Book picks similar to
The Lucky One by Ray Kingfisher
historical-fiction
short-stories
holocaust
history
Daughters of the Night Sky
Aimie K. Runyan - 2018
Katya Ivanova is a young pilot in a far-flung military academy in the Ural Mountains. From childhood, she’s dreamed of taking to the skies to escape her bleak mountain life. With the Nazis on the march across Europe, she is called on to use her wings to serve her country in its darkest hour. Not even the entreaties of her new husband—a sensitive artist who fears for her safety—can dissuade her from doing her part as a proud daughter of Russia.After years of arduous training, Katya is assigned to the 588th Night Bomber Regiment—one of the only Soviet air units composed entirely of women. The Germans quickly learn to fear nocturnal raids by the daring fliers they call “Night Witches.” But the brutal campaign will exact a bitter toll on Katya and her sisters-in-arms. When the smoke of war clears, nothing will ever be the same—and one of Russia’s most decorated military heroines will face the most agonizing choice of all.
The Man Who Broke Into Auschwitz: A True Story of World War II
Denis Avey - 2011
He was put to work every day in a German factory, where he labored alongside Jewish prisoners from a nearby camp called Auschwitz. The stories they told him were horrifying. Eventually Avey's curiosity, kind-heartedness, derring-do, and perhaps foolhardiness drove him to suggest--and remarkably manage--switching places with two of the Jewish prisoners in order to spend a couple of harrowing days and nights inside. Miraculously, he lived to tell about it.Surely deserving of its place alongside the great World War II stories, this is an incredible tale of generosity, courage, and, for one Jewish prisoner whom Denis was able to help, survival. Amazingly, breathtakingly, it is told here for the first time.
Becoming Lola
Harriet Steel - 2010
It brings to vibrant life the true story of Eliza Gilbert, the daughter of an obscure Ensign in the British Army and his cold Irish wife. When she grew up, Eliza changed her name to Lola Montez. She was a dancer, a courtesan, a bigamist, the mistress of a king and the nineteenth-century’s most notorious adventuress. Blazing like a female firecracker across the stages and courts of Europe and beyond, she was, for a while, second only to Queen Victoria in fame.
The Rising Tide
Jeff Shaara - 2006
Now he embarks upon his most ambitious epic, a trilogy about the military conflict that defined the twentieth century.
The Rising Tide begins a staggering work of fiction bound to be a new generation's most poignant chronicle of World War II. With you-are-there immediacy, painstaking historical detail, and all-inclusive points of view, Shaara portrays the momentous and increasingly dramatic events that pulled America into the vortex of this monumental conflict.As Hitler conquers Poland, Norway, France, and most of Western Europe, England struggles to hold the line. When Germany's ally Japan launches a stunning attack on Pearl Harbor, America is drawn into the war, fighting to hold back the Japanese conquest of the Pacific, while standing side-by-side with their British ally, the last hope for turning the tide of the war.Through unforgettable battle scenes in the unforgiving deserts of North Africa and the rugged countryside of Sicily, Shaara tells this story through the voices of this conflict's most heroic figures, some familiar, some unknown. As British and American forces strike into the "soft underbelly" of Hitler's Fortress Europa, the new weapons of war come clearly into focus. In North Africa, tank battles unfold in a tapestry of dust and fire unlike any the world has ever seen. In Sicily, the Allies attack their enemy with a barely tested weapon: the paratrooper. As battles rage along the coasts of the Mediterranean, the momentum of the war begins to shift, setting the stage for the massive invasion of France, at a seaside resort called Normandy.More than an unprecedented and intimate portrait of those who waged this astonishing global war, The Rising Tide is a vivid gallery of characters both immortal and unknown: the as-yet obscure administrator Dwight D. Eisenhower, whose tireless efficiency helped win the war; his subordinates, clashing in both style and personality, from George Patton and Mark Clark to Omar Bradley and Bernard Montgomery. In the desolate hills and deserts, the Allies confront Erwin Rommel, the battlefield genius known as "the Desert Fox," a wounded beast who hands the Americans their first humiliating defeat in the European theater of the war. From tank driver to paratrooper to the men who gave the commands, Shaara's stirring portrayals bring the heroic and the tragic to life in brilliant detail.
A Sexy Journey
Jasinda Wilder - 2012
I grew up in a small town, dated my high school sweetheart all the way through college, and married him. I even waited until our wedding night for my first time. Yeah, that kind of good girl. Finding my husband in bed with the church secretary came as quite a shock, needless to say. Finding out he'd slept with just about every female in town was an even bigger shock.Discovering those dirty little secrets is what sent me on a journey that I will never forget. ** This erotic romance novella is for adults only! Contains super hot, one-on-one sex between two great characters.**
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.
Emma's Chance
Tess St. John - 2011
Emma's maid implores the help of Harmon Westbourne, the Earl of Easton, to rescue Emma from her father's home. But Emma's dilemma doesn't end there.
Resurrection of Liberty
Michael L. Wentz - 2005
. . a solid, rollicking, fast paced, easy to read story." -- TheMartianSite.com". . . an original, deftly written, and thoroughly entertaining novel of action and adventure which can be enthusiastically recommended . . ." -- Midwest Book Review"Adventurous science fiction that takes you back to the days of Robert A. Heinlein . . ." -- firebringer.blogspot.comProduct DescriptionIn 'Resurrection of Liberty' Daniel Foster discovers a family secret that is so shocking, it will affect the future of the entire galaxy. While on an innocent road trip with his two best friends, his grandfather’s old car, almost having a mind of its own, whisks the trio out of the confines of their home planet to a cloaked starship that has remained hidden behind the moon for over fifty years. In trying to return home the three friends plunge deeper into space ultimately meeting the race that had sent his grandfather to Earth on a critical mission a generation before. Yet, to their dismay, they learn that by awakening the old ship they have hastened the peril of their own home. Now, far away from his family, Daniel must accept his destiny and dig deep inside himself to muster the confidence needed to rally his new alien friends to help save Earth—and ultimately the galaxy.From the Publisher- Perfect for all those who love action and adventure - Great for Young Adults An epic science fiction adventure for the 21st century 'Resurrection of Liberty' is written in the best tradition of the classics while still being fun, friendly, and accessible to those new to genre. Young adult friendly and packed with enough action and adventure to spare 'Resurrection of Liberty' is a remarkably entertaining read for anyone who enjoys high drama, sympathetic characters, and a look into a world where courage is the key to survival and the future is just around the corner
The Black Swan of Paris
Karen Robards - 2020
A beautiful young star. A mission no one expected.
Paris, 1944Celebrated singer Genevieve Dumont is both a star and a smokescreen. An unwilling darling of the Nazis, the chanteuse’s position of privilege allows her to go undetected as an ally to the resistance.When her estranged mother, Lillian de Rocheford, is captured by Nazis, Genevieve knows it won’t be long before the Gestapo succeeds in torturing information out of Lillian that will derail the upcoming allied invasion. The resistance movement is tasked with silencing her by any means necessary—including assassination. But Genevieve refuses to let her mother become yet one more victim of the war. Reuniting with her long-lost sister, she must find a way to navigate the perilous cross-currents of Occupied France undetected—and in time to save Lillian’s life.
Push Not the River
James Conroyd Martin - 2000
It is then, at the young and vulnerable age of seventeen, when Lady Anna Maria Berezowska loses both of her parents and must leave the only home she has ever known. With Empress Catherine's Russian armies streaming in to take their spoils, Anna is quickly thrust into a world of love and hate, loyalty and deceit, patriotism and treason, life and death. Even kind Aunt Stella, Anna's new guardian who soon comes to personify Poland's courage and spirit, can't protect Anna from the uncertain future of the country. Anna, a child no longer, turns to love and comfort in the form of Jan, a brave patriot and architect of democracy, unaware that her beautiful and enigmatic cousin Zofia has already set her sights on the handsome young fighter. Thus Anna walks unwittingly into Zofia's jealous wrath and darkly sinister intentions. Forced to survive several tragic events, many of them orchestrated by the crafty Zofia, a strengthened Anna begins to learn to place herself in the way of destiny--for love and for country. Heeding the proud spirit of her late father, Anna becomes a major player in the fight against the countries who come to partition her beloved Poland. PUSH NOT THE RIVER is based on the true eighteenth century diary of Anna Maria Berezowska, a Polish countess who lived through the rise and fall of the historic Third of May Constitution. Vivid, romantic, and thrillingly paced, it paints the emotional and unforgettable story of the metamorphosis of a nation--and of a proud and resilient young woman.
Clara's War
Clara Kramer - 2008
Three years later, in the small town of Żółkiew, life for Jewish 15-year-old Clara Kramer was never to be the same again. While those around her were either slaughtered or transported, Clara and her family hid perilously in a hand-dug cellar. Living above and protecting them were the Becks.Mr. Beck was a womaniser, a drunkard and a self-professed anti-Semite, yet he risked his life throughout the war to keep his charges safe. Nevertheless, life with Mr. Beck was far from predictable. From the house catching fire, to Beck's affair with Clara's cousin, to the nightly SS drinking sessions in the room just above, Clara's War transports you into the dark, cramped bunker, and sits you next to the families as they hold their breath time and again.Sixty years later, Clara Kramer has created a memoir that is lyrical, dramatic and heartbreakingly compelling. Despite the worst of circumstances, this is a story full of hope and survival, courage and love.
The Mine
John A. Heldt - 2012
But when the college senior, days from graduation, enters an abandoned Montana mine, he discovers the price of reckless curiosity. He emerges in May 1941 with a cell phone he can't use, money he can't spend, and little but his wits to guide his way. Stuck in the age of swing dancing and a peacetime draft, Joel begins a new life as the nation drifts toward war. With the help of his 21-year-old trailblazing grandmother and her friends, he finds his place in a world he knew only from movies and books. But when an opportunity comes to return to the present, Joel must decide whether to leave his new love in the past or choose a course that will alter their lives forever. THE MINE is a love story that follows a humbled man through a critical time in history as he adjusts to new surroundings and wrestles with the knowledge of things to come.
From Dust and Ashes: A Story of Liberation
Tricia Goyer - 2003
Helene is the abandoned wife of an SS guard who has fled to avoid arrest. Overcome by guilt, she begins to help meet the needs of survivors. Throughout the process, she finds her own liberation--from spiritual bondage, sin, and guilt. Readers will be intrigued and touched by this fascinating story of love, faithfulness, and courage amidst one of the darkest chapters of mankind's history.
Of Windmills and War
Diane Moody - 2012
Growing up in Chicago, his world revolved around after-school jobs, a rescued beagle, his pen pal in Holland, and the Cubs' chance to go to the World Series. Then, in December of 1941, news of the attack on Pearl Harbor hit much too close to home. In a few years, Danny found himself in the co-pilot seat of a B-17, stationed with the 390th Bomb Group in Framlingham, England. Anya Versteeg had been just a teenager when Hitler's troops invaded her homeland of Holland in May of 1940. Forced to grow up much too fast, the feisty preacher's daughter eagerly immersed herself in the Dutch Resistance. Certain that God had turned His back on Holland, she did whatever she had to do to save her country before it was too late. By 1945, the people of Occupied Holland were starving. Thousands were dying every day. Then, just days before the war ended, help came to the Netherlands like manna from heaven. Operation Chowhound held special meaning for Lieutenant Danny McClain. Somewhere below in the battered land of tulips and windmills was the girl who needed rescuing, and he would move heaven and earth to find her.
Tempt Me at Midnight
Lauren Royal - 2014
But when the man she's loved since her girlhood returns from a long spell abroad, she quite suddenly finds herself hoping the fine lord her brother has picked for her won't propose. She decides that if he does, she'll quite improperly turn him down—that is, until the man of her hopes and dreams informs her he has no intention of marrying her.The last time Tristan Nesbitt saw Alexandra, he was a common man with no hope of ever wedding the daughter of a marquess. Seven years later, he's now Lord Hawkridge, which should make him eminently suitable for the woman who long ago captured his heart. But a dreadful scandal has tarnished his name in England—a scandal so horrid that marrying Alexandra would ruin not only her flawless reputation but her whole family. For Alexandra's own good, he must fight his relentless desires and stay far away…