**A Times (London) Best Book of the Year** Before the Corleones, before the Lannisters, there were the Borgias. One of history’s most notorious families comes to life in this riveting bestseller, as the House of Borgia crosses paths with a young diplomat named Niccolò Machiavelli. “Full to the brim with vivid historical details both gory and beautiful.” —Library Journal It is 1502 and Rodrigo Borgia, a self-confessed womanizer and master of political corruption, is now on the papal throne as Alexander VI. His daughter Lucrezia, aged twenty-two—already three times married and a pawn in her father’s plans—is discovering her own power. And then there is his son Cesare Borgia, brilliant, ruthless and increasingly unstable; it is his relationship with Machiavelli that gives the Florentine diplomat a master class on the dark arts of power and politics. What he learns will go on to inform his great work of modern politics, The Prince. But while the pope rails against old age and his son’s increasingly maverick behavior, it is Lucrezia who must navigate the treacherous court of Urbino and another challenging marriage to create her own place in history. Bestselling novelist Sarah Dunant employs her remarkable gifts as a storyteller to bring to life the passionate men and women of the Borgia family, as well as the ever-compelling figure of Machiavelli, through whom the reader will experience one of the most fascinating—and doomed—dynasties of all time.

Prominent cultural critic Judith Stacey offers a ringing rebuttal to the rhetoric of "family values" with this powerful argument for accepting family diversity-including a strong new case for legal same-sex marriage.

By the end of the fifteenth century, the beauty and creativity of Italy is matched only by its brutality and corruption. When Cardinal Rodrigo Borgia buys his way into the papacy, he is defined not just by his wealth, charisma and power, but by his blood: a Spanish Pope in a city run by Italians. If he is to succeed, he must use his Machiavellian son and innocent daughter. Stripping away the myths around the Borgias, Blood & Beauty breathes life into the astonishing family of Alexander VI and celebrates the raw power of history itself: compelling, complex, and relentless.

Before the Corleones, before the Lannisters, there were the Borgias. One of history’s notorious families comes to life in a captivating novel from the author of The Birth of Venus. NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY COSMOPOLITAN (UK) AND THE TIMES (UK) “In the end, what’s a historical novelist’s obligation to the dead? Accuracy? Empathy? Justice? Or is it only to make them live again? Dunant pays these debts with a passion that makes me want to go straight out and read all her other books.”—Diana Gabaldon, The Washington Post Bestselling novelist Sarah Dunant has long been drawn to the high drama of Renaissance Italy: power, passion, beauty, brutality, and the ties of blood. With In the Name of the Family, she offers a thrilling exploration of the House of Borgia’s final years, in the company of a young diplomat named Niccolò Machiavelli. It is 1502 and Rodrigo Borgia, a self-confessed womanizer and master of political corruption, is now on the papal throne as Alexander VI. His daughter Lucrezia, aged twenty-two—already three times married and a pawn in her father’s plans—is discovering her own power. And then there is his son Cesare Borgia, brilliant, ruthless, and increasingly unstable; it is his relationship with Machiavelli that gives the Florentine diplomat a master class in the dark arts of power and politics. What Machiavelli learns will go on to inform his great work of modern politics, The Prince. But while the pope rails against old age and his son’s increasingly erratic behavior, it is Lucrezia who must navigate the treacherous court of Urbino, her new home, and another challenging marriage to create her own place in history. Sarah Dunant again employs her remarkable gifts as a storyteller to bring to life the passionate men and women of the Borgia family, as well as the ever-compelling figure of Machiavelli, through whom the reader will experience one of the most fascinating—and doomed—dynasties of all time. “Enthralling . . . combines flawless historical scholarship with beguiling storytelling.”—The Guardian “Renaissance-rich details fill out the humanity of the Borgias, rendering them into the kind of relatable figures whom we would hope to discover behind the cold brilliance of The Prince.”—NPR “[Dunant] has an enviable command of this complex political scene, with its shifting alliances and subtle betrayals. . . . [She] has a special gift for attending to her female characters.”—The New York Times

Containing entries for more than 45,000 English, Scottish, Welsh, Irish, Cornish, and immigrant surnames, The Oxford Dictionary of Family Names in Britain and Ireland is the ultimate reference work on family names of the UK. The Dictionary includes every surname that currently has more than 100 bearers. Each entry contains lists of variant spellings of the name, an explanation of its origins (including the etymology), lists of early bearers showing evidence for formation and continuity from the date of formation down to the 19th century, geographical distribution, and, where relevant, genealogical and bibliographical notes, making this a fully comprehensive work on family names. This authoritative guide also includes an introductory essay explaining the historical background, formation, and typology of surnames and a guide to surnames research and family history research. Additional material also includes a list of published and unpublished lists of surnames from the Middle Ages to the present day.

“The son did as he was told. All his bloody life, he has done as he has been told. Time to change that, he thinks, grabbing a pen. He doesn’t write that this will be the last time his father stays here. He doesn’t write that he wants to break the father clause. Instead, he writes: Welcome, Dad. Hope you had a good flight.” A grandfather who lives abroad returns home to visit his adult children. The son is a failure. The daughter is having a baby with the wrong man. Only the grandfather is perfect—at least, according to himself. But over the course of ten intense days, relationships unfold and painful memories resurface. The grandfather is confronted by his past. The daughter is faced with an impossible choice. The son tries to write himself free. Something has to give. Per a longstanding family agreement, the grandfather has maintained his Swedish residency by coming to stay with his son every six months. Can this clause be renegotiated, or will it chain the family to its past forever? Through a series of quickly changing perspectives, in The Family Clause Jonas Hassen Khemiri evokes an intimate portrait of a chaotic and perfectly normal family, deeply wounded by the death of a child and the disappearance of a father.

The story of America’s most sacred and carefully constructed football dynasty is revealed in this unflinching family portrait. For generations, American athletes have enjoyed the ever-escalating celebrity lavished upon them when they combine on-the-field talent with off-the field charisma, but never before have we seen as transformative a sports dynasty as the Mannings: a bloodline of strong arms, Southern values, and savvy business instincts—each man compelling in his own right, made whole by family. But how, in just fifty years, did this private trio achieve football immortality? A gripping and definitive account, In the Name of the Father traces Archie, Peyton, and Eli’s roots from red-clay Mississippi to the bright lights of the Super Bowl to reveal the truth of their grit and dedication, their inherent ability, and the drama they endured behind closed doors. As New York Times Notable biographer Mark Ribowsky meticulously chronicles, the road to football stardom was not paved smoothly for patriarch Archie. The most celebrated and beloved athlete to emerge from tiny Drew, Mississippi, Archie lost his father to suicide during his heyday at Ole Miss. Then, despite his playing through the pain, a string of surgeries prematurely ended a storied NFL career, most memorably spent with the New Orleans Saints. Similar savior-like expectations were passed to Archie’s eldest, Cooper, the most gifted of his brood, but the shocking discovery of a spinal condition prevented Cooper from ever playing a single snap of college ball. Luckily, Archie had been raising all three of his sons to love the gridiron, throwing deep balls to them off the front porch, and there were two more heir apparents in the wings. Raised watching dusty old game films in the family den, Peyton was swiftly hailed as a generational talent, his record-breaking tenure at Tennessee paving a clear path to the NFL. Winning Super Bowls with both the Indianapolis Colts and the Denver Broncos, he was able to overcome a debilitating neck injury—after barely being able to hold a football—to eclipse Archie in football success. It was Peyton who would first pair his football cachet with capitalism, selecting commercials and appearances to show off his humor and expand the now-ubiquitous Manning brand into mainstream popular culture. And finally there was quiet Eli, with an arm and a career to match his big brother’s but a reserved and enigmatic affect all his own. The good-boy who followed his father to Ole Miss, Eli entered the NFL even more carefully managed then his brother was, forcing a trade when the lackluster San Diego Chargers selected him with the first pick in the draft. Even with two dramatic Super Bowl wins with the New York Giants, Eli’s lows have been catastrophic, and he has never been quite the media darling his brother is. But even as their football careers wind down, the power of the Manning name only grows. Drawing on new interviews and research, Ribowsky reveals a family of transcendent talent and intense loyalty dedicated to maintaining an all-American façade that has, on occasion, shown cracks. From the family’s past steeped in problematic parts of Southern identity, to locker-room scandal turned lawsuit, to flashes of fraternal jealousy, Ribowsky leaves no stone unturned. Rich in gridiron dramatics and familial intrigue, In the Name of the Father is a quintessentially American saga of a multifaceted lineage that has forever changed the game.