The Chef's Secret, Crystal King, Touchstone - Crystal King’s historical novel, “The Chef’s Secret,” is a fictional story based on a true character, Bartolomeo Scappi, who served as the Vatican chef during the 16th century Italian Renaissance.
The Summer Wives, Beatriz Williams, Harper Collins - A fascination with islands and Shakespeare's The Tempest were among the inspirations for Beatriz Williams' ninth historical novel, where she explores a new branch of the Schuyler family tree.
Another Side of Paradise, Sally Koslow, Harper Collins - Already an experienced writer, having worked as a journalist and editor-in-chief of McCall’s Magazine, Sally Koslow found herself out of a job.
Beneath a Scarlet Sky, Mark Sullivan, Lake Union - Italy, 1944. Seventeen years old, Pino Lella comes from a prosperous Milanese family. He’s full of dreams like any boy his age. War seems remote until Allied bombs begin to fall on the city.
Pachinko, Min Jin Lee, Grand Central Publishing - Min Jin Lee’s Pachinko (2017) was a finalist for the National Book Award for Fiction, a New York Times 10 Best Books of 2017, and a USA Today Top 10 Books of 2017 amongst others.
Author Interview: The City of Brass, S.A. Chakraborty, Harper Voyager – A young woman in eighteenth century Egypt survives by using her wits and stealing from her victims. Nahri doesn’t believe in magic, but she does have tricks for healing. One night while performing what she thinks is a sham zar incantation, she calls up an ifrit – an evil supernatural being who is now out to get her.
Author Interview: White Houses, Amy Bloom, Random House - Amy Bloom’s novel White Houses is a compelling fictive exploration of the love affair between Eleanor Roosevelt and journalist Lorena Hickok. This is Bloom’s first book of historical fiction. The novel belies the common narrative of Eleanor Roosevelt as a woman who was disappointed in marriage and became an asexual being.
You Were There Before My Eyes, Maria Riva, Maria Riva’s illuminating historical novel, “You Were There Before My Eyes,” is marketed as an adventure and love story of two Italian immigrants.
The World of Tomorrow, Brendan Mathews, Little Brown and Company – Francis and Michael Dempsey join their older brother, Martin, in America in June of 1939.