Nicholas Griffin

Off the coast of Liguria, 1713 - accompanied by his valet Thomas Noon and tutor Lucius Jelbourne, young aristocrat Lord Stilwell is bound for Genoa and that essential part of an English gentlemans education; the Grand Tour of Italy. Jelbourne has long been wary of Noon: his standing at Dengby Hall, his relationship with Stilwell and his intelligence do not tally with his role as a servant. Noon, likewise is suspicious of Jelbourne: why does Stilwells tutor enjoy better hospitality than Stilwell himself? And why, when Jelbourne is purchasing Italian pictures supposedly a century old, is the paint still fresh?The English who visit eighteenth-century Italy normally consider it only for its past: Jelbourne, as Noon is to discover, is different. For there is a new king on the throne of England - a German, a protestant - and not all of his subjects are loyal. As the Grand Tour weaves its way to Venice, Rome and Naples, Noon finds himself drawn into a deadly world of intrigue, and double lives: a world where nothing and no-one are as they seem. And though Noon would like to unmask the mysterious Jelbourne, his attentions are drawn to the delectable Natalia Silver, and the unmistakable lure of love . . . THE MASQUERADE is a sophisticated literary thriller that confirms Nicholas Griffins growing reputation as one our finest exponents of historical fiction.

Set in the 18th centurys Golden Age of Piracy, THE REQUIEM SHARK is the tale of a young recruit, William Williams and his forced apprenticeship to Bartholomew Roberts, slaver turned pirate Captain. Enlisted first as a musician, then as the Captains biographer, Williams learns to negotiate the seas of the Caribbean and West Africa recording their conflicts with the merchantmen and whores, tribesmen and soldiers that populated the ends of the known world.Influenced by shipmates, from the learned Dr Scudamore to Innocent, ex-slave and sole member of his own religion, Williams struggles to justify his own position within the Royal Fortune, as the British Navy hunt them down and the fanatical Captain Roberts drives the ship onwards to the ultimate prize - the mysterious treasure ship...Rich in historical detail and based upon the last years of the most successful pirate known to history, THE REQUIEM SHARK is a gripping adventure set in a brutal environment dominated by gold, disease and blood.

Against the window a pale hand, a gentle wave that was not a wave at all. A distant female face veiled by the sweep of a curtain. Then stillness. Bendix remained transfixed for a full minute. It was most certainly a womanEarly eighteenth-century London, and two doctors are criss-crossing the boundaries of morality in the heady pursuit of scientific progress. It is a challenge that leads Sir Edmund Calcraft, an eminent and notorious anatomist, and Joseph Bendix, his young ambitious student, into playing a dark game with the lawless side of London. But Bendixs growing passion for a woman he first glimpses in Calcrafts house threatens to end their mutual quest. From gallows to mad houses, from anatomical laboratories to frost fairs set on the frozen Thames, the two men begin to compete in both head and heart...Mixing history, myth, medicine and fiction, THE HOUSE OF SIGHT AND SHADOW is a compelling tale about ambition, deception and the vulnerability of love.

Combining the insight of Franklin Foers How Soccer Explains the World and the intrigue of Ben Afflecks Argo, Ping Pong Diplomacy traces the story of how an aristocratic British spy used the game of table tennis to propel a Communist strategy that changed the shape of the world.THE SPRING OF 1971 heralded the greatest geopolitical realignment in a generation. After twenty-two years of antagonism, China and the United States suddenly moved toward a detenteachieved not by politicians but by Ping-Pong players. The Western press delighted in the absurdity of the moment and branded it Ping-Pong Diplomacy. But for the Chinese, Ping-Pong was always political, a strategic cog in Mao Zedongs foreign policy. Nicholas Griffin proves that the organized game, from its first breath, was tied to Communism thanks to its founder, Ivor Montagu, son of a wealthy English baron and spy for the Soviet Union. Ping-PongDiplomacy traces a crucial intersection of sports and society. Griffin tells the strange and tragic story of how the game was manipulated at the highest levels; how the Chinese government helped cover up the death of 36 million peasants by holding the World Table Tennis Championships during the Great Famine; how championship players were driven to their deaths during the Cultural Revolution; and, finally, how the survivors were reconvened in 1971 and ordered to reach out to their American counterparts. Through a cast of eccentric characters, from spies to hippies and Ping-Pong-obsessed generals to atom-bomb survivors, Griffin explores how a neglected sport was used to help realign the balance of worldwide power.

Bertrand Russell ranks as one of the giants of twentieth-century philosophy. Through his books, journalism, correspondence and political activity he exerted a profound influence on modern thought. This companion centers on Russell's contributions to modern philosophy and, therefore, concentrates on the early part of his career. There are chapters on Russell's contributions to the foundations of mathematics, and on his development of new logical methods in philosophy and their application to such fields as epistemology, metaphysics and the philosophy of language. The intellectual background to ...

A rugged land between the Black and Caspian seas, the Caucasus is a battle ground for a fascinating and formidable clash of cultures: Russia on one side, the predominantly Muslim mountains on the other. In "Caucasus," award-winning author Nicholas Griffin recounts his journey to this war torn region to explore the roots of today''s conflict, centering his travelogue on Imam Shamil, the great nineteenth century Muslim warrior who commanded a quarter-century resistance against invading Russian forces. Delving deep into the Caucasus, Griffin transcends the headlines trumpeting Chechen insurgency to give the land and its conflicts dimension: evoking the weather, terrain, and geography alongside national traditions, religious affiliations, and personal legends as barriers to peaceful co-existence. In focusing his tale on Shamil while retracing his steps, Griffin compellingly demonstrates the way history repeats itself.

A principios del siglo XVIII, en Londres, el eminente anatomista Sir Edmund Calcraft y su ambicioso ayudante Joseph Bendix no tienen inconveniente en dejar a un lado las convenciones morales de su tiempo -y de paso unas cuantas leyes- en su afán por llevar a buen puerto un descubrimiento científico.

In the tradition of The Wire, the utterly absorbing (The New York Times) story of the cinematic transformation of Miami, one of Americas bustling citiesrife with a drug epidemic, a burgeoning refugee crisis, and police brutalityfrom journalist and award-winning author Nicholas Griffin.Miami, Florida, famed for its blue skies and sandy beaches, is one of the worlds most popular vacation destinations, with nearly twenty-three million tourists visiting annually. But few people have any idea how this unofficial capital of Latin America came to be.The Year of Dangerous Days is an engrossing, peek-between-your-fingers history of an American city on the edge (Kirkus Reviews). With a cast that includes iconic characters such as Jimmy Carter, Fidel Castro, and Janet Reno, this slice of history is brought to life through intertwining personal stories. At the core, theres Edna Buchanan, a reporter for the Miami Herald who breaks the story on the wrongful murder of a black man and the shocking police cover-up; Captain Marshall Frank, the hardboiled homicide detective tasked with investigating the murder; and Mayor Maurice Ferre, the charismatic politician who watches the case, and the city, fall apart.On a roller coaster of national politics and international diplomacy, these three figures cross paths as their city explores one of the worst race riots in American history as more than 120,000 Cuban refugees land south of Miami, and as drug cartels flood the city with cocaine and infiltrate all levels of law enforcement. In a battle of wills, Buchanan has to keep up with the 150 percent murder rate increase; Captain Frank has to scrub and rebuild his homicide bureau; and Mayor Ferre must find a way to reconstruct his smoldering city. Against all odds, they persevere, and a stronger, more vibrant, Miami begins to emerge. But the foundation of this new Miamipartially built on corruption and drug moneywill have severe ramifications for the rest of the country.Deeply researched, well-written (New York Journal of Books), and covering many timely issues including police brutality, immigration, and the drug crisis, The Year of Dangerous Days is both a clarion call and a dramatic rebirth story of one of Americas most iconic cities.

Al començament del segle XVIII, a Londres, l'eminent anatomista Sir Edmund Calcraft i el seu ambiciós ajudant Joseph Bendix deixen de banda les convencions morals del seu temps —i de passada unes quantes lleis- per portar a bon port un descobriment científic. El repte que els dos metges accepten, i que els portarà a endinsar-se en el tèrbol i atzarós món de la xusma londinenca, es veurà amenaçat per la creixent obsessió del jove Bendix per una dona misteriosa que coneix a casa d'en Calcraft. En un camí que els portarà de les places d'execució, manicomis i fires fins a la soledat del laboratori, el mestre i el seu ajudant començaran a competir en cos i ànima. Barreja d'història, mite, medicina i ficció, La casa de Ics ombres és un relat esglaiador sobre l'ambició, l'eneanv i la vulnerabilitat de l'amor.