Home   Catalog   Contact Us   Readers' Club

Having trouble viewing this newsletter? Click Here
Historical Fiction August 2012
"...for my words are my own, and my actions are my ministers'."
~ Charles II, (1630-1685), king of Great Britain and Ireland
New and Recently Released!
The Red Chamber - by Pauline Chen
Publisher: Alfred A. Knopf
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 07/10/2012
Share The Red Chamber ISBN-13: 9780307701572
ISBN-10: 0307701573
This reimagining of Cao Xueqin's 18th-century novel Dream of the Red Chamber explores Qing Dynasty Beijing through the ties that bind three women in the aristocratic Jia family: Xifeng, whose inability to conceive an heir jeopardizes her position as wife to Lian, whose concubines would eagerly assume her role; dutiful Baochai, whose hoped-for betrothal to Baoyu is marred by the fact that her beloved loves another; and orphaned Daiyu, Baoyu's secret love and the black sheep of the family who has only recently been welcomed back into the fold. As their intimate dramas play out within the walls of the Rongguo Mansion, the family's lavish estate, political unrest threatens the world outside. Fans of Lisa See's Peony in Love will appreciate the integration of classic Chinese literature into a richly detailed, emotionally intense tale of women's lives and relationships.
Tigers in Red Weather: A Novel - by Liza Klaussmann
Publisher: Little, Brown
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 07/17/2012
Share Tigers in Red Weather%3a A Novel ISBN-13: 9780316211338
ISBN-10: 0316211338
In 1945, cousins Nick and Helena spend one last night at Tiger House, their family's vacation home on Martha's Vineyard, before heading in separate directions. Nick travels to Florida, where she reunites with her reserved but devoted naval officer husband, Hughes Derringer, while Helena heads to California to embark on her second marriage, to aspiring Hollywood producer Avery Lewis. Neither woman's new life proves fulfilling, leading Nick to cheat on her husband repeatedly and Helena to drown her sorrows with booze and pills. Keeping a long-ago promise to each other, the cousins and their (increasingly dysfunctional) families return each summer to Tiger House, which remains a constant in their turbulent lives as they weather heartbreak, infidelity, abuse, and even murder.
In the Shadow of the Banyan - by Vaddey Ratner
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 08/07/2012
Share In the Shadow of the Banyan ISBN-13: 9781451657708
ISBN-10: 1451657706
Even being the daughter of minor royalty is not enough to protect seven-year-old Raami from the ravages of the Khmer Rouge. Fleeing their home in Phnom Penh to seek safety in the countryside, Raami and her extended family endure years of hiding, starvation, capture, and eventual imprisonment in a labor camp. Despite the grief, terror, and senseless violence that comprise her daily life, the resilient, imaginative Raami relies on her father's stories and her own memories of her lost, loving family in order to survive. This emotionally wrenching yet lyrical semi-autobiographical debut captures, from a child's perspective, the civil war and genocide in 1970s Cambodia.
Focus on: The Restoration
Year of Wonders: A Novel of the Plague - by Geraldine Brooks
Publisher: Penguin Books
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 05/01/2002
Share Year of Wonders%3a A Novel of the Plague ISBN-13: 9780142001431
ISBN-10: 0142001430
The year 1665 brings tragedy to the Derbyshire village of Eyam, especially for impoverished widow Anna Frith. Not long after the young mother of two buries her husband, the bubonic plague strikes. As the village quarantines itself, Anna and her neighbors attempt to live normal lives while hysteria mounts and death closes in on them. Inspired by the history of the actual village documented in Daniel Defoe's A Journal of the Plague Year, Year of Wonders depicts the grim realities of the Black Death as well as the best and worst of human nature. For a medieval look at the same topic, try John Hatcher's The Black Death: A Personal History, which fuses fiction and nonfiction to recreate a plague-stricken 14th-century English village.
Gentleman Captain - by J.D. Davies
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 10/13/2010
Share Gentleman Captain ISBN-13: 9780547382616
ISBN-10: 0547382618
While much nautical fiction is set during the 18th century, Gentleman Captain begins in 1662, shortly after Charles II regains the English throne. Despite an inauspicious naval debut (his first ship sank off the coast of Ireland), 21-year-old nobleman's son Matthew Quinton receives orders from the newly restored monarch to assume command of the frigate Jupiter. The catch? His maiden voyage will take him to Scotland, where a potential rebellion threatens Britain's stability. What's more, the Jupiter's previous captain met an untimely and suspicious death, and by all accounts, Matthew's crew wouldn't mind if he met the same fate.
Dark Angels: A Novel - by Karleen Koen
Publisher: Three Rivers Press
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 05/29/2007
Share Dark Angels%3a A Novel ISBN-13: 9780307339928
ISBN-10: 0307339920
Ambitious young Alice Verney is a natural-born courtier and, as lady-in-waiting to Queen Catherine, King Charles II's consort, she's perfectly positioned to form alliances with influential people, navigate complex political and courtly intrigue, and insinuate herself into the highest circles of power. But when she becomes aware of a plot against her lady, she must act quickly to foil the conspiracy -- while wondering which (if any) of her potential suitors she can trust. Thoroughly researched and rich in atmosphere, this meticulously rendered portrait of Restoration England is a fascinating blend of history, mystery, and romance that also serves as a prequel to Through a Glass Darkly, the 1st of author Karleen Koen's 18th-century-set Barbara Devane novels.
An Instance of the Fingerpost - by Iain Pears
Publisher: Riverhead Books
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 04/01/2000
Share An Instance of the Fingerpost ISBN-13: 9781573227957
ISBN-10: 1573227951
The suspicious death of Robert Grove, a Fellow of New College in 17th-century Oxford, gives rise to a Rashomon-style tale of history, science, faith, and political intrigue. The crime, as well as the subsequent arrest and trial of freethinker (and alleged "witch") Sarah Blundy, are examined from different angles through first-person accounts by visiting Venetian physician Marco da Cola; Jack Prescott, who's determined to prove that his disgraced father was himself betrayed as part of a massive conspiracy against the Crown; John Wallis, a priest, mathematician, and proto-cryptographer who's got his finger on the pulse of courtly politics; and mild-mannered antiquarian Anthony Wood, who's acquainted with both the victim and the suspect and may know more than he lets on.
Exit the actress - Priya Parmar
Publisher: Touchstone/Simon & Schuster
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 02/01/2011
Share Exit the actress ISBN-13: 9781439171172
ISBN-10: 1439171173
In 17th-century England, Ellen "Nell" Gwyn becomes an established stage actress, but finds her life becoming more complicated once she becomes the mistress of King Charles II.  Despite her humble beginnings, Nell rises quickly with a gift of mimicry, talent for dance, and a unique loveliness. Charles's charisma, meanwhile, is matched only by his reputation as a libertine, and once he realizes Nell wants him as a man and not a king, he falls for her, though their love must survive his scheming ex-mistresses, Nell's love of independence, and a tumultuous political backdrop. What separates this from other royal mistress tales is the real-feeling relationships between Gwyn, Charles, and Queen Catherine: Parmar resists the easy way out of polarizing the reader against either the cheating husband or the cuckolded wife, and Nell is a thoughtful protagonist and narrator.
Contact your librarian for more great books!

If you are having trouble unsubscribing to this newsletter, please contact NextReads at 919-489-3713, 3710 Mayfair Street, Durham, NC 27707


© 2014 EBSCO Publishing, Powered by The Title Source TM