Historical Fiction Books

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Book SynopsisNEW YORK TIMES BEST SELLER! Also known as 2ha, the wildly popular danmei/Boys' Love novel series from China that inspired a multimedia franchise! A historical fantasy epic about a tyrant's second chance at life and the powerful cultivation teacher he can't get out of his mind.

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Book SynopsisPerfect for fans Rosie Clarke and Annie Groves, comes a novel that will delight everyone that loved Call the Midwife and Foyle's War. The first in a fabulous new series from the creator of ITV smash-hit Home Fires.In Britain's darkest hour, an extraordinary community of women strives to protect the Home Front. When an enemy plane crashes into the village, every one of their lives will change for ever . . . Frances Barden, Chair of Great Paxford's Women's Institue, feels it's her role to lead the community. But as her factory is shut down and her husband's secret child arrives at her door, she finds she'll need the support of every woman in the WI. Luckily she has Pat Simms, Erica Campbell and Steph Farrow to turn to.But as the war escalates, each woman finds herself facing challenges she never expected and threats she couldn't have imagined. When a plane crashes in the heart of their village, every one of their lives will change for ever. Will their combined strength be enough to get them through the war?Keep the Home Fires Burning is also available as a four-part ebook serial that begins with Part One: Spitfire Down!. Look out for the second book in this fabulous series coming in 2018. Search 9781785764301.What you are saying about Keep the Home Fires Burning: 'I'd put it on par with Call the Midwife . . . great characters and a strong story . . .''Love, love, love this book!!!''Beautiful, nuanced characters . . . you'll find yourself laughing and crying along with everyone in Great Paxford''It is so warm, pulling you into the lives of these strong courageous women, sharing their deepest fears and highest joys . . . Wonderfully compelling''Read it all in one sitting. I can hardly wait for the next instalment''An excellent story''I absolutely adore these books''I have enjoyed these books immensely''I feel like I actually know the Great Paxford community and their struggles. So looking forward to the next book''Has me sitting on the edge of my seat''Several scenes brought tears to both my husband and my eyes . . .''Wonderful story, great characterisations and full of personal valour!''Could not stop reading . . . you feel such empathy with the characters and the storylines are so gripping and involve the reader emotionally''This story just gets more interesting''Absolutely brilliant book, couldn't put it down''Can't wait for the next book''Well-rounded, diverse and complex characters''Wasn't sure it would be as good as TV, but was I wrong . . . couldn't put it down''Totally wonderful in every way''Loved it, couldn't put it down''I can't wait to read the next book''Excellent''Looking forward to the next instalment already''Love reading about these characters and their storylines. Five stars''Savouring every scene''I highly recommend this book and I am anxiously looking forward to the next book!''I just love this book''Brilliant''I can't wait to read the next book''Loved the TV series. Loved the book''I just want more and more'Trade ReviewI very quickly became embroiled . . . a really enjoyable book. Greatly looking forward to the next one * Rosie Goodwin *

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Book SynopsisThe new heartwarming wartime saga in the Home Fires series, perfect for fans of Rosie Clarke and Annie Groves.In the midst of World War II, the members of one village WI fight harder than ever to help the war effort . . .But behind closed doors, each is fighting a more personal battle.Pat Simms is reeling from her own role in her abusive husband's death, and the new freedom before her is daunting. Sarah Collingborne is struggling with the absence of her husband, who is stranded in a POW camp abroad, and trying her best to fill his treasured place in the village.Meanwhile, Teresa Lucas is anxious about her future as a parent, and her friend Alison Scotlock is on the verge of starting a new relationship. And Miriam Brindsley's good luck might be about to change . . .Grieving for men already lost and anxious for those still away fighting, the women of Great Paxford must rely on each other. Amidst the complexities of broken relationships, loss and friendship, this group of very different women must work together to find a way through.

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Book SynopsisBOOK 4 IN THE EPIC HISTORICAL SAGA OF THE COURTNEY FAMILY, FROM INTERNATIONAL SENSATION WILBUR SMITH'Smith will take you on an exciting, taut and thrilling journey you will never forget' - Sun'With Wilbur Smith the action is never further than the turn of a page' - Independent'No one does adventure quite like Smith' - Daily MirrorLOVE IN A TIME OF WAR. HOPE IN A TIME OF CRISIS.One of the greatest fighter pilots of the Great War, Michael Courtney, is saved by the French noblewoman Centaine de Thiry when he crashes near her home. A wild love affair begins, but as the war still rages, tragedy strikes.Centaine is left on her own, heartbroken, homeless and pregnant with Michael's child. Desperate, she determines to travel across the ocean to join his family in South Africa.But no journey is ever simple, and Centaine finds herself shipwrecked off Africa's notorious Skeleton Coast, a deadly swim away from the sun-bleached desert that will see her left defenceless and alone. When hope arrives, she has no way of knowing if she will be saved -or left in greater danger than ever before . . .A Courtney Series adventure - Book 1 in The Burning Shore sequenceThe Burning Shore is the exceptional and inspiring first title in the second sequence of the Courtney family saga from Wilbur Smith, one of the best and most beloved authors of the century.Book 5 in the Courtney family series, The Power of the Sword, is available now.

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Book SynopsisBOOK 1 IN A THRILLING NEW ANCIENT EGYPTIAN SERIES, FROM INTERNATIONAL SENSATION WILBUR SMITH'Best historical novelist' - Stephen King 'A master storyteller' - Sunday Times 'Wilbur Smith is one of those benchmarks against whom others are compared' - The Times 'No one does adventure quite like Smith' - Daily Mirror IN THE HEART OF EGYPTUNDER THE WATCHFUL EYE OF THE GODSA NEW POWER IS RISING In the city of Lahun, Hui lives an enchanted life. The favoured son of a doting father, and ruler-in-waiting of the great city, his fate is set. But behind the beautiful façades a sinister evil is plotting. Craving power and embittered by jealousy, Hui's stepmother, the great sorceress Isetnofret, and Hui's own brother Qen, orchestrate the downfall of Hui's father, condemning Hui and seizing power in the city. Cast out and alone, Hui finds himself a captive of a skilled and powerful army of outlaws, the Hyksos. Determined to seek vengeance for the death of his father and rescue his sister, Ipwet, Hui swears his allegiance to these enemies of Egypt. Through them he learns the art of war, learning how to fight and becoming an envied charioteer. But soon Hui finds himself in an even greater battle - one for the very heart of Egypt itself. As the pieces fall into place and the Gods themselves join the fray, Hui finds himself fighting alongside the Egyptian General Tanus and renowned mage, Taita. Now Hui must choose his path - will he be a hero in the old world, or a master in a new kingdom?Book 1 in The New Kingdom Sequence and book 7 in the Ancient Egyptian series from the master historical adventure writer, Wilbur Smith. Don't miss the rest of the epic Ancient Egyptian Series, available now.'The New Kingdom' was a Sunday Times bestseller w/e 05-09-2021.

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Book Synopsis A beautiful tale of endurance, identity, and memory in WWII Singapore, for fans of Min Jin Lee's Pachinko and Nguyen Phan Que Mai's The Mountains Sing Singapore, 1942. As Japanese troops sweep down Malaysia and into Singapore, a village is ransacked. Only three survivors remain, one of them a tiny child. In a neighbouring village, seventeen-year-old Wang Di is bundled into the back of a troop carrier and shipped off to a Japanese military rape camp. In the year 2000, her mind is still haunted by her experiences there, but she has long been silent about her memories of that time. It takes twelve-year-old Kevin, and the mumbled confession he overhears from his ailing grandmother, to set in motion a journey into the unknown to discover the truth. Weaving together two timelines and two life-changing secrets, How We Disappeared is an evocative, profoundly moving and utterly dazzling novel heralding the arrival of a new literary star. Shortlisted for the 2020 Singapore Literature Prize * Longlisted for the HWA Debut Crown 'A heartbreaking but hopeful story about memory, trauma and ultimately love.' New York Times Trade Review‘Deeply affecting.’ * Financial Times *‘A sweeping epic and...an essential read... It's incredibly beautifully written.’ * Sharlene Teo, author of Ponti *‘A heartbreaking but hopeful story about memory, trauma and ultimately love.’ * New York Times *‘This heartbreaking story explores shame and secrecy through two timelines, woven together in this deeply moving novel. A quite extraordinary book.’ * Kirsty Wark, BBC Talking Books *‘Fascinating, horrifying, powerful, and quite beautifully told.’ * Irish Examiner *‘A powerful tale of wartime Singapore and the shame of silence...haunting... Read it and weep, read it and marvel, but above all, read it.’ * South China Morning Post *‘Culturally authentic…the writing has grace.’ * Sunday Times *‘The brilliance of the writing makes it harder to bear. It’s powerful and profound.’ * Irish Independent *‘A haunting and vivid account of Singapore's fall...beautifully crafted... A writer to watch from a fascinating part of Asia where great civilisations meet.’ * Prospect *‘Compelling... a visceral yet tender exploration of truth and its consequences, and the redemptive power of memory.’ * Irish Times *‘A beautifully written, suspenseful story of redemption and healing.’ * Booklist (Starred Review) *‘An elegiac and at times extremely harrowing novel... How We Disappeared bears unflinching testimony to war crimes that are still on the brink of living memory.’ * The Straits Times, Singapore *‘A beautifully controlled novel that tells an utterly compelling and important story. Jing-Jing Lee's prose is crystal clear, the narrative scope is sweeping and devastating, and the story is as deeply felt and well observed as it is captivating.' * Caoilinn Hughes, author of Orchid & the Wasp *'Lee's harrowing novel ventures into one of Singapore's darkest periods... This novel bears unflinching, vital testimony to war crimes and those who have fallen through the cracks of history.' * The Straits Times, Best Books of 2019 *'This novel unflinchingly examines the horrific acts carried out in Singapore during the Second World War, but manages to be hopeful and uplifting, too.' * Sunday Express *‘Raises poignant questions regarding multi-generational trauma, accelerated modernization, and changing identity… Lee vibrantly describes life in pre-occupation Singapore, managing to cinch both the particularity and the universality of oppression.’ * Singapore Unbound *'Jing-Jing Lee writes like a poet... This was a hard story to tell, to hear and to read, but it is also an important story which demands to exist and Jing-Jing Lee has brought it to life... Congratulations. Every single hour I spent reading this was an hour which could not have been better spent.' * Catherine Chanter, author of The Well *‘Heartbreaking and meticulously researched, this novel is a meditation on the legacy of violence.’ * Book Riot *‘A heartbreaking story told with such humanity and grace. The details of How We Disappeared are so vivid they return to me in dreams.’ * Marti Leimbach, bestselling author of Dying Young and Daniel Isn't Talking *'A shattering, tender and absorbing novel… Meticulously researched, exquisitely written, with characters that will live and breathe in your heart long after you finish the last page... I’m reeling from its power—what an absolute triumph.' * Fiona Mitchell, author of The Maid’s Room *‘The dazzling storytelling illuminates the brutalities of life in Japanese-occupied Singapore... Haunting, harrowing, sweeping and compelling, this is a courageous story of survival, memory, and how we deal with trauma.’ * LoveReading *'How We Disappeared is a masterpiece of storytelling. Evocative and heart rending, it tells of one woman’s survival in occupied Singapore, and the quest of a child to solve a family mystery. It is beautifully written, exquisitely crafted, and utterly compelling.' * Mary Chamberlain, author of The Dressmaker of Dachau and The Hidden *‘Based on true events, which Lee gives a dignified voice to. Deeply affecting.’ * Australian Women's Weekly *‘This is a brilliant, heartbreaking story with an unforgettable image of how women were silenced and disappeared by both war and culture.’ * Xinran, author of The Good Women of China *'How We Disappeared is a remarkable, original novel that uncovers the long-silenced atrocities that the ‘comfort women’ in Singapore suffered at the hands of the Japanese during WWII. Through gorgeous prose, tremendous pathos, and even humor, Jing-Jing Lee portrays the intersection of past and present and the courage to bear witness. How We Disappeared is an important, spell-binding debut.” * Spencer Wise, author of The Emperor of Shoes *'An exquisite mystery, an enthralling novel. Equally touching and intriguing, How We Disappeared is a soaring debut of surviving the unsurvivable [and] a searing and shocking reminder of a history many would like to forget, and of the endurance of the human spirit.' * Eoin Dempsey, author of White Rose, Black Forest *‘Jing-Jing Lee's novel is a testament to...strength in the face of profound cruelty.’ * OUTinPerth *‘Memory and forgetting are at the heart of How We Disappeared... Lee's novel shines a light into the darkest chapter of Singapore's history.’ * SA Weekend *‘A powerful and confronting story... How We Disappeared puts a blowtorch to our emotions.’ * Qantas magazine, Travel Insider *‘A story of survival and endurance in Japanese-occupied Singapore.’ * Deccan Herald *

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Book SynopsisThey will have justice. They will show their power. They will not burn.'Three women's fight for survival in a time of madness' Kiran Millwood Hargrave, author of The MerciesNorway, 1662. A dangerous time to be a woman, when even dancing can lead to accusations of witchcraft. After recently widowed Zigri's affair with the local merchant is discovered, she is sent to the fortress at Vardø to be tried as a witch.Zigri's daughter Ingeborg sets off into the wilderness to try to bring her mother back home. Accompanying her on this quest is Maren - herself the daughter of a witch - whose wild nature and unconquerable spirit gives Ingeborg the courage to venture into the unknown, and to risk all she has to save her family.Also captive in the fortress is Anna Rhodius, once the King of Denmark's mistress, who has been sent in disgrace to the island of Vardø. What will she do - and who will she betray - to return to her privileged life at court?These Witches of Vardø are stronger than even the King. In an age weighted against them, they refuse to be victims. They will have their justice. All they need do is show their power.'An intricately woven, timeless novel about prejudice, misogyny, freedom and the power and strength we can find within' - Christy Lefteri, author of The Beekeeper of Aleppo'A passionate indictment of the patriarchy ... a vibrant exaltation of the resilience of women ... Anya Bergman summons a historic witch trial with breathtaking detail and immediacy' Hannah Kent, author of Burial Rites'Brilliant and powerful. Haunting and beautifully written. A complex and gripping novel reclaiming and retelling the stories of the women accused of witchcraft in Norway. Hugely atmospheric. Read it!' - Liz Hyder, author of The Gifts

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Book SynopsisThroughout the 1940s, forgers helped thousands of children escape Nazi France. In this instant New York Times bestseller, Kristin Harmel reimagines their story... Perfect for readers of The Tattooist of Auschwitz, The Librarian of Auschwitz and The Book Thief. In 1942, Eva is forced to flee Paris after the arrest of her father, a Polish Jew. Finding refuge in a small mountain town, she begins forging identity documents for Jewish children escaping to neutral Switzerland. But erasing people comes with a price, and along with a mysterious, handsome forger named Rémy, Eva realises she must find a way to preserve the real names of the children who are too young to remember their own identities.When Rémy disappears and the resistance cell they work for is betrayed, the records they keep in The Book of Lost Names become even more crucial to remembering the truth...A present day discovery of the book leaves researchers fascinated by its origins and desperate to decipher its codes. Only Eva holds the answer but will she have the strength to face old memories and help reunite those lost during the war?If you loved The Book of Lost Names, don't miss Kristin Harmel's The Winemaker's Wife, available now. ___________What readers are saying about The Book of Lost Names: 'A heart-stopping tale of survival and heroism centered on a female forger who risks everything to help Jewish children escape Nazi-occupied France' People Magazine, '20 Best Books to Read this Summer''Brilliantly imagined ... This thoughtful work will touch readers with its testament to the endurance of hope' Publishers Weekly, Starred Review'Harmel illuminates heartbreakingly real but forgotten stories from WW2, blended with a dash of suspense and romance' Booklist'A fascinating, heartrending page-turner' Kristina McMorris, New York Times bestselling author'This moving novel will resonate with readers who love World War II stories about courage, survival and resilience' Bookbub'Smart, evocative and utterly engrossing' getliterary.com'An engaging and evocative novel ... A testament to the resilience of the human spirit and the power of bravery and love in the face of evil' Goodreads'One of my favourite July 2020 book releases ... The discussion of identity with themes of religion, family, selflessness, and nationhood will sit with you long after closing the last chapter' theuncorkedlibrarian.com'It's a fabulous read that you will fly through, but not without shedding some tears' freshfiction.com'This is a beautifully written story that captured my attention and heart from the very first pages!' Reading Between the Pages BlogWhat readers are saying about The Winemaker's Wife:'Engrossing ... A suspenseful tale of courage and sacrifice' Pam Jenoff, NYT bestselling author 'What could be better than [...] a writer as compulsively readable as Kristin Harmel? Pick up this epic and heart-wrenching WWII tale immediately!' Alyson Noël, #1 NYT bestselling author'Once you start reading this moving novel, you will not be able to put it down until you reach the last page' Armando Lucas Correa, bestselling author'Written in heart-wrenching prose, The Winemaker's Wife is a complex story of love, betrayal and impossible courage ... I couldn't turn the pages fast enough' Anita Hughes, bestselling authorTrade Review'A heart-stopping tale of survival and heroism centered on a female forger who risks everything to help Jewish children escape Nazi-occupied France' - People Magazine, '20 Best Books to Read this Summer''Brilliantly imagined ... This thoughtful work will touch readers with its testament to the endurance of hope' - Publishers Weekly, Starred Review'Harmel illuminates heartbreakingly real but forgotten stories from WW2, blended with a dash of suspense and romance' - Booklist'A fascinating, heartrending page-turner' - Kristina McMorris, New York Times bestselling author'This moving novel will resonate with readers who love World War II stories about courage, survival and resilience' - Bookbub'Smart, evocative and utterly engrossing' - getliterary.com'An engaging and evocative novel ... A testament to the resilience of the human spirit and the power of bravery and love in the face of evil' - Goodreads'One of my favourite July 2020 book releases ... The discussion of identity with themes of religion, family, selflessness, and nationhood will sit with you long after closing the last chapter' - theuncorkedlibrarian.com'It's a fabulous read that you will fly through, but not without shedding some tears' - freshfiction.com'This is a beautifully written story that captured my attention and heart from the very first pages!' - Reading Between the Pages Blog

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Book SynopsisIn the Four Streets, a dreadful murder has been committed and 14-year-old Kitty Doherty is pregnant with the dead man's child. This secret is so dangerous that it is decided Kitty must go to Ireland to await the baby's birth. But in Liverpool, the police aren't giving up their search for the truth. Somewhere, in this tight-knit Irish Catholic community, someone must know something. The streets are alive with gossip and rumour, and it isn't easy to keep a secret that big. Another stunning novel from the bestselling author of The Four Streets.Trade ReviewPRAISE FOR NADINE DORRIES: 'The characters are engaging, the streets scenes cinematic and the theme of the novel powerful' The Times. 'A vigorous and vibrant story... to be devoured in one sitting' Sunday Express. 'Fabulous characters... gorgeous sentences and sensational plotlines' With Love For Books. 'Catholic Liverpool, Irish immigrants and dark secrets... I couldn't put it down' Cristina Odone. 'Captivating, phenomenal and touching' * 23 Review Street *

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Book SynopsisThe first in a gripping new historical fantasy series that intertwines Irish mythology with real-life history, The Children of Gods and Fighting Men is the thrilling debut novel by Shauna Lawless. They think they've killed the last of us... 981 AD. The Viking King of Dublin is dead. His young widow, Gormflaith, has ambitions for her son – and herself – but Ireland is a dangerous place and kings tend not to stay kings for long. Gormflaith also has a secret. She is one of the Fomorians, an immortal race who can do fire-magic. She has kept her powers hidden at all costs, for there are other immortals in this world – like the Tuatha Dé Danann, a race of warriors who are sworn to kill Fomorians. Fódla is one of the Tuatha Dé Danann with the gift of healing. Her kind dwell hidden in a fortress, forbidden to live amongst the mortals. Fódla agrees to help her kin by going to spy on Brian Boru, a powerful man who aims to be High King of Ireland. She finds a land on the brink of war – a war she is desperate to stop. However, preventing the loss of mortal lives is not easy with Ireland in turmoil and the Fomorians now on the rise... Reviews for The Children of Gods and Fighting Men 'Lawless blends fantasy with historical fiction to great effect.' SFX 'A novel that celebrates the extraordinary history of Ireland while giving voice to the women who helped shape it. Highly recommended.' Lucy Holland 'An excellent read.' Mark Lawrence 'Highlander meets The Last Kingdom... I was hooked from page one.' Anthony Ryan 'Gripping and beautiful. A Celtic Last Kingdom with wild magic and fierce heroines.' Anna Smith Spark 'A beguiling blend of fantasy, history, and politics.' D.K. Fields 'A vividly written story that makes the ancient past feel contemporary.' Joseph O'Connor 'Rife with atmosphere and armies, magic and compelling characters, it swept me along and refused to be put down.' H.M. Long 'An epic historical fantasy that weaves myth and history into a sprawling tale of magic, intrigue, and war. Absorbing and richly detailed.' Ian Green 'With all the complex political machinations of A Song of Ice and Fire and the bloody battles of The Warlord Chronicles, it's ideal for fans of both.' Stephen Aryan 'An atmospheric journey into a thrilling historical fantasy world.' R.J. BarkerTrade ReviewHighlander meets The Last Kingdom as feuding clans of magical undying vie for control of tenth-century Ireland in this assured and captivating debut. Themes of motherhood and conflicted obligation lie at the heart of Shauna Lawless's historical fantasy, explored through the eyes of two powerful women compelled to navigate a land where men hold sway, or think they do. I was hooked from page one -- Anthony RyanAbsolutely luminous... It's a huge, epic, admirable sweep of a novel * Sunday Independent *A compelling and fascinating tale, written with great skill, that draws the reader into a world full of magic, betrayal, warring kings and mythology. With all the complex political machinations of A Song of Ice and Fire and the bloody battles of The Warlord Chronicles, it's ideal for fans of both -- Stephen AryanGripping and beautiful. A Celtic Last Kingdom with wild magic and fierce heroines -- Anna Smith SparkLawless writes historical fiction steeped in fantasy and mythology like Bernard Cornwell, Mary Stewart, and Stephen Lawhead at the top of their games. I don't say this lightly either, I'm aware of the track record and accomplishments of these authors. But I have to say that Lawless more than holds her own among that lofty company. If you are an admirer of those books, you will absolutely love this... Shauna Lawless has loudly and triumphantly announced her presence to the world with this unforgettable debut and first book in the Gael Song series * Out Of This World SFF *Lawless blends fantasy with historical fiction to great effect * SFX *A vividly written story that makes the ancient past feel contemporary -- Joseph O'Connor, author of Star of the Sea and ShadowplayI really enjoyed the book. It's an excellent read -- Mark LawrenceA beguiling blend of fantasy, history, and politics... Every turn of the page ratchets up the tension. To read this novel is to fall into a richly imagined web of lives. A gripping start to this series -- D.K. FieldsAn atmospheric journey into a thrilling historical fantasy world that feels like it should be real -- R.J. BarkerAn epic historical fantasy that weaves myth and history into an sprawling tale of magic, intrigue, and war. Through the perspectives of Gormflaith and Fódla we pass through the years at a breakneck speed... Lawless weaves a complex and enticing narrative: there are plots and counterplots, and we move through the years swiftly as these slow plans grow to fruition. The intricacies of life in tenth-century Ireland are lovingly portrayed, from the cultural mix of Vikings, Irish, and English, to the merchant markets full of traders from far off lands. A must-read for those who love Irish mythology and history. An absorbing and richly detailed historical fantasy -- Ian GreenA great debut and an enjoyable read for any fantasy fan * SF Crowsnest *Delivers an intriguing blend of Irish history and folklore fantasy... Quietly excellent * Geek Dad *

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Book Synopsis'In this superb fantasy saga of tough, old martial-arts masters and inexperienced young heroes, Wesley Chu has given us a richly inventive page-turner that delights on every page.' — Helene Wecker, author of The Golem and the JinniAn epic fantasy ode to martial arts and magic about what happens when a prophesied hero is not the chosen one after all, from the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Lives of Tao.So many stories begin the same way: With a prophecy. A Chosen One. And the inevitable quest to slay a villain, save the kingdom, and fulfil a grand destiny. But this is not that kind of story.It does begin with a prophecy: A child will rise to defeat the Eternal Khan, a cruel immortal god-king, and save the kingdom. And that prophecy did anoint a hero, Jian, raised since birth in luxury and splendour, and celebrated before he has won a single battle.But that's when the story hits its first twist: The prophecy was wrong.What follows is a story more wondrous than any prophecy can foresee, and with many unexpected heroes: Taishi, an older woman who is the greatest grandmaster of magical martial arts in the kingdom but who thought her adventuring days were all behind her; Sali, a straitlaced warrior who learns the rules may no longer apply when the leader she pledged her life to is gone; and Qisami, a chaotic assassin who takes a little too much pleasure in the kill.And Jian himself, who has to find a way to become what he no longer believes he can be — a hero after all.

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Book SynopsisLONGLISTED FOR THE BOOKER PRIZE 2023LONGLISTED FOR THE WALTER SCOTT PRIZE FOR HISTORICAL FICTIONA SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLERA FINANCIAL TIMES, NEW STATESMAN, NEW YORKER AND WASHINGTON POST BOOK OF THE YEARWillie Somerset Maugham is one of the greatest writers of the early twentieth century. But in 1921 he is beleaguered by an unhappy marriage, ill-health and business interests that have gone badly awry. He is also struggling to write.His friend Robert Hamlyn offers an escape in the Straits Settlements of Penang, where Robert''s steely wife Lesley learns to see Willie as he is - a man who has no choice but to mask his true self.As Willie prepares to leave, Lesley confides in him secrets of her own, including how she came to know the charismatic revolutionary Dr Sun Yat Sen. And more scandalous still, her connection to an Englishwoman charged with murder in the Kuala Lumpur courts - a tragedy drawn from fact, a

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Book SynopsisThe Sunday Times Top 10 Bestseller ‘Brutal yet beautiful, heartfelt yet harrowing, this is one compulsive read’ Susan Stokes-Chapman Amara has escaped her life as a slave in Pompeii’s most notorious brothel. She now has a house, fine clothes, servants – but all are gifts from her patron, hers for as long as she keeps her place in his affections. As she adjusts to this new life, Amara is still haunted by her past. At night she dreams of the wolf den, and the women she left behind. By day, she is pursued by her former slavemaster. In order to be truly free, Amara will need to be as ruthless as he is. She knows she can draw strength from Venus, the goddess of love. Yet falling in love herself may prove to be Amara’s downfall. Praise for The House with the Golden Door: 'Beautiful, moving, captivating... A brilliant sequel to The Wolf Den' Jennifer Saint 'Vivid, unsentimental and compelling' The Times '[A] gripping sequel... Harper's recreation of this ancient world continues to thrill' Observer 'Gripping and richly imagined, this is spellbinding storytelling' Louise O'Neill 'A spell-binding novel that brings Pompeii back to life and explores enslavement in all its forms' Anna Mazzola 'Absolutely stunning and utterly gripping!' Buki PapillonTrade ReviewSo beautiful, moving, captivating and thrilling. The House with the Golden Door is a brilliant sequel to The Wolf Den -- Jennifer Saint, author of AriadneVivid, unsentimental and compelling * The Times *Vivid, gripping, and richly imagined, this is spellbinding storytelling -- Louise O'Neill[A] gripping sequel... Harper's recreation of this ancient world continues to thrill * Observer *A gripping and spell-binding novel that brings Pompeii back to life and explores enslavement in all its forms -- Anna MazzolaAbsolutely stunning and utterly gripping! -- Buki PapillonRichly evocative, and reeling with drama and the determined passion and conflicts of its unforgettable heroine, this is historical fiction at its most thrillingly entertaining * LoveReading *Beautifully written with great heart... Addictive reading * NB Magazine *Meticulously researched, it's another brilliant look at the inhabitants of this fascinating ancient city * Woman & Home *Ancient Pompeii comes to life in the second installment in Elodie Harper's Wolf Den trilogy... with Harper's clear prose and modern dialogue * Historical Novel Society *

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Book Synopsis'Dramatic and colourful' SUNDAY TIMES'Beautiful writing' GILES KRISTIAN Treason, heresy and revolt in Queen Elizabeth's England . . . The year is 1600. With a dying queen on the throne, war raging on the high seas and famine on the rise, England is on the brink of chaos. And in London's dark alleyways, a conspiracy is brewing. In the court's desperate bid to silence it, an innocent man is found guilty - the father of Nicholas Shelby, physician and spy. As Nicholas races against time to save his father, he and his wife Bianca are drawn into the centre of a treacherous plot against the queen.When one of Shakespeare's boy actors goes missing, and Bianca discovers a disturbing painting that could be a clue, she embarks on her own investigation. Meanwhile, as Nicholas comes closer to unveiling the real conspirator, the men who wish to silence him are multiplying. When he stumbles on a plan to overthrow the state and replace it with a terrifying new order, he may be forced to make a decision between his country and his heart . . .Trade ReviewThe third in Perry's series is as dramatic and colourful as the previous two. * The Sunday Times *An absolute belter of a read and another fabulous addition to the Jackdaw Mysteries series... I just gobbled up the pages as the story fairly roars along battling spies and pirates on route... S. W. Perry ensures the sights, smells and sounds of London and Morocco entered my very being. I love this series. -- Liz Robinson * LoveReading, Picks of the month *The writing is of such a quality, the characters so engaging and the setting so persuasive that, only two books in, S.W. Perry's ingeniously plotted novels have become my favourite historical crime series. * S. G. MacLean on The Serpent's Mark *A satisfyingly convoluted plot. * Sunday Times on The Serpent's Mark *No-one is better than S. W. Perry at leading us through the squalid streets of London in the sixteenth century. * Andrew Swanston on The Serpent's Mark *The Serpent's Mark is an excellent evocation of Elizabethan England, with espionage, intricate conspiracies, strange medical practises and a gripping story. A rattling good read. * William Ryan on The Serpent's Mark *A gorgeous book - rich, intelligent and dark in equal measure. It immerses you in the late 16th century and leaves you wrung out with terror. This is historical fiction at its most sumptuous. * Rory Clements on The Angel's Mark *Wonderful! Beautiful writing, and Perry's Elizabethan London is so skilfully evoked, so real that one can almost smell it. * Giles Kristian on The Angel's Mark *

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Book SynopsisA hilarious tale of divorce and dating from the No.1 bestselling author of The Christmas Invitation. Perfect for fans of Katie Fforde and Carole Matthews First comes marriage. Then comes divorce. Then it’s every woman for herself… When Charlie’s husband Matt tells her that he wants a divorce she has to start from scratch. Suddenly single, broke and approaching forty, she is forced to return to her childhood home in the Yorkshire moors. Living with her father and eccentric siblings could be considered a challenge, but soon Charlie finds her new life somewhat refreshing. Now that she’s single she’s got no need to dye her roots nor to be the perfect wife and she can return to her first love – painting. But just as she begins to feel settled, handsome, bad-tempered actor Mace North moves in down the road and starts mixing things up for Charlie in more ways than one… Praise for Trisha Ashley: ‘One of the best writers around!’ Katie Fforde ‘Full of down-to-earth humour’ Sophie Kinsella ‘A warm-hearted and comforting read. Trisha at her best’ Carole Matthews ‘An absolute delight. Every Woman for Herself is a laugh-out-loud read that leaves you feeling pleased with the world’ Take a BreakTrade ReviewPraise for Trisha Ashley: ‘One of the best writers around!’ Katie Fforde ‘Full of down-to-earth humour’ Sophie Kinsella ‘A warm-hearted and comforting read. Trisha at her best’ Carole Matthews

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Book SynopsisA tale of high adventure and survival!In the early twentieth century, Russo-Japanese War veteran Saichi Sugimoto searches the wilderness of Hokkaido for a hoard of hidden gold. With only a cryptic map and a native Ainu girl to help him, Saichi must also deal with every murderous cutthroat, bandit and rogue who knows about the treasure!After escaping the battle with Lieutenant Tsurumi’s forces at Goryokaku, Sugimoto, Asirpa, Hijikata, and their comrades board a train headed for Hakodate—but the train is loaded with Tsurumi’s 7th Division troops! The quest for the gold has become a bloody struggle for the Ainu deed and the fate of Hokkaido and the Ainu people. As the train hurtles toward the end of the line, Sugimoto and Asirpa face Tsurumi for the last time. This epic story of survival, death, betrayal, madness, redemption, family, love, and honor comes to a close in the final volume of Golden Kamuy!

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Book SynopsisFrom an award-winning author, Fingersmith is an extraordinary, ingenious tale of fraud, insanity and secretsLondon 1862. Sue Trinder, orphaned at birth, grows up among petty thieves - fingersmiths - under the rough but loving care of Mrs Sucksby and her ''family''. But from the moment Sue draws breath, her fate is linked to that of another orphan growing up in a gloomy mansion not too many miles away. ''A page turning thriller while managing to be a tender love story'' Adam Kay''Intensely atmospheric, impeccably paced, and cunningly structured'' Mail on Sunday''A chilling, ingenious erotic thriller - unputdownable'' Sunday Express''Long, dark, twisted and satisfying... An unforgettable experience'' Julie Myerson, Guardian

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Book SynopsisThe sweeping new novel from New York Times bestselling author Katherine Arden.''A wonderful clash of fire and ice ... A book you won''t want to let go of.'' Diana Gabaldon''A spectacular tour de force ... I love this book so much and want everyone to read it!'' Naomi Novik''Well-researched and beautifully written, this is a compelling, memorable novel.' The Guardian''Darkly beautiful and deeply humane ... The Warm Hands of Ghosts will stir your heart, and settle into your bones.'' Ava Reid''Visionary, imaginative and brilliantly written.'' Anthony HorowitzThis exquisite novel took me over like a haunting ... One of the best historical fantasies I''ve ever read' Emma TörzsA historical fantasy that will touch the hearts of many readers' Fantasy Hive______________World War One, and as shells fall in Fl

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Book SynopsisInternational Booker Prize finalist and "one of the Arab world's most innovative novelists" (Roger Allen) delivers a brilliant retelling of the Muslim wars of conquest in North AfricaThe year is 693 and a tense exchange, mediated by an interpreter, takes place between Berber warrior queen al-Kahina and an emissary from the Umayyad General Hassan ibn Nu'man. Her predecessor had been captured and killed by the Umayyad forces some years earlier, but she will go on to defeat them.The Night Will Have Its Say is a retelling of the Muslim wars of conquest in North Africa during the seventh century CE, narrated from the perspective of the conquered peoples. Written in Ibrahim al-Koni's unique and enchanting voice, his lyrical and deeply poetic prose speaks to themes that are intensely timely. Through the wars and conflicts of this distant, turbulent era, he addresses the futility of war, the privilege of an elite few at the expense of the many, the destruction of natural habitats and indigenous cultures, and questions about literal and fundamentalist interpretations of religious texts.Al-Koni's masterly account of conquest and resistance is both timeless and timely, infused with a sense of disaster and exile—from language, the desert, and homeland.Trade Review"I loved The Night Will Have Its Say. Ibrahim al-Koni weaves a magical tale of a world where female power and the polyphony of the feminine are a given, where the earth and the heavens are in constant dialogue, and where ancestors and scriptures are alive and present."—Nadia Wassef, author of Shelf Life“A rich text. . . with gripping scenes and confrontations, and some fascinating underlying conflicts, in particular concerning attitudes towards life, freedom, and conquest . . . . an unusual kind of historical fiction, but certainly worthwhile.”—The Complete Review"[W]estern readers will be rewarded with insights into the rise of Islam and some lesser-known but important leaders . . . [and] find triggers here that cause one to examine, at least for a while, eternal questions about who we are and where we fit in the larger tides of life." —Historical Novels Review"One of the most acclaimed writers in the Arabic world . . . his most recent novel, The Night Will Have Its Say . . . placed during the Muslim conquest of North Africa in the seventh century CE, written from the perspective of the conquered, he once again returns to the desert that has remained his spiritual home."—AramcoWorldPRAISE FOR IBRAHIM AL-KONI“A magnificent novelist”—Marilyn Booth, translator of the International Booker Prize winner, Celestial Bodies“One of the Arab world’s most innovative novelists”—Roger Allen, University of Pennsylvania“The desert setting is al-Koni's strength: its expanse, desolation, and mystery are powerfully evoked.”—Banipal"Al-Koni's story, simply and elegantly told, has all the inevitability of a Greek tragedy--or, better, all the tribulations of Job."—Kirkus Reviews“Al-Koni’s novels are aesthetic renderings of the passions of the desert and of the rich legends and cosmology of his people. An encyclopedic writer who has digested mythologies of the ancient world and literature of the modern world, al-Koni has both a poetic bent and a mystical inclination.”—Al Ahram Weekly“A true journey into the human psyche”—Cairo Magazine“Imagine Cormac McCarthy’s savage lyricism in a Paul Bowles desert landscape and you begin to enter the bleakly beautiful world of this mesmerizing, fable-like novel.”—The Independent

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Book SynopsisBALLAD of the FIVE MARYSYestreen the Queen had Four MarysTonight she’ll hae but threeThere was Mary Seton, and Mary BeatonAnd Mary Carmichael and me.from ‘Mary Hamilton’, The Child BalladsThe Mary Carmichael of the well-known ballad may be a fiction but Marys Seton, Beaton, Livingston and Fleming, together with Mary Stewart, comprised the real five Marys – assertive young women unafraid to question their place in society.Who was Mary Queen of Scots? Vilified as an adulteress, only to be immortalised as a martyr, where does history become legend?Why was Mary deposed? Who killed Darnley? Five hundred years after the Battle of Flodden and the birth of John Knox, this new take on Mary’s life explores not only the historical events which led to her demise, but the relationships and emotions of an increasingly isolated young woman faced with political and religious upheaval and her country’s gradual loss of independence.Our Sovereign Lady who now Reigns at this Hour, The Mighty Lord be ever her Protector And Make Her Marriage as He thinks Best, That Her Liege may Reign in Peace and RestTHE FORMAN ARMORIAL, C.1562Trade ReviewThere’s an old publishing belief that books about Mary Queen of Scots always sell. Smith’s certainly deserves to do so. He finds his way through the maze of 16th century Scottish politics dexterously and persuasively. ALLAN MASSIE, THE SCOTSMAN

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Book SynopsisAlexander Kent is the author of twenty-seven acclaimed books featuring Richard Bolitho. Under his own name, Douglas Reeman, and in the course of a career spanning forty-five years, he has written over thirty novels and two non-fiction books.Trade ReviewOne of our foremost writers of naval fiction...authentic, inspiring, well-characterised and, finally, moving * Sunday Times *

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Book SynopsisPenelope Lively''s Booker Prize winning classic, Moon Tiger is a haunting story of loss and desire, published here as a Penguin Essential for the first time.Claudia Hampton - beautiful, famous, independent, dying.But she remains defiant to the last, telling her nurses that she will write a ''history of the world . . . and in the process, my own''. And it is her story from a childhood just after the First World War through the Second and beyond. But Claudia''s life is entwined with others and she must allow those who knew her, loved her, the chance to speak, to put across their point of view. There is Gordon, brother and adversary; Jasper, her untrustworthy lover and father of Lisa, her cool conventional daughter; and then there is Tom, her one great love, found and lost in wartime Egypt.''Leaves its traces in the air long after you''ve put it away'' Anne Tyler''A complex tapestry of great subtlety. Lively writes so well, savouring the words as she goes'' Daily Telegraph''Very clever: evocative, thought-provoking and hangs on the mind long after it is finished'' Literary ReviewTrade ReviewLeaves its traces in the air long after you've put it away * Anne Tyler *A complex tapestry of great subtlety. Lively writes so well, savouring the words as she goes * Daily Telegraph *Very clever: evocative, thought-provoking and hangs on the mind long after it is finished * Literary Review *Lively's ability to bring her character and the world she inhabits into full technicolour is beautiful. This is a unique book about a fascinating unpredictable woman way ahead of her time and yet absolutely of her time * Lemn Sissay *One of Britain's most celebrated novelists. Moon Tiger's multiple, shifting viewpoints weaves an eloquent disquisition on memory, identity, age, love and regret * Financial Times *Atmospheric, inventive. Few books I've read recently have given me so much pleasure * Sam Jordison, Guardian *

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Book SynopsisRachel Norris wants to forge a new life and career. And she wants to forget her past.When Rachel qualifies as nurse, she does so because she wants to help others and make a difference. But she is also running from a past life that must stay hidden forever.Completing her training, Rachel moves to London but misses home desperately, so when she hears about an opportunity to train as a district nurse in a village near Rochdale, she seizes the opportunity, even though it will take her closer to the trouble she left behind. She knows nothing about Eastby End and she is shocked to find it a little more than a slum. It''s clear she will need to work hard and keep her wits about her to win the trust of the villagers.Joss Townley has been reluctantly working in his father''s factory but is dismayed at the conditions the workers endure. When his father dies, he sells up immediately to begin travelling but is called home by his mother in an emergency - in order t

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Book SynopsisThe eagerly-awaited return to the acclaimed Morland Dynasty series, and the 100th novel by Cynthia Harrod-EaglesEngland, 1936The reign of Edward VIII has begun, but danger for the monarchy already looms on the horizon. At home in Morland Place, Polly Morland feels alone and abandoned, with her brother summoned to France by his old employer. James soon finds himself travelling to Russia, whereas Polly will voyage on the Queen Mary with New York - and a long-lost love - her destination. Soon the family are scattered to the four winds, from Hollywood to war-torn Spain. Working for the Air Ministry on new fighter planes, Jack fears that his children are not taking the increasingly tense situation in Europe seriously enough. The nation is divided over which is the greater thread: Communist Russia, or Fascist Germany. As the storms of war gather, they will threaten to overwhelm the Morlands and destroy all that they have worked for...

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Book Synopsis''I loved Goddess with a Thousand Faces. Fascinating, fun and thoughtful and enlightening'' JENNIFER SAINT''A beautiful weave of history, myth and storytelling by one of our most exciting new classicists'' DAN SNOWSteeped in ancient magic, dark divinity and wild ways, Goddess with a Thousand Faces takes you on a historical journey like no other...Blending mythological retellings with historical research, Goddess with a Thousand Faces traverses the world and transports through time to bring ten formidable and inspiring ancient goddesses to life. Meet Artemis, the Greek goddess of the wilderness, never without her bow and arrow; Sedna, Inuit goddess of the ocean, guarding the icy waters and all its creatures; Isis, Egyptian goddess of healing, who dwells by the River Nile, just to name a few...Jasmine Elmer explores these goddesses of our past, uncovering their truths, their rebellion and their freedom. For too

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Book SynopsisBook 7 in The Long War series from the master of historical fiction, Christian Cameron When the dust settled and the blood dried after the Battle of Plataea, Greeks might have thought that their freedom was secured. But before the corpse of the Great King's general was cold, Athens and Sparta began to bicker over dividing up the spoils. After an autumn of victory, it's a long cold winter among the burned cities and destroyed shrines of Greece, and a hungry spring. And when Arimnestos goes to sea to cruise the Persian-held coasts, he finds that Persia is still not beaten... and that old alliances are now fraying. Is the impossible true? Would the Spartans rather see Athens destroyed than Persia defeated? And who will save the cities of Ionia from the Great King's wrath?It's the spring of 478BCE, and the Long War isn't over yet. ______________PRAISE FOR CHRISTIAN CAMERON

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Book SynopsisCan the Woolworth girls achieve their dreams in time for their futures to begin? The Woolworths Saturday Girls is the seventh instalment in Elaine Everest's much-loved Woolworths series.1950. The Second World War is over and life has moved on for the Woolworth girls, Sarah, Maisie and Freda. In a new world the Woolworth women have high expectations of their daughters, wanting them to seize opportunities they didn’t have themselves.Ready to take on Saturday jobs at Woolworths, budding friends Bessie, Claudette, Clementine and Dorothy are faced with unforeseeable challenges, as the real world comes into focus. Their bond can only be strengthened as they overcome the darkest times. Perhaps their lives are not as clear-cut as their mothers wished them to be . . .When Bessie finds love in the wrong crowd and falls pregnant, the image of her future and ambitions become skewed and she relies on the Saturday girls to help her see her problems through – but how will they find a home for the baby when it arrives?With wild imaginations, it is up to the Woolworth girls, new and old, to save the day – and their futures . . .Trade ReviewA warm, tender tale of friendship and love . . . sweet as a Woolies pick’n’mix -- Milly Johnson, author of The Teashop on the Corner, on The Woolworths GirlsA heart-warming story about finding strength in the hardest of times * Woman’s Own *

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Book SynopsisCoward, scoundrel, lover and cheat, but there is no better man to go into the jungle with. Join Flashman in his adventures as he survives fearful ordeals and outlandish perils across the four corners of the world.Flashman's at it again! Caught between two Chinese lovers, held captive by Borneo pirates and enslaved by a voluptuous Madagascan queen, Harry Flashman's doing better than ever.Trade Review'Flashman is a wonderful creation, by a master storyteller. We'll forever delight in his evil antics' JEFFREY ARCHER ‘Politically incorrect, lascivious and fiendishly handsome, Flashman is the greatest ’ BORIS JOHNSON ‘Flashman is one of the great characters of modern fiction; a rogue, a lover, and always an irresistible read’ BERNARD CORNWELL ‘Flashman, Sherlock Holmes, Toad of Toad Hall, Bertie Wooster. Any writer would give his eye-teeth to have created a character as good as those. GMF was one of the greats’ CONN IGGULDEN ‘The perfect fictional creation’ TONY PARSONS ‘A first-rate historical novelist’ KINGSLEY AMIS

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Book SynopsisThe Sunday Times Top Ten bestseller.Two women, centuries apart. Linked in a place haunted by its history . . .Separated by more than six hundred years of history, two women are drawn together by Sleeper's Castle, a house steeped in memory and magic. This is an epic tale of forbidden love, cruel revenge and a war that time can't forget.Grieving and lost, Miranda has moved to Hay to escape, and slowly she feels herself coming to life in the solitude of the mountains. But her vivid dreams at Sleeper's Castle introduce her to Catrin, a young women whose gift for foretelling the future embroiled her in a bloody revolt against English rule many centuries ago.An unbreakable connection is forged across history. Catrin is reaching out . . . and only Miranda can help. But time is running outSunday Times bestselling author Barbara Erskine returns to Hay in the year that marks the 30th anniversary of her sensational debut bestseller, Lady of Hay.Readers LOVE Barbara Erskine:Atmospheric' ?????EnthTrade Review‘Sleeper's Castle is a haunting tale, confirming that Barbara Erskine remains the mistress of the time-slip novel’ Acclaimed historian and novelist, Alison Weir Captivating . . . Beguiling ghosts that whisper to us from the past and seek to stamp their will upon the present’ Richard and Judy bestseller, Rachel Hore Evocative and haunting, [I was] every bit as captivated as I was when I was swept away by Lady of Hay’ Sunday Times bestselling author, Elizabeth Chadwick

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Book SynopsisSweeping, escapist and heartrending the perfect read for fans of Victoria Hislop and Kate Morton.LONDON, 1986: Bequeathed an old portrait by her grandmother, Kate Darling begins to unpick the tapestry of her family's secret history in a journey that takes her to Corsica, Paris and back to the heady days of the Roaring Twenties where it all began.PARIS, 1939: Alice Eversley and Thomas Stafford meet once again in the City of Light. Tom is now a world-famous artist, Alice is much-changed too bruised from the events of the last decade. Perhaps they can lose themselves in the love story that ignited by a moonlit lake all those years ago?But sometimes there's no place for happy endings and there's no hiding from the shadow of war . . .Trade ReviewPraise for The Book of Lost and Found: ‘A glamorous, seductively immersive read… [Foley] is a talent to watch’ Sunday Times ‘Wildly romantic and very enjoyable; a super debut’ Daily Mail ‘A fabulously engrossing epic read’ Woman & Home ‘This beautiful heartbreaking read will give you goosebumps’ Fabulous, Sun on Sunday ‘[A] striking debut’ Grazia ‘Tightly plotted with polished prose, this is very good indeed’ Sunday Mirror ‘Epic debut’ Independent ‘A rich, rolling, romantic story that sweeps across time and space’ Saga ‘It's a lovely world to inhabit – not only for the memorable characters and poignant romances, but thanks to an array of glorious settings that whisk you from wild Corsica to buzzing New York via wartime Paris. Perfect escapism.’ Kate Riordan, author of THE GIRL IN THE PHOTOGRAPH ‘Atmospheric, evocative, epic: a beautifully heart-wrenching story about talent, sacrifice and love' Julie Cohen, Richard & Judy selection for Dear Thing. ‘A classic sweeping love story . . . moving and engrossing’ Katherine Webb

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Book SynopsisThe first book in the No. 1 Times bestselling seriesThis is terrific stuff' Daily TelegraphA breathtakingly ambitious picture of an era' Financial TimesA masterclass in how to weave a well-researched history into a complex plot' The TimesOver 1 Million Andrew Taylor Novels Sold!A CITY IN FLAMESLondon, 1666. As the Great Fire consumes everything in its path, the body of a man is found in the ruins of St Paul's Cathedral stabbed in the neck, thumbs tied behind his back.A WOMAN ON THE RUNThe son of a traitor, James Marwood is forced to hunt the killer through the city's devastated streets. There he encounters a determined young woman, who will stop at nothing to secure her freedom.A KILLER SEEKING REVENGEWhen a second murder victim is discovered in the Fleet Ditch, Marwood is drawn into the political and religious intrigue of Westminster and across the path of a killer with nothing to loseTrade Review‘Ashes of London is terrific’ Sarah Hilary ‘The Ashes of London presents a breathtakingly ambitious picture of an era … the multiple narrative strands are drawn together in a brilliantly orchestrated finale’ Financial Times ‘In this elegant, engrossing novel set during an extraordinary period, Taylor skilfully presents a London in which so many must still pay the price for the Civil War and the murder of King Charles I’ Sunday Express ‘One of the most reliably enjoyable of historical novelists … Taylor demonstrates his usual command of plot and historical background’ The Sunday Times 'A complex weave of history and mystery and the first of a new series from Andrew Taylor' The i ‘The author conveys the confusion and uncertainty of the times in a pacy story of Charles II’s desire for vengeance, the struggle to rebuild a stricken city and the hunt for a murderer’ Daily Mail ‘This is terrific stuff: intelligent, engrossing and, in its evocation of a long-vanished London, wonderfully plausible.’ Toby Clements, Daily Telegraph 'The Ashes of London weaves a pacy story from the framework of true events. A new Shardlake may rise from the ashes' The Times ‘Andrew Taylor provides a masterclass in how to weave a well-researched history into a complex plot.’ The Times, Books of the Year ‘Thrilling… Gripping, fast-moving and credible… It’s a well-constructed political thriller with moments of horror, admirable and enjoyable. Taylor has done his research so thoroughly as to be unobtrusive’ Spectator ‘Finely wrought and solidly researched… The novel’s plot is fiendishly complex’ Sunday Telegraph

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Book SynopsisHarperCollins is proud to present its range of best-loved, essential classics.''It was the best of times, it was the worst of times''Set in Paris and London against the backdrop of the French Revolution, A Tale of Two Cities tells the story of Lucie Manette and her father Alexandre, held captive in Paris's notorious Bastille prison for eighteen years. When Alexandre is finally released, the Manettes find themselves caught up in the lives of a French aristocrat and an English lawyer who compete for the love of Lucie. The ensuing tale of violence and revenge depicts the plight of the peasantry, the brutality of the early revolutionaries, and the menacing shadow of the guillotine.Serialised in Dickens's own literary periodical in 1859, A Tale of Two Cities is one of the best-known works of literature set during the French Revolution.

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Book SynopsisLes Misérables meets Six of Crows in this page-turning adventure as a young thief finds herself going head to head with leaders of Paris''s criminal underground in the wake of a failed French Revolution.A CITY DIVIDEDA DEADLY BETRAYALThe French Revolution of 1828 has failed, and Paris is in mourning.The wretched of the city have gathered into guilds of thieves, assassins and worse, to form the Court of Miracles.When Eponine''s sister is sold into the Guild of Flesh, both their fates are sealed. The only chance Eponine has of rescuing her is to join the Miracle Court and steal back what was taken.But to do that she''ll have to become the greatest thief the city has ever known.''[A] twisty, turny and fiercely told tale of revenge and redemption''DAILY MAIL''A book with both big heart and a nicely nasty streak''THE I PAPER''Beguiling, an an Angela Carter-like way''SFX''Come for the world-building and Les Mis connections, stay for the heroine''STARBURSTTrade Review‘Strong, feminist fantasy’STYLIST ‘[A] twisty, turny and fiercely told tale of revenge and redemption’DAILY MAIL ‘Grant’s Éponine dreams of revenge, not pretty revolutionaries … She must plot a path through the treacherous Court of Miracles – a world where even the most innocent of encounters could still end with a knife in the back … A book with both a big heart and a nicely nasty streak’THE I PAPER ‘As Nina's quest … takes her from the catacombs to the palace, from the company of beggars to revolutionaries to the Dauphin himself, the balance between fairy tale and realism is beautifully maintained. Beguiling, in an Angela Carter-like way’SFX ‘A dark, thrilling tale of what goes on in a fantastical Parisian underworld … come for the world-building and Les Mis connections, stay for the heroine’STARBURST ‘The Eponine power fantasy for everyone who has ever wanted to punch Rudyard Kipling in the face’EK Johnson, #1 New York Times bestseller

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Book SynopsisThe legendary Emma Harte, heroine of A Woman of Substance, returnsAt the centre of this sweeping saga stands Paula O''Neill, beloved granddaughter of Emma and the guardian of her vast business empire. Paula believes that all that Emma left to the family is secure. However, beneath the surface sibling rivalry and discontent are beginning to flare.Into this volatile mix walks Evan Hughes, a young American fashion designer. On her deathbed, Evan''s grandmother told her to find Emma Harte. But Emma has been dead for thirty years; and Evan bears an uncanny resemblance to Paula O''Neill.Troubled by Evan''s presence, Paula turns to Emma''s recently discovered war-time diaries to find the truthThe decades fall away. It is London during The Blitz and Emma Harte comes vividly back to life. Working hard under war-time conditions, she is also holding her family together as bombs drop, sirens wail and her sons go off to war. As she struggles to cope, the indomitability, will power and strength that have forged Emma into the woman she is all come to the fore.As the pages unfurl, Paula discovers the secret Emma Harte took to the grave to protect others.Emma''s Secret is vintage Barbara Taylor Bradford. Emotion, drama, intrigue and passion fill the pages in a spellbinding novel which only she could write.Trade Review Praise for Barbara Taylor Bradford: 'Queen of the genre.' Sunday Times ‘Few novelists are as consummate as Barbara Taylor Bradford at keeping the reader turning the page. She is one of the world’s best at spinning yarns.’ Guardian ‘A classic saga of loyalty, secrets, passion and intrigue…if you’ve been suffering withdrawal symptoms from Downton, this is for you’ Daily Mail ‘As romantic and thrilling as the rest’ Independent on Sunday ‘Another great yarn from the ultimate storyteller’ The Sun ‘The storyteller of substance.’ The Times

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Book Synopsis“Pope Joan has all the elements one wants in a historical drama—love, sex, violence, duplicity, and long-buried secrets. Cross has written an engaging book.”—Los Angeles Times Book ReviewIn this international bestseller and basis for the 2009 movie of the same name, Donna Woolfolk Cross brings the Dark Ages to life in all their brutal splendor and shares the dramatic story of a woman whose strength of vision led her to defy the social restrictions of her day.For a thousand years her existence has been denied. She is the legend that will not die—Pope Joan, the ninth-century woman who disguised herself as a man and rose to become the only female ever to sit on the throne of St. Peter. Now in this riveting novel, Cross paints a sweeping portrait of an unforgettable heroine who struggles against restrictions her soul cannot accept. Brilliant and talented, young Joan rebels against medieval social

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Book SynopsisWinner of the 2015 International IMPAC Dublin Literary AwardWinner of the 2014 James Tait Black PrizeShortlisted for the 2013 Man Booker PrizeShortlisted for the 2013 Goldsmiths PrizeShortlisted for the 2014 Walter Scott Prize for Historical FictionAs late summer steals in and the final pearls of barley are gleaned, a village comes under threat. A trio of outsiders - two men and a dangerously magnetic woman - arrives on the woodland borders triggering a series of events that will see Walter Thirsk's village unmade in just seven days: the harvest blackened by smoke and fear, cruel punishment meted out to the innocent, and allegations of witchcraft.But something even darker is at the heart of Walter's story, and he will be the only man left to tell it . . .Trade Review'Unfolding in Crace's trademark rhythmic prose and brimming with unsentimental but intense feeling for the natural landscape, this lingering novel is as resonant as it is elusive.' Daily Mail‘Jim Crace is the most generous of writers. A fabulist, an open heart, an imagination in full flight. There is something of a harvest in every book: the promise, the violence, the fall, the regain. And Harvest is one of his best novels ever. He is, quite simply, one of the great writers of our time.’ Colum McCann, author of Let the Great World Spin‘Harvest, his latest novel, dramatises one of the great under-told narratives of English history . . . Crace brings his signature combination of atmosphere and exactitude to every aspect of this far-off world . . . the prose is extraordinary: rich yet measured, estranged and familiar, both intimate and austere . . . Harvest can be read in mythical, even biblical terms, but the physical and emotional displacement of individuals and communities at its heart remains as politically resonant today as it was at the time.’ Guardian‘Crace’s prose - percussive, rhythmic, resonant - is unmistakable.’ Independent on Sunday ‘The rhythmic power of his prose, with its vivid physical imagery, brings his stories to life . . . Crace is brilliant at evoking atmosphere, mood and an all-persuasive sense of place . . . Harvest has been announced by Crace as his final novel. If so . . . it is majestic leavetaking, honed by an unforgettable narrative voice: resigned, bewildered, ultimately hopeful . . . Few novels as fine or as complex in their apparent simplicity will be published this, or indeed any, year.’ Irish Times‘Harvest is Jim Crace's most ambitious novel since Being Dead (1999) . . . Crace's stunning depiction of country life in all its hardship - less Tolstoy, more Hardy, but bleak-pastoral rather than idyllic-bucolic . . . Harvest is a mesmerising slow-burner of a novel, both a paean to a lost way of life and a timeless cautionary fable. . . . We gladly accompany Thirsk on his eventful seven-day journey of discovery, always aware of that one portentous word which slyly reappears as a leitmotif, signifying a better future beyond the village boundary, a word in which Jim Crace cleverly compounds his perennial twin concerns of place and time: hereafter.’ Literary Review'The best of his that I've read . . . Full of the most wonderful descriptions . . . Very readable and very scary . . . A tour de force' Gillian Slovo, Saturday Review on BBC Radio 4‘Crace evoked this musty, murky world, and the ambiguous persona of our protagonist within it, with wit and immediacy that bring it touchably close . . . The story that he constructs is involving and mysterious, stoked by vividly descriptive prose that’s never wastefully or showily verbose.’ Scotland on Sunday‘This very beautifully written novel gives pause for thought and unearths a quintessential England, never stereotyped, which is also deeply and humanly unique. And, until he writes an even better one, this, for me, is Crace’s most satisfying, and probably, best book.’ Scotsman‘Terrible, lyrical, beauty that is nothing like any other novel I have ever read . . . Crace achieves a cadence of speech which sounds and feels as if it is absolutely authentic.’ Spectator‘Harvest is as finely written as it is tautly structured. Pungently flavoured with archaic words (“reasty”, “turbary”, “yellow manchet bread”), its language is exhilaratingly exact, sometimes poetic and sometimes stark (slashed across the mouth with a pruning blade, someone is left “hardly moving, but…certainly alive. A dead man never made such noise”). Magnificently resurrecting a pivotal moment in our history about which it is deeply knowledgeable, this simultaneously elegiac and unillusioned novel is an achievement worthy to stand alongside those of Crace’s great fictional influence, William Golding.’ Sunday Times‘Jim Crace’s setting is closely imagined in a detailed, credible, tactile way that makes it seem real — while, of course, it is entirely imaginary. . . Crace’s entertaining story of ordinary farming folk, somewhere, somewhen, ploughs a deep furrow.’ The Times'Inimitably excellent, Jim Crace stands on his own ground among living English novelists . . . Crace is surely the nearest talent to William Golding that our literature can boast today. . . As for Crace's language, it would be otiose with this writer to note its blazing clarity of vision, its passionate microscopic observation and the untiring swing and spring of its rhythm. . . Crace's incandescent visit to a near-mythical Deep England results in a story both topical, and global. No recent English novel has deeper roots, yet casts so broad a shade.' Independent‘Beautifully written, alive with the author’s love of landscape and language, this is a book to savour.’ Choice Magazine‘This is a novel of beautiful writing and careful structure, in tune with the gentle harmonies of autumn and yet aware of how ruin is always around the corner. … Crace has a great gift for clarity, his prose precise and heartfelt, achieving a timeless, polished quality.’ Daily Telegraph‘Jim Crace, the son of a north London Co-op insurance agent, is a magician among British novelists … Harvest turns out to be a William Golding-like meditation of social change in a bucolic backwater and its sorry aftermath…. Crace’s 11th novel is a glory to read, as the intensely poetic prose is brought to a burnished pitch throughout.’ Evening Standard‘Jim Crace is a Titan of the modern English novel. From Continent and The Gift of Stones on to Quarantine and The Pesthouse, he has won a slew of prizes without ever losing his popular touch. Hailed as the natural heir to William Golding, he has just published his latest novel, Harvest, to universal acclaim … Beautifully detailed, the writing doubles as a paean to the natural world, as Crace precisely outlines a rural peasantry’s paradise lost.’ Irish Examiner‘The spirit of play in Crace’s work serves as the cover for a spirit of elegy. Starting from scratch- inventing cultures, fabricating epigraphs- better enables him to communicate his message, usually about transition and impermanence. His novels depict, in prose of sometimes overpowering richness, the encroachment of progress on a stone-age community, the Judean desert and a post-industrial city … The most seductive and enthralling of Crace’s novels, Harvest is also likely to be his last. Ending is its theme - or if not ending, then the destructiveness inherent in change.’ New Statesman‘Crace, a spellbinding writer, graceful in style and intense in his feeling for the natural word, deeply disturbs our polite, picturesque fantasies of pre-industrial rural life.’ Saga '[Harvest] allows Crace to indulge in his speciality: describing horrific acts of violence in ice-cool, ironic prose ... The book has the feel of a fable rather than an historical novel ... Crace’s greatest achievement is to convey the elemental pleasure of [the villagers'] lifestyle to readers.’ Sunday Express ‘Set just as common ground and strips of cultivation were being enclosed by landowners keen to reap much greater profits from sheep, it has a timeless quality that gives the central themes a continuing relevance, as immigration policy moves up the political agenda. This is achieved through a sparse structure and universal characters, but most of all through an extraordinarily metrical prose whose cadences echo across the centuries.’ Sunday Herald‘Masterly, elegiac novel about an 18th-century village under threat.’ Sunday Times Culture‘This is a novel with plenty of incident but little drama, creating its considerable power, instead, through Walter’s mesmerising narrative. At the end, it may not be too fanciful to conflate Walter and Crace, as the narrator steps out of bounds and says farewell to a way of life.’ Observer‘Each of his 11 finely crafted novels fashions a unique climate, landscape and mood, a far cry from everyday realism though nothing to do with soppy or silly fantasy ... The latest, set in an isolated English village at some unspecified point in the pre-industrial past, is no exception. The story of a single fateful week in the community’s history is told by Walter Thirsk, a middle-aged peasant ... a story that is both topical and global ... Crace’s writing has the mesmerising quality of a prose poem ... The beauty of the country is “vividly described”, but the human race is seen as “brutish, instinctively cruel and stupid”. In this brilliant novel, greed wins.’ Week‘The feel for landscape, and how man relates to it, is the crowning achievement of this fine novel. Crace’s precision of language, his mastery of his themes, the fullness of his imagination and his fastidiously well-made sentences offer abundant satisfactions.’ Times Literary Supplement For Christmas I hope for Harvest, the last novel of that fine and unsparing writer Jim Crace. -- Colin Thubron, Books of the Year * Observer *A spare, haunting book that offers a peasant's-eye view of a catastrophic week in an unnamed and remote feudal village. Interlopers arrive and the irruption marks the end of an age-old way of life. Shortlisted for the 2013 Man Booker Prize, it is one to savour - Crace has said that this is his last novel. -- Books of the Year * Financial Times *There are three novels I've pressed most enthusiastically on people this year. Jim Crace's Booker-shortlisted Harvest, about land enclosure and dispossession, transports the reader into a past that feels more present than the world outside, yet also sheds an uneasy light on today. -- Best Fiction of 2013 * Guardian *Masterly in its firm grip on what need only be intimated and what stated cleanly. It was easily the best-written novel of the year. -- Philip Hensher, Books of the Year * Spectator *The most accomplished novelists can illuminate the present while making their chosen past live, move and talk. In Harvest, Jim Crace leaves the precise era unspecified as he writes, with all his near-hallucinatory skill, about an English village destroyed by the advent of agrubusiness. This intensely local story becomes, by the rhythmic majesty and fervour of its writing, a universal one. -- Boyd Tonkin, Books of the Year * Independent *A community is torn apart by the threat of enclosure, in this beautifully written book, an early front-runner for this year's Man Booker -- Best Books of 2013 * Sunday Times *Two novels this year stretched the bounds of historical fiction and were great page-turners too; Kate Atkinson's Life After Life and Jim Crace's Harvest . . . Crace's threnody to a dying rural culture has something of the same dreamlike power, a story with an almost brutally simple arc that is also lyrical and thought-provoking -- Books of the Year * Evening Standard *Harvest, apparently Jim Crace's farewell to novelism, has [an] elusive quality. Set in a remote farming community that goes to hell in a handcart with the advent of land enclosures, it aspires to the unsettling self-assurance of a William Golding novel without ever quite cashing the cheque that its attitude promises. -- Books of the Year * Daily Telegraph *

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