Best of
Historical-Fiction

1983

The Queen's Gambit


Walter Tevis - 1983
    Before long, it becomes apparent that hers is a prodigious talent, and as she progresses to the top of the US chess rankings she is able to forge a new life for herself. But she can never quite overcome her urge to self-destruct. For Beth, there’s more at stake than merely winning and losing.

When Calls the Heart


Janette Oke - 1983
    Yet, despite the constant hardships, she loves the children in her care. Determined to do the best job she can and fighting to survive the harsh land, Elizabeth is surprised to find her heart softening towards a certain member of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. Book 1 of the bestselling Canadian West series.

The Lonesome Gods


Louis L'Amour - 1983
    Johannes Verne was soon to be rescued by outlaws, but no one could save him from the lasting memory of his grandfather’s eyes, full of impenetrable hatred. Raised in part by Indians, then befriended by a mysterious woman, Johannes grew up to become a rugged adventurer and an educated man. But even now, strengthened by the love of a golden-haired girl and well on his way to making a fortune in bustling early-day Los Angeles, the past may rise up to threaten his future once more. And this time only the ancient gods of the desert can save him.

Piece of Cake


Derek Robinson - 1983
    By the author of "Goshawk Squadron" and "War Story".

Savannah


Eugenia Price - 1983
    Her novels entice us into a vanished world, peopled by characters who immediacy makes their joy, sorrow, heartbreak, and soaring love something we can share and savor. Eugenia Price chose Savannah, Georgia as one of the most fascinating cities of the South, as the setting of a quartet of novels that follow the fortunes of the city and families that gave it life.Orphaned Mark Browning was only twenty when he renounced his father's fortune and sailed to Savannah, his mother's birthplace...and the home of two remarkable women. The first is Eliza McQueen Mackay, his mentor's beautiful wife, whom Mark loves with a deep, pure love that can never be spoken. The other is lovely young Caroline Cameron, whose life is blighted by a secret that has tormented her grandparents for half a century--a secret that affects Mark more closely than he imagines. Desiring one woman, loved by another Mark must confront the ghosts of a previous generation, and face the evil smoldering hate, before he can truly call Savannah his home.

Legacy


Susan Kay - 1983
    From the spectacular era that bears her name comes the mesmerizing story of Elizabeth I: her tragic childhood; her ruthless confrontations with Mary, Queen of Scots; and her brilliant reign as Europe's most celebrated queen. And into this beautiful tapestry Susan Kay weaves the vibrant and compelling image of Elizabeth the woman. Proud, passionate, captivating in her intensity, she inspired men to love her from the depths of their souls—and to curse the pain of that devotion. Teasing out an intriguing answer to the central mystery of the Virgin Queen—satisfying to readers new to Elizabeth's life as well as die-hard fans of the Tudors— here is a premier exploration of the woman who changed the course of history, and three men whose destinies belonged to her alone.

The Madness of a Seduced Woman


Susan Fromberg Schaeffer - 1983
    Agnes falls in love with this man, a local stonecutter, but the hero is also a betrayer, the apex of a triangle that eventually leads Agnes to commit murder.

Naya Nuki: Shoshone Girl Who Ran


Kenneth Thomasma - 1983
    After being taken prisoner by an enemy tribe, a Shoshoni girl escapes and makes a thousand-mile journey through the wilderness in search of her own people.

Domina


Barbara Wood - 1983
    Born in the slums of London and possessing a special gift for healing, Samantha struggles to enter the all-male medical profession. When her ambition meets with hostile rejection in England, she sails to America, where she meets an eccentric doctor who takes her on as an apprentice. But at the high-profile Astor Ball in New York, Samantha is introduced to the second of the three men who will change her life forever-and love just might interfere with her ambition.Acclaimed novelist Barbara Wood reveals her remarkable talent by capturing Samantha's indomitable spirit, making Domina a literary triumph.

A Gathering of Old Men


Ernest J. Gaines - 1983
    Set on a Louisiana sugarcane plantation in the 1970s, A Gathering of Old Men is a powerful depiction of racial tensions arising over the death of a Cajun farmer at the hands of a black man.

The Last Boleyn


Karen Harper - 1983
    The Last Boleyn tells the story of the rise and fall of the Boleyns, one of England’s most powerful families, through the eyes of the eldest daughter, Mary.Although her sister, Anne, the queen; her brother, George, executed alongside Anne; and her father, Thomas, are most remembered by history, Mary was the Boleyn who set into motion the chain of events that brought about the family’s meteoric rise to power, as well as the one who managed to escape their equally remarkable fall. Sent away to France at an extraordinarily young age, Mary is quickly plunged into the dangerous world of court politics, where everything is beautiful but deceptive, and everyone she meets is watching and quietly manipulating the events and people around them. As she grows into a woman, Mary must navigate both the dangerous waters ruled by two kings and the powerful will of her own family in order to find a place for herself and the love she so deeply desires.

A Farewell to France


Noel Barber - 1983
    And Larry Astell, heir to a champagne fortune, knows their passion is the most important part of his life. Until war places in jeopardy all they held dear - love, family and country.From the Left Bank of the 1930s to Nazi-occupied Paris, A FAREWELL TO FRANCE is a magnificent epic, played out against the tumultuous background of the time: a decadent French government, the life of a foreign correspondent, the grandeur of the champagne regions and the glory of the French Resistance.

Flashman At The Charge ;Flashman In The Great Game


George MacDonald Fraser - 1983
    

I, the Sun


Janet E. Morris - 1983
    They called him Great King, Favorite of the Storm God, the Valiant. He conquered more than forty nations and brought fear and war to the very doorstep of Eighteenth Dynasty Egypt, but he could not conquer the one woman he truly loved.

Molly's Pilgrim


Barbara Cohen - 1983
    As Molly nears her first Thanksgiving in the New World, she doesn't find much to be thankful for. Her classmates giggle at her Yiddish accent and make fun of her unfamiliarity with American ways.Molly's embarassed when her mother helps with a class Thanksgiving project by making a little doll that looks more like a Russian refugee than a New England Pilgrim. But the tiny modern-day pilgrim just might help Molly to find a place for herself in America.The touching story tells how recent immigrant Molly leads her third-grade class to discover that it takes all kinds of pilgrims to make a Thanksgiving. Originally published in 1983, Molly's Pilgrim inspired the 1986 Academy Award-winning live-action short film.

A Tale of Two Cities


Marian Leighton - 1983
    Having rescued her father many years earlier she feels safe. But the long, bloody hand of the mob reaches out for her and her family, thrusting them into ever-increasing danger.Love, loyalty, friendship and even life itself are threatened in Charles Dickens' unforgetaable, most dramatic book.(back cover)

Poland (Polen, #1)


James A. Michener - 1983
    In the sweeping span of eight tumultuous centuries, three Polish families live out their destinies and the drama of a nation—in the grand tradition of a great James Michener saga.

The Red Horse


Eugenio Corti - 1983
    Its success had gone far beyond Italy, as the book has been translated into Spanish, French, Japanese and three other languages. This epic historical novel about World War II and after, written from the author's own personal experiences as an Italian Freedom Fighter, is a profoundly moving account of the war, those who fought in it on both sides, and the effects the war had on families in the author's hometown in Italy. On a wider scale, it is a faithful witness to the actual events of the war - including the role of historical personages who appear, the Russian campaign, the Nazi barbarism, the Communist gulag, the North Italian resistance, and political life in the two decades following the war. This world, filled with powerful personalities, drama and clashing armies, bathes in the light of the truth. What makes this truly historical novel, with its epic scope, a masterpiece is the underlying spiritual dimensions of the protagonist, his family and friends, which illuminates the ongoing tragedy of the war and its aftermath. In the end, it is a story of faith and hope in a world reduced to barbarism and cruelty. Born in 1921 in Lombardy, Eugenio Corti joined the Italian Freedom Fighters. From his experiences of the tragic retreat from Russia, Corti wrote a fascinating chronicle, Most Did Not Return, and a book about the Italian Freedom Fighters, The Last Soldiers of the King.

So Many Partings


Cathy Cash Spellman - 1983
    In a small whitewashed cottage on the grounds of a great estate, a baby boy is born. His name is Tom Dalton. He is the son of an Irish peasant and her aristocratic lover. And so begins the story of a family whose past is deeply rooted in the turbulence of Irish history but who thrive and flourish in the America of the twentieth century. From the poverty of the Irish immigrant to the wealth of the self-made man; from the sorrows of a young boy, deserted by fortune and family, to the triumph of a patriarch capable of outwitting Fate itself -- this is the story of Thomas Dalton and the women who touch his life. Driven from his ancestral home in Westmeath by his father's vindictive family, young Tom Dalton leaves Ireland and makes his way to America. Befriended by the founders of the Longshoremen's Union, groomed by one of Tammany's most powerful political bosses, Tom fights his way to a place in the glittering mansions of New York's Fifth Avenue. In a landscape filled with the rich and the poor, the powerful and the powerless, the victors and the victims, So Many Partings tells a story about love and betrayal, about a man and the women who shape him: the bewildered mother who abandoned him to save herself... the gentle wife who had defied her father to marry the man she loves... the shrewd madam who pledges her loyal friendship as well as her love... and finally, the high-spirited granddaughter who inherits a greater legacy than wealth. Set against the richness of Irish-American history, So Many Partings is about a passionate family and the triumphs and tragedies that make them unforgettable.

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 Summer of Katya


Trevanian - 1983
    His first assignment is to treat the brother of a beautiful woman named Katya Treville. As he and her family become friendly, he realizes they are haunted by an old, dark secret . . . but he can’t help falling deeply in love with Katya.Jean-Marc is warned by Katya’s brother that she is delicate and that he should curb his attentions, but he is young, hopeful, and in love . . . and he is certain that Katya returns his affections. When Jean-Marc learns that the Trevilles are planning to leave the village forever, he insists on a final meeting with Katya. That meeting and the events that follow turn what was an idyllic romance into an unending nightmare. Katya’s secret is revealed in a thrilling tale that is part love story and part psychological thriller, and the chilling climax will stay with the reader long after the last page is turned.

Night Sky


Clare Francis - 1983
    They are a young Englishwoman, a vicious Paris pimp turned Nazi collaborator and a German scientist.

A Medieval Feast


Aliki - 1983
    The King is coming to visit! The lord and lady of Camdenton Manor must work quickly to prepare for his arrival. It will take weeks to ready rooms, set up tents, and prepare the feast itself. Everyone is busy hunting and hawking, brewing and churning. “A veritable feast of a book.”—School Library JournalThis nonfiction picture book about life in medieval times features detailed illustrations to explore again and again. “A sumptuous look at the gastronomic inclinations of nobility in the Middle Ages is parlayed into a fascinating story about an upcoming visit to Camdenton Manor by the king and his large retinue.”—BooklistSupports the Common Core State Standards

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.

Lord of the Isles


Nigel Tranter - 1983
    For decades his navy held the balance of power in the northern seas, and it was he who cleared the Vikings out of the Hebrides.

Fallen Angels


Walter Dean Myers - 1983
    A coming-of-age tale for young adults set in the trenches of the Vietnam War in the late 1960s, this is the story of Perry, a Harlem teenager who volunteers for the service when his dream of attending college falls through. Sent to the front lines, Perry and his platoon come face-to-face with the Vietcong and the real horror of warfare. But violence and death aren't the only hardships. As Perry struggles to find virtue in himself and his comrades, he questions why black troops are given the most dangerous assignments, and why the U.S. is there at all.

The Restless Sea


E.V. Thompson - 1983
    For Nathan Jago, a fishing business seems the ideal place to invest his prizefighting winnings. It's not all plainsailing though—there's willful squire's daughter Elinor; and Amy with her fierce Cornish pride.

Marie Blythe


Howard Frank Mosher - 1983
    S. Geological Survey," according to USA Today. His "greatest gift," says the Washington Post, is "his talent for creating lively, living characters." One of his most vivid and memorable characters is Marie Blythe.At the dawn of the twentieth century, a young girl with a felicitous name immigrates to Vermont from French Canada. She grows up confronting the grim realities of life with an indomitable spirit--nursing victims of a tuberculosis epidemic, enduring a miscarriage alone in the wilderness, and coping with the uncertainties of love. In Marie Blythe, Mosher has created a strong-minded, passionate, and truly memorable heroine.

Beyond All Frontiers


Emma Drummond - 1983
    The story of a resourceful, courageous woman, Charlotte Scott, it is also the story of Britain's first war with Afghanistan, which ended with a brutal massacre in the Khyber Pass. And it is a novel about the Empire: how the British gained it - and why they would lose it at last.Returning to India in 1837 after a sheltered childhood in England, seventeen year old Charlotte Scott finds not a loving mother but a cold, beautiful woman dismayed because her plain daughter cares more for politics and good works than for husband-hunting and frivolity. Charlotte finds her intelligence and sensitivity have no place in the peculiar world of the British army station, where full-dress balls and cricket matches are held amid Indian dust, heat, and sqaulor. Only one person truly befriends her: the athletic, handsome, unpretentious Richard Lingarde, considered the most eligible bachelor on the station. An engineer and speaker of native tongues, Richard knows what his fellow officers choose to ignore: the natives, both Indian and Afghan, despise the British and will defeat them in the end.Although bewitched by her mother's exotic cavalier, Major Dupres, Charlotte agrees to marry Richard - and soon alienates him unforgiveably. Richard is sent to war-torn Kabul, where he embarks upon a life of danger and depravity. As Charlotte sets out on a treacherous journey through the Khyber Pass to find him, she begins to grow from a naive young girl into a woman of valor.A love story of extraordinary depth and power, Beyond All Frontiers is a masterful combination of history, courage, surprise, and passion - a novel that makes us hope desperately to see the hero and heroine learn to care for each other as much as we care for them.

Dream West


David Nevin - 1983
    Telling the amazing true story of America's famed explorer, John Charles Fremont, and his beloved supporter and muse, Jessie Benton, it quickly found its way onto the New York Times bestsellers list and adapted into a CBS mini-series starring Richard Chamberlain. Now available for the first time ever in trade paperback, Nevin's epic of adventure and discovery will once again give readers a chance to witness the passion of an early explorers dreams of the great unknown, and the love and perserverance that saw his dream come to life.

Polsinney Harbour: A heartwarming family saga set in Victorian era Cornwall


Mary E. Pearce - 1983
    A heartwarming family saga set in Victorian era Cornwall. When Maggie arrives in Polsinney Harbour she finds work on Rachel Tallack's farm, where Rachel's fisherman son, Brice, starts to take an interest in the young woman. Maggie's hopes for the future are dashed when Rachel discovers her well-kept secret. Faced with disapproval from her neighbours, and Brice, Maggie finds herself all alone once more. But then a proposal that could solve all of her problems comes from a very unexpected source. Can Maggie find love and acceptance in Polsinney Harbour, and will the dangers of a cruel sea threaten her lasting happiness? A heartwarming and gripping tale of courage and love in Victorian times, from the bestselling author of the much-loved Apple Tree Saga and Cast a Long Shadow.

The Storm Testament II


Lee Nelson - 1983
    What Caroline Logan doesn't know is that her search for truth will lead her into love, blackmail, Indian raids, buffalo stampedes, and a deadly early winter storm on the Continental Divide in Wyoming.

The Auerbach Will


Stephen Birmingham - 1983
    Together with her husband, Essie amassed a fortune that dwarfed their wildest dreams: She was living in a grand mansion on Park Avenue, collecting priceless art, even conferring with a US president.   But money could never buy the affection of family or compensate for the true love Essie let slip away. And now, as she nears the end of her life, she must contend with blackmail and heartless legal assaults coming at her from all sides, the result of the ugly, persisting greed of her own children and grandchildren. But Essie is not dead yet, and those who underestimate the remarkable old woman are in for a shocking and powerful surprise.   In this New York Times bestseller, Stephen Birmingham, acclaimed chronicler of the lives of the super-rich and author of “Our Crowd”, introduces three generations of a singular family as it moves from poverty to privilege over the course of a cataclysmic century, led by one of the most endearing and unforgettable heroines in modern American fiction.

Season of Yellow Leaf


Douglas C. Jones - 1983
    A unique witness to a vanishing way of life, Chosen becomes one of the Comanche and suffers with them as the white man destroys their ranks. Previous publisher: Tor.

The Root Cellar


Janet Lunn - 1983
    And if twelve-year-old Rose hadn't been so unhappy in her new home, where she'd been sent to live with unknown relatives, she probably would never have fled down the stairs to the root cellar in the first place. And if she hadn't, she never would have climbed up into another century, the world of the 1860s, and the chaos of Civil War...

Katerina's Secret


Mary Jane Staples - 1983
    "As always Mary Jane Staples has written a very good book that takes you back in time." - 5 STARS*********************A WARTIME HERO AND A MYSTERIOUS WOMAN...1928: Edward Somers, passing the winter at the Hôtel de Corniche on the French Riviera, happens upon a nearby villa within which lives the elusive and beautiful Countess Katerina. Despite the fact she does not seem to be allowed visitors, he manages to forge a friendship and the pair grow closer and closer.But Edward cannot help but wonder: why is she confined to the villa, guarded by a man with a rifle? Who is observing her with a telescope? Why is she so reluctant to be photographed?A sinister chain of events unfolds: is Katerina's life in danger? Must she always be on the run and forced into hiding? Will she ever be allowed to find the love she craves?Katerina's Secret was previously published as Shadows in the Afternoon.

True Detective


Max Allan Collins - 1983
    That’s why mystery fans and critics alike rank the historical thriller True Detective at the top of their lists —and why the book swept up a Shamus Award for best novel from the Private Eye Writers of America. Now, author Max Allan Collins (Road to Perdition) reissues the contemporary classic that introduces the inscrutable, wise-cracking Nathan Heller in all his guts and glory. Mayor Cermak aims to scrub up Chicago’s rancid reputation for the World’s Fair, and that daunting task comes down to the youngest plainclothes cop in town, Nathan Heller of the pickpocket detail. When the Mayor’s “Hoodlum Squad” brings Heller along on a raid with no instructions but to keep his mouth shut and his gun handy, he finds himself an unwitting, unwilling part of an assassination attempt on Al Capone’s successor, Frank Nitti. Soon, he’s smack in the middle of a power struggle between the mob and the mayor, and it’s up to the young detective to upend a potentially nation-shaking political assassination in Miami Beach. In Collins’ eruptive and evocative large-landscape historical thriller, readers consort with the likes of “Dutch” Reagan, George Raft, and FDR himself, as the author weaves the intricate history of the Chicago’s Century of Progress with a classic noir mystery. Rich in riveting plot turns, including a beautiful female client and a heartbreaking romance, True Detective is one of the most highly entertaining and unlikely coming-of-age stories ever written.

The Boy in the Alamo


Margaret Cousins - 1983
    Originally published in 1958, thousands of children each year enjoy this story from the unique point of view of twelve-year old Billy Campbell.

The Mallen girl: The Mallen litter ; The tide of life ; The man whocried.


Catherine Cookson - 1983
    

Sweetbriar


Brenda Wilbee - 1983
    Out of her rugged determination and deep faith comes an enduring love and the founding of one of America's greatest cities--Seattle, Washington.