Историческая литература
Различные книги в жанре Историческая литератураA Family Scandal
**A gritty and emotional family drama, from the Sunday Times bestseller. Perfect for fans of Nadine Dorries and Katie Flynn.**You can never leave a bad man behind…Mavis Pugh has had a hard life. Despised and abused throughout her teenage years, she turned to the first man who showed her kindness. But her new husband, Alec, quickly revealed himself to be a violent bully.When Mavis escapes from Alec, she thinks the worst is behind her. Moving to a large family house with her two children is more than she ever dreamed of, and when handsome sign-writer Tommy takes an interest in her, she can't believe her luck.But Alec is far from a distant memory and, unbeknown to Mavis, he’s watching her and her happy family closely. Just waiting for the right time to make his next – and final – move…
A Death in Belmont
A compelling portrait of 1960s America that takes as its starting point the brutal events of 11 March 1963, the day on which the lives of three complete strangers – a black handyman, an Italian-American carpenter and a second-generation Jewish housewife – collided in the leafy Boston suburb of Belmont.These three people did not know one another, but, by the end of the day, the housewife had been raped and strangled, the handyman had been arrested on suspicion of being the notorious Boston Strangler, and the real Boston Strangler – carpenter Al DeSalvo – had returned home to his wife and children. It was not until two years later that DeSalvo admitted to the gruesomely violent murders of thirteen women. Also unwittingly drawn into the drama were one-year-old Sebastian Junger's own family, who posed for a photograph with DeSalvo the day after the Belmont strangling, at the completion of his work on their studio.Taking the chilling family snap as his inspiration, Junger explores the worlds of the three protagonists and, in so doing, creates a portrait of America in the 1960s that touches on the historic themes of the era: the assassination of JFK, the rise of the immigrants and the troubling race relations that prefigured the death of Martin Luther King.This new work by Sebastian Junger, the acclaimed author of ‘Perfect Storm’ and ‘Fire’, is as enlightening as it is haunting. Taking as its foundation the events that shocked a quiet community in 1963, ‘A Death in Belmont’ expands to encompass an entire nation at a time of extraordinary social turmoil.
A Court Affair
Uncovering the love triangle between Queen Elizabeth I, Robert Dudley, and his wife Amy, and her mysterious death,A Court Affair is an unforgettable story of ambition, lust and jealousy.Accused of conspiring with rebels to steal the throne, Princess Elizabeth is confined to the Tower of London by her half-sister, Queen Mary. There she finds solace in the arms of fellow prisoner – her childhood friend, Robert Dudley. But with Elizabeth’s ascension to the crown, Robert returns to his wife and the unhappy union he believes cheated him of his destiny to be king.As Anne Boleyn’s daughter, Elizabeth knows the cruelty of marriage and roundly rejects her many suitors – with the exception of the power-hungry Robert. But their relationship carries a risk that could shake the very foundations of the House of Tudor. . .A Court Affair is a fascinating portrait of both the rise of Elizabeth I and one of the most compelling periods in history.
A Corpse in Shining Armour
Duelling, derring-do, and dastardly deeds are all in a day’s work for Liberty Lane: the plucky heroine for fans of Georgette Heyer and Sarah Waters’s Victorian novels.London. Summer 1839. And the temperature is rising as Liberty Lane takes on her strangest case yet.Deranged aristocrat Lord Brinkburn is nearing death and his elder son, Stephen, is expecting to inherit the title. But Lady Brinkburn's sudden announcement that Stephen is illegitimate throws the family into turmoil. Tensions reach boiling point between the two brothers, one of whom stands to gain everything, and they come to blows in public – much to the amusement of London Society.Liberty is engaged privately to get to the truth of the matter, but a macabre murder raises the stakes considerably…added to which she finds her own judgement being undermined by the beguiling ways of Lady Brinkburn. She is only too aware that time is running out – one of the brothers may be next, but which will it be…?
A Catch of Consequence
A brilliant, stylish novel encompassing the robust life of Boston and London, just at the time of greatest resentment and rebellion by the colonists against the British Government, and displaying the remarkably contemporary prejeudice shown by people on both sides.Makepeace Burke, keeper of a tavern on the waterfront in Boston, could no more watch a fellow creature drown than she could stop the wind blowing. But the price she paid for rescuing an English aristocrat after he had been attacked by the mob was high. She might be a supporter of the more reasonable colonists but she had committed an apparently unforgiveable sin. So her inn became deserted, her brother was tarred and feathered, and her respectable fiancee and his family deserted her. When the Patriots turned to burning her home, she knew she had to take the offer of the much despised Englishmen and so, saved by the Navy and accompanied by her remarkable retinue, she sails for London.She marries her Englishman as his second wife but finds that English society does not easily accept uneducated, colonial, ex-tavernkeepers – and the first wife, well connected and refusing to acknowledge a divorce, proves a dirty fighter. But Makepeace, having been chased out of one town by intolerance, is not going to let that happen again. And the reader is rooting for her all the way.Diana Norman has written an unusual, sparkling novel, truly unputdownable – she is an addictive taste.
A Book of Voyages
An anthology of 17th and 18th century travel writing that inspired the hugely popular Aubrey/Maturin series, collected and introduced by Patrick O’Brian, beautifully repackaged to mark the centenary of his birth.Patrick O’Brian has unearthed from obscurity the most dynamic travel writing of the seventeenth and eighteenth century. With his scholarly mind, editor’s eye, and traveller’s heart he brings together a series of thrilling seaward tales.Expertly chosen by O’Brian and prefaced with details that bring these extracts to vivid life, A Book of Voyages is a broad yet intimate portrait of what life was like at sea during a time of discovery.This rare collection sheds a glorious light onto these accounts of seaward adventure. From why eating rats is necessary and how to powder your hair in France to how to truly face fear and distress during a terrifying sea passage, this collection is rich in travellers’ experiences.A Book of Voyages is a unique opportunity to not only accompany an adored nautical author as he digs up one gripping historical treasure after another, but to understand how he was inspired to write the Aubrey Maturin series for which he is so famous.
50 x 50: The mini-sagas
Bite-sized stories from one of the masters of contemporary fiction.Thanks to social media, the world is getting ever more adept at writing concisely. However, Brian Aldiss was writing in this style long before twitter. In this collection of stories, Aldiss returns to the mini-saga tradition that ran for 6 years in The Telegraph, offering 50 brand-new 50-word narratives that will delight readers of any genre.
31 Bond Street
Based on a true story, mystery and intrigue in pre-Civil War New YorkThe sensational murder of Dr. Harvey Burdell in his lower Manhattan home made front-page news across the United States in 1857. «Who killed Dr. Burdell?» was a question that gripped the nation. 31 Bond Street, a debut novel by Ellen Horan, interweaves fiction with actual events in a clever historical narrative that blends romance, politics, greed and sexual intrigue in a suspenseful drama.The story opens when an errand boy discovers Burdell's body in the bedroom of his posh Bond Street home. The novel's central characters are Dr. Harvey Burdell, a dentist and unscrupulous businessman; his lover, the ambitious, Brooklyn-born Emma Cunningham; the District Attorney, Abraham Oakey Hall (later to become mayor of New York); and Henry Clinton, a prominent defense lawyer. The enigmatic relationship between Emma and Dr. Burdell makes her the prime suspect, and her trial is nothing less than sensational. Will she hang? Were her teenaged daughters involved? What did the servants know? Who was the last person to see Burdell alive? During the trial, the two lawyers fight for truth, justice and their careers.This novel is set against the background of bustling, corrupt New York City, just four years before the Civil War. The author intertwines two main narratives: the trial through the perspective of the defense attorney Henry Clinton, and the story of the lovely young widow Emma Cunningham whose search for a husband brings her into the arms and home of Dr. Burdell.
1066: History in an Hour
Love history? Know your stuff with History in an Hour.During the year 1066, England had three different kings and fought three huge battles in defence of the realm, including the bloody Battle of Hastings. The result was the Norman Conquest which defined England during the Middle Ages.1066 in an Hour will guide you through the politics and personalities of the Norman invasion. It will help you understand why William the Conqueror was victorious and introduce you to the new king and subsequent ancestor to the Plantagenets and Tudors.Know your stuff: read about 1066 in just one hour.
Wolf Hall: Shortlisted for the Golden Man Booker Prize
The greatest literary sensation of recent times – and now the inspiration for a major BBC series, starring Mark Rylance and Damian Lewis and directed by Peter Kosminsky.In this staggeringly brilliant novel, Hilary Mantel brings the opulent, brutal world of the Tudors to bloody, glittering life. It is the backdrop to the rise and rise of Thomas Cromwell: lowborn boy, charmer, bully, master of deadly intrigue and, finally, most powerful of Henry VIII’s courtiers.Both winners of the Man Booker Prize and already hugely successful stage plays, WOLF HALL and its sequel BRING UP THE BODIES have now been transformed into a BBC television series starring Mark Rylance and Damian Lewis, bringing history to life for a whole new audience.