Best of
15th-Century

2016

I, Richard Plantagenet, an Epic Novel of Richard III: The Complete Edition


J.P. Reedman - 2016
    Richard III's story, told in first person from his point of view, using, where possible, Richard's actual words (in modern English.) From the battle of Barnet when Richard is only 18 through his marriage to Anne Neville, to unexpected kingship, betrayal by his 'friend' Buckingham...and the mystery of the vanished princes. Then it is on through the pain of the loss of his only legitimate son Edward, to the final deadly conflict on Bosworth Field against Henry Tudor. A different fictional look at England's most loved--and most hated--King.. Not a wooden saint, nor yet Shakespeare's hunchbacked fiend, a flesh and blood, fallible man: King's brother, royal duke, scoliosis sufferer, warrior, husband, father. Called 'a new Ricardian classic.' Approximately 250,000 words. Contains what is probably the most up to date fictional account of Richard's last moments at Bosworth, based on the archaeology and forensics.

Richard, Duke of York: King by Right


Matthew Lewis - 2016
    The son of a traitor, he inherited a dukedom aged four, became the wealthiest man in England at thirteen and later rebelled against his king, and if he is remembered, it is as a man who ignited the Wars of the Roses.Further eclipsed by two of his sons, who would become the mighty warrior Edward IV and the recently rediscovered Richard III, he is an ancestor of the Tudor monarchs and fifteenth great-grandfather to Queen Elizabeth II, yet the man himself is obscured from view. Matthew Lewis pushes aside the veils of myth and legend to challenge the image of Richard as a man whose insatiable ambition dragged a nation into civil war, revealing a complex family man with unparalleled power and responsibilities. The first person ever recorded to use the Plantagenet name, he pushed the political establishment to its limits, dared to fight back and was forced to do the unimaginable.

The Queen's Choice


Anne O'Brien - 2016
    The price of becoming his Queen? Abandoning her homeland, leaving her children and sacrificing her independence. Henry’s hold on the crown is unsteady and war is brewing. With the constant threat of rebellion, Henry will trust no-one – not even his new Queen. Crossing the channel is a dangerous prospect. But the union between Joanna and Henry would bring the chance of a vital alliance between two proud states – if they will allow it.One question. Two paths. A choice that will make history.

Edward IV and Elizabeth Woodville: A True Romance


Amy Licence - 2016
    With his dazzling looks and royal descent, the nineteen-year-old quickly got a reputation for womanising, with few able to resist his charm and promises. For three years he had a succession of mistresses, mostly among the married women and widows of his court, while foreign princesses were lined up to be considered as his queen. Then he fell in love. The woman who captured the king was a widow, five years his elder. While her contemporaries and later historians have been divided over her character, none have denied the extent of her blonde beauty. Elizabeth Wydeville had previously been married to a Lancastrian knight, who had lost his life fighting against the Yorkists. When she tried to petition the king to help restore her son's inheritance, reputedly waiting for him under an oak tree, the young Edward was immediately spellbound. But this did not prove to be just another fling. Conscious of her honour and her future, Elizabeth repelled his advances. His answer was to make her his wife. It was to prove an unpopular decision. Since then Edward's queen has attracted extreme reactions, her story and connections reported by hostile chroniclers, her actions interpreted in the bleakest of lights. It is time for a reassessment of the tumultuous life of the real White Queen and her husband.

Sons of the Blood


Robyn Young - 2016
    The battle for a crown is about to become a fight for the world.Bastard son, mercenary soldier, protector of the rightful king, seeker of a secret more treacherous than any in Christendom: Jack Wynter is destined to live in dangerous times.In England, the Wars of the Roses ended a decade ago with the fall of the House of Lancaster and the victory of King Edward of York. But peace sleeps uneasy in this divided realm and when the king dies unexpectedly it isn't long before old blood feuds and ambitions are awoken.In the sun-baked city of Seville, unaware of the clouds of war rising over England, Jack Wynter is cursing his fortune. Sent here by his secretive father, king's man, Sir Thomas Vaughan - with a locked chest he has been ordered to guard with his life - Jack wonders if this mission was simply a ruse to get an illegitimate, inconvenient son out of the country. But when a stranger arrives with news that his father has been arrested for treason, Jack finds himself thrust into the heart of a deadly conspiracy.What is the secret Jack has been guarding? Is it the reason for his father's fall? The only place he is going to find answers is back in England, where young Prince Edward is due to become king . . . unless his uncle Richard, Duke of Gloucester, decides to make a move for the throne. It is also where Jack's half-brother, Harry, broods bitterly over their father's apparent preference for a bastard son.Jack Wynter is coming home, to a realm of intrigue and corruption, mystery and war. Somehow, he is connected to a secret that can kill him - or make him. Its influence spans Europe and will draw him towards the very edge of the known world, and beyond, in Robyn Young's dazzling new epic.The old world is turning.A new world is rising.

Another Tale of Two Cities


Ezhuth Aani - 2016
    But another landmark event was unfolding in a future French colony. Cambodia was a cultural cauldron of Hinduism, Mahayana Buddhism and Theravada Buddhism. The largest metropolis of the pre industrial era was also facing a climate change calamity. The story unfolds in fifteenth century Cambodia and travels to China, Sri Lanka, India and the Middle East, as Princes Adithya and Mahendra set out to seek help for their beleaguered country. Will the splendid twin cities of Angkor Wat and Angkor Thom survive? Who wins the heart of Mandagini, the warrior princess?

Crimson Secret (Coin Forest #4)


Janet Lane - 2016
    Joya, like her family, is deeply committed to keeping King Henry VI on the throne. They're both right, both wrong, both lost in the heat of unbridled passion and growing uncertainties. It's a dance of imperiled love amid the War of the Roses, and time is running out to reveal their true loyalties. Crimson Secret is set during the War of the Roses. Margaret of Anjou, one of the strongest, most fascinating of England's queens, holds the reins of power firmly in her French-born hands. The country is bleeding from the turmoil caused by a king suffering from unpredictable bouts of insanity, and the Duke of York, who strives to take the throne and restore order. During England's staggering number of battles and wars, transportation played a strategic part in determining which man would emerge victorious and claim the throne. Many battles were fought near and on bridges. Crimson Secret is a story about one of them.