Anyone who frequents my blog or Facebook pages knows how much I love Bernard Cornwell’s novels. His books have it all—scrupulous research, good writing, memorable characters, and—especially in his wonderful Saxon series—delightful dollops of wry humor. And as an added bonus, the man writes such compelling, realistic battle scenes that it makes me wonder at times if he has a secret time-travel machine hidden away in his basement. I can think of no better way to learn history than to reach for one of his books. But don’t take my word for it; investigate Cornwell’s Kingdom for yourself. http://www.bernardcornwell.net/
Readers who are intrigued by the MA are probably already well acquainted with the writing of Elizabeth Chadwick. Her research is impeccable and she has a great gift for bringing medieval people and their world to vivid and dramatic life. She has made the Marshal clan her own with her compelling series about William Marshal and his family. And like me, she has fallen under the spell of one of history’s most memorable women, Eleanor of Aquitaine. I have often mentioned her website in my blogs and on Facebook, for she offers a wealth of material about the MA; any readers interested in the medieval experience should definitely check it out.
Margaret Frazer was one of my favorite writers and a dear friend, and her death in 2013 was a wound that will never really heal for those who knew and loved her. She wrote two compelling medieval series, one about Sister Frevisse, who can give Brother Cadfael a run for his money, and one about Joliffe, her dashing, devil-may-care player and sometimes spy. Her sons still maintain her website and her mysteries and short stories are all available as paperbacks and in the e-book format. http://www.margaretfrazer.com/ And here is a link to Margaret Frazer, in Memoriam, in which I tried to honor this extraordinary woman who was taken too soon, but who lives on in her books. https://sharonkaypenman.com/blog/?p=390
I became an enthusiastic fan of Priscilla Royal’s mysteries as soon as I read her first novel, Wine of Violence, and we soon became good friends, sharing a passion for the past, reading, football, and the pets who rule our households. Her novels are very suspenseful and so firmly rooted in the M.A. that reading one of them is a form of time travel. She also deals with subjects not often raised in medieval mysteries—Anti-Semitism, the bias against the Welsh, the hardscrabble lives of the poor, and the inner struggles of her characters in a time when the Almighty seemed more like a God of Wrath than the loving, forgiving deity embraced by Pope Francis. To visit her thirteenth century England, check out the Priscilla Royal website.
Margaret George has long been one of my favorite authors. It is hard to choose, but I think her novel, Elizabeth I, is one of her best, offering a compelling, dramatic, and utterly convincing portrayal of this brilliantly neurotic (or neurotically brilliant) queen. She managed to humanize one of my least favorite kings, Henry VIII, and in her latest books, she took on an even greater challenge—the controversial and enigmatic Roman Emperor, Nero: The Confessions of Young Nero and The Splendor Before the Dark: A Novel of the Emperor Nero. www.margaretgeorge.com
For any readers who are not yet familiar with P.F. Chisholm’s wonderful series about Robert Carey, the real-life, swashbuckling cousin of Elizabeth Tudor, you are in for such a treat. These books are so much fun, filled with action and humor and surprise plot twists and fascinating details of Elizabethan life. Just to mention one, An Air of Treason revolves around one of the most dangerous mysteries of Tudor England—the fate of Amy Robsart, Robert Dudley’s unwanted wife. The first in the series is A Famine of Horses. I cannot recommend these books highly enough; they are that good. You can find out more at her website, www.patriciafinney.com; P.F. Chisholm is her nom de plume for the Carey mysteries.
I have enjoyed spending time in France with Sharan Newman’s Catherine LeVendeur. Sharan has also written an excellent book for anyone interested in the Templars, The Real History of the Templars, and Defending the City of God, a biography of Melisende, Queen of Jerusalem in the early years of the turbulent 12th century; Melisende is the mother of Amalric, who ruled the kingdom at the beginning of my latest novel, The Land Beyond the Sea. For more information about her, visit the Sharan Newman website
David Blixt is truly a Renaissance man. In addition to being a gifted and prolific writer, he is an actor, producer, and director; he also can wield a sword with the best of them, having fought numerous duels in various Shakespearean plays. Speaking of Shakespeare, David has written a very funny spy spoof about the young Will Shakespeare and Christopher Marlowe, who blunder onto the famous plot to assassinate Elizabeth Tudor and put Mary, Queen of Scots, on the throne; the title is Her Majesty’s Will. David has written too many books for me to list here, but my very favorites are his Star-Crossed series, set in medieval Italy, with Dante and his son, Pietro, as major characters. The first of four books (so far) is the Master of Verona, where you’ll also get to meet a larger-than-life anti-hero who seems to have come straight out of a Hollywood swashbuckler starring Errol Flynn. But Cangrande della Scala actually lived and did all the amazing and outrageous things that David’s Cangrande does. He was a lot like the Lionheart in some ways, swaggering, arrogant, charming, and fearless. But he also put me in mind of Machiavelli. All in all, a fascinating man, and I am grateful to David’s books for bringing him to my attention; I confess I’d never heard of him until I read Master of Verona. Here is the link to David’s website, but be prepared to spend a lot of time there. https://www.davidblixt.com/
C.W. Gortner is another fine historical novelist, who has given depth and credibility to such controversial queens as Juana la Loca (The Last Queen) and Catherine de Medici (The Secrets of Catherine de Medici) He also has written novels about Queen Isabella of Spain and Lucrezia Borgia, while occasionally straying out of the Middle Ages. www.cwgortner.com
Helen M. Hollick doesn’t write mysteries — at least not yet — but she writes compelling historical sagas, including a brilliant trilogy about King Arthur. Fans of Johnny Depp and Pirates of the Caribbean will be interested to know that Helen is now doing a pirate series
This next series is not at all medieval, but Dana Stabenow’s mysteries set in Alaska and featuring the unforgettable Kate Shugak and her equally memorable wolf-hybrid, Mutt, are so much fun that it might not be completely legal. https://stabenow.com/
Other writers I enjoy reading: Alice Hoffman, George R.R. Martin, Elizabeth Peters, Janet Evanovich, Stephanie Churchill, C.S. Harris, Donna Leon, Laurie King, Martin Walker, Robert Crais, Sue Henry, Lindsey Davis, Steven Saylor, John Maddox Roberts, Michelle Moran, David Rosenfelt, and Spencer Quinn, which just scratches the surface. I would also like to recommend The Kite Runner and A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini. These are two of the most compelling, insightful, and haunting novels I’ve ever read. The same can be said about Alice Hoffman’s brilliant The Dovekeepers, which is much, much better than the television mini-series. My favorite book store: The Poisoned Pen. My favorite on-line bookstore is the Medieval Bookshop, which is a wonderful source for finding out-of-print and bargain books. It is located in the UK, www.medievalbookshop.co.uk