The Queen's Maid: Anne Boleyn in France by Rozsa Gaston - #blogtour #bookspotlight

 

I am thrilled to be shining the spotlight on this historical fiction title today. The Queen's Maid: Anne Boleyn in France is the second part of the Anne Boleyn Chronicles and looks like a fabulous read. I will include some details of the first book at the end of the post.

It will appeal to fans of Philippa Gregory, Elizabeth Chadwick, Carol McGrath and Anne O’Brien.

The Blurb

France, 1514

After an enlightening period of training as a lady’s maid at Margaret of Austria’s court, Anne Boleyn has been sent to France.She arrives at the Palace of Tournelles, home of ageing King Louis and his new English wife, Mary Tudor, sister of King Henry VIII. As Anne speaks French, her main role is to serve as translator for Queen Mary.Anne’s sister Mary is also at the French court, and Anne soon learns that not everyone is pleased about the union between the French king and his young queen.

The king’s cousin-in-law, Louise of Savoy, is desperate for Queen Mary not to fall pregnant, so that her son Francis will ascend the throne.And with Louise and the English queen pulling Anne in two different directions, it will not be possible to appease everyone.Can Anne successfully navigate the familial politics at the French royal court? Will she make her mark as one of the queen’s maids?Or could her divided loyalties prove to be her undoing…?

The Queen's Maid is a thoroughly researched, fascinating historical novel set during the 16th century in Europe. It is the second book in the Anne Boleyn Chronicles series.

Book Details

ISBN:  978 0854958016

Publisher:  Sapere Books

Formats:  e-book and paperback (currently available on Kindle Unlimited)

No. of Pages: 244 (paperback)

Series: Book 2 in the Anne Boleyn Chronicles

Purchase Links

Amazon UK

Amazon US

Purchase Link for Book One in the series: Maid of Honour: Anne Boleyn at Margaret of Austria's Court

About the Author

Rozsa Gaston is a historical fiction author who writes books on women who reach for what they want out of life. 

She is the author of Maid of Honour: Anne Boleyn at Margaret of Austria's Court, 𝗚𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗣𝗿𝗶𝘇𝗲 𝗪𝗶𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗿 of the 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟰 𝗖𝗛𝗔𝗨𝗖𝗘𝗥 𝗕𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗔𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱 for Early Historical Fiction, The Queen's Maid: Anne Boleyn in France, Queen of Diamonds: The French Royal Court, Margaret of Austria, 𝗙𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁 𝗣𝗹𝗮𝗰𝗲 𝗪𝗶𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗿 of the 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟯 𝗖𝗛𝗔𝗨𝗖𝗘𝗥 𝗕𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗔𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱 for Early Historical Fiction, the four-book Anne of Brittany Series: Anne and Charles; Anne and Louis, 𝗚𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗹 𝗙𝗶𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗪𝗶𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗿 of the 𝟮𝟬𝟭𝟴 𝗣𝗨𝗕𝗟𝗜𝗦𝗛𝗘𝗥𝗦 𝗪𝗘𝗘𝗞𝗟𝗬 𝗕𝗼𝗼𝗸𝗟𝗶𝗳𝗲 𝗣𝗿𝗶𝘇𝗲; Anne and Louis: Rulers and Lovers; and Anne and Louis Forever Bound, 𝗙𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁 𝗣𝗹𝗮𝗰𝗲 𝗪𝗶𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗿 of the 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟮 𝗖𝗛𝗔𝗨𝗖𝗘𝗥 𝗕𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗔𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱 for Early Historical Fiction.

Other works include Sense of Touch, Marguerite and Gaston, The Least Foolish Woman in France, Paris Adieu, and Budapest Romance.

Gaston studied European history at Yale and received her master’s degree in international affairs from Columbia. She worked at Institutional Investor, WR Capital, and as a columnist for The Westchester Guardian before becoming a novelist. 

She is currently working on Book Four of The Anne Boleyn Chronicles, covering Anne Boleyn's time at the 1520 Field of Cloth of Gold. She lives in Bronxville, New York with her family.

Her motto? History matters.

You can also find Rozsa at:

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(media courtesy of The Coffee Pot Book Club)

(all opinions are my own)

Author Guest Post - Helene Harrison - #author #guestpost

It is my great pleasure to welcome author, Helene Harrison, to the blog today. Helene is going to be talking to us about why she thinks we are still so fascinated with Anne Boleyn.

If you missed my review of her latest book, The Many Faces of Anne Boleyn: Interpreting Image and Perception, you can find it here.

Welcome Helene.

Why are we still so fascinated with Anne Boleyn?

Firstly, thank you so much for having me on your blog, Annie! My third and most recent book is called The Many Faces of Anne Boleyn: Interpreting Image and Perception so today I thought I’d offer some of my thoughts on why we are so fascinated with Anne Boleyn. None of the others of Henry VIII’s six wives get so much attention, or so many books written about them. Even books which cover all six wives, the majority is Katherine of Aragon and Anne Boleyn with the other four wives condensed into the last third or quarter of the book. 

The Many Faces of Anne Boleyn: Interpreting Image and Perception by Helene Harrison [2025].

So, what about Anne Boleyn makes us so enthralled by her story? Well one thing is the sheer drama of her rise and fall. The fact that Henry VIII annulled his first marriage to Katherine of Aragon and broke with the Roman Catholic Church in order to marry Anne, means that she was a very controversial person by the time of her coronation on 1 June 1533. But less than three years later when she was arrested for multiple adulteries, incest with her brother, and treason, her reputation disintegrated further. Anne Boleyn basically became taboo on her execution.

However, her life and reputation have been both rehabilitated and attacked over the nearly 500 years since her death. For me, in choosing to write this book on Anne Boleyn, I consciously decided that I didn’t want to write a traditional biography, but more of a study of how her image and reputation have been tackled over 500 years. The fact that we have Anne recurring through 500 years gives a sense of how much her story means to people – we don’t have the same interest in the other wives, or even in other consorts or regnant monarchs from across time!

Today, we have popular culture. The popularity of the likes of Philippa Gregory, or Showtime’s The Tudors, or Wolf Hall, or SIX The Musical, brings Anne Boleyn and Tudor history to new audiences. We are spoiled in the modern age with television, film, theatre, and a glut of historical novels. Anne Boleyn is a prime candidate for featuring because of the drama of both her rise and fall, as well as her position as the mother of Elizabeth I, often considered to be England’s first successful queen regnant, paving the way for later ruling queens like Victoria and Elizabeth II.  

Anne Boleyn, mid-16th century, at Hever Castle and Gardens, Kent, England.

The lack of concrete knowledge about Anne Boleyn is also intriguing. Once people start digging into her life, they want facts but that often isn’t possible. We don’t know when Anne was born, what she really looked like, whether she really did hold Henry VIII at arm’s length for seven years, or how many pregnancies she underwent during her marriage. The portraits and images we have of her are all from after her death, aside from a crude sketch from her coronation banquet which doesn’t show any features, and a portrait medal from 1534 which has been damaged. The most popular images we think of are later creations. Not knowing her year of birth (estimates vary from 1501 to 1507 generally) means that we don’t know her age at significant events. The state of her relationship with the king is something that intrigues everyone who looks at her life, specifically Henry VIII’s involvement in her downfall.

What we find so alluring about Anne Boleyn is that she is a bit of an enigma, surrounded by drama, and ripe for modern entertainment drama. But we need to remember that Anne was a real person, who really was beheaded on the orders of her husband, a mother who lost at least two children, and spent years serving a queen, only to replace her on the throne. We will never be able to know or understand what she was feeling because times have changed hugely. We need to be careful not to put 21st century thoughts and feelings onto a 16th century woman. Anne Boleyn will no doubt continue to fascinate, and I hope that my book, The Many Faces of Anne Boleyn: Interpreting Image and Perception, will give some insight into how some of the myths about Anne came to be, and why I don’t think interpretations of Anne will ever stop – we just need to dig down into what we actually do know and strip away the layers of myth and perception to try and get closer to the real Anne Boleyn.

Thank you for being my guest on the blog today. That was so interesting and I thought your book was fascinating.

More About the Author

Helene Harrison studied at the University of Northumbria in Newcastle, achieving both a BA and MA in History before going on to complete an MSc in Library Management. Her passion for Tudor history started when studying for A Levels and completing a module on Tudor rebellions. Her master’s dissertation focused on portrayals of Anne Boleyn through the centuries, from contemporary letters to modern TV and film adaptations. Now she writes two blogs, one Tudor history and one book-related, and works in the university library of her alma mater. In her spare time, she loves visiting royal palaces and snuggling up with a book or embroidery project. Her books are ‘Elizabethan Rebellions: Conspiracy, Intrigue and Treason’ (2023), ‘Tudor Executions: From Nobility to the Block’ (2024) and ‘The Many Faces of Anne Boleyn: Interpreting Image and Perception’ (2025), all published by Pen and Sword.

Purchase Links to Helene's Publications

‘Elizabethan Rebellions: Conspiracy, Intrigue and Treason’ (2023)

Bookshop.org   Pen & Sword

 ‘Tudor Executions: From Nobility to the Block’ (2024) 

Bookshop.org     Pen & Sword

 ‘The Many Faces of Anne Boleyn: Interpreting Image and Perception’ (2025)

Bookshop.org    Pen & Sword

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(media courtesy of the author)

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The Many Faces of Anne Boleyn: Interpreting Image and Perception by Helene Harrison - #bookreview

Anne Boleyn is an absolutely fascinating figure in English history...

The Blurb

Mistress. Queen. Reformer. Traitor. Icon. 

This book is not like any others you might have read on Anne Boleyn. It is not a biography of the life of Henry VIII’s second wife and queen. What this book does is to examine Anne Boleyn through images and perceptions of her. Through documents, letters, images, propaganda, films, novels and historical biographies, this book explores Anne Boleyn through more than 500 years of history. 

Explore how perceptions of her have changed and developed over time. Whether she is seen as a mistress, a queen, a mother, a reformer, a traitor, or a tragic heroine, Anne Boleyn continues to inspire so much exploration and even new discoveries today. See Anne through the eyes of people who knew her, loved her, hated her, and studied her. 

In the present day, Anne Boleyn has quite a devoted scholarship, honed through perceptions built over the last half a millennium. Her life, reign, and tragic death at the hands of the man who tore England apart to be with her have made Anne Boleyn one of the most divisive and exciting figures in English history. 

My Review

Before I even begin to review this book, I want to let you know that tomorrow the author of this fantastic book, Helene Harrison, will be here on the blog, talking about why we are still so fascinated by Anne Boleyn. Having read this book, I couldn't be more excited to hear from her.

Once in a while I read a book on my Kindle that I love so much that it makes me want to buy a physical copy to have on my bookshelves, that I can take down and dip into whenever I want to. This was one such book.

It begins with an excellent foreword by Dr. Owen Emmerson, who is a historian, author and Assistant Curator at the childhood home of Anne Boleyn at Hever Castle in Kent.

Published in July of this year, the book takes a slightly different path to many books in the Anne Boleyn canon. It is based on the author's Master's degree research, whereby she considered the different interpretations of Anne Boleyn through history by drawing on both historical sources and historiography. She uses both primary and secondary sources, as well as an array of articles, books and paintings. In addition, she looks at how Anne is presented on stage and screen and in fiction and non-fiction alike.

The book is divided into twelve chapters, and I think it is worth providing the title headings here in order to demonstrate the breadth of the interpretation through the sources.

Chapter 1 - Portraiture and Image

Chapter 2 - Anne as Mistress

Chapter 3 - Anne as Queen and Mother

Chapter 4 - Anne as Traitor

Chapter 5 -  Anne Through Foreign Eyes

Chapter 6 - Anne as Reformer

Chapter 7 - Anne as Tragic Heroine

Chapter 8 - Anne on Stage

Chapter 9 - Anne on Film

Chapter 10 - Anne on the Small Screen

Chapter 11 - Anne on the Page

Chapter 12 - Historiography

This was an interesting and informative book to read, which has been written in a highly accessible and approachable manner. Ms Harrison has looked at Anne Boleyn with fresh eyes and considers how she has been interpreted through the centuries, from the plays of Shakespeare to the modern interpretation of Anne in the stage show, The Six. Whether the reader is a relative newcomer to Tudor history or an academic, I believe that there is something for everyone in this book.

For me, the sign of a good book, whether it is fiction or non-fiction, is when it makes me want to go away and learn more about the subject. Although I am a history graduate, I focused on modern history and only touched on the subject of the Tudors. Of course, I have read much about them since my studies were completed. However, this book has left me with a thirst to learn more, and I suspect that it will have a similar effect on many of its readers.

The author's research is extensive and included is a long bibliography which I will definitely be looking into for further reading. The book also has a selection of images which were interesting when viewed alongside the text.

I don't want to finish this review without telling you a personal story about Hever Castle. A couple of years ago, I celebrated a big birthday and arranged a whole family trip there - complete with husband, sons, their wives, grandchildren, and not forgetting the family dogs. Throughout the day, we visited all of it, from the castle to the coffee shop, taking it in turns to do the parts not suitable for dogs. 

Hever Castle really worked its magic on my granddaughter that day, who was about nine at the time. Not only did she fall in love with the castle but also with history itself. I couldn't be more proud.

This is an intelligent book which is easy to read. I highly recommend it to lovers of history.

Book Details

ISBN:  978 1036105020

Publisher: Pen & Sword

Formats:  e-book and hardback

No. of Pages:  296 (hardback)

Purchase Links

Bookshop.org

Pen & Sword Books

Blackwell's

Amazon UK

Amazon US

About the Author

Helene Harrison studied at the University of Northumbria in Newcastle, achieving both a BA and MA in History before going on to complete an MSc in Library Management. Her passion for Tudor history started when studying for A Levels and completing a module on Tudor rebellions. Her master’s dissertation focused on portrayals of Anne Boleyn through the centuries, from contemporary letters to modern TV and film adaptations. Now she writes two blogs, one Tudor history and one book-related, and works in the university library of her alma mater. In her spare time, she loves visiting royal palaces and snuggling up with a book or embroidery project. Her books are ‘Elizabethan Rebellions: Conspiracy, Intrigue and Treason’ (2023), ‘Tudor Executions: From Nobility to the Block’ (2024) and ‘The Many Faces of Anne Boleyn: Interpreting Image and Perception’ (2025), all published by Pen and Sword.

You can also find Helene at:

Author Website

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(ARC and media courtesy of the author)

(all opinions are my own)

(Bookshop.org affiliated)

Ten Books I Want to Read in August 2023

 

It is almost August. The children have all broken up from school and six glorious weeks lie ahead of them. I expect that the kids will read more books that the adults but I hope those of you with children to take care of will enjoy sharing some books together.

Here are ten books that I would like to read.

In a Lonely Place by Dorothy B. Hughes

But You Did Not Come Back by Marceline Loridan-Ivens

The Contest by Karen Hamilton

The Hundred Lives of Juliet by Evelyn Skye

Anne Boleyn: An Illustrated Life of Henry VIII's Queen by Roland Hui

The Plantagenet Prelude by Jean Plaidy

Charlotte's Snowman by Lainey Dee

All Good Things by Amanda Prowse

The Wolf Hunt by Ayelet Gundar-Goshen

The East End Nurse by Sheila Newberry

What is on your reading list this month?

Happy reading!

Henry VIII: The Heart and the Crown by Alison Weir - #bookreview @AlisonWeir

 

1503 - He had cried for hours. Mother, his dearest Mother, was dead. It had been the most hateful, dreadful news, broken to him by Mrs Luke, his old nurse. Not, thankfully, by Father, who was too broken by his own grief. Harry could not have coped with witnessing the King's distress. He had enough to bear. He had wept and wept on Mrs Luke's broad bosom, and now, aware that great boys of eleven were not supposed to give way to wamanish tears, he struggled to compose himself and went to find his sisters, who were sitting desolately on the rug before the fire in Mother's bedchamber. He stared in horror at the bed, which had already been hung and draped with the black velvet of mourning. Mother would never sleep here again; he would never more hear her sweet voice, feel her gentle arms around him, her golden boy...

***

Six wives. One King. You know their stories. Now it's time to hear his.

A second son, not born to rule, becomes a man, and a king...

In grand royal palaces, Prince Harry grows up dreaming of knights and chivalry - and the golden age of kings that awaits his older brother. But Arthur's untimely death sees Harry crowned King Henry of England.

As his power and influence extends, so commences a lifelong battle between head and heart, love and duty. Henry rules by divine right, yet his prayers for a son go unanswered.

The great future of the Tudor dynasty depends on an heir. And the crown weighs heavy on a king with all but his one true desire.

HENRY VIII. HIS STORY.

***

This book is the second part of The Tudor Rose series. The first, The Last White Rose, follows the life of Henry VIII's mother Elizabeth of York . I have not read that book and it did not hinder my reading and enjoyment of this second one. I am assuming that the first covers the time up to Henry's birth as The Heart and the Crown picks up the story in 1503 when the young Henry would have been about twelve years of age.

Of course, the story of Henry VIII and his six wives is a familiar one but it was interesting to read this which is told from his own perspective. Having read several of the books in the authors Six Tudor Queens series, this is the perfect companion book.

Ms. Weir describes Henry in a way which is compelling and believable. This comes as no great surprise as her books, both fiction and non-fiction, are always expertly researched. She has previously written much about the Tudor period, and as readers we can rest assured that she will present the world with a book which is as historically accurate as is possible within the realms of fiction.

It is a lengthy book at 640 pages and is sedately paced. What I appreciated most about this book is that we see Henry VIII in all his guises. Not just Henry, the tyrant king of popular history, but we also observe Henry, the man, lover, husband, father, king and politician. We see the human side of Henry that can only come alive in this way in a fictional retelling of his story.

It is an ambitious novel which the author has pulled off successfully and I thoroughly enjoyed reading it.

If you would like to read my reviews from some of the Six Queen series, you can read my review of Anne Boleyn: A King's Obsession by clicking here, Jane Seymour: The Haunted Queen  by clicking here, my review of Anna of Kleve: Queen of Secrets by clicking here.

ISBN:  978 1472278081

Publisher:  Headline Review

Formats:  e-book, audio and hardback

No. of Pages:  640 (hardback)

Support Independent Bookshops - Purchase from Bookshop.org

About the Author:

Alison Weir is a British writer of history books for the general public, mostly in the form of biographies about British kings and queens, and of historical fiction. Before becoming an author, Weir worked as a teacher of children with special needs. She received her formal training in history at teacher training college. 

She currently lives in Surrey, England, with her two children.

You can find out more about Alison at her website: http://alisonweir.org.uk/index.php

(ARC courtesy of the publisher)

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*Disclosure: I only recommend books I would buy myself and all opinions expressed here are my own. This post contains an affiliate link from which I may earn a small commission.

New Releases in November 2022

 

November is almost upon us and I am looking ahead at what great books are being published.

Here are ten which look enticing.

My Mother's Secret by Alina Adams

With his dying breath, Lena's father asks his family a cryptic question: "You couldn't tell, could you?" After his passing, Lena stumbles upon the answer that changes her life forever.

As her revolutionary neighbor mysteriously disappears during Josef Stalin's Great Terror purges, 18-year-old Regina suspects that she's the Kremlin's next target. Under cover of the night, she flees from her parents' communal apartment in 1930s Moscow to the 20th century's first Jewish state, Birobidzhan, on the border between Russia and China. Once there, Regina has to grapple with her preconceived notions of socialism and Judaism while asking herself the eternal question: What do we owe each other? How can we best help one another? While she contends with these queries and struggles to help Birobidzhan establish itself, love and war are on the horizon.

New York Times Bestselling author Alina Adams draws on her own experiences as a Jewish refugee from Odessa, USSR as she provides readers a rare glimpse into the world's first Jewish Autonomous Region. My Mother's Secret is rooted in detailed research about a little known chapter of Soviet and Jewish history while exploring universal themes of identity, love, loss, war, and parenthood. Readers can expect a whirlwind journey as Regina finds herself and her courage within one of the century's most tumultuous eras.

The Final Year of Anne Boleyn by Natalie Grueninger

There are few women in English history more famous or controversial than Queen Anne Boleyn. She was the second wife of Henry VIII, mother of Elizabeth I and the first English queen to be publicly executed. Much of what we think we know about her is coloured by myth and legend, and does not stand up to close scrutiny. Reinvented by each new generation, Anne is buried beneath centuries of labels: homewrecker, seductress, opportunist, witch, romantic victim, Protestant martyr, feminist. In this vivid and engaging account of the triumphant and harrowing final year of Queen Anne Boleyn’s life, the author reveals a very human portrait of a brilliant, passionate and complex woman.

The last twelve months of Anne’s life contained both joy and heartbreak. This telling period bore witness to one of the longest and most politically significant progresses of Henry VIII’s reign, improved relations between the royal couple, and Anne’s longed-for pregnancy. With the dawning of the new year, the pendulum swung. In late January 1536, Anne received news that her husband had been thrown from his horse in his tiltyard at Greenwich. Just days later, tragedy struck. As the body of Anne’s predecessor, Katherine of Aragon, was being prepared for burial, Anne miscarried her son. The promise of a new beginning dashed, the months that followed were a rollercoaster of anguish and hope, marked by betrayal, brutality and rumour. What began with so much promise, ended in silent dignity, amid a whirlwind of scandal, on a scaffold at the Tower of London.

Through close examination of these intriguing events considered in their social and historical context, readers will gain a fresh perspective into the life and death of the woman behind the tantalising tale.

In a Far Place by Liz Harris

Birmingham, 1967

When trainee doctor Peter meets beautiful student nurse Claire, an instant connection hits them both like a physical force. But beneath his obvious love for Claire and his vocation for medicine, Peter has a fierce longing for adventure, born out of his lonely childhood in Ladakh. It's a longing he can barely admit to himself.

In a devious attempt to come between the pair, Peter’s friend Alex lends him an article about the Flying Doctors of Australia.

From this simple action come stark, thrilling and heart-breaking consequences for all three of them.

In a Far Place, an unforgettably powerful story of love, is perfect for readers of Santa Montefiore, Ann Bennet, Dinah Jefferies, Kristin Hannah, Fiona Valpy and Rosie Thomas.

Are You Awake? by Claire McGowan

With two young children, Mary hasn’t slept in what feels like years. For his part, Tim never feels safe enough to sleep. And so one hot, exhausting night, the two strangers meet while seeking solace in a nearby park. There, they witness something horrific: a violent attack in the window of a neighbouring house.

Bonded by what they’ve seen, Tim and Mary are desperate to find answers. And when they see news reports of a missing woman who was last seen walking alone not far from them, the pair are convinced it’s her they saw being attacked―no matter what the police say.

But with her marriage under strain and the police on their tail, Mary begins to doubt her own mind…and Tim’s. And as the pair are drawn into a dangerous game of cat-and-mouse, the culprit appears to be even closer to home than they thought. Have they got it all wrong, or is something even more sinister going on?

Jewish Flavours of Italy by Silvia Nacamulli

Jewish Flavours of Italy is a culinary journey through Italy and a deep dive into family culinary heritage. With more than 100 kosher recipes, Silvia offers readers a unique collection of authentic and traditional Italian-Jewish dishes, combined with stunning photography, practical tips, and clear explanations. With a delicious mix of recipes, family stories and history, Silvia offers a unique insight into centuries' old culinary traditions.

Discover recipes from everyday home-cooked meals to special celebration menus for Jewish holidays. Highlights include recipes such as pasta e fagioli (borlotti bean soup), family favourites such as melanzane alla parmigiana (aubergine parmigiana), as well as delicious Jewish dishes such as Carciofi alla Giudia (Jewish-style fried artichokes), challah bread, and sarde in saor (Venetian sweet and sour sardines).

Silvia’s extensive cooking repertoire combined with her life experiences means that her recipes and family stories are one-of-a-kind. She introduces the reader to soup, pasta, matzah, and risotto dishes, then moves on to meat, poultry, fish, and vegetable recipes. Silvia finishes with mouth-watering desserts such as orecchie di Amman (Haman’s ears), Roman Jewish pizza ebraica (nut and candied fruit cakes) and sefra (aromatic semolina bake). Even the most sweet-toothed readers will be satisfied!

Each recipe is introduced by Silvia in a friendly and conversational tone that will get readers involved before they even get the chance to preheat the oven. Throughout the book, in-depth features highlight ingredients such as artichokes, courgette flowers and aubergines. A personal touch shines through and provides a connection with the author. Silvia’s enthusiastic and charming personality transforms this collection of recipes into a culinary experience that will be cherished by generations to come.

Queen's of the Age of Chivalry by Alison Weir

The third volume of Alison Weir's magisterial history of the queens of medieval England

Medieval queens were seen as mere dynastic trophies, yet many of the Plantagenet queens of the High Middle Ages dramatically broke away from the restrictions imposed on their sex, as Alison Weir shows in this gripping group biography of England's fourteenth-century consorts.

Using personal letters and wonderfully vivid sources, Alison Weir evokes the lives of five remarkable queens: Marguerite of France, Isabella of France, Philippa of Hainault, Anne of Bohemia and Isabella of Valois.

The turbulent, brutal Age of Chivalry witnessed the Black Death, the Peasants' Revolt, the Hundred Years War against France and savage baronial wars against the monarchy in which these queens were passionately involved. Queens of the Age of Chivalry brilliantly recreates this truly dramatic period of history through the lives of five extraordinary women.

The London Girls by Soraya M. Lane

From the bestselling author of The Last Correspondent comes a remarkable story of three young women who defy the bombs to do their bit for Britain. Will they survive the dark streets of London to see the Allies win the war?

London, 1941. The Blitz. When a Royal Navy memo arrives at head office, requesting female recruits to sign up as motorcycle dispatch riders, delivering highly classified orders across the country, three women jump at the chance to sign up for the most dangerous jobs in London.

Olivia grew up riding motorcycles with her brothers, and with them fighting abroad she feels it is her duty to join up. The thrill of adventure draws Ava, but with more enthusiasm than skill, will she learn to navigate the treacherous London streets safely? Having lost her family during one of the first air attacks, Florence knows how important it is to have help arrive on the scene―fast―and so she steps up, outmanoeuvring the men behind the wheel of an ambulance. When Olivia, Ava and Florence meet for the first time they know they have found something all of them need―family.

As bombs fall, decimating the city they love, these three brave women build a sisterhood amid the rubble, facing down anyone―even their own families―who objects to their service. And while romances bloom and fade, their connection grows ever stronger. But none of them dare consider the terrifying reality that one night Florence’s ambulance may be rescuing someone she loves…

Medieval Royal Mistresses by Julia A. Hickey

Marriage for Medieval kings was about politics, power and the provision of legitimate heirs. Mistresses were about love, lust and possession. It was a world that included kidnap, poison, murder, violation, public shaming and accusations of witchcraft. Ambition and quick wits as well as beauty were essential attributes for any royal mistress. Infamy, assassination and imprisonment awaited some royal mistresses who tumbled from favour whilst others disappeared into obscurity or respectable lives as married women and were quickly forgotten. Meet Nest of Wales, born in turbulent times, whose abduction started a war; Alice Perrers and Jane Shore labelled ‘whores’ and ‘wantons’; Katherine Swynford who turned the medieval world upside down with a royal happy-ever-after and Rosamund Clifford who left history and stepped into legend. Discover how serial royal womanisers married off their discarded mistresses to bind their allies close. Explore the semi-official roles of some mistresses; the illegitimate children who became kings; secret marriage ceremonies; Edith Forne Sigulfson and Lady Eleanor Talbot who sought atonement through religion as well as the aristocratic women who became the victims of royal lust. Most of the shameful women who shared the beds of medieval kings were silenced, besmirched or consigned to the footnotes of a patriarchal worldview but they negotiated paths between the private and public spheres of medieval court life - changing history as they went.

Flight by Lynn Steger Strong

It’s 22 December and siblings Henry, Kate and Martin have converged with their spouses on Henry’s house in upstate New York. This is their first Christmas since their mother passed. Without her once ever-present advice and gentle nudges to connect with each other when they need it most, they’ve grown distant. Over the course of the next three days, old resentments and instabilities arise as the siblings, with a gaggle of children afoot, attempt to perform familiar rituals while also trying to decide what to do with their sole inheritance, their mother’s house.

As each tries and fails and tries again to figure out how to reconcile their various needs and impulses around the house, they must also see whether they can and will remain a family without their matriarch. They are all feeling the strain but when a local child goes missing they are forced to come together, and all of them will cross a line.

Love and War in the Jewish Quarter by Dora Levy Mossanen

A breathtaking journey across Iran where war and superstition, jealousy and betrayal, and passion and loyalty rage behind the impenetrable walls of mansions and the crumbling houses of the Jewish Quarter.

Against the tumultuous background of World War II, Dr. Yaran will find himself caught in the thrall of the anti-Semitic Governor General, the most powerful man in the country. Dr. Yaran falls in love with the Governor General's defiant wife, Velvet, upending not only the life of the doctor's beloved daughter, but the entire community. In his quest to save everything and everyone he loves, Dr. Yaran will navigate the intersections of magic, science, lust, and treachery. His sole ally is the Governor General's servant, an exotic eunuch, who will do anything to aid his mistress in her dangerous quest to attain forbidden love.

(header photo courtesy of Ruvim Noga/Unsplash)