Tuesday, 30 June 2026

The Cleansing (A Novel of Ancient Rome. Based on a True Story) by Victoria Alvear

 

The Cleansing 
(A Novel of Ancient Rome. Based on a True Story)
By Victoria Alvear



Publication Date: January 20th, 2026
Publisher: Hypatia Press
Pages: 314
Genre: Historical Fiction

Based on a true story, this is not the enlightened Rome of myth. This is a city choking on fear, where blood flows on both the battlefield and altar, and where generals and politicians alike are desperate to appease rageful gods.

When 50,000 Romans fall in a single day at the Battle of Cannae, priests claim there can be only one reason the gods abandoned Rome: a Vestal Virgin has broken her vow of chastity. And they accuse Opimia (Mia), the strongest, most defiant of the six sacred Vestal priestesses.

Forced as a child into serving Vesta, the goddess of fire, Mia has always chafed against Rome’s control of her every move—especially after being separated from her childhood love, Attius. Now, accused of a crime she did not commit, she must defend herself in a hostile court to avoid being buried alive for her “crime.”

Betrayed by the high priestess, hunted by Rome’s political and religious elite, Mia must either accept her fate — or join with the Sybil of Cumae to expose the truth behind a world built on superstition, fear, and lies.

A story of personal awakening amid public catastrophe, The Cleansing is a haunting journey through a city at war with itself — and a woman who risks everything to survive it.



Praise

"Original, deftly crafted...[and a] historical thriller with an impressive level of literary excellence."

Midwest Book Review



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Victoria Alvear


Victoria Alvear has written multiple books and novels set in the ancient world, including A Day of Fire: A Novel of Pompeii, A Song of War: A Novel of Troy, Cleopatra’s Moon, and others.

She is known as Vicky Alvear Shecter for her children’s books, which include Warrior Queens, Anubis Speaks!, Hades Speaks!, and Thor Speaks!.

Victoria has served as a docent at the museum of antiquities at Emory University for nearly twenty years.

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Monday, 29 June 2026

Queen of Shadows by Anna Belfrage





Queen of Shadows 
By Anna Belfrage


Publication Date: May 21st, 2026
Publisher: Timelight Press
Pages: 400
Genre: Historical Fiction / Historical Romance



She should have stayed in the shadows—but Leonor de Guzmán yearned for the sun


Castile in the 1330s is a place of constant turmoil. King Alfonso must contend with the incursions from the Muslim Marinids eager to reclaim Al-Andalus while struggling with repeated rebellions against his firm rule.


When Alfonso needs respite, he finds it in the arms of his Leonor—the most beautiful woman in the realm. But while he may love Leonor over all others, his lawful wife, Maria of Portugal, is tired of being constantly displaced by the fair Leonor.


Leonor loves her man. She gives him healthy sons, a place to be himself. But she is only a mistress, even if Alfonso treats her like a queen. Leonor’s enemies watch and hate.


Flying too close to the sun comes at a high price. How much will Leonor’s love cost her?


Based on the true story of Alfonso XI and his complicated relationships to wife and life-long mistress.



Buy Link:

Universal Buy Link

This title will be available to read on #KindleUnlimited.


Anna Belfrage



Had Anna been allowed to choose, she’d have become a time-traveller. As this was impossible, she became a financial professional with three absorbing interests: history, romance and writing.

Anna has authored the acclaimed time travelling series The Graham Saga, set in 17th century Scotland and Maryland, as well as two equally acclaimed medieval series; The King’s Greatest Enemy which is set in 14th century England, and The Castilian Saga, which is set against the medieval conquest of Wales. She has also published a time travel romance, The Whirlpools of Time, and its sequel, Times of Turmoil, and is now considering just how to wiggle out of setting the next book in that series in Peter the Great’s Russia, as her characters are demanding...

All of Anna’s books have been awarded the IndieBRAG Medallion, she has several Historical Novel Society Editor’s Choices, and one of her books won the HNS Indie Award in 2015. She is also the proud recipient of various Readers’ Favorite medals as well as having won various Gold, Silver and Bronze Coffee Pot Book Club awards.

A master storyteller

This is what all historical fiction should be like. Superb.

Find out more about Anna, her books and enjoy her eclectic historical blog on her website, www.annabelfrage.com where you will also find her post about Alfonso and Leonor.








The Daredevil: The Dawn of America Book #3 by Regan Walker

 


The Daredevil:  The Dawn of America Book #3 
By Regan Walker



Publication Date: April 14th, 2026
Publisher: Patriotic Books Publishing
Pages: 408
Genre: Historical Fiction


Before there was a Continental Navy, there was one man’s courage...

When young merchant captain Samuel Tucker learns that war has broken out between Britain and the Colonies, he cannot stand idle. Leaving the safety of London’s port, he races home across a storm-tossed Atlantic to offer his sword to liberty’s cause. Along the way, he saves a valuable ship, her crew, and her cargo—a deed that brings him before General Washington himself. The grateful commander offers Sam command of one of his newly armed schooners.

From those perilous beginnings in Washington’s shadow fleet, Sam rises through the ranks of the Continental Navy and beyond, eventually commanding a privateer that strikes deep into the British supply lines. From the fogbound wharves of Marblehead to the treacherous shoals of Halifax and Europe, he wages war with the daring of a man who seems to fear neither sea nor shot. To his men he is “the Daredevil”—fearless, quick-witted, and guided by an unshakable faith.

Yet amid the thunder of broadsides and the peril of capture, Tucker’s heart is not immune to gentler battles. Mary Gatchell, the steadfast Marblehead woman whose prayers sustain him from shore, anchors the life he risks with every voyage. But the sea is a jealous mistress, and every homecoming may be his last.



Praise 

"Fast paced, on the edge of your seat adventures, sea battles, romance, faith, courage and love. I think THe DAREDEVIL is my favorite of THE DAWN OF AMERICA series. A must read for American Revolution enthusiasts, and romance readers alike. An absolute pleasure to read.."
~ April R, Amazon 5* Review



Buy Link:


Regan Walker


Regan Walker is an award-winning author of more than twenty historical novels spanning the Georgian, Regency, Medieval and Revolutionary eras.

With meticulous research and a storyteller’s eye for drama, she transports readers from the intrigues of medieval England and the courts of eighteenth-century France to Scotland’s mist-shrouded Highlands, the cobbled streets of early nineteenth-century London, and ships riding dangerous seas. 

From spies, smugglers, and pirates to masked balls and opulent palaces, her novels reveal the courage, faith, and love that endure through history’s most turbulent days.




Sunday, 28 June 2026

Love Lost in Time by Cathie Dunn

 



Love Lost in Time

 By Cathie Dunn



Publication Date: 28th November 2019
Publisher: Independently Published
Print Length: 276 Pages
Genre: Dual Timeline / Historical Fiction

A reluctant daughter. A dutiful wife. A mystery of
the ages.

Languedoc, France, 2018

Historian Madeleine Winters would rather research her next project than rehash the strained relationship she had with her late mother. However, to claim her inheritance, she reluctantly agrees to stay the one year required in her late mother’s French home and begins renovations. But when she’s haunted by a female voice inside the house and tremors emanating from beneath her kitchen floorboards, she’s shocked to discover ancient human bones.

The Mediterranean coast, AD 777

Seventeen-year-old Nanthild is wise enough to know her place. Hiding her Pagan wisdom and dutifully accepting her political marriage, she’s surprised when she falls for her Christian husband, the Count of Carcassonne. But she struggles to keep her forbidden religious beliefs and her healing skills secret while her spouse goes off to fight in a terrible, bloody war.

As Maddie settles into her rustic village life, she becomes obsessed with unraveling the mysterious history buried in her new home. And when Nanthild is caught in the snare of an envious man, she’s terrified she’ll never embrace her beloved again.

Can two women torn apart by centuries help each other finally find peace?

Love Lost in Time is a vivid standalone historical fiction novel for fans of epoch-spanning enigmas. If you like dark mysteries, romantic connections, and hints of the paranormal, then you’ll adore Cathie Dunn’s tale of redemption and self-discovery. 

Available in #Kindle, paperback, and hardback — and included with #KindleUnlimited — Love Lost in Time is ready to sweep you away. You can find your copy HERE.

Cathie Dunn

Cathie is an Amazon-bestselling author of historical fiction, dual-timeline, mystery, and romance. She loves to infuse her stories with a strong sense of place and time, combined with a dark secret or mystery – and a touch of romance. Often, you can find her deep down the rabbit hole of historical research…
 
In addition, she is also a historical fiction book promoter with The Coffee Pot Book Club, a novel-writing tutor, and a keen reviewer on her blog, Ruins & Reading.
 
After having lived in Scotland for almost two decades, Cathie is now enjoying the sunshine in the south of France with her husband, and her rescued pets, Ellie Dog & Charlie Cat. 

She is a member of the Historical Novel Society, the Richard III Society, the Alliance of Independent Authors, and the Romantic Novelists’ Association.