Abandoned places are mysterious, strange, striking, neglected, hazardous and off-limits. Each sleeping monument offers a snapshot that transports you back in time, invites you to peer into hidden histories, unearth glamorous pasts and reveal dark truths. From a disused New York subway station to an aeroplane graveyard, from a crumbling fourth-century castle to a flooded mall teeming with aquatic life, from a vacant five-star hotel to a Soviet ghost town in the Arctic Circle. These locations are a stark reminder of what was, and the accounts in this investigative book help to bring their stories back to life, telling us what happened, when and why, and to whom. Original maps and stunning colour photography accompany Travis Elborough’s moving historic and geographic accounts of each derelict site. Trace our lesser known human history through ancient sites and twenty-first century ruins, as well as the most contemporary examples of urban decay, like San Francisco’s mythologised Alcatraz Island. About the author Travis Elborough is an acclaimed author and social commentator. His books include A Traveller’s Year, A London Year, The Long-Player Goodbye, Being A Writer and A Walk in the Park: The Life and Times of a People’s Institution. Travis is a regular contributor to Radio 4 and the Guardian, and has penned articles on all aspects of travel and culture, from pirates in the Caribbean to donkeys at the British seaside. He has written for the Times, Sunday Times, New Statesman, BBC History Magazine and Kinfolk among others.