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Historical Fiction June 2019
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| A Bend in the Stars by Rachel BarenbaumRussia, 1914: When her physicist brother, Vanya, goes missing en route to observe a solar eclipse, Jewish surgeon Miri Abramov embarks on a desperate rescue mission, accompanied by a charming army deserter.
What's at stake: Vanya believes that photographing the eclipse will verify or disprove Einstein's general theory of relativity, while Miri fears that if the coming war doesn't kill them both, the Czar's pogroms will.
Reviewers say: "exhilarating" (Publishers Weekly). |
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| The Confessions of Frannie Langton by Sara CollinsIntroducing: Frannie Langton, a Jamaican servant languishing in Newgate Prison as she awaits trial for the murders of her employers.
Why you might like it: Framed as Frannie's confession, this debut offers Gothic atmosphere, vivid recreations of both West Indian sugar plantations and Georgian London, and a penetrating exploration of Enlightenment-era scientific racism.
Want a taste? "The cold seemed to carry its own smell, like raw meat, and came on me sudden as a cutpurse.” |
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| The Flight Portfolio by Julie OrringerWhat it's about: As a volunteer for the Emergency Rescue Committee, American journalist Varian Fry works to smuggle Jewish artists and intellectuals out of Vichy France.
Is it for you? Although it takes some liberties with the biographical details of Fry's life, The Flight Portfolio offers a well-researched depiction of the ERC's activities in assisting refugees during WWII.
About the author: Julie Orriger is the author of The Invisible Bridge. |
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| The Spy of Venice by Benet BrandrethWhat it's about: The "lost years" of William Shakespeare, in which he becomes a spy, undertaking a secret mission while in the guise of a traveling player.
Why you might like it: This brisk yet intricately plotted debut portrays the Bard as a kind of Elizabethan James Bond, dodging assassins and seducing beautiful women.
About the author: When he's not busy writing this series (book 2 is The Assassin of Verona), author Benet Brandreth is the rhetoric coach for the Royal Shakespeare Company. |
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| The Western Wind by Samantha HarveyWhat it is: a medieval murder mystery told in reverse.
Starring: John Reve, the doubt-ridden priest whose role as confessor makes him privy to the secrets of an entire village.
For fans of: Iain Pears' An Instance of the Fingerpost, another stylistically complex historical mystery whose potentially unreliable narrator slowly reveals the secrets of isolated English communities. |
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| The Widows of Malabar Hill by Sujata MasseyIntroducing: Perveen Mistry, Bombay's first woman solicitor. Despite her Oxford degree, she faces discrimination in a male-dominated profession.
What it's about: Could a strange proviso in the will of a wealthy Muslim mill owner be linked to a murder in the household of his three widows?
Why you might like it: This atmospheric series opener shifts between 1921, when Perveen conducts her investigation, and 1916, when young Perveen discovers her calling in the wake of tragic events. |
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| Plague Land by S.D. SykesWhat it's about: After the Black Death claims his father and brothers, 18-year-old Oswald de Lacy inherits Somershill. His first duty as lord of the manor? To solve a series of murders -- crimes attributed by the locals to dog-headed demons.
Why you might like it: Set in a plague-stricken 1350 Kent, England (in which both constable and coroner are dead), this series opener features an engaging narrator and a twisty mystery.
For fans of: Ariana Franklin's Adelia Aguilar series. |
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| The Ashes of London by Andrew TaylorLondon, 1666: In the aftermath of the Great Fire, a murder victim is discovered in the ashes of St. Paul's Cathedral; reluctant government informer James Marwood, son of a traitor, is tasked with finding the killer.
Why you might like it: Marwood's adventures (which continue in The Fire Court) unfold against a richly detailed 17th-century backdrop rife with political intrigue and religious unrest.
You might also like: Susanna Calkins' Lucy Campion mysteries, also set in Restoration London and featuring a working-class sleuth. |
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| The Frangipani Tree Mystery by Ovidia YuWhat it is: a charming traditional mystery set in British-controlled 1930s Singapore and written by the award-winning author of the Aunty Lee series.
Starring: Su Lin, a 16-year-old graduate of the Mission School whose cleverness and fluency in four languages make her helpful to police Inspector La Froy as they investigate a murder at the governor's house.
Series alert: This 1st in the Crown Colony series is followed by The Betel Nut Tree Mystery and the forthcoming The Paper Bark Tree mystery. |
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Contact your librarian for more great books!
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