On a cold day in December 1667 the renegade physician Jean Denis transfused ten ounces of calf’s blood into Antoine Mauroy, a madman. Several days and several transfusions later, Mauroy was dead and Denis was framed for murder. A riveting and wide-reaching history, Blood Work shows how blood transfusion became swept up in personal vendettas, international intrigues, and the war between science and superstition. In a foreshadowing of today’s stem cell and cloning debates, proponents saw transfusion as a long-awaited cure to deadly illnesses, while others worried that science was toying with forces of nature, perhaps even paving the way for monstrous hybrid creatures. Taking us from the highest ranks of society to the lowest, Holly Tucker introduces us to an unforgettable cast of characters, all ruthless contenders in the battle over transfusion. Finally, in a feat of historical research, she reveals the true identities of Mauroy’s murderers—and their motivations to kill.
In The Children of the New Forest, Marryat describes the trials and triumphs of the four Beverley children, orphaned during the English Civil War and forced to take refuge with a poor woodsman in the New Forest. This is the first annotated edition of a great children’s classic, which has retained its popularity since 1847.
First published in 1946 with the d’Aulaires’s beautiful lithographic prints, this tale of the first colony at Jamestown is told from the perspective of the princess daughter of the mighty chief Powhatan. When the Natives judge the white man’s magic as evil, John Smith is condemned to death – only the intervention of Pocahontas saves his life and a tentative friendship is established between Pocahontas’s tribe and the new colonists. The King of England sends a crown, rich robes and a royal bed to honor Powhatan and he is pleased, but the white man’s insistence that the Indians give them corn to sustain them through the long winters threatens their tenuous relationship. Pocahontas’s ultimate marriage to John Rolfe, the birth of their son, their voyage to England and presentation to the King and Queen is the stuff of fairy tales except that it is one of the great true stories of America’s earliest days. 46pg 
This book picks up where “The Lion of the North” left off, in the story of the Thirty Years War. As Hector Campbell answers an officer’s questions about the make-believe war that he and his fellow-comrades are doing Hector never imagines it could be the great Turenne. But before long Hector is counted a part of Turenne’s household, where he is involved in several dangerous escapades. First Hector, along with his boy-servant Paolo, creep through the town of Turin and send a message into the citadel, where a group of Protestants are holding out against the Catholics and their friends, something that quite a few had found impossible to do. Later, Hector, along with five friends, rescues the Baroness of Blenfiox and her daughter Norah from an attack by several hundred peasants. Hector also stumbles into a robber’s den, where he and his retainer must fight for their lives. But the gallant officer does not stop there, instead he not only thwarts a plan to kill Marzarin, but also kills Monsieur de Beauvais, a very good swordsman who challenged Hector to a duel. This book is full of courage, a book that you will benefit greatly from. And for anyone who likes history, this book is a must!
In this novel about the Thirty Years’ War, 16-year-old Malcolm Graheme is a Scot who volunteered to fight with the military forces conducted by the celebrated Gustavus Adolphus. When the Emperor of Austria sought to eliminate Protestantism from Germany, the Swedish King fought the terrorism endured throughout villages whose population was mercilessly decreased by the Hun invasion. The Scots displayed the fortitude of Gustavus’s army by fighting their way across a Germany that was tormented by religious persecution. Malcolm underwent enterprises whose possible outcome was dangerous, but his quick thinking and insolent resolve won him the struggle against a pitiless opponent.
In 1607, three ships arrive on the coast of Virginia to establish Jamestown Colony. One girl’s life—and the lives of her people—are changed forever.
In any other circumstance but shipwreck, rape and murder, a man like Michiel van Texel would never have met a fine lady such as Cornelia Noorstrandt.
To be buried alive is everyone’s worse nightmare!
From the grand master of the historical novel comes a dazzling epic portrait of Paris that leaps through centuries as it weaves the tales of families whose fates are forever entwined with the City of Light. As he did so brilliantly in London: The Novel and New York: The Novel, Edward Rutherfurd brings to life the most magical city in the world: Paris. This breathtaking multigenerational saga takes readers on a journey through thousands of years of glorious Parisian history.
Martha Carrier was one of the first women to be accused, tried and hanged as a witch in Salem, Massachusetts. Like her mother, young Sarah Carrier is bright and willful, openly challenging the small, brutal world in which they live. Often at odds with one another, mother and daughter are forced to stand together against the escalating hysteria of the trials and the superstitious tyranny that led to the torture and imprisonment of more than 200 people accused of witchcraft. This is the story of Martha’s courageous defiance and ultimate death, as told by the daughter who survived.
