Showing titles in Historical Fiction

London, 1665. Fourteen-year-old Christopher Rowe is apprenticed to master apothecary Benedict Blackthorn. In Blackthorn's shop, Christopher learns the delicate secrets of transforming simple ingredients into powerful medicines, potions and weapons. His beloved master guides him with a firm, steady hand - instilling him with confidence and independence that prove increasingly vital as Christopher learns of a mysterious cult preying on the most learned men in London.

In the wake of a tempest hitting her town, Morwenna is left to take care of a stranger washed ashore. The storm is just another of many that have plagued the town for years – people blame the tide singers, legendary sea people who are said to charm storms with their singing. Morwenna has never believed the tales, but when she is left alone with the stranger, she realises this is no ordinary girl. Can the stories be true? Can the girl control the tides with nothing more than her voice?

July, 1936. As the Queen Mary sets sail across the Atlantic, Alice can't wait for the summer of adventure that lies ahead. She's excited to explore the huge ship, with its shops, animals and even celebrities on board. But while Alice's sailor father focuses on winning a prestigious race, she witnesses a shocking attack. Alice and her new friend Sonny start to uncover a dark sabotage plot, and as they investigate gold bars, anonymous notes and lost silk gloves, secrets in their own lives come to the surface.

Thirteen-year-old Dirk has been the man of the house since his papa disappeared while fighting against the Nazis with the Dutch Resistance. When the Gestapo arrests Dirk's older sister, who is also a Resistance fighter, Dirk fears that he and his little sister, Anna, might be next. With only pockets full of food and his sister asleep in his arms, Dirk runs away to find his father. As Dirk leads Anna across the war-torn Netherlands, from farmyards to work camps, he must rely on his wits and his father's teaching to find his way.

Her best friend's family have fled, and the bombing makes her afraid to leave the mosque where she lives. But when her father is arrested by the Nazis for his secret Resistance work, it falls to Safiyyah to run the dangerous errands around the city.\ It's not long before hundreds of persecuted Jews seek sanctuary at the mosque. Can Safiyyah find the courage to enter the treacherous catacombs under Paris and lead the Jews to safety?

Dak, Sera, and Riq return to the United States in the year 1850 when the nation is divided over the issue of slavery. The Underground Railroad provides a light of hope, helping runaway slaves escape to freedom. But the SQ has taken control of the Underground Railroad from within. Now Dak and Sera are left wondering who to trust...

At the outbreak of World War I, eleven-year-old Elsie Clarke is sent to a mysterious school in the woods for only the most talented children. But fewer still, the Gifted, are invited to the other side–a sentient forest called Elsewhere with a magical secret.

December 6, 1941: Best friends Frank and Stanley have it good. Their dads are Navy pilots stationed at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii, and the boys get a front-row view of the huge battleships and the sparkling water. Yes, World War II is raging in Europe and in Asia, but the US isn't involved in the war, and the boys are free to dream about becoming comic book creators. They've even invented a superhero of their own, in the style of Batman, Superman, Captain America, and other stars of the Golden Age of Comics. December 7th, 1941: Everything explodes.

These uproarious American folk stories, retold by master storyteller Jim Weiss, will have you laughing and pondering too. You’ll hear about Paul Bunyan, taller than the trees and mightier than the rivers; Johnny Appleseed, whose gentle generosity made him a beloved legend; and Pecos Bill, whose outrageous Texas-sized exploits made him the greatest of all cowboys. There’s even one of Jim’s own tales; a tongue-twisting, hilarious tale of the Old West. The entire family will listen to this recording over and over again.

England is in trouble! A priceless violin has been stolen, and there's only one person who can help: Mac B., kid spy. Mac's adventure takes him on a top-secret museum night watch, zip-lining in Italy with his trusty corgi sidekick, and on an undercover mission in the heart of enemy territory. But when he ends up as a captured prisoner, is the mission lost for good?

Stella Montgomery is in disgrace. The Aunts have sent her to Wakestone Hall, a grim boarding school where the disobedient are tamed and the wilful are made meek. But when a friend disappears, Stella is determined to find her -- no matter the danger ...

It’s 2032 and Britain is facing yet another heatwave. Temperatures are breaking all records, and now government curfews are in place to ensure people stay indoors out of the sun. But it’s also the school holidays and Polly Carraway is fed up. When a late night beach swim goes horribly wrong, she’s relieved to be sent away, with her troubled brother Joel, to stay with their aunt, whose house is on the banks of a reservoir. On arriving Polly’s shocked to see Truthwater Lake is drying up. As the water level drops, a lost village emerges.

The long awaited new novel of identity, loss and the lingering effects of war, from master storyteller Michael Morpurgo, second biggest children’s author in the UK and bestselling author of War Horse, now a sold-out Broadway smash and an Oscar-nominated film. Michael doesn’t remember his father, who died in a Spitfire over the English Channel. And his mother, heartbroken and passionate, doesn’t like to talk about him. But then Michael’s aunt gives him a medal and a photograph, which begin to reveal a hidden story.

Tom Fitzgerald, better known as the Great Brain, is struggling to stay reformed now that his friends have threatened to shut him out if he pulls even one more swindle. But his younger brother, J. D., knows Tom's reformation makes for a dull life, and is not altogether unhappy - or blameless - when his brother's money-loving heart stealthily returns to business as usual.

Dodger is a tosher – a sewer scavenger living in the squalor of Dickensian London. Everyone who is nobody knows Dodger. Anyone who is anybody doesn’t. But when he rescues a young girl from a beating, suddenly everybody wants to know him. And Dodger’s tale of skulduggery, dark plans and even darker deeds begins….

It's 1926, and the one thing eleven-year-old Lexie Lewis wants more than anything is to leave Portland, Oregon, where she has been staying with her strict grandparents, and rejoin her mother, a carefree singer in San Fransisco's speakeasies. But Mama's new husband doesn't think a little girl should live with parents who work all night and sleep all day.

It's 1866 and Hester Hitchins' father is missing at sea. Determined to find him, eleven-year-old Hester wins a place at Addington's Nautical Navigation Academy, where she will learn to navigate by the stars. But the academy is just for boys, and what's more, no one seems to be in charge.

When the powerful Lord Takeda's soldiers sweep across the countryside, killing and plundering, they spare the boy Taro's life and take him along with them. Taro becomes a servant in the household of the noble Lord Akiyama, where he meets Togan, a cook, who teaches Taro and makes his new life bearable. But when Togan is murdered, Taro's life takes a new direction: He will become a samurai, and redeem the family legacy that has been stolen from him.

Twins Scarlett and Thomas are learning about the Romans at school. So Grandad uses his time machine to send them back to Roman Britain. Scarlett finds herself in a Roman camp and is chosen as a slave by the Emperor Claudius's daughter, Antonia. The two become friends and Scarlett sees first hand the glamour and treachery of the Roman court. Thomas joins a rabble of local kids who hate the Romans. Their leader is a small red-headed girl called Boudicca. Even when the kids are overwhelmed and taken as slaves, Bou hatches another plan to attack the Romans.

"Manno, wie gern würde ich mal einen echten Gladiatorenkampf sehen!", seufzt Oskar, während er und sein Freund Kokosnuss in einem spannenden Comic über das Alte Rom schmökern. Matilda versteht überhaupt nicht, was die Drachenjungen immer am Kämpfen finden, aber dann lässt sie sich doch zu einer Laserphaser-Zeitreise ins Alte Rom überreden. Sie landen in einem Wald vor den Toren Roms, wo sie einen entlaufenen Sklaven treffen. Noch während der Sklave ihnen seine Geschichte erzählt, werden sie von den Häschern des Kaisers gefangen genommen und in die Gladiatorenschule gesteckt.