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Originally published as: The King's codebreaker by Andrew Douglas. Leicester: Matador, 2010.
February 1574 and London is in a fervour of paranoia, superstition and rumour. Mob violence is commonplace. A whispered word is all it takes to condemn a woman to burn as a witch. Having foiled the 'Incendium' plot against the Queen, intelligencer Dr Christopher Radcliff's standing within court is high. However, he has no time to reap any reward. Counterfeit coins bearing the likeness of his master, Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester, are circulating on London's streets. This in itself is a treasonous offence, but now slogans have begun to appear on walls and doorways, implying that Leicester harbours treacherous intent. So Radcliff and his team of informants and amateur spies are sent out into the city's markets, drinking dens and brothels to track down who might be behind such outrageous and subversive acts. It will take them down a murderous path in pursuit of an elusive foe with an extraordinary agenda. And time is running out: for when rumour and fear catch fire, then surely violent insurrection and bloody chaos will follow . . . 'A fantastic tale of spies, deceit and murder in the Elizabethan age' S. D. SYKES
'A fantastic tale of spies, deceit and murder in the Elizabethan age' S. D. Sykes 'Colourful and gripping' The Times England in 1572 is a powder keg of rumour, fanaticism, treachery and dissent. All it would take is a single spark . . . In the England of Elizabeth I, the fear of plague and invasion, and the threat of insurrection are constant. As the Earl of Leicester's chief intelligencer, lawyer Dr Christopher Radcliff is tasked with investigating rumours of treachery at home and the papist threat from abroad. And with heresy and religious unrest simmering beneath the surface of a country on the brink, Radcliff is under pressure to get results. Then two brutal and seemingly motiveless kill...
Spring, 1648. When Thomas Hill, a bookseller living in rural Hampshire, publishes a political pamphlet he has little idea of the trouble that will follow. He is quickly arrested, forced on a boat to Barbados and condemned to life as a slave to two of the island’s most notoriously violent brothers. In England war has erupted again, with London under threat of attack. When news of the king’s execution reaches the island, political stability is threatened and a fleet commanded by Sir George Ayscue arrives to take control of the island for Cromwell. The threat of violence increases. Thomas finds himself witness to abuse, poison, rape and savage brutality. When a coded message from Ayscue to a sympathiser on the island is intercepted, Thomas is asked to decipher it. A disastrous battle seems inevitable. But nothing turns out as planned. And as the death toll mounts, the escape Thomas has been relying on seems ever more unlikely...
The king’s coronation brings hope. Until a murderer strikes. Spring 1661: After years of civil war followed by Oliver Cromwell's joyless rule as Lord Protector, England awaits the coronation of King Charles II. The mood in London is one of relief and hope for a better future. But when two respectable gentlemen are found in a foul lane with their throats cut, it becomes apparent that England’s enemies are using the newly re-established post office for their own ends. There are traitors at work and plans to overthrow the king. Another war is possible. Thomas Hill, in London visiting friends, is approached by the king’s security advisor and asked to take charge of deciphering coded letters intercepted by the post office. As the body count rises and the killer starts preying on women, the action draws closer to Thomas – and his loved ones. He finds himself dragged into the hunt for the traitors and the murderer, but will he find them before it’s too late?
Summer, 1643. England is at war with itself. King Charles I has fled London, his negotiations with Parliament in tatters. The country is consumed by bloodshed. A formidably intelligent yet quiet Oxford graduate, Thomas lives in a rural village with his widowed sister and her two daughters. When a stranger knocks on Thomas's door one night and informs him that the king's cryptographer has died, everything changes. Aware of Thomas' background as a mathematician and his expertise in codes and ciphers, the king has summoned him to his court in Oxford. It is only once Thomas arrives, however, that he learns that his predecessor was murdered. Brutal murder follows brutal murder. And when a vital message encrypted with a notoriously unbreakable cipher is intercepted, he must decipher it to reveal the king's betrayer and prevent the violent death that defeat will surely bring.
June, 1815. The Coldstream Guards and the third guards are waiting impatiently for orders to move into battle against Napoleon and his French army. Every day seems endless as the troops wait for Wellington's orders. When word is finally received, the path to glory it is not quite what the troops were hoping for. Hours of marching during the day are followed by restless nights' sleep in the rain, dampening their spirits and weakening morale. When the group eventually encounter the French in battle, a special command comes from Wellington himself to Colonel James Macdonell of the Coldstream Guards: hold the chateau at Hougoumont and do not let the French pass. What happens next is history.
Andrew Robb lived with an unspoken fear that what he passed off as 'not being good in the mornings' was something darker: a black dog whose daily visit lasted longer as the years passed. Worried about stigmas and letting people down, he avoided confronting the problem for four decades, the adrenaline of high-pressure and high profile jobs offering the ideal antidote. Ultimately, realising his ambitions meant having to face up to this very private demon. Andrew Robb's battle with the black dog has touched a chord with many Australians. His memoir explores the challenges of managing depression, political ambition and life in the Liberal Party. Andrew Robb's career has been devoted to the Liberal cause-as Federal Director of the Liberal Party, as Executive Director of the National Farmers Federation, during seven years in the Packer business empire, and now in parliamentary politics. His memoirs document the private struggle and the public life of the Liberal Party's chief political strategist. It offers readers an insight into one man's lifelong battle with a private demon amidst the drama and tumult of contemporary Australian politics.
Climate and energy. Work/life balance. Mining taxes. Progress on policy issues like these is essential, and yet they have become subject to the most rancorous partisanship, the precipitation of culture wars, and have brought down governments. It is impossible to make any progress without major political upheaval. Or so it seems in Australia. Yet Nordic countries have taken a 'ja, we can' approach to these and other issues such as independent foreign policy, prison reform, gender equality, retraining for workforce participation and media diversity. Their experience shows that progress in these areas is not only possible, but can be achieved while increasing prosperity and community wellbeing....
With forensic detail, Andrew Fowler provides a ringside seat at the epic battle that has made Julian Assange the USA's public enemy number one. Since it was first published, The Most Dangerous Man in the World has been translated and distributed in countries from China to Romania and the USA to Russia. Now, through recent interviews and the latest research, Fowler tells the extraordinary story of how a computer hacker with a turbulent childhood became holed up in London's Ecuador Embassy for seven years, and is now battling extradition to the USA from the notorious maximum security Belmarsh prison in London. Pentagon Papers whistleblower Daniel Ellsberg was called The Most Dangerous Man in America by the Nixon White House. In the Trump era, Ellsberg says Julian Assange, whose new journalism has made him powerful enemies, should be proud to be The Most Dangerous Man in the World.