Category Archives for Historical

Berlin, Germany 1932.

In a time of political unrest and strife, one man finds the courage to fight back…

Dr. Wilhelm “Q” Quedlin, chemical engineer and inventor, lives for his science. A woman is not in his plans—nor is it to be accused of industrial espionage.

But things get worse from there.

Watching Hitler’s rise to power spurns his desire to avoid yet another war that will completely destroy his beloved country. Q makes the conscious decision to fight against what he knows is wrong, even if working against the Nazis could mean certain death for him— and anyone he loves.

Hilde Dremmer has vowed to never love again. But after encountering Q, she wants to give love a second chance.

When Q discloses his resistance plan, it’s up to Hilde to choose between her protected life without him or the constant threat of torture if she supports him in his fight against injustice.

She has witnessed enough of the Nazi government’s violent acts to be appalled by the new political power, but will this be enough for an ordinary girl to do the extraordinary and stand beside the man she loves in a time of total desolation?

This World War II spy story is based on the true events of one couple’s struggle for happiness while battling a war against their own leaders.

This book is a must-read for everyone wondering how an entire nation could slide from democracy to totalitarian dictatorship ultimately killing millions of “undesirables” whose only crime was having a different faith, skin color or political opinion.

“P.B. Ryan makes a stunning debut with Still Life with Murder, bringing Nineteenth Century Boston alive, from its teeming slums to the mansions on Boston Common, and populating it with a vivid and memorable cast of characters. The fascinating heroine, Nell Sweeney, immediately engages the reader and I couldn’t put the book down until I discovered the truth along with her. I can’t wait for the next installment.”

—Bestselling author Victoria Thompson

Boston, 1868: The dawn of the Gilded Age, an era of burgeoning commerce and invention, of unimaginable new fortunes and lavish excess—for some. Born into dismal poverty, young Nell Sweeney scratches by on her wits and little else until fortune blesses her with a position as nursery governess to the fabulously wealthy Hewitts. But she soon learns that ugly secrets lurk beneath the surface of their gold-plated world.

The Hewitts’ eldest son, William, a former Union Army battle surgeon and the black sheep of the family, was reported to have died three years before in a notorious Confederate prison camp. But one snowy February afternoon, his parents learn that he is, in fact, still alive—and in jail for having murdered a man while intoxicated on opium. Infuriated by his son’s deception and convinced of his guilt, August Hewitt forbids his wife from coming to Will’s aid, so she begs Nell to help exonerate him. Nell finds that she must delve into the kind of dark and treacherous underworld she thought she’d left far behind if she is to unearth the truth before the hangman’s noose tightens around William Hewitt’s throat.

Originally published by Berkley Prime Crime

“What a thoroughly charming book! A beautiful combination of entertaining characters, minute historical research, and a powerful evocation of time and place. I’m very glad there will be more to come.”

—New York Times bestselling author Barbara Hambly

“P.B. Ryan captures an authentic flavor of post-Civil War Boston as she explores that city’s dark underbelly and the lingering after-effects of the war. The atmosphere is that of The Alienist, but feisty Irish nursemaid Nell Sweeney is a more likable protagonist. I look forward to seeing her in action again.”

—New York Times bestselling author Rhys Bowen

“Still Life with Murder is a skillfully written story of intrigue and murder set during Boston’s famous Gilded Age. Nell Sweeney, governess and part-time nurse, is a winning heroine gifted with common sense, grit, and an underlying poignancy. With its rich sense of place and time and a crisp, intelligent plot, readers will speed through this tale and be clamoring for more.”

—Bestselling author Earlene Fowler

“Utterly absorbing. Vividly alive characters in a setting so clearly portrayed that one could step right into it. A very clever plot in which each clue is clearly offered and yet the identity of the murderer is a complete surprise. I look forward to many more books…”

—Bestselling author Roberta Gellis

“If you like fast moving, accurately drawn, historical mysteries, you won’t go wrong by trying Still Life with Murder.”

—Reviewing the Evidence

“This debut mystery is a winner, with a feisty heroine, a colorful historical backdrop and a strong mystery rife with complexities. An ideal blend of history and mystery.”

—RT BookReviews

“Still Life with Murder is sheer perfection… gripping… powerful… unforgettable… You’ll know you’ve read one hell of a story after you turn the last page!”

—Reader to Reader Reviews

About the Author: Patricia Ryan, a.k.a. P.B. Ryan, is the USA Today bestselling author of more than two dozen novels, including the #1 national bestseller Still Life with Murder. Pat’s books have garnered rave reviews and been published in over twenty countries.

It is 1911, and Jean is about to join the mass strike at the Singer factory. For her, nothing will be the same again.

Decades later, in Edinburgh, Connie sews coded moments of her life into a notebook, as her mother did before her.

More than 100 years after his grandmother’s sewing machine was made, Fred discovers a treasure trove of documents. His family history is laid out before him in a patchwork of unfamiliar handwriting and colourful seams.

He starts to unpick the secrets of four generations, one stitch at a time.

A man ready to put the past behind him, a widow struggling to find a future, a boy in need of a father… and a small town where nothing stays secret.

Tressa Danell is finished with men—from the wastrel who left her a widow, to the smelly trapper who keeps proposing, to the banker who wants to repossess her bakery. She spends every hour working to pay off her late husband’s debt and keep a roof over her son’s head, though it’s doubtful she can continue to do both for very long. But one thing’s certain—she’ll never be beholden to a man again.

Lighthouse keeper Mac Oakton has long dreamed of leaving Eagle Harbor and running a shipyard in a place where no one knows his family’s past. He’s tired of living in a small town where actions his father committed ten years ago still haunt him. So why does the pretty widow at the bakery keep tugging at his heart? He can’t get involved in her predicament when he’ll only be around for two more weeks.

But when Tressa’s burdens overwhelm her, they both face a decision. Can Mac find a way to help Tressa without giving up his dream of leaving town? And will Tressa accept his support if doing so means being obligated to a man again?

Love’s Unfading Light is the first book in the Eagle Harbor Series by Naomi Rawlings. If you like heartwarming stories and characters that feel like your best friend, you’ll love this tender tale of hope restored.

Grab a copy of Love’s Unfading Light and immerse yourself in the bestselling Eagle Harbor Series today!

“A fabulous story and the start to a wonderful series.” Roseanna M. White, Author of The Lost Heiress.
“Excellent Christian romance that kept me anxious to keep reading!” Amazon Reviewer

The Eagle Harbor Series–Where Love Finds Its Anchor
Book 1: Love’s Unfading Light (Mac and Tressa)
Book 2: Love’s Every Whisper (Elijah and Victoria)
Short Story: Love’s Beginning (Elijah and Victoria)
Book 3: Love’s Sure Dawn (Gilbert and Rebekah)
Book 4: Love’s Eternal Breath (Seth and Lindy)
Book 5: Love’s Winter Hope (Thomas and Jessalyn)
Book 6: Love’s Bright Tomorrow (Isaac and Aileen)

A delightful page-turner.

London, 1883. How did an actress die twice?

Actress Lizzie Dixie drowned in the River Thames, so how was she murdered five years later in Highgate Cemetery?

Intrepid Fleet Street reporter Penny Green was a friend of Lizzie’s and Scotland Yard needs her help. Does Penny unwittingly hold clues to Lizzie’s mysterious death? Penny must work with Inspector James Blakely to investigate the worlds of theatre, showmen and politicians in search of the truth.

But who is following her? And who is sending her threatening letters?

Penny is about to discover that Lizzie’s life was more complicated, and dangerous, than she could ever have imagined.

Read Limelight today and discover this entertaining Victorian mystery series.

What readers say about Penny Green:

★★★★★ “A Victorian Delight!”
★★★★★ “Good clean mystery in an enjoyable historical setting”
★★★★★ “If you are unfamiliar with the Penny Green Series, acquaint yourselves immediately!”
★★★★★ “Interesting, complex, believable characters”
★★★★★ “I found myself enthralled by Penny Green”
★★★★★ “An outstanding female lead character”
★★★★★ “I was engrossed from beginning to end”
★★★★★ “If you like Agatha Christie books you are going to like this one”
★★★★★ “I have found Ms. Organ’s story telling to be flawlessly entertaining!”
★★★★★ “Very strong mystery set in a very interesting time and place”
★★★★★ “Ms. Organ draws you into Penny’s world with her delicious descriptions and masterful story telling”
★★★★★ “I am very pleased with how this series is becoming one of my favorites!”
★★★★★ “Read the books in this series…. guarantee you won’t be disappointed!”
★★★★★ “A great read with a real twist at the end. Emily just gets better and better with this series.”

Limelight is available in digital, paperback and audiobook format and is Book 1 in the Penny Green Mystery Series set in 1880s London. The books can be read in any order:

Book 1 – Limelight
Book 2 – The Rookery
Book 3 – The Maid’s Secret
Book 4 – The Inventor
Book 5 – Curse of the Poppy

For fans of “The Nightingale” and “All The Light We Cannot See”

“The Lyon Affair” – book two in ‘The Indigo Rebels’ series

A late diplomat’s son with a brilliant mind;
A Catholic priest with a dark past;
A young woman scorned by her fellow countrymen for her German heritage;
A young man who has just escaped the clutches of the ruthless Gestapo.
A tentative partnership created to fight against the common enemy, where the secrets of their pasts lead to disaster, and a betrayal of one may become a death sentence to all.

An unlikely hero…
A cunning villain…

One Resistance cell.
One traitor in their midst.

When the Gestapo is closing in, and there’s nowhere else to run, one will make a decision that could change everything.

A riveting French Resistance novel.

In 1283, a great war is brewing in Germany over the succession of the Duchy of Limburg. The Luxembourgs and the Brabants are locked in a power-struggle in an era when the German Dukes and Counts settled their scores in a battlefield, and any family might grasp the crown of Germany. Konrad, a minor knight in the service of the Luxembourgs loses his wife to a mysterious killer. Despairing, he commits his sword to war, and soul to the devil. Working for Adolf of Berg, the killer and Konrad are locked in a game for the devil, and their struggle might even determine which great house wins the war. Setting his men against mighty Adolf of Berg and his sinister servants, Konrad must choose between the devil’s favor and the love of a virtuous woman.

Will Konrad defeat Adolf and his servants with devil’s help, or will he find serving his lord and new love is enough of a reason to break his oaths to the Old Serpent?

The Wolf and the Lion is the first book in a brutal historical action and adventure fiction series set in the Medieval Europe and Germany.

Pratt Davies is a police detective with the Saint Louis PD. He’s comfortable in his role…confident that he’s seen just about everything there is to see.

Until he and his partner answer a call to enter a home where blood curdling screams speak of horrific violence.

Inside the disturbing house, he encounters a strange, icy mist and something malevolent waiting just beyond view. Pratt’s confidence is shaken, his worldview smashed into tiny pieces…like shards of glass from a broken mirror.

His partner comes out of that house damaged, both physically and mentally, unable to even form a coherent response.

Pratt is so shaken he can barely function.

And he still has a murder to solve.

Who killed the couple living in that terrible house? What haunted the mist obscuring the scene? How did Pratt’s partner end up bleeding and babbling on the floor, something evil oozing through her gaze?

And how is Pratt…broken and terrified himself…ever going to solve a murder that has every indication of having been born in the ether?

“Blackbeard: The Birth of America” is the true story of Edward Thache—former British Navy seaman and notorious privateer-turned-pirate, who lorded over the Atlantic seaboard and Caribbean during the Golden Age of Piracy. A Robin-Hood-like American patriot and the most famous freebooter of all time, Blackbeard was illegally hunted down by Virginia Governor Alexander Spotswood, the British Crown’s man in Williamsburg obsessed with his capture. Based on reliable historical records and the latest research, this adventure tale illuminates the true man behind the myth and his doggedly determined pursuer, revealing a cat-and-mouse game and important historical figure lost to us in a “fog of legend, myth and propaganda” for three hundred years. A folk hero in his own lifetime, Blackbeard exploded onto the scene during the birth of America and was one of the first American revolutionaries in the War of Independence against British rule.

“I thought my parents were killed when two runaway packhorses threw off their loads at the Ebonson Carrying Company…I was wrong.”

Queen Victoria ascends the throne in 1837 and heralds in a new era of prosperity for the British Empire. Whilst the great Norlong and Ebonson families fly the flag for the British Empire, Edward Urwin spends his time scratching pieces of art into the cobblestones of Birmingham.

Life is straightforward for Edward until a strange old man approaches him in the street. With the help of Henry Beechworth, Edward learns to read and use his special talents to win a place at St. John’s Boarding School.

But it isn’t all down to good fortune. Edward doesn’t realise he’s under control of forces far more powerful than him. Forces that are determined to shape him in their image. Forces that are determined to bury the mystery of the demise of the Urwin family for good…