Great Historical Fiction Books for the Holidays
Books to read this holiday season, today’s installment is historical fiction, catch tomorrow’s installment for non-fiction and Sci-Fi
by Gabrielle Pantera
Cleopatra's Daughter, prisoner of Rome
HOLLYWOOD, CA (Gosh!TV) 12/29/2009 – Yesterday we listed book ideas for mysteries. Today lets look at what’s new in historical fiction.
Cleopatra’s Daughter by Michelle Moran
Cleopatra’s Daughter traces the three children of Cleopatra VII and Marc Antony. They’re taken to Rome by their father’s greatest rival, Octavian Caesar. Orphaned by the suicide deaths of their parents Cleopatra Selena and Alexander Helios, twins make it alive to Rome. Their younger brother Ptolemy dies of illness on the ship. The eleven-year-old twins lives , but will it be a life worth living once in Rome? Hardcover: 448 pages, Publisher: Crown; 1st edition (September 15, 2009), Language: English, ISBN: 9780307409126 $25.
The Foundling by Georgette Heyer
Gilly, the Duke of Sale, is a young man of 24 who’s been protected since birth by well-meaning family members. His overprotective uncle, his guardian, will relinquish all to Gilly on his twenty-fifth birthday. A staff of devoted family retainers won’t let Gilly do anything for himself. They coddle him as though he’s a child. Gilly decides to go on an adventure, to discover if he’s “a man, or only a Duke.” Gilly sets out, incognito, to get back some embarrassing letters his younger cousin wrote. A favorite of Heyer novel fans. Trade Paperback, 448 pages, Publisher: Sourcebooks Casablanca, September 2009, Language: English, ISBN: 9781402219481 $13.99.
The Greatest Knight by Elizabeth Chadwick
William Marshal, the fourth son of John Marshal, was born before 1146. His mother was Sybilla, sister to Earl Patrick of Salisbury. Marshal’s life changed at about age five when his father handed him over to King Stephen as a hostage while John went to seek Empress Matilda’s permission for a truce. John reneged, leaving his young son to the mercies of King Stephen. The king didn’t kill him and thus started the journey for Marshal to become the greatest knight. Trade Paperback, 560 pages, Publisher: Sourcebooks Landmark $14.99.
Here Was a Man by Norah Lofts A Novel of Sir Walter Raleigh and Elizabeth I
Here was a Man is one of Norah Lofts’ early novels. Lofts story is romantic, yet you can feel Raleigh’s frustration with Elizabeth I. Raleigh is a member of Elizabeth’s court who dreams of exploring the New World. Raleigh gets called back in the middle of his mission and doesn’t know or understand why. Has something happened to his wife Bess? Trade Paperback, 304 pages Touchstone, July 14 2009 ISBN 9781416590910 $14.
To Serve Them All My Days by R.F. Delderfield
It’s 1913. David Powlett-Jones arrives as a shell-shocked soldier to teach history and English at Bamfylde, a boys school in North Devon. The school was based on West Buckland School, a school that Delderfield attended. Many readers m9ght have seen the 1980 television series. The story is reminiscent of Goodbye Mr. Chips, the James Hilton novel published in 1934. That too is the story of a teacher. Trade Paperback, 608 pages, Publisher: Sourcebooks Landmark Released: March 1, 2009. ISBN 9781402218248 $14.99.
La’s Orchestra Saves the World Alexander McCall Smith
After Lavender Stone’s, La to her friends, husband leaves her for another woman La leaves London for a small cottage in Suffolk. The peacefulness is a balm to La. With the onset of WWII she joins the Women’s Land Army. La has an idea and launches an local amateur orchestra giving her more confidence and boosts morale during the dark day of WWII.. A polish ex-pat, Feliks Dabrowski, is working at a farm where La helping. Could this be a new love or is there something amiss? McCall Smith is the author of the No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency The Sunday Philosophy Club. La’s Orchestra Saves the World: A Novel (Hardcover) Alexander Mccall Smith (Author) Hardcover: 304 pages, Publisher: Pantheon, December 8, 2009, Language: English ISBN: 9780307378385 $23.95.
Serpent in the Thorns by Jeri Westerson
The Serpent in the Thorns is the second novel in the Crispin Guest series. Former English knight Crispin Guest is known as the tracker now. He was dishonored when he was implicated in a plot against King Richard II. Guest lives on the mean streets of London tracing missing persons, objects and murders. Guest is hired by Grayce, a simple-minded tavern servant who claims she killed a man in her room. It’s a French courier carrying the Crown of Thorns, a gift for King Richard II from the King of France. Guest must solve the mystery to save the king. Serpent in the Thorns: A Medieval Noir, Hardcover, 288 pages, Publisher: Minotaur Books; 1 edition (September 29, 2009) Language: English, ISBN: 9780312534981 $24.99.
Pirate Latitudes A Novel By Michael Crichton
For Captain Charles Hunter, gold in Spanish hands is gold for the taking, and the law of the land rests with those ruthless enough to make it. Set in the Caribbean, 1665. A remote colony of the English Crown, the island of Jamaica holds out against the vast supremacy of the Spanish empire. Port Royal, its capital, is a cutthroat town of taverns, grog shops, and bawdy houses. Pirate Latitudes: A Novel, Michael Crichton Hardcover: 320 pages, Publisher: Harper (November 24, 2009) Language: English, ISBN: 9780061929373 $27.99.
Read tomorrow for non-fiction and Sci-Fi books.