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Men of Iron by Howard Pyle is historical fiction that transports us back to the 1400's, a time of knighthood and chivalry. Myles Falworth is eight years old when news comes they must flee their home. His blind father is accused of treason. We see Myles grow up, train as a knight, and with perseverance, clear his father of any wrong-doing and restore their family name. (Summary by Laura Caldwell)...

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Historical Fiction

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The History of the Plague in London is a novel by Daniel Defoe. It is a fictionalized account of one man's experiences of the year 1665, in which the Great Plague struck the city of London. The book is a roughly chronological account, purporting to have been written several years after the event. It was in fact written in the years just prior to the book's first publication in March of 1722 – Defoe was only five years old in 1665, and the book itself was published under the initials H. F. The novel was probably based on the journals of Defoe's uncle, Henry Foe. In the book, Defoe goes to great pains to achieve an effect of verisimilitude, identifying specific houses in which events took place, providing tables of casualty figures and discussing the credibility of various accounts received by the narrator. (Summary from wikipedia)...

Excerpt Details
Historical Fiction

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De Delftsche Wonderdokter, geschreven in 1870, is een historische avonturenroman die zich afspeelt in 1595. Het verhaal ontrolt zich tegen de achtergrond van de Tachtigjarige Oorlog en de reformatie, met als hoofdrolspelers een mysterieuze vreemdeling, een Delftse dokter en diens nichtje. Juliaan is een kale jonker - een jongeman van goede huize, die aan lager wal is geraakt. Mabelia Graswinckel is een Delfts meisje dat beloofd is als bruid aan haar neef Antony Hogenhoeck. Haar oom Dokter Graswinckel (oftewel de Delftse Wonderdokter, ook wel Jacob Janz Boot genoemd) is een arts, die leeft als een kluizenaar en bekend staat als een weldoener voor de armen. Juliaan, die met een berooid groepje huursoldaten door het land trekt op zoek naar werk, krijgt van een geheimzinnige weldoener het aanbod van een mooie beloning, als hij en zijn troep een opdracht uitvoeren. Dat is nog maar het begin van een avontuur vol verwikkelingen....

Excerpt Details
Historical Fiction

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The Jubilee marks the fiftieth year of the reign of Queen Victoria. Dickensian in its sweeping scope of London life, Jubilee depicts the harsh and disreputable conditions of lower-middle class life at the end of the 19th century. (Introduction by S. Kovalchik)...

Excerpt Details
Fiction, Historical Fiction

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Een avonturenroman vol mysteries - met zeerovers, struikrovers, schipbreuken, moord en doodslag - afgunst, wraak en rampspoed afgewisseld door humor en liefde. Ferdinand Huyck, de zoon van de hoofdschout in Amsterdam, keert na een jarenlange reis terug in Nederland. Onderweg ontmoet hij Henriette Blaek, die hij al snel niet meer uit zijn gedachten kan zetten. Nog voor hij Amsterdam kan bereiken wordt hij echter bij Naarden overvallen en beroofd door struikrovers. Een geheimzinnige man, die zich Bos noemt, redt hem zijn leven. Wie is die heer Bos, die zich, met zijn mooie dochter Amelia, verschuilt voor de politie? En hoe moet Ferdinand zich eruit redden als Henriette hem toevallig ziet in gezelschap van Amelia, en zijn vader de hoofdschout ook hoe langer hoe meer achterdochtig wordt over zijn gedrag? Hij kan de waarheid niet vertellen, omdat hij beloofd heeft om de heer Bos en zijn dochter niet te verraden… Dit is het begin van een aaneenschakeling van avonturen.Laat je niet afschrikken door de wat droge inleiding - de actie begint direct in hoofdstuk 1![samenvatting door Anna Simon]A book filled with mysterious adventures - pirates...

Excerpt Details
Historical Fiction

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Swashbuckling tales of legendary pirates, buccaneers, and marooners, terrors of the Spanish Main.(Summary by Epistomolus)

Excerpt Details
Historical Fiction

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Kurzes Historien Drama um die Schlacht bei Stellau 1201 zwischen Dänen und Holsteinern. Den roten Faden bittet die Liebe zu einer Sklavin, unversöhnlicher Haß und daraus folgende Rache. (Summary by Wassermann)...

Excerpt Details
Historical Fiction

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Sienkiewicz’s epic novel of ancient Rome finds the Empire at the height of her power and splendor, but struggling with the madness and cruelty of the Emperor Nero. A new religion is sweeping across the world, causing many Romans to wonder and leading many others to sacrifice everything for it. Yet, even as a great city burns and darkness threatens to overwhelm the age, hope is found in the love of the Roman tribune Marcus Vinicius for the beautiful Christian maiden Lygia, and in his journey toward his life’s true purpose (Introduction by D. Leeson)....

Excerpt Details
Historical Fiction

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Robert Barr (1849 - 1912) was a Scottish Journalist, editor, humorist and author. A Prince of Good Fellows was published in 1902, and is a series of Historical Fiction stories about the young James V, King of Scots (1512 – 1542). The chapters are full of humor and adventure and portrays a young King who is both wise and adventurous. (Summary by Lars Rolander)...

Excerpt Details
Historical Fiction

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Gerona es la séptima novela de la primera serie de los Episodios Nacionales de Benito Pérez Galdós. Continúa con el relato novelado de la Guerra de Independencia entre España y Francia. En esta ocasión, se narra el asedio de las tropas francesas a la ciudad de Gerona a lo largo de la segunda mitad del año 1809. El protagonismo no recae sobre Gabriel de Araceli (protagonista del resto de novelas de la primera serie), sino que es Andrés Marijuán, un personaje secundario de anteriores entregas, quien relata a Gabriel, a través de unas memorias escritas durante el sitio, en primera persona, sus vivencias durante el sitio de Gerona. Sólo un año después de la victoria de 1808, el contraataque implacable de los napoleónicos ha provocado el desastre en un ejército español mal pertrechado y peor organizado. Una a una, diferentes plazas han ido cayendo: Zaragoza, Ocaña, Talavera de la Reina... La resistencia española, replegada en Andalucía, se desangra por la falta de medios y las luchas intestinas entre la Junta Central y las resucitadas Cortes de Castilla. En ese ambiente de desesperanza, Gabriel, incorporado al ejército del Centro, llega ...

Excerpt Details
Fiction, Historical Fiction

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Book 1 - Ann Boleyn. The focus of the novels is on the events surrounding Henry VIII's replacing Catherine of Aragon with Anne Boleyn as his wife. During Henry's pursuit of Boleyn, the novel describes other couples, including the Earl of Surrey and Lady Elizabeth Fitzgerald, a match Henry does not support. However, some of the individuals oppose Henry and his desires for Boleyn, including Thomas Wyat who wants her for himself and Cardinal Wolsey, who uses his own daughter, Mabel Lyndwood, to lure Henry away from Boleyn. [...] Intertwined with the Court is the story of Herne the Hunter, a spirit of Windsor Forest. He is an evil force that seeks to take the souls of various individuals, and Henry tries to stop him, but is never able to do so. (Summary adapted from Wikipedia)...

Excerpt Details
Historical Fiction

Excerpt Details
Historical Fiction

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Dead Souls (Russian: Мёртвые души) by Nikolai Gogol, Russian writer, was first published in 1842, and is one of the most prominent works of 19th-century Russian literature. Gogol himself saw it as an epic poem in prose, and within the book as a novel in verse. Despite supposedly completing the trilogy's second part, Gogol destroyed it shortly before his death. Although the novel ends in mid-sentence (like Sterne's Sentimental Journey), it is usually regarded as complete in the extant form. In Russia before the emancipation of the serfs in 1861, landowners were entitled to own serfs to farm their land. Serfs were for most purposes considered the property of the landowner, and could be bought, sold, or mortgaged against, as any other chattel. To count serfs (and people in general), the measure word soul was used: e.g., six souls of serfs. The plot of the novel relies on dead souls (i.e., dead serfs) which are still accounted for in property registers. On another level, the title refers to the dead souls of Gogol's characters, all of which visualise different aspects of poshlost (an untranslatable Russian word which is perhaps best ren...

Excerpt Details
Historical Fiction

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Lew Wallace's Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ Book 1 gives a sideline view of events taking pace around the days of Christ. Book 1 gives the account of Christ's birth. (Summary by MHAIJH85)...

Excerpt Details
Historical Fiction

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David Elginbrod was George Macdonald's first real success, a novel of Scottish country life. Published in 1862, it was dedicated to the memory of Lady Noel Byron.(Summary from wikipedia)...

Excerpt Details
Historical Fiction

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This is an early novel by the phenomenally successful author of frontier, western and sports stories. It deals with historical characters and incidents in the Ohio Valley in the late 18th century, especially with the foundation of Gnaddenhutten, a missionary village intended to bring Christianity to the Indians of Ohio, despite the violent opposition of both Indians and white renegades. This turbulent adventure romance features the heroics of a semi-legendary frontiersman, Lewis Wetzel, who attempts to protect the settlers from hostile Native Americans and the vicious white outlaws the Girty brothers. (Introduction by Leonard Wilson)...

Excerpt Details
Historical Fiction

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La batalla de los Arapiles -continuación de Juan Martín El Empecinado- es la décima y última novela de la primera serie de los Episodios Nacionales de Benito Pérez Galdós. Culmina la narración de las aventuras del gaditano Gabriel Araceli durante la Guerra de Independencia entre España y Francia. En esta ocasión, Gabriel participa en la decisiva batalla de los Arapiles, que marcó el fin de la dominación francesa. El ejército aliado, formado por españoles, portugueses y británicos al mando de Lord Wellington, se encuentra en las proximidades de Salamanca, que todavía está en poder de los franceses. Una noble intelectual inglesa, miss Fly, se pasea libremente entre las tropas respetada por sus compatriotas y ante el estupor de los españoles, poco acostumbrados a que las mujeres dispongan de este tipo de libertades. Miss Fly es una romántica enferma de literatura, y enseguida cree ver en Gabriel la reencarnación de los viejos ideales medievales del honor, la virtud y el sacrificio, de modo que se encapricha de él. Gabriel se entera de que Inés y Santorcaz están viviendo en Salamanca, de modo que se presenta voluntario para una suicida ...

Excerpt Details
Historical Fiction

Description Details
The Canterbury Tales is a collection of stories written in Middle English by Geoffrey Chaucer in the 14th century (two of them in prose, the rest in verse). The tales, some of which are originals and others not, are contained inside a frame tale and told by a group of pilgrims on their way from Southwark to Canterbury to visit the shrine of Saint Thomas Becket at Canterbury Cathedral. The themes of the tales vary, and include topics such as courtly love, treachery, and avarice. The genres also vary, and include romance, Breton lai, sermon, beast fable, and fabliau. The characters, introduced in the General Prologue of the book, tell tales of great cultural relevance. The version read here was edited by D. Laing Purves “for popular perusal” and the language is mostly updated. ( Gesine)...

Excerpt Details
Historical Fiction

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Een historische roman die zich afspeelt in Vlaanderen rond de Guldensporenslag in 1302. Vlaanderen is in de handen van de Fransen gevallen, en de Vlaamse vorst en zijn oudste zoon (Robrecht van Bethune, oftewel de Leeuw van Vlaenderen) zijn in gevangenschap in Frankrijk. Uit het volk staan echter twee nieuwe leiders op, om het land te helpen bevrijden van het Franse juk. De strijd mondt uit in de Guldensporenslag, 11 juli 1302, waarin een Vlaams leger van voetknechten tegenover een Frans ridderleger komt te staan. Door het verhaal heen loopt de romance van Machteld, de dochter van Robrecht van Bethune, en ridder Adolf van Nieuwland. Conscience wilde zijn Vlaamse landgenoten bewust maken van hun nationale identiteit en eigenwaarde (vlak na de 19e eeuwse onafhankelijkheidstrijd van Belgie). Met het grote success van De Leeuw van Vlaenderen werd Conscience bekend als “de man die zijn volk leerde lezen.” (Samenvatting door Anna Simon) A historic novel about the “Battle of the Golden Spurs”, in 1302 in Flanders, and the events leading up to it. The story is laced with a romance between Machteld, daugher of Robrecht van Bethune (also know...

Excerpt Details
Historical Fiction

Description Details
Charles Kingsley (June 12 1819 - January 23 1875) was an English divine, university professor, historian, and novelist, particularly associated with the West Country and north-east Hampshire. As a novelist, his chief power lay in his descriptive faculties, which are evident in this novel as he pictures the Egyptian desert and the ancient city Alexandria. Hypatia, 1st published in 1853, is set in 5th Century A.D. Egypt. It centers upon a young orphan monk from a desert monastery who feels called to continue his religious life in the city. He discovers a sister, who is a prostitute living with a band of Goths. Other characters include Hypatia, a lady philosopher based on a historical personage; Cyril, Bishop of Alexandria; Felix, the Roman prefect; a Jewish man who has lost his faith; and an elderly Jewish woman who is like a sorceress. St. Augustine of Hippo makes a brief appearance. (Summary from Wikipedia with additions by Karen Merline)...

Excerpt Details
Historical Fiction