Category: Historical fiction
The Mourning Necklace by Kate Foster
Inspired by an infamous real-life case, The Mourning Necklace is an unforgettable historical novel from the Women’s Prize-longlisted author of The Maiden, Kate Foster. They said I would swing for the crime and I did. I wear the rope-bruise like a necklace. 1724. In a tavern just outside Edinburgh, Maggie Dickson’s family drown their sorrows, mourning her death yet relieved she is gone. Shame haunts them. Hanged … Read More The Mourning Necklace by Kate Foster
The Repentants by Kate Foster
Her scandal. His revenge. The unforgettable new historical novel from award-winning author, Kate Foster. St Monans, Fife, Scotland 1790. Two women are forced to publicly repent in church, one for adultery the other for breaching the sabbath. Wealthy housewife, Florrie, and salt serf, Eliza, form a quick and unusual bond over their mutual humiliation. So when Florrie’s husband decides she must accompany him on a … Read More The Repentants by Kate Foster
+ crime fiction, folklore, Historical fiction, humour fiction, List, murder mystery, mystery, superstition, thriller, WW2
My Top 10 Books of 2026 – Part Two
Here are ten of my favourite books of 2026 Part Two, excluding audiobooks, of which there are loads so far. As usual a disparate selection, with a fair bit of superstition thrown in, but only one Gothic this time. It was a difficult decision as I had to leave out two more that could have been on this list. The Tradwife’s Lie by Bella Ellwood-Clayton … Read More My Top 10 Books of 2026 – Part Two
+ 1930s, 1940s, Historical fiction, poland, review, World War Two, WW2
Finding Ida by Marya Burgess
1930s Warsaw. Two privileged sisters: Ida—glamorous and self-assured—and Luiza, the spirited tomboy striving to fulfil the ambitions their German-born father once held for the son he never had. At just seventeen, Luiza’s world is upended when her Polish homeland is occupied. Caught between two identities—raised speaking both German and Polish—she must now decide where her true allegiance lies. Meanwhile, Ida, newly married and expecting … Read More Finding Ida by Marya Burgess
+ 1930s, 1940s, childhood, family, family drama, female friendship, fiction, germany, grief, Historical fiction, holocaust, jewish history, love, memoir, nazi germany, relationships, review, secrets, sisters, World War Two, WW2
The Nowhere Sisters by Jan Casey
Berlin, 1938. One journey will change their lives forever. Twelve-year-old Margarete has lost everything — her parents, her home, and the fragile safety of the orphanage she once knew. When the Nazis target Jewish families across Germany, Margarete is placed on a Kindertransport train bound for England. She expects to face the terrifying journey alone. Until a small, frightened girl is thrust into her … Read More The Nowhere Sisters by Jan Casey
+ 1950s, audio book, cosy mystery, fiction, ghosts, Historical fiction, murder, murder mystery, review, serial killer, supernatural
Murder At The Spirit Lounge by Jess Kidd Nora Breen Investigates Book #2
In the second installment of the Nora Breen Investigates series – ‘perfect for cozy mystery lovers’ (Book Riot) – beloved former nun Nora Breen returns, this time to track down a ghostly killer before it’s too late. When Dolores Chimes, a famous medium, arrives in Gore-on-Sea, even surly Detective Inspector Rideout is lured in by her promises of messages for the afterlife. But after … Read More Murder At The Spirit Lounge by Jess Kidd Nora Breen Investigates Book #2
The Last Secret of Wickham Grange by Zoe Manlow
When Caroline Alleyn inherits Wickham Grange, all she wants to do is sell up. There are bad memories there, linked to her childhood as the daughter of a single mother – and to all the other mothers she knew in that house. But her grandmother Frances’s will means that it can’t be sold without the consent of five elderly women, and they all refuse. … Read More The Last Secret of Wickham Grange by Zoe Manlow
A Bad Deal in Mormon Land by T.I.M. Wirkus
Sometimes things are not as they appear, especially when religion, magic, and shady dealings mix. It’s 1908, and itinerant spirit medium Madame Ilsa von Hoffmann is at the end of her professional rope, facing down two unappealing options: join an ill-conceived commune founded by some fellow trans ex-vaudevillians, or take on a high-paying but mysterious job offered by a religious extremist in Salt Lake … Read More A Bad Deal in Mormon Land by T.I.M. Wirkus
+ fiction, gothic, Gothic mystery, Historical fiction, history, Italy, murder, revenge, review, Venice
Dangerous by Essie Fox out now in paperback
Fiction can be fatal… Living in exile in Venice, the disgraced Lord Byron revels in the freedoms of the city. But when he is associated with the deaths of local women, found with wounds to their throats, and then a novel called The Vampyre is published under his name, rumours begin to spread that Byron may be the murderer… Genre: Gothic Historical Crime Thriller … Read More Dangerous by Essie Fox out now in paperback
The Blind Woman of Sorrento by Francesco Mastriani extract translated from the Italian by Idara Crespi
A Gothic mystery set in the labyrinthine alleys of 1840s Naples — the first modern English translation of Mastriani’s masterwork. Naples, 1840. In the anatomy hall of the Hospital for the Incurables, a young medical student stands over his dead sister’s body and makes a vow. What follows is one of the most gripping novels of the Italian Romantic era: a story of hidden … Read More The Blind Woman of Sorrento by Francesco Mastriani extract translated from the Italian by Idara Crespi
+ 1930s, diary, family, female friendship, fiction, friendship, germany, grief, Historical fiction, jews, loss, love, music, nazi germany, review, siblings, twins
The Diva’s Daughter by Heather Walrath
Munich & Vienna, 1932. Aspiring opera singer Angelika Eder thought she had it all — a cultured life in Vienna, along with the guidance of her glamorous mother, a world-famous soprano. But when tragedy strikes and her mother dies amidst a swirling family scandal, eighteen-year-old Angelika finds herself uprooted to Munich, where civil unrest is rife and leaders of the increasingly powerful Nazi Party … Read More The Diva’s Daughter by Heather Walrath
My 4 Favourite Audiobooks of 2026 – Part One
I have actually listened to quite a few more audiobooks so far in 2026 than I did at the end of last year, so once again I am giving them their own post. However, I am going to put all three Crimson Lake books into one, as they follow on in the series. I am then going to do the same with the Harriet … Read More My 4 Favourite Audiobooks of 2026 – Part One
Bookchatter@Cookiebiscuit 