Historical Fiction Books

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Book Synopsis

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Book SynopsisSet in Iran at the end of the 19th Century --in the Persian royal court of the Qajars--, In The Palace of Flowers is an atmospheric historical novel about Jamila, an Abyssinian slave who stands at the funeral of a Persian nobleman, watching the rites with empty eyes. In that very moment, she realises that her life will never be acknowledged or mourned with the same significance. The fear of being forgotten, of being irrelevant, sets her and Abimelech, a fellow Abyssinian slave and a eunuch, on a path to find meaning, navigating the dangerous and deadly politics of the royal court, both in the government and the harem, before leading her to the radicals that lie beyond its walls. Love, friendship and the bitter politics within the harem, the court and the Shah's sons and advisors will set the fate of these two slaves. Highly accomplished, richly textured and elegantly written, In The Palace of Flowers is a magnificent novel about the fear of being forgotten.

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Book SynopsisThe feisty, fiery Kopp sisters are back in another unforgettable romp by HWA-longlisted international bestseller Amy Stewart. When deputy sheriff Constance Kopp notices how many young women are being jailed over dubious charges of waywardness, incorrigibility, and moral depravity, she smells a rat. But what can she do to fight the forces of sexism? And how will her principles fare when her own sister, Fleurette, starts misbehaving? Against the backdrop of the First World War, and drawn once again from the true story of the Kopp sisters, Miss Kopp’s Midnight Confessions is a spirited page-turner that will delight fans of historical fiction and light-hearted detective fiction alike.Trade Review“Perfect for book groups.” * Booklist *“Constance's ability to hold her own in male-dominated investigations and courtrooms, as well as her determination to present the facts, makes her a welcome ‘vision of an entirely different kind of woman’, hopefully with more tales to come. Lively and admirable female characters emboldened by their circumstances, impeccably realized and given new life by Stewart.” * Kirkus *“The cases here are based on the experiences of real women, a technique that Stewart has employed in previous volumes. Collectively, the story lines intersect to create an intriguing window into women's rights and the social mores that women challenged on the eve of World War I. VERDICT A lovely addition for series fans and aficionados of historical fiction.” * Library Journal *“Stewart’s third novel in her clever and original Kopp Sisters series continues the thorn adventures of Constance Kopp.” * Publishers Weekly *'As with its predecessors, the appealing central character hooks us in to a lively, absorbing story that happens to be (mostly) true.' * Sunday Herald *'[A] quirky crime-busting outing … An original, often funny, historical fiction series.' * Weekend Sport *‘[The] compelling continuing story of one of the great early characters of the women’s independence movement.’ -- John Cleal * Crime Review *‘Miss Kopp’s Midnight Confessions has strong storytelling, believable characters, often uncomfortable truths and the compelling continuing story of one of the great early characters of the women’s independence movement.’ * Crime Review *

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Book SynopsisThe Lao and the Siamese are descendants of the same Ai-Lao race, but they have different characters and destinies, and they established their own kingdoms. The invasion of ViengChan by Siam in 1779 left Lao LanXang in danger of total collapse. The twelve-year-old prince Chao Anouvong, the feudal ruling class, the court nobility and many of the people were forcefully taken to Siam, resulting in the total political extinction of a society that had governed LanXang for over 1,000 years. Chao Anouvong grew up in Bangkok and was regarded by the Siamese as a mere provincial ruler. He returned to ViengChan at the age of twenty-eight and became king, with nothing to support him but his own talents and his ambition to restore LanXang.

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Book SynopsisPublius Ovidius Naso (43BC – 17/18AD), known as Ovid, was known as much for his disgrace as for his poetry. By pleasing his contemporaries, befriending patricians and subtly mocking the emperor Augustus, he was transformed from a provincial outsider to Rome’s darling – and, for some, its corrupter. Banished without trial to a remote port on the Black Sea, he continued to write. It is fortunate that most of his work has not been lost. The transformation stories of his masterpiece – The Metamorphoses – inspired not just Shakespeare, Chaucer and Milton, but have been a major influence on European culture. His handbooks of erotic love taught men and women the art of dealing with the opposite sex. They brought him instant literary glory and notable adversaries. His works were banned by the emperor Augustus, by Savonarola, by the Bishop’s Ban, by the Vatican and eventually by the US Custom Office; this latter only lifted in 1930. To discover who was Ovid the man, Michael Solomon travelled in his footsteps, seeking the same landscapes today that Ovid found two thousand years ago.Trade Review"For any Classics lovers this is the perfect exploration into the life of such an influential poet. ...It is profound and well-written, and fully captivates you, bringing you into Ovid’s journey out of exile. If you love Ancient Greece/Ancient Rome or just love the symbolism in Ovid’s poetry then this will bring you into a new dimension of understanding." Inside Out Reviews "The Scapegoat is a thrilling novel with an intriguing character study that is sure to please those interested in the Roman Empire." Historic Chronicles "The Scapegoat is a thoughtful and interesting novel, with a good historical background research and unique take on historical facts. A long yet heartly recommended weekend read." Wild Writing Life "Sardonic, clever, and descriptive, this novel takes the reader not only into the life of the infamous Ovid but also into the heart of 1st century Rome with all of its political intrigue and artifice." Ellen Z Reads "The ending has a twist to it that leaves you with a smile on your face" From the Book Elf "An interesting and unusual read" The Library Door

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Book SynopsisLove in War is a love story of its time. Joanna and Johnnie were born in South London in the shadow of the Great War and were still growing up when the narrative begins in 1936 during Hitler’s rise in Nazi Germany. It ends ten years later in 1946, when Johnnie is demobilised. Despite the committed intensity of the five-year relationship, they spent only forty-nine days together. Thus, Love in War is more about managing life apart than being together. The story moves between London and Berlin (where Joanna visits in 1938 and her dear schoolfriend, Ursula lives out the war) and the horrific theatres of war in North Africa and Southern Italy, which have disastrous effects on Johnnie and render him almost unrecognisable on his return to England after the war. As the story closes, it is evident that there are no winners, just losers. Perhaps it is love that emerges as the only victor. The future is uncertain for all concerned. They have almost nothing to show for the last five years; just time lost. There remains a rather modest ray of hope – as Johnnie says at the end, ‘but we are alive.’Trade Review“This is a lovely love story of Johnnie and Joanna. … There is so much more to this story you have to read it.” Paula Learmouth “I always find books based on a true story extra special. This book was so evocative. I've got a feeling Joanna and Johnnie's story will stay with me for a long time. … Overall it's a stunning story of togetherness even in the hardest of times.” Daisy Blacklock “The book delves deep into the vulnerability and strength that come to the fore during times of adversity. I recommend this book to anyone, who appreciates a beautifully crafted love story, intertwined with the historical significance of war.” Books Galore “This is a very well written story about two people and as the title suggests their love in war. It is an epic love story that shows how people adapt during times of hardship. I really enjoyed this snapshot of a very specific time in recent history. It is always good to have a reminder of what times were like and how easily things can change.” Atomic Books “Such an emotional love story with characters that you will remember long after you’ve finished reading! 4 stars” Leanne’s Bookshelf “This book is just breathtaking in it tale. It takes you on a rollercoaster of emotions, from love and sorrow, to the longing through distance. … I loved getting to know the characters and their lives. The author gave us so much detail about them and the lives they lived, in the time of war, plus enough to really make us feel as though we were there in the war, living the same life.” Natural Bri Books “I would recommend this book without hesitation as an interesting and informative read set in the context of a novel told from the viewpoints of Joanna and Johnnie.” From the Book Elf “This book has fantastic and immersive historical information that makes you feel as your watching these characters on their lives. I absolutely devor this book in a few days it's a author I would highly recommend.” Silky Book Lover Fun

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Book SynopsisA glittering retelling of Welsh myth that asks questions of society as it is today.

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In 1845 Sir John Franklin led 129 officers and men into the Arctic to try to find the North-West Passage. None of them returned. Trapped is a novel that tells the harrowing, gruelling, fascinating story of the disastrous, ill-fated expedition of Sir John Franklin of 1845 which resulted in the deaths of the entire crew of one hundred and twenty-nine officers and men and the loss of the two expedition ships. These men were the pride of the British Navy and had volunteered heroically for the expedition into the frozen unknown to try to find the North-West Passage. The truth about their fate is still largely unknown. This extraordinary novel, written by an author who has spent seven years researching one of the most courageous expeditions in maritime history, brings alive the courage, the comradeship, camaraderie and bravery that prevailed among the expedition’s members even when they faced the gravest of crises.

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Book SynopsisTwitter users might not be so ready with their tweets had they risked the drastic punishments meted out to pamphlet publishers in the 1640s. Here is gossip for the nation, while in Farnham, Surrey, gossip fuels rivalries and domestic conflicts. And into this arrives Charity, an unwilling newcomer. Who, the gossips ask, is she? Why has she come? Which young man is she attracting? What will her choices be?

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Book SynopsisA GUARDIAN, NEW STATESMAN, SPECTATOR, AND IRISH TIMES BOOK OF THE YEAR A new, feminist translation of Beowulf by the author of the acclaimed novel The Mere Wife. Nearly twenty years after Seamus Heaney’s translation of Beowulf — and fifty years after the translation that continues to torment students around the world — there is a radical new verse interpretation of the epic poem by Maria Dahvana Headley, which brings to light elements never before translated into English. A man seeks to prove himself as a hero. A monster seeks silence in his territory. A warrior seeks to avenge her murdered son. A dragon ends it all. These familiar components of the epic poem are seen with a novelist’s eye towards gender, genre, and history. Beowulf has always been a tale of entitlement and encroachment — of powerful men seeking to become more powerful and one woman seeking justice for her child — but this version brings new context to an old story. While crafting her contemporary adaptation, Headley unearthed significant shifts lost over centuries of translation.Trade Review‘Allied to a cunning ear for alliteration, this makes for a text of rollicking, restless verve. The masculine boasting, besting and butchering are duly in place, but Headley adds a sharp focus on the actions and motivations of the female characters ... Maria Dahvana Headley’s radical translation of Beowulf sets out to make you look again at the Norse epic … If you’ve ever struggled with the poem, this is the retelling for you, its ferocious clarity turning Beowulf into a Hollywood superhero.’ -- Rishi Dastidar * The Guardian *‘[The Mere Wife] includes some tantalising snippets of Beowulf as translated by Headley. Now we have the full version, and it is electrifying … It is brash and belligerent, lunatic and invigorating, with passages of sublime poetry punctuated by obscenities and social-media shorthand … With a Beowulf defiantly of and for this historical moment, Headley reclaims the poem for her audience as well as for herself.’ -- Ruth Franklin * The New Yorker *‘Bold … Electrifying.’ -- Ron Charles * The Washington Post *‘There is a glory and thrill to her verse, which brings the blood, fire and youthful energy of the original to the surface … a gift.’ -- Hetta Howes * TLS *‘Maria Dahvana Headley’s decision to make Beowulf a bro puts his macho bluster in a whole new light.’ -- Andrea Kannapell * The New York Times *‘Maria Dahvana Headley has made an enthralling, scalding, contemporary epic; she combines newly-wrought ancient kennings with US street slang and lights up the women in the poem with unusual sympathy.’ -- Marina Warner * New Statesman 'Books of the Year' *‘Her verse has a swaggering, street-smart bite.’ -- Alex Diggins * The Sunday Telegraph *‘An iconic work of early English literature comes in for up-to-the-minute treatment … Headley’s language and pacing keep perfect track with the events she describes … [giving] the 3,182-line text immediacy without surrendering a bit of its grand poetry. Some purists may object to the small liberties Headley has taken with the text, but her version is altogether brilliant.’ STARRED REVIEW * Kirkus Reviews *‘Beowulf is an ancient tale of men battling monsters, but Headley has made it wholly modern, with language as piercing and relevant as Kendrick Lamar’s Pulitzer Prize-winning album DAMN. With scintillating inversions and her use of au courant idiom — the poem begins with the word ‘Bro!’ and Queen Wealhtheow is ‘hashtag: blessed’ — Headley asks one to consider not only present conflicts in light of those of the past, but also the line between human and inhuman, power and powerlessness, and the very nature of moral transformation, the ‘suspicion that at any moment a person might shift from hero into howling wretch.’ The women of Beowulf have often been sidelined. Not so here.’ -- Danielle Trussoni * The New York Times Book Review *‘Move over, Tolkien and Heaney. This translation of Beowulf into muscular urban slang is electric … The American novelist’s sharp new version slices clean and bright to the brutal heart of this ancient adventure like a sword snatched from the dull grey stone of academia.’ -- Helen Brown * The Telegraph *‘Stupendous … exhilarating and dangerous.’ -- Philip Hensher * The Spectator *‘Maria Dahvana Headley’s radical translation of Beowulf turns the old epic into a rollicking tale for today, grabbing your lapels from its very first word.’ -- Rishi Dastidar * The Guardian *‘I have a lot of things to say about Maria Dahvana Headley's new book, Beowulf … The first thing I need to tell you is that you have to read it now. No, I don't care if you've read Beowulf (the original) before … I don't care what you think of when you think of Beowulf in any of its hundreds of other translations because this — this — version, Headley's version, is an entirely different thing. It is its own thing.’ -- Jason Sheehan * NPR *‘[L]ively and vigorous … I am delighted. I’ve never read a Beowulf that felt so immediate and so alive … It’s profane and funny and modern and archaic all at once, and its loose and unstructured verses are full of twisting, surprising kennings.’ -- Constance Grady * Vox *‘[A]s a poetic meditation on the poem, it’s full of startlingly powerful and often raucously lovely language.’ -- Steve Donoghue * Open Letters Review *‘The author of the crazy-cool Beowulf-inspired novel The Mere Wife tackles the Old English epic poem with a fierce new feminist translation that radically recontextualises the tale.’ -- Barbara VanDenburgh * USA Today *‘Thrilling … she interrogates the text to great effect.’ -- Erica Wagner * The Spectator *‘Of the four translations I’ve read, Headley’s is the most readable and engaging. She combines a modern poetry style with some of the hallmarks of Old English poetry, and the words practically sing off the page … Headley’s translation shows why it’s vital to have women and people from diverse backgrounds translate texts.’ -- Margaret Kingsbury * Buzzfeed *‘Without sacrificing the rhythm, rhyme, and visceral language of the original, Headley’s spin is refreshing. Her use of contemporary slang and tempo make the ancient text appealing to a younger audience … For Headley to find a feminist angle in the midst of all this macho behaviour is a feat — but she does it … This is a translation that deserves a wide audience. It’s clear Headley had a lot of fun with this text, and it is to be hoped it lands on the school curriculum.’ -- Afric McGlinchey * Irish Examiner *‘Headley brings a directness, intensity, and rhythm to her translation that I haven’t seen before. This is what it must have felt like to sit in a mead hall and listen to a scop tell the tale. Other translations may be more scholarly, literal, or true to the poetic form of the original, but it’s been a thousand years since Beowulf was this accessible or exciting.’ -- Steve Thomas * The Fantasy Hive *‘Headley’s Beowulf is kindred in spirit to The Mere Wife — highly conscious of gender and modernised to the hilt — but totally different in form. Instead of changing names or places, Headley sticks closely to the original Old English text while updating the vocabulary with flourishes of internet humour … The feminism in Headley’s translation is embedded in the texture and language of the poem itself rather than in its individual events or characters … Her Beowulf is a tragicomic epic about the things men do to impress one another. It’s as fierce an examination of masculine weakness as The Mere Wife was of feminine strength.’ -- Jo Livingstone * Poetry Foundation *‘The new Beowulf is incredibly exciting from beginning to end!’ -- Jason Furman * Harvard University *‘The new translation of Beowulf by Maria Dahavana Headley is the best thing I've read all fucking year.’ -- Mike Drucker, TV Writer and Comedian‘Finally, a Beowulf translation that leaves us feeling ‘hashtag: blessed’.’ -- Alena Smith * SLATE/Future Tense virtual event *‘Beowulf: a new translation pulls Beowulf into the fraught discourse on masculinity in the 21st century … Headley’s choice of backward-hatterd beer-soaked vernacular has its origins in the grandstanding language of the hero as we've always known him — a beefcake who wants to pull off such incredible feats that dudes will hype his reputation for centuries to come.’ -- Miles Klee * MEL Magazine *‘Maria Dahavana Headley’s breathtakingly audacious and idiomatically rich Beowulf: a new translation is a breath of iconoclastically fresh air blowing through the old tale's stuffy mead-hall atmosphere.’ -- Mike Scroggins * Hyperallergic *‘Joy. That is the primary emotion I felt as I was reading Maria Dahvana Headley’s new translation of Beowulf … I cannot recommend this translation more highly. It is accessible to the reader who has never encountered Beowulf before, yet it intrigues and challenges those who study the poem professionally.’ -- David Wilton * WordOrigins.org *‘The sheer poetry lifts the reader into a realm that is both familiar and even enlivening.’ FOUR STARS * Carpe Librum *‘Now science fantasy writer, Maria Dahvana Headley has cut through with a punk sensibility. Hers is a culturally radical reading with a feminist edge and it opens a pathway to a deeper historical reading.’ -- Barry Healy * Green Left *‘Compelling and persuasive … Maria Dahvana Headley’s new translation is bold, exciting and breathes new life into an old classic. With a more nuanced approach to some characters and some inspired language choices, Headley helps Beowulf reclaim its rightful place as a raucous and boozy crowd pleaser.’ FOUR STARS -- Simon Clark * The AU Review *‘This latest reimagining of the epic is through the feminist lens of Maria Dahvana Headley. Bringing this ancient text up to date is no mean feat; Headley does it with flair, fury, and fresh relatability.’ * Happy Magazine *‘This is a version that is highly recommended, not so much to ensure you’re up with your classic education, but rather, for the sheer pleasure of the story and its execution … There’s nothing quite like reading the book.’ -- Magdalena Ball * Compulsive Reader *‘In the wake of Seamus Heaney’s energetic and masterly translation 20 years ago, it took a brave writer to attempt a radically different one. But Headley’s engaging introduction to her almost rap-like version shows up many of the places where a translation can slant the original this way or that, and uses her own life and times as a starting point.’ -- Kerryn Goldsworthy * Sydney Morning Herald *‘[A] bold and fabulous feminist translation … This Beowulf is a joy to read: Headley has loosened herself from the shackles of stuffy scholarship and archaic language (although do not be fooled – she is adept at understanding her source material) to provide a rollicking good yarn.’ -- Clarissa Sebag-Montefiore * The Saturday Paper *‘[An] incredible feminist interpretation.’ * Keeping Up With the Penguins *‘It definitely isn’t your grandma’s Beowulf … Hooked from the first word … Headley's combination of alliteration, assonance, and consonance makes for verse that we can’t help but tap our feet and bob our heads to.’ -- Kwan Ann Tan * Asymptote *‘The critical aspect of this translation is that Headley uses language to bring the story vividly to life. Reinterpreting the text enables it to sing off the page, deploying verse and modern interpretations when necessary to recreate Beowulf as a flowing, visceral tale … a joy to read and highly recommended.’ -- Robert Goodman * Newtown Review of Books *‘Headley’s Beowulf demands to be read in one sitting … Barrelling along at breakneck speed, pulsating and breathless with excitement, it’s an outstanding poetic feat … It’s an astonishing world, and Headley offers us a uniquely powerful way into it.’ -- Carolyne Larrington * Literary Review *[T]here is precise scholarship at work here and a deep understanding of the language and style of the original poem – but Headley’s translation also injects new life into the epic … Headley is dragon-like in bringing her courage, grit and considerable poetic talent to the task of translation, yet also conveys plenty of its literary tradition … The Beowulf that emerges not only speaks to us but demands to be heard in our 21st-century moment. And what a captivating shout it is.’ -- Laura Varnam * History Today *‘Maria Dahvana Headley has satisfied the most deeply-felt and desired dream of any translator, to transfer into her language the words, feelings and cultural icons of a classic, lost tongue. Her Beowulf is wild and wiry, rich and ribald. It sings and dances, curtseys and copulates, although with a more graphic update of the latter, and it quite simply takes one's breath away … This Beowulf is born and eats from language at home in the world of the internet, robots, genes but maintains the alliterations and rhymes of traditional poetry, keeping the tradition alive and renewing it at the same time.’ -- Indran Amirthanayagam, judge in the Academy of American Poets' Harold Morton Landon Translation Award‘An electrifying translation.’ * The Telegraph *‘It’s awesome how strictly she follows the structure and rules while escalating the giddy gallop into a crescendo of overwhelming terror of the destructive marauder.’ -- Sue Prideaux * New Statesman *Praise for Maria Dahvana Headley: ‘Maria Dahvana Headley is a firecracker: she’s whip-smart with a heart, and she writes like a dream.’ -- Neil GaimanPraise for The Mere Wife: ‘There’s not a false note in this retelling, which does the Beowulf poet and his spear-Danes proud.’ STARRED REVIEW * Kirkus *Praise for The Mere Wife: ‘Vivid and thrilling.’ * The Daily Telegraph *

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Book SynopsisFrom the award-winning author of the acclaimed bestseller The Last Painting of Sara de Vos comes a radiant new novel tracing the intertwined fates of a silent film director and his muse.The Electric Hotel winds through the nascent days of cinema in Paris and Fort Lee, New Jersey - America's first movie town - and the battlefields of Belgium during World War I. A sweeping work of historical fiction, it shimmers between past and present as it tells the story of the rise and fall of a prodigious film studio and one man's doomed obsession with all that passes in front of the viewfinder.For nearly half a century, Claude Ballard has been living at the Hollywood Knickerbocker Hotel. A French pioneer of silent films, who started out as a concession agent for the Lumière brothers, the inventors of cinema, Claude now spends his days taking photographs of Sunset Boulevard. But when a film-history student comes to interview Claude about The Electric Hotel - the lost masterpiece that bankrupted him and ended the career of his muse, Sabine Montrose - the past comes surging back. In his run-down hotel suite, the ravages of the past are waiting to be excavated: celluloid fragments and reels in desperate need of restoration, and Claude's memories of the woman who inspired and beguiled him.The Electric Hotel is a portrait of a man entranced by the magic of movie-making, a luminous romance and a whirlwind trip through the heady, endlessly inventive days of early cinema.Trade ReviewThe magic and mystery of cinema in its early days are brilliantly evoked in [this] absorbing, multilayered novel...Exhilarating in its evocation of the creativity of early cinema, and melancholy in its acknowledgement of the passing of time and the dying of dreams, The Electric Hotel is an impressive work. * Sunday Times *radiant...a vital and highly entertaining work about the act of creation...so vivid we can imagine every frame * New York Times Book Review *A love letter to the early days of cinema...Smith writes with passion and detail about an extraordinary period in cultural history. * The Times *Smith has the historical grounding of E.L. Doctorow, the character discernment of Alice McDermott and the bold whimsy of Mark Helprin. He is a writer of elegance, rich imagination and propulsive plotting. * Washington Post *a novel of . . . epic scope. [...] He brings home . . . how complex silent movies were to make, and how innovative and daring their makers had to be. * The Australian *Claude Ballard and Sabine Montrose's "Electric Hotel" lives, sadly, only within the pages of this novel. It's the ultimate lost film, unfindable and unseeable no matter how many drawers we open or vaults we scour - and yet so vivid we can imagine every frame, tiger and all. -- Stephanie Zacharek * New York Times *Smith . . . blends history and fiction to create a world where a tale of hope, love and loss all seems real. * The West Australian *Fiendishly clever and beautifully written. * The Times on THE LAST PAINTING OF SARA DE VOS *Smith has pulled off something authentic: a complex novel, full of painterly description, that slides between centuries with surprising fluidity. * Sunday Telegraph on THE LAST PAINTING OF SARA DE VOS *Gliding gracefully from grungy 1950s Brooklyn to the lucent interiors of Golden Age Holland and the sun-splashed streets of contemporary Sydney, the novel links the lives of two troubled, enigmatic, and hugely talented young women, one of them an artist, the other, her forger. A page-turning book with much to say about the pain and exhilaration of art and life. -- Geraldine Brooks, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of PEOPLE OF THE BOOK on THE LAST PAINTING OF SARA DE VOSThe Last Painting of Sara de Vos is a story told in layers of light. From afar, this novel is so beautiful, the prose so clear and vivid, that it seems effortless; on closer examination, one sees the rich thematic palette Dominic Smith has used. This is a novel of love and longing, of authenticity and ethical shadows, and, most compelling, of art as alchemy, the way that it can turn grief to profound beauty. -- Lauren Groff, author of FATES AND FURIES, on THE LAST PAINTING OF SARA DE VOSAn elegant page-turner that carries its erudition effortlessly on an energetic plot. * New York Times Book Review on THE LAST PAINTING OF SARA DE VOS *an absorbing, multilayered novel... The Electric Hotel is an impressive work. * Sunday Times *The Electric Hotel is a love letter to the early days of cinema... Dominic Smith writes with passion and detail about an extraordinary period in cultural history. * The Times (Ireland) *This impressive novel evokes cinema's early days * The Times *

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Book Synopsis'I read this book in excitement and wonder. It's not only a touching and fascinating book, but a sophisticated one as well.' Amos OzLinda Yechiel's English translation is the winner of the 2023 Society of Authors' TLS-Risa Domb/Porjes Prize for Hebrew TranslationYoel has always known that his mother escaped the Nazis from Amsterdam. But it is not until after she has died that he finally visits the city of his birth. There, watching an old film clip at the Jewish Historical Museum, he sees a woman with a small child: it is his mother, but the child is not him. So begins a fervent search for the truth that becomes the subject of his magnum opus, revealing Amsterdam's dark wartime history and the underground networks which hid Jewish children away from danger - but at a cost.'[A] jewel box of a novel' - New York TimesTrade ReviewI read this book in excitement and wonder. It's not only a touching and fascinating book, but a sophisticated one as well. -- Amos Oz, author of A TALE OF LOVE AND DARKNESSEmuna Elon's House on Endless Waters is a loving lament for the lost Jews of Amsterdam, for a mother's suffering under the Nazis and a son's sifting through her lifetime's silence to find himself. [...]One reading is not enough for Elon's multi-faceted, shifting-sands novel-within-a-novel: immerse yourself first in the author's all-too-haunting evocation of the wartime Dutch capital and the creeping awareness by young parents of inescapable tragedy to come. Begin again, to appreciate the lyrical subtlety with which she simultaneously and skilfully withholds. -- Madeleine Kingsley * The Jewish Chronicle *It is sensitive and beautifully written, its reality utterly convincing. I loved it. -- Alex MillerEmuna Elon has given us an elegant, eloquent novel - a story in which time and language melt to reveal truths that could be told in no other way. House on Endless Waters is at once an Escher print of a tale and devastatingly, inescapably real. -- Rachel Kadish, bestselling author of THE WEIGHT OF INKHouse on Endless Waters is a haunting and lyrical meditation on who we are and where we come from, on how our past shapes our present and our art. Emuna Elon's gorgeously intricate novel is beautifully written and moving. -- Jillian Cantor, bestselling author of THE LOST LETTER and IN ANOTHER TIMEIn House on Endless Waters, Emuna Elon envelops her readers in an intricately woven and lushly layered world. With achingly exquisite, delicate prose, Elon explores the creative mind's power to reimagine a life and memory's power to recognize truth. An unforgettable read. -- Lynda Cohen Loigman, author of THE TWO-FAMILY HOUSE and THE WARTIME SISTERS[A] jewel box of a novel . . . Elon powerfully evokes the obscurity of the past and its hold on the present, as we stumble through revelation after revelation with Yoel. As we accompany him on his journey to recreate his history, we share in his loss, surprise and grief, right up to the novel's shocking conclusion. * New York Times *House on Endless Waters is extraordinary-a vibrant, page-turning family mystery that not only carries us deep into Amsterdam's little-explored wartime history, but into the fascinating, complex and often painful process by which history is crafted into story. -- Jennifer Cody Epstein, internationally bestselling author of WUNDERLAND and THE PAINTER OF SHANGHAIIn order to correctly appreciate the impressive work that Elon has produced, the book should be read more than once. The first reading - and the book is read with bated breath - will reveal the strength of the story, but in order to bare it fully, it should be examined like a complex work of art, from several aspects. This is a book that contains many meanings: the historical, the poetic, the artistic, the religious, the family-related and the existential; each reading will disclose new layers and secrets ... A masterpiece. Not only because of the descriptive power of the novel, and the precise, finely constructed plot; not only because of its vivid characters whose broken hearts tear at the hearts of the reader; not only because the historical past in it lives on into the present, but because all of these depict how the history that is read in books is a fragment of the broken heart of a human being in his or her everyday life. * Makor Rishon *Done with a craftswoman's hand ...The seam between the mythological and the personal is sewn with a fine, silken, concealed narrative thread whose beauty lies in its delicacy, and it creates a sense of true catharsis in the reader's breast. * Haaretz *A story of love, loss, and yearning...Lyrically phrased and often powerfully visual...this deeply felt tale offers a rewarding meditation on survival...Blurring the edges between history and fiction, this achingly mournful work impresses with its grave empathy. * Kirkus (Starred review) *Readers will find Elon's lyrical prose haunting as she moves between past and present, constructing a heartbreaking, moving tale that brings understanding and acceptance. -- Barbara Bibel * Booklist *Emuna Elon's powerful House on Endless Waters is essential Jewish fictionElon's great power in The House on Endless Waters is to richly evoke both sides of the tragedy . . . House on Endless Waters is a deeply immersive achievement that brings to life stories that must never be forgotten. -- Emily Gray Tedrowe * USA Today *A beautifully eloquent family mystery highlighting human tragedy and resilience. * LoveReading *HOUSE ON ENDLESS WATERS is part mystery, part historical fiction, and entirely captivating. * Off the Shelf *

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Book SynopsisThe definitive edition of Minette Walters' thrilling tale of courage and defiance during the time of the Black Death, featuring The Last Hours and The Turn of Midnight.England, 1348: A deadly plague is spreading across the land, and people are dying by the thousands. In Dorset, young Lady Anne takes control of her lands with her trusted steward, Thaddeus Thurkell, at her side. Compassionate and resourceful, she decides to quarantine the estate, bringing some two hundred serfs inside the moated walls. But in such a confined space, conflicts soon arise...As time passes, the people of Develish have no way of knowing who, if anyone, has survived. And with dwindling stores, they soon have no choice but to leave their relative safety. But what awaits Lady Anne and her people in the desolate wasteland beyond the walls?'Wonderful and sweeping' Kate Mosse'Enthralling' Julian Fellowes'Vividly wrought and powerful' Elizabeth FremantleTrade ReviewWonderful and sweeping, with a fabulous sense of place and history. * Kate Mosse on The Last Hours *An enthralling account of a calamitous time, and above all a wonderful testimony to the strength of the human spirit. I was caught from the first page. * Julian Fellowes on The Last Hours *Atmosphere, imagination and narrative power of which few other writers are capable. * The Times on The Turn of Midnight *A vividly-wrought and powerful story... Minette Walters has brought her impressive skill as a writer of psychological crime to create a dark and gripping depiction of Medieval England in the jaws of the Black Death. * Elizabeth Fremantle on The Last Hours *Stunning * Daily Express on The Turn of Midnight *A must-read... eloquent, absorbing, absolutely fascinating and thoroughly enjoyable. * LoveReading on The Turn of Midnight *

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Book SynopsisMoscow, 1985. Four teenagers – Anya, Milka, Petya and Aleksey, whose lives, like those of their Western counterparts, are fuelled by sex, alcohol and cigarettes – yearn for a world of Levi’s, Queen, foreign travel and the freedom to choose their fates. Instead, they encounter heartbreak and tragedy, while all around them Soviet policies, cruel but familiar, are giving way to untested concepts such as glasnost and perestroika and a brief flourishing of hope before the next repressive regime take root. This is the hour between dog and wolf, twilight, when one state has ended and another has not quite begun. Although it depicts a chaotic and desperate era, this exceptional debut novel pulsates with life. It is radiant with friendship and love, the power of international literature, values and politics, as its characters struggle to survive, to save their country and one another.Trade Reviewhttp://www.midwestbookreview.com/rbw/mar_22.htm#markzvonkovic -- Mark Zvonkovic * Midwest Book Review *https://www.publishersweekly.com/978-0-593-35601-2 * Publishers Weekly *https://chireviewofbooks.com/2022/03/21/the-orchard/amp/ -- Caitlin Stout * Chicago Review of Books *https://www.startribune.com/review-the-orchard-by-kristina-gorcheva-newberry/600155081/ -- Cory Ildweller * Minneapolis Star Tribune *https://www.bookpage.com/reviews/the-orchard-kristina-gorcheva-newberry/ -- Thane Tierney * Bookpage *https://www.christinesneed.com/post/interview-with-debut-novelist-kristina-gorcheva-newberry -- Christine Sneedhttps://swvatoday.com/community/bland_county/article_5b4553c4-c7fa-11ec-8dec-2f6076c9405b.html#tracking-source=home-top-story -- Millie Rothrock * Bland Country Messenger *https://www.pbs.org/show/write-around-corner/ -- Rose Martin * Write Around the Corner, Blue Ridge PBS *https://www.washingtonindependentreviewofbooks.com/features/an-interview-with-kristina-gorcheva-newberry?fbclid=IwAR3N8AWAzlt4DR-TVlIbsM5qddq7c-zqcDWRxlsnkKoIlHyaahaIpK18-6M&fs=e&s=cl -- Cathy Alter * Washing Independent Review of Books *https://harvardreview.org/book-review/the-orchard/ -- Olive Fellows * The Harvard Review *https://nypost.com/2022/10/13/priyanka-chopra-jonas-favorite-jewels-and-beauty-finds/ -- Priyanka Chopra * The New York Post *Best books of 2022: Top 30 must-read titles of the year (nypost.com) -- Mackenzie Dawson * The New York Post *

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Book SynopsisHungry Ghosts is the volume three in the Singapore Saga, a series of historical fiction covering the early years of Singapore, and follows Forbidden Hill and Chasing the Dragon.

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Book SynopsisCircumstance is the first in a trilogy of W. Somerset Maugham-inspired colonial tales set in 1920s Malaya.

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Book SynopsisIt was the dry season in Malaysia when Ramli let his spinning top fly. It skidded over the platform and scored a bullseye on the head of a squatting onlooker, killing him instantly. Aunty Maryam takes on what at first appears to be a straightforward case of accidental death but she knows that nothing in Kelantan is what it seems.

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Book SynopsisIn 1943 New Guinea, a Japanese officer beheads Hugh Rand, an Australian spya coast watcher. The layers unfold as the author entices us through cultural, historical and intellectual curtains, deep into minds and relationships disturbed by the Pacific war and Rand's legacy in New Guinea, Gilbert Islands, Japan and Australia.

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Book SynopsisA novel about eccentric 19th-century Englishman Alexander Hare: a trader and slave-owner in the East and a friend of Thomas Stamford Raffles, the founder of Singapore, but Hare's chief claim to fame is as the creator of a harem of women from throughout Asia.

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Book SynopsisBased on historical fact and the author's personal experience, Operation Stealth is the fourth in a series of books involving Gurkha military units in SE Asia that may be read in any order. The author, JP Cross, a much revered retired Gurkha colonel, draws on real characters and events he witnessed across various theatres of war.

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Book SynopsisFollowing the assassination of a British Colonel in a guerrilla ambush by communist terrorists during the Malayan Emergency in 1954, Jason Rance, an English company commander in a Gurkha battalion and jungle expert, is tasked with tracking down the bandits.

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Book SynopsisMay of Teck, only daughter of a noble family fallen from grace, has been selected to marry the troublesome Prince Eddy, heir to the British throne. Submitting to the wishes of Queen Victoria and under pressure from her family, young May agrees. But just as a spark of love and devotion arises between the young couple, Prince Eddy dies of influenza. To her horror, May discovers she is to be married to the brother, Georgie, instead, a cold and domineering man. But what can she do? From the author of The Prince of Mirrors comes this gripping account of the life of Queen Mary, one of the most formidable queens of Britain.Trade Review'Clark takes an iconic and forbidding figure and transforms her into a passionate, loving and damaged woman' -Simon Russell Beale; 'This is a heart-breaking tale and no mistake. A beautiful and lyrical tale told with deft brilliance' -John Sessions; 'Atmospheric and vividly imagined. 'Valhalla' brings to life a woman who had otherwise seemed frozen in history; its theme of royal duty still all too relevant' -Margaret Drabble; ''Valhalla' is a beautifully crafted novel that succeeds in bringing Queen Mary vividly to life' -Elizabeth Mac Donald, author of 'A Matter of Interpretation'

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Book SynopsisMay of Teck, only daughter of a noble family fallen from grace, has been selected to marry the troublesome Prince Eddy, heir to the British throne. Submitting to the wishes of Queen Victoria and under pressure from her family, young May agrees. But just as a spark of love and devotion arises between the young couple, Prince Eddy dies of influenza. To her horror, May discovers she is to be married to the brother, Georgie, instead, a cold and domineering man. But what can she do? From the author of The Prince of Mirrors comes this gripping account of the life of Queen Mary, one of the most formidable queens of Britain.Trade Review'Clark takes an iconic and forbidding figure and transforms her into a passionate, loving and damaged woman' -Simon Russell Beale; 'This is a heart-breaking tale and no mistake. A beautiful and lyrical tale told with deft brilliance' -John Sessions; 'Atmospheric and vividly imagined. 'Valhalla' brings to life a woman who had otherwise seemed frozen in history; its theme of royal duty still all too relevant' -Margaret Drabble; ''Valhalla' is a beautifully crafted novel that succeeds in bringing Queen Mary vividly to life' -Elizabeth Mac Donald, author of 'A Matter of Interpretation'

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Book SynopsisLonglisted for The Women's Prize for Fiction 2019, The Republic of Consciousness Prize 2019 and The People's Book Prize 2018. 'Enjoyable to read' - Dolly Alderton, The High Low. When Alina's brother-in-law defects to the West, she and her husband become persons of interest to the secret services, causing both of their careers to come grinding to a halt. As the strain takes its toll on their marriage, Alina turns to her aunt for help - the wife of a communist leader and a secret practitioner of the old folk ways. Set in 1970s communist Romania, this novella-in-flash draws upon magic realism to weave a tale of everyday troubles that can't be put down. 'A story to savour, to smile at, to rage against and to weep over.' - Zoe Gilbert, author of 'Folk'Trade Review‘A story to savour, to smile at, to rage against and to weep over’ – Zoe Gilbert, author of Folk; ‘Sophie van Llewyn’s stunning debut novella shows us there is no dystopian fiction as frightening as that which draws on history’ —Christina Dalcher, author of 'VOX'; ‘A masterful blend of the political and the personal, the magical and the mundane, the historical and the hyperbolic' —Ingrid Jendrzejewski, editor-in-chief of FlashBack Fiction; ‘This is an impressive debut in the tradition of Eastern European Absurdist fiction’ —Jude Higgins, Bath Flash Fiction Award organiser; ‘Sophie van Llewyn has brought light into an era which cast a long shadow’ —Joanna Campbell, author of When Planets Slip Their Tracks; ‘The uncertainties of life and love, and the insatiable quest for freedom – bottled neatly in a set of stories that captivate and enchant’ —Michelle Elvy, coordinator of New Zealand’s Flash Fiction Day and Bath Flash Fiction Award judge; ‘A tour de force, a harrowing and ultimately triumphant story, a must-read by a masterful writer’ —Christopher Allen, author of 'Other Household Toxins'; ‘A dizzying, daring window on life in Ceausescu’s Romania’ —Stephanie Hutton, author of 'Three Sisters of Stone'; ‘A lucid and powerfully affecting story’ —Helen Rye, winner of the Bath Flash Fiction Award; ‘This stunning historical novella […] is both tense and atmospheric’ —Mslexia; 'The prose is tight, witty, vivid and atmospheric […] Every word on the page pulls its weight’ —Litro; ‘Van Llewyn’s use of language is hypnotic and the worlds she creates stark and grotesque, calling to mind Shirley Jackson or Muriel Spark’ —Smokelong magazine

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Book SynopsisThe Kingdom of Sicily, early thirteenth century. The Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II has, through invasion and marriage, expanded his empire, but always subject to the will of the pope and the rulings of the Church. Into this world of political and military intrigue steps Michael Scot, a young monk and barbarian from Scotland who tutored Frederick as a boy. Headstrong and determined, Michael Scot persuades the Emperor that translating the lost works of Aristotle would bring him a secret knowledge of science, medicine and astronomy that would advance his cause. Despite the pope declaring such translations heretical, the Emperor agrees that the Scot should proceed, sending him first to the famous translation schools of Toledo and from there to the Moorish library of Cordoba.Trade Review`Mac Donald has succeeded in making the art of translation centre stage in a thrilling, witty, violent and mysterious debut filled with scheming characters' —Jen Calleja, author and translator, Shortlisted for The Man Booker International Prize; 'The characters, setting and the issues at stake will all linger long after you've finished reading it' —Domitilla Campanile, Professor of History, University of Pisa; 'In lush historic prose, Elizabeth Mac Donald leads the reader on a complex journey, where all interactions are tinged with superstition and suspicion' — Nuala O'Connor, author of 'Becoming Belle'; 'A fascinating sliver of history and a truly original book' —Alan Robert Clark, author of 'The Prince of Mirrors'; 'Mac Donald's style is crisp and captivating' —Biancamaria Rizzardi, Professor of English Literature, University of Pisa; 'A rich tapestry full of period detail with something of modern film technique and a touch of Dante in its storytelling, A Matter of Interpretation moves on its luminous and mysterious way through church and high state intrigue. A book to read with a glass of port and a dagger nearby' —George Szirtes, poet and translator

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Book SynopsisThe Kingdom of Sicily, early thirteenth century. The Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II has, through invasion and marriage, expanded his empire, but always subject to the will of the pope and the rulings of the Church. Into this world of political and military intrigue steps Michael Scot, a young monk and barbarian from Scotland who tutored Frederick as a boy. Headstrong and determined, Michael Scot persuades the Emperor that translating the lost works of Aristotle would bring him a secret knowledge of science, medicine and astronomy that would advance his cause. Despite the pope declaring such translations heretical, the Emperor agrees that the Scot should proceed, sending him first to the famous translation schools of Toledo and from there to the Moorish library of Cordoba.Trade Review`Mac Donald has succeeded in making the art of translation centre stage in a thrilling, witty, violent and mysterious debut filled with scheming characters' —Jen Calleja, author and translator, Shortlisted for The Man Booker International Prize; 'The characters, setting and the issues at stake will all linger long after you've finished reading it' —Domitilla Campanile, Professor of History, University of Pisa; 'In lush historic prose, Elizabeth Mac Donald leads the reader on a complex journey, where all interactions are tinged with superstition and suspicion' — Nuala O'Connor, author of 'Becoming Belle'; 'A fascinating sliver of history and a truly original book' —Alan Robert Clark, author of 'The Prince of Mirrors'; 'Mac Donald's style is crisp and captivating' —Biancamaria Rizzardi, Professor of English Literature, University of Pisa; 'A rich tapestry full of period detail with something of modern film technique and a touch of Dante in its storytelling, A Matter of Interpretation moves on its luminous and mysterious way through church and high state intrigue. A book to read with a glass of port and a dagger nearby' —George Szirtes, poet and translator

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Book SynopsisWhen an American whaler arrives to a coastal town, the peace of its inhabitants is disrupted. A tale of passion and folly set in the North East of England.Trade Review'A novel of shifting, silted landscapes and relationships laid bare, with quiet urgency The Woodcock reveals the complexities of desire, instinct and faith' —Eley Williams, author of 'The Liar's Dictionary'; 'Beautifully written - I could almost taste the salt' —Carys Bray, author of 'A Song for Issy Bradley'; 'An astonishing piece of literary ventriloquism - Smyth revisits the period novel with a contemporary sensibility and an incredible sense of place' —Owen Booth, author of 'The All True Adventures (And Rare Education) of The Daredevil Daniel Bones'; 'This is a funny and thoughtful novel. Sardonic sometimes, mordant at others, it is always witty, fast, and smart' —Tim Dee, author of 'Greenery'; 'Observing the consequences of the arrival of strangers through the salty prism of a small, northern English coastal town, Smyth has a naturalist's eye for detail, and turns it here upon human nature. 'The Woodcock' is beautiful and unsettling in equal measure' —Jon Dunn, author of 'Orchid Summer'; 'The world Smyth evokes with his vibrant prose leaps off the page - every character lives and breathes, and beneath its ordinary surface, 1920s Gravely teems with beauty, complexity and mystery' —Jenn Ashworth, author of 'Fell'; 'Compelling' —Eithne Farry, Daily Mail; 'Accomplished' —iPaper; 'Smyth's evocation of place and nature [...] is imbued with a compelling sense of closely observed realism' —Alexander Larman, Literary Review; 'The bleakness of the coast, the mist, the shifting nature of the sands all speak of contingency, brutality, deception. [...] The period detail and the sensibilities and prejudices of the time are portrayed with great deftness' —Alice Jolly, TLS

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Book SynopsisWINNER OF THE SALTIRE SOCIETY FIRST BOOK OF THE YEAR AWARD 2017 "A profoundly affecting, intellectually challenging and beautifully written fable ... a marvellous piece of work." - Stuart Kelly, Scotsman. Goblin is an oddball and an outcast. But she's also a dreamer, a bewitching raconteur, a tomboy adventurer whose spirit can never be crushed. Running feral in World War II London, Goblin witnesses the carnage of the Blitz and sees things that can never be unseen...but can be suppressed. She finds comfort in her beloved animal companions and lives on her wits with friends real and imagined, exploring her own fantastical world of Lizard Kings and Martians and joining the circus. In 2011, London is burning once again, and an elderly Goblin reluctantly returns to the city. Amidst the chaos of the riots, she must dig up the events of her childhood in search of a harrowing truth. But where lies truth after a lifetime of finding solace in an extraordinary imagination, where the distinction between illusion and reality has possibly been lost forever?Trade Review"Terrific ... moving. It is a celebration of freakery... a meditation on trauma and loss and abandonment ... which, somehow, is never bleak. Goblin brims throughout with a kind of reckless joy." Peter Ross, Guardian; "A standout debut...sophisticated." Nick Barley, Herald, Books of the Year 2017; "In my opinion the best debut fiction by a Scottish author since 2012... A profoundly affecting, intellectually challenging and beautifully written fable ... a marvellous piece of work." Stuart Kelly, Scotsman. "Enthralling... a captivating debut... Dundas presents us with an iconic protagonist: a powerful imaginative force who looks beyond the facade of 20th Century Britain and sees a fairy tale of lizard kings and dolls with shrews' heads." Alastair Mabbott, Herald. "A captivating and capricious debut that explores with a deft hand the `creature world' we all carry somewhere inside." Mary Paulson Ellis; "Confounds your expectations and enchants your sensibilities... an indelible and haunting novel." Alistair Braidwood, Scots Whay Hae; "Ever Dundas has a consummate skill with language and her words can so readily conjure feelings of both joy and sadness. It is astonishing that a novel this accomplished should be a debut." Mary Pickens, Kindle Delight blog; "A love letter to the outcasts, rebels and underdogs ... a dazzling narrative ... Unflinching, raw and diamond bright." Megan Kenny, Disclaimer Magazine

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Book SynopsisThe follow-up to The Walrus Mutterer, longlisted for the Highland Book Prize, 2018. Northern Britain, Iron Age. Pytheas of Massalia, the famed Greek explorer, roves the icy northern lands of Celtic Britain and beyond, in search of amber and other precious goods. He also craves another encounter with Rian, the slave he fell in love with during a previous voyage and who still haunts him. But Rian has other ideas. She has no desire to see Pytheas, and she won't give up her freedom without a fight. As Pytheas navigates a world of plundered riches, feuding warlords and ancient curses, will he succeed in finding what he set out for? In the second volume of this extraordinary, imaginative trilogy, Mandy Haggith takes us back to prehistoric times for an epic saga ranging from the subarctic to the Mediterranean. The Amber Seeker revisits the unforgettable cast of characters we met in The Walrus Mutterer, weaving another visceral tale of loss, longing and revenge in 320 BC.Trade Review"Beautifully written, this novel is a moving and at times, shocking confession of a man tormented by love, loss, guilt and regret.the author's meticulous research shines from every page." Editor's choice, Historical Novels Review, August 2019; "Haggith writes fluently and, with the light of her research into this period leading her imagination, there is a whole new experience for the reader ... There is much to enjoy and learn in this novel [which] has a universal resonance and draws parallels with modern life." Tony Michaels, The Wee Review; "A compelling tale of endeavour, bravery and human frailty ... The story is visceral and visual, crafted with a lyrical prose." Dundee Courier, Scottish Book of the Week; "Brave and fascinating ... asks questions about the nature of truth, perspective, and the power of the narrator to influence where readers' sympathies lie." Alistair Braidwood, Scots Whay Hae; "An epic tale of adventure, The Amber Seeker is a gem of historical fiction, written with elegant language and telling an emotional story of seeking knowledge in the name of glory." Cultured Vultures; "Exquisite ... The Iron Age landscape comes to life with a colourful brilliance and the long sea voyages are by turns magical and terrifying." Undiscovered Scotland; "Marries great storytelling and convincing research ... Haggith invites the reader to explore a strange world and far-distant time, and the voyage on which she takes the reader is always interesting, sometimes enthralling." Allan Massie, The Scotsman; Praise for The Stone Stories trilogy and Mandy Haggith: "Haggith's woman's eye view of the Iron Age feels fresh and distinctive." Sunday Herald; "An ambitious and imaginative novel ... believable and compelling." Jane Bradley, Scotsman; "Vivid, memorable and utterly compelling." Helen Sedgwick; "A gripping, haunting, visceral novel... Lyrical and poetic prose, the author has created a convincing and entirely believable world... One of the best books I have read so far this year." Historical Novels Review (Editors' Choice); "An immersive evocation of ancient folklore and ritual, this novel's characterisation and fast pace make it a real page-turner which will keep you hooked." Scottish Field; "Utterly compelling...beautifully crafted...paints an exquisite pen picture." Undiscovered Scotland; "We see what the world was like...for the Iron Age peoples, particularly the women. ... Rian is a compelling heroine. Life for her is often harsh, uncompromising and dangerous, and yet she has insights and wisdom that we moderns may well envy." Margaret Elphinstone; "Compelling." Lucinda Byatt, Historical Novels Review; "Moving and quietly passionate." AL Kennedy; "Compelling and terrifying." Observer; "Passionate and subversive ... written with a poet's touch." Jason Donald; "Lyrical and vivid, written with a poet's eye for detail." Linda Gillard

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Book SynopsisNorthern Britain, c. 300 BC. Former slave, indomitable survivor and now matriarch Rian returns with her daughters to her Celtic homeland. She navigates everything from plundered riches and feuding warlords to betrayals and menacing curses. But when a disaster befalls her older daughter mirroring the cruellest events in Rian's own past, Rian finds herself conflicted. A beautifully written, engrossing tale, The Lyre Dancers takes place in a richly imagined world that, despite its distance from our own times, is peopled with characters whose emotions and circumstances we relate to instantly. This is a powerful narrative that challenges our modern views of family, social roles and our place in the environment. Above all, the storytelling soars as grudges, peril and passions take their turn across the pages of this early Celtic saga.Trade Review"Convincing, provocative … evoked with lyrical detail … triumphantly draws together all the threads … while successfully eluding any simplistic resolution." Margaret Elphinstone, Northwords Now; “A beautifully woven conclusion to a fascinating trilogy of ancient adventures … Haggith has worked to extensive lengths to breathe life into an age that has long been forgotten … she approaches [the] story with eloquence that makes the reading itself an adventure of its own.” Charlie Ceats, Cultured Vultures; Praise for earlier work: "Beautifully written, this novel is a moving and at times, shocking confession of a man tormented by love, loss, guilt and regret, the author's meticulous research shines from every page." Editor's choice, Historical Novels Review, August 2019; "Haggith writes fluently and with the light of her research into this period leading her imagination there is a whole new experience for the reader ... There is much to enjoy and learn in this novel [which] has a universal resonance and draws parallels with modern life." Tony Michaels, The Wee Review; "A compelling tale of endeavour, bravery and human frailty ... The story is visceral and visual, crafted with a lyrical prose." Dundee Courier, Scottish Book of the Week; "Brave and fascinating ... asks questions about the nature of truth, perspective, and the power of the narrator to influence where readers' sympathies lie." Alistair Braidwood, Scots Whay Hae; "An epic tale of adventure, The Amber Seeker is a gem of historical fiction, written with elegant language and telling an emotional story of seeking knowledge in the name of glory." Cultured Vultures; "Exquisite ... The Iron Age landscape comes to life with a colourful brilliance and the long sea voyages are by turns magical and terrifying." Undiscovered Scotland; "Marries great storytelling and convincing research ... Haggith invites the reader to explore a strange world and far-distant time, and the voyage on which she takes the reader is always interesting, sometimes enthralling." Allan Massie, The Scotsman; "Haggith's woman's eye view of the Iron Age feels fresh and distinctive." Sunday Herald; "An ambitious and imaginative novel ... believable and compelling." Jane Bradley, Scotsman; "Vivid, memorable and utterly compelling." Helen Sedgwick; "A gripping, haunting, visceral novel... Lyrical and poetic prose, the author has created a convincing and entirely believable world... One of the best books I have read so far this year." Historical Novels Review (Editors' Choice); "An immersive evocation of ancient folklore and ritual, this novel's characterisation and fast pace make it a real page-turner which will keep you hooked." Scottish Field

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Book SynopsisSpain, summer 1937. The civil war between Spanish nationalists and republicans rages. On the bloody sierras of Aragon, among Generalissimo Franco’s volunteers is Martin Bora, the twenty-something German officer and detective whose future adventures will be told in Lumen, Liar Moon, The Road to Ithaca and others in the Bora series. Presently a lieutenant in the Spanish Foreign Legion, Bora lives the tragedy around him as an intoxicating epic, between idealism and youthful recklessness. The first doubts, however, rise in Bora’ s mind when he happens on the body of Federico Garcia Lorca, a brilliant poet, progressive and homosexual. Who murdered him? Why? The official version does not convince Bora, who begins a perilous investigation. His inquiry paradoxically proceeds alongside that which is being carried out by an “enemy”: Philip Walton, an American member of the International Brigades. Soon enough the German and the New Englander will join forces, and their cooperation will not only culminate in a thrilling chase after a murderer, but also in a very human, existential face-to-face between two adversaries forever changed by their crime-solving encounter...

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Book SynopsisAn abduction in London and the discovery of a body on the west coast of Sweden lead criminal profiler Emily Roys and true-crime writer Alexis Castells back to Jack the Ripper’s Whitechapel, as they hunt a serial killer. Book two in the explosive, award-winning Roy & Castells series. ‘A terrific, original duo’ Marcel Berlins, The Times ‘Gritty, bone-chilling, and harrowing – it’s not for the faint of heart, and not to be missed’ Crime by the Book ‘A relentless heart-stopping masterpiece, filled with nightmarish situations that will keep you awake long into the dark nights of winter’ New York Journal of Books ___________________Whitechapel, 1888: London is bowed under Jack the Ripper’s reign of terror.London 2015: Actress Julianne Bell is abducted in a case similar to the terrible Tower Hamlets murders of some ten years earlier, and harking back to the Ripper killings of a century before.Falkenberg, Sweden, 2015: A woman’s body is found mutilated in a forest, her wounds identical to those of the Tower Hamlets victims. With the man arrested for the Tower Hamlets crimes already locked up, do the new killings mean he has a dangerous accomplice, or is a copy-cat serial killer on the loose? Profiler Emily Roy and true-crime writer Alexis Castells again find themselves drawn into an intriguing case, with personal links that turn their world upside down. Following the highly acclaimed Block 46 and guaranteed to disturb and enthral, Keeper is a breathless thriller from the new queen of French Noir. ___________________ ‘A bold and intelligent read’ Guardian ‘A satisfying, full-fat mystery’ The Times ‘Assured telling of a complex story’ Sunday Times ‘Dark, oppressive and bloody but also thought-provoking, compelling and very moving’ Metro ‘A real page-turner, I loved it’ Martina Cole ‘Cleverly plotted, simply excellent’ Ragnar Jónasson ‘A must-read’ Daily Express ‘Gustawsson’s writing is so vivid, it’s electrifying. Utterly compelling’ Peter James ‘Bold and audacious’ R. J. Ellory ‘A great serial-killer thriller with a nice twist … first rate’ James Oswald ‘Thought-provoking, challenging, and an absolute knock-out … I’m still in shock’ LoveReading ‘A great addition to the world of noir novels, and lives alongside the best...’ TripFictionTrade Review`A real page-turner ... I loved it!' Martina Cole; `A bold and audacious debut from a very talented writer. Heralds the beginning of a thrilling new series' R J Ellory; `A bold and intelligent read' Laura Wilson, Guardian; `Thought-provoking, compelling and very moving' Metro; `A terrific, original duo' The Times; `Compelling' Woman's Own

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Book SynopsisThe action swings from London to Sweden, and then back into the past, to Franco’s Spain, as Roy & Castells hunt a monstrous killer … in the latest instalment of Johana Gustawsson’s award-winning, international bestselling series. ***Longlisted for the CWA International Dagger*** ‘Historical sections highlight, in distressing detail, the atrocious treatment of mothers-to-be in Franco’s Spain … A satisfying, full-fat mystery’ The Times ‘Assured telling of a complex story’ Sunday Times ‘Gustawsson’s writing is so vivid, it’s electrifying. Utterly compelling’ Peter James _________________ Spain, 1938: The country is wracked by civil war, and as Valencia falls to Franco’s brutal dictatorship, Republican Therese witnesses the murders of her family. Captured and sent to the notorious Las Ventas women’s prison, Therese gives birth to a daughter who is forcibly taken from her. Falkenberg, Sweden, 2016: A wealthy family is found savagely murdered in their luxurious home. Discovering that her parents have been slaughtered, Aliénor Lindbergh, a new recruit to the UK’s Scotland Yard, rushes back to Sweden and finds her hometown rocked by the massacre. Profiler Emily Roy joins forces with Aliénor and soon finds herself on the trail of a monstrous and prolific killer. Little does she realise that this killer is about to change the life of her colleague, true-crime writer Alexis Castells. Joining forces once again, Roy and Castells’ investigation takes them from the Swedish fertility clinics of the present day back to the terror of Franco’s rule, and the horrifying events that took place in Spanish orphanages under its rule. Terrifying, vivid and recounted at breakneck speed, Blood Song is not only a riveting thriller and an examination of corruption in the fertility industry, but a shocking reminder of the atrocities of Spain’s dictatorship, in the latest, stunning instalment in the award-winning Roy & Castells series. _________________ ‘French novelist Johana Gustawsson writes novels of startling originality. Blood Song [is] truly horrifying’ Sunday Times ‘Her sleuths tracking a monstrous killer, transporting us from modern-day fertility clinics in Sweden to the abuses of Spanish orphanages under the brutal rule of General Franco … a truly European thriller’ Financial Times ‘Gritty, bone-chilling, and harrowing – it’s not for the faint of heart, and not to be missed’ Crime by the Book ‘A relentless heart-stopping masterpiece, filled with nightmarish situations that will keep you awake long into the dark nights of winter’ New York Journal of Books ‘Emotional and atmospheric’ New Books Magazine ‘Intricately plotted, visceral and emotional the author ramps up the tension and the unfolding keeps the reader guessing to the very end. Scenes are raw, vivid and gripping’ Promoting Crime ‘I don’t think there’s a crime writer who writes with such intelligence, darkness and deep sadness as Johana Gustawsson. This was extraordinary’ Louise Beech ‘Blood Song caught and has held onto my thoughts, it is clever, provocative, and a seriously good read’ LoveReading ‘A fascinating and engrossing read, but also one that I found intensely harrowing, deeply intimate and which made me cry’ Live & Deadly ‘A real page-turner, I loved it’ Martina Cole ‘Cleverly plotted, simply excellent’ Ragnar Jónasson ‘A must-read’ Daily Express ‘Bold and audacious’ R. J. ElloryTrade Review"Gustawsson is back after terrifying us with her internationally acclaimed bestseller, Block 46, this time with an equally terrifying story of past and present. . . . Gustawsson captures Victorian London with all its seediness, stench and crime as graphically as Dickens did its poverty and despair. The juxtaposition of the past and present are seamlessly accomplished, in mesmerising, short, incisive chapters. Roy and Castells are terrific original characters, whose longevity is guaranteed, but watch out for new kid on the block, Swedish Detective Karla Hansen. Keeper is a relentless heart-stopping masterpiece, filled with nightmarish situations that will keep you awake long into the dark nights of winter." --New York Journal of Books on Keeper "A terrifying tale." -- Mystery Scene "This one's bound to keep you glued to the page till the last line!"--CrimeReads

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Book SynopsisThe story of a teenage soldier serving at Winston Churchill's side, in the trenches of WW1 Flanders and beyond. Second edition published December 2018, thoroughly revised to include newly-discovered historical detail.Lying about his age to join the army, Edinburgh teenager Jamie Melville comes to the attention of his battalion's new colonel, Winston Churchill, who is seeking redemption in the trenches as an ordinary soldier after his resignation over the Dardanelles fiasco in 1915. Jamie becomes the colonel's new batman' and is soon thrust into the line of fire.After the conflict, Churchill returns to the cabinet and Jamie's service continues as assistant to Winston's private secretary. In this new world, he will learn how to do battle on a very different front, and meet some of the extraordinary characters who inhabit wartime London all whilst trying to piece together his broken family, and fighting for a life he can call his own.Woodburn offers an excellent portrayal of Churchill ... a novel not to be missed. Finest Hour magazineAn outstanding book ... Memorable, eminently readable, and thoroughly enjoyable. Undiscovered Scotland

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Book Synopsisucharest, before and during World War II, where Bernard Davidescou lives with his parents and his older brother on Triumph Street, in the middle of a courtyard block inhabited by a dozen Jewish families and two Christian ones. When Romania, under General Ion Antonescu's dictatorship, allies itself with Hitler and invades the USSR, the Jews in Bucharest face the threat of being sent to the Nazi extermination camps, after having survived the terror of the fascist Iron Guard. However, each Sunday morning, young Bernard, age twelve, passionate about politics and history, amazes the adults in the courtyard, Jews and Christians alike, with his analysis of the political situation in Romania and the development of the war on all fronts. 'Triumph Street, Bucharest' is the story of this young boy and his dreams and torments during this dark period of human history, while also chronicling a family in crisis, the discovery of sexuality and first loves, and the distraction offered by the cinema, religious searching and idealistic aspirations for a better world.

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Book SynopsisThe name Macbeth has been cursed for hundreds of years, synonymous with tyranny and over-vaulting ambition. But what if the true Macbeth was something other than the villain Shakespeare portrayed? Macbeth:The Red King tells an entirely new story of the real-life Scottish monarch, revealing a benevolent ruler who seized on his legitimate claim to the throne. Drawing from historical sources, this engaging graphic novel by Shaun Manning and Anna Wieszczyk is a visually stunning companion to Shakespeare's legendary drama. See Macbeth struggle for his kingdom-and witness his last stand against the insurgent Prince Malcolm.

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Book Synopsis“A bold attempt to portray the greyness of growing up without roots or identity, cast adrift in an uncomprehending and uncertain world.” Caroline Moorehead, Times Literary Supplement.March, 1945. The ravaged face of London will soon be painted with victory, but for Sylvie, the private battle for peace is just beginning. When one of her twins is stillborn, she is faced with a consuming grief for the child she never had a chance to hold. A Small Dark Quiet follows a mother as she struggles to find the courage to rebuild her life and care for an orphan whom she and her husband, Gerald, adopt two years later.Born in a concentration camp, the orphan’s early years appear punctuated with frail speculations, opening up a haunting space that draws Sylvie to bring him into parallel with the child she lost. When she gives the orphan the stillborn child’s name, this unwittingly entangles him in a grief he will never be able to console. His own name has been erased, his origins blurred. Arthur’s preverbal trauma begins to merge with the loss he carries for Sylvie, released in nightmares and fragments of emerging memories to make his life that of a boy he never knew. He learns all about ‘that other little Arthur’, yearning both to become him and to free himself from his ghost. He can neither fit the shape of the life that has been lost nor grow into the one his adopted father has carved out for him.As the novel unfolds over the next twenty years, Arthur becomes curious about his Jewish heritage, but fears what this might entail – drawn towards it, it seems he might find a sense of communion and acceptance, but the chorus of persecutory voices he has internalised becomes too overwhelming to bear. He is threatened as a child with being sent back where he belongs but no one can tell him where this is. He wanders as an adult looking for purpose but is unable to find his place. Feeling an imposter both at home and in the city, Arthur’s yearning for that sense of belonging echoes in our own time. Meeting Lydia seems to offer Arthur the opportunity to recast himself, yet all too soon he is trapped in a repetition of what he was trying to escape. A past he can neither recall nor forget lives on within him even as he strives to forge a life for himself. Survival, though, insists Arthur keeps searching and as he opens himself to the world around him, there are flashes of just how resilient the human heart can be. Through Sylvie’s unprocessed grief and Arthur’s acute sense of displacement, A Small Dark Quiet explores how the compulsion to fill the empty space death leaves behind ultimately makes the devastating void more acute. Yet however frail, the instinct for empathy and hope persists in this powerful story of loss, migration and the search for belonging.

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