1966: in London, Jackie Collins’s racy The World is Full of Married Men hits bookshops and launches her career. In New York, Jacqueline Susann’s debut novel Valley of the Dolls is published, and she’s desperate for it to be a bestseller. But both are about to discover the price they will pay for being women […]
How bestsellers through the ages mirrored their times
Gill Paul, herself a bestselling author, looks at how top-selling books mirrored the times they were published in. They weren’t only contemporary, either; historical fiction and fantasy are high on the list, perhaps not surprisingly to those who know the genres. Gill’s latest novel, Scandalous Women, is about the authors of two of these bestsellers. […]
Historical books for summer reading 2024
We asked eight well-loved authors of both historical fiction and non-fiction to each suggest a couple of books they recommend for history lovers to enjoy reading over the summer. They’ve come up with an inspiring mix of books they’ve loved and books they’re looking forward to reading themselves, some just published, and a few old […]
A Beautiful Rival by Gill Paul
By 1915, Elizabeth Arden has been New York’s golden girl since her beauty salon opened its famous red door five years before. Against all odds, she’s built an empire. Enter Helena Rubinstein: ruthless, revolutionary – and the rival Elizabeth didn’t bargain for. With both women determined to succeed – no matter the personal cost – […]
Businesswomen through the ages
Gill Paul writes about some of the businesswomen who defied convention and restrictive laws to become successful entrepreneurs through the ages, including the wealthiest woman in early New York; the painter Hogarth’s sisters; the inventor of a baby-making vegetable compound; the African-American who became the first self-made female millionaire in the US; and the rivals […]
Historia Live – our new author events!
Do you love books and history? Would you like to hear your favourite HWA authors talking about all things historical fiction at our brand new series of in-person events? Join us at the launch of Historia Live on Thursday, 15 June, for readings and discussion in a historic pub! The launch will be held in […]
The Manhattan Girls by Gill Paul
New York City, 1921. An impossible dream. The war is over, the Twenties are roaring, but in the depths of the city that never sleeps, Dorothy Parker is struggling to make her mark in a man’s world. A broken woman. She’s penniless, she’s unemployed and her marriage is on the rocks when she starts a […]
The Twenties, then and now
The Twenties opened with a worldwide epidemic, followed by profound social change: a shift in working practices, new technologies, more rights and freedoms for women, an obsession with celebrities, rising inflation. Gill Paul, whose new book, The Manhattan Girls, is set in 1920s New York, looks back 100 years and wonders how similar our world […]