Historical Fiction Europe

The three tales in this audiobook are adapted from stories told by the peasants in Eastern Europe and Central Asia. They are drawn from some books I found in shops when I visited the former USSR in 1988 as part of a citizen diplomacy group. I was intrigued by these folktales, since my paternal grandmother lived for some time in Odessa in the Ukraine. Also, I found these stories share a common theme - the poor peasant is able to succeed despite obstacles against an unfair ruler.

Torkel og Ulf er endelig blevet gamle nok til at komme med de voksne mænd i vikingelandsbyen ud at sejle. Turen går til Hedeby, og drengene er spændte, men det går ikke helt som planlagt. For i Hedeby bliver Torkel taget til fange og ført til Skåne, hvor han bliver solgt som træl til en velhavende gårdejer. Under den årlige sommerfest på gården, lykkes det for Torkel og en af gæsternes trælle, pigen Kari, at flygte. Nu går det over stok og sten langs kyst og gennem tæt skov.

In this fiction, a former University classmate, now colonel of the SS, meets Edith Stein in Auschwitz to persuade her to contribute to the doctrinal development of a new religion that would be functional to the Nazi regime. The story presents the development of the conflict between two world views that are absolutely irreconcilable.

Begiloc, a young freedman from Wimborne, is a man of action. But his world turns upside down when the young Briton and his best friend Meryn are ordered away to protect English missionaries in Germany. For a man accustomed to brutality, Begiloc has a soft spot for the purple-tinged mountains, waterfalls, lakes, animals, trees and flowers - beginning to muse whether they, rather than man, do not better embody the essence of God.

Holmes is summoned to Geneva by the legendary “Sisi”, Empress Elisabeth of Austria, to “rake through the coals of Mayerling” and learn the true fate of Crown Prince Rudolf, her dead son.

The year 1942 marked the turning point of World War II. The Americans destroyed the Japanese Battle Fleet in the decisive engagements of Midway and the Coral Sea. General Montgomery defeated General Rommel at El Alamein. But for President Roosevelt, 1942 was the darkest hour of the war. He knew the Germans were developing the atomic bomb. Our victories would be meaningless if the Nazis perfected the “A” bomb first. There was only one man who could find out the biggest Nazi secret of the war: Lanny Budd.

What does it take to be a cross-cultural messenger of the Gospel? This audiobook explores two extraordinary lives that God has used to impact France: Bob Evans, soldier, WWII chaplain, missionary, and founder of Greater Europe Mission, and Jazz Jones, modern-day missionary facing the challenges and trials of ministry in post-modern Europe, including terrorism and religious strife. What was true about the spiritual climate of Europe 75 years ago? What is true today? And what is always true?

Thomas of London, the rebellious Archbishop of Canterbury, has made peace with Henry II, after six long years in exile.  Henry and Thomas are both prepared to put past differences aside, but there is little trust left between the two former close friends and allies. A single ill-judged word or action could spark a conflict between the two men - and church and state. When news that Thomas has excommunicated royal supporters soon reaches the King, it is the last straw. With no hope of a lasting peace between the King and Archbishop, there can be only one, bloody conclusion. 

Mar di Toscana, dicembre 1646. Una galea militare francese salpa da Livorno e sterza le onde verso il porto di Tolone. A bordo, i più celebri cantanti italiani, convocati a Parigi dal cardinal Mazzarino. Tra loro c'è il ventenne Atto Melani, scortato dal fedele segretario, che cerca di dissuaderlo dall'unica passione vietata ai castrati: amare le donne. Sulla nave viaggia anche uno strano gruppetto di eruditi, uniti da un miraggio comune. Un misterioso monaco li ha messi sulle tracce di un tesoro: i manoscritti di capolavori perduti dell'antica Roma, che tutti cercano da secoli.

Three Brides, all alike in tragedy, from death's embrace make bold return. One driven quite mad, One sorrowfully sad, and One set aside and spurned. Imbued with weird powers, these transplanted flowers into a new world bloom. With virtue and charm they come fully armed to bring evil unmerciful doom! If you thirst for adventure, this book is a quencher. Let doubtful hearts abide, suspend disbelief for the heroic mischief of the beautiful Broken Brides. If you crave mystery in a fanciful history, then turn to the very first minute!

It is 1965, and Cora, a young, hearing impaired woman, buys a one-way ticket to the island of St. Thomas, where she discovers four dolphins held in captivity as part of an experiment led by the obsessive Dr. Blum. Drawn by a strong connection to the dolphins, Cora falls in with the scientists and discovers her need to protect the animals.

When the British government asks Harry Delamere to courier a secret document from Constantinople to Paris on the Orient Express, it seems such a simple way to cover a couple of months' rent and some outstanding bills. But somebody knows a lot more than he does, nobody trusts him, and pretty much everybody's trying to kill him. All the glamour of the Orient Express, melodrama, sinister foreign gentlemen, exotic foreign ladies, bandits, revolutionaries, assassins, surprises, disguises, explosions, breathtaking escapes from death, and an unfortunate incident in a Viennese lavatory.