A fascinating book- informative and entertaining

Keneally has a novelist's sense of pace, a mellifluous prose style and a profound sympathy for his characters

This has a thriller-ish propulsion-a highly readable book

A great piece of storytelling

This is the best account in a single volume of Spain since 1898, exemplary for concision and for accuracy in the use of language, as well as for equanimity and generosity of spirit ... The Penguin History of Modern Spain explicitly addresses foreigners, taking no knowledge for granted, but Spaniards would do well to heed it

Nigel Townson has produced a superb synthesis of the new Spanish history, while offering an original and arresting narrative of his own.

Nigel Townson's compelling analysis of twentieth-century Spain combines a deep knowledge of European history with the novelist's eye for the telling detail.

Townson provides an engaging and accessible account of Spain's tumultuous twentieth century. Convincingly dismantling the myth of Spanish exceptionalism, he shows that the lights and shadows of modern Spanish history can only be properly understood in the broader European context. This is a compelling and even-handed book

A veritable tour de force, this account of Spain's long twentieth century is a model of clarity, organization and economy alike, whilst at the same time offering interpretations that are as bold as they are original

Nigel Townson's book provides a marvellous overview of more than one hundred years of Spanish history. It is based on wide-ranging research, original in approach and accessible in style

A splendid study, a true magnum opus. This is absolutely the best history of twentieth-century Spain in either language

Impressive

Compelling ... Impressively for a book that covers a long and tumultuous era, Townson makes space for recent research, much of which will be new to the general reader ... An up-to-date history of modern Spain is a mammoth task, but one which Townson is well placed to attempt

Filled with memorable characters in extraordinary circumstances and exotic settings . . . evokes novelists like Alan Furst, John le Carré or Graham Greene

Demonstrates how that old saying - "this time is different" - is both so true and so wrong!

Crashes are an integral part of the history of capitalism. The last century has seen plenty of them. All crashes begin with debt-fuelled euphoria and end in disappointment. Yet how bad that disappointment turns out to be also depends on where in the economy the crash falls and how determined and credible are the responses. In this lively and blessedly brief book, Linda Yueh does a lovely job of explaining the history and drawing the necessary lessons

This excellent overview identifies the ingredients that are specific to each crisis and common to all. She provides a lucid assessment of the efficacy of policy responses, high-lighting credibility as a necessary condition for successful resolution

"Why did nobody notice?" Was the question the Queen asked about the 2008 financial crisis. It was a good question. All financial crises and crashes have their own characteristics but they also often involve certain common features:- Irrational exuberance, Speculative frenzy, Greed and over confidence usually supported by high levels of gearing.

Linda Yueh's new book will be a timely reminder to governments and regulators of the warning signs of future crises

Timely, entertaining and full of useful insights

Renowned economist Dr Linda Yueh looks at past financial crashes - from the Wall Street Crash to the dot com boom and bust and the Covid pandemic - to explore what we can learn from them in this entertainingly written book.

Entertaining, well-written . . . [Yueh] has come up with a three-step framework to help spot when financial problems are brewing and identifies where the next may occur.

A gifted writer (een begenadigd schrijver)

The book which impressed me most, and which I most enjoyed, this year is Andrew Roberts's George III. It is based on such astonishingly wide-ranging and original research that I felt I was reading about the period for the first time. Unknown facts and wonderful anecdotes had me turning the pages with a curiosity I seldom feel when reading about supposedly familiar events. Andrew Roberts is remarkably even-handed, and there is no special pleading on behalf of this genuinely misunderstood and wilfully misrepresented monarch who did his best to be a good constitutional ruler during a very choppy period in British history.

meticulously researched ... an eye-opening portrait of the man and his times

A deep, expansive study not only of George III but also of the political and social complexities of England and the United States during his reign.

a deeply textured portrait of George III [and] a capacious, prodigiously researched biography from a top-shelf historian.

an outstanding and surprisingly moving portrait of a misunderstood king, distinguished by refreshing revisionism but also illuminated by deep humanity.

Roberts is in a rich vein of form at present; after bestselling books on Napoleon and Churchill, yet another masterpiece has tumbled from his pen.

Roberts has been justly acclaimed as one of his generation's leading historians ... His new biography seeks to challenge popular myths about the monarch. ... Roberts, employing the same flair for original research and ability to convey historical context and vivid prose that he used in previous books ... thoroughly debunks all the assumptions most people have about the king.

exhaustively researched and written in accessible, non-jargony prose. Meticulous and forensic, it sometimes reads like a defense counsel's case for his client ... Roberts's defense of George III, though, is the fullest, the clearest, and likely to be the most definitive.

Roberts has painted a masterful portrait of a patriotic, diligent and cultivated monarch. ... This new biography is a treasure-house of detail. ... George III is an engaging, humane and at times beautiful testament to the importance of giving our ancestors a fair hearing.