"Sarah Gristwood has written a masterpiece that effortlessly and enthrallingly interweaves the amazing stories of women who ruled in Europe during the Renaissance period." -- Alison Weir Sixteenth-century Europe saw an explosion of female rule. From Isabella of Castile, and her granddaughter Mary Tudor, to Catherine de Medici, Anne Boleyn, and Elizabeth Tudor, these women wielded enormous power over their territories, shaping the course of European history for over a century. Across boundaries and generations, these royal women were mothers and daughters, mentors and protées, allies and enemies. For the first time, Europe saw a sisterhood of queens who would not be equaled until modern times. A fascinating group biography and a thrilling political epic, Game of Queens explores the lives of some of the most beloved (and reviled) queens in history.

For fans of The Red Tent and The Dovekeepers, India Edghill breathes new life into the biblical story of Vashti and Esther with her signature historical richness, epic scope, and sweeping romance. You may know part of the story already, but you only know what history has passed along. The story of how Vashti, Queen of Queens, the most beautiful woman in all the empire, defied the king her husband and so lost her crown. The story of how Ahasuerus, King of Kings, commanded that the most beautiful maidens be sent to his court so he might choose a new queen. And you may know how he set the queen's crown upon the head of the virtuous and beautiful Esther, and how Queen Esther herself defied both king and law to save her people from a treacherous fate. What India Edghill brings us in Game of Queens is the story of power and treachery, blood and deception, bravery and romance that surrounds the court of Ahasuerus and brings to life two of the most celebrated female heroines in all of history.

A commoner turned noble. A Queen cast aside. A lady half forgotten. A court filled with lies. Marietta: A half-elven commoner, abducted and forced into marriage with an elven lord. Valeriya: A Queen without power, undermining the husband she loathes for the legacy she craves. Elyse: A lady with untold potential, determined to remain unseen. In Enomenos, everyone is equal. In Syllogi, the elves rule over all. When war breaks out between them, Marietta finds herself at the center of the conflict in the elven city-state of Satiros. She must make a choice: fight for her freedom or fight for her people. When Queen Valeriya first learns of Marietta, she digs into her past. What she finds is a weapon to wield against the court-and a chance to dethrone the King. Elyse is thrust from the shadows and into the light when the King learns of her innate ability to control magic. Her life grows more complicated when a flirtatious foreign lord fights for her love. All three soon discover their choices shape the future of Satiros. Who can they trust, and which lies will be the most devastating of all? If you love books with royalty and aristocracy, elves and humans, and strong female leads, then you will love this adult fantasy romance book. A Queen's Game blends royalty, fantasy, romance, and political intrigue for an unforgettable story that will leave you guessing until the end.

Netflix’s most watched limited series to date! The thrilling novel of one young woman’s journey through the worlds of chess and drug addiction.​ When eight-year-old Beth Harmon’s parents are killed in an automobile accident, she’s placed in an orphanage in Mount Sterling, Kentucky. Plain and shy, Beth learns to play chess from the janitor in the basement and discovers she is a prodigy. Though penniless, she is desperate to learn more—and steals a chess magazine and enough money to enter a tournament. Beth also steals some of her foster mother’s tranquilizers to which she is becoming addicted. At thirteen, Beth wins the chess tournament. By the age of sixteen she is competing in the US Open Championship and, like Fast Eddie in The Hustler, she hates to lose. By eighteen she is the US champion—and Russia awaits . . . Fast-paced and elegantly written, The Queen’s Gambit is a thriller masquerading as a chess novel—one that’s sure to keep you on the edge of your seat. “The Queen’s Gambit is sheer entertainment. It is a book I reread every few years—for the pure pleasure and skill of it.” —Michael Ondaatje, Man Booker Prize–winning author of The English Patient

A Game of Queens completes the trilogy in which one of the greatest players of our time transforms her personal journey to the top into a roadmap for everyone who ever wanted to better themselves in the game of chess. This volume covers the period from 2001 until the present day. These were the years when Judit was in the Top Ten in the world, and facing the likes of Kasparov, Karpov, Korchnoi and Anand. The first volume How I Beat Fischer's Record won the 2013 ECF Book of the Year prize and the second volume From GM to Top Ten was the ACP Book of the Year for 2014.

National Bestseller “A well-researched and well-told epic history. The Dark Queens brings these courageous, flawed, and ruthless rulers and their distant times back to life.”--Margot Lee Shetterly, New York Times-bestselling author of Hidden Figures The remarkable, little-known story of two trailblazing women in the Early Middle Ages who wielded immense power, only to be vilified for daring to rule. Brunhild was a foreign princess, raised to be married off for the sake of alliance-building. Her sister-in-law Fredegund started out as a lowly palace slave. And yet-in sixth-century Merovingian France, where women were excluded from noble succession and royal politics was a blood sport-these two iron-willed strategists reigned over vast realms, changing the face of Europe. The two queens commanded armies and negotiated with kings and popes. They formed coalitions and broke them, mothered children and lost them. They fought a decades-long civil war-against each other. With ingenuity and skill, they battled to stay alive in the game of statecraft, and in the process laid the foundations of what would one day be Charlemagne's empire. Yet after the queens' deaths-one gentle, the other horrific-their stories were rewritten, their names consigned to slander and legend. In The Dark Queens, award-winning writer Shelley Puhak sets the record straight. She resurrects two very real women in all their complexity, painting a richly detailed portrait of an unfamiliar time and striking at the roots of some of our culture's stubbornest myths about female power. The Dark Queens offers proof that the relationships between women can transform the world.

A desperate set of games that ends in death, new found life, or shame has led Ember DelGado of the House of Inferno down a path of unfathomable prospects. Dragged from the trench that her family was cast into years ago, will she sink or swim when thrown into the shark tank that is the life of a noble woman?

As a young lady gets caught up in the street life, eventually she gets convicted of attempted murder. During her stay in prison she overcame her heroin addiction; upon her release from prison she worked her way up in one of the most largest street gang in the city to become the queen of all queens. Find me on Facebook: “Alan Hines” Email: [email protected]

Please note: This is a companion version & not the original book. Sample Book Insights: #1 The girl who arrived at the court of the Netherlands in the summer of 1513 was a courtier’s daughter, bred to know the steps of the dangerous courtly dance. She knew how the pageantry of a Christmas masque could spell a message, and that in the great chess game of European politics, she might have a part to play. #2 The court to which Anne Boleyn came was a place of culture and luxury. Among the books she could have seen in Margaret’s library was the already-famous Trés Riches Heures du Duc de Berry, as well as newer books decked with flowers in the margins. #3 The Boleyn family had a history of social mobility. Anne’s father, Thomas, had made his fortune as a merchant. He was a courtier and a linguist, and heiress to half the Ormonde fortune. #4 Anne Boleyn was sent to the court of Margaret of Austria in 1512, as her family’s agent and ambassador. She learned more than the French language there, she learned how to play the game of courtly love.

In 1986, the bad guys of baseball won the World Series. Now, Erik Sherman, the New York Times bestselling coauthor of Mookie, profiles key players from that infamous Mets team, revealing never-before-exposed details about their lives after that championship year…as well as a look back at the magical season itself. Darryl Strawberry, Doc Gooden, Keith Hernandez, Lenny Dykstra, Mookie Wilson, Howard Johnson, Doug Sisk, Rafael Santana, Bobby Ojeda, Wally Backman, Kevin Mitchell, Ed Hearn, Danny Heep, and the late Gary Carter were all known for their heroics on the field. For some of them—known as the “Scum Bunch”—their debauchery off the field was even more awe-inspiring. But when that golden season ended, so did their aura of invincibility. Some faced battles with addiction, some were traded, and others struggled just to keep their lives together. Through interviews with these legendary players, Erik Sherman offers fans a new perspective on a team that will forever be remembered in sports history. INCLUDES PHOTOS