A miscellany of curious local Cotswold stories accompanied by hand-drawn images.

Secret Houses of the Cotswolds is a personal tour of twenty of the UK’s most beguiling houses in this much loved area of western England, defined by its distinctive honey-coloured stone, rolling hills, picturesque villages and the most traditional English landscape. Author and architectural historian, Jeremy Musson, and Cotswolds-based photographer Hugo Rittson Thomas, offer privileged access to twenty houses, from castles and manor houses, by way of eighteenth- and nineteenth-century mansions, revealing their history, architecture and interiors, in the company of their devoted owners. In the footsteps of artists and designers from Georgian designers such as William Kent to Victorian visionary, William Morris, founder of the arts and crafts movement, we find a series of fascinating country houses of different sizes and atmospheres, which have shaped the English identity, and in different ways express the ideals of English life. Most of the houses included here are privately owned and not usually open to the public, and all of these houses featured in this book can be enjoyed through the eyes of owners, as well as an experienced architectural historian, and an award-winning photographer.

A captivating portrait of the greatest British gardens and the lords, ladies and gardeners who own and manage them. Focusing on the counties of Gloucestershire and Oxfordshire, this stunning book features 20 gardens designed by some of the leading contemporary garden designers from across the world. This beautiful corner of England has a rich tradition of garden making, which is explored in this very personal view by photographer Hugo Rittson-Thomas and journalist Victoria Summerley, both residents of this green pocket with more than its fair share of beautiful and interesting gardens. Some of the gardens are strictly private, while others are regularly open to visitors, but all can now be savoured and enjoyed along with those who know them best.

August, and Thea is tired of having to entertain Drew's children so she accepts a commission to watch over a house in Barnsley. On her first day there, she rescues a fugitive woman she finds hiding under some bushes. The woman's story is thin and incoherent, but Thea gives her sanctuary for the night only to find her dead the next morning. The police are impossibly busy with a big investigation into the trafficking of rare animals and Thea is effectively on her own, trying to make sense of the murder. As she digs deeper into the woman's background, she discovers a tangled web of lies, secrets and at least three very likely suspects .

Make the most of your time on Earth with The Rough Guide to the Cotswolds. Completely revamped for the second edition, The Rough Guide to the Cotswolds brings the Cotswolds up to date like no other guidebook does. Illustrated in color throughout, it reviews the best places to eat, drink, and stay, and explains how to get around by public transport. Food is a special focus: take in the best of the region's gastronomy with features on specialist farmers' markets and local farm shops, then sample fine dining for all budgets at rural gastropubs and new contemporary restaurants. Discover the best of the area's boutique-styled hotels and top-rated country pubs. In each chapter, highlights point to the author's favorites, while there are lively, entertaining accounts of attractions from stately homes and wildlife parks to modern art galleries and country walks. The introduction features what not to miss and itineraries that make the most of the region. This essential guide is aimed at all budgets, with easy-to-use maps that make sure you don't miss the unmissable.

Steve Ponty researched the topography of the Cotswolds and unearthed J.R.R. Tolkien's 'Shire' by comparison between the maps of Middle- and Mother-earth. Apart from the secrets of geography hidden in the epic story, there are allusions, never revealed before this brand new perspective, to personalities contemporary with Tolkien’s writings.

The Rough Guide to the Cotswolds is your definitive handbook to one of the most beautiful and diverse holiday destinations in the UK. From stately homes and wildlife parks to modern art galleries, country walks and adventure sports, there is a section that introduces all of the regions' highlights. For every town and village, there are comprehensive and opinionated reviews of all the best places to eat, drink and stay to suit every budget. It brings the Cotswolds bang up-to-date; out go musty tearooms and chintzy B&Bs and in come the best of the area's new contemporary restaurants, boutique-styled hotels and top-rated country pubs. There's plenty of practical advice and a special focus on the region's gastronomy with features on specialist farmers' markets, local farm shops, gastro-pubs and country restaurants. The guide also comes complete with easy-to-use maps for every area making sure you don't miss the unmissable.

COTSWOLD GARDENS tours one of Britain's best loved landscapes and explores, from a fresh perspective, some of its most spectacular gardens. It is not by chance that so many admirable gardens have sprung up in so concentrated an area. The rolling hills, steep escarpments and wooded coombs of the Cotswolds are blessed with a temperate climate and a tradition of prosperity that has allowed its inhabitants to build splendid manors and fine houses out of the local honey-coloured limestone. To complement such dwellings magnificent gardens were constructed, designed by famous figures such as Capability Brown, William Kent and Sir Geoffrey Jellicoe. COTSWOLD GARDENS looks at these gardens - Blenheim, Buscot, Hidcote, Rousham, Sezincote, Sudeley and many others - through the eyes of David Hicks, making this a garden book like no other. Accompanied by Andrew Lawson's stunning photographs, he discovers how the beauty of the surrounding countryside is inextricably linked to the symmetry and elegance of the gardens. His unique insights will delight and inspire gardeners everywhere.

"Secret Journeys of a Lifetime" presents 500 off-the-beaten-path travel destinations around the world that are notable for their vistas, wildlife, and historical and cultural significance.

"Within a day of receiving this book, I had consumed it... Absorbing, moving, and compulsively readable."—Lydia Davis In this affectionate, heart-warming chronicle, Rosamund Young distills a lifetime of organic farming wisdom, describing the surprising personalities of her cows and other animals At her famous Kite's Nest Farm in Worcestershire, England, the cows (as well as sheep, hens, and pigs) all roam free. They make their own choices about rearing, grazing, and housing. Left to be themselves, the cows exhibit temperaments and interests as diverse as our own. "Fat Hat" prefers men to women; "Chippy Minton" refuses to sleep with muddy legs and always reports to the barn for grooming before bed; "Jake" has a thing for sniffing the carbon monoxide fumes of the Land Rover exhaust pipe; and "Gemima" greets all humans with an angry shake of the head and is fiercely independent. An organic farmer for decades, Young has an unaffected and homely voice. Her prose brims with genuine devotion to the wellbeing of animals. Most of us never apprehend the various inner lives animals possess, least of all those that we might eat. But Young has spent countless hours observing how these creatures love, play games, and form life-long friendships. She imparts hard-won wisdom about the both moral and real-world benefits of organic farming. (If preserving the dignity of animals isn't a good enough reason for you, consider how badly factory farming stunts the growth of animals, producing unhealthy and tasteless food.) This gorgeously-illustrated book, which includes an original introduction by the legendary British playwright Alan Bennett, is the summation of a life's work, and a delightful and moving tribute to the deep richness of animal sentience.