Medieval English

Plato's dialogue in the Symposium, which has as its topic the subject of love, explores the idea of love as a means of ascent to contemplation of the Divine. For Plato, generally, to love other human beings is to direct one's mind to love of Divinity. One proceeds from recognition of another's beauty to appreciation of Beauty as it exists apart from any individual, to consideration of Divinity, the source of Beauty, to love of Divinity.

The epic journey continues with perilous landscapes, newfound magic, and terrifying creatures for fantasy readers ages 13 to 100+. A storm gathers to the west as the enemy grows stronger. The orphan Chip and his companions flee eastward on the One Road. On their journey, the wizard Xander senses strange activity in Cave Mountain, the Unnamed One’s ancestral lair. The small party decides to brave Fang Forest to seek out the cause, but in so doing, they come face to face with an evil more profound than anyone could imagine. The mission turns to one of escape as they become hunted by a ...

Escape back in time to the Medieval Scottish Highlands and meet the roguish outlaw Reardon MacLaurin! Three Steamy Historical Scottish Romances in one bundled set! Her Outlaw Highlander: Anice Grant is a hard-working lass, focused on caring for her brother, yet loneliness overwhelms her. Everyone, it seems, has found someone to love. Everyone but Anice, who pines for her brother's friend. When a strange man comes to her aid and fights of a band of brigands, her surprise is unfathomable when she sees her daring savior is none other than Reardon. Reardon believes that once he is on Grant land...

In a sleepy village in the Shire, a young hobbit is entrusted with an immense task. He must make a perilous journey across Middle-earth to the Cracks of Doom, there to destroy the Ruling Ring of Power - the only thing that prevents the Dark Lord Sauron’s evil dominion. Thus begins J. R. R. Tolkien’s classic tale of adventure, which continues in The Two Towers and The Return of the King.

The cunning Queen Rhin has conquered the west and High King Nathair has the cauldron, most powerful of the seven treasures. At his back stands the scheming Calidus and a warband of the Kadoshim, dread demons of the Otherworld. They plan to bring Asroth and his host of the Fallen into the world of flesh, but to do so they need the seven treasures. Nathair has been deceived but now he knows the truth. He has choices to make, choices that will determine the fate of the Banished Lands.

In the aftermath of the 1746 Battle of Culloden near Inverness, Arran MacLeod returns home, his face scarred from the conflict, causing even children to flee from him in fear. He discovers that his father has arranged his marriage to Rowena Munro, a local woman with impaired vision, in exchange for a substantial dowry and land. Rowena's companion, who accompanies her, instantly takes a dislike to Arran. Resistant to the idea of marriage, Arran is reluctant to be bound, especially to someone he faintly recalls as a lanky, unremarkable girl from his past. His frustration intensifies upon ...

It is the winter of 1143 and all is not well in the court of Owain, King of north Wales: his future in-laws are untrustworthy; the Norman lords on his eastern border are restless; and among his wedding guests lurks a cold-blooded killer. Gareth and Gwen have marriage plans of their own, but their love will have to wait while the pair race to separate truth from lies, friends from foes, and unravel the mystery before King Owain--and his new bride--fall victim to their uninvited guest.

Renowned scholar Patrick Collinson is Regius Professor of Modern History, Emeritus, Cambridge. He states, "The Reformation (and Counter Reformation) was the blast furnace in which the modern state was forged." This engaging work offers a concise overview of the ecumenical revolution of the late medieval and Renaissance periods. Narrator John McDonough's presentation of the spiritual and the secular elements that led to religious reform will captivate listeners.

Salisbury, 1226. A mysterious poacher claims to be a long-lost heir - to a man found crushed by his own cart wheel. Ela Longespée is determined to find the truth, even though the king has coldly appointed another sheriff in her place. Ela takes pity on the man - an injured knight who once saved her husband’s life - and convinces the sheriff to release him from jail while she investigates. Will it turn out to be a deadly mistake?

Fiercely loyal to his older brother, Alaric McCabe leads his clan in the fight for their birthright. Now he is prepared to wed for duty, as well. But on his way to claim the hand of Rionna McDonald, daughter of a neighboring chieftain, he is ambushed and left for dead. Miraculously, his life is saved by the soft touch of a Highland angel, a courageous beauty who will put to the test his fealty to his clan, his honor, and his deepest desires.

When English troops threaten Lady Christiane MacGillean's beloved castle, she has no choice but to set it ablaze - and with it, the ancient treasure hidden there. Escaping into the Highland hills, she is quickly captured, taken south, and caged by the English king. Outraged by the lady's treatment, Sir Gavin Faulkener bargains for her life - and suddenly finds himself not only guardian of her castle, but wedded to her as well.

He’s a beast who kills without mercy. My kidnapper. My enemy. My mate. All I want is a simple life, but any chance of peace is stolen from me by a winged warrior prince. He sweeps through my village, leaving a trail of destruction in his wake—and taking me with him. Born of battle, Marcellus is unstoppable. A storm of obsidian wings and steel who’s turned killing into an art form. He says my visions hold the key to the hidden Elven kingdoms that his father’s vowed to conquer. Kingdoms I’ve vowed to protect with my life. We’re on opposite sides of this war, and yet the dark and ...

In this vivid and alluring history, medievalist Anthony Bale invites listeners on an odyssey across the medieval world. Journeying alongside scholars, spies, and saints, from Western Europe to the Far East, the Antipodes and the ends of the earth, Bale provides indispensable information on the exchange rate between Bohemian ducats and Venetian groats, medieval cures for seasickness, and how to avoid extortionist tour guides and singing sirens.

C. S. Lewis had one of the great minds of the 20th century. Many know Lewis as an author of fiction and fantasy literature, including the Chronicles of Narnia and the Space Trilogy. Others know him for his books in apologetics, including Mere Christianity and The Problem of Pain. But few know him for his scholarly work as a professor of medieval and Renaissance literature. What shaped the mind of this great thinker?

I, RICHARD PLANTAGENET, PART ONE : TANT LE DESIREE (I have desired it so much.) 1471 : THE BATTLE OF BARNET. He is eighteen.It is his first battle. He is wounded…he is Richard of Gloucester, the King’s youngest brother. With the Kingmaker slain, Richard and his brother Edward IV go on to ultimate victory at Tewkesbury. The Old King Henry dies in ‘mysterious circumstances’ in the Tower and York’s claim is secure…Richard wants to marry Anne Neville, the Kingmaker’s daughter, but his brother George stands in his way and hides her in a London tavern… Not all the feuds are on the...

Oxford, Autumn 1353. St. Frideswide's Fair is a great annual event in Oxford, bringing together merchants and buyers from all over England and Wales, and from as far away as Flanders and France. Yet the earnings from the fair, granted to the Priory of St. Frideswide centuries before, are resented by the town, and resentment can turn to violence. Under the unscrupulous Prior de Hungerford, even more trouble is brewing.

Four decades of peace have done little to ease the mistrust between humans and dragons in the kingdom of Goredd. Folding themselves into human shape, dragons attend court as ambassadors, and lend their rational, mathematical minds to universities as scholars and teachers. As the treaty's anniversary draws near, however, tensions are high. Seraphina Dombegh has reason to fear both sides. An unusually gifted musician, she joins the court just as a member of the royal family is murdered.

He took her as a trophy. She became his salvation When powerful Highland laird Caelan MacBraith claims Isla Drummond in a forced marriage meant to end a brutal clan feud, he expects silence and submission—not defiance. Promised to another man and raised to despise her enemy, Isla refuses to be conquered. But in the wilds of 14th century Scotland, passion is a more dangerous battlefield than any blade. As enemies become lovers, desire burns hotter than vengeance. But war, betrayal, and bloodlines won’t be silenced so easily—and Isla must decide if love is worth giving up everything she...

August 1148. The wedding of Godfrid and Cait promises to be the event of the year, and even Gwen has made the journey across the Irish Sea to celebrate. Weddings can be moments around which tensions and resentments pivot, however, so when a monk turns up dead within moments of Gareth and Gwen's arrival in Ireland, the pair put on their sleuthing hats and get to work, racing to solve the mystery before it ruins Godfrid's big day.

When Nicholas Elyot and his friends set out to spend the Christmas season in the country, they are prepared for a hard journey in winter. They are also wary of violence on the road, for these are troubled times after the Great Pestilence, when bands of dispossessed and desperate men roam the countryside of England. It is not surprising, therefore, when the troubadours hired to provide entertainment at Leighton Manor are attacked in Wychwood. Yet why should this group draw the attention of outlaws, who are searching for something? Is one of the troubadours not quite what he seems?