Despite its rather broad title, this book focuses mainly on the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, and it restricts itself to Christian captives who were seized and held by Moslems in Granada and north Africa. The opening section first examines the ways in which Christians fell into captivity: in this period piracy and raiding rather than the capture of Christian towns and strongholds were the chief means by which Christian captives were acquired by Moslems. The existence led by these captives is then examined, with discussion not only of the conditions of daily life but also of the likelihood of apostasy. This part of the book includes an interesting attempt to assess the extent to which the dietary needs of captives were met, but the suggestion that captives were generally able to receive some spiritual support is questionable: in this context it may be noted that the ‘brothers’ released from Egyptian gaols at the behest of James ii of Aragon in 1306 and 1315 were not, as is claimed, members of the mendicant orders who had been ministering to the spiritual needs of fellow captives, but Templars and Hospitallers. The second half of the book looks at the roles of various individuals, groups and institutions – including families, merchants, rulers, exeas, alfaqueques and Mercedarians and Trinitarians – that were engaged in seeking the release of captives. An investigation is also provided of the methods used to raise the money needed for ransoms. Here the large amounts demanded and the difficulties of obtaining the necessary sums are stressed. A final chapter looks at the captives who regained their freedom and returned to Christian territories. The book is partly based on manuscript material in Barcelona, particularly in the Arxiu de la Corona d'Aragó and the Arxiu Històric de Protocols, but in recent years a very considerable amount of research has been undertaken in Spain on the subject of Christians in Moslem captivity, and this study mainly adds a certain amount of detail to what is already known, rather than breaking completely new ground. But a work in English on the subject is to be welcomed, and it does provide a thoughtful and readable analysis of the plight of captives in Granada and north Africa, and has the merit of trying to address the difficult question of the consequences of captivity for the minority of captives who did manage to secure their release, even though the discussion of this topic is inevitably rather speculative.