Showing results for "Awakenings" in Historical Fiction

Unsatisfied with the expectations of Creole society and unhappy with her family life, Edna Pontellier begins to fall in love with the dapper Robert Lebrun. Lebrun's flirtations, along with the lifestyle of renowned musician Mademoiselle Reisz, rejuvenates Edna's sense of freedom and independence. However, an affair with the womanizer Alcee Arobin provides Edna with a taste of the danger that comes with living outside of social convention.

Yorkshire, 1890. Having lost her father and brothers in tragic circumstances, Olwen Malkon is forced to leave her childhood home to live with her uncle's family. In his chill vicarage, however, she fears that she is also losing her mind, as strange dreams take her into the life of Ælfwyn, a woman from a distant past whose fate is overshadowed by menace and betrayal. In the grip of these afflictions, Olwen finds sympathy with the local doctor, John Osbourne, who is intrigued by her case. 

"A witch!" It's an accusation Arianna O'Sullivan dreads as she struggles to conceal her abilities from the suspicious villagers in colonial Massachusetts. Saved from the pillory by a handsome, chivalrous stranger, Arianna senses an inexplicable connection. When she's given no choice but to marry the charismatic man, even after discovering he's the grandson of an infamous witch-hunter, she fears her powers won't be restrained for much longer.

How do you find love where love does not exist? From out of a barefoot boyhood among endless rows of olive trees, and a forbidden passion for a courageous Moroccan beauty, to a horrific struggle against tyranny in the war-torn streets of 1936 Granada, comes a story where love cannot exist without mercy . . . mercy one carries for one’s whole life as a badge of honor . . . mercy and compassion passed down from generation to generation.

In the mid-1850s, life for an orphan was grim, as Kirsten MacGregor discovered when her parents died suddenly on a journey to Northumberland, leaving her penniless and alone in the hands of a cruel farmer. Somehow, Kirsten survived her terrible childhood - only to be sold, at the age of 14, to a travelling tinker - a vicious man who held her captive until the fateful day they were separated during a storm. Rescued from the flood by the Flynn family, she gave birth to a child as the waters raged about her.

Following the critically acclaimed success of Dublin, this riveting sequel takes the story of Ireland from the 17th century onwards, picking up at the Reformation, and with it the devastating arrival of Oliver Cromwell. Cromwell heralds the inauguration of 200 years of Protestant dominance, throughout which many of the Irish people were impoverished and dispossessed. Dublin is made a Protestant capital, and Catholics become an underclass. Set against the dramatic backdrop of Irish political history, this powerful saga is brought to its conclusion.

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Kate Chopin’s novel, a landmark work of early feminism, is seen as a precursor to the works of American novelists such as William Faulkner and Ernest Hemingway. The upper-class Creole society of New Orleans and the Southern Louisiana coast at the end of the 19th century is brought to audio in a stirring performance by Academy Award-winning actress Kim Basinger.

Fetishist of working women Arthur Munby, irascible antiquary General Pitt Rivers, feminist Barbara Bodichon, and other historical figures of the Victorian epoch wander through the backdrop of the novel as Anna's anomalous love for Lore Ritter, and her friendship with freethinking and ambitious Miriam Sala, carry her into areas of uncharted desire, while Beatrice, forced to choose between her beloved Will Anwyl and the evangelist Christian Ritter, who marked her out as a wife when she was only a child, is pulled between passion and duty.

The three novels that make up The Forsyte Saga chronicle the ebbing social power of the commercial upper-middle class Forsyte family through three generations, beginning in Victorian London during the 1880s and ending in the early 1920s. Galsworthy's masterly narrative examines not only their fortunes but also the wider developments within society, particularly the changing position of women.

When Darcy and Lizzy meet at the Meryton assembly, Darcy is already engaged to another woman, and Lizzy has suffered the loss of someone she once loved. How will they find their way to each other, with these obstacles, and so many more, standing in their way?

When widowed Amelia Smith takes a fallen soldier into her household, she is shocked to discover he has no idea who he is. Determined to help him recover his memory, she embarks on a journey that will change and endanger them both. Working out whom and what he is brings back painful memories to Marco. The only constant in his life is his burning desire to take revenge on those who tried to steal everything from him. As his memories return, he needs Amelia Smith's calm good sense more than he ever anticipated.

Roun was born clanless, depriving him of a future in an empire where bloodlines and reputation mean everything. His only hope for escaping the life of an outcast lies in being awakened by the Eldest Throne and becoming a guardian of humanity.

Even if she must sell herself in marriage to the highest bidder, Lady Laura Middleton is determined to provide her daughter a home and protector. But when Queen Eleanor presents her cousin with four suitors, among them is one who believes Laura betrayed him 10 years past. Despite her attempts to discourage his pursuit, he is determined to have her for the dowry needed to save his lands.

Kate Chopin's novel The Awakening, published 1899, drew a storm of criticism for its "shocking, morbid, and vulgar" story and quickly went out of print. The novel was not resurrected until the 1950s, when participants in the growing women's movement recognized its importance. Today, The Awakening is among the most-read American novels in colleges and universities and is considered an early example of American realism.

A woman seeks love and the fulfillment of her essential nature outside of her stuffy, middle-class marriage. Although this book shocked the readers of 1899, it ultimately paved the way for the modern novel.

Kyle Russell has worked with prominent men, led scouting expeditions through the Yellowstone country, and irritated more than a few Indian braves, but he will never duplicate his father's legendary accomplishments. Captured by a group of Crow warriors, his plans of escape are derailed when a lone white woman is brought into camp.

Alina never asked to leave her world. But when fate tears her from the modern day and casts her into an ancient dynasty filled with secrets, betrayals, and forbidden prophecies, she must fight to survive in a court where trust is dangerous and power is deadly.

A curse looms over the small village of Salem. Sassy and headstrong Lucinda fights against the court as she tries to stop the unjust persecutions. While on a journey of self-discovery, she soon realizes that not everything is as it seems to be. Will she accept her heritage or will she sacrifice it all for love? Loyal rationalist Isaac attempts to make sense of the chaos happening around him. Following his heart has led him down a path of conflict. Does he remain loyal to his family and betray the one he loves? Or will he go against his duty and fight for the woman who holds his heart?

Ellie Ballantyne, youngest child of Silas and Eden, has left finishing school. But back at her family home in Pittsburgh, Ellie finds that her parents are away on a long trip, and her siblings don't seem to want her to stay. When she opens a day school for young ladies, she begins tutoring the incorrigible daughter of the enemy Turlock clan. The Turlocks are slaveholders and whiskey magnates, envious of the powerful Ballantynes and suspicious of their abolitionist leanings.