Book picks similar to
Lions of the Grail by Tim Hodkinson
historical-fiction
medieval
historical
fiction
The Last Dying Light
William Havelock - 2020
Yet famine, war, and an encroaching night leave the Eastern Empire trending towards ruin.Faint hope arises as a new dynasty ascends to the throne of Caesar. Bearing witness to such events is Varus, a young Herulian slave to the aging yet powerful Justin, who unveils a bold plan held by two generations of Romans – to retake the West and reclaim their homeland.Following Justin’s dream, Varus enlists with the Roman Army and discovers the carnage of 6th Century warfare. As a mysterious horde of black-shielded invaders devastates the Empire’s northern provinces, Varus’ unit is called upon to defend under the leadership of Belisarius, one of Justin’s most promising commanders.As Varus prepares for the sacrifices to come, however, he begins to question Justin’s secrets, seeking answers regarding his true identity and place as a pivotal figure in the Empire’s survival.
Nothing Ventured
Jeffrey Archer - 2019
But this is not a detective story, this is a story about the making of a detective . . .William Warwick has always wanted to be a detective, and decides, much to his father’s dismay, that rather than become a lawyer like his father, Sir Julian Warwick QC, and his sister Grace, he will join London’s Metropolitan Police Force.After graduating from university, William begins a career that will define his life: from his early months on the beat under the watchful eye of his first mentor, Constable Fred Yates, to his first high-stakes case as a fledgling detective in Scotland Yard’s arts and antiquities squad. Investigating the theft of a priceless Rembrandt painting from the Fitzmolean Museum, he meets Beth Rainsford, a research assistant at the gallery who he falls hopelessly in love with, even as Beth guards a secret of her own that she’s terrified will come to light.While William follows the trail of the missing masterpiece, he comes up against suave art collector Miles Faulkner and his brilliant lawyer, Booth Watson QC, who are willing to bend the law to breaking point to stay one step ahead of William. Meanwhile, Miles Faulkner’s wife, Christina, befriends William, but whose side is she really on?This new series introduces William Warwick, a family man and a detective who will battle throughout his career against a powerful criminal nemesis. Through twists, triumph and tragedy, this series will show that William Warwick is destined to become one of Jeffrey Archer’s most enduring legacies.
Ghost Moth
Michèle Forbes - 2013
In this emotionally acute debut novel, Michèle Forbes immerses the reader in a colourful tapestry of life. Throughout the book’s carefully woven story, the bonds of family are tested and forgiveness is made possible through two parents’ indomitable love for their children.An exploration of memory, childhood, illicit love, and loss, Ghost Moth portrays ordinary experiences as portals to rich internal landscapes: a summer fair held by children in a backyard garden exposes the pangs and confusion of a first crush; a lonely tailor who is hired by an amateur theatre production of Bizet’s Carmen puts so much careful attention into the creation of a costume for his lover that it’s as if his desire for her can be seen sewn into the fabric. All the while, Northern Ireland moves to the brink of civil war. As Catholic Republicans and Protestant Loyalists clash during the “Troubles,” the lines between private anguish and public outrage disintegrate in this exceptional tale about a family—and country—seeking freedom from ghosts of the past.
Tales of Byzantium: A Selection of Short Stories
Eileen Stephenson - 2015
Three stories of love, war, and destiny in medieval Byzantium.A young empress defies her powerful father for love and her rightful place on the throne.A charismatic commander takes the gamble of a lifetime to save the lives of thousands of innocents.An exiled princess finds a new sense of purpose and creates a legacy that will stand through the ages.These stories provide a glimpse of the dynamic and proud Byzantines who lived during the height of the empire's splendor.
The Last Daughter of York
Nicola Cornick - 2021
Running out of options to keep her husband and the boy safe, Anne uses the power of an ancient family relic to send them away, knowing that in doing so she will never see Francis again.In the present day, Serena Warren has been haunted by her past ever since her twin sister, Caitlin, disappeared. But when Caitlin’s bones are discovered interred in a church vault that hasn’t been opened since the eighteenth century, the police are baffled. Piecing together local folklore that speaks of a magical relic with her own hazy memories of the day Caitlin vanished, Serena begins to uncover an impossible secret that her grandfather has kept hidden, one that connects her to Anne, Francis and the young Duke of York.Inspired by the enduring mystery of the Princes in the Tower, Nicola Cornick cleverly interprets the events into a dazzling novel set between a present-day mystery and a country on the brink of Tudor rule.
The Forest, Part 1 of 2
Edward Rutherfurd - 2000
. . A sprawling tome that combines fact with fiction and covers 900 years in the history of New Forest, a 100,000-acre woodland in southern England . . . Rutherfurd sketches the histories of six fictional families, ranging from aristocrats to peasants, who have lived in the forest for generations. . . . But the real success is in how Rutherfurd paints his picture of the wooded enclave with images of treachery and violence, as well as magic and beauty.”–The New York Post
Lost Autumn
Mary-Rose MacColl - 2019
Seventeen-year-old Maddie Bright embarks on the voyage of a lifetime when she's chosen to serve on the cross-continent tour of His Royal Highness, the dashing Edward, Prince of Wales. Life on the royal train is luxurious beyond her dreams, and the glamorous, good-hearted friends she makes--with their romantic histories and rivalries--crack open her world. But glamour often hides all manner of sins.Decades later, Maddie lives in a ramshackle house in Brisbane, whiling away the days with television news and her devoted, if drunken, next door neighbor. When a London journalist struggling with her own romantic entanglements begins asking Maddie questions about her relationship to the famous and reclusive author M.A. Bright, she's taken back to the glamorous days of the royal tour--and to the secrets she's kept for all of these years.
Rawblood
Catriona Ward - 2015
She dares to fall in love.And only then do they discover the true horror of the Vallarca curse.
The Anchoress of Chesterfield (Chesterfield 04)
Chris Nickson - 2020
Highlander's Lost Daughter
Alisa Adams - 2019
He has but one. Love.
Tavia is the adopted child of an apothecary and former priest. Besides loving her, Tavia’s father passed on to her his medical skills and also taught her French and Latin, giving her a better education than most men of her time.Blair is the son of the Laird and a handsome man that every single woman in the village desires. He is respected by his tenants and he is a capable man, always wiling to help and protect them.When Blair has an accident close to Tavia’s house, she uses her medical skills to heal his wounds. Blair finds in her beautiful eyes a unique woman that can give meaning to his life.He can not accept that he won’t see her again after this meeting, so he asks Tavia to give him French lessons. Tavia accepts and that only makes the heat between them grow… They both know though, that Tavia is a peasant girl, and marrying her is forbidden by society’s rules. But Blair wants to defy all of them! Determined to find a solution he will start discovering clues about Tavia’s real parents and her past, making things take a turn none of them could ever imagine."Highlander’s Lost Daughter" is a story packed with romance, mystery, and salvation, set on the beautiful backdrop of the Scottish Highlands.
Sinful Folk
Ned Hayes - 2013
A desperate journey.A mother seeks the truth.
In December of the year 1377, five children were burned to death in a suspicious house fire. A small band of villagers traveled 200 miles across England in midwinter to demand justice for their children’s deaths. Sinful Folk is the story of this treacherous journey as seen by Mear, a former nun who has lived for a decade disguised as a mute man, raising her son quietly in this isolated village. For years, she has concealed herself and all her secrets. But in this journey, she will find the strength to claim the promise of her past and find a new future. Mear begins her journey in terror and heartache, and ends in triumph and redemption.
A Dangerous Crossing
Rachel Rhys - 2017
But as the sun beats down, long-hidden secrets begin to surface. Her heart beats faster for the attention of handsome Edward, but is his heart already taken?Australia, six-weeks laterThe world is at war, the cruise liner docks, and Lily's desire for Edward is untameable. But something else is awry on this ship and Lily is determined to find out ....
Letters to the Lost
Iona Grey - 2015
Iona Grey's prose is warm, evocative, and immediately engaging; her characters become so real you can't bear to let them go.I promised to love you forever, in a time when I didn't know if I'd live to see the start of another week. Now it looks like forever is finally running out. I never stopped loving you. I tried, for the sake of my own sanity, but I never even got close, and I never stopped hoping either.Late on a frozen February evening, a young woman is running through the streets of London. Having fled from her abusive boyfriend and with nowhere to go, Jess stumbles onto a forgotten lane where a small, clearly unlived in old house offers her best chance of shelter for the night. The next morning, a mysterious letter arrives and when she can't help but open it, she finds herself drawn inexorably into the story of two lovers from another time. In London 1942, Stella meets Dan, a US airman, quite by accident, but there is no denying the impossible, unstoppable attraction that draws them together. Dan is a B-17 pilot flying his bomber into Europe from a British airbase; his odds of survival are one in five. In the midst of such uncertainty, the one thing they hold onto is the letters they write to each other. Fate is unkind and they are separated by decades and continents. In the present, Jess becomes determined to find out what happened to them. Her hope—inspired by a love so powerful it spans a lifetime—will lead her to find a startling redemption in her own life in this powerfully moving novel.“A captivating tale of love and love lost.” —Booklist“A wonderful story.” —Rosamunde Pilcher, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Shell Seekers
The Abstainer
Ian McGuire - 2020
He has joined the Fenians, a secret society intent on ending British rule in Ireland by any means necessary. Head Constable James O'Connor has fled grief and drink in Dublin for a sober start in Manchester, and connections with his fellow Irishmen are proving to be particularly advantageous in spying on Fenian activity. When a long-lost nephew returns from America and arrives on O'Connor's doorstep looking for work, O'Connor cannot foresee the way his fragile new life will be imperiled--and how his and Doyle's fates will be intertwined.In an epic tale of revenge and obsession, master storyteller Ian McGuire once again transports readers to a time when blood begot blood. Moving from the gritty streets of Manchester to the rolling hills of Pennsylvania, The Abstainer is a searing novel in which two men, motivated by family, honor and revenge, must fight for life and legacy.
The Inn at Hidden Run
Olivia Newport - 2019
In the small mountain town of Canyon Mines, Colorado, she takes a job at the Inn at Hidden Run B&B. And waits. It's only a matter of time. What she doesn't count on is genealogist Jillian Parisi-Duffy and her father, Nolan, having her back when it takes everything she has not to bolt again but to stay and face the truth that only unfolding her family's history will reveal. While Nolan works on keeping Meri calm--and in town--Jillian pulls out of her gems of information she doesn't know she has and arranges the puzzle pieces. But none of that changes the fact that Meri's family is closing in to haul her back to her "real" life. When their arrival inflames tensions and Meri finally does bolt, Nolan and Jillian may be out of time. The Inn at Hidden Run is the first book in the Tree of Life series. Readers will come back to backdrop of a lovely mountain town of Canyon Mines again and again to explore and celebrate unforgettable family stories that inspire them to connect with their own family histories and unique faith journeys.