Historical Manners

How would the story of Pride and Prejudice be altered if Mr. Wickham had been a good man? Instead of becoming a scoundrel who regularly attempts to elope with teenage girls, Mr. Wickham studies the law as he originally told Mr. Darcy when he gave up the value of the living. After finishing his studies, Mr. Wickham finds work in Meryton with Mr. Phillips, a local solicitor and the Bennets's uncle.

The first interview. Handling a difficult boss. The power of words. Networking. Small talk. Dressing for a cocktail dinner. Holding chopsticks. Drinking wine. Twitter etiquette. Sexual harassment in office. Remembering names. Receiving compliments. Women travelling alone. Thank you notes. The...

Hannah Miles navigates the etiquette of monster hunting through the parlours of a magical Regency England. This collection contains: Manners and Monsters, Galvanism and Ghouls, and Gossip and Gorgons.

Miss Elizabeth Bennet, headstrong and witty, is about to unleash her undying admiration onto one unsuspecting Mr. Darcy. Mr. Darcy has one mission: To find the lady who bewitched him at the masquerade. Unfortunately, he is clueless to the fact that the masked Queen Elizabeth and Miss Elizabeth are one and the same, which naturally leads him to put his foot in his mouth—repeatedly—until nothing but the consumption of an unrivalled amount of humble pie will redeem him.

It is a truth universally accepted that well-bred members of society are not beleaguered with magic. For Elsabeth Dover and her sisters, that truth means living in a perpetual state of caution, never using their sorcerous gifts in public. Elsabeth chafes under the stricture, although not enough to risk the possibility of good marriages for her sisters...until she meets handsome, arrogant Fitzgerald Archer

Bernried am Starnberger See, 1939: Als der Zweite Weltkrieg beginnt, sind Wilhelm Lehmann und Paul-Friedrich von Falkenbach voller Sorge, was das für Deutschland und ihre Familien bedeutet. Nie soll ihren Söhnen widerfahren, was sie selbst erleben mussten. Unterdessen ist Wilhelmine von Falkenbach erleichtert, weil sie einen Brief von Martin bekommen hat. Er lebt! Gibt es doch noch Hoffnung auf ein Wiedersehen? Ihre Schwägerin Clara hingegen ist völlig verzweifelt: Sie, die niemals Kinder haben wollte, ist schwanger. Ihr Mann Gustav soll auf keinen Fall etwas davon erfahren.

Mit ihrer eingeschworenen Frauen-Clique, einigen Gin Tonics und noch mehr Zigaretten manövriert sich die Politikerin Catharina Cornelius im Bonn der späten 70er hinreissend klug durch den Sumpf der Altherren-Elite. Als die Liberale aber völlig überraschend zur Außenministerin und Vizekanzlerin wird, reiben sich überrumpelte Kollegen in höchsten Regierungskreisen fassungslos die Augen. Die konservative Opposition überschlägt sich mit hämischen Kommentaren. Die Herren Journalisten lächeln süffisant und spitzen die Feder.

Kästners berühmte Komödie Drei Männer im Schnee - und dazu der 'Urtext' Inferno im Hotel, eine Erzählung Kästners, die 1927 in einer Zeitung erschien und ihm später als Vorlage für den Roman diente. Dieser Text war seit über 80 Jahren vergessen. Im Sommer 1927 saß Erich Kästner in einer Zeitungsredaktion und musste Einsendungen zu einem Preisausschreiben prüfen. Gut möglich, dass Kästner dabei erfuhr, dass die Gewinner eines Preisausschreibens nicht immer den Erwartungen derer entsprechen, die die Preise aussetzen.

William Collins Books and Decca Records are proud to present ARGO Classics, a historic catalogue of classic fiction read by some of the world’s most renowned voices. Originally released as vinyl records, these expertly abridged and remastered stories are now available to download for the first...

When a young woman trades places with her noble cousin, their innocent ruse leads to true love in this sparkling new Regency-era romantic comedy of manners from the author of Mr. Malcolm’s List. When Arabella Grant’s wicked aunt dies suddenly, both Arabella and her cousin Lady Isabelle...

The first of Jane Austen's novels to be published, Sense and Sensibility marked the debut of England's primary novelist of manners. Convinced that "three or four families in a country village is the very thing to work upon", Austen created a brilliant tragicomedy of flirtation and folly.

In this "exquisite gem from a master" of Regency Romance, one duke's plan to find a bride makes for a most entertaining house party (Library Journal). Julian St. David, Duke of Haverford, is barely keeping his head above water in a sea of inherited debts. Though he has a long-term plan to...

A skilled mechanic, Fliss Makepeace chafes under the suffocating expectations of her family and society. Ordered to abandon her beloved engines for a 'woman's job' and pressured into a brutal marriage with the menacing Jake, Fliss feels trapped. But as the drums of war beat louder, she vows to serve King and Country rather than surrender to a life of quiet torment. Joining the ATS offers Fliss not just a uniform, but freedom. Yet, a chance encounter with the formidable Major Stapleton propels her into an even deeper secret...