The first Alan Lewrie, this action-packed naval adventure is ideal for fans of C. S. Forester, Patrick O'Brian and Julian Stockwin. His exploits echo with the bustle of crowded ports and the crash of naval warfare. It is 1780 and 17 year old Alan Lewrie is a brash young libertine with a head full of dreams. When he is found in bed with the wrong woman, he is forced to leave his profligacy behind for a new life at sea. Although sickness and hard labour await him aboard the tall-masted Ariadne, Lewrie finds himself gradually adapting to the world of a midshipman. But as he heads for the war-torn Americas and into a hail of cannonballs, will he ever catch wind of the plot brewing against him back at home? 407pp, paperback.

A young recruit, a legendary battle, a cataclysmic war, a baptism by fire... Kelly Maguire knew from a young age that he could accomplish great things. As the First World War begins, he enlists in the Royal Navy, hoping to win both the war and glory. But from the barbarous battles of Gallipoli to the nightmarish action at Antwerp, Kelly learns the trials a sailor must face - trials that will forge him into a man. As the epic battle of Jutland approaches, everything is at stake. From the acclaimed novelist this is a gritty naval adventure full of blood, guts and heroism in the face of danger. 345pp, paperback.

'I set out to write a novel based on the experiences of my grandfather, a young British soldier in the second Anglo-Boer War in South Africa (1899-1902). But a more important story arose with the stunning discovery that this war killed more Boer children in concentration camps than soldiers in combat on both sides.' The British imprisoned thousands of families including Aletta Venter's, in newly devised 'concentration camps'. In a crowded tent with her mother and siblings, Aletta finds ways to cope with the confinement, deprivation and loss, but searches for the rarest of comforts - a bit of adolescent normalcy, perhaps even the spark of forbidden romance. Her weapon of choice in this personal battle is a young girl's powerful sense of hope. The Undesirables (the British term for those who refuse to surrender) is the heart-rending yet life-affirming new book from the top ten bestselling author of Guernica and is an enthralling novel which captures with raw vividness the emotions stirred by war and loss. With useful glossary of Afrikaans, South African terms. While 4,000 Boer combatants were killed in battle in the 2½ year war, an estimated 22,000 of their children perished of disease and malnutrition in these poorly administered and overcrowded camps. And thousands more native Africans also died but no one bothered to count them. The novel is a tribute to the wonderful women who suffered the indignity, loss and anxiety as they watched their children "lying about in a state of collapse" as Emily Hobhouse the British activist described them at the time. 369pp, paperback.

1803. Thomas Kydd has dragged himself up in the navy from press-ganged seaman to captain of his own ship. Now he faces disgrace. After losing favour with his superiors and suffering terrible personal tragedy, he and his ship are sent to guard the Channel Islands from Napoleon's forces. When he is brutally betrayed off the Normandy Coast and removed from command, only his old friend Renzi is willing to stick by him. Kydd is determined to clear his name but soon finds himself fighting yet another battle he seems to have no chance of winning. Can he defeat his enemies on both sides and win back the glory taken from him? 344pp, paperback.

Uhtred of Bebbanburg's mind is as sharp as his sword. A thorn in the side of the priests and nobles who shape his fate, this Saxon raised by Vikings is torn between the life he loves and those he has sworn to serve. Warrior, pagan, scourge of the Vikings, despite being offered a crown of his own, Uhtred is a man of his word, and he gave it to King Alfred of Wessex who dreams of an England free from Vikings. So when the king orders him to take London from the Danes and hand it to his foolish son-in-law Aethelred, Uhtred agrees, reluctantly. For Aethelred's wife is the king's spirited daughter Aethelflaed, and her fate is entwined with Uhtred's, and fate will not be denied. A masterly read in a series which really makes history come alive. The Last Kingdom is now a major BBC TV series. 365pp, paperback.

To King Alfred of Wessex he is the 'Lord of Battles'. He has gained riches, loyal men and a beloved wife, but Uhtred of Bebbanburg is dogged by betrayal and tragedy. The ailing King presses Uhtred to swear loyalty to his son and heir Edward. Preventing the warrior lord from taking vengeance on those who stole his home at Bebbanburg, now Uthred will once again defend the Christian kingdom, in a battle which could smash the growing power of the deadly Danes. In doing so he meets a woman more dangerous than any warlord - a killer, a schemer with a dark power over men's hearts - Skade. 384pp, paperback.

Uhtred, sword of the Saxons, bane of the Vikings, has been declared outcast. Peace in Britain has given him time to cause trouble - for himself. Branded a pagan abomination by the church, he sails north. For, despite suspecting that Viking leader Cnut Longsword will attack the Saxons again, Uhtred is heading for Bebbanburg, fearing that if he does not act now he will never reclaim his stolen birthright. Yet his fate is bound to the Saxons, to Aethelflaed, bright lady of Mercia, and to a dead king's dream of England. For great battles must still be fought, and no man is better at that than Uhtred. 345pp, paperback.

Uhtred of Bebbanburg has reputation, riches, warriors, his son at his side and a persistent sword-wound which is slowly killing him. Yet the Pagan lord is on a difficult quest. Several in fact. He is not only trying to rescue both a royal heir and his own daughter, but must also find the blade which wounded him. Harder still, he seeks to put a woman on the throne of a British kingdom - against all tradition. He believes her to be the best hope against the Vikings rampaging in the north, for she is Aethelflaed, defender of Mercia and the woman Uhtred loves. A breathtaking read. 337pp, paperback.

You wrong Uhtred of Bebbanburg at you peril, for his vengeance is terrible. Ragnall Ivarson, a savage pirate king, has abandoned his lands in Ireland and declared that fate has granted him Britain. Among his allies is Brida, once the young Uhtred's lover, now an embittered widow with warriors, a fortress, and a fiery hatred of Christians and Uhtred. Often against his will, Uhtred has long been ensnared in the battle for the kingdoms of Britain. Now his family is caught up too and horribly so. He faces enemies feared for their cruelty, but his Pagan heart burns for revenge. 'Blood, divided loyalties and thundering battles.' - The Times. 348pp, paperback.

Britain is in a state of uneasy peace. The truce between the Vikings and Saxons has brought opportunity to England's greatest warrior, Uhtred of Bebbanburg. At last he has the chance to retake the home stolen from him so many years earlier. He has made many enemies and sworn many oaths that could distract him from his ambition. New opponents join old foes and enter into the fight for England's kingdoms. But Uhtred is determined that this time nothing will stand in his way for he is the Lord of Bebbanburg and will marshal the lessons of a lifetime of war to reclaim his birthright. From the new major TV series, the original novel. 321pp, paperback.