1508, Rome; an abandoned ship is drifting in the mouth of the Tiber and a horrific discovery is found inside. Nearly 300 men were packed together in the hold. All of them are dead. They were migrant workers shipped over from North Africa, cheap labour to cut the cost of building St Peter’s Basilica, and […]
The Darkening Globe by Naomi Kelsey
In 1597 when Beatrice’s husband returns to London from exploring the New World, he comes home with unexpected company: a mysterious woman, and an enormous painted globe. As Hugh refuses to explain who their female guest is, Beatrice’s foreboding grows. The unwieldy globe now strikes her as sinister – a reminder of the world of […]
The real Doctor Faustus
Anna Legat was delighted to discover that the – or a – real Doctor Faustus was in Kraków at the same time as the fictional hero of her latest novel, A Pact with the Devil, was in the Polish university city. Of course, she had to find out more… Although made of smoke and mirrors, […]
Holbein: The Ambassadors by Tracy Borman
Holbein’s The Ambassadors is one of the most famous paintings in the National Gallery. It is also one of the most intriguing. Laden with hidden symbols and mysteries, the work has been the subject of intense debate among historians during the five centuries since it was created. Tracy Borman’s book unpicks the secrets of this enigmatic artwork, […]
The Lord Protector and his wives: Catherine Filliol, Anne Stanhope and Edward Seymour by Rebecca Batley
Sometime before 1518 Edward Seymour, the brother of Queen Jane Seymour, third wife of Henry VIII, married Catherine Filliol. Catherine gained connections in the highest echelons of Tudor society and Edward the prospect of a large inheritance. It should have been a match made in heaven, but instead, within a decade, they were engulfed in […]
The House of Echoes by Alexandra Walsh
Hampton Court Palace in the 1530s: Anne Brandon has always understood the power of a king’s patronage and, though the court of Henry VIII is a dangerous place for women, as the daughter of the king’s best friend, Anne feels safer than most. But Anne’s husband, Lord Powis, is tiring of her childlessness and when […]
Death Comes in Threes by Michael Jecks
As London is bustling with growing trade from foreign lands, and Queen Mary’s health is once again a hot topic, Jack Blackjack has much to keep him busy in August, 1558. And that’s before his new tenant — a Dutch merchant — disappears under a cloud of suspicion, quickly presumed murdered, and Jack’s latest female […]
Historical books to look out for in 2025
Welcome to Historia’s most popular regular feature, our round-up of historical books published by members of the Historical Writers’ Association (HWA) to look out for during the coming year. In 2025, there are over 130 books covering history, biography, and historical fiction and spanning eras from Ancient Greece to the 1980s. And there will be […]