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Chain of Destiny by Nigel Tranter
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Immortal Queen: A Novel Of Mary, Queen of Scots
Elizabeth Byrd - 1956
At the third stroke of the axe the order signed by Queen Elizabeth I of England was carried out, and the turbulent life of Mary, Queen of Scots was ended. — "Immortal Queen" tells the story of that life, from Mary's childhood days in France to her death at Fotheringay. The narrative is in the highest tradition of historical fiction - vivid, alive, and rich in pageantry. From the first page the reader is lost in a world of nearly four centuries ago, a world of drama and torturous intrigue, of treachery and high courage. Mary, a widow and a queen at the age of eighteen, dies as courageously as she had lived; and Bothwell, that lion of a man who perished a madman in a Danish prison, more that matches her in courage - and is the one man she could trust among many who would betray her and plot her downfall. All spring to life in this enthralling, unforgettable book.
The Northern Queen
Kelly Evans - 2015
Brice’s Day, England, 1002. At the order of King Aethelred, thousands of Danes are murdered in a frenzy of ethnic cleansing.Outraged, the Danish King, Sweyn Forkbeard, swears he will take Aethedred’s head, and his crown. But Sweyn needs allies. Chief amongst his supporters is Aelfgifu, an English noblewoman and head of a once great family.She has her own reasons to hate Aethelred, and as a pagan, she is sympathetic to the Danish cause. When Aelfgifu marries Sweyn’s son, Canute, war is inevitable.But if Aethelred is weak, his Norman queen is not. And Emma will stop at nothing to destroy the woman at the heart of the Viking army.Love, ambition and revenge combine in an epic struggle for justice during the most turbulent period in England’s history.The Northern Queen is Kelly Evans’ first novel. Meticulously researched, the novel takes place in the early eleventh century and tells the story of Aelfgifu of Northampton, a woman lost to the pages of history. Until now.Real people, real battles, real history.
The Poldark Saga: Books 1 - 3
Winston Graham - 1984
But instead he discovers his father has died, his home is overrun by livestock and drunken servants, and Elizabeth—believing Ross to be dead—is now engaged to his cousin. Ross has no choice but to start his life anew.Demelza In the enchanting second novel in Winston Graham's beloved Poldark series, Demelza Carne, an impoverished miner's daughter Ross Poldark rescued from a fairground brawl, now happily finds herself his wife. But the events of these turbulent years test their marriage and their love. Jeremy PoldarkRoss Poldark faces the darkest hour of his life in this third novel of the Poldark series. Reeling from the tragic death of a loved one, Captain Poldark vents his grief by inciting impoverished locals to salvage the contents of a ship run aground in a storm—an act for which British law proscribes death by hanging. Ross is brought to trial for his involvement, and despite their stormy marriage, Demelza tries to rally support for her husband, to save him and their family. And into this setting, Jeremy Poldark, Ross and Demelza's first son, is born...The Poldark series is the masterwork of Winston Graham's life work, evoking the period and people like only he can and creating a work of rich and poor, loss and love, that you will not soon forget.
The Heretic Wind: The Life of Mary Tudor, Queen of England
Judith Arnopp - 2020
Mary stands firm against her father’s determination to destroy both her mother’s reputation, and the Catholic church. It is a battle that will last throughout both her father’s and her brother’s reign, until, she is almost broken by persecution. When King Edward falls ill and dies Mary expects to be crowned queen. But she has reckoned without John Dudley, the Duke of Northumberland, who before Mary can act, usurps her crown and places it on the head of her Protestant cousin, Lady Jane Grey. Furious and determined not to be beaten, Mary musters a vast army at Framlingham Castle; a force so strong that Jane Grey’s supporters crumble in the face of it, and Mary is at last crowned Queen of England. But her troubles are only just beginning. Rebellion and heresy take their toll both on Mary’s health, and on the English people. Suspecting she is fatally ill, and desperate to save her people from heresy, Mary steps up her campaign to compel her subjects to turn back to the Catholic faith. All who resist will face punishment for heresy in the flames of the Smithfield fires.
On a Highland Shore
Kathleen Givens - 2006
But a dark storm of bloodshed and betrayal is closing in, as a merciless band of Vikings threatens the Highlands. Margaret is determined to hold the MacDonald clan together and to locate her abducted younger brother. But can she trust the noblemen from King Alexander's court, who insist that only by adhering to a betrothal conceived for political gain will she find safety? Or should she put her trust in an imposing half-Irish, half-Norse warrior? Gannon MacMagnus alone offers her hope of reuniting her family and vanquishing the barbarous Norsemen who would continue to rob her people of their God-given right to determine their own destinies. In whom should Margaret entrust the fate of the rugged, magnificent land she calls home?
Runaway
Peter May - 2015
Yet before year's end three returned, and returned damaged. In 2015, a brutal murder forces those three men, now in their sixties, to journey back to London and finally confront the dark truth they have run from for five decades. Runaway is a crime novel covering fifty years of friendships solidified and severed, dreams shared and shattered and passions lit and extinguished; set against the backdrop of two unique and contrasting cities at two unique and contrasting periods of recent history.
Centennial
James A. Michener - 1974
Michener’s magnificent saga of the West is an enthralling celebration of the frontier. Brimming with the glory of America’s past, the story of Colorado—the Centennial State—is manifested through its people: Lame Beaver, the Arapaho chieftain and warrior, and his Comanche and Pawnee enemies; Levi Zendt, fleeing with his child bride from the Amish country; the cowboy, Jim Lloyd, who falls in love with a wealthy and cultured Englishwoman, Charlotte Seccombe. In Centennial, trappers, traders, homesteaders, gold seekers, ranchers, and hunters are brought together in the dramatic conflicts that shape the destiny of the legendary West—and the entire country.
Abduction of a Highland Rose
Fiona Faris - 2018
Freya, the laird’s daughter, tries to solve the mystery but she ends up a prisoner herself. Her only hope is to seduce her guard, Andrew of the Murray Clan, into releasing her. But the Highlander is a man of honor and driven by duty to his people. And things get complicated when the prisoner has feelings for her guard... How can Freya embrace her love for the Highlander, when she has to return to her people and leave him behind? What shall Andrew do when he starts to question his own war chief’s motives and falls for this Highland Rose?
*The Abduction of a Highland Rose is a Historical Scottish romance novel of more than 80,000 words (around 440 pages). No cheating, no cliffhangers, and a guaranteed happily ever after.
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The Earl
Cecelia Holland - 1971
At the book's heart stands the 12th century Earl of Stafford, complex warrior-knight, whose private conflicts mirror the discord of England as two rival claimants to the throne tear the country apart in civil war.
Orphan Of Angel Street
Annie Murray - 1999
Her inner fire burns brightly, even in the harsh conditions of turn of the century Birmingham. For behind Mercy's pale and haunting face, there is a mind of steel, as her harsh foster mother; Mrs Gaskin, soon discovers. Beatings, threats and poverty cannot halt Mercy's efforts to improve herself, or to create a new life for Susan, Mrs Gaskin's crippled daughter. Even in the worst times, it is as if someone is watching over Mercy. Willing her to succeed...Through the dark shadow of world war, Mercy continues her fight for survival. She will first earn her freedom and security. Then at long last she can give her love...
Freedom's Sword
J.R. Tomlin - 2011
before Robert the Bruce... there was another Scottish hero... In 1296, newly knighted by the King of the Scots, Andrew de Moray fights to defend his country against the forces of the ruthless invader, King Edward Longshanks of England. After a bloody defeat in battle, he is dragged in chains to an English dungeon. Soon the young knight escapes. He returns to find Scotland under the heel of a conqueror and his betrothed sheltering in the hills of the Black Isle. Seizing his own castle, he raises the banner of Scottish freedom. Now he must lead the north of Scotland to rebellion in hope of defeating the English army sent to crush them.
Ambition's Queen: A Novel of Tudor England
V.E. Lynne - 2013
Bridget Manning is forced to leave the safety and tranquillity of her home at Rivers Abbey in order to join the household of the queen, Anne Boleyn. Once there she enters a world seething with intrigue and plots against her new mistress. Will Bridget be able to navigate her way through the dangerous maze of the court or will it destroy her as it is destroying her queen?
Buckskins and Blood (Buckskin Series Book 1)
John Legg - 2005
As an apprentice, he had killed the man who had threatened his family. Escaping across the ocean, he arrives in America only to defy the law of his new land by helping a runaway slave. With the law on his tail once again west and into the high country.
The Prince's Man (The Gareth & Gwen Medieval Mysteries Book 13)
Sarah Woodbury - 2020
A Daughter of Warwick
Julie May Ruddock - 2012
Anne is little more than a child when her father falls foul of Edward IV, and she is married without Royal sanction to the Lancastrian heir, a man she has been taught to loathe. Before her childhood sweetheart, Richard of Gloucester can prevent it, she is exiled, married, widowed, kidnapped and finally held captive before he can discover her whereabouts and restore her liberty. But, just as Anne’s dreams are finally within her grasp, King Edward dies and names his brother Richard as Lord Protector, and her world falls apart again. The historical record provides just a few glimpses of Anne and the little we know of her is gleaned from accounts of the men who controlled her world. A Daughter of Warwick adds flesh to the bones of Anne’s story and considers the impact of medieval war on a defenceless girl. A Daughter of Warwick is J. M Ruddock’s first novel. She is currently working on the sequel.