Showing titles in Historical Fiction

Homeless and lost in a dark, strange forest, young Robin is rescued by a motley crew of misfits. He yearns to avenge his father and seek justice against cruel oppressors, to finally defeat the Sheriff of Nottingham, once and for all. And through his friends, Robin Hood finds the courage to become a legendary hero.

When Elaine leaves her home in London to stay with the Owen family in Wales, she feels miserable and left out. It's only the little secret garden that she finds at the end of the rainbow that makes staying there seem worthwhile. And then something happens that changes everything.

August 1611. Jack Fletcher is shipwrecked off the coast of Japan - his beloved father and the crew lie slaughtered by ninja pirates. Rescued by the legendary sword master Masamoto Takeshi, Jack's only hope is to become a samurai warrior. And so his training begins. But life at the samurai school is a constant fight for survival. With courage in his heart and his sword held high, can Jack prove himself and face his deadliest rival yet?

A timeless tale of courage, resistance and friendship, The Umbrella Mouse is a heart-stopping adventure drawing on the true stories of animals caught in the conflict of WWII, winner of the 2019 Sainsbury's Book Prize for Fiction and selected for Waterstones Book of the Month. 1944, and London is...

When Isobel Petty is orphaned, she finds herself being taken away from her home in India and sent to live with a distant uncle in England. On board the SS Marianna, she witnesses a shocking act – somebody being thrown overboard in the middle in the night. But when the ship’s captain insists that nobody is missing, Isobel and her two new reluctant friends must solve two mysteries – the identities of both the murderer and the victim – before they reach England and the culprit has the chance to escape.

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER From the award-winning author of Salt to the Sea comes a “superb” (The Wall Street Journal), “eye-opening” (Los Angeles Times) novel of survival and hope in the darkest of places—the inspiration for the major motion picture Ashes in the Snow "Few books are...

This timely and powerful novel tells the story of three different children seeking refuge. Josef is a Jewish boy living in 1930s Nazi Germany. With the threat of concentration camps looming, he and his family board a ship bound for the other side of the world. Isabel is a Cuban girl in 1994. With riots and unrest plaguing her country, she and her family set out on a raft, hoping to find safety in America. Mahmoud is a Syrian boy in 2015. With his homeland torn apart by violence and destruction, he and his family begin a long trek toward Europe.

When a priceless painting is stolen, our dauntless heroines, Sophie and Lil, find themselves faced with forgery, trickery and deceit on all sides! Be amazed as the brave duo pit their wits against this perilous puzzle! Marvel at their cunning plan to unmask the villain and prove themselves detectives to be reckoned with - no matter what dangers lie ahead.... It’s their most perilous adventure yet!

Twelve-year-old Robyn has grown up in Bletchley Park, where her father works as a driver. When she's not at school, she helps her dad in the garages. Then the war begins and everything at Bletchley changes. Robyn is assigned to help with the carrier pigeons that take messages to the Allies. But first, she must sign the Official Secrets Act and is ordered not to leave the grounds of the park. While Bletchley is buzzing with people recruited for the war effort and all eyes are on the skies, Robyn becomes convinced that there's something sinister going on within Bletchley Park.

After years of loss and sacrifice, the end of the war with Napoleon is approaching. Cobweb knows nothing of the war – he loves being a young puppy and playing with his owner, Bethan, exploring the countryside and chasing rabbits. But when he is taken away from Bethan and sold, Cobweb must learn to become a Drover’s Dog – herding sheep and cattle for hundreds of miles on the long, treacherous journey to London.

In the deadly chaos of the First World War, one horse witnesses the reality of battle from both sides of the trenches. Bombarded by artillery, with bullets knocking riders from his back, Joey tells a powerful story of the truest friendships surviving in terrible times. One horse has the seen the best and the worst of humanity. The power of war and the beauty of peace. This is his story.

Rupert, the young Earl of Westerholme, returns home from the war - and Anna, a housemaid, falls hopelessly in love with him. But they can never be together - Rupert is engaged to the snobbish and awful Muriel. And anyway, Anna is only a servant. Or so everybody thinks.

Irish fairy tales and legends - full of enchantment, brave deeds and lost loves. The best tales from the Irish tradition, including: 'How Cúchulainn Got His Name', 'The Magic Shoes', 'Deirdre and the Sons of Uisneach', 'The King’s Secret', 'The Children of Lir', 'The Giant’s Causeway', 'The Bodach of the Grey Coat', 'The Pot of Gold', 'Tír na n-Óg' and 'The White Gander'. Irish fairy tales and legends are full of enchantment, brave deeds and lost loves. Told from generation to generation, they are as fascinating now as they were to their original listeners.

Master storyteller Tom Palmer returns with a deeply moving and beautifully told novel of friendship and belonging, inspired by the incredible true story of the Windermere Boys. "The best children’s fiction book I’ve yet read about the Holocaust" – Tim Robertson, CEO Anne Frank Trust Summer...

1666. When 11-year-old bookish Gil finds a strange ‘heaven stone' by the Thames, he never thought it would hatch. Or that so soon after the Great Plague, a small fire in London would become a deadly inferno. Soon Gil, his phoenix, and his spiky friend Jennet must cross the burning city, avoid a terrifying mob, and find a place where they can all be safe.

Penguin presents the audiobook edition of Moonfleet by J. Meade Falkner, read by Royce Pierreson. A tale of smuggling set among the cliffs, caves, and downs of Dorset. Everyone in the tiny village of Moonfleet lives by the sea one way or another, so it's no surprise when young John Trenchard...

Multi-award-winning author Tom Palmer shines a light on life under wartime occupation, in a beautifully told story inspired by the childhood of Hollywood legend Audrey Hepburn. As the brutal Second World War stretches on with no end in sight, life for ordinary Dutch people in the Nazi-occupied...

The powerful new novel from the master storyteller – inspired by the true story of one man who might have stopped World War II. 1940. The train is under attacks from German fighters. In the darkness, sheltering in a railway tunnel, the stranger in the carriage with Barney and his mother tells...

An unforgettable tale of an orphan in Victorian London, based on the boy whose plight inspired Dr Barnardo to found his famous children's homes. When his mother dies, Jim Jarvis is left all alone in London. He is sent to the workhouse but quickly escapes, choosing a hard life on the streets of the city over the confines of the workhouse walls. Struggling to survive, Jim finally finds some friends...only to be snatched away and made to work for the remorselessly cruel Grimy Nick, constantly guarded by his vicious dog, Snipe. Will Jim ever manage to be free?

When Stella and her younger brother, Tom, move to their new London home, they become mystified by the disappearances of Harry, their elderly neighbor's small dog. Where does he go? And why does he keep reappearing wet-through? Their quest to solve the riddle over the summer holidays leads to a boat buried under a grassy mound, and a tunnel that takes them to a secret lake.