A selection of this week’s new historical and romance fiction titles to 16th March – Jill’s Book Cafe
Here’s my pick of this week’s new hardback/paperback fiction titles. In some cases the eBook might already be available. My source is primarily The Bookseller, but I’ve started to include other sources to broaden the selection.
Just a reminder, I don’t have access to a complete list of titles being published, and, as I don’t see any advance copies, my choices are based on the cover, blurb, gut instinct and what takes my fancy at the time.
(NB This post features Affiliate links from which I earn a small commission on qualifying purchases)
Index
Historical (I tend to take this as pre 1960’s ie not in my lifetime!)
Historical
Far From Home by Danielle Steel
In July 1944, at the height of the German occupation, Arielle von Auspeck arrives at the glamorous Ritz hotel in Paris excited to be reunited with her husband, Gregor, a retired colonel in the army who is soon to join her from Germany.
Her world falls apart when she receives word that Gregor was part of Operation Valkyrie, a failed attempt to assassinate Hitler in Poland, and has been shot as a traitor. Arielle, who has both French and German parentage, is taken from Paris under cover of darkness for her own safety.
Unable to contact her children in Germany, Arielle assumes a new identity and goes into hiding in a small village in Normandy. Taking a job locally, she befriends a man whose Jewish wife and daughter have been deported. As the war rages on and the Allies storm the nearby beaches, Arielle discovers a hidden world of people like her, who are fiercely opposed to the occupying forces and do all they can to stop them. They are all fighting for a time when they can look for their families and return home.
On Starlit Seas by Sara Sheridan
Celebrated writer and historian Maria Graham must make the treacherous voyage from Brazil to London to deliver her latest book to her publisher. Having come to terms with the loss of her beloved husband, Maria is now determined to live her life as she pleases, free from the smothering constraints of Georgian society.
For a woman travelling alone it’s a journey fraught with danger, and as civil war rages around her, the only ship prepared to take Maria belongs to roguish smuggler Captain James Henderson. Onboard, all is well until Maria makes two shocking discoveries – the first a deadly secret, the second an irresistible attraction to the enigmatic captain.
With Henderson on a journey of his own and determined to finally put his life of crime behind him, he and Maria grow ever closer. But can Henderson escape his illicit past or will the scandalous secret he’s hiding ruin them both?
The Lamplighter’s Bookshop by Sophie Austin
The Lost Bookshop meets The Lost Apothecary in a beguiling novel full of secrets…
In the shadowy aisles of the Lamplighter’s Bookshop, secrets lie as thick as the dust…
When Evelyn Seaton answers an advertisement for an assistant at a forgotten bookshop in York, she is not the only one with something to hide.
There she meets the enigmatic and prickly William Morton, an aspiring writer keeping secrets of his own. But when the walls that Evelyn has built around herself start to crumble, there is only one person she can turn to.
As the layers are brushed away, can Evelyn and William find the courage to write the next chapter of their story?
The Shadow on the Bridge by Clare Marchant
‘You must forever watch your back,’ I spoke the words clearly, though he could not hear me. ‘Come what may, I shall avenge my brother’s death.’
Now: When Sarah’s summoned by her godmother to remote Norfolk, she doesn’t want to go. Crossing the bridges where the two rivers meet, said to be haunted by the ghost of a little boy, a large Tudor house looms in front of her. And Sarah’s instantly reminded her of the summer when she last visited. The summer she would like to forget. Which left her unable to ever move forward… Can a person ever recover from the loss of a sibling?
1571: Anne Howard, newly-made countess of Arundel, has also lost a sibling. And been dragged from the relative safety of her home in remote Norfolk to London, by her overbearing, manipulative, new father-in-law Thomas Howard; the very person she suspects of killing her beloved only brother. The Howards have greater secrets than this though. Secrets that will lead Anne to a tragedy that will echo down the ages…
When Sarah finds a mysterious book of poems in a hidden chamber of her godmother’s house, she is drawn into Anne’s story. Perhaps the mystery will take her mind off her own loss? But – as the flood waters begin to rise under the bridges – is Sarah laying ghosts to rest, or bringing truths to the surface that should stay beneath?
With Promises to Keep by Ellie Dean
The year of 1947 is almost upon them, and the community of Cliffehaven is still reeling from the tragic loss of Gracie, who left behind two young orphans.
Polish refugee and nurse Danuta made Gracie a promise: to love and cherish her children as her own. But with her husband’s health failing, can Danuta’s promise be fulfilled?
Then a bitter winter storm cuts the town off. Peggy Reilly and the rest of Cliffehaven must pull together to survive.
Keeping a promise in the face of adversity is never easy. With the support of those around her, can Danuta find a way?
A Mother’s Hope by Maggie Mason
She’ll do anything to protect her family from war . . .
BLACKPOOL, 1914
Seventeen-year-old Maddie has grown up in a boarding house on one of Blackpool’s poorest streets. Life is busy, but happy, as she works alongside her mother taking care of their visitors. But when war breaks out, her happiness is shattered as her fiancé is called up to fight for his country, and suddenly Maddie’s future is filled with uncertainty.
As Blackpool becomes a training ground for the army, the guesthouse is used as a billet for soldiers, and Maddie soon finds herself drawn to one in particular: Arnie. As the pair grow close and his departure date nears, their feelings for one another intensify. Little does she know, the short six weeks she’s known and loved Arnie will impact the rest of her life . . .
As Maddie comes to terms with a future she couldn’t have ever imagined, her best friend Daisy, working in her mother’s café on Blackpool promenade, promises to help any way she can.
With so much change and uncertainty on the horizon, can Maddie protect her growing family from the hardships of war?
The Pick-Pocket’s Return by Lindsey Hutchinson
Abandoned, penniless and orphaned as young children, Bertram and Alice saved each other from a terrible fate.
For seven long years they have been kept apart, Bertram, BJ to his friends, learning how to survive and then thrive in the penal colonies of Australia, and Alice growing her prosperous chain of bakeries in the Black Country town of Wednesbury.
Now BJ’s sentence is nearly up and he has a choice to make. Queen Victoria’s England has changed since he’s been away and so has Alice. Should he leave behind the life he’s built and face the terrifying, months-long voyage back home?
The memory of the boy who saved her from starvation by teaching her how to pick pockets has sustained Alice for all these years and now he may be coming back to her. Can Alice and BJ finally get their happy ending or does fate have other plans for the pickpocket orphans?
33 Place Brugmann by Alice Austen
Charlotte Sauvin has always seen the world differently. At home on 33 Place Brugmann, in the heart of Brussels, her father and her closest friends and neighbours – the Raphaëls from the fourth floor, and Masha from the fifth – have ensured her secret is safe. But when the Nazis invade Belgium, and Masha and the Raphaëls disappear, Charlotte must navigate her new world alone.
Over the border and across the sea, in occupied Paris and battered Blitz London, Masha and the Raphaels are reinventing themselves – as refugees, nurses, soldiers, heroes. Though scattered far and wide, they dream of only one place, one home: 33 Place Brugmann.
But back at Place Brugmann, Charlotte feels impending danger closing in. Who can she trust in this world – where everyone is watching, and everyone is harbouring their own secrets? As the months pass, and the shadow of war darkens, Charlotte and her neighbours must face what – and who – truly matters to them most – and summon the courage to fight for more than just survival.
The Highland Girls Report for Duty by Helen Yendall
Scotland, 1944
Fearless Seffy was hoping for a transfer to England to be near Callum, the Canadian soldier she has given her heart to. Instead she is instructed to train a new group of lumberjills. Will their unhelpful attitude finally be a match for Seffy’s determination and cheerfulness?
Sensible Jean is a true believer in the wartime effort. When she meets a conscientious objector can she accept that following the rules might not always define a person?
And young Missy has come all the way over from Canada to surprise her first love, Callum who is stationed as a soldier in England. But despite this grand act of love, his heart may no longer belong to her…
The Women’s Timber Corps are about to have a tumultuous year…
Romance
Story of my Life by Lucy Score
Hazel Hart was a successful romance novelist until a breakup drives her straight into writer’s block. Having failed (and failed some more) to deliver her new manuscript, she’s hiding from the world behind a wall of old takeout containers until her publisher lays down the law. If she misses her next deadline it’s The End.
Desperate for inspiration, Hazel impulse-buys a historic home online and flees Manhattan to tiny Story Lake, PA. Upon her dramatic arrival – involving an incident with a bald eagle – she discovers the charm of her new home may have been slightly exaggerated.
The house is a wreck and the town is struggling after their biggest employer shut down. Also, since her raccoon-infested home came with a seat on the town council our introverted heroine is stuck with a front row seat to all the small-town shenanigans.
But Hazel isn’t worried. Not since all six-feet-three inches of grouchy contractor Campbell Bishop slapped a bandage on her forehead and unintentionally inspired the heck out of her. There’s only one thing to do: Hire Cam and his equally gorgeous brothers to renovate her new spider museum … er … house.
Okay, two things. A fake date for ‘research purposes’ will really put her work-in-progress on track. Before Hazel knows it, she’s writing a romance novel and living one. At least until the drywall dust settles, the town she’s falling in love with faces bankruptcy and growly Cam remembers why he can’t live happily ever after.
The Strawberry Patch Pancake House by Laurie Gilmore
Every book in the Dream Harbor series can be read as a standalone.
As a world-renowned chef, single dad Archer never planned on moving to a small town, let alone running a pancake restaurant. But Dream Harbor needs a new chef, and Archer needs a community to help raise his daughter, Olive.
Iris has never managed to hold down a job for more than a few months. So when it’s suggested that Archer is looking for a live-in nanny, she almost runs in the opposite direction.
Now, Iris finds herself in a whole new world. One where her gorgeous new boss lives right across the hall and likes to cook topless… Keeping everything strictly professional should be easy, right?
Merit by Devney Perry
The world loves Maverick Houston. Me? I’ve hated him since we were ten.
It’s not exactly easy to escape your childhood nemesis when your parents are best friends who live on the same block. Through countless vacations, parties and holidays, Maverick and I have spent the past decade trading insults.
Until that family dinner when his mother tells us she’s dying. When she asks us to forget the past and start fresh. That’s how I found myself on a date with the Treasure State Wildcats football star. The campus playboy. The boy I kissed when I was three. The man who is the bane of my existence.
He’s arrogant. He’s blunt. He’s too handsome for his own good. But if he has a single, redeeming merit, the guy sure does love his mom. And that’s why I started fake dating Maverick Houston. That’s why I made him a proposition of my own. That’s how this sham of a relationship ruined my life.
The world loves Maverick Houston. Me? I hate that he made me love him too.
Buried Dreams by Natasha Madison
Montgavin Township will never be the same when one night changes the lives of six people.
The course of their lives and the trajectory of the town sets them on a collision course for disaster.
Everleigh
One night changed my whole life.
After the truth about that night came out, I knew I had to leave.
Taking my broken heart with me.
I had no choice but to go back.
I knew it would slice me back open again.
But sometimes, the root of the flower you planted starts to grow again, no matter how many times you’ve cut them down.
He was my everything, and then he was my nothing.
Brock
My father taught me honor and integrity.
And in one split second, I ruined it all.
I lost everything I ever wanted.
But I had no choice.
I tried to go on with my life.
And the only good thing I had was my daughter.
Never expected to see the one woman who I’d loved and lost here again.
They say time heals old wounds.
They were wrong.
It just splits you open, making you bleed out.
I just have to survive again.
If You Love Me by Helena Hunting
Two nights with her ruined me for all other women, but I never got the chance to make her mine.
I’m the pinnacle of control. I protect the net, my team, and my daughter.
It’s my final season and I can’t afford any distractions.
Except our new assistant coach just walked in.
And I would know her face anywhere.
She’s the one I dream about.
That weekend, I was just a man—not the legend, the dad, the mentor.
I didn’t care that I was a decade older.
For the first time in my life, I was ready to risk everything if it meant having her.
Until I woke up to an empty bed and no note.
Three years of wishing I knew how to find her, now she’s my new boss.
I can be patient.
But for her—I want to break all the rules.
Love Off Script by Laura Starkey
All’s fair in love and screenplays…
She’s just a script consultant, standing in front of a director, asking him to step back and let her do her job…
Jess should have known better than to fall for the English department’s silver fox. Now she’s left picking up the pieces after catching him cheating with a student and stealing the credit for her research paper. Desperate for a fresh start, she accepts a job as a script consultant on a new TV adaptation of the Regency novel, Anne of Arden – no one knows Georgiana Scott’s work better than she does.
Swapping the world of academia for the glamour of TV is supposed to be her big comeback. But standing in her way is Nathan Lambert, a famous director on a mission to sabotage his unfaithful ex-wife’s latest work project.
As the two knock heads over every detail of the script, sparks fly, tempers flare, and their unexpected chemistry is anything but scripted. In a world where the lines between reality and fiction blur, can Jess and Nathan rewrite their own happy ending?
Beautiful Collide by Ava Harrison
Hudson Wilde is just as fun as he is fierce. The wild card of the Redville Saints, that runs through women, leaving a pile of broken hearts in his wake. His best friend’s little sister is completely off limits.
From the moment they meet, Hudson and Molly clash. She doesn’t appreciate his partying ways, and he’s annoyed by how much she’s around, constantly looking down on him.
What does she care about the things he does?
Forced to spend time together while on the road, Hudson and Molly’s hatred soon morphs into something unexpected. A spark ignites and one drunken night changes everything.
Hudson sees Molly in a new light. A forbidden fruit he wants to taste. A line he’s willing to cross. A challenge he wants to accept.
Because one thing is for certain, Dane would never approve.
Engaging in a secret relationship with your best friend’s sister will undoubtedly lead to trouble.
The Match Maker by Elle Nicoll
He’s New York’s most eligible billionaire.
And I’ve been hired to find him love.
I’ve built a thriving business doing what I love—connecting soulmates.
So, when a woman begs me to help her father, I’m on the first flight from London.
My track record is flawless.
Until I meet Sterling Beaufort.
Suave. Charming. Devastatingly handsome.
The owner of the world’s most luxurious diamond empire.
But behind the silver fox’s billion-dollar smile is a complex man I’m determined to unravel.
The harder I push, the fiercer he resists.
Until I snap and demand to know why he’s sabotaging his chance at happiness.
He doesn’t tell me…
He shows me.
God, does he show me.
But a twenty-year age gap, a family tragedy, and the fact he’s my client aren’t all I have to consider.
There’s a reason I find love for other people and never for myself.
This time, the universe has it wrong.
Because falling for Sterling Beaufort is the match that could burn everything.
My Big Fat Fake Marriage by Charlotte Stein
Stuck together on a writing retreat, a fake marriage goes awry when two people fall in love for real! From the author of When Grumpy Met Sunshine, Charlotte Stein’s My Big Fat Fake Marriage is a sexy, laugh-out-loud romcom.
Connie Evans has always distrusted nice guys. In her experience, they’re just waiting to reveal some horrible secret. And then she meets big, adorable Henry Samuel Beckett: sweet, a lover of bow ties and so cheery that Connie struggles to believe he’s real.
Until Beck – as he’s known to most – tells Connie the secret beneath his sunny surface. He’s been single all his life, but somehow seems to have told everyone he works with that he’s married. And, when Connie can’t help but defend him, she ends up being the wife he doesn’t have.
And now they’re on a writing retreat together, surrounded by people convinced they can’t be for real, with both of them sure that those people are right. Until they have to share their first kiss, their first touch, their first time in only one bed. Side by side, every night, as the simmering tension builds . . .
Something has to give. Could it be her heart?
Finding Serenissima by Apple Gidley
With the help of a feisty hotel owner, an attractive water-taxi driver, and a gondola full of Italians who call Venice home, Amelia, a widowed Australian, begins her search for serenity. As the island city works its magic, she comes to realize her life has been overshadowed by her famous American husband, Leo, well before his decline into Alzheimer’s.
As Amelia navigates Venice’s winding canals and its language, she gracefully confronts the joys and challenges of aging, discovering that love and laughter can come at any stage of life. Balancing long-distance parenting and familial obligations, she redefines what it means to live fully as an older woman, all while the magical city slowly helps her reclaim her identity.
Dancing in the Moonlight by Lynne Shelby
When dancer Nell Avery auditions for Speakeasy, a new West End musical, she is shocked to discover that the choreographer is Finn Harris, a man she never expected to see again.
Ten years ago, Nell and Finn had a casual, no-strings fling. He left London to work abroad. Nell found herself pregnant.
Having made the decision to raise her child alone, Nell didn’t tell Finn that he was the father, a secret easy for her to keep while he was hundreds of miles away. But now Finn is back – and he offers Nell a role in Speakeasy’s cast.
Nell knows if she takes the job she risks Finn finding out her secret, with unimaginable consequences for the life she has made for herself and her daughter, Savannah. But Speakeasy could be Nell’s only chance of dancing on a West End stage – the dream she’s had ever since she first put on a pair of tap shoes. How can she give up her dream?
Nell accepts the role, telling herself that all she has to do is keep away from Finn . . .
Just the Beginning by Sarah Bennet
Welcome to Halfmoon Quay, the picture-perfect village clinging to the edge of the Cornish coast.
Everyone knows Rick Penrose is the person in the village to turn to for help. Friendly and reliable, not to mention drop-dead gorgeous, he’ll do anything for anyone. When his teenage crush Anya moves back to the quay for a fresh start, he has the perfect solution. She needs a job and his great uncle needs help to run his hotel. It’s a win-win.
Following the death of her husband, Anya Stokes discovered everything about her life was a lie. Without her beautiful home and the luxuries she took for granted, Anya and her daughter, Freya, have no choice but to move in with her aunt and uncle in Halfmoon Quay.
As she begins to turn her life around, Anya realises the perfect man might have been right under her nose all the time. But there’s a fine line between helping and taking over and Rick doesn’t always know where it is. Then Anya discovers he’s been keeping things from her and it’s like the past is repeating itself…
So that’s all for this week.
Happy Reading!
