Исторические романы на английском языке Лабиринт

In the hazardous fictional terrain of his historical novels, Gore Vidal is never especially kind to American history in general, or to its icons in particular. Yet in this brilliantly realised study of Abraham Lincoln, he paints a surprising and near-heroic picture of the man who led America through four of the most divisive and dangerous years of the nation's history. Observed alternately by his loved ones, his rivals and his future assassins, Lincoln at first appears as an inept and naive backwoods lawyer. People in this novel are not averse to turning up, getting drunk, and regaling the reader with details of Lincoln's whoring activities and his seemingly inexhaustible supply of folksy stories. Yet gradually Lincoln the towering leader of deep vision emerges in a Washington engulfed by fear, greed and the horrors of the Civil War. Lincoln's loving but mentally decomposing wife, his view from the White House on slavery and America's bloodiest war, and his own, fierce personal ambition: all are portrayed with a vibrancy and an urgency that almost belies what they have now become - history itself.

A heartbreaking new novel of love, war and betrayal from the international bestselling author of We Must Be Brave. When I open my eyes I see a small dark shape at the end of the pew under the window. A piece of cloth, a handkerchief perhaps? No, a woman’s headscarf. The blue is bright, Mediterranean. I can’t for the life of me remember seeing it before. But all the same it seems familiar. More than familiar. As if I’ve held it in my hands before. As if it’s been next to Yvette’s skin. James Acton has come to the village of Upton to begin again. As his grief over the death of his wife eases, he hopes to find new purpose as the vicar of this small, Hampshire parish, still emerging from the long shadow of the war. James’s own war was in the Western Desert, where he fell in love, first with the thrill of being a hurricane pilot and then with Yvette Haddad, the captivating, enigmatic young Alexandrian with a penchant for dangerous driving. The past has a way of clinging on to us, and even as James embarks on new beginnings, finding friends – and even love – among the people of Upton, the secrets he has held on to so tightly for years threaten to break loose. But Yvette had secrets too, and as James follows a trail that leads him back through the landscape of their marriage, what he discovers about both of them will change everything …

Can she tread a dangerous line between love and duty? Raven-haired and fiercely independent, Joan Guildford has always remained true to herself. As lady-in-waiting and confidante to Queen Elizabeth, wife of Henry VII, Joan understands royal patronage is vital if she and her husband, Sir Richard, are to thrive in the volatile atmosphere of court life. But Tudor England is in mourning following the death of the Prince of Wales, and within a year, the queen herself. With Prince Henry now heir to the throne, the court murmurs with the sound of conspiracy. Is the entire Tudor project now at stake or can young Henry secure the dynasty? Drawn into the heart of the crisis, Joan’s own life is in turmoil, and her future far from secure. She faces a stark choice – be true to her heart and risk everything, or play the dutiful servant and watch her dreams wither and die. For Joan, and for Henry’s Kingdom, everything is at stake…

At the bloody siege of Badajoz, Matthew Hervey must overthrow the French - or die in the attempt. Allan Mallinson brings us another compelling and deeply atmospheric adventure featuring Matthew Hervey. If you like Patrick O'Brian, Bernard Cornwell and CS Forester, you will love this!

India 1819: Matthew Hervey is charged with raising a new troop, and organising transport for India - for he, his men and their horses are to set sail with immediate effect. What Hervey and his soldiers cannot know is that in India they will face a trial for which they are woefully under prepared. A large number of Burmese war-boats are assembled near Chittagong, and the only way to thwart their advance involves a hazardous march through the jungle. Soon Hervey and his troop are in the midst of hot and bloody action once again... A Call To Arms is the fourth book in Allan Mallinson's Matthew Hervey series. His adventures continue in The Sabre's Edge. Have you read his previous adventures A Close Run Thing, The Nizam's Daughters and A Regimental Affair?

The breathtaking historical novel about love, beauty, the politics of sex and the power of loyalty set in Venice, by the bestselling author of Sacred Hearts. With their stomachs churning on the jewels they have swallowed, the courtesan Fiammetta and her companion dwarf Bucino escape the sack of Rome. It's 1527. They head for the shimmering, decadent city of Venice. Sarah Dunant's epic novel of sixteenth-century Renaissance Italy is a story about the sins of pleasure and the pleasures of sin, an intoxicating mix of fact and fiction, and a dazzling portait of one of the worlds greatest cities at its most potent moment in history.

Anna Funder, winner of the Samuel Johnson Prize and author of Stasiland, offers a thrilling tale and powerful love story that tells the heroic and tragic true story of the German resistance in World War II in All That I Am. When Hitler comes to power in 1933, a tight-knit group of friends and lovers become hunted outlaws overnight. United in their resistance to the madness and tyranny of Nazism, they must flee the country. Dora, passionate and fearless, her lover, the great playwright Ernst Toller, her younger cousin Ruth and Ruth's husband Hans find refuge in London. Here they take breath-taking risks in order to continue their work in secret. But England is not the safe-haven they think it to be, and a single, chilling act of betrayal will tear them apart...

'An enthralling adventure story, honest and powerful. The Wars of the Roses are imagined here with energy, with ferocity, with hunger to engage the reader.' Hilary Mantel 1469: Although the Yorkist King Edward sits on his throne in Westminster, within his family there is discord as his former ally, the Earl of Warwick, continues to conspire against him. And while to one another's faces they are all smiles, their household men speak in lies and whispers. No man comes to court unarmed. As riot and rebellion stalk the land, so too do rumours of a secret, which, if proved true, will have devastating effects on the kingdom. Once again Thomas and Katherine Everingham are drawn into the fray by ruthless enemies and by past lives that refuse to be forgotten…

'An important book, a powerful commentary on the moral issues of the last century with the realisation that no one is completely blameless - extraordinary' Sunday Express The Dark Room tells the stories of three ordinary Germans: Helmut, a young photographer in Berlin in the 1930s who uses his craft to express his patriotic fervour; Lore, a twelve-year-old girl who in 1945 guides her young siblings across a devastated Germany after her Nazi parents are seized by the Allies; and, fifty years later, Micha, a young teacher obsessed with what his loving grandfather did in the war, struggling to deal with the past of his family and his country.

Now reissued with a stunning new jacket look, Music & Silence is a story of love and divided loyalties set in seventeenth century Denmark 'The best thing from Denmark since Hamlet.' John Julius Norwich In the year 1629, a young English lutenist named Peter Claire arrives at the Danish Court to join King Christian IV's Royal Orchestra. From the moment when he realises that the musicians perform in a freezing cellar underneath the royal apartments, Peter Claire understands that he's come to a place where the opposing states of light and dark, good and evil, are waging war to the death. Designated the King's 'Angel' because of his good looks, he finds himself falling in love with the young woman who is the companion of the King's adulterous and estranged wife, Kirsten. With his loyalties fatally divided between duty and passion, how can Peter Claire find the path that will realise his hopes and save his soul? 'The best historical novelist of her generation. She evokes the past with sensuality, wit and superb sleights of hand... The plot is ingenious... an unforgettable tapestry of Eros and art.' A. N. Wilson

Twenty-five years ago, HMS Terrapin was part of a crack hunter-killer group in the Battle of the Atlantic. Now she is working out her last commission in the Gulf of Thailand. To Lieutenant-Commander Standish, the frigate seems to mark the end of his hopes of a career in the Navy. Then a new captain arrives, a man driven by an old-fashioned, almost obsessive patriotism. And under his stubborn leadership, Standish and the crew discover a long-forgotten unity of purpose... She was one of the deadliest ships of the war. Her greatest heroics may still lie ahead.

The modern classic from double Booker Prize winner J.M. Coetzee – soon to be a major film starring Mark Rylance, Robert Pattinson and Johnny Depp For decades the Magistrate has run the affairs of a tiny frontier settlement, ignoring the impending war between the barbarians and the Empire, whose servant he is. But when the interrogation experts arrive, he is jolted into sympathy with the victims and into a quixotic act of rebellion which lands him in prison, branded as an enemy of the state. Waiting for the Barbarians is an allegory of oppressor and oppressed. Not just a man living through a crisis of conscience in an obscure place in remote times, the Magistrate is an analogue of all men living in complicity with regimes that ignore justice and decency.

The Fourth Shore: the sliver of fertile land along the Tripoli coast, the 'lost' territory Mussolini promised to reclaim for Italy. Which is how, in 1929, seventeen-year-old Liliana Cattaneo arrives there from Rome on a ship filled with eager colonists to join her brother and his new wife. Liliana is sure she was on the brink of a great adventure, but what awaits her is not the Mediterranean idyll of cocktail parties, smart dances, dashing officers and romantic intrigues she had imagined. Instead she finds a world of persecution, violence, repression, corruption and deceptions both great and small. A child of fascist Italy, blown about by the winds of fascism and Catholicism, Liliana becomes enmeshed in a dark liaison which has terrible consequences both for her and those she loves most. The Fourth Shore is the engrossing and intensely poignant story of Liliana's journey from Rome to Tripoli to a north London suburb where, as plain Lily Jones, she begins to uncover a secret she has buried so deeply that even she is far from certain what it is.

In ten powerful stories, Victoria Hislop takes us through the streets of Athens and into the tree-lined squares of Greek villages. As she evokes their distinct atmosphere, she brings vividly to life a host of unforgettable characters, from a lonesome priest to battling brothers, and from an unwanted stranger to a groom troubled by music and memory. These bittersweet tales of love and loyalty, of separation and reconciliation, captured in Victoria Hislop's unique voice, will stay with you long after you reach the end.

Winner of the Man Booker Prize 2012, the 2012 Costa Book of the Year and shortlisted for the 2013 Women’s Prize for Fiction. With this historic win for Bring Up the Bodies, Hilary Mantel becomes the first British author and the first woman to be awarded two Man Booker Prizes. By 1535 Thomas Cromwell is Chief Minister to Henry VIII, his fortunes having risen with those of Anne Boleyn, the king’s new wife. But Anne has failed to give the king an heir, and Cromwell watches as Henry falls for plain Jane Seymour. Cromwell must find a solution that will satisfy Henry, safeguard the nation and secure his own career. But neither minister nor king will emerge unscathed from the bloody theatre of Anne’s final days. An astounding literary accomplishment, Bring Up the Bodies is the story of this most terrifying moment of history, by one of our greatest living novelists.

On September 3, 1939, the day of the Spanish exiles' splendid arrival in Chile, the Second World War broke out in Europe. Victor Dalmau is a young doctor when he is caught up in the Spanish Civil War, a tragedy that leaves his life - and the fate of his country - forever changed. Together with his sister-in-law, the pianist Roser, he is forced out of his beloved Barcelona and into exile. When opportunity to seek refuge arises, they board a ship chartered by the poet Pablo Neruda to Chile, the promised 'long petal of sea and wine and snow'. There, they find themselves enmeshed in a rich web of characters who come together in love and tragedy over the course of four generations, destined to witness the battle between freedom and repression as it plays out across the world. A masterful work of historical fiction that soars from the Spanish Civil War to the rise and fall of Pinochet, A Long Petal of the Sea is Isabel Allende at the height of her powers.

The thrilling story of the French princess who became an English queen, from the best-selling author of The Agincourt Bride. 'A thrilling story' Take a Break Even the greatest of queens have rules - to break them would cost her dearly… King Henry V's new French Queen, Catherine, dazzles the crowds in England but life at court is full of intrigue and her loyal companion, Mette, suspects that the beautiful Eleanor Cobham, protegee of the Duke of Gloucester, is spying for him. Catherine believes herself invincible as she gives birth to an heir, then tragically King Henry is struck down by fever. Unable to outwit those who seek to remove the new king from her care, Catherine retires from court, comforted by the King's Harper, Owen Tudor. At the secluded manor of Hadham a smouldering ember bursts into flame and Catherine and Owen Tudor become lovers. But their love cannot remain a secret forever, and when a grab for power is made by Gloucester, Catherine - and those dearest to her - face mortal danger…

The powerful new timeslip novel from the worldwide bestselling author of Lady in Hay, in which the fate of a young woman becomes entwined with the extraordinary history of a Celtic princess. When Jess is attacked by someone she once trusted, she flees to her sister’s house in the Welsh borders to recuperate. There, she is disturbed by the cries of a mysterious child. Two thousand years before, the same valley is the site of a great battle between Caratacus, king of the Brtitish tribes, and the invading Romans. The proud king is captured and taken as a prisoner to Rome with his wife and daughter, the princess Eigon. Jess is inexorably drawn to investigate Eigon’s story, and as the Welsh cottage is no longer a peaceful sanctuary she decides to visit Rome. There lie the connections that will reveal Eigon’s astonishing life – and which threaten to reawaken Jess’s own tormentor… Barbara Erskine’s ability to weave together the past and the present makes this a tremendous novel of Roman and Celtic history, passion and intrigue.

The third volume in the bestselling Wideacre Trilogy of novels. Set in the eighteenth century, they launched the career of Philippa Gregory, the bestselling author of The Other Boleyn Girl and Three Sisters, Three Queens. Meridon, a desolate Romany girl, is determined to escape the hard poverty of her childhood. Riding bareback in a travelling show, while her sister Dandy risks her life on the trapeze, Meridon dedicates herself to freeing them both from danger and want. But Dandy, beautiful, impatient, thieving Dandy, grabs too much, too quickly. And Meridon finds herself alone, riding in bitter grief through the rich Sussex farmlands towards a house called Wideacre - which awaits the return of the last of the Laceys. Sweeping, passionate, unique: 'Meridon' completes Philippa Gregory's bestselling trilogy which began with 'Wideacre' and continued with 'The Favoured Child'.

Born into a noble English family, Anne is barely a teenager when she is sent from her family's Hever Castle to serve at the royal court of the Netherlands. This strategic move on the part of her opportunistic father also becomes a chance for the girl to grow and discover herself. There, and later in France, Anne thrives, preferring to absorb the works of progressive writers rather than participate in courtly flirtations. She also begins to understand the inequalities and indignities suffered by her gender. Anne isn't completely inured to the longings of the heart, but her powerful family has ambitious plans for her future that override any wishes of her own. When the King of England himself, Henry VIII, asks Anne to be his mistress, she spurns his advances-reminding him that he is a married man who has already conducted an affair with her sister, Mary. Anne's rejection only intensifies Henry's pursuit, but in the absence of a male heir-and given an aging Queen Katherine-the opportunity to elevate and protect the Boleyn family, and to exact vengeance on her envious detractors, is too tempting for Anne to resist, even as it proves to be her undoing. While history tells of how Anne Boleyn died, this compelling new novel reveals how fully she lived.

'This brilliant book is a bombshell! Jane Seymour the shy mouse type? Think again!' Kate Williams Alison Weir, historian and author of the Sunday Times bestsellers Katherine of Aragon: The True Queen and Anne Boleyn: A King's Obsession, draws an enthralling portrait of Jane Seymour, Henry VIII's third queen, as you've never seen her before. Essential reading for fans of Philippa Gregory and Elizabeth Chadwick. 'This six-book series looks likely to become a landmark in historical fiction' The Times THE WOMAN HAUNTED BY THE FATE OF HER PREDECESSOR. Eleven days after the death of Anne Boleyn, Jane is dressing for her wedding to the King. She has witnessed at first hand how courtly play can quickly turn to danger and knows she must bear a son . . . or face ruin. This new Queen must therefore step out from the shadows cast by Katherine and Anne. In doing so, can she expose a gentler side to the brutal King? JANE SEYMOUR THE THIRD OF HENRY'S QUEENS HER STORY Acclaimed, bestselling historian Alison Weir draws on new research for her captivating novel, which paints a compelling portrait of Jane and casts fresh light on both traditional and modern perceptions of her. Jane was driven by the strength of her faith and a belief that she might do some good in a wicked world. History tells us how she died. This spellbinding novel explores the life she lived. SIX TUDOR QUEENS. SIX NOVELS. SIX YEARS. Readers love the SIX TUDOR QUEENS series: 'Alison Weir is such a good author I can hardly put it down' 'An extremely refreshing take on a very well-known period of history' 'Can't wait for the next one in the series' 'Weir really captures the essence of the people, I could envisage and understand all of them, this really is history brought to life'

The first book in the epic and bestselling series that has gripped millions. A hero will be forged from this broken land. In a land torn apart by conflict, an orphan boy has come of age. Raised by the Vikings, deadly enemies of his own Saxon people, Uhtred is a fierce and skilled warrior who kneels to no-one. Alfred – Saxon, king, man of god – fights to hold the throne of the only land still resisting the pagan northerners. Uhtred and Alfred’s fates are tangled, soaked in blood and blackened by the flames of war. Together they will change history.

The first book in Bernard Cornwell’s bestselling series on the American Civil War. It is summer 1861. The armies of North and South stand on the brink of America’s civil war. Nathanial Starbuck, jilted by his girl and estranged from his family, arrives in the capital of the Confederate South, where he enlists in an elite regiment being raised by rich, eccentric Washington Faulconer. Pledged to the Faulconer Legion, Starbuck becomes a northern boy fighting for the southern cause. But nothing can prepare him for the shocking violence to follow in the war which broke America in two.

A monumental new roman series is here. 3rd century Rome, like you've never seen it before: murder, coup, terror on the streets, counter-rebellions and civil war. In a single year six Emperors will lay claim to the Throne of the Caesars… Spring AD235. When Emperor Alexander is cut down in a dawn attack, his murder marks the end of the Severan dynasty and the rise of a hero born from the barracks. Maximinus Thrax is a man of steel and violence, and his reign will come to nothing without the seal of approval from the Senate. As Rome is rocked with uncertainty, the merciless war against the barbarians rages in the north, and personal tragedy, as well as the whispers of conspirators, will drive Maximinus to the borders of sanity. In a world of intrigue, murder, passion and war, men will sacrifice everything to sit on the Throne of the Caesars.

The new novel from Susan Fletcher, author of the bestselling 'Eve Green' and 'Oystercatchers'. 1692. Corrag, a wild young girl from the mountains of Scotland, has been imprisoned as a witch. Terrified, in a cold, filthy cell, she awaits her fate of death by burning - until she is visited by Charles Leslie, a young Irishman, hungry to question her. For Corrag knows more than it seems: she was witness to the bloody and brutal Massacre of Glencoe. But to reveal what she knows, Corrag demands a chance to tell her true story. It is a tale of passion and courage, magic and betrayal, and the difference that a single heart can make to the great events of history.

Bernard Cornwell’s brilliant novel, reissued for fans to find out the story behind the stones. This is the tale of three brothers and of their rivalry that created this great temple. One summer’s day, a dying stranger carrying great wealth in gold comes to the settlement of Ratharryn. The three sons of Ratharryn’s chief each perceive the great gift in a different way. The eldest, Lengar, the warrior, harnesses his murderous ambition to be a ruler and take great power for his tribe. Camaban becomes a great visionary and feared wise man, and it is his vision that will force the youngest brother, Saban, to create the great temple on the green hill where the gods will appear on earth. Saban’ s love for Aurenna, the sun bride whose destiny is to die for the gods, finally brings the rivalries of the brothers to a head. But it is also his skills that will build the vast temple, a place for the gods, certainly, but also a place that will confirm for ever the supreme power of the tribe that built it. Stonehenge is first and foremost a great historical novel. Bernard Cornwell is well known and admired for the realism and imagination with which he brings earlier worlds to life. And here he uses all these skills to recreate the world of primitive Britain and to solve the mysteries of who built Stonehenge, how and why. ‘A circle of chalk, a ring of stone, and a house of arches to call the far gods home’

Reissue of Philippa Gregory’s disturbing novel of passion and betrayal in Tudor England. A haunting story of a woman’s desire in a time of turbulence. Alys joins the nunnery to escape hardship and poverty but finds herself thrown back into the outside world when Henry VIII’s wreckers destroy her sanctuary. With nothing to support her but her looks, her magic and her own instinctive cunning, Alys has to tread a perilous path between the faith of her childhood and her own female power. When she falls in love with Hugo, the feudal lord and another woman’s husband, she dips into witchcraft to defeat her rival and to win her lover, but finds – as her cynical old foster-mother had advised – that magic makes a poor servant but a dominant master. Since heresy against the new church means the stake, and witchcraft the rope, Alys’s danger is mortal. A woman’s powers are no longer safe to use…

Be Careful What You Wish For, the fourth instalment in Jeffrey Archer's The Clifton Chronicles, opens with Harry Clifton and his wife Emma rushing to hospital to learn the fate of their son Sebastian, who has been involved in a fatal car accident. But who died, Sebastian or his best friend Bruno? When Ross Buchanan is forced to resign as chairman of the Barrington Shipping Company, Emma Clifton wants to replace him. But Don Pedro Martinez intends to install his puppet, the egregious Major Alex Fisher, in order to destroy the Barrington family firm just as the company plans to build its new luxury liner, the MV Buckingham. Back in London, Harry and Emma's adopted daughter wins a scholarship to the Slade Academy of Art where she falls in love with a fellow student who asks her to marry him. Both families are delighted until Jessica's future mother-in-law, has a visit from an old friend who drops her particular brand of poison into the wedding chalice. Then, without warning, Cedric Hardcastle, a bluff Yorkshireman who no one has come across before, takes his place on the board of Barringtons. This causes an upheaval that none of them could have anticipated, and will change the lives of every member of the Clifton and Barrington families. Hardcastle's first decision is who to support to become the next chairman of the board: Emma Clifton or Major Alex Fisher? And with that decision, the story takes yet another twist that will keep you on the edge of your seat.

Fast-paced and intriguing, Mightier than the Sword is the fifth novel in international bestseller Jeffrey Archer’s the Clifton Chronicles moves towards the end of the 1960s as the Cliftons and the Barringtons come up against sworn enemies and new foes. Following the explosion of an IRA bomb on board the Barrington’s flagship MV Buckingham, Emma Clifton must deal with the repercussions on her family’s shipping business. Meanwhile her old adversary, Lady Virginia Fenwick, plots her downfall. Bestselling novelist Harry, Emma’s husband, is on a mission to free a fellow author imprisoned in Siberia, even if it costs him everything. Giles, his brother-in-law, a minister of the Crown, faces his own problems when a diplomatic disaster risks his bid for higher office. With its devastating twists and turns, Archer’s spellbinding the Clifton Chronicles continues to enthral readers and proves once again why Archer’s reign at the top of the charts is without parallel.

Cometh the Hour opens with the reading of a suicide note, which has devastating consequences for Harry and Emma Clifton, Giles Barrington and Lady Virginia. Giles must decide if he should withdraw from politics and try to rescue Karin, the woman he loves, from behind the Iron Curtain. But is Karin truly in love with him, or is she a spy? Lady Virginia is facing bankruptcy, and can see no way out of her financial problems, until she is introduced to the hapless Cyrus T. Grant III from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, who's in England to see his horse run at Royal Ascot. Sebastian Clifton is now the Chief Executive of Farthings Bank and a workaholic, whose personal life is thrown into disarray when he falls for Priya, a beautiful Indian girl. But her parents have already chosen the man she is going to marry. Meanwhile, Sebastian's rivals Adrian Sloane and Desmond Mellor are still plotting to bring him and his chairman Hakim Bishara down, so they can take over Farthings. Harry Clifton remains determined to get Anatoly Babakov released from a gulag in Siberia, following the international success of his acclaimed book, Uncle Joe. But then something unexpected happens that none of them could have anticipated.

Cape Trafalgar, October 1805 Heading home on a merchant ship from India, Ensign Richard Sharpe finds himself on a far more dangerous journey than he could have anticipated, for war brews at sea. The formidable French navy have destroyed the British blockade and face an outnumbered but formidable foe: Admiral Nelson. Sharpe's meeting aboard the Calliope with the beautiful Lady Grace Hale turns quickly to obsession, but he finds unexpected enemies and deep treachery amongst his fellow passengers. And as they approach Cape Trafalgar and the enemy fleet comes into view, ready to fight in one of the most glorious but deadly clashes of the war is Sharpe…

The second book in Bernard Cornwell’s bestselling series on the American Civil War. Nathanial Starbuck is a Copperhead: a northerner fighting for the rebel South in America’s Civil War. Expelled from the Faulconer Legion, Starbuck must travel a hard road before he can rejoin his comrades. He must join the shadowy war of betrayal and espionage, where nothing is certain and no one can be trusted. Starbuck’s journey will take him through the savage prisons of Richmond, across the blood-sodden battlefields of Virginia, and into the deadly high command of the northern army.

Third volume in the bestselling Starbuck Chronicles. The battle for control of Richmond, the Confederate capital, continues through the hot summer of 1862. Captain Nate Starbuck, yankee fighting for the Southern cause, has to survive and win in the bitter struggle not only against the formidable Northern army but equally in opposition to his own superiors who would like nothing better than to see Nate Starbuck dead and dishonoured. Starbuck's courage is tested to the limit in his desperate manoeuvres to retrieve his own and the Legion's honour in this the thrid narrative of Bernard Cornwell's sweeping epic of the American Civil War.

History set her fate in stone… Murderer. Mercenary. Temptress. Trickster. Traitor. Thief. But under a hammer that falls like thunder, stone will always shatter. So with her voice she lights the forge. The Voyage of Freydis sings the silenced tale of Freydis Eiriksdottir, the first and only woman to lead a Viking voyage across the Atlantic in this tempestuous retelling of an ancient Icelandic saga set at the dawn of the 11th century.

What if you knew someone you loved was going to die? What if you thought you could save them? How much would you risk to try? Claire Randall has gone to find Jamie Fraser, the man she loved more than life, and has left half her heart behind with their daughter, Brianna. Claire gave up Jamie to save Brianna, and now Bree has sent her mother back to the mysterious Scottish warrior who was willing to give his life to save them both. But a chilling discovery in the pages of history suggests that Jamie and Claire’s story doesn’t have a happy ending. Brianna dares a terrifying leap into the unknown in search of her mother and the father she has never met, risking her own future to try to change history . . . and to save their lives. But as Brianna plunges into an uncharted wilderness, a heartbreaking encounter may strand her forever in the past . . . or root her in the place she should be, where her heart and soul belong.

The latest unforgettable timeslip novel from the USA Today bestselling author of The Secret of the Chateau. Will love lead her to a devastating choice? 1942. Three years into the war, Pam turns down her hard-won place at Oxford University to become a codebreaker at Bletchley Park. There, she meets two young men, both keen to impress her, and Pam finds herself falling hard for one of them. But as the country’s future becomes more uncertain by the day, a tragic turn of events casts doubt on her choice – and Pam’s loyalty is pushed to its limits… Present day. Julia is struggling to juggle her career, two children and a husband increasingly jealous of her success. Her brother presents her with the perfect distraction: forgotten photos of their grandmother as a young woman at Bletchley Park. Why did her grandmother never speak of her time there? The search for answers leads Julia to an incredible tale of betrayal and bravery – one that inspires some huge decisions of her own… Gripping historical fiction perfect for fans of The Girl from Berlin, The Rose Code and When We Were Brave.

The ninth book in the epic and bestselling series that has gripped millions. A hero will be forged from this broken land. A fragile peace is about to be broken… King Alfred’s son Edward and formidable daughter, ?thelfl?d, rule Wessex, Mercia and East Anglia. But all around the restless Northmen, eyeing the rich lands and wealthy churches, are mounting raids. Uhtred of Bebbanburg, the kingdoms’ greatest warrior, controls northern Mercia from the strongly fortified city of Chester. But forces are rising up against him. Northmen allied to the Irish, led by the fierce warrior Ragnall Ivarson, are soon joined by the Northumbrians, and their strength could prove overwhelming. Despite the gathering threat, both Edward and ?thelfl?d are reluctant to move out of the safety of their fortifications. But with Uhtred’s own daughter married to Ivarson’s brother, who can be trusted? In the struggle between family and loyalty, between personal ambition and political commitment, there will be no easy path. But a man with a warrior’s courage may be able to find it. Such a man is Uhtred,and this may be his finest hour.

Could a rediscovered map show her the way? Present day: When thirty-six-year-old Robyn Willoughby discovers an exquisite yet blood-stained Tudor map in her father's antique map shop, desperate for a distraction from her problems, she decides to investigate. But as Robyn delves into the mystery, she finds herself caught up in a centuries-old secret - one that will change her life forever. 1569: Forced to flee Holland to escape persecution, twenty-year-old Freida Ortelius uses her mapmaking skills to start anew in London. Soon her rare talent catches the eye of Queen Elizabeth, who demands Freida's help in fighting the Spanish threat. Freida must now embark on a deadly mission, the consequences of which will echo down the ages… A sweeping and heartbreaking read, perfect for fans of Lucinda Riley and Kathryn Hughes.

Honor Bright is a sheltered Quaker who has rarely ventured out of 1850s Dorset when she impulsively emigrates to America. Opposed to the slavery that defines and divides the country, she finds her principles tested to the limit when a runaway slave appears at the farm of her new family. In this tough, unsentimental place, where whisky bottles sit alongside quilts, Honor befriends two spirited women who will teach her how to turn ideas into action.

Tracy Chevalier's stunning novel of how one woman's gift transcends class and gender to lead to some of the most important discoveries of the nineteenth century. A revealing portrait of the intricate and resilient nature of female friendship. In the early nineteenth century, a windswept beach along the English coast brims with fossils for those with the eye… From the moment she's struck by lightning as a baby, it is clear Mary Anning is marked for greatness. When she uncovers unknown dinosaur fossils in the cliffs near her home, she sets the scientific world alight, challenging ideas about the world's creation and stimulating debate over our origins. In an arena dominated by men, however, Mary is soon reduced to a serving role, facing prejudice from the academic community, vicious gossip from neighbours, and the heartbreak of forbidden love. Even nature is a threat, throwing bitter cold, storms, and landslips at her. Luckily Mary finds an unlikely champion in prickly, intelligent Elizabeth Philpot, a middle-class spinster who is also fossil-obsessed. Their relationship strikes a delicate balance between fierce loyalty and barely suppressed envy. Despite their differences in age and background, Mary and Elizabeth discover that, in struggling for recognition, friendship is their strongest weapon.

Two women, centuries apart. Linked in a place haunted by its history… Separated by more than six hundred years of history, two women are drawn together by Sleeper's Castle, a house steeped in memory and magic. This is an epic tale of forbidden love, cruel revenge and a war that time can't forget. Grieving and lost, Miranda has moved to Hay to escape, and slowly she feels herself coming to life in the solitude of the mountains. But her vivid dreams at Sleeper's Castle introduce her to Catrin, a young women whose gift for foretelling the future embroiled her in a bloody revolt against English rule - many centuries ago. An unbreakable connection is forged across history. Catrin is reaching out . . . and only Miranda can help. But time is running out… Sunday Times bestselling author Barbara Erskine returns to Hay in the year that marks the 30th anniversary of her sensational debut bestseller, Lady of Hay.

From Victorian London to the vibrant port cities of England and France, from gracious stately homes in Gloucestershire to the decadence of Paris, Master of his Fate launches an unforgettable new historical series. London 1884: Queen Victoria is Empress of India and Britain is at its peak of worldwide power. James Falconer works as a barrow boy in a flourishing London market owned by Henry Malvern. But James hungers for more. Turning away from family tradition, he dreams of building an empire of stores like Fortnum and Mason’s and believes that Henry, along with his daughter and heir Alexis, could offer him a way to climb beyond his beginnings. But tragedy and betrayal threaten the dreams of both James and Alexis – and jeopardise everything they hold dear…

Alfred, the great king, is said to be dying. Rivals for his succession are poised to tear the kingdom apart. The country Alfred has worked thirty years to build is about to disintegrate. Uhtred, the King's warrior, Viking born but Saxon bred, wants more than anything else to go and fight to reclaim his stolen Northumbrian inheritance. But he knows that if he deserts the King's cause, Alfred's dream - and indeed the very future of the English nation - will very likely vanish. Death of Kings is an outstanding novel by a master storyteller of how England was made - and very nearly lost.

She was called Isabelle, and when she was a small girl her hair changed colour in the time it takes a bird to call to its mate… Midwife Isabelle du Moulin is marked as different, by both her red hair and her love for the Virgin Mary in her rich blue robes. As religious fervour sweeps 16th-century France, Isabelle’s striking likeness to the Madonna puts her in danger when her village is enraptured by new Protestant doctrine. Four centuries later, Ella Turner moves to the French village of Lisle-sur-Tarn and finds her dreams are haunted by the colour blue. Ella hopes to become both a midwife and a mother, but her plans unravel as she discovers her link to Isabelle, and her ancestor’s shocking fate.

A forgotten house and a secret hidden for a century… Following the breakdown of her marriage, Theo has bought a tumbledown cottage on the banks of the river Tamar which divides Cornwall and Devon. The peace and tranquillity of Boatman's Cottage, nestled by the water, is just what she needs to heal. Yet soon after her arrival, Theo discovers a stash of hidden letters tied with a ribbon, untouched for more than a century. The letters - sent from the battlefields of France during WW1 - tell of a young servant from the nearby manor house, Abbotswood, and his love for a woman he was destined to lose. As she begins to bring Boatman's Cottage and its gardens back to life, Theo pieces together a story of star-crossed lovers played out against the river, while finding her own new path to happiness. The River Between Us beautifully explores the mystery and secrets of a long-forgotten love affair, and will be loved by fans of Kate Morton.

From an exciting new voice in WWII historical fiction comes a tale of love, loss and a betrayal that echoes through generations... Paris, 1940: War is closing in on the city of love. With his wife forced into hiding, Jacques must stand by and watch as the Nazis take away everything he holds dear. Everything except his last beacon of hope: his beloved bookshop, La Page Cachee. But when a young woman and her child knock on his door one night and beg for refuge, he knows his only option is to risk it all once more to save a life... Modern day: Juliette and her husband have finally made it to France on the romantic getaway of her dreams - but as the days pass, all she discovers is quite how far they've grown apart. She's craving a new adventure, so when she happens across a tiny, abandoned shop with a for-sale sign in the window, it feels fated. And she's about to learn that the forgotten bookshop hides a lot more than meets the eye... A heartbreaking tale of love and loss in war, perfect for fans of Kate Quinn and Rachel Hore.

She’ll betray her king to crown her son When Edward of York takes back the English crown, the Wars of the Roses scatter the Lancastrian nobility and young Henry Tudor, with a strong claim to the throne, is forced into exile. Recently widowed and vulnerable, his mother, Lady Margaret Beaufort, forges an uncomfortable alliance with Edward’s queen, Elizabeth Woodville. Swearing an oath of allegiance to York, Margaret agrees to marry the king’s shrewdest courtier, Lord Stanley. But can she tread the precarious line between duty to her husband, loyalty to her son, and her obligation to God and the king? When tragedy befalls Edward’s reign, Richard of York’s ruthless actions fire the ambition of mother and son. As their destinies converge each of them will be exposed to betrayal and treachery and in their gruelling bid for the Tudor crown, both must be prepared to pay the ultimate price…

A powerful debut exploring the dark side of Cornwall - the wrecking and the drowned sailors - where poverty drove villagers to dark deeds… Shipwrecks are part of life in the remote village of Porthmorvoren, Cornwall. And as the sea washes the bodies of the drowned onto the beach, it also brings treasures: barrels of liquor, exotic fruit, the chance to lift a fine pair of boots from a corpse, maybe even a jewel or two. When, after a fierce storm, Mary Blight rescues a man half-dead from the sea, she ignores the whispers of her neighbours and carries him home to nurse better. Gideon Stone is a Methodist minister from Newlyn, a married man. Touched by Mary's sacrifice and horrified by the superstitions and pagan beliefs the villagers cling to, Gideon sets out to bring light and salvation to Porthmorvoren by building a chapel on the hill. But the village has many secrets and not everyone wants to be saved. As Mary and Gideon find themselves increasingly drawn together, jealousy, rumour and suspicion is rife. Gideon has demons of his own to face, and soon Mary's enemies are plotting against her… Gripping, beautifully written and utterly beguiling, Noel O'Reilly's debut Wrecker is a story of love, injustice, superstition and salvation, set against Cornwall's dark past.

Past and present collide on a richly mysterious Nile cruise… From the bestselling author of Lady of Hay comes this atmospheric and gripping page-turner. Recently divorced Anna Fox decides to cheer herself up by retracing a journey her great grandmother Louisa made in the mid-nineteenth century – a Nile cruise from Luxor to Aswan. Anna carries with her two of Louisa’s possessions: an ancient Egyptian scent bottle and an illustrated diary of the original cruise that has lain unread for over a hundred years. As she follows in Louisa’s footsteps, Anna discovers in the diary a wonderful Victorian love story – and the chilling secret of the little glass bottle. Meanwhile two men from the tour party develop an unfriendly rivalry for her attention, while showing a disturbing interest in Louisa’s mementoes. Most frightening of all, Anna finds herself the victim of a spectral presence that grows in strength and threat as the dramatic stories from three different eras intertwine in a terrifying climax.

An acclaimed bestseller and international sensation, Patrick Suskind's classic novel provokes a terrifying examination of what happens when one man's indulgence in his greatest passion-his sense of smell-leads to murder. In the slums of eighteenth-century France, the infant Jean-Baptiste Grenouille is born with one sublime gift-an absolute sense of smell. As a boy, he lives to decipher the odors of Paris, and apprentices himself to a prominent perfumer who teaches him the ancient art of mixing precious oils and herbs. But Grenouille's genius is such that he is not satisfied to stop there, and he becomes obsessed with capturing the smells of objects such as brass doorknobs and fresh-cut wood. Then one day he catches a hint of a scent that will drive him on an ever-more-terrifying quest to create the "ultimate perfume"-the scent of a beautiful young virgin. Told with dazzling narrative brilliance, Perfume is a hauntingly powerful tale of murder and sensual depravity.

The dramatic story of a young woman's war - full of heartache and triumph from the bestselling author of Christmas on the Mersey and London Belles Kitty has seen her fair share of tragedy and instead of thinking about romance, is determined to do her bit for King and country. Her life as a WREN means she is kept busy much of the time, but when Kitty finds herself stationed back home on Merseyside, she meets up again with Frank Feeny, the brave young officer who has always held a place in her heart. Britain is on the verge of victory, but will Kitty embrace the future and learn to love again?

From the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of 'March' and 'People of the Book'. A young woman's struggle to save her family and her soul during the extraordinary year of 1666, when plague suddenly struck a small Derbyshire village. In 1666, plague swept through London, driving the King and his court to Oxford, and Samuel Pepys to Greenwich, in an attempt to escape contagion. The north of England remained untouched until, in a small community of leadminers and hill farmers, a bolt of cloth arrived from the capital. The tailor who cut the cloth had no way of knowing that the damp fabric carried with it bubonic infection. So begins the Year of Wonders, in which a Pennine village of 350 souls confronts a scourge beyond remedy or understanding. Desperate, the villagers turn to sorcery, herb lore, and murderous witch-hunting. Then, led by a young and charismatic preacher, they elect to isolate themselves in a fatal quarantine. The story is told through the eyes of Anna Frith who, at only 18, must contend with the death of her family, the disintegration of her society, and the lure of a dangerous and illicit attraction. Geraldine Brooks's novel explores love and learning, fear and fanaticism, and the struggle of 17th century science and religion to deal with a seemingly diabolical pestilence. 'Year of Wonders' is also an eloquent memorial to the real-life Derbyshire villagers who chose to suffer alone during England's last great plague.

Dirk Struan rose from humble beginnings to build Struan & Company, also known as the Noble House, into the world's largest Far East trading company. He is now the Tai-Pan--Supreme Leader--of all Tai-Pans in China. Along the way, however, he made a powerful enemy. Tyler Brock, Struan's rival from their early opium-smuggling days, also heads a large trading fleet, second in size only to Struan's. But it is not only silks and spices that drive their mutual companies' wealth--the opium trade is still booming. War between England and China might be over, but the hostilities remain. Struan and Brock come to control much of England's trade with China yet neither can control their desires or their hatred of each other. Over the years, their two families will cross paths, threatening to rip both apart, with reverberations that will echo across the generations. Struan must fight to save his company and his family, or risk seeing everything he has created destroyed at the hands of his sworn enemy. Ambition, political intrigue, and love and lust weave their way throughout the novel the New York Times called, "grand entertainmentpacked with actionwith blood and sin, treachery and conspiracy, sex and murder." East and West come together in an opulent and intricately plotted narrative. A tour-de-force of historical fiction, rich in detail yet eminently readable, Tai-Pan will stay with you long after the final page.

Shakespeare's plays are part of our cultural heritage - every child is sure to come across at least one during their school life, and it's quite likely to be Macbeth. This accessible version of the story is told in picture strip to help both children and adults unravel the complexities of Shakespeare's language and plot. A well-crafted book which will provide a solid base for watching or studying the play.

From the bestselling author of Time's Legacy and Lady of Hay comes a thrilling new novel, River of Destiny, an epic story that spans Anglo Saxon Britain, Victorian Suffolk and the present day. Perfect for fans of Kate Mosse's Labyrinth. On the banks of the River Deben in Suffolk are ancient barns dating back to Anglo Saxon times - within these walls lie secrets that have been buried for centuries. New arrivals Zoe and Ken move into one of the converted barns, ready to start a life away from the hustle and bustle of the city. To the outside world they seem happy, but they are growing further apart by the day. Meanwhile the strange presence Zoe feels within their home and the ghostly shapes she sees through the cloying mists on the river are getting harder to ignore. Nearby, farmers are ploughing the land beside the river and human bones are found. Are they linked to the Victorian tragedy the locals whisper about? The secret of the grassy mound has remained untouched through history, but now that it's been disturbed, will there be devastating consequences?

An enemy frigate is outward bound to play havoc with the vital British whaling trade, and must be stopped at all costs. Racing against time, Captain Jack Aubrey and his crew must chase the USS Norfolk as she rounds Cape Horn, pursuing her into the Great South Sea and beyond. Following the equator, ahead of them lies not only the natural wonders of the Galapagos but also a succession of disasters - men overboard, castaways, typhoons, shipwrecks, to say nothing of murder and criminal insanity. In a deadly game of cat and mouse with their American foes, will Jack Aubrey and his crew triumph, despite the odds?

A spellbinding epic tale of ambition, anarchy, and absolute power set against the sprawling medieval canvas of twelfth-century England, The Pillars of the Earth is Ken Follett's classic historical masterpiece. A MASON WITH A DREAM 1135 and civil war, famine and religious strife abound. With his family on the verge of starvation, mason Tom Builder dreams of the day that he can use his talents to create and build a cathedral like no other. A MONK WITH A BURNING MISSION Philip, prior of Kingsbridge, is resourceful, but with money scarce he knows that for his town to survive it must find a way to thrive, and so he makes the decision to build within it the greatest Gothic cathedral the world has ever known. A WORLD OF HIGH IDEALS AND SAVAGE CRUELTY As Tom and Philip meet so begins an epic tale of ambition, anarchy and absolute power. In a world beset by strife and enemies that would thwart their plans, they will stop at nothing to achieve their ambitions in a struggle between good and evil that will turn church against state, and brother against brother . . . The Pillars of the Earth is the first in The Kingsbridge Novels series, followed by World Without End and A Column of Fire.

A sumptuous historical novel set in the court of Elizabeth I, from Sunday Times No.1 bestseller Philippa Gregory, the author of The Other Boleyn Girl. Now I can be the queen that my mother intended me to be . . . the queen I was born to be. 1558. After years of waiting, Princess Elizabeth accedes to the throne of England. But the country is divided, the restoration of the Protestant faith ignites opposition from the church and beyond, and court remains a treacherous place. Many believe that Elizabeth must marry if she is to survive. For Robert Dudley, Elizabeth’s ascension is a glorious new dawn, and he quickly positions himself as the young queen’s favourite. Dudley is a man of powerful lineage; his father had been a kingmaker at the court of Henry VIII. But Dudley has many enemies, amongst them William Cecil, the queen’s most trusted advisor. As powerful families vie for stakes in the emerging kingdom, Elizabeth must secure her own future.

Engrossing and memorable, The Sins of the Father is the second novel in international bestseller Jeffrey Archer's celebrated the Clifton Chronicles. It takes us to New York in 1939 where our hero Harry Clifton is in desperate need of help. Only days before Britain declares war on Germany, Harry joins the Merchant Navy, unable to face long-held family secrets and the fact he will never be able to marry his true love Emma Barrington. But when his ship is sunk mid-Atlantic, Harry takes the opportunity to assume the identity of one his deceased rescuers and begin a new life. Landing in America, he quickly discovers he has made a mistake and without any way to prove his true identity, Harry is now chained to a past that could be far worse than the one he had hoped to escape... Brimming with intrigue, Jeffrey Archer takes readers into a world they will never want to leave as the Clifton Chronicles continues its powerful journey with family loyalties stretched to their limits and fates decided.

On 3rd September 1939, Amy Browning decided to start writing a diary. It was a momentous day for so many reasons: it was Amy's 18th birthday; her sister had just given birth to a baby boy; and on the radio it was announced that Great Britain was now at war with Germany. For a while, life didn't change very much for Amy. Living with her family in Opal Street, Liverpool, Amy and her friend both got jobs at a factory, and spent their free time looking round the shops, or watching the ships being loaded at the docks. But as the months went by, things began to change. The bombing started, and Amy's fears grew for her brother, fighting in France, and her boyfriend Ian, in the RAF...