Historical Fiction--September 2025
Recent Releases
The Paris Express : a novel
by Emma Donoghue

Set on a fateful 1895 train journey to Paris, a diverse group of passengers?—?including politicians, a medical student, an inventor, and an anarchist?—?navigate personal ambitions and hidden motives, culminating in a disaster that forever changes their lives.
A Promise to Arlette
by Serena Burdick

In an idyllic Massachusetts neighborhood, local boy Sidney and his British bride Ida haven't recovered from the war. They hide it well until 1952 when a neighbor shows off a Man Ray photo, leading Ida to steal it. She heads to California to confront the artist, knowing her beloved friend Arlette was actually the photographer. Set in England, France, and the United States before, during, and after World War II, this is an evocative, haunting novel. 
Far from home : a novel
by Danielle Steel

Fleeing Paris after her husband's execution for opposing Hitler, Arielle von Auspeck hides in Normandy, joins the Resistance and forges a bond with a grieving widower as they fight to reunite with their loved ones.
The king's messenger
by Susanna Kearsley

In 1613, Andrew Logan, a messenger for King James, embarks on a mission to frame an innocent advisor for treason, but as he unravels the truth alongside his spirited neighbor Phoebe Westaway, their growing bond challenges loyalty, justice, and the possibilities of love.
When Sleeping Women Wake
by Emma Pei Yin

Set during the Japanese invasion and occupation of Hong Kong in 1941, this moving debut follows three women: a Chinese wife who was unable to birth the son her wealthy husband desired; her maid, who's been like a sister to her for decades; and her beloved daughter. Navigating a new world, each will resist in her own way. Read-alikes: Andrew X. Pham's Twilight Territory; Eve J. Chung's Daughters of Shandong.
The English Masterpiece
by Katherine Reay

At London's Tate Modern Gallery, Lily Summers happily works as powerful curator Diana Gilden's assistant. But after viewing a painting Diana has authenticated at a 1973 Picasso exhibit, Lily blurts out that it's a fake, shocking the crowd and threatening her own career. Digging into the past, Lily tries to uncover the truth. Well-researched and evocative, this compelling novel has intrigue, memorable characters, and a bit of romance. For fans of: Kate Quinn; Fiona Davis.
Broken fields
by Marcie R. Rendon

Cash Blackbear discovers a murdered farmer, a missing Native couple and their terrified daughter who lead her on a tense investigation across White Earth Reservation, in the fourth novel of the series following Sinister Graves. Original. 100,000 first printing.
Murder at gulls nest
by Jess Kidd

From Jess Kidd, the bestselling author of Things in Jars who "is so good it isn't fair" (Erika Swyler, nationally bestselling author), the first in a cozy mystery series about a former nun who searches for answers in a small seaside town after her pen pal mysteriously disappears. I believe every one of us at Gulls Nest is concealing some kind of secret. 1954: When her former novice's dependable letters stop, Nora Breen asks to be released from her vows. Haunted by a line in Frieda's letter, Nora arrives at Gulls Nest, a charming hotel in Gore-on-Sea in Kent. A seaside town, a place of fresh air and relaxed constraints, is the perfect place for a new start. Nora hides her identity and pries into the lives of her fellow guests. But when a series of bizarre murders rattles the occupants of Gulls Nest it's time to ask if a dark past can ever really be left behind.
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