Steeped in honey, Juventius,
your golden eyes, and as sweet too
when I press my lips to them -
three hundred thousand kisses
is not close to enough

For centuries, evidence of queer love in the ancient world was ignored or suppressed. Even today, only a few, famous narratives are widely known - yet there's a rich literary tradition of Greek and Roman love that extends far beyond this handful of stories. Here, the poet Seán Hewitt and painter Luke Edward Hall collect together, for the first time, forty of the most exhilarating queer tales in the classical canon and bring them newly to life. A ground-breaking anthology that changes the way we see the ancient world - and invites us to reflect on the puritanism of our own - 300,000 Kisses is a riotous celebration of desire in all its forms.

'You will love Harry Sidebottom’s magnificent, blood-drenched study of the life of a gladiator … Was I not entertained? I absolutely was.' Dominic Sandbrook, The Times

'Grippingly original' Tom Holland

A TIMES AND ECONOMIST BOOK OF THE YEAR
LONGLISTED FOR THE HWA NON-FICTION CROWN AWARD

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In ancient Rome, a single day could decide a gladiator’s fate. Follow in their footsteps with bestselling author Harry Sidebottom.

Take a seat at the feast on the eve of the games and watch as the men marked for combat enjoy their final meal.

At dawn, Roman citizens rush to the Colosseum to see the spectacles: wild-beast hunts, public executions and carefully choreographed violence – all part of a good day’s entertainment.

Watch as the gladiators enter the arena – armour gleaming, shields locked, they step into the light, fighting not just for survival but for the favour of the crowd.

Gripping, immersive and grounded in ancient sources, A Day in the Life of a Gladiator illuminates the reality of Roman life and death in all its glory. This is history as it happened – not in the marble halls of emperors, but on the blood-darkened sand of the arena.

Previously published in hardback as Those Who Are About to Die.

'Packed with more detail and colour than many books twice its size, Hughes brings the epic story of Rome vividly to life.'
PAUL COOPER, HOST AND AUTHOR OF FALL OF CIVILIZATIONS

Experience the sights, sounds and smells of the Roman world, and meet its most intriguing and influential characters, as this immersive account brings 1000 years of history to life.

Immerse yourself in the dramatic and thrilling thousand-year story of Ancient Rome. Combining impeccable research with action packed storytelling, this riveting short history explores the inception, expansion and ultimate fall of one of the greatest empires the world has ever known.

Walk Rome’s bustling streets, witness the fearsome exploits of its all-conquering army and step into the opulent corridors of its palaces and pioneering building projects. Follow Hannibal as he crosses the snowcapped Alps with elephants in tow, shadow Julius Caesar as he ponders whether to cross the Rubicon river, and look on as Cicero delivers an impassioned speech to the Senate.

In a Bacchanalian feast of despotic rulers, colossal conquests, visionary women, gladiator games and the daily life of Roman citizens and subjects, A Short History of Ancient Rome charts the dramatic twists
and turns of the kingdom, the republic, the empire and its decline, as you navigate this crucial period in history.

WINNER OF THE BAILLIE GIFFORD PRIZE 2026

A stunningly written new biography of Alexander the Great, based on a series of important new discoveries and the author's own translations of source material from twelve ancient languages

Few civilisations capture our imagination like Ancient Egypt. Home to pharaohs and kings, breathtaking structures and astonishing tombs, it was a culture light years ahead of its time that laid the foundations for our modern world.

Join bestselling historian Bettany Hughes as she unearths the stories of an awe-inspiring civilisation through seven astonishing treasures, bringing the land of the pharaohs vividly to life. From the Great Pyramid of Giza and Tutankhamun's tomb, to the underwater city at Alexandria and Cleopatra's secret island of Philae, these treasures reveal the people, power and beliefs that shaped the Nile's enduring world.

Drawing on her own vivid first-hand encounters at each site, Hughes brings the splendour, drama and humanity of Ancient Egypt to life as never before.

"We have provided . . . monuments that those alive today look on with wonder, as those in generations still to come will wonder, too." More than 2,000 years later, the words uttered by the Athenian politician Pericles have been proven correct many times over. Ancient Greece continues to captivate, and its monuments still inspire awe. But what is it that makes something "Greek?"

How did a diverse and often opposing group of city-states create a culture whose influence has reverberated across millennia? Exploring ancient Greece through its monuments—from the Parthenon in Athens to the sanctuary of Apollo at Delphi and the Temple of Zeus at Olympia— classicist David Stuttard reveals the values that united the disparate Greek world and made their mark on history. New digital reconstructions bring ancient Greece to life via buildings and monuments that still survive and can be visited today.

Ancient Greece in Fifty Monuments takes readers on a visual tour of these monuments to explore Greek identity and how leaders and states used their buildings to project power or piety; to celebrate the arts and sport; and to communicate contemporary values to future generations. Encompassing such iconic sites as the Acropolis and Knossos Palace, this book traces the development of Greek monuments from the Bronze Age, through the Archaic, Classical, and Hellenistic periods, charting how they have influenced subsequent ages, from Rome to the Renaissance to the present day.