The Mainland is the second book released from the Sugar City Archives § and also the second part of the trilogy Alba Lands. In it, the citizens of Island Cigam who managed to escape to the Mainland now have tougher obstacles to deal with both physically and mentally. As with the Forgotten Winter - the Mainland is narrated by a native and told through the journals of a boy from Earth. Written mainly in English, some parts are a composition of Scots (mostly Lallans) - a dying, Anglic language of Scotland - constructed with slang, dialects and other forgotten tongues of the land. While understanding the Scots is not inherent to the story a translation link is provided should you require. But if you know as little as Alba then you can experience his plight.The intended way to read the series is with background musical accompaniment (mostly instrumental: Electronic & Classical). This is not for everyone of course, but if you wish then find the recommended track and link before each chapter (via YouTube). If the exact track is missing you can use something similar. For both musical and visual accompaniment visit Zomgbat.Wordpress.com (Original tracks & artwork to follow)You may be hitherto thinking that this is not the story or genre for you. If so, remember that so much more is possible than you can't even imagine. For example, there are already more stars in the observable universe than grains of sand on Earth. Or that a certain species of jellyfish is immortal. Our world is so tiny, and there are such powerful things beyond it.

The Norse thought they could conquer Scotland. They were wrong. Melcorka is an ordinary young woman from the Isles. But when her homeland of Alba is attacked by the Viking horde, Melcorka abandons her life of luxury and chooses the path of a warrior. With a ragtag band of companions, she heads south to unite the clans and free the land from the Norsemen's scourge - and claim her destiny.

In the 780s northern Britain was dominated by two great kingdoms; Pictavia, centred in north-eastern Scotland and Northumbria which straddled the modern Anglo-Scottish border. Within a hundred years both of these kingdoms had been thrown into chaos by the onslaught of the Vikings and within two hundred years they had become distant memories. This book charts the transformation of the political landscape of northern Britain between the eighth and the eleventh centuries. Central to this narrative is the mysterious disappearance of the Picts and their language and the sudden rise to prominence of the Gaelic-speaking Scots who would replace them as the rulers of the North. From Pictland to Alba uses fragmentary sources which survive from this darkest period in Scottish history to guide the reader past the pitfalls which beset the unwary traveller in these dangerous times. Important sources are presented in full and their value as evidence is thoroughly explored and evaluated.

For list of publications see covers, pt. 28/30, April/June, 1890, p. x; pt. 82, December 1900, p. iii-iv.

An engrossing biography that attempts to fathom the motivations of an infamous sixteenth-century Spanish general Ferdinand Alvarez de Toledo, the third duke of Alba (1507-82), is known to history as "the butcher of Flanders." The general who carried out Philip II's repressive policies in the Netherlands, he was responsible for the massacre of thousands of men, women, and children, considering it better to lay waste an entire country than leave it in the hands of heretics. Alba came to represent for contemporaries as well as for future generations the unacceptable face of Spanish imperialism. In this intriguing re-evaluation, Henry Kamen narrates the duke's personal history, looking beyond the conventional image to reveal motives and to explain rather than simply to condemn. Kamen examines the early years of Alba's life, his travels over the whole of Europe, and the complex military and political career that made him Spain's leading general of the imperial age. Drawing on the duke's rich and expressive surviving correspondence, Kamen explores Alba's beliefs and considers his infamous actions within the contexts of his time and of the monarchs--Emperor Charles V and King Philip II of Spain--whom he served.