Best of
17th-Century

1983

The Marigold Chain


Stella Riley - 1983
    For Alex, waking up with an epic hangover, the discovery that he has acquired a bride is an unwelcome shock. But while the marriage remains in name only, other forces are gathering.England is once again at war with the Dutch and Prince Rupert suspects that sabotage is at work within the fleet. Instructed to find and stop the traitor, Alex enters a dark labyrinth of intrigue - where no life is safe and nothing is what it seems.Chloe, meanwhile, navigates the shark-infested waters of Charles the Second's Court and plots a course of her own aimed at financial independence. But as the intriguing facets of Mr Deveril's personality are gradually revealed to her, Chloe's mock-marriage becomes fraught with difficulties - the greatest of which is Mr Deveril himself.Absorbed in his search for a traitor, Alex spares little thought for his bride. But as the flames of the Great Fire sweep over London, Alex and Chloe face their ultimate test. Their world is at risk ... their choices may save it.The Marigold Chain is a richly-woven tapestry of treachery, danger and love set against a backdrop of Restoration England during the year expected to be Doomsday.

The Moon in the Water


Pamela Belle - 1983
    Pamela did extensive research into her writings to give an accurate portrayal of life in 17th century England during the civil war. Her fictional family, the Herons, live in Suffolk England in 'Goldhayes' manor. The family is caught up in the war, and they fight for the King, against Parliament. The book richly describes the battles in which the Herons are involved. Many of the characters that interact with the family are real, as are the events in which the family takes part in. There is a romance between two of the main characters, Thomazine and Francis Heron, who are cousins. Thomazine, however, was betrothed to another cousin, Dominic Drakelon, when she was 10, and the resulting conflict gives this story much suspense, and appeal.

A Crowning Mercy


Bernard Cornwell - 1983
    In mid seventeenth-century England, the nation was in upheaval. In the Dorset countryside, one sunlit afternoon, a young girl - illicitly bathing in a stream - first fell in love with a passing stranger. Her parents called her Dorcas, but he called her Campion and that's what she longed to be, then and forever. She had one gift left for her by her unknown father - a pendant made of gold, banded by tiny glowing stones and at its base was a seal engraved with an axe and the words: St Matthew. So when she flees before the unbearable, worthy suitor who is forced upon her after her forbidden meeting, she takes this and the delicate lace gloves with her, and hopes to find her father, and her lover. There are four of these intricately wrought seals - each owned by a stranger, each holding a secret within. And when all four seals are united, then the holder will have access to great wealth and power. That is Campion's inheritance. But to claim this and find again her summer love, she must follow the course her father's legacy charts for her.

The Grace of Law: A Study in Puritan Theology


Ernest F. Kevan - 1983
    After describing the Puritans and the antinomian controversy that developed among them, Kevan demonstrates how the orthodox view among the Puritans regarded the moral law as an expression of God’s majesty established as a guide for man’s blessedness and a measure to expose sin. He then proceeds to show how the law relates to God’s people after the fall in the context of the covenant of grace. Great care is used to explain the relation of Christ’s work to the law, the ongoing moral obligation Christians have to the law, the idea of gospel obedience, and the Christian’s freedom from the law’s condemnation. Although the Puritans saw law and grace as opposing principles regarding one’s justification, they did teach about how God ultimately uses the law in the life of the believer for His gracious purposes.

By The Sword Divided Eyewitness Accounts


John Adair - 1983
    With first hand accounts from over fifty participants of the English Civil War, placed in context by the author's sympathetic text.

The Kingdom of Kongo: Civil War and Transition, 1641-1718


John K. Thornton - 1983