Will Jordan take you on a break-neck speed ride with CIA agent Ryan Drake in this compelling…
and unmissable thriller. Fans of Lee Child, Vince Flynn and David Baldacci will love this!'Entertaining' - The Telegraph'Engrossing' -- ***** Reader review'A real page-turner' -- ***** Reader review'From the start Mr Jordan weaves a spell - the action is fast and believable' -- ***** Reader review'Creative plot played out at a relentless pace - great stuff, Mr Jordan!' -- ***** Reader review'Great book that will have you keep turning the pages' -- ***** Reader review'Superb from start to finish' -- ***** Reader review*******************************************************************A MISSING MAN. A BRUTAL CONFLICT.Afghanistan, 2008: a Black Hawk helicopter carrying a senior CIA operative is shot down by a surface to air missile, its lone passenger taken hostage by a fanatical new insurgent group.Knowing this man holds information vital to the ongoing conflict, the CIA bring in Ryan Drake and his elite Shepherd team to find and rescue their lost operative.But nothing is what it seems, and within hours of arriving in the war-torn country, Drake and his team find themselves caught in a deadly conflict between a brutal terrorist warlord and the ruthless leader of a private military company.And lurking in the shadows is a woman from Drake's past determined to settle old scores...By M. J. Arlidge. 2017
New to the police force, WPC Helen Grace is assigned to her first clear-cut case. Sure there's something sinister beneath…
the surface, Helen has a bad feeling . . . but who's going to take the word of a rookie?Running Blind is an exclusive eBook novella featuring DI Helen Grace, from bestselling author M. J. Arlidge.Fresh out of Police College, 18-year-old WPC Helen Grace is the first to arrive on the scene of a fatal collision. Her colleagues see nothing amiss, convinced that the young man's death was a tragic accident. But Helen is not so sure. Who is their mystery victim? Why would he risk life and limb running across a busy highway? And what might he have been running from?There's a dark secret lurking amid the quiet fields of Hampshire, one that Helen is determined to uncover.In this ebook novella, rookie Helen Grace discovers what it's like to be a woman in a man's world, facing impossible odds as she races against time to save vulnerable lives.By Daniel Defoe. 2010
Discover the legendary story of a marine adventurer shipwrecked on a desert island. Robinson Crusoe runs away from home to…
join the navy. After a series of adventures at sea, he is shipwrecked in a devastating storm, and finds himself alone on a remote desert island. He remains there many years, building a life for himself in solitude, until the day he discovers another man's footprint in the sand... ‘Robinson Crusoe has a universal appeal, a story that goes right to the core of existence’ GuardianBy Erskine Childers. 1903
The first modern spy novel and a must-read for espionage junkies and fans of James Bond and John Le Carré.…
When Carruthers receives a letter from his friend Davies suggesting a Baltic sailing trip, the vision of a manned yacht, A1 scenery and excellent duck shooting quickly works its charm. But Carruthers hopes for a holiday are quickly dashed. There has been suspicious German activity along the coast. The Medusa, manned by the sinister Dollman, has already tried to destroy Davies. What are the Germans up to? Nothing less than a plot to invade Britain. And only these two courageous Englishmen can stop them.Published in 1903, The Riddle of the Sands is considered the first modern spy novel.Readers of Clive Cussler, Bernard Cornwell and Wilbur Smith will love this gripping, spell-binding and unputdownable WW2 historical adventure full…
of vivid battle scenes and masterful characterisation from multi-million copy bestselling author Douglas Reeman. Guaranteed to have you hooked from page one...'One of our foremost writers of naval fiction' -- Sunday Times'A wonderfully entertaining book' -- ***** Reader review'Another brilliant story from the master of sea battles, I thoroughly enjoyed this book from start to finish' -- ***** Reader review'Well-paced & difficult to put down' -- ***** Reader review'Highly rated indeed. Excellent!' -- ***** Reader review*****************************************************************************1941: the S.S. Benbecula is already old when she is turned into an armed merchant cruiser,.Yet even she is needed to protect the vital Atlantic sea lanes.Commander Lindsay, her new captain, has to work desperately to mould the ship's company - raw recruits and old timers - into a fighting force.And better than anyone, Lindsay knows this could be his last command, his last chance...Introducing Ryan Drake - think Jason Bourne meets Jack Reacher...If you like Lee Child, Vince Flynn and David Baldacci, you…
will love this riveting and unputdownable thriller from bestselling author Will Jordan.'Entertaining' - The Telegraph'I can honestly say that I couldn't put this book down.' -- ***** Reader review'Just builds and builds and the climax [is] thrilling.' -- ***** Reader review'Top-notch' -- ***** Reader review'This book does not let up. It hits the gas and it doesn't let up on the pedal.' -- ***** Reader review*******************************************************************************************EVERYONE HAS SECRETS. BUT SOME CAN GET YOU KILLED.Ryan Drake is a man who finds people who don't want to be found.Once a soldier in the British Army, he now works for the CIA, leading an elite investigation team that tracks down missing agents. But his latest mission - to free a prisoner codenamed Maras and bring her back onto US soil within forty-eight hours - is more dangerous than anything his team has attempted before.But it's when the mission is successfully completed that the real danger for Drake begins. Faced with a terrible threat, he is forced to go on the run with Maras - a veteran agent scarred by years of brutal imprisonment.Hunted by his former comrades and those willing to do anything to protect a deadly secret, Drake is left with no choice but to trust a dangerous woman he barely knows.For he has only one chance to save those he loves and time is running out...Drake will return in Sacrifice.By Jeremy Strong. 2004
The third very funny story about the children at pirate school. The children hide a stray dog on board, while…
Patagonia Clatterbottom, the head teacher, is plagued by school inspectors, who are not impressed by the lessons. So, the children decide to sail the school away. The inspectors give chase, but the children fire on their boat and take it over - full marks for the lessons they have learnt about being pirates. And they're allowed to keep the dog!By Jeremy Strong. 2007
Patagonia Clatterbottom is very cross. Other pirates have ambushed the Pirate School's food. So, she's going to teach the children…
– Smudge, Flo, Ziggy and Corkella – how to make a proper pirate attack and get their food back. But things go wrong, and all the teachers are captured! Luckily the children have a plan – and some friendly dolphins are helping as well.Jeremy Strong knows just what children like and just what makes them laugh. Be prepared for giggles!Jeremy Strong's Pirate School: The Bun Gun was featured in the brand-new series of Jackanory.