Historical Fiction Europe

Harry Walsh is a young man on the make. He intends to become a famous singer, little knowing what dramas this will lead him through. He attaches himself to celebrity composer George Frederick Handel, maestro of the Italian opera and a favourite of royalty. But the aristocratic fashion for Handel is cooling. Opposing opera factions, one led by scheming castrato Senesino, knock the great man from his pinnacle.

Dear Mr Bigelow is an enchanting selection of weekly 'pen-pal' letters written between 1949 and 1961 from an unmarried woman working at the Pier Approach Baths in Bournemouth, to a wealthy American widower, living on Long Island, New York. Frances Woodsford and Commodore Paul Bigelow never met, and there was no romance - she was in her forties when he died aged ninety-seven - yet their epistolary friendship was her lifeline.

It's April 1940 and German troops are pouring onto the streets of Denmark. 12-year-old Bamse is ordered by his father to keep his head down and stay out of trouble. But Bamse and his daring friend Anton can't resist playing the occasional practical joke on the invading soldiers. When it becomes clear that the trouble isn't just going to pass them by, the people of Denmark decide to take action and Bamse and his eccentric family are about to take part in one of history's most dramatic rescues - smuggling Denmark's Jewish population, across the water to Sweden and safety.

Europe, 1945: Hitler is dead; the Third Reich is an open wound. Amid the chaos, a man like no other makes his way south through France and into Spain. No one will stand in his way and live. Only idealistic young Wilson Tripp, American vice consul in the city of Seville, stands to discover the man's true identity and the stunning threat he poses, that is, if Wilson Tripp can survive.

Queen Elizabeth I is dying, and the king of England’s oldest and bitterest enemy, Scotland, is poised to take the throne. With all her old allies and advisors dead, she turns to the only man she can trust: Henry Gresham. Gresham finds himself unwillingly dragged into the political manoeuvring that will decide England’s next ruler. Involved in the race to be the first to tell James VI of Scotland that Elizabeth has chosen him as her successor, Gresham faces savage attacks on his home and those he loves.

From its opening amid the horrors of the French Revolution, to its unexpected ending on the shores of the English Channel, The Scarlet Pimpernel fizzes with excitement and wit. Dominating the action is the apparently limp-wristed fop, Sir Percy Blakeney, the most unlikely, though the most gentlemanly of heroes. With a happy countenance Sir Percy outwits all the machinations of Chauvelin, the zealous Revolutionary official, to help nobles escape.

Growing up an orphan in the care of the Benedictine Sisters in post World War II Germany, Lina clings to the simplicity of her sheltered life, even as she longs for a taste of adventure and an identity of her own. As a college student, on a trip to the Louvre in Paris, she becomes transfixed- haunted even- by a 17th century Spanish painting by Bartolome Esteban Murillo. Lefebvre captures the hurt and deception as seen through the eyes of an intrepid college student. Stumbling upon art crimes perpetuated by the Nazis and their cohorts, the novel’s heroine refuses to turn a blind eye to the...

It is 1964, and Chris Nash is 20. His mother is married to Reg, whom Chris thinks is his father. He is, therefore, astonished when she tells him that his real father was a pilot, John Gregson, killed during the Second World War in an accident training Australian air crews. Chris sets out to discover more about the little-known incident. He tracks down his father's only living relative, and visits the site of the crash, near a small church in Bedfordshire.

Mary Seymour is just a few weeks old when her mother, the Dowager Queen Katharine Parr, dies from childbed fever. She cannot know the tragedy that has befallen their home at Sudeley, or the secrets that her father, the Lord Admiral Thomas Seymour, is hiding. Lost in grief, he entrusts baby Mary to the care of Elizabeth Aglionby, one of Katharine's closest companions. But Elizabeth knows that the Lord Admiral has enemies in high places - and that he stands on the edge of a ruinous fall from grace. And, if the worst should happen, what will become of his infant daughter?

September 1613. In Belvoir Castle, the heir of one of England's great noble families falls suddenly and dangerously ill. Within a few short weeks he will suffer an excruciating death. Soon the whole family will be stricken with the same terrifying symptoms. The second son, the last male of the line, will not survive. It is said witches are to blame. And so the Earl of Rutland's sons will not be the last to die.

Ein farbiges Historienpanorama - leidenschaftlich erzählt, voller Dramatik und Kraft. Andalusien, 1568. Nach Jahren der Unterdrückung erheben sich die spanischen Muslime gegen ihre christlichen Peiniger. Unter den Aufständischen ist auch der junge Maure Hernando, der sein Volk und seine Kultur vor dem Untergang retten will. Doch die Revolte wird bald zum blutigen Glaubenskrieg, und angesichts der von beiden Seiten begangenen Grausamkeiten wächst in Hernando das Bedürfnis nach Frieden und Aussöhnung der Religionen – ein Ziel, dem er fortan sein Leben widmet.

At last, after 165 years, the sequel to The Man in the Iron Mask... 17th Century France, two years after D'Artagnan's death: Deep beneath the Palais de Versailles, Aramis is shocked and astonished by the directives of D'Artagnan's Legacy. To follow, he must betray his honour; his King and, perhaps most damning of all, his fellow Musketeers. The Sun King will be eclipsed by darkness once more... Or can the ageing Musketeers really reunite, for one last time - for the glory of France?

1066 – Senlac Ridge, England. William the Bastard, Duke of Normandy, defeats Harold Godwinson, King Harold II of England, in what will become known as the Battle of Hastings. But England will not be conquered easily, the Anglo-Saxons will not submit meekly to Norman rule. Although his heroic deeds will nearly be lost to legend, one man unites the resistance. His name is Hereward of Bourne. His honour, bravery and skill at arms will change the future of England.

It is 1965 and Cora, a deaf young woman, buys a one-way ticket to the island of St Thomas, where she discovers four dolphins held in captivity, part of an experiment led by an obsessive Dr Bloom. Drawn by a strong connection to the dolphins, untrained Cora falls in with the scientists to protect the animals. Recognising Cora's knack for communication, Bloom uses her for what will turn into one of the most fascinating experiments in modern science: an attempt to teach the dolphins human language.

In this fiction, a former University classmate, now colonel of the SS, meets Edith Stein in Auschwitz to persuade her to contribute to the doctrinal development of a new religion that would be functional to the Nazi regime. The story presents the development of the conflict between two world views that are absolutely irreconcilable.

A gloriously moving and entertaining, picaresque debut novel about a young man’s sentimental education in late 19th-century Europe; inspired by a real historical figure: ‘Captain’ Paul Boyton - the ‘Fearless Frogman’.

Hugo Kendal and his wife, Margaret, finally receive a royal pardon and are permitted at last to return to their beloved homeland. Most of the family warmly welcome the couple and the news that they are soon to become three. However, despite the smiles, Hannah Kendal cannot help but dwell on the threat that Hugo might pose to her husband Simon's position as Master of Heron.

Plymouth, Devon, 1501. Luke Kendal, the long-awaited son of Elizabeth and John, grows up under the loving watch of his mother and stepfather, but soon he, too, must face his trials. Irresistibly drawn to the wild Isobel, he risks all in his secret rendezvous with her. Battling with himself, he maintains the romance is only temporary, but any easing of his conscience is shattered by the revelation that Isobel is with child. Luke Kendal must make a decision: desert Isobel and render his child a bastard or defile the family honour.

In medieval times, Bram has agreed to a marriage of convenience with an Irish nobleman's daughter. A marriage bargain is struck in exchange for land and his services fighting with the Laird Liannon's clan against all rivals: Norsemen and Irish alike. However, Bram's intended does not stir his heart. Not like the Laird's daughter, Kaireen. Unknowingly, Kaireen has captured his Viking heart.

The Sagrat militiamen suspend their hunt for Alejandro and return to Valencia to discover that they have become the prey. When Rafael Perato is abducted at the Inquisitor’s funeral, he finds himself facing a new and dangerous enemy. What his captor wants with him is unclear, but as the days turn to weeks, Rafael is plunged deeper and deeper into a web of deceit and betrayal.