Historical Fiction Books

Book SynopsisManhattan, 1963: weeks before the assassination of President Kennedy, fresh-faced Raymond Wallace lands in the New York Times newsroom on a three-month bursary from Cambridge University. He soon discovers his elusive boss, Bukowski, is being covertly blackmailed by an estranged wife, and that he himself is to assist the straight-laced Doty on an article about the 'explosion of overt homosexuality' in the city. On an undercover assignment, a secret world is revealed to Raymond: a world in which he need no longer pretend to be something or someone he cannot be; a world in which he meets Joey. Like so many men of his time and of his kind, Raymond faces a choice between conformity, courage and compartmentalisation. The decision he makes will ricochet destructively through lives and decades until—in another time, another city; in Paris, 2003—Raymond’s son Joe finally meets Joey. And the healing begins.Trade Review"Raymond Wallace goes to New York and like thousands before, discovers and re-invents himself. But this is 1963, a time when every gay man has to have 'something of the spy about him'. A sensual, moving story of masks and identities, across two continents and four decades. Sam Kenyon has the power to bring you up short with writing that captures all the contradiction of love and loneliness in a big city. I am not Raymond Wallace is a strikingly confident debut novel; not just good considering, but good absolutely." – Samuel West; "Taking as his starting-point a real-life moment of queer history from 1960s New York, Sam Kenyon spins a marvellously stylish and often unexpected story, bringing things to a final boil in one of the most romantic backstreets of contemporary Paris. His denouement is as tough as it is touching—and this is quite some debut for a very first novel." – Neil Bartlett; "A triumph. A primer for all ages." – Murray Melvin; "In this exquisite novel about the breaking of a human heart, a sad young man carries a torch for his first love. It’s pre-Stonewall 1963. Men coming out come undone. Laws prevent giving consent to their own bodies. This daring love song of an anxious Prufrock wandering half-deserted streets embraces two generations of fathers, sons, and lovers yearning to find chosen family against all odds. A joyous literary triumph that moved me to tears. Shelve next to Michael Cunningham’s Pulitzer winner, The Hours." – Jack Fritscher, author of Mapplethorpe: Assault with a Deadly Camera; "I bloody loved it. A poignant and evocative reminder of how recently our love was impossible, of the lives that were lost in hiding, as well as the unsung heroes who paved the way for our freedoms today. It’s also a beautifully told love story, deserving of a wide readership, not least because we all need more happily enough ever afters." – Stella Duffy; "I loved reading Sam Kenyon's debut novel. It's ambitious and constantly surprising. In passages of great elegance and insight, he captures life's unwillingness to fly straight or predictably, but rather in beautiful curves and loops. It made my heart both race and swell, and I know I will loop back to it myself someday soon." – Jacob Fortune-Lloyd; "A beautiful story of thwarted love beginning in 1960s Manhattan and spanning four decades. An elegantly told story and an utterly heartbreaking debut. You’ll need tissues." – Julie Owen Moylan

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Book SynopsisSet in 1850s Wales, London and the Crimea, Jane Evans is a novel about the real first woman on the drove, who also nursed under Florence Nightingale. Fleeing her harsh life in rural Wales, Jane ends up nursing wounded soldiers in inhuman conditions in the Crimea. Can she survive the dangers and return to Wales – and what will await her there?Trade ReviewJane Evans is a historical novel set in Wales, London and the Crimea. It is the fictionalised story of the real Jane Evans, the first woman on the drove and a nurse with Florence Nightingale in the Crimea. In the 1850s, a young woman runs away from her poverty-stricken life on a farm in the heart of rural Welsh-speaking Wales, to escape harsh treatment by her brothers and a forced marriage to a much older neighbour. She joins her cousin Isaac’s drove, against the odds proving herself invaluable on the hard journey to London. After arriving, she eventually finds herself shipping out to the Crimea to assist in a hospital for injured soldiers. Given that the arena of the war is so small she comes into direct contact with Florence Nightingale, Mary Seacole and Betsi Cadwaladr (aka Betsy Davis) in their mutual battle against inhuman conditions, and tries to bring some relief to the lost souls she finds there. Will she survive the dangers and return home to Wales, and if she does, what reception will she find there? Based on a real unsung heroine from Welsh history, this novel is full of fascinating, well-researched historical detail about the drove and about nursing in the Crimea. -- Publisher: Y Lolfa

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Book SynopsisChange is Coming. Four generations of a Lowestoft fishing family, rise and fall, with the fortunes of their town.

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Book SynopsisThree generations, one family, connected by an historic secret. 1917 – Private Daniel Dawkins fights at Messines Ridge and Passchendaele. He writes home to his true-love Joyce, but reveals little of his extreme bravery, his kindness, his loyalty to his comrades and the horrors they experience on the Western Front. 1920 – Captain Peter Harding is tasked with a secret mission to assist in the selection of a body dug up from the battlefields of Flanders to be buried in Westminster Abbey as the 'Unknown Warrior'. Events take place on that expedition that come to haunt him for the rest of his life. 2011 – Sarah Harding discovers Daniel’s letters and Peter’s diaries. Together with historian James Marchant she pieces together the hidden truth behind the Tomb of the Unknown Warrior and must decide what to do with it. Values are challenged and characters are tested in this gripping novel which asks ‘what if the identity of the Unknown Soldier was discovered - and should that secret ever be revealed?’Trade Review"The blending of fact and fiction makes for a compelling narrative that educates as well as entertains. The level of reality in the depiction of army life and the quality of research that has gone in to The Name Beneath The Stone is exemplary" Linda's Book Bag "This breathtaking book is an absolute must read, I really can't recommend The Name Beneath The Stone highly enough; I'd give it 888,246 stars if I could, one for every military fatality of World War I. Every once in a while a book comes along that renders me speechless and The Name Beneath The Stone did just that. Stunning and imaginative, it took my breath away. Absolutely outstanding and perfect in every way; this is a book I will be recommending for many years to come." The Book Magnet "Relationships, morals, revelations and secrets are at the forefront of The Name Beneath The Stone: Secret of the Unknown Warrior and with it comes quite a complicated plot to get your teeth into, but somehow with a skilful approach, Newcome administers a developmental breakthrough showcasing a strong assurance of characters, both in lead roles and behind the scenes." Page Turners Nook "What I loved was the human aspect of the storyline. ...This was an enthralling and emotional book and one I’m very glad to have had the pleasure of reading." “I highly recommend this one to lovers of historical fiction” Secret Library Book Blog “The Name Beneath the Stone is an incredibly well research and beautifully written novel. It holds important historical significance and is highly recommended.” The Welsh Librarian “The Name Beneath The Stone is a remarkable story that’s insightful, thought provoking, poignant filled with raw, authentic images and scenes.” Kraftireader "this book title and blurb really caught my eye and it proved to be a beautifully written and thoughtfully researched novel. I had assumed it would be a non-fiction book but it is in fact a novel with a carefully crafted, complex weaving of a fictional family history and fact." Mrs Average on Books "This is the first I have read from Robert Newcome, it definitely won’t be the last, his writing is strong, informative and engaging, I was completely transfixed with his clear and vibrant narrative." Chicks, Rogues and Scandals "I found the sheer humanity of this sophisticated and meaningful book touching and significant, and I found the moral questions of the nature of historical investigation fascinating. I recommend it as a great read and it deserves a lot of attention." Northern Reader "I’ve read a lot of novels set during World War I, but none of them has moved me or challenged my thinking as much as Robert Newcome’s The Name Beneath the Stone. It is so well written and cleverly plotted that the ending, the final twist in the tale, left my thoughts and emotions in turmoil." A Darn Good Read

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Book SynopsisA Sunday Independent Book of the Year Against the backdrop of China’s Cultural Revolution and Europe’s sexual revolution, the fates of two families in London and Beijing become unexpectedly intertwined, in this dazzling new novel from the author of Mrs Engels. Revolution is a Family Affair. In London, sisters Iris and Eva, members of a radical performance collective, plan an attack on the West End theatre where their mother is playing the title role in Miss Julie. Meanwhile in Beijing, Jiang Qing, Chairman Mao’s wife, rehearses a gala performance of her model ballet, The Red Detachment of Women, which she will use to attack her enemies in the Party. As the preparations for these two astonishing performances unfold, Iris, Eva, and Jiang Qing are transformed into unforgettable protagonists in a single epic drama. The three ‘sisters’, although fighting very different personal battles, find themselves bound together by the passions of love, by the obsessions of power, and by the forces of history. Exquisitely observed, relevant, and wise, The Sisters Mao shows us that the political is always personal.Trade Review‘McCrea’s portrait of Jiang Qing is a masterpiece of characterisation: at once monstrous and pitiable. The Sisters Mao is dazzlingly clever and original.’ -- Antonia Senior * The Times *‘The work of a master storyteller.’ -- Joseph O’Connor‘A capacious work of social realism … dazzlingly ambitious yet modestly human.’ -- Lara Feigel * The Guardian *‘A study of political madness … modifying the old cliche that the personal is political, the message here is a reminder that the political is always personal.’ -- Phil Baker * The Sunday Times *‘It is impeccably researched and he interweaves the personal and the political to great effect.’ -- Lucy Popescu * Financial Times *‘Manages to combine vast research with lightness of touch and superb insights.’ -- Caitriona Lally * Sunday Independent *‘McCrea’s observations are a joy … this is a novel worth taking time over, for readers anywhere on the political spectrum.’ -- Christopher Harding * The Telegraph *‘Written with McCrea’s trademark confidence and virtuosity, this is a sumptuous, winning book. Its characters are not so much drawn from life (Imelda Marcos makes an entrance) as strange revenants from a turbulent dream. Its high intelligence throws light everywhere, and suggestive shade.’ -- Sebastian Barry, author of A Thousand Moons‘The tremors of Gavin McCrea’s prose thrillingly record what happens as a world spins off its axis, shattering public and private lives. This electrifying fiction confirms McCrea’s status among the leading novelists of his brilliant generation.’ -- Frank McGuinness, author of Someone Who'll Watch Over Me‘The Sisters Mao is a spectacular novel, utterly enthralling and insightful; every voice is penetrating, dazzling. In spite of the setting, it is full of relevance for these times; it manages to be both historically authentic and thrillingly contemporary. Gavin is a writer of extraordinary talent, and I cannot think of a kind of reader who I would not recommend this novel to.’ -- Sara Baume, author of Spill Simmer Falter Wither‘Gavin McCrea is a wonderful writer: bold, innovative, and fiercely intelligent, and these qualities shine from this magnificent novel. I was enthralled from the first sentence to the last.’ -- Donal Ryan, author of Strange Flowers‘A sweeping political saga spanning East and West. McCrea’s confident and lucid prose gives us both the personal and the political. Mesmerising.’ -- Xiaolu Guo, author of A Lover’s Discourse‘The writing has an engrossing flow of energy, a vigour and a flair which have the audacity of invention … Given its immensity and arguments the novel could invite comparison with some of the great Russian writers.’ -- Mary Leland * Irish Examiner *‘McCrea has conducted exceptionally deep research to conjure up nuanced, authentic portrayals of the worlds of the book — but the text carries his knowledge lightly, supporting rather than dominating the story. The Sisters Mao is the best sort of historical fiction; one that illuminates the contemporary moment with great insight. Profoundly brilliant, it will no doubt be a huge contender on the literary awards circuit, but also one that is pushed feverishly from reader to reader with excitement.’ -- Helen Cullen * The Irish Times *‘Dynamic.’ -- Sebastian Barry * The Irish Times *‘Ideas flow ceaselessly and impact in unexpected ways in Gavin McCrea’s compendious novel.’ -- Neil Hegarty * The Irish Times *‘Major recommendation ... The incredible Gavin McCrea, beloved author of Mrs Engels, publishes his second novel, The Sisters Mao ... It’s profoundly brilliant!’ -- Helen Cullen‘A new novel that's so powerful I think it's going straight onto my shelf of favourite books. It's a moving, thrilling, and thoughtful story that will captivate you.’ -- Eric Karl Anderson * Lonesome Reader *‘Brilliantly chronicles the corrosive collision between the personal and the political.’ -- Jane Shilling * Daily Mail *‘Ambitious … McCrea writes insightfully about mother-daughter dynamics, the power of theatre, and women’s roles in revolutionary movements.’ * Publishers Weekly *‘A stirring, perceptive exploration of radical politics … a sweeping portrait of three women shaped by fanaticism, dysfunctional families, intra-group sexism and politics-as-performance … This excellent novel, populated by maddening, memorable characters, offers a timeless reminder of extremism's perils.’ -- Kevin Canfield * Minneapolis Star Tribune *

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Book SynopsisAs a mine-owning family, the Howells are used to the trials and tribulations that the business can bring. But after a knife-wielding miner breaks in and accuses one of the family members of murder, they realise that their safety could be at risk... George and Elizabeth, and their children, Charlie, Francis, Charlotte, Anne and Alice are settled in their Northumbrian home, or so they thought... Told in five parts through the years 1844-1866, these chronicles visit the family at historical intervals, choosing momentous days to reflect the point reached in the family's rich history. We follow Charlie through his battles in the Crimean War; Francis, through his fights to make the mines safer, Charlotte, through her marriage to a substantial local landowner, Alice, through her involvement with a major mining disaster and Anne, through her marriage to a local firm clerk. Howell Grange is a northern history.

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Book SynopsisThe prequel to the best-selling A Time for Silence

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Book SynopsisMystery surrounds the murder of Sir Lachlan MacLean, an impoverished Highland laird. With bad debts, family quarrels, and shady associates, Sir Lachlan had many enemies. But while motives are not hard to find, evidence is another thing entirely. Lawyer John MacKenzie and scribe Davie Scougall turn investigator to try to track down the murderer.Trade ReviewMove over Rebus. There’s a new – or should that be old – detective in town. This excellent thriller introduces John Mackenzie and Davie Scougall, an Advocate and his notary in late 17th century Edinburgh. They set out to solve the murder of their client, the Chief of a down-at-heel clan. The result is a plot as twisted as Rowan on a mountain pass and wonderful characters who are perfectly set up for many novels to come. I certainly hope so. I thoroughly enjoyed this accomplished debut and I look forward to many more adventures with the capital’s newest sleuths. - I-ON EDINBURGH

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Book SynopsisSarajevo Firewood, which was shortlisted for the International Prize for Arabic Fiction (IPAF) award in 2020, explores the legacy of the recent histories of two countries — Algeria and Bosnia-Herzegovina — both of which experienced traumatic, and ultimately futile, civil wars in the 1990s. The novel narrates the lives of two main characters, with their friends and families: Salim, an Algerian journalist, and Ivana, a young Bosnian woman, both of whom have fled the destruction and hatred of their own countries to try to build a new life in Slovenia. As Ivana pursues her goal of writing her ‘dream play’, Khatibi’s novel brings to life in fictional form the memories and experiences of the countless ordinary people who survived the atrocities linking the two countries. As such, it represents both a lasting memorial to the thousands of dead and ‘disappeared’ of the two countries’ civil conflicts, but also a powerful and novel exploration of the experience of exile to which so many have been subjected over the last few decades.

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Book SynopsisImpoverished Egyptian teacher Helmy is desperate to find a better life for himself, his wife and little boy, seeing no future at home in Cairo. He dreams of working in oil-rich Kuwait and its boom in construction being the answer, just like many thousands before him. He manages to borrow the huge cost of a visa and is at last on his way to Kuwait City. He has no idea of the hellish nightmare, instead of the dream, that awaits him – the relentless summer sun and temperature of 56ºC and more, the choking dust and sweat, having to do construction work instead of teaching. And always, no money, and no answers from the many officials that he comes up against. Instead of achieving his dream, he falls into trap after trap. The author is himself a character in the novel, an engineer with the construction company who is writing a novel about the humiliating and degrading experiences of the migrant foreign workers arriving in Kuwait to make their fortunes. In the Preface to the novel, author Taleb Alrefai writes: "The novel casts lights on the lives of thousands of workers who come to the Gulf states with dreams of money and wealth, but who are confronted with the harshness of a desolate reality. It exposes specifically the suffering of migrant workers in Kuwait, be they Arabs or foreigners, and how their every moment is shaped by need, injustice and cruelty. Some commit suicide, but that has no effect on the work on site under the blazing sun that’s like the lash of hell. "Almost a historical document on my life and the lives of the workers with whom I lived for fifteen years, Shadow of the Sun presents a human landscape set in and reflecting Kuwait."

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Book SynopsisBirds of Nabaa is a tale of physical and spiritual journeys, beginning in Nabaa, a remote Mauritanian village, whose herds lead the community according to their own inscrutable instincts, to life in Madrid, the Gulf states and Guinea, where the narrator's work as an embassy accountant takes him, and to Mauritania's capital Nouakchott. Inspired by the Sahara of his childhood and devoted from an early age to the vagabond life of the pre-Islamic poets, the narrator's constant life on the move in search of the inner stillness known only to desert dwellers leads him back always to the music, song and poetry so much a part of Mauritanian life and the spiritual universe of Sufism. The mix of diverse characters joining him includes Teresa, his Brazilian neighbour in Madrid whom he taught to make tea the Mauritanian way; Rajab the inspiring teacher in a blue face veil; Hussein the poet; Mariam, a postman between the living and the dead via cowrie shell readings; the exiled judge of Chinguetti; as well as his close friend the voracious reader and rebel Abdurrahman who wants to change the world, Abdel Hadi, the holy-fool sheikh with an encyclopaedic knowledge of Arab history and poetry, and Ould al-Taher, the first climate-change refugee. The narrator's travels take him to the village of Kanz al-Asrar near a tributary of the Senegal River, an area so fertile it is like a lush paradise. However, two and more years without any rain create drought, wells dry out, livelihoods shatter, and dreams turn to disturbing nightmarish premonitions of disaster. The burning fire of the sun is winning its eternal struggle with the hidden water that the clouds plant in the depths of the sand. As desertification takes hold, that paradise of southern Mauritania and of Nabaa gradually declines and the waves of migration, always a feature of life in the Sahara, intensify.Trade Review"Birds of Nabaa, A Mauritanian Tale by Mauritanian author Abdallah Uld Mohamadi Bah is a cathartic experience inspired by the passion of Sufism.""Uld Mohamadi Bah's characters are refined and crafted with delicate nuance. He captures the discordant feelings of those who have experienced immigration, whether by choice or impossible circumstances."Reviewed by Noshin Bokth in The New Arab newspaper: https://www.newarab.com/features/birds-nabaa-mystical-roamings-mauritanian-sufiTable of Contents12 Chapters. 1 Birds Soaring in Our Sky. 2 In the Shade of Teresa. 3 Soaring above the Touched Man's Nest. 4 My Life as Travelogue. 5 Rajab's Shade Giving Tent. 6 Three Men and a Woman. 7 Mariam the Cowrie Shell Reader. 8 Abdurrahman Lays Down his Saddle. 9 War Dance at Kanz al-Asrar. 10 That Woman's Name is Mounira. 11 Bread and Mint. 12 The Sheikh's Vision Comes True.

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Book SynopsisKew Gardens 1771. Five strong women, trapped by Georgian convention, together rise to the challenges of espionage, smuggling, and slavery, to find happiness and freedom. When botanical artist Daisy Salter meets pre-eminent Georgian scientist Joseph Banks and not only becomes Artist in Residence at Kew Gardens, but ‘Lady-in-Painting’ to Queen Charlotte, she gets a new start. However, whilst expecting a quiet and studious life, Daisy not only learns about plant hunting from botanist friend Rupert Fitzgerald but is unwittingly inveigled into espionage, tea smuggling and the ‘triangular trade’ by mysterious Dutchman Johannes Van der Humm. When a fabulous flower is discovered in South Africa and sent back to Kew for the Queen’s birthday, the women little guess it offers a route to freedom. But only if Daisy can foil a plot to steal it from under the King’s nose. Who is friend and who is foe? Can she work out whom to trust before disaster strikes? And who will she choose to marry? Set in an incredibly exciting period of history, The Daisy Chain is a pacy debut novel. If you like historical fiction mixed with gardening, art, adventure, espionage, skulduggery, smuggling, the slave trade and romance, buy your copy today. Read it on holiday, read it in the garden, or read it in bed – but don’t miss it!

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Book SynopsisA Book of Secrets is the story of a woman named Susan Charlewood living in Elizabethan England. Born in what is now Ghana, Susan is enslaved by the Portuguese but later rescued by British sailors, who bring her to England. Once in England, she is raised and educated in an English Catholic household.When Susan comes of age, the family marry her off to an older Catholic man, John Charlewood. Charlewood runs a printing press and uses it to supply the Papist nobility with illegal Catholic texts and foment rebellion amongst the Catholic underclass. When Charlewood dies, Susan takes over the business and uses her new position to find out more about her origins.A look at racial relationships on the eve of the beginning of the transatlantic slave trade, A Book of Secrets is a revealing and compelling glimpse into a fraught time.

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Book SynopsisBreaking the Maafa Chain chronicles two sisters' struggle for true freedom in the mid-nineteenth century, when transporting slaves from Africa to America was an illegal but lucrative businessNineteenth century—Two sisters, Fatmata and Salimatu, are captured and sold separately into slavery. Forced to change their names to Faith and Sarah, they end up in two different countries with opposite slavery laws. Faith ends up in America, where slavery is still legal and slaves don't have any rights. Sarah ends up in a Victorian England and as the goddaughter of Queen Victoria. Can the two sisters reclaim their freedom and identity in a world that is trying to break them down and mold them to its coloniser's will?Based on the true story of Sarah Forbes Bonetta, Breaking the Maafa Chain will take the readers on a journey of loss, survival, hope, identity and tradition.Trade ReviewPart fact, part fiction, Breaking the Maafa Chain is an important book, beautifully told. Domingo's premise is a bold and uncompromising one - taking what is known, the story of Salimatu, the 'black princess', Sarah Forbes Bonetta, and weaving through it the story of her fictionalised sister, Fatmata, Faith. Domingo makes an eloquent point: that although the sisters suffered different fates, both were unfree: Fatmata enslaved in North America and Salimatu gifted to Queen Victoria, and utterly at her whim.It is a story that has resonance today, where Meghan Markle was expected to shape herself to a white institution, to belong. * Guinevere Glasfurd *Part fact, part fiction, Breaking the Maafa Chain is an important book, beautifully told. Domingo's premise is a bold and uncompromising one - taking what is known, the story of Salimatu, the 'black princess', Sarah Forbes Bonetta, and weaving through it the story of her fictionalised sister, Fatmata, Faith. Domingo makes an eloquent point: that although the sisters suffered different fates, both were unfree: Fatmata enslaved in North America and Salimatu gifted to Queen Victoria, and utterly at her whim.It is a story that has resonance today, where Meghan Markle was expected to shape herself to a white institution, to belong. * Guinevere Glasfurd *The story of Sarah Forbes Bonetta, extraordinary even in extraordinary times, known to some in Sierra Leone , though virtually unknown elsewhere. Now Anni Domingo has brought her vividly to life in this richly imagined and compellingly told tale. Breaking the Maafa Chain is a gift to readers everywhere. * Aminatta Forna *Anni Domingo's Breaking the Maafa Chain is so rich in detail and dialogue, it is simply seductive. She captures so well, a little girl, Salimatu, who recalls the security of her family life, who is transported to a bewildering future in England to become Sarah, where she has to stand strong and survive. Not only will this book be read for the sheer enjoyment of a beautifully written novel, but for the learning gained. It is a historical novel that cannot be ignored. * Kadija Sesay, Literary Activist, author of Irki *Anni Domingo brings great sensitivity to her fictionalised account of the remarkable young life of Sarah Forbes Bonetta, the 'African Princess', who became a god-daughter to Queen Victoria. The internal struggles of Salimatu (Sarah) are movingly explored as she struggles to remain true to her identity as an African after being taken from her homeland and brought to England as a gift from "the King of the Blacks to the Queen of the Whites." A comparable story is told of Salimatu's sister Fatmata (Faith) who is transported to the United States before emancipation. Carefully constructed with a keen eye for historical accuracy, Domingo reveals a compassionate and affectionate Queen Victoria who is devoted to her African god-daughter. This is also an epic story of two sisters who are separated towards the end of the transatlantic slave trade, but never forget each other. * Stephen Bourne, author of War to Windrush and Evelyn Dove *

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Book SynopsisAfter World War Two England was on her knees, so the call went out to the British Empire for volunteers to help rebuild the 'Mother Country'. Young men and women from different Caribbean islands were quick to respond, paying the considerable sum of GBP28.10s to board HMT Empire Windrush - the 'ship of dreams' that would take them to their new lives. The motives and back-stories of these West Indian people is a key part of the Windrush story, one that has never been fully told. This powerful narrative reveals what happened on board that ship, which was packed with young, excited people who had never before left their parents, their parishes - let alone their islands. In the course of the memorable two-week voyage there were parties, friendships made and broken, fights, gambling, racism, sex - and discussions of God and loveTrade Review'A very important book and legacy for the future'[Baroness Floella Benjamin, DBE] 'This book serves as a wonderful homage to the brave, hopeful resillient spirit of the Windrush generation'[Brenda Emmanus,OBE]'A book telling the stories of the Windrush generations is vital not only for this genertions but for generations to come'[Rudolph Walker]

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Book SynopsisMary Toft was just another eighteenth century woman living in poverty, misery and frequent pain. Mary Toft was the kind of person overlooked by those with power, forgotten by historians. Mary Toft was nothing. Until, that is, Mary Toft started giving birth to rabbits... In Mary and the Rabbit Dream, the sensational debut novelist Noemi Kiss-Deaki reimagines Mary''s strange and fascinating story - and how she found fame when a large swathe of England became convinced that she was the mother of rabbits. Mary and the Rabbit Dream is a story of bodily autonomy, of absurdity, of the horrors inflicted on women, of the cruel realities of poverty and the grotesque divides between rich and poor. It''s a book that matters deeply - and it''s also a compelling page-turner. A story told with exquisite wit, skill and a beautiful streak of subversive mischief.

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Book SynopsisOn an archaeological dig in 1930s India, Rebecca pursues love but violence and a lone man on the mountain disrupt her plans. The excavations reveal dramatic finds but there is more danger present than Rebecca and the team realise.

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Book Synopsis"requite (verb): to return love and affection or, on the other side of the coin, to retaliate for injuries inflicted. MALTA 1941. Eleven-year-old Joe Zarb's life is about to change. The war has created a rubble-strewn, dogfight-watching, soldier-saluting adventure, until a telegram arrives with news of his papa, Victor, that will shatter everything. Twenty years later, with Malta seeking independence from the British Empire, a nurse and a former RAF pilot travel to the island. Beth is looking for Joe, the son of her wartime husband, Victor. Her companion, Stuart, is seeking revenge for the horrific burns he suffered in the war. When they find Joe and a man purporting to be his papa, a chain of events is set in motion that sheds new light on what happened two decades before... Praise for 'Man At Sea': "Intimate and expansive, this tantalising thriller pulses with mysteries, secrets, and surprises. Man at Sea is both timely and historical, at once rich in implication and action. Like the sea itself the story is swift, deep, exhilarating, and ultimately unpredictable." - Kevin MacNeil, Award-winning novelist and Lecturer in Creative Writing, University of Stirling"Trade ReviewIntimate and expansive, this tantalising thriller pulses with mysteries, secrets, and surprises. Man at Sea is both timely and historical, at once rich in implication and action. Like the sea itself the story is swift, deep, exhilarating, and ultimately unpredictable.- Kevin MacNeil, author of The Brilliant and Forever; "A rich exploration of identity, war and sacrifice. Poignant and beautifully written." - Rachelle Atalla, author of The Pharmacist; "In this beguiling book, Liam Bell deftly brings together two parallel worlds. In one, the scars of war are healing. In the other, revenge waits, patiently, ticking like a bomb." - Dr Mandy Haggith,author of the Stone Stories Trilogy

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Book SynopsisA Sunday Independent Book of the Year Against the backdrop of China’s Cultural Revolution and Europe’s sexual revolution, the fates of two families in London and Beijing become unexpectedly intertwined, in this dazzling new novel from the author of Mrs Engels. In London, sisters Iris and Eva plan an attack on the West End theatre where their mother is playing the title role in Miss Julie; in Beijing, Jiang Qing, Chairman Mao’s wife, rehearses a gala performance of her model ballet, which she will use to attack her enemies in the Party. As the preparations for these two performances unfold, these three ‘sisters’ find themselves bound together by the passions of love, by the obsessions of power, and by the forces of history. Exquisitely observed, relevant, and wise, The Sisters Mao shows us that the political is always personal.Trade Review‘McCrea’s portrait of Jiang Qing is a masterpiece of characterisation: at once monstrous and pitiable. The Sisters Mao is dazzlingly clever and original.’ -- Antonia Senior * The Times *‘The work of a master storyteller.’ -- Joseph O’Connor‘A capacious work of social realism … dazzlingly ambitious yet modestly human.’ -- Lara Feigel * The Guardian *‘A study of political madness … modifying the old cliche that the personal is political, the message here is a reminder that the political is always personal.’ -- Phil Baker * The Sunday Times *‘It is impeccably researched and he interweaves the personal and the political to great effect.’ -- Lucy Popescu * Financial Times *‘Manages to combine vast research with lightness of touch and superb insights.’ -- Caitriona Lally * Sunday Independent *‘McCrea’s observations are a joy … this is a novel worth taking time over, for readers anywhere on the political spectrum.’ -- Christopher Harding * The Telegraph *‘Written with McCrea’s trademark confidence and virtuosity, this is a sumptuous, winning book. Its characters are not so much drawn from life (Imelda Marcos makes an entrance) as strange revenants from a turbulent dream. Its high intelligence throws light everywhere, and suggestive shade.’ -- Sebastian Barry‘McCrea has conducted exceptionally deep research to conjure up nuanced, authentic portrayals of the worlds of the book — but the text carries his knowledge lightly, supporting rather than dominating the story. The Sisters Mao is the best sort of historical fiction; one that illuminates the contemporary moment with great insight. Profoundly brilliant, it will no doubt be a huge contender on the literary awards circuit, but also one that is pushed feverishly from reader to reader with excitement.’ -- Helen Cullen * The Irish Times *‘The tremors of Gavin McCrea’s prose thrillingly record what happens as a world spins off its axis, shattering public and private lives. This electrifying fiction confirms McCrea’s status among the leading novelists of his brilliant generation.’ -- Frank McGuinness, author of Someone Who'll Watch Over Me‘The Sisters Mao is a spectacular novel, utterly enthralling and insightful; every voice is penetrating, dazzling. In spite of the setting, it is full of relevance for these times; it manages to be both historically authentic and thrillingly contemporary. Gavin is a writer of extraordinary talent, and I cannot think of a kind of reader who I would not recommend this novel to.’ -- Sara Baume, author of Spill Simmer Falter Wither‘Gavin McCrea is a wonderful writer: bold, innovative, and fiercely intelligent, and these qualities shine from this magnificent novel. I was enthralled from the first sentence to the last.’ -- Donal Ryan, author of Strange Flowers‘A sweeping political saga spanning East and West. McCrea’s confident and lucid prose gives us both the personal and the political. Mesmerising.’ -- Xiaolu Guo, author of A Lover’s Discourse‘Dynamic.’ -- Sebastian Barry * The Irish Times *‘The writing has an engrossing flow of energy, a vigour, and a flair which have the audacity of invention … Given its immensity and arguments the novel could invite comparison with some of the great Russian writers.’ -- Mary Leland * Irish Examiner *‘Major recommendation ... The incredible Gavin McCrea, beloved author of Mrs Engels, publishes his second novel, The Sisters Mao ... It’s profoundly brilliant!’ -- Helen Cullen‘Brilliantly chronicles the corrosive collision between the personal and the political.’ -- Jane Shilling * Daily Mail *‘A new novel that's so powerful I think it's going straight onto my shelf of favourite books. It's a moving, thrilling, and thoughtful story that will captivate you.’ -- Eric Karl Anderson * Lonesome Reader *‘Ideas flow ceaselessly and impact in unexpected ways in Gavin McCrea’s compendious novel.’ -- Neil Hegarty * The Irish Times *‘Ambitious … McCrea writes insightfully about mother-daughter dynamics, the power of theatre, and women’s roles in revolutionary movements.’ * Publishers Weekly *‘A stirring, perceptive exploration of radical politics … a sweeping portrait of three women shaped by fanaticism, dysfunctional families, intra-group sexism, and politics-as-performance … This excellent novel, populated by maddening, memorable characters, offers a timeless reminder of extremism's perils.’ -- Kevin Canfield * Minneapolis Star Tribune *

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Book SynopsisA poisoned breeze blows across the waves ... Operation Cauldron, 1952: Top-secret germ warfare experiments on monkeys and guinea pigs are taking place aboard a vessel moored off the Isle of Lewis. Local villagers Jessie and Duncan encounter strange sights on the deserted beach nearby and suspect the worst. And one government scientist wrestles with his own inner anguish over the testing, even if he believes extreme deterrent weapons are needed. When a noxious cloud of plague bacteria is released into the path of a passing trawler, disaster threatens. Will a deadly pandemic be inevitable? A haunting exploration of the costs and fallout of warmongering, Donald S Murray follows his prize-winning first novel with an equally moving exploration of another little-known incident in the Outer Hebridean island where he grew up.Trade Review'A moving portrait of a place and its people ... a quiet, sad but brilliant novel.' Antonia Senior, Times, Book of the Month in best historical fiction; 'Set in [Murray's] native Lewis as firmly as the stones at Callanish ... it is so credibly drawn that the book is almost a ticket to the island ... it seems an even more impressive achievement than ever.' David Robinson, Books from Scotland; 'Shows yet again how a good novel is capable of making you think and feel at the same time … a rich and sympathetic portrayal of island life in all its diversity … timely and compelling … a novel to savour.' Allan Massie, Scotsman; 'A well-written and well-crafted novel from an author at the height of his powers.' Eric Macintyre, Oban Times

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Book Synopsis1567, Scotland: no place for a woman.Mary, Queen of Scots, is forced to abdicate in favour of her infant son. She can rely only on the loyalty of her ladies-in-waiting, chiefly Marie Seton.Meanwhile the political turmoil in the country is mirrored behind the walls of beautiful Fyvie Castle. Lilias's marriage to Marie's nephew, the ruthlessly ambitious Alexander Seton, goes awry after the birth of yet another daughter. He blames her, and contemplates drastic action. To what lengths will a man go to secure a son and heir?The Green Ladyis a shocking tale of intrigue, secrets, treachery and murder, based on true events, but seen from a different perspective than is found in most history books. Casting a fascinating light on the ruthless nature of power, the story highlights the precarious position of sixteenth-century women, even those in the most privileged of circumstances.

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Book SynopsisFrom the author of the prize-winning As the Women Lay Dreaming comes a remarkable ‘unreliable biography’ of Karl Kjerúlf Einarsson: an artist and an adventurer, a charlatan and a swindler, forever in search of Atlantis. As a child in the windswept, fog-bound Faroe Islands in the late nineteenth century, Karl Einarsson believes he is special, destined for a life of art and adventure. As soon as he can, he sets out for Copenhagen and beyond, styling himself as the Count of St. Kilda. He’s an observer and citizen of nowhere, a serial swindler of aristocrats and Nazis, fishermen and fops. But when his adventures find him in 1930s Berlin, he is forced for the first time to reckon with something much bigger than himself. As the Nazis rise to power around him, his wilful ignorance becomes unwitting complicity, even betrayal. Based on a true story, this is a fantastical tale of island life, of those who leave and those who stay behind, and the many dangers of delusions and false identities.Trade Review'From the first line I know I’m in the hands of a bard and consummate storyteller. The writing is lyrical and hugely descriptive … The history is rich and fascinating.' * Historical Novels Review *

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Book SynopsisDark haired, slight, with deep-set haunted eyes, Herschel Grynszpan is an undocumented Jewish alien living in Paris. He receives a postcard from his parents – recently bundled from their Hanover flat, put on a train and dumped, with 12,000 others on the Polish border. Enraged, Herschel buys a gun and kills a minor German official in the German Embassy. The repercussions trigger Kristalnacht, the nationwide pogrom against the Jews in Germany and Austria, a calamity which some have called the opening act of the Holocaust. Intertwined is the parallel life of the German boxer, Max Schmeling, who as a result of his victory over the then ‘invincible’ Joe Louis in 1936 became the poster boy of the Nazis. He and his movie-star wife, Anny Ondra, were feted by the regime – tea with Hitler, a passage on the airship Hindenburg – until his brutal two-minute beating in the rematch with Louis less than two years later. His story reaches a climax during Kristalnacht, where the champion performs an act of quiet heroism.

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Book SynopsisOccasionally panoramic, more often intimate, in Clouds of Love and War author Rachel Billington balances a detailed and highly researched picture of the life of a Second World War Spitfire pilot with the travails and ambitions of a young woman too often on her own. The result is both a gripping story of war and a sensitive story of love, a love that struggles to survive. Eddie and Eva meet on the eve of the Second World War. Eddie only wants to be a flyer, to find escape in the clouds from his own complicated family. However, the Battle of Britain makes a pilot's life a dangerous way to flee reality. Eva has her own passionate longing: to become a painter. When Eva's Jewish mother disappears to Germany, she is left alone with her elderly father. Both Eddie and Eva come of age at a time that teaches them that happiness is always fleeting, but there are things worth living – or dying – for. Through the connecting stories of these young people and their wider families, and against a background of southern county airfields, London, Oxford, Dorset and France, Rachel Billington brings the world of war time England, now eighty years in the past, back to life.Trade Review"Astonishingly engaging. . . . This book shows an acute understanding of the contradictions which most people felt a lot of the time in this uniquely inclusive conflict. . . . [A] wonderful book of love and war." * Northern Reader *

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Book SynopsisCompleted by Robert Aickman in 1975, but never before widely available, Go Back at Once is a delicious, delirious comic fantasia about the joys and terrors of a life devoted to resisting the degradations of conformism. It tells the story of Cressida Hazeborough and her friend Vivien, two mordantly intelligent young women trying to find their ways in a misty, pre-Depression Britain. The pair have little patience for the company of the marriageable men they are meant to endure, yet neither do they possess the means to live as they might wish: together, and apart from the demands of modern society. What's a girl to do? Having left school and taken the sorts of London job available to women of their age and station, remarkable arrives: a great foreign poet, playwright, athlete, and soldier named Virgilio Vittore has successfully conquered the tiny country of Trino, on the Adriatic Sea, and is now governing it 'according to the laws of music'. Could this new utopia be a refuge for Cressida and Vivien, and indeed all who seek a life less ordinary? Or should the women, having arrived in this chaotic land, where love, life, and politics must submit to the rules of the beautiful, take to heart the advice of the novel's title? Snobbish yet humane, reactionary yet camp, strait-laced yet queer, old-fashioned yet radical, Go Back at Once reveals Robert Aickman as a master not only of the 'strange story', but a satirist deserving of a place alongside the mischievous and venomous greats of the inter-war canon: Firbank, Compton-Burnett, Waugh, Powell.Trade Review‘To try and make sense of [Go Back at Once’s] assortment of images and metaphors is like trying to interpret a feverish dream . . . the pleasure comes not from retaining a firm grasp on meaning, but in yielding to “the greater power of imagination than reality”, something Cressida comes to appreciate herself.’ Andrew Michael Hurley, The Telegraph ---- ‘Aickman's hitherto unpublished second novel . . . is an oddity, a puzzlebox of queerness and a utopian fantasia . . . The prose vibrates with energy.’ Catriona Ward, The Times ---- 'Reading Robert Aickman is like watching a magician work, and very often I'm not even sure what the trick was. All I know is that he did it beautifully.' Neil Gaiman ---- 'In Aickman's fiction, peculiarity is intertwined with a drab twentieth-century realism that is very English and sometimes dryly funny. Think Philip Larkin, or Barbara Pym, gone eldritch.' Anwen Crawford, The New Yorker ---- 'His name should be placed among the greats-Flannery O'Connor, Irwin Shaw, Raymond Carver . . . You will never forget the first Aickman story you read, nor be satisfied when you've read them all.' John Darnielle ---- 'Unsettling is a key description for Aickman's writing, not merely in the sense of creating anxiety, but in the sense of undoing what has been settled: his stories unsettle the ideas you bring to them about how fictional reality and consensus reality should fit together . . . He was drawn to ghost stories because they provided him with conventions for unmaking the conventional world, but he was about as much of a traditional ghost story writer as Salvador Dali was a typical designer of pocket watches.' Matthew Cheney, Electric Literature ---- '[The] most profound writer of what we call horror stories.' Peter Straub ---- 'With brilliant dialogue and oblivious schlepping, a la Stoppard's Guildenstern and Rosencrantz, Aickman's two hilarious ladies-in-waiting wander through the horrors of war, men of all disastrousies, and political upheaval unfazed.' Ian McCord, Avid Bookshop ---- 'For fans of cutting remarks, philosophy, and scandalous divorcees.' Booklist ---- '[T]his novel offers readers...a witty, sophisticated work of 20th-century British fiction.' Kirkus Reviews ---- 'Mesmerizing. This unconventional story gets by on the author's sly wit.' Publishers Weekly ---- 'There's a nice light touch to the writing...it all skips along nicely and if it all isn't quite clear, the sheer oddity of the place and events is just as baffling to its two protagonists...It makes for a quite charming novel of two young innocents learning about life.' The Complete Review

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Book SynopsisJuggling with our perception of time and reality, Still Life tells the story of an author struggling to write a biography of Scottish poet and abolitionist Thomas Pringle. In her efforts to resurrect Pringle, the writer summons the spectre of Mary Prince, the West Indian slave whose History Pringle published, along with Hinza, his adopted black South African son. As these voices vie for control over the text and the lines between life writing and fiction-making begin to blur, yet another voice enters the chorus: Sir Nicholas Greene, the self-regarding poet from Virginia Woolf's novel Orlando. Their adventures through time and space, from Victorian South Africa and London to the author's desk in Glasgow in the present day, offer a poignant yet often playful exploration of colonial history and racial oppression

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Book SynopsisThis carefully researched and highly engaging story takes you back to the 14th century, where a mystical Gothic abbey is destined for tragedy; and also back to the 20th century when the abbey, with its grotesque stone guardians, is resurrected as a contemporary psychiatric hospital. 'Fisher of Souls' is a dark, provocative, disturbing, often humorous psychological tale. Its satirical theme of demonising others resonates with many conflicts of today.

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Book Synopsis‘Buying Your Granddaughter’ is a gripping story of women wrestling power for themselves in First Century Palestine in order to survive at a time when women are traded and sold like chattels. Tabitha needs a man to save Miriam, her granddaughter, but not just any man. She needs Ezekiel, the man she hates most. Ezekiel sold Tabitha’s maid, Tira, into slavery to another Hebrew tribe and Tira was killed. The Romans are hunting Miriam as her husband was a Zealot in the Judean Revolt. Tabitha plans to have Miriam bought as a slave and supposedly sold to a Gentile so that she can be taken to safety. Ezekiel is the only person short of a real slaver who can believably do this. Can they pull off Tabitha’s audacious plan or will their personal enmity destroy the mission?

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Book Synopsis‘Seychelles Idyll’ is an evocative, gripping novella set in a remote part of the British Empire at around the time when colonial rule was coming to an end. With miniscule resources, those involved in preparing for the handover to independence in the Seychelles had to deal with problems that had arisen from years of neglect, racism, and old-fashioned colonial snobbery. The situation was made more complicated by international powers having an interest in the outcome. In order to assist in turning the Seychelles police into a modern service capable of dealing with the oncoming demands of independence, Ed Morris, a police inspector from London is sent to help. Seen through his eyes the events that take place are complicated, demanding, hilarious,

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