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Posts tagged with ‘Historical Fiction’

DOC, by Mary Doria Russell

June 16, 2011

SPRAWLING BIOGRAPHICAL NOVEL centers on gentleman gambler, gunslinger Doc Holliday; Wyatt Earp steals the book.

Grade: SOLID B

DOC
Random House
2011

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A LESSON IN SECRETS, by Jacqueline Winspear

May 27, 2011

THE BEST MAISIE DOBBS mystery yet finds the English sleuth facing the fallout of 1932’s international tensions.

Grade: B PLUS

A LESSON IN SECRETS: A MAISIE DOBBS MYSTERY
HarperCollins
2011

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DEATH IN A SCARLET COAT, by David Dickinson

April 15, 2011

ENJOYABLE EDWARDIAN WHODUNNIT features an aristocratic detective, a dead foxhunting Earl, and a juicy mystery.

Grade: SOLID B

DEATH IN A SCARLET COAT
Soho/Constable
2011

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HEARTSTONE, by C. J. Sansom

April 12, 2011

GRAND TUDOR EPIC is also a tightly plotted mystery/thriller, and sheer page-turning delight for history buffs!

Grade: B PLUS

HEARTSTONE
Viking
2011

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THE LAST BROTHER, by Nathacha Appanah

March 29, 2011

LUMINOUS MEDITATION on love and loss, war and peace, traces friendship of a Mauritian boy and a Holocaust exile.

Grade: B PLUS

The Last Brother
Graywolf Press
2010

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A LONELY DEATH, by Charles Todd

March 28, 2011

THE PAST IS PRESENT in an atmospheric mystery featuring an English detective literally haunted by World War I.

Grade: SOLID B

A LONELY DEATH
HarperCollins
2011

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THE METROPOLIS CASE, by Matthew Gallaway

March 25, 2011

THE GREAT AMERICAN Opera Novel is sprawling, sensual, erudite, campy, and not for everyone–just like opera!

Grade: B PLUS

THE METROPOLIS CASE
Crown
2010

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WORLD’S GREATEST SLEUTH, by Steve Hockensmith

March 22, 2011

YEE-HAW! THE HOLMES on the Range boys vs. rival detectives at Chicago’s 1893 Exposition. Lots of thrills here!

Grade: A MINUS

WORLD'S GREATEST SLEUTH! A HOLMES ON THE RANGE MYSTERY
St. Martin's/Minotaur
2011

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INDIA BLACK, by Carol K. Carr

March 19, 2011

ROLLICKING HISTORICAL MYSTERY adds a salty madam of a heroine to the usual Victorian intrigue.

Grade: SOLID B

INDIA BLACK
Penguin/Berkley
2011

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THE TUDOR SECRET, by C. W. Gortner

March 2, 2011

TUDOR COURT INTRIGUE swirls as a conflicted young hero makes his way in the world. Nothing new here, but fun!

Grade: B PLUS

THE TUDOR SECRET
St. Martin's/Griffin
2011

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