Winter, 1362. After decades of successful campaigning in France, Thomas Blackstone, once a common archer, has risen to become Edward III’s Master of War. But the title is as much a curse as a blessing. Success has brought few rewards: his family – bar his son Henry – is dead, slaughtered; his enemies only multiply. […]
Sons of Rome by Simon Turney and Gordon Doherty
As twilight descends on the third century AD, the Roman Empire is but a shadow of its former self. Decades of usurping emperors, splinter kingdoms and savage wars have left the people beleaguered, the armies weary and the future uncertain. And into this chaos Emperor Diocletian steps, reforming the succession to allow for not one […]
A game of gods: religion in a changing Roman world
The Romans threw Christians to the lions; then Constantine I converted to Christianity and everything was fine. Right? Of course it was far more complicated than that, as Simon Turney and Gordon Doherty show in Sons of Rome, their new novel which follows the rise of Constantine and his rival Maxentius. They tell Historia about […]
A Time for Swords by Matthew Harffy
There had been portents – famine, whirlwinds, lightning from clear skies, serpents seen flying through the air. But when the raiders came, no one was prepared. They came from the North, their dragon-prowed longships gliding out of the dawn mist as they descended on the kingdom’s most sacred site. It is 8 June, AD 793, […]
Hell Gate by Jeff Dawson
New York, 1904. Over a thousand are dead after the sinking of the General Slocum, a pleasure steamer full of German immigrants out for a day on the East River. The community is devastated, broken, in uproar. With a populist senator preying on their grievances, a new political force is unleashed, pushing America to ally […]
The winners! The HWA Crown Awards 2020
At last, the winners of the HWA Crown Awards for 2020 are announced! After months of reading and making tough decisions, the judges have chosen the winners of the HWA Gold, Non-fiction and Debut Crown Awards out of a very strong submissions list. HWA Chair Imogen Robertson says: “We’re so sorry we aren’t able to […]
Historia interviews, 2020 Crown Awards shortlists: Anita Frank
Anita Frank’s first novel, The Lost Ones, is shortlisted for the 2020 HWA Debut Crown Award. She tells Historia about her love of history, the inspiration for her book – including big houses, spiritualism and the First World War – and passes on some tips for new writers. The HWA Debut Crown celebrates new voices […]
The Butcher of Berner Street by Alex Reeve
The headlines scream warnings about the ‘Butcher of Berner Street!’ and the journalist behind them, Leo Stanhope, is secretly thrilled to see the effect his words are having. Leo’s previous work has largely been concentrated on more mundane issues but when an anonymous letter summons him to a club in East London, only for the […]