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  Tuscan Warlord - Sir John...

  Griff Hosker

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  Sir John Hawkwood has almost all that he needs. He is the most respected and feared mercenary leader in Italy but he is surrounded by those who would do him and his family harm. He faces betrayal from friend and foe alike. His constants are his company and the leaders who fight for him. Treading a tightrope between warring factions that include the Pope and the Lord of Milan, Sir John Hawkwood decides to make the White Company into a warband and he becomes a warlord.

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  Pomegranate Soup - A Novel

  Marsha Mehran

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  To the exotic Aminpour sisters, Ireland looks like a much-needed safe haven. It has been seven years since Marjan Aminpour fled Iran with her younger sisters, Bahar and Layla, and she hopes that in Ballinacroagh they might finally find a home. 
   
   
   
  The sisters set about creating a Persian oasis and soon sensuous wafts of cardamom, cinnamon, and saffron float through the streets—an exotic aroma that announces the opening of the Babylon Café. And it is an affront to the senses of Ballinacroagh's uncrowned king, Thomas McGuire. After trying to buy the old pastry shop for years and failing, Thomas is enraged to find it occupied—and by foreigners, no less. 
   
   
   
  But the mysterious, spicy fragrances work their magic on the townsfolk, and soon, business is booming. Marjan is thrilled with the demand for her red lentil soup, abgusht stew, and rosewater baklava—and with the transformation in her sisters. 
   
   
   
  The sisters find a merry band of supporters against the close-minded opposition of less welcoming villagers stuck in their ways. But the idyll is soon broken when the past rushes back to threaten the Amnipours once more, and the lives they left behind in revolution-era Iran bleed into the present.

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  The Prizefighter's Hart

  Emily Royal

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  A spinster. A prizefighter. A marriage of convenience. This bout can't end well. 
   
   
   
  Plain, prim, and beyond marriageable age, Dorothea Hart is resigned to the life of a spinster aunt. But she yearns for a family of her own, and is hopelessly attracted to the 'Mighty Oak'—a prizefighter renowned for his prowess—who stirs previously unknown passions in her. 
   
   
   
  Widower Griffin Oake made his fortune in the ring—but he can't buy respectability, or a footing in society for his daughter. After a disastrous first marriage, he has no wish to wed again, but is looking to employ a genteel woman to chaperone the rebellious teenager—preferably the plainest, dullest woman in London. 
   
   
   
  When Dorothea is publicly compromised, she's pushed into a marriage of convenience with the object of her infatuation. Exiled to the country, with a husband who avoids her, and a stepdaughter determined to defy her, Dorothea's dream of a loving family seems further away than ever . . . and she begins to suspect that Griffin's first wife's death was not an accident. 
   
   
   
  Contains mature themes.

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  Hidden Family Secrets - An...

  Evelyn Hood

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  THE QUEEN OF SCOTTISH SAGAS ⭐️ Book one in a sweeping, heartbreaking series of love, loyalty and long-buried secrets from Sunday Times bestselling author Evelyn Hood!Must-read for fans of Catherine Cookson, Dilly Court, Rosie Goodwin and Donna Douglas 📚 
  Can a long-kept secret ruin the future happiness of two families? Welcome to Paisley, Scotland 1745 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 
  Meg and Duncan Montgomery move to the flourishing Scottish town of Paisley to find work in the thriving weaving industry. Soon, Meg is expecting their first child, Margaret. 
  To make ends meet, they live in Peter Todd’s household, Duncan’s employer and Meg’s days are filled with domestic duties. But soon Meg and Duncan find themselves caught up in the intricate lives of the Todd family and when a tragic accident causes further conflict, a decision is made to keep a terrible secret from Meg. 
  As Margaret grows older, she despairs of the town’s inequality and becomes an advocate for the poor. While her philanthropic ideals are tolerated, even accepted by her understanding parents, Margaret’s affection for her childhood friend William Todd is greeted with disapproval. 
  But Margaret wants more from life than marriage and is overjoyed when she is taken on as a teacher at the local hospital. 
  As a dark secret from the past looms over the lives of both families,threatening to tear apart their futures, the younger Todds and Montgomery’s must decide between following in their parents’ footsteps or forging their own pathsThe start of The Paisley Women saga series from Evelyn Hood, the original bestselling Scottish saga writer. 
  Previously published in paperback as The Silken Thread 
  PRAISE FOR EVELYN HOOD 
  'Compelling from the start, heartfelt and beautifully written.' - Rosie Clarke  'If you like Catherine Cookson, you’ll love Evelyn Hood’s books.’ - Lizzie Lane  ‘Evelyn Hood’s characters step off the page and into your heart.’ - Sheila Riley  ‘This is addictive and heartfelt storytelling, with colourful characters you'll never want to say goodbye to.’ - Jane Lark ''Loved the strong, relatable characters. A lively, refreshing read.' - Kate Eastham 'Wonderfully descriptive, with memorable characters and a true sense of place.' - Tracy Baines 'Faultless historical detail and emotionally complex characters makethese engrossing and intelligent Evelyn Hood's sagas deeply satisfying' - Maisie Thomas ‘Evocative, beautifully rich, brilliantly detailed and meticulously researched - this story transported me and kept me up way past my bedtime - a triumph of a story. I very highly recommend Evelyn Hood’ – Renita D’Silva  'Scotland's Catherine Cookson' - Scots Magazine ‘Hood is immaculate in her historical detail’ - Scottish Herald  'Quite simply, I couldn't put it down. A rich and rewarding read' - Emma Blair  'Evelyn Hood has been called Scotland's Catherine Cookson. Unfair. She has her own distinctive voice' - Scots Magazine  ‘Touching, romantic and unforgettable’ - Reader Review  ‘Love all her books’ - Reader Review  ‘Evelyn Hood produces the best of stories’ - Reader Review ‘I cannot put her books down’ - Reader Review ‘Love everything Evelyn Hood writes’ - Reader Review ‘Evelyn Hood is a fantastic writer, bringing the past to life and drawing you right into the story’ - Reader Review

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  A Brutal War

  Andrew Wareham

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  The Call of the Sea series has received more than 16,000 five-star reviewsThe Mediterranean Fleet under Lord Collingwood is at its greatest ever—more than a hundred vessels—and is far too small for the tasks demanded of it.The French have invaded Spain, their former ally, and are ravaging the land in a fashion unseen since the Thirty Years War in the Germanies. The Barbary Corsairs are resurgent, slaving and raiding across the whole Sea. The Two Sicilies, an ally, has collapsed into corrupt desuetude. Turkey is rumbling in the East, and there is a renewed Russian interest in the old aim of achieving access to warm waters from the Black Sea.Nick Turnhouse in Hawke is being used as a fireman—sent to put out conflagrations as they appear, to perform particular tasks, to respond to needs as they arise. Initially, he is to respond to the pirates of the western shores of Africa with a demonstration of force that will hopefully frighten them into avoiding British interests in the Mediterranean . . .

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  Middlemarch

  George Eliot

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  Set in the fictional English town of Middlemarch during the early 19th century, Middlemarch is a richly woven tapestry of ambition, idealism, love, politics, and social change. Widely regarded as one of the greatest novels in the English language, George Eliot's masterpiece explores the inner lives of its characters with extraordinary psychological depth and moral insight.
  
  At the heart of the novel is Dorothea Brooke, a passionate and intelligent young woman who longs for a life of purpose and meaning. Idealistic and eager to contribute to the betterment of society, Dorothea makes a fateful decision to marry the much older scholar Edward Casaubon, believing she will assist him in his great intellectual work. Instead, she finds herself trapped in a stifling marriage that challenges her dreams and tests her resilience.
  
  Parallel to Dorothea's story is that of Dr. Tertius Lydgate, an ambitious and forward-thinking physician who arrives in Middlemarch determined to revolutionize medical practice. Yet Lydgate's aspirations are gradually undermined by financial pressures, social expectations, and his imprudent marriage to the beautiful but self-centered Rosamond Vincy. Through Lydgate's struggles, Eliot examines the tension between individual ambition and the constraints imposed by society.
  
  Surrounding these central narratives is a vibrant cast of interconnected characters—bankers, landowners, reformers, clergy, and laborers—each navigating personal desires, moral dilemmas, and shifting social structures. As political reform looms and the old order faces subtle transformation, the town of Middlemarch itself becomes a living character, reflecting the complexities of human relationships and community life.
  
  With compassion and penetrating intelligence, George Eliot delves into themes of marriage, idealism, gender roles, class, religion, and the pursuit of knowledge. Her nuanced portrayal of human motivation reveals how grand dreams are often reshaped by circumstance, and how quiet acts of kindness and moral courage can leave lasting impact.
  
  Both intimate and expansive, Middlemarch is a profound meditation on the ordinary lives that shape history. It is a novel that celebrates human striving while acknowledging human limitation, reminding readers that even seemingly small lives are woven into the larger fabric of society.

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