One of my New Year’s resolutions is to read more. Last year was a bit rough, but now that I’m not, you know, buying a house, moving, and other sorts of adulting, I can spare more time to read. In this article, I’ll share some of the books I’m looking forward to reading this month! Happy reading!
The year is 1141. Forces belonging to Empress Matilda and Stephen of Blois vie for the English throne. With neither side a clear winner, they will fight for control over a prominent castle on the River Thames in “The Siege Winter”. This multi-perspective novel should please lovers of medieval history and/or historical mysteries.
Michiel B.L. Korte recounts the last few years of the French monarchy under King Louis XVI and Queen Marie Antoinette from the perspective of their adopted daughter, Marie Philippine Lambriquet. Also known as Ernestine, she must contend with both divided loyalties and the larger forces at play if she is to survive the tumultuous times in which she lives.
A worthy foray into Renaissance Italy – the political machinations, the art, the inner workings of one of history’s most enigmatic and talented men, the complex relationship between two powerful women, and so much more. This novel about Isabella and Beatrice d’Este offers a lovely blend of historical fact and fiction, sure to please any lover of Renaissance fiction.
Fairy tales always promise happy endings: the girl gets the prince, the fancy castle, and the happily-ever-after. In real life, women often face less-than-perfect endings. In her book Doomed Queens, author and illustrator Kris Waldherr writes about fifty women who “met bad ends”, to quote the book’s subtitle. In this blog post, I’ve chosen ten of these women with quite “doomed” endings who particularly caught my interest.
The Sugar Merchant traces the lives of his protagonist Thomas Woodward and his son as they maneuver their ways through the economic and religious turmoil of eleventh- and twelfth-century Europe and Asia in a bid to make a good life for themselves and fulfill their personal missions. History readers should enjoy this though the characters in the sequel could be a little more well-developed.