Venice, Winter, 1539. When Cesare Aldo learns of a conspiracy to assassinate Duke Cosimo de’ Medici, he is hired to protect the ruler of Florence – with his life, if necessary. The deadly attack which follows leads to bodies, bloodshed — and something far more dangerous. Those behind the plot obtain a journal of the […]
How Ian Fleming’s secret war work inspired James Bond
Ian Fleming’s work for Naval Intelligence during the Second World War still remains largely secret. Alan Bardos investigates what we do know about it and how it inspired the James Bond books — and Alan’s own latest spy thriller, Hunter Class. It was often quipped in the gentlemen’s clubs of Piccadilly that Ian Fleming did […]
Historia interview: David Gilman
David Gilman’s new novel, Rage of Swords, is the latest in his Master of War series and sees Thomas Blackstone in action in Italy. David tells Historia about the ideas and research behind his book, as well as offering advice for authors — and choosing a delightfully unexpected item he’d like to have beside his […]
Hunter Class by Alan Bardos
July 1943, and Operation Husky, the invasion of Sicily, is under way. Lieutenant Daniel Nichols has been recruited by Ian Fleming into 30 Commando, a specialist unit that goes in ahead of the main assault to capture top secret enemy material. Nichols discovers evidence of a secret which could change the course of the conflict. […]
Naples 1944 by Keith Lowe
The Second World War destroyed countless cities in Europe and Asia. This is the story of the first major European city to be liberated by the Allies. The book describes not only what happened to Naples when the scourge of war lashed down upon it, but also, crucially, what happened next. This is the first […]
Syndrome K, the ‘disease’ that saved lives in occupied Rome
Sarah Freethy uncovers the extraordinary story of Syndrome K, the supposedly deadly disease that saved lives in German-occupied Rome in 1943. The Fatebenefratelli Hospital sits on an island in the south bend of the Tiber, in the heart of Rome. It looks as if a great ship beached itself between Trastevere and the Jewish Quarter, […]
Sinners by Elizabeth Fremantle
In 16th-century Rome, Beatrice Cenci – youngest daughter of a powerful nobleman – is destined for a life of gilded insignificance. Wealth talks within the city’s grand palazzos, and women must remain silent. Then her brother is found murdered by a rival family, and Beatrice’s domineering, tyrannical father insists they flee to La Rocca. But […]
Carnival of Lies by DV Bishop
Venice in the winter of 1539. When Cesare Aldo learns of a conspiracy to assassinate Duke Cosimo de’ Medici, he is hired to protect the ruler of Florence – with his life, if necessary. The deadly attack that follows leads to bodies, bloodshed… and something far more dangerous. Those behind the plot obtain a journal […]