Historical Fiction Science History

During one of the earliest blockade actions of the Civil War, Sergeant Alexander Philips of the United States Marine Corps witnesses an unspeakable horror. With no explanation, he finds himself in charge of a group of hotheads and misfits in a strange, unorthodox unit. His new commander is the enigmatic Lieutenant Addison Green, who knows nothing about the military, but a great deal about something else entirely. He comes bearing a collection of weapons geared toward fighting something other than Confederates.

Gita Trelease's Everything That Burns is the transporting sequel to All That Glitter, hailed by NPR as a “soaring success”! Camille Durbonne gambled everything she had to keep herself and her sister safe. But as the people of Paris starve and mobs riot, safety may no longer be possible....

Three-time Hugo Award-winning author Allen Steele now imagines an alternate history rooted in an actual historical possibility: what if the race to space had occurred in the early days of WWII? It's 1941, and Wernher von Braun is ordered by his Fuehrer to abandon the V2 rocket and turn German resources in a daring new direction: construction of a manned orbital spacecraft capable of attacking the U.S. Work on the rocket - called Silbervogel - begins at Peenemunde. Though it is top secret, British intelligence discovers the plan, and brings word to Franklin Roosevelt.

This stunning novel tells the true story of the woman behind one of the world’s greatest artists, Vincent Van Gogh. In 1890, Vincent Van Gogh dies penniless, unknown, a man tortured by his own mind. Eleven years later his work is exhibited in Paris and his unparalleled talent finally recognised. The tireless efforts of one woman gave the world one of its greatest creative minds. But twenty-eight-year-old Johanna Van Gogh-Bonger, Vincent’s sister-in-law and the keeper of his immense collection of paintings, sketches and letters, has, until now, been written out of history.

Watson spends half his wound pension on the turf and his gambling addiction renders him unable even to pay his half share of the rent of the rooms at Baker Street. But when one of his rare bursts of prosperity enables him to buy two strikingly good pictures from a pawnbroker, Mycroft Holmes takes a remarkable interest. And what is the meaning of the little rhyme that runs round the canvas of the painting.

It is a matter of historical record that in 1823 the Handel and Haydn Society of Boston (active to this day) sought to commission Beethoven to write an oratorio. The premise of Paul Griffiths' ingenious and delightful novel is that Beethoven accepted the commission and traveled to the United States to oversee the first performance of the work.

The Royal Sorceress, Lady Gwendolyn Crichton, will be responsible for the Empire's magical resources when the time comes. Still struggling to overcome prejudice within the Royal College of Sorcerers, she has at least earned the gratitude of much of the aristocracy, if not their respect. Just when Gwen needs to be firmly focussed on training new sorcerers, her adopted daughter Olivia, the only known living necromancer, is kidnapped.

Three years after taking up residence at the University of Din Edin, Sophie and Gray return to London, escorting Lucia MacNeill, heiress of Alba, to meet the British prince to whom she is betrothed. Alas, sparks fail to fly between the pragmatic Lucia and the romantic Prince Roland, and the marriage alliance seems to be on shaky ground. Sophie tries to spark a connection between Roland and Lucia by enlisting them both in her latest scheme: reopening the mysterious and long-shuttered women's college at Oxford.

The war had taken everything from Lina Sucherin - her parents, sisters, a fledgling romance...even her faith in herself and her psychic abilities. All of it ripped away with the fall of the Third Reich and the brutal Soviet sack of Berlin. Three years later, amid the suspicion, paranoia, and fledgling brutality of communist East Germany, danger threatens the only people Lina cares about, forcing her to overcome her lingering self-doubt.

The year is 1893, and war is brewing in the First American Kingdom. But Claire Emerson has a bigger problem. Claire’s father is a sought-after inventor, but he believes his genius is a gift granted to him by his daughter’s touch, so he keeps Claire under his control. As their province prepares for war, Claire plans to escape, even as her best friend, Beatrix, tries to convince her to stay and help with the growing resistance movement that wants to see a woman on the throne.

Two young witches, once inseparable, are set at odds by secrets and wildly dangerous magic.

King Charles III, having barely escaped London with his life, finds refuge at Fletcher Manor, where he encounters Danielle Walker and Claire Evans. Danielle is a brilliant engineer with a talent for crafting incredible, steam-powered machines, including the "Dart," a small, steam-powered airship, and the formidable "Gallopers," steam-powered walkers that instill fear in the hearts of enemies. Claire, a skilled spy and strategist, brings her expertise to the fight. With their combined talents and the loyalty of the people of Derby, King Charles must reclaim his throne from the clutches of ...

A young Yale academic is summoned to Ireland to claim the contents of her grandfather's safe-deposit box, in which she finds only one thing: a nonfiction manuscript by James Bond author Ian Fleming. The manuscript, detailing Fleming's own involvement in British espionage during World War II, contains evidence that the Duke of Windsor was in a treasonous plot with Hitler, information so confidential that people are willing to kill to continue its secrecy.

A certain pen, a certain book, and a certain person can craft entirely new worlds through a branch of science called scriptology. Elsa comes from one such world that was written into creation, where her mother—a noted scriptologist—constantly alters and expands their reality. But when her home is attacked and her mother kidnapped, Elsa is forced to cross into the real world and use her own scriptology gifts to find her. In an alternative Victorian Italy, Elsa finds a secret society of young scientists with a gift for mechanics, alchemy, or scriptology.

From an acclaimed classicist comes a witty, unusual, and fascinating "biography" of Homer's fictional Bronze Age hero, Odysseus. In this entertaining book, Charles Beye fills out the story of this extraordinary figure while at the same time portraying Odysseus' evolution through the course of a strange and adventuresome life, at times so remote, at times so immediate in the contemporary perspective.

Brittany, 1821. After Grand-mere Ursule gives her life to save her family, their magic seems to die with her. Even so, the Orchires fight to keep the old ways alive, practising half-remembered spells and arcane rites in hopes of a revival. And when their youngest daughter comes of age, magic flows anew. The lineage continues, though new generations struggle not only to master their power, but also to keep it hidden. But when World War II looms on the horizon, magic is needed more urgently than ever - not for simple potions or visions, but to change the entire course of history.

Evinn Eaglefriend’s boyhood was filled with stories of the free eagles that used to roam peacefully behind his people’s citadel, of Roftome the Untamable, whose fiercely sought allegiance had only been given to one man. Now, at 16, near the end of rigorous battle training that had once turned youths of the realm into Eaglemasters, he regards these accounts as little more than fanciful children’s tales. There are no free eagles, only Pyrnaq, the rattle of their chains a prelude to the blood they shed, their screams icy with insatiable wrath.

Mina and her allies have destroyed Vlad Draculesti, but the human world is still in danger from his vampire allies. From Berlin to Paris, major European cities have begun to fall to their followers. To spare humanity from the grip of looming darkness, Mina must defeat one of the most powerful vampires in the world....

In the hallowed halls of Oxford’s Merlin College, the most talented - and highest born - sons of the Kingdom of Britain are taught the intricacies of magickal theory. But what dazzles can also destroy, as Gray Marshall is about to discover.… Gray’s deep talent for magick has won him a place at Merlin College. But when he accompanies four fellow students on a mysterious midnight errand that ends in disaster and death, he is sent away in disgrace - and without a trace of his power.

The War Between the States is synonymous with romance, tragedy, bravery, and lost causes. The terrible war nearly tore the nation apart. The United States survived, though at a terrible cost. Today, more than 150 years after the end of the Civil War, people are still fascinated by this pivotal point in history. Writers, too, find this a fruitful period to investigate. In Civil War Fantastic, some of science fiction’s finest writers take us back to this turbulent time with their own special visions of what might have been.