Maximus is a general in the Roman army. After his last battle he wants to return to his family. But the new Emperor Commodus hates Maximus, and kills his family. Soon Maximus is a prisoner, then a slave, and finally a gladiator. When Emperor Commodus joins Maximus in the arena they fight for their lives.
When a new detective agency opens in town, Precious Romotswe has an unexpected problem - competition. At the same time her assistant, Mma Makutsi, has problems of her own. As always, solutions can be found at Botswana's No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency, thanks to the sensible Mma Ramotswe and plenty of Red Bush Tea.
Contemporary / British English Meet the Larkin family They enjoy a wonderful country life, never worrying about money, work -- or the law. But then, one day, a man arrives from the tax office. Is the taxman going to change the Larkin's lives? Or is his life going to change forever?
What happens when a man lives his life backwards, or a family owns a diamond as big as the Ritz Hotel? How can a boring girl become more popular, a careless young woman become more sensible, or a cut-glass bowl destroy a married woman's life? What does a young man do to save the girl that he likes from an evil ghost, or to forget old feelings for a woman when she marries another man? Read this collection of short stories by one of America's finest storytellers to find out.
Rough sleeper Olivia lands on her feet when kind-hearted Mavis rescues her from life in a supermarket car park, and takes her back to the co-housing development where she lives.