Book picks similar to
The Cup by Melissa Addey
historical-fiction
historical
fiction
middle-east
A Strange Beginning
Gretta Curran Browne - 2015
THE BOY - THE MAN - THE LEGEND -- Covering his earliest years to the age of twenty-three -, this fascinating novel goes "behind the screen" to tell the private and personal story of the most iconic young man of his time - Lord Byron - whose charisma, beauty and literary genius helped him to overcome personal difficulties and rise from obscurity to become Britain's first superstar.Beginning when he is a boy of ten years old, we join George Gordon when he is living a miserable life with his manic Scottish mother in a few rented rooms above a shop in Aberdeen; unaware that his true surname is not Gordon, and that his true heritage is with the English aristocracy - who soon come to claim him.A life of wealth and privilege is then bestowed upon him, which eventually sets the stage for him to prove his own individual worth, in his own way, and in his own time."My Name Alone shall be my epitaph." --- BYRON
The Relic Master
Christopher Buckley - 2015
Dismas is a relic hunter: one who procures “authentic” religious relics for wealthy and influential clients. His two most important patrons are Frederick the Wise, Elector of Saxony and soon-to-be Cardinal Albrecht of Mainz. While Frederick is drawn to the recent writing of Martin Luther, Albrecht pursues the financial and political benefits of religion and seeks to buy a cardinalship through the selling of indulgences. When Albrecht’s ambitions increase his demands for grander and more marketable relics, Dismas and his artist friend Dürer conspire to manufacture a shroud to sell to the unsuspecting noble. Unfortunately Dürer’s reckless pride exposes Albrecht’s newly acquired shroud as a fake, so Albrecht puts Dismas and Dürer in the custody of four loutish mercenaries and sends them all to steal Christ’s burial cloth (the Shroud of Chambéry), Europe’s most celebrated relic.On their journey to Savoy where the Shroud will be displayed, they battle a lustful count and are joined by a beautiful female apothecary. It is only when they reach their destination that they realize they are not alone in their intentions to acquire a relic of dubious legitimacy. Filled with fascinating details about art, religion, politics and science; Vatican intrigue; and Buckley’s signature wit, The Relic Master is a delightfully rich and intelligent comic adventure.
Yesterday's Gold, Complete Series
Bobby Hutchinson - 1997
But first, she's promised to take her mother, Daisy, to Barkerville, historical site of a B.C. goldrush, to search out the resting place of an ancestor. But the trip becomes impossibly complicated when her mother invites her difficult friend, Elvira, along--and insists on bringing her incontinent dog. ˃˃˃ AND THEN A BRIDGE COLLAPSES-- And suddenly Hannah and her irritating companions are in Barkerville. But it's 1868, the height of the Cariboo goldrush. They have to accept accommodation from a saloon keeper named Logan McGraw, a mysterious, handsome man who fought in the Americal Civil War, and who has a secret agenda for being in Barkerville. ˃˃˃ Hannah and her companions quickly learn that women have no rights in this time and place. But stubborn, intrepid, and imaginative, they set out to bring a semblance of woman's liberation to the primitive and harsh conditions, always hoping to return to their own time. ˃˃˃ HANNAH WAS ABOUT TO BE MARRIED--BUT NOW SHE'S FALLING IN LOVE. Logan is accused of murder, which means he'll hang. Hannah needs to find a way to free him. But as with everything else, nothing goes according to plan in this western historical time travel.
To Love Anew
Bonnie Leon - 2007
Forced to leave the only home she's ever known, she works for a cruel employer who brutally takes the one thing she has left - her dignity. When she is banished from London, she is certain God has turned his back on her. John Bradshaw was a successful businessman whose untamed spirit sometimes wanted more. When he is betrayed by those closest to him, he loses everything - his wife, his business, even his freedom. John's and Hannah's paths are about to cross. Aboard a ghastly, nineteenth-century prison ship from London to Australia, John and Hannah must keep hope alive and trust God's unconditional love.
A Knight's Quest
Lana Williams - 2015
Now head of her family, she does all she can to keep them safe and help the people of her city regain what they lost. The arrival of an English knight raises her distrust, especially when he suspects her of stirring unrest. A knight veiled in secrecy Sir Garrick de Bremont’s secret mission in Berwick is to seek out signs of discord. His quest should be simple, yet nothing comes easily in this troubled city where no one is who they seem. The English are not welcome here, especially English knights, who laid siege to the city, killing thousands. Can love save them both? Sophia has no reason to trust this man but her attraction to him is undeniable. When he helps protect her, she realizes this is a knight like no other. Though he is English and she is firmly on the other side of the border, he makes her long for things that cannot be. Rebellion brews in this bustling market city. Can Garrick uncover the cause before he and Sophia lose not only their love but their lives? Buy it today for a thrilling ride you won't soon forget!
The Redemption of Lady Georgiana
Lisa M. Prysock - 2015
Lady Margaret and daughter-in-law Georgiana live in the French Alps in a charming chateau that was once filled with love and joy. When they are suddenly widowed, mother and daughter are heartbroken. How will they survive? The chateau seems empty and they are nearly consumed by grief, not to mention barely scraping by. When they are invited to return to England to be cared for by distant relations, will they find the courage to cross France in spite of the turmoil of the Revolution? Can they make a new life in County Essex? Will penniless Lady Georgiana be doomed to life as a governess forever? Furthermore, she keeps finding herself in--well, predicaments. Precarious predicaments, truth be told. Will she ever stop getting into these ridiculous dilemmas so the Earl can stop coming to her rescue? Lisa Prysock enjoys sharing her faith in Jesus Christ through her writing. She is also the author of "To Find a Duchess," "Hannah's Garden: A Turn of the Century Love Story," Volume I and "Abigail's Melody," Volume II of the Victorian Christian Heritage Series. For more reader resources, check out her website at www.LisaPrysock.com. Cover contribution by ID 7007325 © Algol | Dreamstime.comThis book is also available for Nook at BarnesandNoble.com and in paperback print version and kindle version at Amazon.com and other online retailers.
The Architect's Apprentice
Elif Shafak - 2013
In 1540, twelve-year-old Jahan arrives in Istanbul. As an animal tamer in the sultan’s menagerie, he looks after the exceptionally smart elephant Chota and befriends (and falls for) the sultan’s beautiful daughter, Princess Mihrimah. A palace education leads Jahan to Mimar Sinan, the empire’s chief architect, who takes Jahan under his wing as they construct (with Chota’s help) some of the most magnificent buildings in history. Yet even as they build Sinan’s triumphant masterpieces—the incredible Suleymaniye and Selimiye mosques—dangerous undercurrents begin to emerge, with jealousy erupting among Sinan’s four apprentices. A memorable story of artistic freedom, creativity, and the clash between science and fundamentalism, Shafak’s intricate novel brims with vibrant characters, intriguing adventure, and the lavish backdrop of the Ottoman court, where love and loyalty are no match for raw power.
The Tea Planter's Daughter
Janet MacLeod Trotter - 2007
Wesley Robson, a brash young rival businessman, offers to help save the plantation in exchange for beautiful Clarrie's hand in marriage, but her father flatly refuses. And when Jock Belhaven dies suddenly, his daughters are forced to return to their father’s cousin in Tyneside and work long hours in his pub. In Newcastle, Clarrie is shocked by the dire poverty she witnesses, and dreams of opening her own tea room, which could be a safe haven for local women. To provide a living for herself and Olive, Clarrie escapes her dictatorial cousin Lily and takes a job as housekeeper for kindly lawyer Herbert Stock. But Herbert's vindictive son Bertie, jealous of Clarrie's popularity, is determined to bring about her downfall. Then Wesley Robson comes back into Clarrie's life, bringing with him a shocking revelation ...Set in the fascinating world of the Edwardian tea trade, THE TEA PLANTER’S DAUGHTER is a deeply involving and moving story with a wonderfully warm-hearted heroine.
The Templar Detective
J. Robert Kennedy - 2017
Sir Marcus decides to take on the greatest challenge of his life and remain behind to raise the children, his loyal sergeant and squires insisting on joining him to work the land at his side. But before they can settle into their new lives as farmers rather than soldiers, they are thrust into the middle of a conspiracy that could rock the very foundations of the Templars and the Roman Catholic Church. And it all starts with a simple murder, witnessed by a little boy, who swears Templars killed his parents. Now it is up to Sir Marcus and his men to determine who committed the gruesome murders, and clear the good name of the Templars, before the very balance of power in the region shifts in favor of someone who should never possess it. From USA Today bestselling author J. Robert Kennedy, comes the first in a new series, The Templar Detective, packed with pulse-pounding action, intrigue, and humor, guaranteed to keep thriller fans awake into the late hours. Reserve your copy today, and be among the first to meet a new band of war-weary heroes, struggling to reintegrate into society, who are called upon once again to serve their Order, their Church, and their God.
Heart of Shadows
Rebecca Ruger - 2021
She’s unimpressed, with both her current situation and her cousin’s husband. She thinks he is aloof and arrogant, well deserving of her cousin. But then Liam intercedes on her behalf against a mean-spirited tormentor and everything changes. He becomes a hero to young Isabel, one to whose memory she clings when he is gone.Liam MacTavish is quite happy to ride away from his new bride in the spring of 1296, thrilled to rise to the defense of his beloved Scotland. He doesn’t return for five long years, many of those spent in an English prison, renounced by his own father, left to rot. He finds Wolvesley not at all as he remembered, derelict and all but abandoned, save for the redoubtable Isabel—whom he barely recalls—and an improbable cast of characters.Both Liam and Isabel are tormented by grim shadows from Wolvesley’s past. Isabel’s fierce independence and easy smiles hide a far greater tragedy than Liam can ever imagine; Liam’s savage mien and coldness suggest he knows nothing else. And yet they are drawn to each other. Can they overcome the past, leaving behind the cruelty caused to each of them by the same person?Heart of Shadows is the first book in the
HEART OF A HIGHLANDER
series. Each book is a stand-alone tale; the books can be read in any order.
The Journeyer
Gary Jennings - 1984
As he lay dying, his priest, family, and friends offered him a last chance to confess his mendacity, and Marco, it is said, replied "I have not told the half of what I saw and did." Now Gary Jennings has imagined the half that Marco left unsaid as even more elaborate and adventurous than the tall tales thought to be lies. From the palazzi and back streets of medieval Venice to the sumptuous court of Kublai Khan, from the perfumed sexuality of the Levant to the dangers and rigors of travel along the Silk Road, Marco meets all manner of people, survives all manner of danger, and, insatiably curious, becomes an almost compulsive collector of customs, languages and women.In more than two decades of travel, Marco was variously a merchant, a warrior, a lover, a spy, even a tax collector - but always a journeyer, unflagging in his appetite for new experiences, regretting only what he missed. Here - recreated and reimagined with all the splendor, the love of adventure, the zest for the rare and curious that are Jennings's hallmarks - is the epic account, at once magnificent and delightful, of the greatest real-life adventurer in human history.
Stealing Time (Romancing Time Book 1)
B.W. Haggart - 2020
An accident with a nearby experimental radar plane throws Cassie back in time, dumping her in a wooded countryside. The rider who discovers her is charismatic, more compelling than any man she has ever met. She chalks up the man’s Regency outfit and odd behavior to the eccentricity of the rich. Or maybe he is just a nutbar, but the man is offering a ride.Lord Ross Kerrington, the new Earl of Drayton, having returned from the wars in 1815, finds the Kerrington family in turmoil, lunatic women who make him consider returning to the army. The alluring woman he discovers in the estate’s Greyfield Woods strikes him as equally mad. The woman wears bizarre attire, acting with a peculiar cheekiness that borders on insolence. Considering the very real dangers a madwoman faces encountering the surrounding inhabitants, he decides to bring her home to safety until he can decide what to do with her. Unexpectedly, his family has other ideas.Faced with the realization she is trapped 200 years in the past, Cassie resolves to win her independence using her cat-burglar skills. Then things get complicated.Against her will, she finds herself caring about the Kerrington family, fighting a powerful attraction to the very proper Ross. Dependent on the Kerringtons’ good will, Cassie finds it increasingly difficult to navigate London society, the family, and even more, her growing passion for Ross. Besides, someone is trying to kill him.
Rules for a Knight
Ethan Hawke - 2015
In a series of ruminations on solitude, humility, forgiveness, honesty, courage, grace, pride, and patience, he draws on the ancient teachings of Eastern and Western philosophy, and on the great spiritual and political writings of our time. His intent: to give his children a compass for a journey they will have to make alone, a short guide to what gives life meaning and beauty.