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Castle Adult non-fiction and fiction books about or set in the Medieval or Renaissance periods
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The Last Kingdom by Bernard CornwellCaptured and raised by Danes in the ninth century, dispossessed nobleman Uhtred witnesses the unexpected defeat of his adoptive Viking clan by Alfred of Wessex and longs to recover his father's land.
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Matrix
by Lauren Groff
Cast out of the royal court, 17-year-old Marie de France, born the last in a long line of women warriors, is sent to England to be the new prioress of an impoverished abbey where she vows to chart a bold new course for the women she now leads and protects.
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The Convert by Stefan HertmansAbandoning her privileged life after falling in love with a Jewish man, a Medieval Christian noblewoman embarks on a dangerous journey to southern France, where their brief happiness is upended by the vicious anti-Semitism of the First Crusade.
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Wolf Hallby Hilary MantelAssuming the power recently lost by the disgraced Cardinal Wolsey, Thomas Cromwell counsels a mercurial Henry VIII on the latter's efforts to marry Anne Boleyn against the wishes of Rome, a successful endeavor that comes with a dangerous price.
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The Marriage Portrait by Maggie O'FarrellIn Florence during the 1550s, captivating young duchess Lucrezia de' Medici, having barely left girlhood behind, marries the ruler of Ferrara, Modena and Reggio, and now, in an unfamiliar court where she has one duty—to provide an heir—fights for her very survival.
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The Land Beyond the Sea by Sharon Kay PenmanThe young ruler of 12th-century Jerusalem finds his efforts to protect his people complicated by his lifelong struggles with leprosy, threats against his power and a limited number of trustworthy advisors.
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Raphael, Painter in Romeby Stephanie StoreyOrphaned at age eleven, Raphael is determined to keep the deathbed promise he made to his father: become the greatest artist in history. But to be the best, he must beat the best, the legendary sculptor of the David, Michelangelo Buonarroti. When Pope Julius II calls both artists down to Rome, they are pitted against each other: Michelangelo painting the Sistine Ceiling, while Raphael decorates the pope's private apartments. As Raphael strives toward perfection in paint, he battles internal demons: his desperate ambition, crippling fear of imperfection, and unshakable loneliness.
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The Rise and Fall of the Second Largest Empire in History: How Genghis Khan's Mongols Almost Conquered the World by Thomas J. CraughwellEmerging out of the vast steppe grasslands of Central Asia in the early 1200s, the Mongols, under their ferocious leader, Genghis Khan, quickly carved out an empire that by the late thirteenth century covered almost one-sixth of the Earth’s landmass—from Eastern Europe to the eastern shore of Asia—and encompassed 110 million people. Far larger than the much more famous domains of Alexander the Great and ancient Rome, it has since been surpassed in overall size and reach only by the British Empire. The Rise and Fall of the Second Largest Empire in the World recounts the spectacularly rapid expansion and dramatic decline of the Mongol realm, while examining its real, widespread, and enduring influence on countless communities from the Danube River to the Pacific Ocean.
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1215: The Year of Magna Carta by Danny DanzigerA revealing, richly textured portrait of everyday life in thirteenth-century Britain chronicles the people and events leading up to the signing of the Magna Carta at Runnymede in June 1215.
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The Swerve: How the World Became Modern by Stephen GreenblattA humanities professor describes the impact had by the translation of the last remaining manuscript of On the Nature of Things by Roman philosopher Lucretius, which fueled the Renaissance and inspired artists, great thinkers and scientists.
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Queens of the Age of Chivalry: 1299-1409 by Alison WeirThis epic narrative of the Age of Chivalry, a period of high drama in English history, which included the toppling of two kings, the Hundred Years' War, the Black Death and the Peasants' Revolt, focuses on the lives and reigns of five extraordinary queen consorts.
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How to Read Italian Renaissance Painting by Stefano ZuffiDescribes the concepts found in paintings created during the Renaissance in Italy, with each entry including a notable painting, notes about the concept, a short biography of the artist, and an interpretation of significant sections.
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