Historical Fiction Renaissance

Settled down in his beloved Mortlake once again, philosopher and astronomer John Dee is enjoying the quiet life when Her Majesty’s spymaster Sir Francis Walsingham darkens his door, instructing him to befriend a certain Polish count with an interest in alchemy and angelic communication. But when Dee and the count are caught breaking the law, trying to convene with angels, they are exiled, and must make their way to the court of Rudolf, Holy Roman Emperor, in far-off Prague.

Marie, la fille du seigneur de Croixmart, grand chasseur de sorciers et sorcières, au temps de François Ier, consulte une voyante qui lui prédit, entre autres choses, la mort de son père. Marie prévient son père et ce dernier saute sur l'occasion de faire condamner la "sorcière" qui, bientôt, brûle sur le bûcher. La foule, excédée par toutes ces exécutions, attaque le baron de Croixmart et le massacre. Renaud, le fils de la voyante, jure qu'il se vengera de la fille de Croixmart et la tuera.

The year 1464 finds Nicholas back in Venice. Plagued by enemies bent on dissolving his assets and smearing his character, he sets sail for Africa, legendary location of the Fountain of Youth, home to a descendant of Sheba and Solomon, and the source of gold in such abundance that men prefer to barter in shells. He will learn firsthand the brutality and grandeur of the Dark Continent, from the horror of the slave trade to the austere nobility of Islamic Timbuktu. He will discover, too, the charms of the beautiful Gelis van Borselen.

Le 22 juin 1627, François de Montmorency-Bouteville est décapité en place de Grève. Il laisse une jeune épouse de vingt ans, deux petites filles et un garçon à naître. La famille aurait sombré dans la misère si la princesse de Condé, leur cousine, ne se chargeait d'élever les enfants selon leur rang.

It’s the fifteenth century and only heretics are curious about the universe. Germany, 1494. Born under a rare alignment of the stars, Johann Georg Gerlach, "the lucky one" to his mother - is fated for greatness. But Johann’s studies and wonder at the sky have made him suspect. Especially in wake of the child disappearances that have left the God-fearing locals trembling and his one true love trapped in terrified catatonia. Her only words: "I have seen the devil..."

Though Eleanor is not wealthy, the saffron spice she grows for her new husband is more valuable than gold. But as his reputation in Henry’s court soars, Eleanor soon understands that she has entered into a dangerous game. The king’s affections do not last forever, and she must do anything to protect her family.

L’opera al nero è la storia di un personaggio immaginario, Zenone, medico, alchimista, filosofo, dalla nascita illegittima a Bruges nei primi anni...

In 1919, a high school teacher from Washington, D.C arrives in Harlem excited to realize her lifelong dream. Jessie Redmon Fauset has been named the literary editor of The Crisis. The first Black woman to hold this position at a preeminent Negro magazine, Jessie is poised to achieve literary greatness. But she holds a secret that jeopardizes it all.

Roma, 1516. Nella vita di Leonardo da Vinci c'è una donna, affascinante e misteriosa. Una donna con un dono speciale che, insieme alla sua bellezza, suscita le brame di uomini potenti. Leonardo fa di tutto per proteggerla e spera di riuscire presto a portarla con sé in Francia. Una notte, nei pressi di Castel Sant'Angelo, è testimone involontario di un omicidio.

Mary Howard is the dutiful daughter of the infamous Duke of Norfolk. Protected by her prestigious family and wealth, she is swept up in Anne Boleyn’s glittering court. Charmed by talented poets and flirtatious knights, it’s easy to forget that someone is watching her every move. The court grows wilder as the world changes around them. Everything seems possible, even marrying for love. All Mary can think of is her poetry, but then she gets involved in her uncle’s affairs. Soon her world of privilege and safety are torn away. But she’s not a Howard girl for nothing.

The Agents of the Crown - the “rollicking new historical thriller” (The New York Times Book Review) series - returns with this riveting novel following the original MI6 agent as he is assigned a dangerous mission to recreate a weapon from antiquity.

Jack and Annie know they have to search for one of the four secrets of happiness to help Merlin the magician find joy in his life again. And so they head off in the magic tree house for Florence, Italy, in the early 1500s to spend the day with one of the greatest artists and inventors of all time: Leonardo da Vinci!

Lukas wants only two things: to rebuild his castle home in time to make it through the coming winter and to reconnect with the sister who was stolen from him in a plot against his family. But then an astrologer appears with foreboding news: his old adversary, Inquisitor Waldemar von Schönborn, has stolen three royal artifacts, which are required to coronate a new German emperor. With these valuable objects - the sword, the crown, and the scepter - he could blackmail the empire. The treasures are currently hidden in three different places in the old imperial city of Prague.

Lucy’s Chantress magic will make her the most powerful - and most hunted - girl in England. “Sing, and the darkness will find you.” This warning has haunted fifteen-year-old Lucy ever since she was eight and shipwrecked on a lonely island. Lucy’s guardian, Norrie, has lots of rules, but the most important is that Lucy must never sing. Not ever. Now, it is 1667, Lucy is fifteen, and on All Hallows’ Eve, Lucy hears a tantalizing melody on the wind. She can’t help but sing - and soon she is swept away into the darkness.

Lucy is the last Chantress, the only remaining girl who can sing magic into the world. Since she defeated the evil Lord Scargrave, England has changed—and not for the better. With crops failing and the people rebelling, Lucy is called urgently back to King Henry’s court. His Inner Council is convinced that making gold through alchemy will save England. But a critical element to the alchemical process has been stolen. Lucy is tasked with finding it with her magic…or else. And until she succeeds, the castle is on lockdown.

Montpellier in 1566 - only fools walk the streets at night unarmed while a profession of faith in the wrong company can lead to a knife in the back. Not even this proud city of philosophers is safe from the menaces that endanger the peace of France. The city militia are struggling to contend with the lawlessness and religious hatred that threaten to tear the whole country in two.

1586 : Le duc de Guise, surnommé le Balafré, contrôle la moitié de la France. Henri III n'est même plus le roi de Paris où la Ligue fait la loi, tandis que le huguenot Henri de Navarre conduit une guerre d'escarmouches dans l'ouest du royaume. Décidée à mettre un terme à cette guerre, Catherine de Médicis part rencontrer Navarre, héritier légitime selon la loi salique, pour le convaincre de se convertir. Mais est-ce la véritable raison de ce voyage ? Pourquoi a-t-elle choisi Michel de Montaigne, l'ami d'Henri de Navarre, comme messager ?

Florence, 1500. Fresco painter Jacopo Torni longs to make his mark in the world. But while his peers enjoy prestigious commissions, his meager painting jobs are all earmarked to pay down gambling debts. When Jacopo hears of a competition to create Florence's greatest sculpture, he pins all his hopes on a collaboration with his boyhood companion, Michelangelo Buonarroti. But will the frustrated artist ever emerge from the shadow of his singularly gifted friend?

1585. Après trente ans de guerre civile et le massacre de la Saint-Barthélemy (1572), la France est plus divisée que jamais. Trois Henri se disputent un trône à l'équilibre fragile. Henri III veut garder sa couronne, mais n'a pas d'héritier. Henri de Navarre, le protestant, tient à faire valoir ses droits, mais Henri de Guise, l'ultra-catholique, refuse de laisser un huguenot régner sur la France.

Elle Newmark's richly seductive prose brings to life the color and scandal of 15th-century Venice. Through Luciano, a street urchin apprenticed to a great chef in the palace of the doge, Newmark tells a wicked tale of political and papal intrigue. In Venice where every whisper is a secret or a lie, Luciano's initiation into the chef's spicy world makes for deliciously suspenseful listening.