A Sense of Things Beyond by Renée Belliveau
A Sense of Things Beyond by Renée Belliveau is a compelling and well-researched historical fiction novel set in the wake of World War I.
Historical Fiction
The Rebel’s Wife by Gerald Richardson Brown
When her husband is sentenced to death by hanging after involvement in a failed rebel uprising in Upper Canada in 1838, Maria resolves to seek justice and save his life so that their young daughter can know her father.
Wild People Quiet by Tara Gereaux
As epigraphs go, Gereaux’s identifies commonplace racism circa 1869. The novel’s subsequent pair of historical settings, about four and eight decades later, suggest cultural change that could be measured in teaspoons.
Until They Sleep by Nadia Staikos
Trapped in a conservative, religious society, Frona has no one to ask if her desire for men is normal. If her lust is proper – and she’s convinced it will be the things that damns her.
Blood Bound: Unlacing Secret Ties by Marie-Josee Poisson, Translated by Flora-Lee Bendit
Blood Bound: Unlacing Secret Ties by Marie-Josee Poisson is a work of historical fiction that reimagines the life of Madame de Pompadour, the chief mistress of King Louis XV.
The Winter Witch by Jennifer Chevalier
Sisters Marthe and Élisabeth find themselves on a ship to New France, after scandal embroiled Élisabeth in their village.
A Friend of Dorothy’s by Richard Willett
The focus of the book is that compassionate curiosity of the narrator Eric as he tries to puzzle out his life, his times.
Under the Full and Crescent Moon by Aamir Hussain
A work of historical fiction, the setting is a place Hussain has imagined where matriarchy plays an important role.
Kate and the Composers by Joanne Culley
A careful blend of fact and fiction, Culley was inspired by a sheaf of music scores written by her great-grandfather that she discovered in her father’s basement, including music for several flute trios.
A Quilting of Scars by Lucy E.M. Black
There is a mystery to uncover situated in the detailed life on the farm during the late 1800s. Black’s flair for writing superb and timely dialogue keeps the reader planted in this time and space.
Unsettling Time by Bretton Loney
Through an unusual combination of circumstances, Ryan Treiber, a lecturer at Saint Mary’s University, is thrown back in time to the founding of Halifax in 1749, 275 years ago. Found by Aubrey De Courcy, a member of Governor Edward Conrwallis’ council, Ryan stays in a camp clearing that is to become Halifax’s Grand Parade.
The Spirit of Scatarie by Lesley Crewe
Lesley Crewe’s The Spirit of Scatarie (pronounced Sca-tah-ree) is a well-written, fictional story about the real island of Scatarie, just off the northeastern tip of Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia, and is told from the point of view of a spirit or ghost.
Ship of Dreams by Donna Jones Alward
Both ladies are excited to be among the first passengers to travel First Class on the Titanic to America, each for different reasons. Hannah hopes the trip will heal her marriage; and for Louisa, the trip is part of her plan to escape marriage.
The Director by Daniel Kehlmann, translated by Ross Benjamin
The Austrian film director that made Greta Garbo a star.
The Northern by Jacob McArthur Mooney
The Northern, which in a sense is a bildungsroman, serves also as an examination of contemporary masculinity.
