Recently arrived historical fiction
Travel back in time to witness a death in Renaissance Florence, a young heiress taking advantage of a tragedy or a murder in the remote King Country in our roundup of newly arrived historical ficiton.
Sam Carlson is a soldier captured by the Japanese as a POW and forced on the Bataan Death March and onto a "hell ship" the Arisan Maru. Sarah Haber, a brilliant mathematician and Sam's girlfriend, is recruited into a top-secret code-breaking unit in Washington D.C. Their paths inadvertently collide through a devastating wartime decision. Dugoni highlights the horrors faced by POWs in Japanese camps and the critical, yet often unacknowledged, role of women code-breakers, masterfully recreating a period of immense suffering and sacrifice, highlighting the human spirit's capacity to "hold strong" against unimaginable odds.
In 1920s Provence, Joseph Adelaide, a young journalist arrives at the secluded farmhouse of reclusive painter Edouard Tartuffe, hoping for an interview. Instead, he finds Ettie, Tartuffe's enigmatic niece and housekeeper, who orchestrates his stay by proposing he model for her uncle. The novel is less about the renowned artist and more about Ettie's quiet but powerful journey of self-discovery and suppressed artistic ambition. As Joseph unravels the mysteries of the household, he and Ettie, both bearing scars from the Great War, form a profound connection. Steeds evokes the sensory details of Provence and explores themes of art, freedom, and the unacknowledged talents of women in a patriarchal world, culminating in a satisfying reveal of long-held secrets.
When the Deep Dark Bush Swallows You Whole by Geoff Parkes
Summer, 1982 in the small town of Nashville, King Country. A shearing gang is working its way through the local farms, working from dawn til dusk, then drinking the night away at the local pub. Sanna is a Finnish rousey, working to pay for her travels, and Ryan is a local boy back from studying law at uni for the summer. And to tidy up his mother's house after her death. When Sanna vanishes after a violent pub brawl at the end of the shearing season, the local cops put it down to another 'backpacker' murder, similar to the murder of a hitchhiker the summer before and the investigation goes nowhere. A year later Sanna's sister Emilia has arrived from Finland to find out what happened to her sister. Emilia's arrival will disturb the dust that has settled over Nashville and dig out some dark secrets hidden there. Parkes has crafted a tightly wound crime novel that captures the sights, sounds and feel of rural New Zealand in the 1980s as well as a very believable thriller.
Speak to Me of Home by Jeanine Cummins
Spanning three decades, Speak to Me of Home follows three women across generations: Rafaela, who moves from Puerto Rico to the American Midwest for love; her daughter, Ruth, who strives to assimilate in white America and leave her Puerto Rican heritage behind; and Ruth's daughter, Daisy, who seeks to reconnect with her roots in San Juan. When Daisy, who has moved to San Juan, is critically injured in a car accident during a hurricane, Ruth, and Rafaela, back to the island, forcing them to confront their pasts and the unspoken tensions that have long existed between them. A stirring novel of family, identity and love.
Gabriële by Anne Berest and Claire Berest
In 1908, at the height of the Belle Époque in Paris Gabriële, a gifted musician meets the unconventional artist Francis Picabia. Their marriage propels them into the heart of the artistic revolution, soon joined by Marcel Duchamp in a complex, passionate, "electric love triangle". Gabriële has an often unseen but profound influence on the genesis of Cubism, Dadaism, and Abstraction, even as World War I casts its shadow. The Berest sisters (Gabriele's great granddaughters), meticulously reconstruct her journey using historical records and imaginative narrative, bringing to life a pioneering woman who shaped modern art from behind the scenes, yet whose story was nearly erased by time. It's a vibrant portrait of artistic innovation, unconventional love, and a woman who defied societal norms.
The Lost Passenger by Frances Quinn
Elinor Coombes is a young woman trapped in a stifling, loveless marriage to an English aristocrat. Her husband and his family are only interested in her wealthy father's money, and Elinor is denied meaningful access to her infant son, Teddy. A gift of tickets for the Titanic's maiden voyage offers a brief respite, but the ship's sinking provides an unexpected, drastic opportunity. Seizing the chaos, Elinor fakes her and Teddy's deaths, assumes a new identity, and begins a new life in bustling New York City, leading to a journey of reinvention, from privileged but miserable wife to a resilient, independent woman navigating anonymity in a new world. A unique and vibrant addition to the trove of Titanic fiction.
New Year's Day 1557 famed artist Jacopo da Pontormo is discovered stabbed to death beneath his controversial frescoes in the San Lorenzo chapel Florence. The investigation, spearheaded by the renowned art historian Giorgio Vasari on behalf of Duke Cosimo de' Medici, quickly unearths a scandalous painting: a nude Venus with the face of the Duke's daughter, Maria de' Medici. Through a dizzying exchange of letters between historical figures like Michelangelo, Catherine de' Medici, and various artists, politicians, and even nuns, Binet constructs a complex web of intrigue. The diverse "perspectives" offered by each correspondent provide a multifaceted view of the murder, the political machinations of the Medici family, and the artistic debates of the era. It's a clever whodunit that keeps readers piecing together clues, highlighting how truth itself is often a matter of perspective.
End of August by Paige Dinnery
Fifteen year old Aurora has lived a nomadic life, constantly uprooted by her single mother, Laine, who habitually flees whenever life gets complicated. Their latest move brings them back to Monroe, Indiana, Laine's hometown, for Aurora's grandfather's funeral. What was meant to be a short stay turns into a longer entanglement when Laine begins an affair with a married mailman, much to the exasperation of Aurora's alcoholic grandmother, Katherine. For the first time, Aurora experiences a sense of stability: forming genuine friendships, finding a job, and even experiencing her first love with the pastor's son. However, the shadow of her mother's erratic behaviour and the fear of yet another sudden departure constantly looms. A poignant and compelling coming-of-age story.
