The 18th century saw continual tension between the House of Stuart and the Hanoverians, with a final, tragic battle on British soil at Culloden in 1746 changing the face of Scotland and England. This battle, however, did not put things to bed. There has always been a question: Who are the true heirs to the Jacobite throne?
This topic is an element of a book I am currently writing, so I found the deep research and careful conclusions both informative and satisfying. While my books are fiction, they rely on verified, actual events and people to add depth and colour. This book provided this in spades and was an engaging read at the same time as it leads the reader across a European landscape and momentous events before providing conclusive proof of the person some might say is the rightful heir of the thrones of Scotland, England, and Ireland.
This work rewrites the final chapter in the history of the last Stuarts. It provides documentary evidence, previously unknown, which uncovers the fate of Prince Charles Edward's three grandchildren - the secret family of his daughter, Charlotte Stuart, Duchess of Albany. Having discovered his private papers, Professor George Sherburn published a biography of Charlotte's son in 1960. But as James Lees-Milne wrote in 1983, "nothing is known about the two daughters". Thus in 1996 John MacLeod claimed Charlotte's son was "the last of the line by blood". In discovering the lives of the two daughters the author reveals that one…
This is right up my street, set in colonial Australia. I love the way real-world events are intertwined with the fictional story and the way the characters (both heroes and villains) are developed.
I spent a lot of time researching the lives of my wife’s forbears who were transported as convicts to Van Diemen’s Land in the 1830s, so a lot of what is described here rings true to me. It is a period poisoned by injustice and enriched by the power of resilient characters who triumph over adversity. This book recreates the emotions and images of this period and does a great job of expounding the fabric that underpinned the birth of Australia.
A fast-paced, witty and gripping historical crime opener to The Monsarrat Series from Tom Keneally and his eldest daughter Meg
In an Australian penal colony at the edge of the known world, gentleman convict Hugh Monsarrat has risen from convicted forger to trusted clerk of the settlement's commandant.
Not long after the commandant heads off in search of a rumoured river, his beautiful wife Honora falls ill with a sickness the doctor is unable to identify. And when Honora dies, it becomes clear she has been slowly poisoned.
Monsarrat and perceptive housekeeper Mrs Mulrooney feel suspicious as regards the motives…
While my own genre is historical fiction, my background is in technology, and the rise of Artificial intelligence is at the forefront of what is happening today. This book brings together a technology pioneer and a visionary writer of science fiction to describe via short stories how AI could, and probably will, impact the human race and its ability to both add and destroy value to our lives.
I enjoyed the stories and particularly the mind-stretching concepts developed within them. A book for the age.
A WALL STREET JOURNAL, WASHINGTON POST, AND FINANCIAL TIMES BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR
In this ground-breaking blend of imaginative storytelling and scientific forecasting, a pioneering AI expert and a leading writer of speculative fiction join forces to answer an imperative question: How will artificial intelligence change our world within twenty years?
AI will be the defining development of the twenty-first century. Within two decades, aspects of daily human life will be unrecognizable. AI will generate unprecedented wealth, revolutionize medicine and education through human-machine symbiosis, and create brand new forms of communication and entertainment. In liberating us from routine work,…
Lincoln is President of the USA, Victoria is in mourning for Albert, the Industrial Revolution is in full swing, and the British Empire is on the march. And you find yourself overlooking the chaos, threats, and opportunities of the greatest gold rush the world has ever seen.
In their lodgings, two friends vaguely reminiscent of Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson are wondering how to save a man wrongfully accused of murder. As they unravel the threads, they stumble across a ruthless secret society, hunt a fortune in buried gold, and risk life and limb. You follow along and witness real events and real people in 1860s Melbourne, Australia, at the time, a bustling, wealthy, gritty frontier colony.
