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Take a trip to the past with these HQ Reads

Looking for your next favourite historical fiction read? Check out HQ's recent releases (and some exciting pre-orders) below.    19th century London & Dublin: The Extraordinary Florence Stoker by Karen Brooks Dublin, 1878. When the witty and beautiful Florence Balcombe marries up-and-coming theatre impresario and putative novelist Bram Stoker, and her dazzling literary salons make her the darling of the literary, theatre and art worlds in London, no-one is surprised. So what if she came from humble beginnings and her prior engagement to Oscar Wilde was inexplicably broken off, she was always exceptional. Besides, none of that matters now she moves in exalted circles and Bram is managing the Lyceum for Henry Irving, the leading actor of his generation. But appearances can be deceptive. Bram is in thrall to the tyrannical narcissist Henry, who is draining the life from him, and his distance from his marriage bed is noticeable. Dear friend Oscar is in court for gross indecency and Florence is afraid - for her family, of the secret she keeps and of the visions of a monstrous fanged demon that haunts her by day and night. But Florence will fight for her family and rid herself of the threats - both real and phantom - that plague her, even if it threatens her own sanity. After all, no ordinary monster can confound the extraordinary Florence Stoker. Get the book here WWII Yorkshire: Every Lifetime After by Jennifer Ross Can they find each other in every lifetime after…? Claudia is searching for her past. Suffocating in the glamour of Hollywood, A-list star Claudia Baxter is desperate for an escape. But when she arrives at the Yorkshire estate of Doverley for her next project – an epic romance set in the throes of war – Claudia is astonished to find herself slipping into the story, into the life of her heroine, into time… Iris can’t unsee her future. Radio operative Iris Winterton sits in the grounds of Doverley on a moonless night, watching planes depart for Europe. Her stare is fixed on one plane in particular – inside is the man she has loved since childhood. But Iris already knows that this time he’s not going to come back, and she will be the reason why. Together, can they complete their story? Pulled together by the past and the future, Claudia and Iris begin to unravel the threads of their connection. But in doing so, will they discover a secret bigger than they could ever imagine…? Get the book here 17th century Suffolk: A Time of Witches by Madeline Martin  In present day, Lilith Legare's life is unraveling. Since her mother's death, strange things have been happening - plants turn toward her touch, animals linger in her path, and the birthmark on her arm has started tingling. Worse still is her recurring nightmare of being burned alive at the stake. Her search for answers brings her from Savannah, Georgia to England, to the decaying Brackenmere Manor where the past blurs with the present. There, Lilith discovers a legacy she never asked for and along with it, the threat of peril. History must be rewritten, or she too will die. In 1645 Suffolk, Sybil Brantham stands accused as a witch. An educated, wealthy widow, she is branded a threat by men who fear her independence. As arrests begin and suspicion abounds, Sybil must protect her younger sister, even as betrayal takes root within her household. Across centuries, Lilith and Sybil are bound by blood and by danger. To save themselves, and each other, they must confront the silence that has stolen women's power for generations -- and dare to claim their voices before it's too late. Get the book here 19th century Murray River: The Landlady of the Resolution Hotel by Darry Fraser  In 1894, at the loneliest pub on the Murray River, four women are hiding from the truth - and it's threatening to find them. Biddy's the publican at the Resolution Hotel, taking the reins from her fierce aunt Dot. Biddy's finally starting to feel like herself again - like who she was before she lost everything. But now she's accused of a crime she didn't commit, and the constable is hinting her aunt isn't innocent either. When a man arrives offering Biddy an alibi, her surprise turns to shock when she realises who it is, someone she never expected to see again. In the chaos, new guests arrive: Freya and Clara, both seeking refuge, and both desperate to conceal what they're running from. There are plenty of secrets and past traumas among the women - and men - at the Resolution Hotel, but their ordeals aren't over yet. A cold-blooded murderer is in the area, and he's taken an interest in the isolated hotel. Hunted by a killer, haunted by their pasts, they will need all their strength, courage and resilience to survive. But one of them will go too far ... Get the book here 1940's England: The Ruins by Becky Docton  Lucie, just seven years old, newly arrived in England, watches blood drip from her mother’s hem as she crosses the footbridge to the train that will snatch her out of her life, the words, ‘Don’t leave me,’ captured in her throat. Clifford glances at the small girl sitting beside him as they drive back to The Ruins, the ancestral home Lucie has never known. Once alive with weekend parties, croquet and swimming in the lake, ‘These days, nobody is happy here,’ Clifford tells Lucie. Enid, in the vast, dark kitchen, clutches a cigarette and a sour drink, her violet eyes appraising the new arrival like a spider intent on a fly. She murmurs, ‘She’s got Kyte in her. Looks like Ruth.’ But this is not a compliment. Ruth seethes with rage as she studies her own lovely face in the mirror of her cabin, aboard the ocean liner that will carry her and the husband who has betrayed her away from her daughter and back to Malaya. ‘Plenty of mothers do this,’ she tells herself. As Lucie pieces together the story of her family and the mother who vanishes from her childhood, she will make unlikely friendships and discover the joy of imagination; and in the years that follow, will tread a precarious line taking her to unexpected places, both in herself and the rapidly changing world around her. Get the book here WWII Shanghai: The Enemy's Wife by Deborah Swift  1941. When Zofia’s beloved husband Haru is conscripted into the Imperial Japanese Army, she is left to navigate Japanese-occupied Shanghai alone. Far from home and surrounded by a country at war, Zofia finds unexpected comfort in a bond with Hilly, a spirited young refugee escaping Nazi-occupied Austria. As violence tightens its grip on the city, they seek shelter with Theo, Zofia’s American employer. But with every passing day, the horrors of war and Haru’s absence begin to reshape Zofia’s world – and her heart. Can she still love someone who has become the enemy? A poignant story of the impossible choices we make in the shadow of war, for fans of Daisy Wood and Marius Gabriel. Get the book here WWII Paris: The Last Library of Paris by Kerry Barrett In the heart of Paris, one library refuses to close its doors … 1941. As the city’s shopfronts go dark and war rages across Europe, Frances Reed is determined to keep her library open. Delivering books to those who need them most, she knows stories are more than just words – they can save lives. Meanwhile, Cassie Watkins arranges safe passage for those with nowhere else to turn. When a parcel of books connects Frances and Cassie's worlds, they form a fragile network of readers, helpers, and secrets. But someone else is reading between the lines too, and discovery could cost them everything. How far will Frances and Cassie go to keep stories alive? Get the book here 19th century London: All Her Beautiful Deaths by A. Rushby  More than a century apart the lives of two artists intersect through a series of mysterious, eerily beautiful photographs of the dead. London, 1865. Desperate for work, Minnie takes employment as a maid for the wealthy young Culpepper twins. The siblings lead a strange and unconventional life: Edmund operates a laboratory from the house while Edith experiments with morbid photography. Drawn in by a dangerous attraction to one of the twins, and with a sick sister of her own to provide for, by the time Minnie makes a disturbing discovery it's too late - she must stay and unravel the mysteries of Culpepper House before she becomes a victim of one of Edith's photographs herself. London, present day. Grieving artist Hadley is consumed by an album of Victorian death photography, including the exquisite image of a deceased young girl with a swan. When this photograph is involved in an art world scandal, Hadley is given the opportunity to create an installation surrounding the image. But the enigmatic Kit Culpepper, of the Culpepper Trust, has other plans. He offers Hadley an eye-watering sum of money to sell him the album and never speak of its contents again. As Hadley digs deeper into the album's truths, she begins to suspect Kit Culpepper is guarding a deathly secret ... and she's not entirely sure how far he'll go to keep it. Get the book here