Joanna David

The best-known modern Chinese fairy tale is the story of three sisters from Shanghai, who for most of the twentieth century were at the centre of power in China. It was sometimes said that 'One loved money, one loved power and one loved her country', but there was far more to the Soong sisters than these caricatures. As China battled through a hundred years of wars, revolutions and seismic transformations, each sister played an important, sometimes critical role, and left an indelible mark on history.

The author visited Afghanistan and for four months lived with the family of Sultan Khan, a bookseller who has supplied books to the people of Kabul, defying Communists and the Taliban. She paints a picture of family life where Sultan is the absolute authority.

Angela Huth is a requested novelist, but she is also a master of the short story. This collection spans twenty five years of writing and includes some of the best pieces from her previous collection along with new pieces.

The first truly candid portrait of George V and Mary -- the Queen's grandparents and the creators of the modern monarchy

The lasting reputation of George V is for dullness. He was a crack shot, and an outstanding stamp collector, but that's about it. The flamboyance and hedonism of his father, Edward VII, defined an era whose influence and magnetism is still felt today. The contrast between the two could hardly be greater.

But is that really all there was to King George, a monarch who faced a series of crises thought to be the most testing faced by any twentieth-century British sovereign? As Tommy Lascelles, one of George's most senior advisors, put it: 'He was dull, beyond dispute -- but my God, his reign never had a dull moment.'

Jane Ridley is one of very finest royal biographers, celebrated for her immaculate research, highly entertaining style and piercing insights. How this supposedly limited man managed to steer the crown through so many perils and adapt a Victorian institution to the modern world is a great story in itself. But with it comes a riveting portrait of a royal marriage and family life that challenges myths and lets us see George, Mary and their children more fully and clearly than ever before.

George V was the Queen's grandfather, and Jane Ridley takes right into the drawing rooms Elizabeth was born into. She brings us a royal family and world not long vanished, and not so far from our own.

After a three-day romance Brooklyn-born Jennie Jerome married into the British aristocracy, becoming Lady Randolph Churchill. Eight months after the marriage, Lady Jennie bore their son Winston. Using her charms to advance her husband and son, Jennie discreetly seduces 200 or more paramours - including the Prince of Wales.

Jane Fielding struggles with many problems, but is determined to keep Rawlston House for her children. By selling off small parts of her property she acquired new neighbours, Sam Clarke and Bella Balfour. Each of the women is drawn into the lives of the others. X rated, contains graphic violence.

A witty observation of the English middle classes as they holiday abroad in Florence. One of these tourists is Lucy Honeychurch, a young girl whose heart is awakened by her experiences in Italy.

Elizabeth and Betsy were old school friends. When they meet again in their thirties, Elizabeth is relieving the boredom of her marriage with an affair, and Betsy has found romance in Paris. Are their lives really taking off at last, or are they both making mistakes?