Was CS Lewis a misogynist? Many people think he was, often based on what’s called the ‘Susan problem’ in The Last Battle. But while researching her debut novel, a mystery based on his life in Oxford in the 1940s, Maureen Paton found plenty of evidence to show that he was not; in fact, he challenged […]
Heroines of the Tudor World by Sharon Bennett Connolly
These are the women who ruled, the women who founded dynasties, the women who fought for religious freedom, their families and love. These are the women who made a difference, who influenced countries, kings and the Reformation. This book focuses on the women who lived through the Renaissance and Reformation, examining the threats and challenges […]
Under cover for Britain: two female WWII agents, Marie-Madeleine Fourcade and Barbara Bertram
Marie-Madeleine Fourcade led a French intelligence network supplying information to MI6. Barbara Bertram ran a secret safe house for agents in Surrey. They met several times. Here, Rachel Hore writes about how the two women sparked the idea for her new novel, and the challenges of writing fiction about real people. My new novel, The […]
Secrets and lies in family history
Alison Baxter writes about the tragedy in her own family history that inspired her first novel, A Fatal Choice. Her research uncovered a puzzling story of secrets and lies. She could have written it as non-fiction, but fiction gave her the opportunity to explore the inner lives of the women involved. I came late to […]
Regina by Kate Williams
Stories about royal women form some of our most foundational myths about femininity, and yet their legacies have been almost entirely constructed by the words and images created by men. This book leads us deep into a world of queens, empresses, princesses, mistresses and courtiers, uncovering how their ambitions were shaped, celebrated and often thwarted, […]
The women who plotted aircraft battles in the Siege of Malta
Tracy Cook’s debut novel was inspired by the women who plotted aircraft battles during the Siege of Malta – the only civilians to do such work during the Second World War. Though they’re largely forgotten now, their highly-skilled work helped the RAF to defend the island against German and Italian forces in the early 1940s. […]
Lionessheart by Catherine Hanley
The sons of Henry II and Eleanor of Aquitaine have been the subject of much historical attention, but their daughters have been curiously overlooked. The youngest of them, Joanna, led a particularly extraordinary life full of adventure and danger – and not a little controversy – that was more than a match for those of […]
Silk and the Sword: The Women of the Norman Conquest by Sharon Bennett Connolly
The momentous events of 1066, the story of invasion, battle and conquest, are well known. But what of the women? Harold II of England had been with Edith Swanneck for twenty years but in 1066, in order to strengthen his hold on the throne, he married Ealdgyth, sister of two earls. William of Normandy’s Duchess, […]