Search Results for: true story

What do the rich and famous really get up to behind closed doors? When does sexual passion become sordid perversion? Who are history’s most shocking deviants and what are their sex secrets? The pages of this book reveal 45 shocking, scandalous – and often disturbing – stories of promiscuity and sexual perversion throughout the ages. Uncovered here are the orgies of Cleopatra and the incest of the Romans; the darkest fantasies of Michelangelo and the gross indecencies of the Marquis de Sade; as well as the insatiable desires of Rasputin, the degrading fetishes of Adolf Hitler, the unashamed exhibitionism of Tallulah Bankhead and the dirty thrills of Elvis Presley. ‘Sordid Sex Lives’ offers an insight into the shocking practices in which so many famous men and women have participated in. What motivates these sexual desires? Were they ever considered ‘normal’? And what happened to those whose filthy secrets were found out? Bursting with real-life accounts, this is the most explicit and shocking account of the sex lives of history’s most notorious characters.

Dr Bill Bass’ work, and in particular his Body Farm, has furthered forensic anthropology and made it possible to prove from the discovery of a skeleton, no matter how much time has elapsed since death, how and when death occurred and to whom the body belonged. His work has been vital for the sake of science and the cause of justice In Beyond the Body Farm Jefferson Bass details the most memorable cases from his career, including alibis he has broken, cold cases he has solved – including one from the Ancient world that took him to Iran – and several cases he has been able to revisit throughout his career as new techniques have become possible and scientific discoveries made. This is what happens when Dr Bass goes beyond the Body Farm.

In 27: Amy Winehouse, the first in a series of exclusive ebooks, acclaimed music writer Chris Salewicz celebrates the life of one of the most talented performers of recent times. In an intimate mini-biography, he explores Amy’s artistic influences and inspirations, her ability to capture the imagination and her appetite for self-destruction. Salewicz provides a startling portrayal of the perils of genius and the true cost of fame. Must the ferociously good die young?

THE INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER

Hotel K – Bali’s most notorious jail – is Hell in Paradise.

Welcome to Hotel Kerobokan, or Hotel K, Bali’s most notorious jail. Its walls touch paradise; sparkling oceans, surf beaches and palm trees on one side, while on the other it’s a dark, bizarre and truly frightening underworld of sex, drugs, violence and squalor.

Hotel K’s filthy and disease ridden cells have been home to the infamous and the tragic: a Balinese King, Gordon Ramsay’s brother, Muslim terror bombers, beautiful women tourists and surfers from across the globe. Petty thieves share cells with killers, rapists, and gangsters. Hardened drug traffickers sleep alongside unlucky tourists, who’ve seen their holiday turn from paradise to hell over one ecstasy pill.

Hotel K is the shocking inside story of the jail and its inmates, revealing the wild ‘sex nights’ organised by corrupt guards for the prisoners who have cash to pay, the jail’s ecstasy factory, the killings made to look like suicides, the days out at the beach, the escapes and the corruption that means anything is for sale – including a fully catered Italian jail wedding, or a luxury cell upgrade with a Bose sound system.

The truth about the dark heart of Bali explodes off the page.

Kurt Cobain, Nirvana frontman, died aged just 27. In this insightful mini-biography, respected music critic Chris Salewicz examines Cobain’s journey from sensitive loner to generational icon. Salewicz scrutinizes Cobain’s tormented inner life, his tempestuous relationship with Courtney Love, and the importance of his cultural legacy.

27: Kurt Cobain is the second in a series of exclusive music ebooks, an ambitious project examining the perils of genius, celebrity and excess. Other titles in the series include 27: Amy Winehouse, 27: Jimi Hendrix, 27: Jim Morrison and 27: Janis Joplin.

From earliest times, women gained access to leadership in times of conflict and proved themselves equal to the challenge of commanding during war. Women leaders abounded in the ancient world from Ireland to Israel, sometimes through the accident of birth, but often rising to power through naked opportunism and raw courage in the ranks – and it is no accident that women war leaders, like men, are often famous for their strong sexual drive.

Wherever there is war, there has often been a woman at the helm. Later ages frequently wrote these women out of history, but their stories have refused to die. From the legendary leader of the Amazons who fought the greatest of Greek heroes, Achilles, to the Iron Ladies of today, the women of both West and East directing military campaigns and leading their countries in war.

Presenting an array of fascinating and sometimes little known women war leaders, popular author Rosalind Miles and the acclaimed military historian Robin Cross do full justice to the achievements of these women, some of whose amazing stories have so far never been told.

Warrior women include: Penthesilea the Amazons queen, Deborah, Cleopatra VII, Boudicca, Eleanor of Aquitaine, Joan of Arc, Elizabeth I, Grace O’Malley, Deborah Samson, Nadezda Durova, Harriet Tubman, Anna Etheridge, Soldaderas, Flora Sandes, Lily Litvak, Women of the Warsaw Ghetto, Hanna Reitsch, Ruth Werner, Jeanne Holm, Margaret Thatcher, Women in Today’s Armies, Martha McSally and more…

‘A strong, poignant, and outright magical tale’ New York Review of Science Fiction

In this exclusive short story from critically acclaimed and award-winning author Lisa Tuttle, a woman is haunted by an experience she had as a five-year-old, when she believed she had seen herself with her true love in the future…

‘The Walled Garden’ was originally written for Hidden Turnings, a YA fantasy anthology edited by Diana Wynne Jones and was reprinted in Lisa Tuttle’s collection Ghosts and Other Lovers and The Year’s Best Horror and Fantasy, edited by Ellen Datlow and Terry Windling.

Brian Jones, multi-instrumentalist, visionary and the ‘golden boy of the ’60s’, was, at the age of 27, the first rock casualty of his generation.

A strange, somewhat impenetrable character, Brian Jones was a founding member and guiding spirit of The Rolling Stones. Adored and misunderstood in equal measure, Jones was perhaps the most creatively ambitious cultural force of his time, an artist whose commitment to the experimental and exotic remains profoundly influential.

Always unconventional, Jones’s voracious appetite for life’s extremes led to unparalleled debauchery, drug and alcohol fuelled paranoia, and ultimately personal ruin.

27: Brian Jones is the third in a series of exclusive music ebooks, an ambitious project examining the perils of genius, celebrity and excess. Other titles in the series include 27: Amy Winehouse, 27: Jimi Hendrix, 27: Jim Morrison and 27: Kurt Cobain.

From Aristotle’s pioneering research into animal biology to Harvey’s theory of the circulation of the blood; from Copernicus’s theory of the heliocentric universe to Carl Sagan’s speculations on extraterrestrial life; and from Einstein’s theory of Relativity to Heisenberg’s uncertainty principle, Eureka! condenses the essential biographies and principal discoveries of the world’s most important scientists
into 300 bite-sized entries.

Spanning the full spectrum of scientific disciplines – including physics, biology, earth science, cosmology, chemistry, archaeology and behavioural science – this book is the perfect introduction to the pioneering work of scientists throughout the ages.

Perfect for fans of Tanith Lee and Joyce Carol Oates, this extremely dark and disturbing novel by award-winning author Lisa Tuttle is ‘Impossible to forget’ Neil Gaiman.

Be careful what you wish for . . .

As a child, Agnes Grey dreamed of the perfect friend to ease her loneliness: a doll that would talk to her, tell her stories, share her secrets, just like her Aunt Marjorie used to have.

So when she receives an old-fashioned porcelain doll as an adult, painted to look like an old-world gentleman, she’s certain her dreams have come true. But as the line between fantasy and reality begins to blurs, Agnes discovers that every dream has its price and every wish must be paid for . . .

‘It wasn’t only Britain’s biggest heist, it became the bloodiest’ Mail on Sunday

The inside story of the 20th century’s most lucrative armed robbery.

On 26 November 1983 six armed robbers escaped with £28 million worth of gold bullion from a Brink’s-Mat warehouse at London’s Heathrow Airport. The heist made the careers of many of the underworld’s biggest names, and changed the face of British crime for ever. In the years following the robbery, many of those involved, innocent and guilty alike, have been sent to an early grave. Two decades on, the death toll is still rising.

Nobody knows more about that extraordinary morning’s events than Wensley Clarkson. Nobody is better placed to track the vicious, violent and unexpected waves that followed in its wake, or bring to life its cast of larger-than-life characters. From small-time crime in south-east London, to ‘the heist of the century’ and its bloody consequences, Wensley Clarkson’s The Curse of Brink’s-Mat is an epic tale of villainy, gold and revenge.

Since the beginning of time mankind has struggled with the big questions surrounding our existence. Whilst most people have heard of Socrates, Machiavelli and Nietzsche, many are less clear on their theories and key concepts.

In The Great Philosophers, bestselling author Stephen Law condenses and deciphers their fundamental ideas. Avoiding the technical jargon and complex logic associated with most books on philosophy, Law brings the thoughts of these great thinkers, from Confucius and Buddha to Wittgenstein and Sartre, to life.

Janis Joplin, singer-songwriter, counterculture icon, the Queen of rock and roll, died aged just 27. During a short four-year career, blighted by alcoholism and drug abuse, she changed the face of music, carving out opportunities for a generation of female talent. Her powerful, raw vocals touched fans of folk music, blues and soul alike, with recordings such as ‘Me and Bobby McGee’, ‘To Love Somebody’ and ‘Mercedes Benz’ widely recognized as classics of their era.

In 27: Janis Joplin acclaimed author Chris Salewicz examines Joplin’s troubled and unconventional existence, and explains her profound musical influence. This is the fifth in a series of exclusive music ebooks, an ambitious project examining the perils of genius, celebrity and excess. Other titles in the series include 27: Amy Winehouse, 27: Kurt Cobain, 27: Brian Jones, and 27: Jimi Hendrix.

James Marshall ‘Jimi’ Hendrix is the most famous and perhaps the most innovative guitarist in music history. He died aged 27.

In this thought-provoking mini-biography, acclaimed author Chris Salewicz attends not just to Hendrix’s virtuoso skill, but also to his enigmatic and unpredictable character. He explores Hendrix’s status as psychedelic talisman and fashion icon, detailing the attitude and style that informed his legend.

27: Jimi Hendrix paints an intimate portrait of a man struggling with fame and substance abuse while mesmerizing the world.

27: Jimi Hendrix is the fourth in a series of exclusive music ebooks, an ambitious project examining the perils of genius, celebrity and excess. Other titles in the series include 27: Amy Winehouse, 27: Kurt Cobain, 27: Brian Jones, and 27: Jim Morrison.