Showing results for "Crescent" in Historical Fiction

Following the untimely death of their parents, Anne, Beatrix, and Violet Quigley have made a business of threading together the stories that lie at the bottom of their customers' teacups. Days at their teashop are filled with fortune-telling intertwined with the sound of clinking china and the scent of cinnamon shortbread. When the Council of Witches comes calling with news that the city Diviner has lost her powers, the sisters suddenly find themselves being pulled in different directions.

Hamou Badi is born in a mountain village with the magical signs of the zouhry on his hands. In Morocco, the zouhry is a figure of legend, a child of both humans and djinns, capable of finding all manner of treasure: lost objects, hidden water. But instead, Hamou finds a body. This unsolved murder instils in Hamou a deep desire for order and justice: he trains as an officer of the law, working for the French in Casablanca. But the city is trapped in the turmoil of the nationalist uprising, and soon he will be forced to choose between all he knows and all he loves...

Half-Iraqi, half-American Sirine is a cook at Nadia's Cafe, which draws the neighborhood's Arab students, expatriates, and exiles. All are hungry for "real true Arab food" and connection to their homes. One is Hanif Al Eyad, a new hire in the Near Eastern Studies Department at the university who fled Iraq as a young man. Sirine and Han fall in love over food: a baklava they make together, delicate lamb dishes, hummus glistening with olive oil....

It is 1541, and the crown of Hungary is up for grabs. King John, seeing that the Austrians are attacking with an innumerable force, petitions the Turks for assistance. King John then dies, leaving an infant son. While the Turkish army is en route, the Hungarians rally their forces, and beat back the Austrians themselves. Then, just as the Austrians are beating their final retreat, the main Turkish army arrives at the castle in Buda. And among their number is the sultan himself.

Yorkshire, 1878. Young, ambitious and in love, Albert Cowgill’s life is finally beginning in earnest. At just 23, he has already been made partner at Haigh, Ackroyd & Cowgill – the best wool business in the city. He’s also just laid eyes on the prettiest girl he ever saw, Hannah Ackroyd. Romance soon blossoms for Albert and Hannah, and they marry and set up home in Scarborough. But before long, clouds gather over Number 1, Byland Crescent. Within a year, Albert’s family begins to disintegrate.

Emilia is reeling from the shocking discovery that her twin sister, Vittoria, is alive. But before she faces the demons of her past, Emilia yearns to claim her king, the seductive Prince of Wrath, in the flesh. Emilia doesn't simply desire his body, she wants his heart and soul—but that's something the enigmatic demon can't promise her. When a high-ranking member of House Greed is assassinated, Emilia and Wrath are drawn to the rival demon court.

Reminiscing over times gone by at Number 1 Byland Crescent, Jenny Cowgill takes a break from her baking to sit and enjoy the long-awaited postcard from Spain from her son, Andrew. But she is soon disturbed by a knock at the door. The policeman says a member of the Cowgill family has suffered a serious accident in London and her husband Mark must go at once. It’s Mark’s estranged sister Lizzie. Lizzie’s accident leaves her with life-changing injuries. Her career is over. Now perhaps she will finally come home to reconcile with the family in Scarborough?

Yorkshire, 1923. Sonny Cowgill is slowly regaining his memory. He was declared missing in action in the First World War, presumed dead. But Sonny’s beloved wife Rachel found him and brought him home. As he rebuilds his relationship with his wife and learns how to be a father to the son he never knew he had, memories begin to resurface. Sonny remembers something that the Cowgill family thought lost forever – the whereabouts of his eldest brother.

Yorkshire, 1946. At last, Sonny and Rachel Cowgill hear the news they’ve been so desperate for. Their son Mark, who was injured in the very last days of the fighting, will make it home in time for Christmas. But their youngest son Billy has not been so lucky. He was declared missing in action in Crete and is presumed dead. Sonny and Rachel are learning to give up hope of seeing him again. Meanwhile, in Australia, Luke Fisher returns from the German prisoner of war camp where he was interned. His beloved fiancée Isabella Finnegan is waiting for him. But all is not well.

Desensitized and detached from the worldly goods that fall before her, Mai finds herself in a position of great fortune and opportunity being raised as the only child in the respected Zhang family. Steeped in riches, Mai finds it all too much to sacrifice her morality for the life of luxury. The sudden disappearance of her beloved grandfather, the constant presence of the Win Chun family and the ever growing threat of the Shadow Government conjures a story of eternal panic, mistrust and revenge as Mai begins to piece together her family’s true history.

The Balkans, 1371. After conquering the Serbian army in battle, bands of Ottoman warriors terrorize the land, leaving a trail of death and destruction in their wake. As one of the few survivors of a deadly attack on her village, Magdalena is determined to protect her newly orphaned niece. When a group of battle-weary Serb warriors offers to lead Magdalena and her charge to safety, a flame of hope flickers to life for the desperate woman, burning brighter when she spots a familiar face among the group: Miladin, the man she once loved—and lost.

The Balkans, 1383. A sudden conflict between Serbs and Greeks has forced Ivan to join his brother and fight with the Serbian army. On the battlefield, Ivan is wounded and captured by the hostile Greeks, and he soon becomes a hostage to be used as a pawn in a deadly bid for power. Helena, a Greek midwife, is tasked to care for Ivan, a request that will test not only her healing abilities but also her loyalty. Though war has made her reluctant patient an enemy, she can’t help but forge a connection with him, yet falling in love with him could turn her world upside down and brand her a traitor.

A betrothal to Suzana, the daughter of a prosperous merchant, is soon arranged, and upon meeting her, Konstantin immediately feels hope that their marriage could someday grow into love. Yet, from the moment of Konstantin and Suzana’s betrothal, enemies threaten their lives, outlaws prey on their lands, and the terrors of Suzana’s abusive past haunt their fragile new relationship. As this onslaught of threats closes in, the two face challenges that will test their love, their faith, and their hope to save their people and win their freedom from the heavy weight of Ottoman oppression.

The sorceress Narena has done many things for Leisos - advised the king, helped heal a young girl and sent a prince forward in time to save his life. Now, to protect her people, she may have to sacrifice herself, her lover, her child. Maybe even all three. She hunts for the one who threatens the royal family and the throne of Leisos. And also seeks the daughter taken from her at birth. There’s only one problem. They might be one and the same. What she finds on her quest is love and hate, loyalty and betrayal, and a revelation that will change her life forever.

Writing under a man's name, Josephine Breaux is the finest reporter at Washington's Morning Clarion. Using her wit and charm, she never fails to get the scoop on the latest Union and Confederate activities. But when a rival paper reveals her true identity, accusations of treason fly. Despite her claims of loyalty to the Union, she is arrested as a spy and traitor.

Cross and Crescent continues the story of the Empire of Byzantium, once the center of the world. After centuries of power, the Imperial Throne is in danger. The citizens of that great nation must play a dangerous game to save their land, from infidel and barbarian Christian both - and the things done in God's name may condemn an entire generation.

2005. The greatest natural disaster in American history is fast approaching New Orleans. Friend, family, stranger, and foe alike will meet their fates as a killer named Katrina tries to drown the Gulf Coast. Who will live and who will not? The survivors must pick up the pieces of their shattered lives. Can the kindness of strangers make up for the bureaucratic bumbling of government officials? Will those left in the Crescent City ever find normalcy again?

2004. Five years after the scandals of their college days, our heroines have settled down in New Orleans. Some are looking for love, some are searching for reconciliation, and others are trying to save their relationships. Happiness, heartache, and new friends are in the cards. Meanwhile, threats from the past are still lurking. And a monster appears on the horizon. With greater maturity come greater challenges, and the three friends learn it takes courage to seize happiness, especially in a place as magical and dangerous as the Crescent City.

The year is 1998. This story is about three friends: Elizabeth, a Cajun from the swamps; Emma, an uptown Jew; and Marianne, a Mississippi girl. These ladies will have a year that will change their lives. They will meet the men who love them and the men who will break their hearts. It will be a time of love and friendship, trials and tribulations, tragedy and murder.

The Sisters of the Crescent Empress is the second book in Leena Likitalo's Waning Moon Duology, a fabulous historical fantasy based on the lives of the Romanov sisters. We all think we know how the story ends...with the Crescent Empress dead, a civil war has torn the empire asunder. No one seems able to stop the ruthless Gagargi Prataslav. The five Daughters of the Moon are where he wants them to be, held captive in an isolated house in the far north.