This is the month for giving thanks. I’d like to start by being thankful for family, friends, and good books. I’m also thankful for all ourfollowers’ support of last year’s Paper Lantern Writers anthology, Unlocked, featuring eight stories revolving around a sea chest over several centuries..

This year, we have an all-new anthology of short historical fiction for you. Beneath a Midwinter Moon has eleven stories by Paper Lantern Writers, all focused on a winter holiday in different times and places. Available November 1.

 

 

 

BEST COVER

A Woman of Courage by Tania Blanchard (November 1)

“A fresh, exciting and inspiring tale of the women who fought for their right to vote – women who quite literally changed the world. Main character Hannah is a true woman of courage, brought to life by elegant prose, meticulous research and a stunning narrative … Bursting with charm, heart and hope” ~ Natashe Lester, New York Times bestselling author of The Three Lives of Alix St Pierre

The covers this month all attract me for different reasons. So many of them are just gorgeous! A Woman of Courage, though, combines soft feminine pastel colors with a very determined female face. I want to know more about her! This is the story of a woman fighting for the vote in England. She moves from London to a rural village, where she encounters romance, secrets, and struggle.

BEST TITLE

Last Night at the Hollywood Canteen by Sarah James (November 7)

“This vibrant, utterly delightful mystery expertly captures the drama, glamour and absurdity of wartime Hollywood. Sarah James’s swift dialogue, dry wit and clever characters transport you into a 1940s movie, where the jokes are quick, the love affairs scandalous and the cast as charming as they are flawed.” ~Brianna Labuskes, author of The Librarian of Burned Books

Stories of Hollywood, especially old Hollywood, are very interesting. Last night at a canteen invokes images of the Old West, but upon reading the description this novel is about World War II Hollywood. It is set in a canteen for servicemen that is staffed by stars. Then, of course, a murder changes everything.

MOST INTRIGUING

A Grandmother Begins the Story by Michelle Porter (November 7)

“A Grandmother Begins the Story will leave you forever charmed and soulspun. What a vision. What courage to blow a hole through all expectations of what a story can be and how it’s told, and what a masterwork from a voice I’d follow anywhere. This is why we read and this is why we write: to discover places and voices and visions like these.” ~Richard van Camp, award-winning author of Godless but Loyal to Heaven and The Moon of Letting Go

My grandmother told me stories of my ancestors, so this title captivated me. This story is full of interesting characters trying to preserve a family’s legacy. Some of those characters are grandmothers living in the Afterlife, and some are descendants of the bison. What a wonderfully compelling tale!

MOST ANTICIPATED

Street Corner Dreams by Florence Reiss Kraut (November 14)

“In Kraut’s beautifully written, captivating tale of an immigrant family in New York City between the world wars, the Feinsteins struggle to attain their dreams. Sometimes love and sacrifice aren’t enough, but hope glimmers through for this unforgettable family that you will root for to the very end.” ~Rebecca D’Harlingue, author of The Lines Between Us and The Map Colorist

Set just before World War I, a young girl comes to New York full of dreams. After her sister dies, she gives up those dreams to marry her brother-in-law and raise her sister’s son. The Depression causes hardship for the family, and forces that son to become involved with gangsters to save his father. Getting away from that world, though, is harder than it seems.

MYSTERY

Death of the Red Rider by Yulia Yakovleva (November 7)

A Christmas Vanishing by Anne Perry (November 7)

Again and Again by Jonathan Evison (November 7)

Poster Girl by Shelley Blanton-Stroud (November 14)

Murder in Williamstown by Kerry Greenwood (November 7)

Act Like a Lady, Think Like a Lord by Celeste Connally (November 14)

Viviana Valentine and the Ticking Clock by Emily J. Edwards

ANCIENT

Uhtred’s Feast by Bernard Cornwell (November 14)

The Peasant King by Tessa Afshar (November 7)

AMERICAN HISTORY

The Redemption of Mattie Silks by Kimberly Burns

The Middle Generation by M. B. Zucker (November 7)

FAMILY

The Butterfly Collector by Tea Cooper (November 28)

A True Account by Katherine Howe (November 21)

The Ways of Water by Teresa H. Janssen (November 7)

WORLD WAR II

The Porcelain Maker by Sara Freethy (November 7)

The Woman with a Purple Heart by Diane Hanks

FANTASY

The Star and the Strange Moon by Constance Sayers (November 14)

ROMANCE

Courting Miss Emma by Linda Broday (November 7)

The Ball at Versailles by Danielle Steel (November 21)

The Winthrop Agreement by Alice Sherman Simpson  (November 21)

 

Need more historical fiction on your TBR? See more new release titles at Historical Novel Society.

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