Book picks similar to
The Old Cape House by Barbara Eppich Struna
historical-fiction
mystery
fiction
historical
A Trace of Smoke
Rebecca Cantrell - 2009
Ernst, a cross-dressing lounge singer at a seedy nightclub, had many secrets, a never-ending list of lovers, and plenty of opportunities to get into trouble.Hannah delves into the city's dark underbelly to flush out his murderer, but the late night arrival of a five-year-old orphan on her doorstep complicates matters. The endearing Anton claims that Hannah is his mother. and that her dead brother Ernst is his father.As her investigations into Ernst's murder and Anton's parentage uncover political intrigue and sex scandals in the top ranks of the rising Nazi party, Hannah fears not only for her own life, but for that of a small boy who has come to call her 'mother.'
Legwork
Katy Munger - 1997
Casey is a big, bad bottled blonde who takes no prisoners as she delves into cases for those who are marginalized on the outskirts of society. Set in North Carolina and the surrounding states, LEGWORK features a colorful cast, solid plot and writing that is both laugh out funny and vry moving at times.
The Rule of Four
Ian Caldwell - 2004
Seniors are scrambling to finish their theses. And two students, Tom Sullivan and Paul Harris, are a hair's breadth from solving the mysteries of the Hypnerotomachia Poliphili--a renowned text attributed to an Italian nobleman, a work that has baffled scholars since its publication in 1499. For Tom, their research has been a link to his family's past -- and an obstacle to the woman he loves. For Paul, it has become an obsession, the very reason for living. But as their deadline looms, research has stalled -- until a long-lost diary surfaces with a vital clue. And when a fellow researcher is murdered just hours later, Tom and Paul realize that they are not the first to glimpse the Hypnerotomachia 's secrets.Suddenly the stakes are raised, and as the two friends sift through the codes and riddles at the heart of the text, they are beginnning to see the manuscript in a new light--not simply as a story of faith, eroticism and pedantry, but as a bizarre, coded mathematical maze. And as they come closer and closer to deciphering the final puzzle of a book that has shattered careers, friendships and families, they know that their own lives are in mortal danger. Because at least one person has been killed for knowing too much. And they know even more.From the streets of fifteenth-century Rome to the rarified realm of Princeton, from a shocking 500 year-old murder scene to the drama of a young man's coming of age, The Rule of Four takes us on an entertaining, illuminating tour of history--as it builds to a pinnacle of nearly unbearable suspense.
By Any Means
James Farner - 2018
John Williams is determined not to be one of those men. When Harry Heard gives him a fake sword to sell to aristocrat Sir Albert Blackwood, his life changes forever. He meets and deals with industrialists, daughters of dukes, and knights of the realm. But all the while a mysterious serial killer, known only as the Breaker, is picking people off at will. When he makes Sir Albert Blackwood his target, John is forced to put the Breaker's brutal work to an end. Not only his future but his very life hinges on his success. As class and murder collide, can John leave his humble beginnings behind him?
The Watchers
Lynnie Purcell - 2011
It focuses on 16-year-old Clare Michaels and her journey to her mom's hometown of King's Cross. Long aware of her heritage - that she is the daughter of a fallen angel - The Watchers focuses on her first interaction with the world she has always hidden from. Her first interaction comes in the form of a handsome, young high-schooler, Daniel Adams. He is her clue to the world she has always been afraid to face openly...but is he a danger as well?
Secrets
Kristen Heitzmann - 2004
What happened all those years ago, and what is it she so desperately needs him to find? The old villa in Sonoma holds the answers, but it is now owned by a young woman who neither knows nor cares about his mission. But Rese Barret is a force to contend with, and her own impending storm could sweep him up as their sparring creates a fierce and uncomfortable attraction. From bestselling author Kristen Heitzmann.
Clifton Manor - Episode One
Victoria Spencer - 2014
But as Anna Holden is about to discover, it is a house not only steeped in history, but in secrets as well… Upon her arrival as the new assistant cook, Anna discovers that a thousand mysteries await her. What lies beyond the heavily padlocked door the other servants do their best to avoid? Who has Lady Clifton been speaking to in such hushed, surreptitious tones? What is the cause of the misfortune running rampant amongst the staff? And why does George Winston, the eligible bachelor of the family, seem more taken with Anna than he does the proper ladies his mother parades before him? Despite her station in life, Anna can’t seem to put these questions out of her mind. As the pieces fall into place around her, she wonders: how long will it be until her own secrets are revealed? Author's note: As you will have noticed, this book is referred to as “Episode One” which may sound like a slightly unusual subtitle for a book. The idea is that there will be six episodes per “season” of this story and I will keep writing it for as long as I have stories to tell in the Clifton Manor universe. I love reading books in the same way I watch TV shows—regular bursts of short, digestible content. This style is not for everyone, but I hope some of you like it and keep reading. I will be releasing episodes of Clifton Manor on a regular basis so you should never have to wait too long for you next fix.
Giovanna: The Cowboy's Calabrese Mail Order Bride
Lorena Dove - 2015
Hard-working, beautiful, and honest to a fault, Giovanna's dreams of a life with her husband, Frank, were cut short when he died soon after they arrived from Calabria, Italy, four years earlier. Now Giovanna must find a way to help her sick daughter, Rosa, before she loses the only thing she loves! Laars Gundersen has broken from his family in Minnesota to work a claim in the Dakota Territory. He needs a wife, but his work ethic and cool Nordic ways don't leave much time for children. Will Giovanna find the love she deserves and be able to care for Rosa before it's too late? Find out in this clean, sweet historical romance, Book One in the Sweet Land of Liberty Brides series. Lorena Dove writes sweet, clean, inspirational Western romance, suitable for readers of all ages.
The Sisterhood
Helen Bryan - 2012
Rescued after a hurricane in South America, doomed to a life of poverty with a swallow medal as her only legacy, the orphaned toddler was adopted by an American family and taken to a new life. As a beautiful, intelligent woman of nineteen, she is in love, engaged, and excited about the future — until another traumatic event shatters her dreams. Menina flees to Spain to bury her misery in research for her college thesis about a sixteenth-century artist who signed his works with the image of a swallow — the same image as the one on Menina’s medal. But a mugging strands Menina in a musty, isolated Spanish convent. Exploring her surroundings, she discovers the epic sagas of five orphan girls who were hidden from the Spanish Inquisition and received help escaping to the New World. Is Menina’s medal a link to them, or to her own past? Did coincidence lead her to the convent, or fate? Both love story and historical thriller, The Sisterhood is an emotionally charged ride across continents and centuries.
Half Past Dead: The Undying Heart / Simon Says
Zoe Archer - 2010
Thirsting for vengeance against the enemy who made him something less than human, Sam returns to England and crosses paths with Cassandra Fielding. His best friend’s little sister has become a fearless woman on a dangerous mission of her own. And against all odds, she sees past what he’s become, and stirs a desire he thought he’d lost forever…“Simon Says” by Bianca D’ArcSpecial Forces soldier Simon Blackwell ended his affair with Mariana Daniels three years ago, but he hasn’t stopped protecting her. Mariana has no knowledge of the dark, deadly creatures that lurk in the forest surrounding her clinic, or of the mysterious powers that make Simon the only one who can defeat them. But soon he’ll have no choice but to reveal the truth, and urge her to trust in an explosive passion that never faded…
The Raven Spell
Luanne G. Smith - 2022
Among his effects: a bloodstained business card bearing the name of a master wizard and a curious pocket watch that doesn’t seem to tell time. To retrieve his lost memories, Ian demands answers from Edwina and Mary Blackwood, sister witches with a murky past. But as their secret is slowly unveiled, a dangerous mystery emerges on the darkened streets of London.To help piece together Ian’s lost time, he and Edwina embark on a journey that will take them from the river foreshore to an East End music hall, and on to a safe house for witches in need of sanctuary from angry mortals. The clues they find suggest a link between a series of gruesome murders, a missing person’s case, and a dreadful suspicion that threatens to tear apart the bonds of sisterhood. As the investigation deepens, could Ian and Edwina be the next to die?
Swept Away
Susan Kiernan-Lewis - 2012
And a secret that would destroy her world.Ella Stevens never knew a mother's love. Her fierce independence was the keystone of her identity--unfettered by romantic involvements or family demands--until the day she moved to Germany, and her world began to unravel. There, she discovered the terrible secret her mother died to protect. There, she stumbled onto a hidden time portal that took her to 1620 Heidelberg where the brutal realities of life were not restricted to the poor and the infirm.Fighting to survive in a world she's ill-equipped to understand, Ella is befriended by a convent of nuns who stand in the shadow of the executioner's block of the Warlord Krüger, one of the bloodiest butchers in all Europe. With the aid of a sexy US Marshal, Ella is determined to help her new friends. Along the way, she learns that when it comes to the things that really matter--love, trust and friendship--sometimes the truth is the least important thing of all.
Eternal Vows
Chrissy Peebles - 2012
even if he is a drop-dead gorgeous immortal king.Never pretend to be a princess.And most importantly... never slip on an ancient wedding ring you know nothing about.Sarah Larker returns to a cave where her sister disappeared ten years earlier. She walks through a portal and is mistaken for a runaway princess on the run by a dangerous immortal king in medieval times. Her plan is bold as well as daring-become this princess, wed the king, and slip on an ancient wedding ring that will unlock the portal back home. Then find her sister and run as fast as she can out of Dodge. But taking on the identity of Princess Gloria comes along with dangerous consequences; and slipping on the ruby ring comes with an even higher price.
The Rancher Takes A Bride
Sylvia McDaniel - 2000
This cunning widow is determined to find wives for her brood of handsome sons.Rose Severin speaks to the dead or at least she pretends to until she can earn enough money to make her way to New York and become a famous actress like her mother. Travis Burnett is resolved to rid the frontier town of imposters like Rose. But Eugenia thinks the fiery Rose is just the woman for her obstinate son. She schemes to keep Rose at the family ranch where Travis soon realizes that the supposed spiritualist is more than just a pretty swindler.
Afton of Margate Castle
Angela Elwell Hunt - 1993
Schooled in the ways of kings and surrounded by splendor, Afton falls in love with the earl’s son, brave, Calhoun, her childhood protector.But Calhoun’s mother, the Lady Endeline, has much different plans for him than marriage to a villein’s daughter. Suddenly Afton’s world is torn viciously apart. She is cast out of the castle, given to a man she fears and despises as a reward for his loyalty—an all too clear reminder that, for all her dreams, she is nothing but a villein.Now all she has left is a burning desire for vengeance . . .