Almost everything you know about 1066 is wrong. And there’s no better historian to put you right than the wonderful Marc Morris. His new book grips not only as a work of narrative history but also as a sleuthing exercise . . . Morris has captured the triumph and the tragedy of this tumultuous era with verve, insight and a rollicking narrative.

Morris gives a compelling account of the invasion by William the Conqueror in 1066 ... Confidently, he opens with the Bayeux Tapestry as a powerful contemporary depiction of a famous battle ... Morris sorts embroidery from evidence and provides a much-needed, modern account of the Normans in England that respects past events more than present ideologies.

Marc Morris’s lively new book retells the story of the Norman invasion with vim, vigour and narrative urgency

As every schoolboy knows, or used to, 1066 is the most important date in English history. But as Marc Morris points out in this enormously enjoyable book, the Norman conquest was much more violent, complicated and ambiguous then we usually think. Carefully steering the reader through the partisan and often contradictory sources, he paints a vivid picture of the collapse of the sophisticated Anglo-Saxon realm, and shows how William the Conqueror relied on sheer terror to establish his reign. Even a Norman chronicler admitted that William had “mercilessly slaughtered” the English, “like the scourge of God smiting them for their sins.

I loved it – a suitably epic account of one of the most seismic and far-reaching events in British history.

Stimulating popular history of the 1066 Norman invasion . . . Marc Morris’s new book is an exciting arrival ... a strong and often gripping story, developed with enormous verve, a clear sense of direction and considerable confidence

This is a wonderfully shrewd, engaging and readable account of the most pivotal event in English history.

The Norman Conquest is a scrupulously researched and well-written book. But it is also that rare thing: a work undertaken with enormous integrity. Dr Morris questions the received wisdom from past scholars, considers the Conquest and its aftermath anew, and expresses his findings with great conscientiousness.

A muscular, vivid narrative full of compelling historical insight – not just a brilliantly told story, but required reading for anyone interested in the real 1066 and all that.

Ackroyd takes us through the layers of the city, lifting the covers to peer downwards

In a short but intriguing book, Ackroyd explores the idea that, beneath the surface, there has existed another world with rules and conventions of its own

Anyone intrigued by this tumultuous city will devour London Under in a few transporting hours... packed with revelations... Ackroyd's stylistic brilliance explains why the book remains a rattling good read

Fascinating study of everything under London, from rats and eels to monsters and ghosts.

As London's anatomist-in-chief, Peter Ackroyd turns his focus on what lies beneath the capital's surface. Peppered with erudite and literary references, Ackroyd's fluent style makes for entertaining reading

Packed with anecdotes and fascinating trivia...Ackroyd never misses an opportunity to link this hidden realm with the underworlds of mythology

Reveals the London beneath your feet in all its fascinating – and sometimes horrifying – glory. Historian and novelist Ackroyd invests his tales of buried rivers and catacombs with enormous energy