[bksvol-discuss] Fw: Historical Fiction January 2009

  • From: "Amber Wallenstein" <amber.wallens@xxxxxxxxx>
  • To: <bksvol-discuss@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
  • Date: Mon, 26 Jan 2009 09:34:35 -0500

New and Recently Released!

Agincourt - by Bernard Cornwell
Publisher: HarperCollins
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 1/1/2009
ISBN: 9780061578915
ISBN-10: 0061578916
As one of the most famous military victories in English history, the Battle of 
Agincourt in 1415 saw Henry V's outnumbered soldiers rout French forces and
change the course of the Hundred Years War. Now, bestselling author Bernard 
Cornwell brings the conflict to life in this rousing historical novel. Outlaw
longbowman Nicholas Hook joins the army to escape the hangman's noose and soon 
finds himself in France. While fighting for his country, he rescues and
falls in love with a French woman--a potentially treasonous situation whose 
outcome could mean death for the brave archer. Booklist calls Agincourt "a
must-read for fans of authentically detailed historical fiction."

Sashenka - by Simon Montefiore
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 11/11/2008
ISBN: 9781416595540
ISBN-10: 1416595546
In 1916 Russia, privileged schoolgirl Sashenka Zeitlin rebels against her 
bourgeois Jewish upbringing by becoming a Bolshevik--and promptly gets arrested
by the tsarist secret police. Sashenka's experiences lead to her becoming a 
double agent, and later, as the Revolution changes the political landscape
of the nation, Lenin's secretary. By the 1930s, she's a model wife and mother, 
married to a Communist official and upholding the party's ideals--until
her affair with a Jewish writer results in her arrest and torture at the hands 
of the NKVD. Author Simon Montefiore's "command of Russian history makes
the novel's details especially vibrant" (Booklist).
Table of Contents
First Chapter

The Book of Unholy Mischief: A Novel - by Elle Newmark
Publisher: Atria Books
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 12/30/2008
ISBN: 9781416590545
ISBN-10: 1416590544
In 15th-century Venice, starving street urchin Luciano steals a pomegranate 
from a market stall and, in a strange twist of fate, becomes the apprentice
of the Maestro Ferraro, the chef at the Doge's Palace. As Luciano settles into 
his new life, he soon discovers that the Doge is searching for a legendary
book, rumored to contain ancient alchemical lore that will enable whoever 
possesses it to achieve immortality. What's more, it seems that his beloved 
master
and teacher is somehow involved. Renaissance Italy comes to life in this 
exciting tale of adventure and intrigue.

City of God: A Novel of Passion and Wonder in New York City - by Beverly 
Swerling
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 12/9/2008
ISBN: 9781416549215
ISBN-10: 1416549218
Beverly Swerling's 4th book in her epic Old New York series (after City of 
Glory) follows the ever-changing fortunes of two families: the Turners and the
Devreys. Merchant Samuel Devrey marries heiress Carolina Randolf to gain 
status...and continues to visit his Chinese mistress Mei-Hua on the side. 
Meanwhile,
surgeon Nick Turner pioneers both the use of ether as anesthesia and the 
sterilization of instruments as he attempts to provide poor immigrants with 
proper
health care. Beginning in the 1830s and leading up to the Civil War, this 
absorbing saga unfolds against a backdrop of industrialization, religious 
fervor,
political corruption, and the growing divide between rich and poor.
Focus on: Wives and Daughters

The River Wife - by Jonis Agee
Publisher: Random House Inc
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 5/27/2008
ISBN: 9780812977196
ISBN-10: 081297719X
In 1811 Missouri, French fur trapper and river pirate Jacques Ducharme rescues 
(and marries) Annie Lark after the catastrophic New Madrid earthquake. While
their love quickly turns sour and their marriage ends in tragedy, Annie's 
residence at Jacques' Landing sets the stage for generations of "river wives,"
including Jacques' second wife Laura, their daughter Maddie, and Hedie Rails, 
the bride of Maddie's son Clement. It is 17-year-old Hedie who, in 1930,
uncovers the hidden history of Jacques' Landing while attempting to discover 
the truth about Clement's nocturnal disappearances. Containing "lush historical
detail, a plot brimming with danger, love and betrayal, and a magnificent cast" 
(Publishers Weekly), this family saga is a must-read.
First Chapter

Rasputin's Daughter - by Robert Alexander
Publisher: Penguin Books
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 12/26/2006
ISBN: 9780143038658
ISBN-10: 0143038656
Author Robert Alexander follows up his acclaimed first novel The Kitchen Boy 
with another spellbinding journey to revolutionary Russia, this time to tell
the story of the notorious "Mad Monk" Rasputin. Grigori Rasputin, despite his 
powerful influence over the Tsar's court as a mystic and healer, is an 
enigma--even
to his 18-year-old daughter, Maria, who narrates the story. Is he a visionary 
or a charlatan? As Maria attempts to reconcile the public image of her father
with her private experiences of the man, she finds herself at the center of a 
plot to destroy Rasputin, the royal family, and even herself.

Daughter of Fortune - by Isabel Allende
Publisher: Harpercollins
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 6/1/2008
ISBN: 9780061565335
ISBN-10: 0061565334
Isabelle Allende's acclaimed historical novel begins in 19th century 
Valparaiso, Chile, where expatriate English siblings Rose and Jeremy Sommers 
find an
infant girl abandoned on their doorstep. Naming her Eliza, they raise her to be 
an upper-class lady, but their hopes are dashed when Eliza falls in love
with aspiring revolutionary Joaquin Andieta. Eliza gets pregnant, and Joaquin 
abandons her for the California gold fields. However, determined to get her
lover back, Eliza stows away aboard a ship bound for California, where she 
befriends kindly physician Tao Chi'en. Arriving in San Francisco, the pair find
that their paths keep crossing in this story about history, destiny, and family 
ties.
First Chapter

The Fugitive Wife - by Peter C. Brown
Publisher: W.W. Norton & Co. Inc.
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 1/1/2007
ISBN: 9780393329759
ISBN-10: 0393329755
On the run from her abusive husband, midwestern farm girl Essie Crummey flees 
to Nome, Alaska, in 1900, just as the Alaska Gold Rush is taking off. After
helping out in the aftermath of a dockside accident, she is hired by the Cape 
Nome Company and forms a close bond with mining foreman Nate Deaton. Between
her work and her budding romance with Nate, Essie begins to make a new life for 
herself in Alaska. But will her jealous husband (who's hot on her trail)
ruin her chance at happiness? Read this first novel to find out.

The Alchemist's Daughter - by Katharine McMahon
Publisher: Random House Inc.
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 10/24/2006
ISBN: 9780307335852
ISBN-10: 0307335852
Raised by her eccentric father (a chemist who also dabbles in alchemy), Emilie 
Selden is an accomplished scientist in her own right--an unusual occupation
for an 18th-century Englishwoman. Having assisted the elder Selden since 
childhood, Emilie knows more about chemistry, physics, and alchemy than almost
anyone. Yet she knows almost nothing of the world outside her own 
doorstep--until handsome Robert Aislabie shows up and steals her heart. When 
their secret
affair leads to Emilie's pregnancy, her father disowns her and she marries 
Ainslabie. However, her new husband is not what he seems and Emilie must decide
to whom--and to what--her heart really belongs.
First Chapter

Ahab's Wife: Or, The Star-Gazer - by Sena Jeter Naslund
Publisher: HarperCollins
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 7/13/2005
ISBN: 9780060838744
ISBN-10: 0060838744
Revealing that the whale-obsessed seafarer "was neither my first husband nor my 
last," the wife of Moby-Dick's Captain Ahab (who is referred to exactly
once in Melville's novel) tells her life story. Born on a farm in Kentucky, Una 
Spenser goes to live with relatives in New Bedford, Massachusetts, as a
child. At 16, she disguises herself as a boy and goes to sea, surviving a 
horrific shipwreck before being rescued by the Pequod. After the death of her
first husband, Una marries Ahab and settles down to a happy domestic 
life--until Ahab's encounter with the legendary white whale causes him to 
become obsessed
with seeking vengeance. Whether or not you've read Moby-Dick, you'll enjoy this 
sweeping adventure.
First Chapter

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  • » [bksvol-discuss] Fw: Historical Fiction January 2009 - Amber Wallenstein