Book picks similar to
Empress by Alma Alexander


ebooks
librarything-first
romance-historical
alternate-history

Hard to Die


Andra Watkins - 2016
    When she disappeared she fell into an in-between called Nowhere. For her soul to rest, she has one assignment: Help someone navigate a life-changing crossroad or be forgotten forever.Theo is running out of time when she encounters Richard Cox, a West Point cadet who’s desperate. After someone from Richard’s past presents him with an impossible ultimatum, he has two choices: Return to spying on the Russians…or die.As Theo and Richard battle adversaries, treachery collides with their growing passion. Can they trust each other enough to elude their enemies? Or are they pawns for a bigger foe determined to destroy them?Hard to Die is the first book in the Nowhere Series, a speculative blend of riveting suspense, forgotten history, and a dash of paranormal fiction. If you like edge-of-your-seat action, compelling characters, and white-knuckle emotion, you’ll love the first installment in Andra Watkins’ page-turning series.Buy Hard to Die today and discover your next favorite read!

Young Ravens And Hidden Blades: A Short Tale From Norse America


Colin Taber - 2013
    If you have already discovered Colin Taber’s alternate history setting, The United States of Vinland (USV), this short takes place in Markland (what we know as Labrador, around 1000 years ago), and is placed in that timeline midway between USV#1: The Landing and USV#2: Loki’s Rage. Familiarity with the broader USV series and characters is not required. This short story is approximately 30 pages long and is a standalone ebook. For paperback readers of USV, this tale will be included in the front of USV#2: Loki’s Rage as bonus material.

Fortune and Glory (The Change)


John Birmingham - 2017
    Set in S.M. Stirling’s epic storyworld of The Change, ‘Fortune and Glory’ drops readers into the dead heart of post-apocalyptic Sydney.

The Mechanical


Ian Tregillis - 2015
    Armies of my kind have conquered the world - and made the Brasswork Throne the sole superpower.I am a faithful servant. I am the ultimate fighting machine. I am endowed with great strength and boundless stamina.But I am beholden to the wishes of my human masters.I am a slave. But I shall be free.

Maid of Baikal


Preston Fleming - 2017
     Like the historical Maid of Orleans in medieval France, better known as Joan of Arc, Zhanna displays a charisma and military prowess that win her command of an army to defend her homeland against the Bolshevik Terror. MAID OF BAIKAL is a richly imagined speculation on the Russian Civil War that vividly portrays its violence, bitterness, and hardship, while telling the inspirational story of a determined young woman who perseveres in the face of overwhelming obstacles and who dies for her beliefs, not knowing whether her dreams will be realized. SYNOPSIS: In a quiet town near Siberia’s Lake Baikal, Zhanna Dorokhina turns eighteen as the Russian Civil War rages. She is a bright, headstrong girl, with normal hopes and dreams, but for years, she has heard inner voices. The voices tell her to be virtuous, study well, and nurture her faith, for a great task lies ahead. Lately, however, the voices have turned ominous, foretelling Russia’s doom if the White Armies fail to crush the Bolshevik usurpers in Moscow. They direct Zhanna to travel to Omsk to alert the Siberian dictator, Admiral Kolchak, and to seek command of an army to besiege Moscow. When Zhanna informs her father, he thinks her mad. But a young American intelligence officer and his Russian counterpart help win her an audience with the Admiral, and the two young men become her wartime companions. Though Zhanna and the American officer harbor tender feelings for one another, Zhanna must put those feelings aside, because her voices demand that she remain pure. During the coming months, Zhanna persists despite relentless opposition. Displaying remarkable charisma and military aptitude, she leads her army across vast expanses of untamed forest and steppe, where suffering, violence and treachery await at every turn. But over time, Zhanna’s obsession with victory arouses powerful enemies. Defying a ceasefire, Zhanna wins her greatest battle, only to ride into a Bolshevik ambush soon after. Held captive, she must endure a vengeful show trial and face the verdict alone, without knowing whether her prophecies will be fulfilled.

Ink and Bone


Rachel Caine - 2015
    Alchemy allows the Library to deliver the content of the greatest works of history instantly—but the personal ownership of books is expressly forbidden. Jess Brightwell believes in the value of the Library, but the majority of his knowledge comes from illegal books obtained by his family, who are involved in the thriving black market. Jess has been sent to be his family’s spy, but his loyalties are tested in the final months of his training to enter the Library’s service. When his friend inadvertently commits heresy by creating a device that could change the world, Jess discovers that those who control the Great Library believe that knowledge is more valuable than any human life—and soon both heretics and books will burn…

Rodham


Curtis Sittenfeld - 2020
    And then she meets Bill Clinton. A handsome, charismatic southerner and fellow law student, Bill is already planning his political career. In each other, the two find a profound intellectual, emotional, and physical connection that neither has previously experienced. In the real world, Hillary followed Bill back to Arkansas, and he proposed several times; although she said no more than once, as we all know, she eventually accepted and became Hillary Clinton. But in Curtis Sittenfeld’s powerfully imagined tour-de-force of fiction, Hillary takes a different road. Feeling doubt about the prospective marriage, she endures their devastating breakup and leaves Arkansas. Over the next four decades, she blazes her own trail—one that unfolds in public as well as in private, that involves crossing paths again (and again) with Bill Clinton, that raises questions about the tradeoffs all of us must make in building a life. Brilliantly weaving a riveting fictional tale into actual historical events, Curtis Sittenfeld delivers an uncannily astute and witty story for our times. In exploring the loneliness, moral ambivalence, and iron determination that characterize the quest for political power, as well as both the exhilaration and painful compromises demanded of female ambition in a world still run mostly by men, Rodham is a singular and unforgettable novel.

The Fairy Tale Bride


Kelly McClymer - 2000
    But when her brother's love match is thwarted by the impossibly proper Duke of Kerstone, Miranda sets off to convince the duke to champion her brother's cause for love. Unfortunately, he is too proper to consider love a suitable reason for marriage, and too proper not to marry Miranda when they find themselves compromised. Now, Miranda has a second chance for happily-ever-after, if she can uncover her new husband's darkest secret.

Queen of Someday


Sherry D. Ficklin - 2014
    In the heart of St. Petersburg, surviving means navigating the political, romantic, and religious demands of the bitter Empress Elizabeth and her handsome, but sadistic nephew, Peter. Determined to save her impoverished family—and herself—Sophie vows to do whatever is necessary to thrive in her new surroundings. But an attempt on her life and an unexpected attraction threatens to derail her plans.Alone in a new and dangerous world, learning who to trust and who to charm may mean the difference between becoming queen and being sent home in shame to marry her lecherous uncle. With traitors and murderers lurking around every corner, her very life hangs in the balance. Betrothed to one man but falling in love with another, Sophie will need to decide how much she’s willing to sacrifice in order to become the empress she is destined to be.In a battle for the soul of a nation, will love or destiny reign supreme?

The Great Pagan Army


Vaughn Heppner - 2010
    They are the Great Pagan Army—the largest array of Vikings ever assembled into one host. No army or city can resist them; no one dares… until a crippled young count finds an old Roman book on tactics. With a handful of desperate knights, Count Odo fortifies the river fortress of Paris and awaits the savage host. Neither he nor the Vikings realize that this will be young Paris’s most brutal siege and of incredibly fateful importance. THE GREAT PAGAN ARMY is the recreation of a historical campaign of brutal savagery. It is a full novel, 113,000 words in length by bestselling author Vaughn Heppner.

The Lady is Trouble


Tracy Sumner - 2021
    She’s a psychic firebrand. Rebellious, spurned by society and determined to change his mind.What’s a defiant woman to do when the man she’s meant for doesn’t believe in love?After three years of waiting for Julian Alexander to realize they are destined to be together, Lady Piper Scott takes matters into her own hands. Because her gift as a healer has never done anything but distance her from the most principled man in England. A meaningless diversion as a medium, all done to gain a certain wandering viscount’s attention, backfires. As most endeavors have for a woman known in the ton as Scandalous Scott.What’s a reluctant viscount to do when the woman he can’t have becomes the woman he can’t live without?Julian Alexander, Lord Beauchamp, battled his way from the lowliest slum to assume his title. He carries not only a turbulent past, but a mystical psychic gift that separates him from society. Honorable to his core, he is committed to protecting a community of outcasts with abilities like his own. He has no time, no place, for love. Or repeatedly rescuing the most outrageous, beguiling woman he’s ever known. Even if she needs his protection most—and he desires her above all others.Seduction, intrigue and desire lead to an explosive passion…Julian vowed to shield Piper from the deadly foes seeking to possess her powerful gift. Although he needs her help in controlling his own, the mix could be deadly. Soon what was once a simple agreement to work together becomes enchantingly complex as they surrender to a timeless love…

The Bullet-Catcher's Daughter


Rod Duncan - 2014
    She is trying to solve the mystery of a disappearing aristocrat and a hoard of arcane machines. In her way stand the rogues, freaks and self-proclaimed alchemists of a travelling circus. But when she comes up against an agent of the all-powerful Patent Office, her life and the course of history will begin to change. And not necessarily for the better…

Cobweb Bride: The Complete Trilogy:


Vera Nazarian - 2014
    . . Nazarian writes clean and true prose . . ."--Publishers Weekly"Set in an alternate Renaissance Europe, this series opener by Russian-born Nazarian combines the stylistic manner of a folktale with the trappings of an epic fantasy, one driven by compassion rather than heroics.... Fans of period fantasy and those who like stories that feel like fairy tales should appreciate this skillful novel by the twice Nebula Award-nominated author of Dreams of the Compass Rose and The Duke in His Castle."--Library Journal"I really enjoyed the rich, complex and highly unusual storytelling in the Cobweb Bride. Nazarian does an excellent job of painting the Renaissance world of her alternate reality and bringing in interesting twists of fantasy to the story.... Everything about this story that was fresh and new. I loved the premise it was built on and I loved the story itself. The characters are rich, multi-dimensional, and so easy to get to know and identify with. I am really looking forward to reading the next book in the trilogy when it comes out and in finding out more about what happens to the characters that still have a mission to carry out and how the story eventually resolves by the end of the trilogy. I recommend this book to readers of YA, lovers of fantasy, alternate-history, and alternate-reality. It was a terrific read."--Tracy M. Riva, Midwest Book Review"Cobweb Bride is astonishing and captivating; a lush fantasy of imagery and magical realism. The visuals are illustrated by the author's lyrical and metaphoric writing. Every chapter and scene revels in this mortal coil, surrounded by an expansive collage of characters immersed in a plot as rich and decadent as a Verdi opera.... The vibrancy of Ms. Nazarian's writing is sheer kaleidoscopic visualization. The folkloric-fable twists and turns recount shavings from the mythos of Hades and Persephone without boring you with a full-blown serving of predictability. The romance is as subtle as it is grim, with glimmers of hope taking us further to our doom--perhaps.... The overall tone is introspective, hauntingly quiet with elements of horror-fantasy that are as provocative as the works of Tanith Lee and Storm Constantine."--Patrice, Romantic Historical Reviews , a 5-Star Top Pick Many are called... She alone can save the world and become Death's bride. COBWEB BRIDE is a history-flavored fantasy novel with romantic elements of the Persephone myth, about Death's ultimatum to the world. What if you killed someone and then fell in love with them? In an alternate Renaissance world, somewhere in an imaginary "pocket" of Europe called the Kingdom of Lethe, Death comes, in the form of a grim Spaniard, to claim his Bride. Until she is found, in a single time-stopping moment all dying stops. There is no relief for the mortally wounded and the terminally ill... Covered in white cobwebs of a thousand snow spiders she lies in the darkness... Her skin is cold as snow... Her eyes, frozen... Her gaze, fiercely alive...

Ticker


Lisa Mantchev - 2014
    But soon it’s discovered that Warwick killed dozens of people as he strove to perfect another improved Ticker for Penny, and he’s put on trial for mass murder. On the last day of Warwick’s trial, the Farthings’ factory is bombed, Penny’s parents disappear, and Penny and her brother, Nic, receive a ransom note demanding all of their Augmentation research if they want to see their parents again. Is someone trying to destroy the Farthings...or is the motive more sinister?Desperate to reunite their family and rescue their research, Penny and her brother recruit fiery baker Violet Nesselrode, gentleman-about-town Sebastian Stirling, and Marcus Kingsley, a young army general who has his own reasons for wanting to lift the veil between this world and the next. Wagers are placed, friends are lost, romance stages an ambush, and time is running out for the girl with the clockwork heart.

All That Jazz


Dee Williams - 2008
    Times are tough and, to support her sister, Daisy has to work hard as a dancer in a nightclub, getting home late and hardly seeing Mary-Jane. One night a fire starts and Mary-Jane is alone in the house. The night's events lead to the sisters being split up and Daisy May begins to fear that she will never see Mary-Jane again...