{"product_id":"the-watchers-a-secret-history-of-the-reign-of-elizabeth-i","title":"The Watchers: A Secret History of the Reign of Elizabeth I","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe acclaimed and enthralling story of the dark side of Elizabethan rule, from Stephen Alford\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eElizabeth I's reign is known as a golden age, yet to much of Europe she was a 'Jezebel' and heretic who had to be destroyed. The Watchers is a thrilling portrayal of the secret state that sought to protect the Queen; a shadow world of spies, codebreakers, agent provocateurs and confidence-men who would stop at nothing to defend the realm. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eReviews: \u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e'Forget Le Carré, Deighton and the rest - this is more enthralling than any modern spy fiction' \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eDaily Telegraph\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'Absorbing and closely documented ... Alford vividly evokes this murky world of codes, ciphers, invisible ink, intercepted letters, aliases, disguises, forgeries and instructions to burn after reading ... flowing narrative [and] crisp judments ... engrossing' \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eGuardian\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e'[Alford] has brought a dash of le Carré to the 16th century' \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Times \u003c\/i\u003e(Book of the Week)\u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e'A vivid and staggeringly well-researched portrait of the sinister side of Elizabethan England ... This is a spectacular book. It sheds new light on plots that most historians have ceased to explore and brings less famous conspiracies to the attention of the general reading public'\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003e Herald\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e'Fascinating ... If you want to know the inside story of this struggle, the dark heart of calculation and the fight for survival, then this is the book to read. I know no better' \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eSpectator\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the author: \u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eStephen Alford is the author of the acclaimed biography \u003ci\u003eBurghley: William Cecil at the Court of Elizabeth I\u003c\/i\u003e and a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society. He taught for fifteen years at Cambridge University, where he was a Senior Lecturer in the Faculty of History and a Fellow of King's College. He is now Professor of Early Modern British History in the University of Leeds.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"sb-details\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFormat:\u003c\/strong\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublished:\u003c\/strong\u003e 2013\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 398\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/strong\u003e Penguin Books\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eISBN:\u003c\/strong\u003e 9780141043654\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Alford, Stephen","offers":[{"title":"Standard Secondhand — £754.80","offer_id":47999907102897,"sku":"SB-0141043652-C3","price":754.8,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0618\/2669\/5345\/files\/0141043652.jpg?v=1790891408","url":"https:\/\/sellbooks.co.uk\/products\/the-watchers-a-secret-history-of-the-reign-of-elizabeth-i","provider":"Sell Books .co.uk","version":"1.0","type":"link"}