The vibrant pageant of Elizabethan England comes to life in Karen Harper's fifth novel in her acclaimed Elizabeth I Mystery Series. Hailed as "extraordinary" by The Los Angeles Times, these historical mysteries beautifully blend fact and fiction as the young Queen Elizabeth Tudor becomes an amateur sleuth to save her court, crown, and kingdom. Though summering in the lush countryside to escape the plague rampaging through London, the queen and her court cannot escape the reach of a multiple murderer who seems to disappear at will. In the gardens of Hampton Court, Elizabeth proudly shows a famed visiting lawyer her huge hornbeam maze. But the intricate labyrinth soon becomes a scene of horror as Elizabeth herself is attacked and the lawyer is murdered within its leafy dead ends. The queen calls upon her small, select band of advisors to help her ferret out the identity of the maze murderer. When the court must flee the encroaching Black Death, even the royal haven of Hatfield House with its charming knot garden holds terror. Undaunted, the queen and her chief advisor, William Cecil, set a trap in the flooded thorn maze at Cecil's nearby estate. But even if they snare the ghostly murderer before he or she strikes again, will they unmask not only the villain but the person they love best in all the realm?

"Deeper understanding of history is enhanced by encasing it in art and interest. Crime fiction is one of the widest and most rapidly growing forms of literature. Historical crime fiction serves effectively the double purpose of entertaining while it teaches. The "truth" of the narrative account, the editors of this volume believe, is dependent on the understanding of human nature reflected in the author who writes the narrative. "Historical crime fiction," the editors of this volume write, "has an obligation and a golden opportunity. It must bring the past up to the present through the device of timeless crime and it must take the reader into the world about which is being written so that the characters are alive and the events interesting and challenging." Professional writers of fiction need to be more effective than mere authors of dates and assumed motivations. Therefore they can fill in human motivations and drives where no records exist and can aid the professional historians in what historian David Thelen calls the "challenge of history " which is "to recover the past and [interpret it for] the present." The essays in this volume accept the challenge and make major accomplishments for meeting it.

The invention of starch has a profound influence on the fashion styles of Elizabethan England, but the lucrative commodity also leads to the murder of the royal starcher, followed by the killings of two other women.

Following-up on the best-selling, and soon to be sold out Volume 1, celebrate fantasy illustration's shining star with Frank Thorne's second Red Sonja Art Edition! The consummate She-Devil artist shares his original storyboards from the first six issues of the acclaimed 1977 Red Sonja comic book series. Scanned in high-resolution color and printed at original size, this gorgeous hardcover collection preserves every detail of the artist's meticulous skill and hard work, while simultaneously presenting a complete storyline for all to enjoy.

By identifying similarities in various books, this annual selection guide helps readers to independently choose titles of interest published in the last year.Each entry describes a separate book, listing everything readers need to know to make selections. Arranged by author within six genre sections, detailed entries provide: Title Publisher and publication dateSeriesNames and descriptions of charactersTime period and geographical settingReview citationsStory typesBrief plot summarySelected other books by the authorSimilar books by different authorsAuthor, title, series, character name, character description, time period, geographic setting and genre/sub-genre indexes are included to facilitate research.

David Baldacci is back with The Keeper, the follow up to his instant #1 global bestseller and award-winning YA fantasy debut The Finisher. Vega Jane was always told no one could leave the town of Wormwood. She was told there was nothing outside but the Quag, a wilderness filled with danger and death. And she believed it - until the night she stumbled across a secret that proved that everything she knew was a lie. Now Vega and her best friend Delph must find a way to make it across this terrifying land of bloodthirsty creatures and sinister magic. But the Quag is worse than Vega Jane's darkest imagining. It's a living, breathing prison designed to keep enemies out and the villagers of Wormwood in. The Quag will throw everything at Vega. It will try to break her. It will try to kill her. And survival might come at a price not even Vega is willing to pay. Master storyteller David Baldacci unleashes a hurricane of action and adrenalin that takes readers to breaking point in this second instalment in the Vega Jane series.

Full of thrills, mystery and danger, Vega Jane and the Maze of Monsters (previously published as The Keeper) is the second title in the fast-paced fantasy adventure series for children of 10+ by bestselling master storyteller David Baldacci. Illustrated throughout by Tomislav Tomic. Everything Vega Jane has ever known is a lie. But if she and her best friend Delph are to find the truth about who they are and where they came from, they must first survive the Quag, a wild, enchanted place filled with monsters and dark sorcery. It will stretch their courage to the limit. The Quag will throw everything at Vega. It will try to break her. It will try to kill her. And survival might come at a price not even Vega is willing to pay. Vega Jane and the Maze of Monsters (previously published as The Keeper) is the second installment in master storyteller David Baldacci's bestselling Vega Jane series for children, now in a revised and re-illustrated edition. Vega and Delph continue the story that began with Vega Jane and the Secrets of Sorcery.

A guide to series fiction lists popular series, identifies novels by character, and offers guidance on the order in which to read unnumbered series.