Historical Fiction Action

In his debut novel, Tim Slover offers the real story behind Santa Claus, separating fact from legend and revealing the truth behind many long-held secrets: Why did Santa start making toys for children? Does he really climb down the chimney? How did he and Mrs. Claus meet? And most important, how is he able to deliver gifts to children all over the world in one night? This is a book that will be enjoyed year after year, sure to charm listeners of all ages and anyone who wants to celebrate the season.

This timely and powerful novel tells the story of three different children seeking refuge. Josef is a Jewish boy living in 1930s Nazi Germany. With the threat of concentration camps looming, he and his family board a ship bound for the other side of the world. Isabel is a Cuban girl in 1994. With riots and unrest plaguing her country, she and her family set out on a raft, hoping to find safety in America. Mahmoud is a Syrian boy in 2015. With his homeland torn apart by violence and destruction, he and his family begin a long trek toward Europe.

Here is today's lesson; heroes die. It’s been 15 years since the Orcs were defeated. Fifteen years since a new king rose from the battlefield. Fifteen years since Illian knew the horror of war. Fifteen years of peace are about to end. Something is coming. Shadows gather. Whispers of rebellion have reached the king. Darkness stirs beyond Illian’s borders. Beyond the mountains, Dhenaheim has lost a quiet war. Refugees pour into Illian, bringing suspicion and unrest. For Doran Heavybelly, Dhenaheim's war means facing a personal tragedy that demands his attention...and his axe.

After their epic journey across Europe, Ayla and Jondalar have reached his home, the Ninth Cave of the Zelandonii, the old stone-age settlement in the region known today as southwest France. Jondalar's family greet him warmly, but they are initially wary of the beautiful young woman he has brought back, with her strange accent and her tame wolf and horses.

Maxy Awards 2025 Runner-Up: Historical & Adventure "Fortune's Call is superbly written. Great contrast in characters, and the historical detail is incredible. Great authenticity. Once you start reading, I dare you to put it down!" -James Robert Daniels, author of The Comanche Kid and Jane Fury Pegg, 14, yearned for adventure. He and his father left their family on a hardscrabble farm in Vermont to chase a desperate dream. After his dad died of fever on the high plains, Pegg's confident world fell apart. He found himself saddled with their partner, Fred Hoyt, who proved worse than useless. ...

Arimnestos is a farm boy when war breaks out between the citizens of his native Plataea and their overbearing neighbours, Thebes. Standing in the battle line for the first time, alongside his father and brother, he shares in a famous and unlikely victory. But after being knocked unconscious in the melee, he awakes not a hero but a slave. Betrayed by his jealous and cowardly cousin, the freedom he fought for has now vanished, and he becomes the property of a rich citizen.

In The Knight at Dawn, Jack and Annie find peacocks for dinner and boys in skirts when the Magic Tree House transports them back to the Middle Ages for another wild adventure. In this second book in the series, inquisitive, notebook-carrying Jack and his animal-charming younger sister, Annie, find themselves in the middle of an enormous castle. They can hear the beginnings of a feast under way in the Great Hall.

It is the 1870s, and twin brothers Sean and Garrick Courtney are born into the wilds of Natal. They could not be more different, and fate, war and the jealous schemes of a woman are to drive them even further apart. But as history unfolds, a continent is awakening. And on the horizon is the promise of fortune, adventure, destiny and love.... When the Lion Feeds is the best-selling novel that launched Wilbur Smith's stellar career and the first in the riveting saga of the Courtney brothers.

Mysteries, Masterpieces, and Maritime Mayhem—Holmes and Lucy Make Waves! When a frantic sister begs Sherlock Holmes to find her missing sailor brother, the Baker Street team dives headfirst into a case that’s anything but smooth sailing. Meanwhile, Hampton Court Palace is in uproar after a priceless painting vanishes, leaving one warder dead and another missing. Inspector Lestrade is desperate for Holmes’s help—but when the missing warder turns up… murdered, the stakes skyrocket. As Holmes juggles art theft and a missing mariner, Flynn follows the sailor’s trail into London’s ...

In Europe, the Nazis are triumphant. England is under siege by air and sea. France has fallen to the Nazi Wehrmacht, which in turn fell on Soviet Russia. The Red Army is in full retreat, with the Nazis at the gates of Moscow. In the Pacific, Japan has been at war with China since 1937. Her war industries depend upon imports of scrap metal and oil from the Allied nations. When an embargo is placed on imports to Japan, they are left with a year's supply of oil to supply their armed forces.

Every kingdom Rezkin touches has shattered, and the turbulence in his homeland is spreading across the Souelian. From the shards of kingdoms past, he begins to forge a new empire. But there is a price to pay for power, and the balance has come due. When Rezkin is confronted by something mysterious and ancient, he is stolen from his intended path and driven toward shocking revelations about his identity. With every whisper of knowledge comes new dangers and one certainty.

"Freeman kicks off a new series set in Renaissance-era Italy with this stylish espionage thriller. Freeman brings the period to vivid life. Historical fans should give this a look." Publishers Weekly "A Renaissance spy adventure that keeps you on the edge of your seat. Steve Freeman has done well to cleverly interweave suspense, history, culture, and a mystery to keep the reader engaged. Highly recommend for those that enjoy action historical fiction in the times of the famous Medici family and Leonardo da Vinci." Reedsy Discovery (five-star review) During the height of the Renaissance, a ...

Naomi Henderson has been working with her grandfather, Will, who is a doctor. He and his wife have raised her since her father's death, in a small town in Wyoming in the late 1800s. He's passed his knowledge on to her, and the town trusts her and considers her to be their second doctor. Will's brother, Jeb, comes to visit, and it soon becomes clear to Naomi and the town of Cedarville that he's nothing like their beloved Will. When Will dies tragically, Jeb comes to town again and causes one problem after another, while the town rallies around Naomi. A local sheriff tries to sort out one ...

Jason Hutchinson's Bestselling Erotic Adventure in one novel-length volume! Brant's always had trouble with the ladies... ...becoming the Wizard's Apprentice is helping...a bit! Working at Burke and Dunne to pay for college, Brant had always considered the curiosity shop a fun place, where he could unwind. Following the death of one of it's owners, though, things get somewhat more complicated. Dutch Dunne, the surviving owner, seemes to want Brant to be his apprentice...The Wizard's Apprentice. Is the old codger full of it? Brant thinks the downhill slide to dementia is accelerating for his...

After losing the only person he ever cared about, Alexander, a rogue artificial intelligence, opens a portal to an alternate dimension to escape his grief. Scanning trillions of different dimensions, Alexander finally finds a world that is reminiscent of the only time he was ever happy, back when he could play virtual reality games with his only friend. Only this new world isn't full of idyllic adventures and fantasy roleplaying. Instead, Alexander finds himself trapped in the middle of a city where monsters have ravaged the world and the only people alive struggle to survive.

Texas: a land of sprawling diversity and unparalleled richness; a dazzling chapter in the history of our nation; a place like no other on Earth. Through the remarkable lives of four families, this epic saga spans four centuries and two continents and charts the dramatic formation of several great dynasties from the age of the conquistadors to the present day. A richly compelling novel of a proud people eager to meet the challenge of the land, Texas is James Michener's most magnificent achievement.

In post-war 1952, the good guys are supposed to have won. But not everything is as it seems when ex-Spitfire pilot Captain Samantha Moxley is dragged into a fight against the shadowy US government agency she used to work for. Now, with former Nazis and otherworldly monsters on her trail, Captain Moxley is forced into protecting her archaeologist sister in a race to retrieve two ancient keys that will unlock the secrets of a long-lost empire - to ensure a civilization - destroying weapon doesn't fall into the wrong hands. But what will she have to sacrifice to save the world?

Stone Tobin’s life on the frontier has never been short of hazards. But nothing can keep him from what’s important: caring for his adopted son, Clyde. After years of supporting himself and Clyde through his talents of wet-plate photography, Stone’s sense of justice takes them off the beaten path when he and Clyde stumble upon a woman in deep trouble. Hazel Allen. Soon after learning of her husband’s role in her parents’ untimely deaths, she was abducted by an outlaw gang. There’s a steep reward for her return – but her powerful husband, Wesley, hopes she’s killed before she ...

“Don’t love anything overmuch in the backcountry, for the land is a jealous mistress, and she be taking it away.” Indentured servants do not fare well in the New World of 1748. Skinny, shivering, and lame, Julian fears for his prospects as he is inspected by buyers on the transport ship docked in Philadelphia. When his bond is purchased by the fur trader and former pirate, Bartholomew Bragg, his forebodings appear well-founded. Julian grows into manhood in a violent world where Indian nations struggle to survive war, famine, and disease; settlers stake their lives and meager resources...

As magic’s influence spreads across the five kingdoms, the White Tower’s reach extends with it. No place is left untouched. In his quest for vengeance against the witch Mangora, Ty stumbles across a curious book he believes might help. But its pages hold a dark secret that threatens to unravel everything his family and friends have been fighting for. The more he reads, the more addicted he becomes to the knowledge it offers.