Book picks similar to
The King's Shadow by Cheryl Sawyer


17th-century
mystery
read-historical
book-added

Piece By Piece a Genealogical Jigsaw


Irene Lewis Ward - 2015
     Piece by piece, like a giant Victorian jigsaw, the evidence forms a fascinating picture, but one with a hole at its heart – a hole that will not be filled until the baffling mystery is solved.. Do they ever solve it and complete the picture? After ten years research in North Wales, a new piece of evidence and a distant memory cause a sudden change in venue which reveals the reason for the conspiracy of silence and the staggering truth about his mother.

The Inspector Torquil McKinnon Series: Books 1-3 (Sapere Books Boxset Editions)


Keith Moray - 2018
    But with the tiny island population suddenly doubling, the local police force is stretched to breaking point. And this year they have to deal with more than just drunken fights and rowdy behaviour… Ranald Buchanan, the local poet, is found dead, with his head brutally caved in, and Inspector Torquil McKinnon is brought into investigate. Did Ranald trip and fall, as suggested? Or is something more sinister happening? Deathly Wind Inspector Torquil McKinnon’s closest friend, Constable Ewan McPhee, is missing, presumed dead. When more bodies are found in suspicious circumstances, it is clear a serial killer is at large. Tensions are high and paranoia is rife. Can Torquil restore peace to the tight-knit community? Will he find out what happened to Constable McPhee? Or will he too fall prey to the depraved murderer …? Murder Solstice A strange group of people have descended on the small island of West Uist. Camped out in the grounds of the Castle, they are preparing to celebrate the summer solstice. Museum curator Finley McNab becomes suspicious of the cult-like group, and when he challenges them it seems his investigations could be deadly … Inspector Torquil McKinnon is called in to keep an eye on the group. Are they innocent pagan worshippers? Or is something more sinister going on behind the scenes? As the day of the solstice draws ever nearer, whispers of murder are on the horizon… THE INSPECTOR TORQUIL MCKINNON BOXSET includes the first three crime thrillers in the detective series featuring Inspector Torquil McKinnon: action-packed police procedurals full of suspense.

The Wrecking Storm (Thomas Tallant, #2)


Michael Ward - 2021
    

Mrs. O'Malley's Midnight Mystery


M. Louisa Locke - 2020
    O’Malley, especially when you have seven children and are forced to live in one of the crowded neighborhoods South of Market. Late one night, as she sat at the window of her crowded flat, sewing and worrying, she noticed something strange going on across the street. Her decision to investigate will have unexpected consequences. Mrs. O’Malley’s Midnight Mystery is a short story in the Victorian San Francisco Mystery series, and it comes right after the short story, Dandy’s Discovery, and before Lethal Remedies, the seventh novel in the series.

The Gypsy Hill Murders


P.J. Thurbin - 2012
    J. Thurbin, a new writer to the fictional crime scene. He has a unique and fast moving style that will appeal to the reader who likes mysteries that are in the genre of those by John Grisham and M.C. Beaton. His book has all the ingredients that one would expect to find in a classic murder mystery. It is centered on an ivy covered Victorian house set within the campus of a modern University just outside London. A group of five academics find themselves embroiled in a series of vicious attacks that are linked to incidents that took place 100 years earlier. The main character, Ralph Chalmers, a Professor of International Business, attempts to unravel the links between a 100 year old skeleton found on the site and a series of recent attacks in the University, while at the same time courting an old flame from his days as a student at Cambridge University. Inspector Linham and his Sergeant Wilson also strive to apprehend the villains and lend an air of authenticity to the investigations. As the plot thickens, various members of the academic staff are seen to have motives that would also implicate them in the events that unfold. The atmosphere of jealousy and mistrust is stimulated by the character of the head caretaker, Jack Welsh, a retired army Master at Arms who has compelling reasons for wanting to unravel the mystery. The book is fast moving in that the plot moves to Australia, France, Monte Carlo, and the world of diamond trading, while delving into the backgrounds and lives of the main characters. A final twist will leave the reader surprised at how greed and desperation can result in tragedy. Thurbin manages to entertain by depicting the frailties of his main characters in all too familiar ways, while at the same time adding just enough intrigue to keep the reader turning the pages. This novel is for anyone who likes the thrill of a good mystery with plenty of action coupled with the element of surprise. -------------------------------

The Captivating Debutantes Boxed Set, #1-3


Emily Windsor - 2018
    Three Irresistible Gentleman. A vengeful viscount, an arrogant earl and a damaged soldier all find love with ladies that defy their plans and disrupt their lives. A sensual Regency Romance Box Set with warmth and wit. This volume collect books 1-3 including; Captivated by the Viscount, My Captive Earl and Her Noble Captive.Captivated by the ViscountA lot can change in four nights.... Ruination and kidnap were not on Miss Lucy Lazenby´s list of planned events for that week...even if it seems to be for her own good. Caught up in the lies and passion of Lord Danbury, Lucy finds the truth can never be hidden for long. Jasper Carnforth, Viscount Danbury is really doing the girl a favour by ruining her...if it just so happens to coincide with his own need for vengeance - all the better. However keeping the delectable Lucy in his home is more of a challenge than he´d imagined. Retribution may have brought them together, but desire has its own agenda. This fast paced Regency novella (34,000 words) is the first standalone story in The Captivating Debutantes Series.My Captive EarlThe Earl of Rookdean did not want to host a house party.Miss Clara Lockwood did not want to attend the Earl of Rookdean’s house party.You don’t always get what you want…At a masquerade ball on the opening night, Rookdean encounters a captivating Grecian-dressed goddess. With identities hidden, will his heart be able to find what his eyes cannot see?It started by chance, in a moonlit sunken garden. It leads to a week of concealed passion, deception and misunderstanding. With a house full of hidden desires, demanding men, song, charades, debutantes and…Lady Minkworth – who wouldn’t want a house party?This regency novella (49,000 words) is the second standalone story in The Captivating Debutantes Series. Heat level: Sensual. 3 out of 5.Her Noble CaptiveThat bitter winter of 1813…Her… Miss Rosalind Trewent. Irrepressibly vivid. Improperly spoken. Burdened by secrets. Refuses to marry.Noble… Major Lucas Mainwaring. Excessively grouchy. Reluctant earl. Self-admitted wreck. Can never marry.Captive… Winter and the cold hand of a murderer stalk the land, but the arrival of the Major as a houseguest warms Rosalind to her very toes.But the past can never be hidden for long…An idyllic country village is not always as it appears and when Lucas delves deeper, he discovers murky secrets, veiled passions, lust he thought he could never feel...and a love that began many years before.The Captivating Debutantes series can be read in any order.

An Unexpected Treasure


Natalie Dean - 2018
    marshal. On the way to Cypress Creek, Texas to meet her intended, Louise Settelmeyer is in for a shock when her stagecoach is attacked by bandits. When the robbery is stopped by men from the U.S. Marshals Service, Louise has no choice but to rely on the escort of a cocky and childish deputy marshal, Andy Fulton. Upon reaching town, Louise is in for yet another shock when she discovers that her intended was none other than the man robbing her stagecoach. Deputy U.S. Marshal Andy Fulton can’t leave the beautiful woman he rescued at the stagecoach station without provision. He’s a man of integrity and, therefore, must do something to help—even if the woman won’t laugh at his jokes and insists she’s got everything under control. Unfortunately, he’s seen firsthand what happens to a woman on her own in the West and decides to intervene on Louise’s behalf, helping her obtain a position at the local hotel. Things seem to be going fine until Louise becomes a target for criminals in town and finds herself in need of rescue more than once. The dangers don’t stop there, as Louise realizes that seeing her handsome rescuer every day is putting her heart in danger of growing more attached than she’d like. Will Andy be able to rescue Louise, yet again—and learn to risk his heart in the process? And will they uncover the truth behind why outlaws are tracking Louise down? Only time, a little good humor, and a dollop of boldness will tell. . . Author’s Note: An Unexpected Treasure, Marrying a Marshal Book One is a PG-rated Western Romance short story of about seventy-five pages with plenty of Old West action and romance. There will be three more stories to follow this one, each of about 150 pages long, so if you like this one, and I’m sure you will, there’ll be some longer books to follow! This is also part of the Hero Hearts series which is a larger multi-author series about men who love, honor, and protect their families, all while having faith in God! Brought to you by Annie Boone, Kate Cambridge, Terri Grace, Misty Shae, Cat McGill, Hayley Wescott, and Natalie Dean! Enjoy!

Private Affairs of a Wicked Duke


Henrietta Harding - 2020
    As their hunt for an appropriate suitor begins, Abigail starts one of her own: to find a man of ill reputation in order to darken society’s opinion of her long enough to escape marital bliss. The dashing man she chooses couldn’t be worse in society’s eyes, but he has several secrets up his sleeves, ones Abigail cannot possibly prepare herself for. But as the two grow closer, and her father has found an otherwise delightful, intelligent suitor, time is of the essence. Will Abigail ruin her reputation and abandon the idea of marriage forever? Or will she find a way to unite with her true love, despite her volatility toward the entire sanctity of marriage and his terrible reputation?Even though Seth Nicholson is a Duke, society has long-since turned its back on him. Gossip, rumors and scandals swirl around his name, and his father has demanded he take a step back from his raucous party days in order to clean up his image. It is within this timeframe that he encounters the gorgeous, red-haired spitfire, Abigail George, whilst on a ride across the moors. Abigail is the most bull-headed, beautiful creature Seth has ever met, but it’s only when their conversation goes deeper that he recognizes she’s trying to set him up…When their arrangement becomes so deep and passionate that threatens to make him lose his mind, will he decide to dance on the wild side and let his fate in her hands?Slowly, over the span of sizzling summer weeks, they find common ground with one another and begin an impossible but yet so passionate affair within the empty walls of his estate. Will they lose their hearts in the most reckless caprice of their life, or will they discover the most scandalous pleasure they’ve ever known?

The Shadow in the Sands


Sam Llewellyn - 1998
    a continuation of the celebrated story of intrigue, treachery and adventure at sea begun in Erskine Childers' epoch-making thriller The Riddle of the Sands, this affectionate tribute to the world's first spy novel is a brilliantly original, utterly enthralling thriller in its own right.

Thomas Berrington Books 1-3


David Penny - 2017
     THE RED HILL A killer who can’t be stopped. A request that can’t be refused. In 1482 the Englishman Thomas Berrington is living in the last remnants of Moorish Spain. A physician, he is an unwilling friend to the most powerful man in the kingdom. Bodies are discovered, each showing the marks of a savage attack, and Thomas is asked to investigate. When one of the Sultan’s wives is brutally murdered, what begins as a reluctant task turns into a fight for survival. Together with the eunuch Jorge, Thomas attempts to hunt down the killer before they become his next victims. Except nothing is as it seems—friends turn into enemies and enemies into friends. Thomas’s investigation lays bare the secrets of the Red Hill and the people who inhabit it. His discoveries culminate in a battle not only for his own life, but for the lives of those he loves. BREAKER OF BONES March 1483, and surgeon Thomas Berrington makes a reluctant journey to Qurtuba at the request of his master. He expects only to operate on a Spanish prince and return home to Moorish al-Andalus. But fate has something else in store for him and his companion, the eunuch Jorge. A warped killer has been murdering young women to create twisted creatures from their bodies. When Thomas is tasked by Queen Isabel to hunt down the culprit he is propelled into an unfamiliar world of religious mania where it is impossible to tell the innocent from the guilty. Meanwhile Jorge is on a quest of his own—to track down the family he abandoned twenty years before. When Jorge’s new found niece is taken as the Bonebreaker’s next victim, the pair are faced with their most dangerous challenge yet. Can Thomas and Jorge expose the killer before yet another life has to pay the price for one man’s madness? THE SIN EATER Moorish Spain, 1484, and no-one is innocent. Thomas Berrington, emigre Englishman who has made the doomed city of Garnatah his home, is once again attempting to solve a series of mysterious deaths. Accompanied by his companion, the palace eunuch Jorge, Thomas struggles to discover the truth while those in power seek to distract him. As his investigation continues, his personal life splinters into chaos and he finds the Spanish once more demanding his presence. As Thomas and Jorge draw closer to their quarry, the killer’s attention turns on them and those they love. Will the pair be able to unmask the sin eater before the lives of those close to them become forfeit?

Murder on Christmas Eve (A Dodo Dorchester Mystery Book 6)


Ann Sutton - 2021
    

The Hawaiians: by Steve Stelle


Steve Stelle - 2014
    When a group of young Americans jump ship and start the first surf camp in a downtrodden and practically deserted Waikiki, Head Missionary Hiram Bingham becomes apoplectic with rage. A cast of memorable characters fill this novel with many plot twists and ideas that are as relevant today as they were almost two hundred years ago. In 1824 sixteen year old, orphaned William Goode was put aboard ship in New Orleans as an apprentice seaman against his will. A young man with unique abilites, he began an adventure that took him to Hawaii, forging friendships and making enemies along the way. Spanning more than a decade, this fast paced narrative is written in a blend of James Michener and James Patterson, full of accurate history and a rousing ensemble of characters presented in a page turning style. The Calvinist missionaries want to make sure no one is having any fun while William and his friends just want to work their little farm of taro patches and fish ponds and go surfing free from religious oppression. From the beaches of early Waikiki to the chilly winters of Boston, this novel moves back and forth, around the Horn and across the vast Pacific, with enterprising surfers, a beautiful Hawaiian princess, runaway slaves, and a renegade priest. You will fall in love with Hawaii, fall in love with the characters, and see Hawaiian history in a whole new way.

The Road to Berry Edge


Elizabeth Gill - 1997
    Perfect for fans of Dilly Court, Maggie Hope and Nadine Dorries. 1903. As Rob Berkeley comes home to Berry Edge, ten years after his brother's terrible death, he brings with him memories that Faith Norman, his dead brother's fiancée, would rather forget. Rob, driven by guilt, is determined to bring the family business, the foundering steelworks, back to full strength. But every time he sees Faith, he is remained of the part he played in her bereavement and the debt he owes her and Berry Edge. The secrets he hides from the community around him could threaten his very future, and jeopardise his growing feelings for Faith . . .

The Irishman: Frank Sheeran’s True Crime Story


Daniel Brand - 2018
    The world knew him as a union official, a long-time member of the Teamsters Union; he was a member of Jimmy Hoffa’s inner circle at the top of the national union. He had run-ins with the law in this position. He was charged with the murder of a rebel union member in a riot that occurred outside the Teamster’s Local Philadelphia Union Hall, but the charges were later dropped. He went to prison in the 80s after being caught on a wire instructing once of his crew to break someone’s legs and was named in Rudy Giuliani’s Mafia Commission Trial as an unindicted co-conspirator and one of only two non-Italian members of the Mafia Commission. As an old man suffering from cancer that would soon kill him, Frank Sheeran shared his story with his attorney. He told him of the things that were already known, but he shared much, much more. This book explores Frank Sheeran’s confessions as a lifelong criminal with ties to some of the biggest crimes of the 20th century. Inside this book, you will find: A detailed account of Frank Sheeran’s time in the army during the second world war, where he was in combat for an astounding four hundred and eleven days, with a focus on the war crimes he has admitted to; A look into Sheeran’s post-war slides into a life of crime, finding himself working for the Mafia before he even knew what the Mafia was; Information on his time as a hitman for the Mafia and how that led him to work for Jimmy Hoffa as muscle and hitman for the powerful Teamster Boss; Frank Sheeran’s accounts of his connections to the Bay of Pigs Invasion and the Assassination of JFK; and His confession to the murders of Crazy Joe Gallo and of his friend, Jimmy Hoffa.

A Grave Gala (Sugar Martin Vintage Cozy Mysteries Book 2)


Shéa MacLeod - 2019
    With some reluctance, she joins the rest of the glamorous attendees on the veranda for cocktails and dancing until the gala turns grave indeed when one of the guests is murdered. With the sure knowledge there’s a killer among them, Sugar sets out to unearth the secrets that led to the death of a peer of the realm. With the help of a grumpy corgi and a handsome Englishman, she’s on the hunt for a cold-blooded killer and she won’t stop until she gets her man! The second book in the Sugar Martin Vintage Cozy Mysteries set in post-WW2 England.