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Historical Fiction August 2019
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| Star Path: People of Cahokia by W. Michael Gear and Kathleen O'Neal GearStarring: Morning Star, god incarnate, and his mortal sister Night Shadow Star, who must defeat their evil brother Walking Smoke.
Why you might like it: Written by a pair of archaeologists, this dramatic novel of pre-Columbian North America recreates the Cahokia settlement (1100 CE) and Mississippian culture in vivid detail.
Should you start here? This 4th book in the Morning Star series follows plotlines established in previous books; newcomers should start with People of the Morning Star. |
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| The Last Collection: A Novel of Elsa Schiaparelli and Coco Chanel by Jeanne MackinParis, 1938: A young American widow begins working for Elsa Schiaparelli, gaining a front row seat to the flamboyant fashion designer's long-running feud with her arch-rival, Coco Chanel.
Why you might like it: Dueling designers create iconic looks against an atmospheric pre-WWII backdrop in this well-researched historical novel.
You might also like: Meryle Secrest's biography Elsa Schiaparelli, if you're Team Schiap. If you're Team Coco, try C.W. Gortner's Madamoiselle Chanel or Gioia Diliberto's The Collection. |
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| Deep River: A Novel by Karl MarlantesIntroducing: Ilmari, Aino, and Matti Koski, Finnish siblings who immigrate to the United States in the early 1900s and settle in Deep River, a hardscrabble logging community in the Pacific Northwest.
What happens: Brothers llmari and Matti risk life and limb in the timber industry, while sister Aino becomes a labor activist.
Author alert: Karl Marlantes' debut, Matterhorn, won the Society of American Historians Prize for his haunting depiction of the Vietnam War. |
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| A Darker Sea: Master Commandant Putnam and the War of 1812 by James L. HaleyWhat it's about: War hero Lieutenant Bliven Putnam receives a promotion and a ship of his own, the USS Tempest, a twenty-gun brig.
Why you might like it: Written by an award-winning historian, this sequel to The Shores of Tripoli features authentic nautical details and well-researched depictions of naval warfare during the War of 1812.
For fans of: C.S. Forester's Horatio Hornblower novels and Patrick O'Brien's Aubrey-Maturin books. |
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| The North Water: A Novel by Ian McGuireWhat it's about: In 1859, the whaling vessel Volunteer sets sail for the Arctic under the command of the corrupt Captain Brownlee.
Featuring: a motley crew that includes Patrick Sumner, a former army surgeon with a laudanum habit and a trunk full of secrets, and Henry Drax, an alcoholic harpooner with a thirst for brutal violence.
Is it for you? If you like fast-paced, violent sea stories that leave you wondering who (if anyone) will survive, check out The North Water. |
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The French prize
by James L Nelson
What happens: Taking command of an American merchant vessel bound for Barbados, Jack Biddlecomb prepares to fight off French attackers while hiding a secret agenda with repercussions on an international scale. By the award-winning author of With Fire and Sword.
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The tiger's prey : a novel of adventure
by Wilbur A Smith
What's this about: One of four sons of master mariner Sir Hal Courtney, Tom embarks on a treacherous voyage across the vast reaches of the ocean and confronts dangerous enemies in exotic locales while following passions that lay the future for his family. By the best-selling author of the Ancient Egypt series.
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The Ghost of the Mary Celeste: A Novel
by Valerie Martin
What's in it: On December 5, 1872, en route to the Strait of Gibraltar, the merchant brig Mary Celeste appears off the coast of Spain -- abandoned but still seaworthy, its cargo intact, and with no trace of its passengers or crew. Long after the event, people continue to speculate about what really happened aboard the doomed ship: a young Arthur Conan Doyle pens a short story about the incident; Philadelphia spiritualist Violet Petra offers her insights (while journalist Phoebe Grant seeks to expose the medium as a fraud); and the surviving relatives of Captain Briggs, members of an old seafaring family that's experienced its share of tragedy, are left wondering where their loved ones went.
Why you might like this: Based on true events, this well-researched novel employs an intricate, non-linear narrative to shed light on a still-unsolved historical mystery.
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Reefs and shoals : An Alan Lewrie Naval Adventure
by Dewey Lambdin
What's in it: A latest high-seas romp by the author of The Invasion Year is set in the privateer era of 1805 and pits battle-scarred King's Navy adventurer Alan Lewrie against a series of bawdy and bloodthirsty adversaries.
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Kydd : a novel
by Julian Stockwin
What's in it: In the first volume of a new seafaring adventure series, Thomas Paine Kydd, a young wig-maker, is pressed into service in 1793 and sent to serve aboard the British Navy's Duke William at the height of conflict during the Napoleonic Wars. A first novel. 25,000 first printing.
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Sails on the horizon : a novel of the Napoleonic Wars
by Jay Worrall
What's in it: In 1797, at the height of the Napoleonic Wars, a small group of English ships, including the HMS Argonaut, plays a key role in preventing a fleet of twenty-seven Spanish ships from linking up with the French at Brest, in the first novel chronicling the high-seas adventures of Charles Edgemont, a young British lieutenant. Reprint. 20,000 first printing.
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Master and commander
by Patrick O'Brian
Introducing: Captain Jack Aubrey and Stephen Maturin, ship's surgeon and intelligence agent, in the age of the Napoleonic wars.
Why you might like this: This, the first in the splendid series of Jack Aubrey novels, establishes the friendship between Captain Aubrey, R.N., and Stephen Maturin, ship's surgeon and intelligence agent, against a thrilling backdrop of the Napoleonic wars. Details of a life aboard a man-of-war in Nelson's navy are faultlessly rendered: the conversational idiom of the officers in the ward room and the men on the lower deck, the food, the floggings, the mysteries of the wind and the rigging, and the roar of broadsides as the great ships close in battle.
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Contact your librarian for more great books!
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Central Mississippi Regional Library System
100 Tamberline Street
Brandon, Mississippi 39042
601-825-0100
http://www.cmrls.lib.ms.us
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