Ancient Historical Fiction

Kasia grew up in a poor Jewish home with more siblings than luxuries. But when a chance encounter forces her to the palace of Xerxes, she becomes a concubine to the richest man in the world. She alone, of all Xerxes's wives, loves the man beneath the crown. She alone, of all his wives, holds the heart of the king of kings. Traveling with Xerxes through Europe as he mounts a war against Greece, Kasia knows enemies surround her, but they're not the Spartans or Athenians. The threat lies with those close to the king who hate her people.

Using his father's watch as a key, Jake intends to return to Calypsos. Instead he's thrust into a strange desert land where he's joined by his friends Marika, Pindor, and Bach'uuk and his sister, Kady. As they try to figure out what to do next, a surprise attack by the beautiful young Princess Nefertiti takes them all captive. Soon even she is battling the Skull King's minions. For Jake has something the Skull King wants - a prize that will give its owner awesome power, including control of the fearsome Howling Sphinx.

From the number-one New York Times best-selling author of The Wrath and the Dawn comes a sweeping, action-packed YA adventure set against the backdrop of feudal Japan, where Mulan meets Tamora Pierce.

What if your entire life had been a lie? When Rowan Thomas was dragged into 14th century Scotland, she knew her old life was gone. But the more she learns of her druid nature, the more she questions what she knew - about her sister, herself, and her all-consuming attraction to Taran Skaraven. The Skaraven Horse Master has always been a man of few words. He sees to the care and well-being of the clan’s mounts, sensing their needs before they do.

Can a druidess with the power of visions be blind to love? Weapons Master Kanyth Skaraven has always found favor with the ladies, until he meets Perrin Thomas. Though the fairy-like druid descendant seemed fated for him, he finds himself torn in two directions. His unique power with the forge is something he must keep under tight control - a control that slips when Perrin is near. But as the deadly attacks of the mad druids and their giants escalate to a fever pitch, Perrin and Kanyth must master their deepest fears as well as their desires.

The world of Dragon Heart is thrown into confusion when they become the target of their Viking brothers. Raiders come from every direction to take what Dragon Heart and his people have built. This is the time of Viking fighting Viking for control of the land that will become England.

In the hard, unforgiving land at the northernmost point of the Roman Empire lies a great wall. Once, the edge had been but a thing of thoughts and dreams, but one day the great Emperor from across the water had grown tired of such borders. So, a wall was raised from the earth at his command. From afar, it looked invincible. Yet every wall has its weaknesses—if one looks close enough. In its shadow gather five thousand fearsome soldiers. Men bred to fight and kill. The Sarmatians have suffered capture and defeat, but under a new command they are prepared to fight again.

Beric, a dashing young British chieftain, must fight for liberty from the forests of his homeland, where he defies the legendary Roman legions, to the Roman Colosseum, where he must employ gladiatorial skills to defend a persecuted Christian girl. G.A. Henty provides fascinating details of life in a Roman villa, in the imperial palace, and in the villages of the tribal Britons; and accurately shows the strengths that allowed the Romans to conquer their empire and the weaknesses that would end it. Set in A.D. 62.

From Sunday Times best-selling author Ben Kane comes a collection of short stories.

Following Icel’s epic rescue of Lord Coenwulf's children from their almost certain death, King Wiglaf is forced to call upon Icel’s loyal services once more. Furious that the conspirators behind the audacious move to snatch the children have yet to face justice, he dispatches Icel to hunt down the enemy of Mercia and discover who seeks to conspire against the throne.

In the kingdom of Eire, banshees chill the air, and water-wights lurk in the rivers. But magic is outlawed by the king, and jealously hoarded by his Druid priests. Neve is the youngest daughter of the king, and Ronan is a Druid's apprentice turned thief, making a living by selling stolen spells. They should be enemies, but their shared hatred of the Druids—and a dark magic that has marked them both—makes them unlikely, if uneasy, allies.

As famine overtakes the land, Simeon leads his brothers into Egypt to buy grain. He doesn't recognize the vengeful ruler he must bow before: Joseph, his long-lost brother, the very brother Simeon sold into slavery years ago. Now, it is the brash Simeon's turn to endure imprisonment. Only Mandisa, the handmaid who interprets the ruler's language, is his saving grace. The beautiful widow and her young son see another side of Simeon, the tenderness beneath the tough exterior. As much as he would like to, he will never be free to love them until he unshackles the chains around his own heart.

From the author of the “engrossing historical epic” (Booklist) The Scribe of Siena comes a thrilling tale set in the crumbling city of Mystras, Greece, in which a scientist’s vacation with her young son quickly turns into a fight for their lives after they cross paths with a man out of time.

A desolate wasteland. A mission gone wrong. An impossible goal. Roman scout, Silus, is deep behind enemy lines in Caledonia. As he spies on a raiding party, he is abruptly discovered by an enemy chief and his son. Mounting a one-man ambush, everything quickly goes wrong and Silus must run for his life, the head of the enemy leader in his hands. Little does he know the price he will pay... As Silus is inducted into the Arcani, an elite faction of assassins and spies, he must return to Caledonia and risk everything in the service of his Caesar.

In The Cat of Bubastes, G. A. Henty gives his listeners a fascinating picture of one of the greatest of the ancient peoples at the height of their civilization. Chebron, son of the Egyptian high priest Ameres, and Amuba, a Rebu slave in Ameres' household, are companions. Their lives are changed irrevocably when Chebron accidentally kills his sister's cat, an animal sacred to the Egyptians -- an offence punishable by death.

An ancient highlander who’s never been allowed to love. A modern woman who keeps men at arm’s length. Can their passion overcome their pasts? Althea Jarden’s botanical fieldwork keeps her happily busy, but it has kept her from relationships as well - by design. But all the self-reliance in the world can’t prepare her for being taken to ancient Scotland and what she finds there.

Two works by the Roman historian, Tacitus. Agricola is a portrait of Julius Agricola, a governor of Roman Britain, and the first surviving account of the geography, climate, and peoples of Britain. The German tribes of Northern Europe are discussed in Germania.

The author of the best-selling Empire sequence continues his new epic of the uprising of the Batavi in AD 88. The Rhine frontier has exploded into all-out war. Summoned back to their homeland by their new leader, Kivilaz, the Batavi cohorts, so recently proud soldiers of Rome, find their lands transformed. All Roman influences have vanished after a battle in which two legions were humbled by the rebels, then chased away to lick their wounds in their fortress, the Old Camp.

In 40 CE, in the Au Lac region of ancient Vietnam, two daughters of a Vietnamese Lord fill their days training, studying, and trying to stay true to Vietnamese traditions. While Trung Trac is disciplined and wise, always excelling in her duty, Trung Nhi is fierce and free spirited, more concerned with spending time in the gardens and with lovers. But these sister's lives—and the lives of their people—are shadowed by the oppressive rule of the Han Chinese. They are forced to adopt Confucian teachings, secure marriages, and pay ever‑increasing taxes.

Rolf, son of Hiarandi the Unlucky, is a character who exemplifies the effect of Christ's teachings upon the Icelandic people during their heroic age. The book is set in Iceland in the days when Christianity has come to the island though the old customs still linger. Hiarandi, at the urging of his wife, does an unprecedented thing: he lights a signal fire on a dangerous point of his land, thereby challenging the accepted custom which places lucrative salvage at higher value than the saving of life.