All of us have in our minds a cartoon image of what an autocratic state looks like, with a bad man at the top. But in the 21st century, that cartoon bears little resemblance to reality. Nowadays, autocracies are run not by one bad guy, but by sophisticated networks composed of kleptocratic financial structures, security services and professional propagandists. The members of these networks are
The story of Troy speaks to all of us - the kidnapping of Helen, a queen celebrated for her beauty, sees the Greeks launch a thousand ships against that great city, to which they will lay siege for ten whole and very bloody years. It is Zeus, the king of the gods, who triggers war when he asks the Trojan prince Paris to judge the fairest goddess of them all. Aphrodite bribes Paris with the hear
Losing the love of your life once is tragic. TWICE looks like carelessness... Rachel Walsh is a survivor: she survived rehab and the loss of her greatest love. These days everything in her life is good - good job, good dog, very good boyfriend. Then Luke - her ex of six years - shows up. Suddenly she's fragile and falling. They ended badly and neither can speak of the secret hurt which dro
THE SUNDAY TIMES AND NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
'Galvanizing and uplifting' The Guardian
'Bernie Sanders has changed US politics forever' Owen Jones
It's OK to be angry about capitalism. It's OK to want something better. Bernie Sanders takes on the 1% and speaks blunt truths about a system that is fuelled by uncontrolled
On the other side of town are five brothers. . .
Macon is the oldest. I've never seen him smile.
Army is a single dad with beautiful green eyes.
Iron will be in prison soon.
Dallas is the one I hate.
Trace used to be mine.
I need to go home. Away from the swamps and these men. I'll leave tomorrow. Tonight I'll crash
Is modernity really failing? Or have we failed to appreciate progress and the ideals that make it possible? If you follow the headlines, the world in the 21st century appears to be sinking into chaos, hatred and irrationality. Yet, as Steven Pinker shows, if you follow the trendlines, you discover that our lives have become longer, healthier, safer and more prosperous - not just in the West, bu