oldcastle books ltd united kingdom harpenden herts (57 results)

Paperback. Condition: Very Good. Who is Who? A Time Lord from the planet Gallifrey with two hearts and thirteen lives? A folk hero who entertained and enthralled us in the warm glow of our TV sets on dark winter evenings? A rebellious iconoclast who toppled corrupt dictatorships and freed the oppressed? Or a bumbling British eccentric who for 26 years fought rubber monsters in a cheap and cheerful BBC kids' show? Well, he's all of these things - and a whole lot more besides. The story of Doctor Who is the story of British television in the final third of this century. It is also the story of the hopes and fears of generations of children - and grown-ups too - from the counter-culture 60s to the shallow waters of the 90s. Along the way there are shock revelations, melodramatic cliff-hangers and liberal doses of humour (intentional or otherwise); but be warned - there is also heart-ache, disappointment and death. Every taste is catered for in the world of Doctor Who. As well as an introductory essay, each Doctor's era is put under the microscope with facts and informed opinion on all their stories. There's an in-depth reference section detailing further reading, fascinating and bizarre Doctor Who websites, and a short history of spin-off stories and merchandising. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Condition: Very Good. Secret Societies in one form or another have existed throughout the history of human culture. But what is their appeal? What is it that makes so-called respectable people indulge in peculiar ceremonies, dressed in fanciful costumes uttering blood-curdling oaths of loyalty with the threat of death hanging over them should they reveal the inner workings of the cult? Are these organisations simply a way for like-minded followers to get together in a convivial atmosphere for purely social reasons or is there really a dark side to their activities. Are they really trying, as some have suggested, to control world affairs for their own nefarious ends or in some cases harbour the Devil? Are the secret societies' claims that they are in the possession of great knowledge or valuable secrets also true? Are they really trying to engineer history or keep hidden that which may bring about the fall of a religion or a country? In Secret Societies Nick Harding describes some of the best known organisations along with some of their least known counterparts. He highlights the similarities that all these cults have - they all work to a similar pattern and that basic human psychology plays a far more important role in their continued existence and their enduring appeal than any hidden wisdom, knowledge or world-shattering secret. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Condition: Good. A paperback edition of an Oxford crime thriller featuring sleuth John Coffin, for whom what starts out as a simple case of murder turns into one of the most chilling cases of his career. From the author of COFFIN'S GAME, A DARK COFFIN and A DOUBLE COFFIN. The book has been read but remains in clean condition. All pages are intact and the cover is intact. Some minor wear to the spine.

Paperback. Condition: Very Good. It began with the horse-drawn carriage and ended with the aeroplane. An era, beginning in the 1830s and ending with the death of Queen Victoria in 1901, that saw the British Empire - the largest ever seen - dominate the world. British ingenuity in the fields of technological development and the heavy industry of its Industrial Revolution led to Britain being dubbed 'the workshop of the world' while its Royal Navy policed the world's oceans helping to create what has become known as a 'Pax Britannica'. History of the Victorian Era details the sweeping social and economic changes that took place during this period but also examines the events of the time and the lives of the eminent Victorians who contributed so much to British success - men and women such as Florence Nightingale, Isambard Kingdom Brunel, Charles Dickens, Elizabeth Garrett Anderson and Charles Darwin. History of the Victorian Era is the story of the greatest period in British history, a period that still resonates in today's Britain. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Condition: Good. The Black Death is the name most commonly given to the pandemic of bubonic plague that ravaged the medieval world in the late 1340s. From Central Asia the plague swept through Europe, leaving millions of dead in its wake. Between a quarter and a third of Europe's population died. In England the population fell from nearly six million to just over three million. The Black Death was the greatest demographic disaster in European history. In this Pocket Essential, Sean Martin looks at the origins of the disease and traces its terrible march through Europe from the Italian cities to the far-flung corners of Scandinavia. He describes contemporary responses to the plague and makes clear how helpless was the medicine of the day in the face of it. He examines the renewed persecution of the Jews, blamed by many Christians for the spread of the disease, and highlights the bizarre attempts by such groups as the Flagellants to ward off what they saw as the wrath of God. His book is a vivid and dramatic account of one of the great catastrophes of history. The book has been read but remains in clean condition. All pages are intact and the cover is intact. Some minor wear to the spine.

Paperback. Condition: Very Good. The Knights Templar were the most powerful military religious order of the Middle Ages. Formed to protect pilgrims in the Holy Land, they participated in the Crusades and rapidly gained wealth, lands and influence and were answerable to none save the Pope himself. In addition to having a fearful military reputation, they were also Christendom's first bankers, and invented the modern banking system that is still in use today, and were also involved in exploration and engineering. Seemingly untouchable for nearly two centuries, the Templars fell from grace spectacularly after the loss of the Holy Land: in 1307, all Templars in France were arrested on charges of heresy, homosexuality, denial of the cross and devil worship. The order was suppressed by the Pope in 1312, and Jacques de Molay, the last Grand Master, was burnt at the stake as a heretic two years later. The myth of the Templars was born and in the ensuing seven centuries, they have exerted a unique influence over European history: orthodox historians see them as nothing more than soldier-monks whose arrogance was their ultimate undoing, while others see them as occultists of the first order, the founders of Freemasonry, possessors of the Holy Grail and creators of the Turin Shroud. Sean Martin considers both the orthodox and conspiratorial version of events, and includes the latest revelations from the Vatican Library. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Condition: Very Good. Jersey fishing captain, Jean Cotterell is rescued by a French frigate - The Hortense - off the Grand Banks of Nova Scotia in May 1794. His fishing vessel has foundered and he is the sole survivor. The Hortense is part of Republican Admiral Jan Van Stabel's great fleet of over 100 ships bringing corn to France. Lord Howe's Channel Fleet is off Brest, hoping to intercept them. Life on The Hortense is like France under the Terror; chaotic, ungovernable, obsessed with savage, radical political theories. Separated from the French fleet in the Western Approaches she is intercepted by two British frigates and battle is joined. The Antigallican is the first in a series of novels set at the end of the 18th century at sea, in Britain, in the Channel Islands and in Revolutionary France. In Jean Cotterell we find a character that bears comparison with Bernard Cornwell's Sharpe, in a narrative that will delight fans of Patrick O'Brian. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Condition: Very Good. Tim Burton is a contradiction - a film-maker who has a unique style and yet remains grounded in the Hollywood studio system. How can someone who has such a distinctive personal vision survive in an aggressive and increasingly bland marketplace? How can he command such large budgets to realise his ideas? The answer is simple - Tim Burton may well be a cinematic artist but his films are also financially successful. Burton's world is one of outsiders on the periphery of society. His heroes are psychologically scarred, perpetually naive and childlike, misunderstood or unintentionally disruptive. They are all figures who upset conventional society and morality. Even his villains are rarely without merit; circumstance and society blur the divide between moral fortitude and personal action. But most of all his films have an overriding aura of the fairy tale, the fantastic and the magical. The Pocket Essential Tim Burton looks at the man and his films, from his early shorts right through to his latest blockbusters. It covers the films, their making and their merit. This is the essential companion to Hollywood's premiere magician. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Condition: Very Good. Is there anything left to say about the assassination of President John F Kennedy? Hell, yes! The subject of nearly 1000 books, half a dozen journals, two official inquiries, several million pages of declassified documents, dozens of TV documentaries and hundreds of Websites, the Kennedy assassination remains both the greatest whodunit of the post-World War Two era and the best route into recent American history. In Who Shot JFK? Robin Ramsay looks at the assassination through the work of the researchers who refused to buy the official cover-up story that Lee Harvey Oswald was the assassin. He explores; the major alternative theories produced by the critics of the official version, the major landmarks in the Kennedy assassination research and the disinformation produced on the subject since the event. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Condition: Very Good. For nearly thirty years David Cronenberg has been terrorising the cinema-going public while working through his own personal obsessions and neuroses. His most famous films have become bywords for screen controversy and the breaking of film taboo - be it exploding heads (Scanners, 1980), hallucinogenic pornography (Videodrome, 1982), deranged gynaecologists (Dead Ringers, 1989) or, er, 'sex n'wrecks' (Crash, 1997). Yet while his preoccupations have remained consistently challenging, his reputation has risen (in line, perhaps, with his budgets and the refinement of his technique) to such an extent that he is no longer regarded as a purveyor of exploitation but as a genuine visionary in tune with the 21st century psyche. This Pocket Essential guide contains an introductory essay, followed by an analysis of each of his films that uncovers and explores his recurring themes. All this plus an extensive reference section, including Cronenberg websites and video availability of his films. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Condition: Very Good. Who is Who? A Time Lord from the planet Gallifrey with two hearts and thirteen lives? A folk hero who entertained and enthralled us in the warm glow of our TV sets on dark winter evenings? A rebellious iconoclast who toppled corrupt dictatorships and freed the oppressed? Or a bumbling British eccentric who for 26 years fought rubber monsters in a cheap and cheerful BBC kids' show? Well, he's all of these things - and a whole lot more besides. The story of Doctor Who is the story of British television in the final third of this century. It is also the story of the hopes and fears of generations of children - and grown-ups too - from the counter-culture 60s to the shallow waters of the 90s. Along the way there are shock revelations, melodramatic cliff-hangers and liberal doses of humour (intentional or otherwise); but be warned - there is also heart-ache, disappointment and death. Every taste is catered for in the world of Doctor Who. As well as an introductory essay, each Doctor's era is put under the microscope with facts and informed opinion on all their stories. There's an in-depth reference section detailing further reading, fascinating and bizarre Doctor Who websites, and a short history of spin-off stories and merchandising. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Condition: Good. 'Europe was created by history.' Margaret Thatcher What is Europe? Firstly, of course, it is a continent made up of countless disparate peoples, races and nations, and governed by different ideas, philosophies, religions and attitudes. Nonetheless, it has a common thread of history running through it; welded together by the continent's great institutions, such as the Church of Rome, the Holy Roman Empire, the European Union. Europe, however, is also an idea. From almost the beginning of time, people have harboured aspirations to make this vast territory one. The Romans came close and a few centuries later, the foundations for a great European state were laid with the creation of the Holy Roman Empire. Napoleon overreached himself in attempting to create a European-wide Empire - as did Adolf Hitler. The European Union is a club of which everyone in Europe wants to be a member; although, as the rejection of the European Constitution by the French and the Dutch, and the British situation demonstrates, we Europeans still cling to our national independence. The book has been read but remains in clean condition. All pages are intact and the cover is intact. Some minor wear to the spine.

Paperback. Condition: Very Good. Conflict. Scorsese examines what men do when they are in conflict with themselves. Taxi Driver Travis Bickle is disgusted by the mean streets and wants to wash them clean. After all, what was the point of him going to Vietnam if it wasn't to make things better? Self-destructive Jake La Motta unleashes the Raging Bull within him both inside and outside the boxing ring. Wiseguy Henry Hill thinks that he can be one of the GoodFellas, but he eventually realises that there is nothing good or wise about a life of organised crime. Spirit. There is more to Scorsese's work than crime and violence. His characters are trying to attain some kind of spiritual peace with society, their family and themselves. In the end they try to make a decision they can live with. In Kundun, the Dalai Lama leaves Tibet. In The Last Temptation Of Christ, Jesus forgoes a normal family life to fulfil his destiny. In The Age Of Innocence, Newland Archer decides to be a hypocrite within society rather than truthful outside of it. In Mean Streets, Charlie must choose whether to keep his volatile friend Johnny Boy and his epileptic lover, or to propel himself up the ladder of success. Hailed as America's greatest living film director, Martin Scorsese is an innovative storyteller at the height of his intellectual and emotional powers. This Pocket Essential examines his life and work. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Condition: Very Good. A facsimile of the 1947 title republished on the 50th anniversary of World War II. It is a record of the tenacity and courage of the men and women of London Transport during the six years of World War II. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Condition: Very Good. Barry Forshaw is acknowledged as a leading expert on crime fiction and film. Following his books on Nordic Noir, Brit Noir and Euro Noir he now tackles the largest and, some might argue, most impressive body of crime fiction from a single country, the United States, to produce the perfect reader's guide to modern American crime fiction. The word 'Noir' is used in its loosest sense: every major living American writer is considered (including the giants Harlan Coben, Patricia Cornwell, James Lee Burke, James Ellroy and Sara Paretsky, as well as non-crime writers such as Stephen King who stray into the genre), often through a concentration on one or two key books. Many exciting new talents are highlighted, and Barry Forshaw's knowledge of - and personal acquaintance with - many of the writers, grants valuable insight into this massively popular field. But the crime genre is as much about films and TV as it is about books, and American Noir is a celebration of the former as well as the latter. US television crime drama in particular is enjoying a golden age, and all of the important current series are covered here, as well as key contemporary films. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Condition: Very Good. The 1991 edition of a guide to finding winners at greyhound racing. The topics covered include assessing a greyhound, assessing a track, reading and analyzing a race, how to bet and how to pick winners on form, on fitness, on family and on class. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Condition: Good. comedy duo, silent films; twentieth century; the music boxto; american icons; Stan and Ollie; laurel and hardy films; laurel and hardy collection; Hollywood; slapstick comedy; The Cuckoo Song Who are Laurel and Hardy? Only the most recognisable comedy team that cinema has ever produced. British-born Stan Laurel and American Oliver Hardy were teamed up at the struggling Hal Roach studios in the 1920s and embarked on a series of hilarious short silent films. They soon established a classic screen partnership and became instantly recognisable comic icons in their crumpled suits and bowler hats. Laurel and Hardy were the most successful of all the film comics who made the difficult transition from silent shorts to sound and then to feature films, enjoying unparalleled success from the 1920s through to the 1950s, when they undertook a series of triumphant tours of Britain. Regular and repeated screenings of their work through the 1970s and 1980s on television brought shorts like the Oscar-winning classic The Music Boxto new generations, while in recent years the entire rarely-seen back catalogue of silent Laurel and Hardy films has become available to film buffs, comedy fans and collectors on a series of DVD releases. Everyone knows and loves Laurel and Hardy, and their everlasting appeal to new generations of fans shows no sign of ending, over 80 years on from their first work together. As well as an introductory essay and biographies of both Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy, the book covers each Laurel and Hardy short film, the move from silent movies to the sound classics of the 1930s and the feature films of the 1930s and 1940s, complete with information on the inspiration for each film and the reaction of critics and audiences. Not only that, but there's a handy reference section listing other books about Laurel and Hardy, interesting web sites and availability of their 106 films. In fact, the Laurel and Hardy Pocket Essential is the one-stop celebration of the films and lives of Stan and Ollie. The book has been read but remains in clean condition. All pages are intact and the cover is intact. Some minor wear to the spine.

Paperback. Condition: Very Good. By the end of this book, you'll understand what it means to be a real poker player.Odds are, you will be one too. Poker has been Matt Matros's passion since he was fifteen, playing dealer's choice for plastic chips with his friends on a Friday night. But Matt always had his eyes on bigger stakes. He wanted to be a pro. And in April 2004, at the age of 26, Matt scored his biggest win to date, finishing third in the World Poker Tour Championship and netting more than $700,000. The Making of a Poker Player is a strategy book drawn from Matt's gripping journey into the poker world - from those high school games to his first casino card rooms and on to major tournaments where he played against, and defeated, the greatest poker champions around. You'll experience the game through the eyes of one of its top players, from the Saturday morning tournaments that were more motivating than his math classes, as he picks off a bluff by world champion Phil Hellmuth in Las Vegas, and as he suffers through a prolonged losing streak that wipes out months of hard work and profit - only to turn around and recoup every penny. You will discover how to hold your own against any player - the aggressive, the outrageous and the outright cheats. You'll accrue winning tips and tricks, absorb theory on reading tells, learn how to apply logic and probability, get the basics for playing online, and take in the lingo for discussing every other aspect of modern poker strategy. Matt Matros's vivid storytelling, nail-biting play-by-play recaps, and insider anecdotes capture all the excitement of the game and its subculture. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Condition: Very Good. Alan Moore is the prolific and perennially popular comics' author behind titles such as Watchmen, The Killing Joke, V for Vendetta and From Hell. 'Alan Moore Knows the Score', as Pop Will Eat Itself sang. For over twenty years, from early work on 2000AD and Warrior to today, as the writer of From Hell and the America's Best Comics line, Moore has stretched the boundaries of the comics' medium. Moore is prolific and his work crosses genre boundaries like few others, ranging from farce and high comedy to the dark, grim work that epitomised the comics revolution of the late eighties. This book examines recurring themes and how Moore's work has evolved over the years. So what's in this Pocket Essential Guide to Alan Moore? As well as an introductory essay, this book is a comprehensive survey of Alan Moore's career. It also contains the only complete list of his works, including projects that never saw the light of day. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Condition: Very Good. Nelson continues to fascinate academics as well as the general public. He is still considered one of Britain's greatest heroes and featured within the top ten of the BBC poll of such figures. But why does Nelson still remain such a prominent figure in the national imagination? With 2005 being the bicentenary of the Battle of Trafalgar, Victoria Carolan embarks on a timely reappraisal of Nelson, the myth and the man. Beginning with Nelson's early life and an analysis of the condition and practice of the Navy at the time of Nelson's entry into service, Carolan goes on to examine Nelson's naval battles before Trafalgar, particularly the pivotal Battle of the Nile in which the then Rear Admiral Horatio Nelson, with a fleet of fourteen ships, captured six and destroyed seven French vessels out of a total of seventeen and in the process achieved one of the most decisive victories in the age of sail and re-established British command of the Mediterranean. Devoting a full section to the Battle of Trafalgar, Carolan looks in detail at the build-up to the battle, the events and progress of the battle, at the Admirals of the French and Spanish navies and explains why the battle was so decisive in the Napoleonic Wars. She goes on to look at the immediate aftermath of Nelson's death and his state funeral and then to his legacy, the building of monuments (particularly Trafalagar Square and Nelson's Column), the development of the Nelson myth, his depiction in film, his value for propaganda purposes during the two world wars and the current state of scholarship on Nelson. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Condition: Very Good. From Robert Louis Stevenson's Treasure Island to Errol Flynn in Captain Blood on to today's Pirates of the Caribbean, the romantic image of pirates in modern Western popular culture has long been with us. But of course pirates come in many guises, and not all of them as charming as Johnny Depp. Pirates are outlaws who move quickly, a form of lawlessness based on the application of immense short term power by mobile forces which fade away, similar to guerrilla warfare. In Pirates and Privateers Tom Bowling offers a lively history of piracy, from ancient times through the 'privateers' such as Morgan, with their Letters of Marque (an early example of State-sponsored terrorism), to the still real and flourishing threat of contemporary pirates that patrol the less well-regulated shipping lanes of the world today. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Condition: Very Good. Capital punishment for murder was suspended in Great Britain in 1965, an Act finally made permanent in 1969, but remained as the punishment for treason until as recently as 1998, demonstrating how seriously we take the crime of betraying your country. But even with the threat of the noose hanging over them, many still chose the path of treachery during the cataclysmic events of last century. British Traitors examines the lives and motivations of a number of the perpetrators of this most heinous of crimes, following the footsteps of Fascist traitors such as William Joyce (Lord Haw-Haw) and John Amery to the gallows, investigating what drove men such as Wilfred Macartney and John Herbert King to betray their country during the war to end all wars and delving into the mysterious web of espionage and subterfuge surrounding the Cambridge Spy Ring that spied for the Soviet Union from the nineteen-thirties until the early nineteen-fifties. People commit treason for many reasons - some seek adventure, some seek reward, some are motivated by political philosophy, while others are sucked into it by their own foolishness. British Traitors provides a fascinating look at the lives and impulses of those who chose to betray their country. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Condition: Very Good. Greyhound racing is the second most popular spectator sport in Britain (after football), but to outsiders it has remained a mystery. The Dogs opens this world to us, explaining the history from its beginnings, its heyday and its problematic future, as well as unravelling the intricacies of the sport: how to tell a good sprinting dog from a staying one, the pristine logic of the racecard, and the unpredictability which can throw any race into disarray. The daughter of a dog owner, Laura Thompson was fascinated by the sport from an early age, captivated by the worldly elegance of the stadia and enraptured by the unearthly beatuy of the dogs. She catches the elusive, unique nature of the champion greyhounds, from all-time greats like Mick The Miller and Pigalle Wonder to her father's beloved Commutering. She looks at the addictiveness of gambling and describes the different characters who stand at the trackside, the dog men. The Dogs takes us around the stadia, the kennels and the unlicensed 'flapping' tracks into the heart of greyhound racing, vividly evoking its magic and the glamorous heat of Derby night at White city, the shine of pride and affection in the eye of a dogman, and the punters' belief that they can foretell, even manipulate, the future. At a time when geryhound racing's place in sporting culture is under renewed threat, this informative, funny and moving account shows how it can caputre and keep our deepest affection. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Condition: Very Good. Witchcraft has recently been undergoing a huge popular revival, but does modern pagan witchcraft really bear any resemblance to its historical antecedents? The witch in history was a very different creature from her modern counterpart, and this book sets out to explore the historical background to the European witchcraft phenomenon. It examines in detail the growth of the ideological, cultural and legal concepts that eventually led to the carnage of the Witch Craze in the 16th and 17th centuries, which, it is estimated, may have claimed the lives of around 40,000 people. For both Medieval and Reformation scholars alike the Devil and all his works were a very real threat. Their conviction that witches were the servants of Satan led to the formation of perhaps one of the greatest conspiracy theories of all time: a belief that witches were working in league with the Devil in a diabolical plot against all Christendom. Witches were transformed from poor deluded old women who rode out at night with the pagan goddess Diana into devil-worshipping heretics who became the focus of a centuries-long, Europe-wide campaign determined to seek out and destroy this evil wherever it was to be found, regardless of whether any of its victims were actually guilty or not. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Condition: Very Good. From Agatha Christie and Patricia Highsmith to Val McDermid and JK Rowling, After Agatha is an indispensable guide to women's crime writing over the last century and an exploration of why women read crime Spanning the 1930s to present day, After Agatha charts the explosion in women 's crime writing and examines key developments on both sides of the Atlantic: from the women writers at the helm of the UK Golden Age and their American and Canadian counterparts fighting to be heard, to the 1980s experimental trio, Marcia Muller, Sara Paretsky and Sue Grafton, who created the first female PIs, and the more recent emergence of forensic crime writing and domestic noir thrillers such as Gone Girl and Apple Tree Yard. After Agatha examines the diversification of crime writing and highlights landmark women's novels which featured the marginalised in society as centralised characters. Cline also explores why women readers are drawn to the genre and seek out justice in crime fiction, in a world where violent crimes against women rarely have such resolution. The book includes interviews with dozens of contemporary authors such as Ann Cleeves, Sophie Hannah, Tess Gerritsen and Kathy Reichs and features the work of hundreds of women crime and mystery writers. It is an essential read for crime fiction lovers. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Condition: Very Good. Now officially the most popular drama on television, Doctor Who has seen many ups and downs in its long and colourful history. From humble beginnings on 23 November 1963 to its cancellation in 1989 and eventual resurrection in 2005, the show has always been a quintessential element of British popular culture. The spine-chilling theme music, the multi-dimensional Tardis, the evil metallic Daleks and the ever-changing face of the Doctor himself have become trademarks of the programme's witty, eclectic house style. Over the years Doctor Who has embraced such diverse genres as science fiction, horror, westerns, history, romance, adventure and comedy - but has never strayed from its first and most important remit: telling damn good stories. Ten Doctors, a multitude of companions, and a veritable cornucopia of monsters and villains: Doctor Who has it all. 'The children's own programme which adults adore,' said Gerard Garrett in The Daily Sketch newspaper back in the early 1970s - and it's still the perfect summation of the programme's unique charm. This new, updated edition of the best-selling Pocket Essential guide puts all the first ten Doctors under the microscope with facts, figures and opinions on every Doctor Who story televised. There are sections on TV, radio, cinema, stage and internet spin-offs, novels and audio adventures, missing episodes, and an extensive website listing and bibliography. Doctor Who: The Episode Guide includes a foreword by Kim Newman, contributing editor to Sight & Sound and Empire magazines. His fiction includes the novels Anno Dracula and Life's Lottery and the novella Doctor Who: Time and Relative. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Condition: Very Good. London, more than any other city, has a secret history concealed from view. Behind the official facade promoted by the heritage industry, lies a city of esoteric traditions, obscure institutions, and forgotten locations. Occult London rediscovers this history, unearthing the hidden city that lies beneath our own. From the Elizabethan magic of Dr Dee and Simon Forman, to the occult designs of Wren and Hawksmoor; from the Victorian London of Spring-Heeled Jack, to the fin de siecle heyday of Madame Blavatsky and Aleister Crowley. This book describes these practitioners of the occult and their unorthodox beliefs, alongside the myths and legends through which the city has always been perceived. The role of the occult within London's literary history is also outlined, while a gazetteer maps the sites of London's most resonant occult locations. Today we are experiencing a renewal of interest in the occult tradition, and Merlin Coverley examines the roots of this revival, exploring the rise of New Age philosophies and the emergence of psychogeography in shaping a new vision of the city. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Condition: Very Good. Now officially the most popular drama on television, Doctor Who has seen many ups and downs in its long and colourful history. From humble beginnings on 23 November 1963 to its cancellation in 1989 and eventual resurrection in 2005, the show has always been a quintessential element of British popular culture. The spine-chilling theme music, the multi-dimensional Tardis, the evil metallic Daleks and the ever-changing face of the Doctor himself have become trademarks of the programme's witty, eclectic house style. Over the years Doctor Who has embraced such diverse genres as science fiction, horror, westerns, history, romance, adventure and comedy - but has never strayed from its first and most important remit: telling damn good stories. Eleven Doctors, a multitude of companions, and a veritable cornucopia of monsters and villains: Doctor Who has it all. 'The children's own programme which adults adore,' said Gerard Garrett in The Daily Sketch newspaper back in the early 1970s - and it's still the perfect summation of the programme's unique charm. This new, updated edition of the best-selling Pocket Essential guide puts all the Doctors under the microscope with facts, figures and opinions on every Doctor Who story televised. There are sections on TV, radio, cinema, stage and internet spin-offs, novels and audio adventures, missing episodes, and an extensive website listing and bibliography. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Condition: Very Good. Catharism was the most successful heresy of the Middle Ages. Flourishing principally in the Languedoc and Italy, the Cathars taught that the world is evil and must be transcended through a simple life of prayer, work, fasting and non-violence. They believed themselves to be the heirs of the true heritage of Christianity going back to apostolic times, and completely rejected the Catholic Church and all its trappings, regarding it as the Church of Satan; Cathar services and ceremonies, by contrast, were held in fields, barns and in people's homes. Finding support from the nobility in the fractious political situation in southern France, the Cathars also found widespread popularity among peasants and artisans. And again unlike the Church, the Cathars respected women, and women played a major role in the movement. Alarmed at the success of Catharism, the Church founded the Inquisition and launched the Albigensian Crusade to exterminate the heresy. While previous Crusades had been directed against Muslims in the Middle East, the Albigensian Crusade was the first Crusade to be directed against fellow Christians, and was also the first European genocide. With the fall of the Cathar fortress of Montsegur in 1244, Catharism was largely obliterated, although the faith survived into the early fourteenth century. Today, the mystique surrounding the Cathars is as strong as ever, and Sean Martin recounts their story and the myths associated with them in this lively and gripping book. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Condition: Very Good. Designed to be a complete historical, social, architectural and religious guide to the churches of Hertfordshire. With a foreword by the Bishop of St Albans, this illustrated work contains a gazetteer of all the religious establishments of the county. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.