Showing titles in Historical

Matthew Bartholomew, doctor of medicine and fellow of Michaelhouse, Cambridge, is travelling with a party from the college to accept the gift of the living of a parish in Suffolk. One of his companions, Unwin, an unworldly scholar, is to be installed as priest. Their journey is not without incident - they are chased by footpads, pass through an eerie village abandoned after the recent plague and find a man barely alive on a gibbet - so they reach their destination with some relief. But their thoughts of recovering while enjoying the local Pentecostal Fair are soon curtailed.

When the body of a young woman is found near the ruins of a haunted abbey, everyone assumes she died of fright. A postmortem examination tells a different story. Not only was Elizabeth Barrett poisoned, but the lethal dose of cyanide must have been administered by someone close to her - someone she trusted, who may have known her secret. As Captain Redmond and Constable Haze delve into the victim's seemingly ordinary life, they learn she wasn't the proper, biddable wife everyone believed her to be.

Now a major Disney+ original series, Shardlake – airing this summer on ITV. 'C. J. Sansom’s books are arguably the best Tudor novels going' – The Sunday Times Dissolution is the first novel in C. J. Sansom’s phenomenal bestselling Shardlake series, perfect for fans of Hilary Mantel and...

*PREORDER NOW* The latest instalment in the Sunday Times bestselling Ali Dawson Mysteries sees Ali investigating the case of a boy who vanished twenty-seven years ago and finding herself in the past once again - only this time she's in the middle of the Blitz of 1940 Praise for the Ali Dawson...

Adapted from the major television series created by Mark Gatiss - out now! 'A delicious read' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ READER REVIEW London, 1946. Gabriel Book is an erudite and unconventional London bookseller married to Trottie, the owner of the wallpaper shop next door. He is also a sleuth who uses...

A middle-aged saddler. An unexpected corpse. A witty old horse with a nose for murder. Sometimes, the best detectives have hooves. Downton Abbey meets Dick Francis in this cozy historical murder mystery. Somerset, December 1903. Everyone in Pelgren Vale is impressed when Miss Harriet Cobb is invited to Ashwold Abbey, home of the Earl of Ashwold, to attend Lady Eve’s wedding. But Harriet is not a guest—she’s the saddler. Unfortunately, it seems to be another silly project: create a decorative saddle with all the trappings for a horseback wedding.

Marcus Didius Falco discovers that rank brings problems, the most gruesome of which is a corpse buried under the tiles of his new bath house. The contractors have fled to Britain where, as the Fates have it, Falco is ordered. A local chief and ally of the Romans is having a Palace built by the Emperor Vespasian. However, the project is running late, and fatal accidents keep happening. Falco, troubleshooting for the Emperor, is without an ally and now next on the list for assassination.

Perfect for fans of Hilary Mantel's The Mirror and The Light, Matthew Shardlake is back in the sixth book in the Shardlake series, from number one bestselling author C. J. Sansom. 'When it comes to intriguing Tudor-based narratives, Hilary Mantel has a serious rival' - Sunday Times ‘Sansom has...

In 1350 the people of Cambridge are struggling to overcome the effects of the Black Death - and with a high mortality rate among priests and monks, the townsfolk are vulnerable to sinister cults that have sprung up. At Michaelhouse, Matthew Bartholomew is training new physicians when the body of a friar is found in the massive chest that the university uses to store precious documents. While investigating, Bartholomew stumbles across a derelict church being used as a meeting place for the mysterious sect he believes is at the heart of a web of blackmail.

September 1909, and Lady Hardcastle and her maid, Florence, have been invited to Lord Riddlethorpe’s country estate for a week of motor racing and parties. They both agree that it sounds like a perfectly charming holiday. But when one of the drivers dies in a crash during the very first race, they discover that what seemed like an uncharacteristic error in judgement may have a more sinister explanation...

Brought to you by Penguin. In all her twenty-five years, Venetia Lanyon has never been further than Harrogate. Nor has she enjoyed the attentions of any man aside from her two wearisomely persistent suitors. Then, in one extraordinary encounter, she meets a neighbour she only knew by reputation...

Returning to the sanctuary of Everly Manor after years of exile, Neve and Hugo wish for nothing more than safety and tranquillity. When Neve gives birth to twins, it brings new joy and hope for their family. Contemplating the hidden timeslip passageway at Everly that has shaped their lives, Neve is astonished when a man she recognises from the 21st century stumbles through the magical gateway. But Simon’s arrival sparks a terrible fear, because according to history, Hugo will be dead within the year…

Flanders, June 1917: a British officer and celebrated poet, is shot dead, killed not by German fire, but while recuperating from shell shock well behind the lines. A young English soldier is arrested and, although he protests his innocence, charged with his murder.Douglas Kingsley is a conscientious objector, previously a detective with the London police, now imprisoned for his beliefs.

Inspector Hemingway has his work cut out for him when a seemingly civilized card game ends in a double murder. The two crimes appear identical, but were they carried out by the same hand? When Timothy Harte's young fiancé - a put-upon secretary and suspected gold digger - becomes the inspector's prime suspect, Harte is determined to prove her innocence.

'Does for Elizabeth's reign what CJ Sansom does for Henry VIII's' Sunday Times The third book in the iconic John Shakespeare series, beloved by thousands of readers, from true master of historical fiction, Rory Clements. ------------------------------------------------------- 'Sixteenth-century...

May 1912. After the previous year’s deadly heatwave, it’s been an uneventful spring in Littleton Cotterell. Though for Lady Hardcastle and her fiercely loyal lady’s maid Flo, at least there are the provincial delights of the village’s inaugural art exhibition—and bicycle race—to look forward to. But at the exhibition opening, there’s a panicked shout of ‘Fire!’ In the confusion, the main attraction—an extremely expensive book—is stolen from under everyone’s nose, as is a valuable painting lent by Sir Hector Farley-Stroud.

Elizabeth II's coronation is looming, but the murder of their wartime commander, Colonel Cartwright, spoils the happy mood for DI Edgar Stephens and magician Max Mephisto. A playbill featuring another deceased comrade is found in Colonel Cartwright's possession, and a playing card, the ace of...

The Carolinas, 1699: The citizens of Fount Royal believe a witch has cursed their town with inexplicable tragedies -- and they demand that beautiful widow Rachel Howarth be tried and executed for witchcraft. Presiding over the trial is traveling magistrate Issac Woodward, aided by his astute young clerk, Matthew Corbett. Believing in Rachel's innocence, Matthew will soon confront the true evil at work in Fount Royal....

When Nicole Rayburn travels to Lockwood Hall and begins to research Alys’s story for a new book, she discovers startling irregularities in Alys’s case. Nicole’s suspicions mount as every answer leads to more questions. What really happened to Alys? And what became of her son, who disappeared the day she was hanged? Could it be that Alys’s death was the result of a well-planned conspiracy, or is there another, less obvious answer? And who is trying to sabotage Nicole's efforts by stealing her work?

In September 1926, the Honorable Daisy Dalrymple Fletcher visits Sybil Sutherby, a school friend now living in Derbyshire as the confidential secretary to a novelist. Suspecting that something is seriously amiss, Sybil has asked Daisy to discretely investigate. Upon arrival, Daisy finds a household of relatives and would-be suitors living off the hospitality of Humphrey Birtwhistle, who had been supporting them through his thrice-yearly, pseudonymous Westerns. When he took ill, though, Sybil took over writing them while he recovered, only to see the sales increase. Now, she fears that someone in the household is poisoning Birtwhistle to keep him ill and Sybil writing the better-paying versions.