Books published by publisher Vintage Sci-Fi Classics

WITH A NEW INTRODUCTION BY KATE MOSSE‘You’re stale, tired of having to be tough. You want a change. You’ve seen too much death’In Fleming’s seventh 007 novel, a private assignment sets Bond on the trail of an enigmatic criminal mastermind – Auric Goldfinger. But greed and power have created a deadly opponent who will stop at nothing to get what he wants.

Perhaps the greatest first-hand account of polar exploration.In his introduction to the harrowing story of the Scott expedition to the South Pole, Apsley Cherry-Garrard states that “Polar Exploration is at once the cleanest and most isolated way of having a bad time which has been devised.” This is his gripping account of an expedition gone disastrously wrong.One of the youngest members of Scott’s team, the author was later part of the rescue party that eventually found the frozen bodies of Scott and three men who had accompanied him on the final push to the Pole. Prior to this sad denouement, Cherry-Garrard’s account is filled with details of scientific discovery and anecdotes of human resilience in a harsh environment, supported by diary excerpts and accounts from other explorers.Summing up the reasons for writing the book, Cherry-Garrard says:“To me, and perhaps to you, the interest in this story is the men, and it is the spirit of the men, “the response of the spirit,” which is interesting rather than what they did or failed to do: except in a superficial sense, they never failed… It is a story about human minds with all kinds of ideas and questions involved, which stretch beyond the furthest horizons.”

When the eminent naturalist Charles Darwin returned from South America on board the HMS Beagle in 1836, he brought with him the notes and evidence which would form the basis of his landmark theory of evolution of species by a process of natural selection. This theory, published as The Origin of Species in 1859, is the basis of modern biology and the concept of biodiversity. It also sparked a fierce scientific, religious and philosophical debate which still continues today.

‘Mister, there’s something quite extra about the smell of death. Care to try it?’After a year missing in action, Bond is back... brainwashed by the KGB and on a mission to assassinate M. To prove his worth to the Service, he must hunt down and eliminate his fiercest opponent yet: “Pistols” Scaramanga – The Man With The Golden Gun. Ian Fleming’s final 007 novel is a fitting tribute to a unique British hero.

The first historical novel—this tale of romance and adventure during the 1745 Jacobite rebellion will stir the blood and warm the heartKing George is on the throne, but there are those in Scotland who swear loyalty to the Stuart heir, Bonnie Prince Charlie, and are prepared to stake his claim in conflict and bloodshed. Young Edward Waverley is caught in the middle: son of a Hanoverian yet nephew and heir to a Jacobite, captain in the King's army yet drawn to the brave Highlanders and their romantic history. Edward must choose where his loyalties lie, even as his heart is torn between gentle Rose Brewardine, and the passionate, principled Flora MacIvor.

This book is edited, introduced and illustrated by Audrey Niffenegger. Haunted houses, spectral chills, and of course, the odd cat...In this volume, Audrey Niffenegger, bestselling author of The Time Traveler's Wife, has brought together her selection of the very creepiest, weirdest and wittiest ghost stories around. Scare yourself silly with old favourites by Edgar Allan Poe and M. R. James. Entertain the unnerving with tales from Neil Gaiman, Kelly Link and Audrey Niffenegger herself. And as bedtime nears, allay your fears with funny new writing from Amy Giacalone and the classic wit of Saki. When the nights draw in and the fire burns low, enjoy the eeriness, the dread and the comedy of all things ghostly.

During John Howard’s holiday in France, the Nazis invade and he is forced to try to escape back to England with the two small children of some friends. The roads become impassable and Howard also comes across five more children who need his help. He ends up leading this motley group of youngsters through the French countryside constantly beset by danger yet heroically protecting his charges.