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Books > Fiction > Genre fiction > Crime & mystery > Historical mysteries
Autumn, 1210. It is the 11th year of King John's reign. Helewise's grand-daughter is kidnapped by a young schizophrenic knight, who is bringing her to His Majesty. Josse's son rescues her from what seem to be two kidnappers, but it turns out that he's wounded both Olivier and King John.
Mary Paterson, or, The Fatal Error is a high-Victorian tale of the tragic life, and sorry end, of poor Mary Paterson: her fall from grace, her unhappy loves - and her final grisly demise at the hands of Burke and Hare, who kept Edinburgh's anatomists supplied with freshly manufactured corpses. But the melodrama doesn't stop with Mary lying cold upon the dissecting slab: David Pae's galloping novel, originally serialised in the Dundee People's Journal in 1864 and 1865, hounds Burke and Hare to their capture and trial, leads Burke to the gallows, and thereafter follows Hare and his accomplices to their various just deserts. The Scottish writer David Pae was one of the most successful serial novelists of his day. Edited by Caroline McCracken-Flesher, this new edition of Pae's original and unexpurgated tale not only provides a fascinating window into the popular Victorian imagination but is also a highly entertaining novel in its own right.
"You shall never have a penny of my money. Leave me alone or I will shoot you dead!" 1924. After six months in Hollywood, young British widow Emma Blackstone has come to love her new employer, glamourous movie-star Kitty Flint - even if her late husband's sister is one of the worst actresses she's ever seen. Looking after Kitty and her three adorable Pekinese dogs isn't work Emma dreamed of, but Kitty rescued her when she was all alone in the world. Now, the worst thing academically-minded Emma has to worry about is the shocking historical inaccuracies of the films Kitty stars in. Until, that is, Rex Festraw - Kitty's first husband, to whom she may or may not still be married - turns up dead in her dressing room, a threatening letter seemingly from Kitty in his pocket. Emma's certain her flighty but kind-hearted sister-in-law has been framed. But who by? And why? From spiteful rivals to jealous boyfriends, the suspects are numerous. But as Emma investigates, she begins to untangle a deadly plot - and there's something Kitty's not telling her . . . This gripping first in a brand-new series from NYT-bestselling author Barbara Hambly brings the sights and sounds of Hollywood to life and is a perfect pick for fans of female-fronted historical mysteries set in the roaring twenties.
From the bestselling author of The House at Riverton and The Secret Keeper, Kate Morton brings us her dazzling sixth novel, The Clockmaker's Daughter. My real name, no one remembers. The truth about that summer, no one else knows. In the summer of 1862, a group of young artists led by the passionate and talented Edward Radcliffe descends upon Birchwood Manor on the banks of the Upper Thames. Their plan: to spend a secluded summer month in a haze of inspiration and creativity. But by the time their stay is over, one woman has been shot dead while another has disappeared; a priceless heirloom is missing; and Edward Radcliffe’s life is in ruins. Over one hundred and fifty years later, Elodie Winslow, a young archivist in London, uncovers a leather satchel containing two seemingly unrelated items: a sepia photograph of an arresting-looking woman in Victorian clothing, and an artist’s sketchbook containing the drawing of a twin-gabled house on the bend of a river.
Private investigators Lily Raynor and Felix Wilbraham get more than they bargain for when they take on a case in a girls' boarding school, in the latest World's End Bureau Victorian mystery. London, 1881. Lily Raynor, owner of the World's End Investigation Bureau, is growing increasingly worried. Work is drying up, finances are tight and she cannot find enough for her sole employee, Felix Wilbraham, to do. So when schoolteacher Georgiana Long arrives, with a worrying tale of runaway pupils, it seems like the answer to her prayers. The case is an interesting one, and what could be less perilous than a trip to a girls' boarding school, out in the Fens? Disguised as the new Assistant Matron, Lily joins the Shardlowes School staff, while Felix - suppressing his worries about his cool, calm employer - remains behind. But there are undercurrents at Shardlowes, and the shadowy, powerful men who fund the school's less fortunate pupils loom larger as Felix's own investigations unfold. Felix can't shake off his fear that Lily is in danger - and soon, his premonitions come frighteningly true . . .
"RAN AWAY." So began a score of advertisements every week in the New Orleans newspapers, advertising for slaves who'd fled their masters. But the Turk, Huseyin Pasha, posted no such advertisement when his two lovely concubines disappeared. And when a witness proclaimed that he'd seen the "devilish Infidel" hurl the two girls' dead bodies from his attic window on Bourbon Street, everyone in New Orleans "knew" of the proverbial jealousy of Turks and was willing to believe him the murderer. Only Benjamin January, driven by memories of his first meeting with the Turk in Paris ten years before, is willing to brave public outrage and mob violence to seek for the true culprit. The quest takes him back to memories of tragedy, and, in pursuing them, he finds himself the target of accusations which endanger his family, his freedom . . . and his life.
"The enthralling new Burren mystery . . . ""April 1511, Ireland." Mara, Brehon of the Burren, is celebrating the christening of her son when she notices that three of her law students have disappeared from the party. The next morning, one of them is found dead on a lone mountain pass with suspicious wounds. He was carrying an important legal document that has now disappeared. But why did he choose to deliver it during the night, and what of the two other missing students? Mara must uncover the truth - and it at first seems that the stolen deed holds all the answers . . .
"A Liberty Lane"" mystery - ""Autumn, 1839." As the London nights darken, rumours spread about the devil's chariot, which preys on young women walking alone at night. Novice private investigator Liberty Lane has no time for such horror stories, so when a poetic young man begs her to find his missing fiancee, she accepts, suspecting there is a more prosaic explanation. Meanwhile, she is engaged to help prevent a royal scandal involving Prince Albert's worldlier brother, Prince Ernest. Liberty begins work on both cases, but when young women begin showing up dead, the tales of the devil's chariot don't seem so ridiculous any more.
November 1911. Lady Emily Hardcastle is celebrating her birthday by seeing a play at the Duke's Theatre in Bristol with her maid and confidante, the inimitable Flo. Act One is a triumph. Then Act Two opens with a body on stage-a real one. One of the cast has been brutally murdered during the interval. When other matters get in the way of Inspector Sunderland overseeing the case himself, he asks the ever-resourceful Lady H to keep a watchful eye on the suspects-and his police colleagues. Rustling up some cunning disguises of their own, she and Flo are soon in deep cover among the cast and crew, pulling back the curtain on some shocking secrets and rivalries... The problem is, everyone seems to have a motive, and everyone seems to have an alibi...In this locked-room mystery in which nothing is as it seems, the amateur sleuths need to put on the performances of their lives if they're to stand a chance of shining a spotlight on the truth...
The new 'Lassair' mystery from the author of the 'Hawkenlye' books - Very early one summer morning, Lassair slips out of her Fenland village on a deeply personal mission and discovers the body of a young woman, hidden where it has no place to be. The girl's identity is quickly discovered but, as she wonders who killed her and why, Lassair swiftly becomes mystified and frightened. Why did a sweet-natured seamstress have to die? Suspicion soon creeps uncomfortably close to home; then another body is found . . .
"Talton shines in weaving together the mystery elements of the plots with historical events from the Prohibition period. Fast-paced, gritty, and exciting, this one will have fans of both Depression-era and southwestern-set crime fiction begging for more!" -Booklist, Starred Review A fresh take on classic noir, City of Dark Corners reveals the seedy underbelly of the budding city of Phoenix in the 1930s and the lengths one man will go to uphold justice no matter the cost. Phoenix, 1933: A young city with big dreams and dark corners Great War veteran and rising star Gene Hammons lost his job as a homicide detective when he tried to prove that a woman was wrongly convicted of murder to protect a well-connected man. Now a private investigator, Hammons makes his living looking for missing persons-a plentiful caseload during the Great Depression, when people seem to disappear all the time. But his routine is disrupted when his brother-another homicide detective, still on the force-enlists his help looking into the death of a young woman whose dismembered body is found beside the railroad tracks. The sheriff rules it an accident, but the carnage is too neat, and the staging of the body parts too ritual. Hammons suspects it's the work of a "lust murderer"-similar to the serial strangler whose killing spree he had ended a few years earlier. But who was the poor girl, dressed demurely in pink? And why was his business card tucked into her small purse? As Hammons searches for the victim's identity, he discovers that the dead girl had some secrets of her own, and that the case is connected to some of Phoenix's most powerful citizens-on both sides of the law. Perfect for fans of David Baldacci and historical mysteries, City of Dark Corners puts readers at the heart of the fear and uncertainty of the Great Depression and the lawlessness of America during prohibition. Additional praise for City of Dark Corners: "This gritty stand-alone deals with Phoenix's rough-and-tumble past and its questionable police force in the 1930s. Talton excels at creating the ambiance of historic Phoenix. [Suggested] for fans of realistic historical mysteries or Phoenix Noir." -Library Journal, Starred Review "References to movie actors and other celebrities of the day, as well as speakeasies and bootleggers, lend atmosphere to this well-crafted tale involving desperate people who could easily disappear." -Publishers Weekly
The thirteenth book in the ever-popular Hawkenlye medieval mystery series Autumn, 1210. A year ago, King John was excommunicated - and now his men have come to Hawkenlye Abbey to take it over. Abbess Caliste, Helewise's successor, worries how she is to feed the nuns under her care, let alone conduct her usual good works. Meanwhile, Helewise has moved into Hawkenlye Manor with Josse, and their lives are full of family and warmth. But after a visit to St Edmund's Chapel, Helewise's eleven-year-old granddaughter, Rosamund, goes missing - and soon all that they hold dear is threatened . .
"The second in a brand-new medieval mystery series from the author of the popular 'Hawkenlye' series" - On Ely Island, the Normans are proclaiming their authority with the construction of a magnificent cathedral. When Morcar, fishing for eels nearby, is attacked, his cousin Lassair is sent to nurse him. Morcar tells Lassair a frightening tale of assassins in the dark and a brief vision of horror. Then the killers strike again, and, as the secret hidden within the walls of Ely Abbey claims more victims, Lassair is forced to face a challenge that she fears is far beyond her . . .
For the first time in trade paperback, the winning second entry in
Bowen's "New York Times" bestselling series.
Frances Black leaves her domestic worries behind and travels to Devon to solve a family mystery featuring a suspicious death and a missing diamond. 1930. Frances Black is worried - divorce proceedings are under way and her solicitor has learnt of a spiteful letter sent to the court claiming that there is more to her friendship with her sleuthing partner, Tom Dod, than meets the eye. Fran takes Tom's advice to get away, travelling down to Devon to help the Edgertons with their family mystery. After meeting the charismatic Eddie Edgerton and arriving at their residence, Sunnyside House, Fran soon learns that Eddie's grandfather, Frederick Edgerton, died in mysterious circumstances when his wheelchair went off a cliff. Was it really an accident? And what happened to Frederick's precious diamond which went missing at the time of his death? As Fran investigates, she uncovers family scandal, skulduggery and revenge, but can she solve the mystery of the missing diamond?
When the wise woman Magda Digby is suspected of murder, Owen Archer sets out to prove her innocence in this intricately plotted medieval mystery. May, 1375. Owen Archer returns from London to find York in chaos. While the citizens are living in terror of the pestilence which is spreading throughout the land, a new physician has arrived, whipping up fear and suspicion against traditional healers and midwives. With the backing of the new archbishop, he is especially hostile towards Magda Digby, the wise woman who has helped and healed the people of York for many years. At the same time, Magda is uneasy about the arrival of two long-lost kinsfolk. Though they say they are seeking her help, she senses a hidden agenda. Magda's troubles deepen when she discovers a body in the river near her home - and finds herself under suspicion of murder. Days later, fire rips through a warehouse in the city. Amongst the charred debris lies the body of a man - not burned, but stabbed in the back. Could there be a connection to the corpse in the river? Determined to prove Magda's innocence, Owen sets out to find answers - but the more he uncovers, the deeper the mystery becomes . . .
It will be no easy task to fill the shoes of a local legend like DCI Charlie Woodend, the newly-promoted Monika Paniatowski tells herself, but given a little time, she thinks she can grow into them. Yet time is the one thing she does not have. On her first day in the new job, a severed female hand is discovered on the riverbank. The obvious suspect is Stan Szymborska, the victim's war-hero husband, though Paniatowski refuses to arrest him. But is it the lack of evidence which is holding her back . . . or is it the fact that he is not only the most attractive man she has met in a long time, but also a fellow Pole? Woodend is preparing to leave for a new life in Spain, and Paniatowski is determined not to ask for his help. But when her colleagues prove untrustworthy, the urge to call him becomes almost irresistible . . .
A brand new medieval mystery from the author of the 'Hawkenlye' series - "England"," 1087." On her sister's wedding day, Lassair meets an enigmatic stranger who brings a breath of the fascinating outside world to her backwater Fenland village. When he asks Lassair to use her unique talents to help locate a mysterious treasure she accepts, despite the dangers. But this is no ordinary treasure hunt; the object of the perilous search is five hundred years old and has a terrifying power . . .
Albert Campion is in the bleak, remote and very muddy village of Wicken on the Essex coast on a mission to rescue Dame Jocasta's dog, but soon finds himself sinking into something far more dangerous. East coast of England, 1971. Harvard student Mason Clay is writing a thesis on a group of settlers who travelled to America from the remote Essex coastal village of Wicken-juxta-Mare 300 years ago. Clay plans to visit Wicken as part of his research, and who better assist him with all things Essex than Albert Campion? But Wicken is already firmly on Campion's radar thanks to Dame Jocasta Upcott's luxury yacht found beached on a mudbank close to the village, its captain very stuck - and very dead - in the mud. Was it a bizarre accident or something more sinister? Agreeing to Dame Jocasta's request to recover her beloved pet pooch, Robespierre, Campion finds himself in Wicken, surrounded by suspicious locals and tales of witchcraft, and soon discovers its past is linked to a number of current disturbing events . . . |
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