On June 28, 1914, in the dusty Balkan town of Sarajevo, an assassin fired two shots. In the next five minutes, as the stout middle-aged Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Habsburg, heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, and his wife bled to death, a dynasty-and with it, a whole way of life-began to topple. In the ages before World War I, four dynasties-the Habsburg, Hohenzollern, Ottoman, and Romanov-dominated much of civilization. Outwardly different, they...

"Despite its reputation as the longest established and most admired in Europe, the story of the English monarchy is punctuated by an ongoing roster of scandals, murders, betrayals, plots, treasons and general mayhem. Since 1066, England has seen three civil wars, six monarchs have been murdered or executed, the throne of England has been usurped four times, and won in battle three times. From the "accidental" murder of William II in 1100, through...

Seventeen-year-old Aislinn, who has the rare ability to see faeries, is drawn against her will into a centuries-old battle between the Summer King and the Winter Queen, and the survival of her life, her love, and summer all hang in the balance.

"Kagen the Damned marks the first installment of an exciting new series of dark epic fantasy novels from bestselling author Jonathan Maberry. Sworn by Oath -- Kagen Vale is the trusted and feared captain of the palace guard, charged with protecting the royal children of the Silver Empire. But one night, Kagen is drugged and the entire imperial family is killed, leaving the empire in ruins. Abandoned by the Gods -- Haunted and broken, Kagen is abandoned...

France's iconic queen, Marie Antoinette, wrongly accused of uttering the infamous "Let them eat cake," was alternately revered and reviled during her lifetime. For centuries since, she has been the object of debate, speculation, and the fascination so often accorded illustrious figures in history. Married in mere girlhood, this essentially lighthearted child was thrust onto the royal stage and commanded by circumstance to play a significant...

"I am Catalia Fisa, and I do not break. Deep breath in. Long breath out. The Gods are telling me I'm some sort of new Origin, which apparently means it's my job to give Thalyria a fresh start. Griffin crowned me with the symbols of the three realms. If I'm supposed to be not just a queen but the Queen, I'd better start acting like it."

THE BOOK BEHIND THE SECOND SEASON OF GAME OF THRONES, AN ORIGINAL SERIES NOW ON HBO.
A SONG OF ICE AND FIRE: BOOK TWO
 
In this thrilling sequel to A Game of Thrones, George R. R. Martin has created a work of unsurpassed vision, power, and imagination. A Clash of Kings transports us to a world of revelry and revenge, wizardry and warfare unlike any we have ever experienced.
 
A...

As the royal assassin to an evil king, eighteen-year-old Celaena Sardothien must decide what she will fight for--survival, love, or the future of a kingdom.

"Tobias Kaya doesn't care about The Savior. He doesn't care that She's the Ruler of the realm or that She purified the land, and he certainly doesn't care that She's of age to be married. But when competing for Her hand proves to be his last chance to save his family, he's forced to make The Savior his priority."

"Amani is hooked on a mystery-a poem on airmail paper that slips out of one of her father's books. It seems to have been written by her grandmother, a refugee who arrived in Jordan during the First World War. Soon the perfect occasion to investigate arises: her Uncle Hafez, an advisor to the King of Jordan, invites her father to celebrate the king's sixtieth birthday-and to fence with the king, as in their youth. Her father has avoided returning to...