The year is 1600. With a dying queen on the throne, war raging on the high seas and famine on the rise, England is on the brink of chaos. And in London’s dark alleyways, a conspiracy is brewing. In the court’s desperate bid to silence it, an innocent man is found guilty — the father […]
The Hemlock Cure by Joanne Burn
Eyam in 1665. Mae, the apothecary’s daughter, reads her pious father’s books at night. Isabel, the village midwife, has secrets, too; some think her skill with herbs comes close to witchcraft. When Mae makes a horrifying discovery she turns to Isabel, putting both their lives in danger. And a new threat is creeping towards them […]
The Cavalier’s Oath by Eleanor Swift-Hook
With the country riven by civil war, word reaches Royalist headquarters in Oxford that the Parliamentarian commander Sir William Waller plans to capture the strategic city of Worcester. Sir Philip Lord, a mercenary commander with a mysterious past, is sent to help prepare Worcester to withstand a siege. With Lord is Gideon Lennox, a young […]
Historia interviews: Fiona Forsyth and Eleanor Swift-Hook
Fiona Forsyth speaks to fellow author Eleanor Swift-Hook for Historia: After reading The Devil’s Command by chance, I found myself hooked (sorry, Eleanor!) and I have just finished The Physician’s Fate, the latest in the Lord’s Legacy series. I asked its author, Eleanor Swift-Hook, about the series. FF: The mess that is the English Civil […]
The Shadows of London by Andrew Taylor
London 1671, and the damage caused by the Great Fire still overshadows the capital. And when a man’s brutally disfigured body is discovered in the ruins of an ancient almshouse, architect Cat Hakesby is ordered to stop restoration work. It is obvious he has been murdered, and Whitehall secretary James Marwood is ordered to investigate. […]
The Dead Men by JC Harvey
Summer 1630, and the Swedish army is fighting its way down through Germany, with Jack Fiskardo and his company of scouts, or ‘discoverers’, fighting the guerrilla war ahead of the main advance. There are new allies to be made, new perils to overcome, new enemies to outwit and new adventures to pursue; but there is […]
Historia interviews: 2022 HWA Debut Crown Award shortlist: Rosie Andrews
Rosie Andrews was shortlisted for the 2022 HWA Debut Crown Award for The Leviathan, a historical mystery with a supernatural element set in 17th-century Norfolk. Rosie spoke to Historia about writing and researching her bestselling debut — and offers tips for new authors. The HWA Debut Crown celebrates new voices in historical fiction. What does […]
The Alchemist’s Plot by Eleanor Swift-Hook
England, March 1643. While the civil war between King Charles and his Parliament continues to tear the nation apart, erstwhile lawyer Gideon Lennox returns to England as part of a royal escort in the employ of Sir Philip Lord, a mercenary commander with a mysterious past. Accompanied by Gideon and Daniel Bristow — Lord’s second […]