Tiffany Aching put one foot wrong, made one little mistake . . .And now the spirit of winter is in love with her. He gives her roses and icebergs, says it with avalanches and showers her with snowflakes - which is tough when you're 13, but also just a little bit . . . cool.And just because the Wintersmith wants to marry you is no excuse for neglecting your chores. So Tiffany must look after Miss T

It's an offer you can't refuse.Who would not to wish to be the man in charge of Ankh-Morpork's Royal Mint and the bank next door?It's a job for life. But, as former con-man Moist von Lipwig is learning, the life is not necessarily for long.The Chief Cashier is almost certainly a vampire. There's something nameless in the cellar (and the cellar itself is pretty nameless), it turns out that the Roya

HERE IS A SMALL FACT - YOU ARE GOING TO DIE1939. Nazi Germany. The country is holding its breath. Death has never been busier.Liesel, a nine-year-old girl, is living with a foster family on Himmel Street. Her parents have been taken away to a concentration camp. Liesel steals books. This is her story and the story of the inhabitants of her street when the bombs begin to fall.SOME IMPORTANT INFORMA

Many of us were put off history by the dry and dreary way it was taught at school. Back then 'The Origins of the Industrial Revolution' somehow seemed less compelling than the chance to test the bold claim on Timothy Johnson's 'Shatterproof' ruler.But here at last is a chance to have a good laugh and learn all that stuff you feel you really ought to know by nowIn this 'Horrible History for Grown U

This week the first pet passports came into effect. Around the country dogs have been hopping into photo booths and trying to look as relaxed as possible, which is not easy when you know you're not allowed on the chair.'Gathered here are the best of John O'Farrell's newspaper columns for the Guardian and the Independent which saw him win the coveted Best Columnist of the Year Award at the prestigi

'We've got your daughter.'It's evening, you're back late from work and the house is in darkness. You step inside, and the phone rings. You answer it and your world turns upside down.Your fourteen-year-old daughter's been taken, and her kidnappers demand half a million pounds in cash. They give you 48 hours to raise the money, and warn you that if you call the police, she'll die.Trying desperatel

In January 1991, eight members of the SAS regiment embarked upon a top secret mission that was to infiltrate them deep behind enemy lines. Under the command of Sergeant Andy McNab, they were to sever the underground communication link between Baghdad and north-west Iraq, and to seek and destroy mobile Scud launchers. Their call sign: BRAVO TWO ZERO.Each man laden with 15 stone of equipment, they p

Aborting an officially-sanctioned assassination attempt at the Houses of Parliament when he realises who the target is, Secret Intelligence Service 'deniable operator' Nick Stone is given a chilling ultimatum by his bosses: fly to Panama and complete the task, or he and Kelly, the 11-year-old girl in his guardianship, will be killed. In Central America, Stone prepares for his mission. But he has m

Nick Stone left the Special Air Service in 1988, soon after being involved in the shooting of three IRA terrorists in Gibraltar. Now working for British Intelligence on deniable operations, he discovers the seemingly senseless murders of fellow SAS soldier Kev Brown and his family in Washington, DC. Only Kelly, seven years old, has survived - and immediately the two of them are on the run from u

Immediate Action is a no-holds-barred account of an extraordinary life, from the day Andy McNab was found in a carrier bag on the steps of Guy's Hospital to the day he went to fight in the Gulf War.As a delinquent youth he kicked against society. As a young soldier he waged war against the IRA in the streets and fields of South Armagh. As a member of 22 SAS Regiment he was at the centre of covert

November 2001. A Zodiac inflatable slips away from a submarine off the North African coast. If he hadn't needed American citizenship so badly, Nick Stone wouldn't have agreed to do this one last job, but the CIA's offer of a new life in the United States, and the chance to share it with Carrie, the woman he's fallen in love with, is one he cannot refuse. The job seems simple enough for a man of hi

Recuperating in Switzerland after a job that cost the life of one of his closest friends, ex-deniable operator Nick Stone is looking for a quiet life.But when his private life starts to disintegrate, Nick is reluctantly forced back into action. The trail leads him to Africa and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where it isn't long before his dark past comes knocking on his door. . .Recoil is a

Ex-deniable operator Nick Stone seems to be living his dream, not a care in the world as he steers his camper van round the surfing and parachuting paradise of Australia, a board on the roof, a freefall rig behind him, and a beautiful young backpacker at his side.But when he sees a news report of the massacre of women and children in a terrorist outrage the other side of the world, long-suppressed

Bodyguarding a TV crew on the streets of war-torn Basra, ex-deniable operator Nick Stone seems certain to die when insurgent gunmen attack. Only the reporter's swift action saves his life. When the reporter vanishes within hours, presumed kidnapped, Stone is asked by the Intelligence Service to find him. The trail leads from Iraq to London, Dublin, and ultimately Kabul - the dark and brutal city w

My head was forced under and I swallowed a mouthful of freezing river. I kicked back to the surface, forcing myself to breathe in through my nose, only to choke as I inhaled yet more water. I let go of her. We each had to fight our own battle now. She looked at me, her eyes the size of saucers as she realised what I had done. That wasn't my problem; it would only become one if I couldn't get her b

Outside of Pakistan, the world's highest concentration of al-Qaeda lurks in South-East Asia and there, Nick Stone's bosses get wind of an act of terror that will dwarf even the nightmare of 9/11.When Stone is despatched to Malaysia by the CIA to assassinate a biochemist, he expects his mission to be a straightforward part of the fight against Bin Laden. But there are complications, not least becau

Helsinki, December 1999. Nick Stone, ex-SAS, now a 'K' working for British Intelligence on deniable operations, is tough, resourceful, ruthless, highly trained and desperately in need of cash...Offered the lucrative freelance job of kidnapping a mafia warlord and delivering him to St Petersburg, it seems to Stone that his problems are over. In fact, they are only just beginning.Stone enters the b

Paul O'Grady is one of Britain's very best loved entertainers. He is known and adored by millions, whether as the creator of the acid-tongued Blonde Bombsite, Lily Savage, or the presenter of the fantastically successful, award-winning Paul O'Grady Show on Channel 4. Now, in his own unique voice, Paul O'Grady tells story of his early life in Irish Catholic Birkenhead that started him on the long a