Showing results by narrator "Michael Langan" in All Categories

On the eve of Newgate Prison's demolition, Watson spies Holmes leaving a public sale of the prison's miscellany in the company of a beautiful stranger, and in possession of an unusual trophy–the death mask of a woman who, more than 20 years earlier, had been executed for the murder of her three children. Holmes agrees to satisfy Watson's curiosity about the memento by recounting the decades-old history of its subject.

Horace was one of the greatest poets during the reign of Augustus and is seen as mark of cultural sophistication since this time. This Very Short Introduction examines how Horace's poetry has exerted enormous influence but argues that it is best understood within the traditions of ancient literature.

In The Sign of Four, the great detective, Sherlock Holmes, famously says: "... when you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth ...". Eliminate the Impossible collects six canonical tales in which Holmes and Watson encounter mummies, angels, phantoms, invisible assassins, and arcane machines ... or so it might appear to those without a carefully stocked brain attic.

In the last thirty years, the developing world has undergone tremendous changes. Overall, poverty has fallen, people live longer and healthier lives, and economies have been transformed. And yet many countries have simply missed the boat. Why have some countries prospered, while others have failed? Stefan Dercon argues that the answer lies not in a specific set of policies, but rather in a key "development bargain," whereby a country's elites shift from protecting their own positions to gambling on a growth-based future.

Unsupervised examines the fast-emerging technologies and tools that are already starting to completely revolutionize our world. Beyond that, the book takes an in-depth look at how we have arrived at this dizzying point in our history, who holds the reins of these formidable technologies, mostly without any supervision. It explains why we as business leaders, entrepreneurs, academics, educators, lawmakers, investors or users and all responsible citizens must act now to influence and help oversee the future of a technological world.

Black Ice. It is a substance of magic mined from the earth, an Enhancement of the senses, and a diversion for the aristocracy who consume it. To Arythan Crow, “Dark Wizard of Cerborath,” it is nothing more than a black crystal, and his role is to harvest and purify it. But when this crystal becomes the object of attacks, a kidnapping, and the near demise of the prince, he has to wonder what more is to be learned of this Enhancement.

Welcome to the city of Greenville, where murder is never what it seems. Detective Lynn Pocker and her team are battling crime on several fronts: two serial murderers and a secret organization that has been pulling the strings of crime and justice for decades. Our heroine will have to fight this and her own personal struggles as she herself becomes ensnared in the game of foxes and hounds.

When a mysterious and manipulative wizard learns the deadly relic know as the Ravenstone has been uncovered by a self-proclaimed regent known as the Priagent, he hastily assembles a group of mismatched travelers to steal and deliver it to safety. The unlikely company sent to retrieve it consists of Arcturus, an exiled politician with a fondness for wine, Kariayla, a winged slave girl on a quest for redemption, Jinx, an unlucky thief and his imp counterpart, and Hawkwing, the wizard’s personal spy, at the helm.

A tracker named Hawkwing and a former bandit known as the White Demon try to evade a clandestine organization known as the Seroko. “The Hawk’s Shadow” tells their tale and leads into the Black Earth trilogy.

More tales from the dispatch box of Doctor John Watson. These 10 stories have appeared previously in various volumes of The MX Book of New Sherlock Holmes Stories and other anthologies. They come together as a collection for the first time.

This is the fourth story from The Art of Sherlock Holmes project and first appeared in The MX Book of New Sherlock Holmes Stories, Part V.

This is the 18th story from The Art of Sherlock Holmes project and first appeared in The Papers of Sherlock Holmes.

Vampire turned Runner, John Grissom, is a founding member of Bow Street's new clandestine investigative division, Odd Crimes. He finds himself witnessing an assassination attempt on the Foreign Secretary. He then discovers London's most notorious purveyor of stolen goods at the bottom of it.

John Grissom, vampire bacteriologist, has found a new purpose in life, joining up with friends Henrietta Isherwood and Gerhardt Van Helsing to comprise the off-book Bow Street Odd Crimes Division. What Mulder and Skully were to the FBI, John and Henrietta are to Bow Street.

This is the 15th story from the Art of Sherlock Holmes project and first appeared in The MX Book of New Sherlock Holmes Stories, Part XII.

This is the 37th story from the Art of Sherlock Holmes project and first appeared in The MX Book of New Sherlock Holmes Stories, Part VI.

The British constitution is regarded as unique among the constitutions of the world. What are the main characteristics of Britain's peculiar constitutional arrangements? How has the British constitution altered in response to the changing nature of its state—from England, to Britain, to the United Kingdom? What impact has the UK's developing relations with the European Union caused? These are some of the questions that Martin Loughlin addresses in this Very Short Introduction.