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Book Reviews

David Howarth, Adventurers
'Adventurers' tells the story of the improbable rise of history's most notorious company, from its international, intellectual and cultural origins in the sixteenth century through to its first great challenges during the reigns of…
Napoleon at Peace
'Napoleon at Peace' fits nicely into the tiny niche still available for originality. For the central aim of this new book is to explain the processes and thinking of the first consul between his seizure of power in 1799 and the…
Crassus Peter Stothard
Since the days of Plutarch, if not before, Marcus Licinius Crassus has been viewed as the ultimate exemplar of folly and dishonesty in the super-rich.
The Hittites,, Damien Stone
Damien Stone's 'The Hittites' is the latest in Reaktion's Lost Civilizations series. Through examination of the documents and material remains of the civilization, the book discusses the Hittites' military and political…
Stephen Unwin, Poor Naked Wretches
'Poor Naked Wretches: Shakespeare’s Working People' is not the usual Shakespearean scholarship. Instead, Stephen Unwin focuses on the little people of Shakespeare's works - the gravediggers, cannon-fodder, friars and players - to…
Sally Coulthard Fowl Play
Coulthard's book is the rarest of volumes: it is both entertaining and serious. Its message is delivered through marvellous little morsels of information, wrapped in wonder and seasoned with a healthy sprinkling of fun.
Mark Stoyle, Murderous Midsummer
In 'A Murderous Midsummer' Mark Stoyle offers a compelling new narrative of the Western Rising, a revolt, he argues, that threatened the very heart of the Tudor regime and almost halted the English Reformation in its tracks.
Maria Golia, Short History of Tomb-Raiding
Maria Golia’s 'A Short History of Tomb-Raiding' provides just that: a history of tomb-raiding in Egypt, from the time of the ancients through to the present day. This is a grown-up, holistic account of tomb-raiding, with a relevance and…
Dinner in Rome
'Dinner in Rome' is, like a good carbonara, an effortless combination of ingredients that come together to make the perfect dish. Part history, part travel guide, and part food-critic's column, it takes the reader on a stroll around…
Mission France, Kate Vigurs
In 'Mission France', Kate Vigurs tells the story of ordinary women in extraordinary circumstances, whose courage contributed in real and significant ways to the liberation of France.
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