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Historical Novels: Renaissance Europe and Tudor EnglandFor news on the latest additions to this website, see the blog. Jump to: Novels for Young Adults set during the Renaissance
The British Isles in Tudor and Elizabethan Times Because the Renaissance and Reformation changes arose at different times in different places (earlier in Italy, for example, than in Hungary or Poland), it is impossible to set a date for its beginning that works throughout Europe. If you don't find a novel you're looking for on this page, try the Medieval Europe page. Novels set outside Europe (if they feature a non-European point of view) are listed by location.
The British Isles in Tudor and Elizabethan Times
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Peter Ackroyd, The House of Doctor Dee
Laura Andersen, The Boleyn Deceit Laura Andersen, The Boleyn Reckoning Laura Andersen, The Virgin's Daughter Laura Andersen, The Virgin’s Spy (2015), a novel of alternate history in which Queen Elizabeth's daughter by Philip of Spain is Princess of Wales; #2 in the Tudor Legacy trilogy.
Evelyn Anthony, Anne Boleyn, about Anne Boleyn and Henry VIII. Aileen Armitage, The Tudor Sisters (2005 reissue; originally published 1974 as Court Cadenza under the name Aileen Quigley), about Mary Boleyn, Anne Boleyn's sister, who was the mistress of Henry VIII and bore him a son before he became infatuated with Anne. Gillian Bagwell, Venus in Winter (2013), about Bess of Hardwick, whose three marriages during the reign of Henry VIII make her a wealthy and powerful woman. Michael Baldwin, Dark Lady (1998), a novel which imagines that the "dark lady" of Shakespeare's sonnets was the daughter of a witch. Ros Barber, The Marlowe Papers (2013), a novel in verse form which imagines that Christopher Marlowe faked his death to avoid being convicted of heresy and continued to write plays under Shakespeare's name. Jenny Barden, The Lost Duchess Margaret Campbell Barnes, My Lady of Cleves (1946; also titled The King’s Choice), about Anne of Cleves, the intelligent fourth wife of Henry VIII, who managed to survive their marriage by agreeing to a divorce. Margaret Campbell Barnes, Brief Gaudy Hour, about Anne Boleyn, the second wife of Henry VIII. Anne Clinard Barnhill, At the Mercy of the Queen (2012), about Lady Margaret Shelton, a cousin of Anne Boleyn who goes to Henry VIII's court as Anne's lady-in-waiting. Anne Clinard Barnhill, Queen Elizabeth’s Daughter (2014), about Mary Shelton, a ward of Elizabeth I, who comes into conflict with the queen over her choice of a husband. E. Barrington, Anne Boleyn
Fr. Robert Hugh Benson, The King's Achievement (1905), about a family's difficulties during the dissolution of the monasteries under Henry VIII; a prequel to By What Authority?; complete text at Google Books. Fr. Robert Hugh Benson, The Queen's Tragedy (1906), a sympathetic novel about Queen Mary Tudor which focuses on the social devastation resulting from the Reformation in England; forms a trilogy with By What Authority? and The Queen's Tragedy; complete text at Google Books. Fr. Robert Hugh Benson, Come Rack! Come Rope! (1912), about a Catholic family set at odds when the father renounces the Catholic faith and the son becomes an undercover Jesuit priest during the reign of Henry VIII.
Jesse Blackadder, The Raven's Heart (2011), about a young woman raised as a boy who becomes a confidante and spy for Mary, Queen of Scots. Review or Author Interview D.L. Bogdan, The Sumerton Women (2012), about two young women whose life dreams are shattered when Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn bring religious upheaval to England. D.L. Bogdan, The Forgotten Queen (2013), about Margaret Tudor, a sister of Henry VIII who married King James IV of Scotland. Jane Borodale, The Knot (2012), about Henry Lyte, a Somerset man who pursues botany at the expense of his other responsibilities and finds himself unprepared to fight the malevolence of his stepmother after his father dies. Caryl Brahms, No Bed for Bacon Charles Brady, Stage of Fools: A Novel of Sir Thomas More
Marie Brennan, In Ashes Lie (2009), historical fantasy about the underground faerie court, which must work in tandem with the human world to protect itself during the Great Fire of London in 1666; #2 in the Onyx Court series. Marie Brennan, A Star Shall Fall (2010), historical fantasy about a human man in love with a faerie, as the return of Halley's Comet threatens the underground faerie kingdom; #3 in the Onyx Court series. Marie Brennan, With Fate Conspire (2011), historical fantasy about a young woman searching for her friend, kidnapped by the underground faerie court, as the nineteenth-century underground railroad lines threaten the faerie's kingdom; #4 in the Onyx Court series.
Anthony Burgess, Nothing Like the Sun, a bawdy literary novel about Shakespeare's love life. Anthony Burgess, A Dead Man in Deptford, about Christopher Marlowe, the Elizabethan playwright who was Shakespeare's contemporary and may have been a government spy. Review John Buchan, Blanket of the Dark, about a young man who discovers he is royal and is being used as the pawn of men who wish to overthrow King Henry VIII. Elizabeth Byrd, Immortal Queen: Mary Queen of Scots
Sandra Byrd, The Secret Keeper (2012), about a young woman with clairvoyant gifts who goes to court with Kateryn Parr, Henry VIII's sixth queen. Sandra Byrd, Roses Have Thorns (2013), about Elin von Snakenborg, a Swedish noblewoman in the court of Elizabeth I.
Anne Chambers, The Geraldine Conspiracy, about the 11-year-old boy who was the last surviving heir of the Irish Geraldine dynasty, and the struggle to save him from the murderous agents of King Henry VIII. Andrea Chapin, The Tutor (2015), about a thirty-one-year-old widow living in a household disrupted by the murder of the family's secret priest and the subsequent arrival of a new schoolmaster, the quick-witted and flirtatious William Shakespeare. Ella March Chase, The Virgin Queen's Daughter (2008), a novel which imagines that Queen Elizabeth I had an illegitimate daughter. Ella March Chase, Three Maids for a Crown (2011), about Jane Grey and her sisters, the beautiful Katherine and the disfigured dwarf Mary, whose parents gamble with their lives out of ambition. Mavis Cheek, Amenable Women (2008), about a widow who, writing a history of the village where Anne of Cleves lived after her divorce from Henry VIII, hears tales of Anne's life from her portrait in the Louvre. Review Warwick Collins, The Sonnets (2008), about the young Will Shakespeare during the years when he wrote his sonnets, inspired by the "dark lady." Nicola Cornick, The Phantom Tree (2016), about a woman in present-day Wiltshire who slips back to the sixteenth century after discovering a portrait of Mary Seymour, the daughter of Katherine Parr. Stephanie Cowell, Nicholas Cooke, about a young actor in Shakespeare's theater company who wants to be a doctor and a priest. Stephanie Cowell, The Physician of London Stephanie Cowell, The Players: A Novel of the Young Shakespeare (1997), about a love triangle from Shakespeare's sonnets between Shakespeare, a beautiful Italian musician and a high court nobleman. Jim Crace, Harvest (2013), about disaster in a rural English village. Review Josephine Delves-Broughton, Heart of a Queen Jude Deveraux, A Knight in Shining Armor (1989), historical romance about a modern woman who falls for an Elizabethan knight transported to the present day, and then (near the end of the novel) time-travels back to his time to try to prevent his execution for treason. Suzannah Dunn, The Queen of Subtleties, about a woman who served as Henry VIII's confectioner, sculpting "subtleties" out of sugar, during the rise and fall of Anne Boleyn. Suzannah Dunn, The Sixth Wife, about Katherine Parr, the sixth and surviving wife of Henry VIII, whose subsequent marriage to the handsome and ambitious Thomas Seymour held its own risks. Suzannah Dunn, The Queen's Sorrow (2008), about a Spanish maker of sundials who accompanies Philip of Spain to England when he marries Queen Mary Tudor of England, known to history as "Bloody Mary. Suzannah Dunn, The Confession of Katherine Howard Suzannah Dunn, The May Bride (2014), about Jane Seymour, whose whose brother's wife is accused of unfaithfulness and set aside, after which Jane is sent to serve Catherine of Aragon, destined to be another wife set aside by her husband. Suzannah Dunn, The Lady of Misrule (2015), about Elizabeth Tilney, the young Catholic woman who volunteered to serve as Protestant Lady Jane Grey's companion during her imprisonment in the Tower of London.
Dorothy Dunnett, Queens' Play (1964), about a sixteenth-century Scot who goes to France with the covert mission of protecting the child Mary Queen of Scots in the French court; #2 in the Lymond Chronicles. Review Dorothy Dunnett, The Disorderly Knights (1966), about a Scot who goes to Malta in 1551 to help defend it from a threatened Turkish attack; #3 in the Lymond Chronicles. Review Dorothy Dunnett, Pawn in Frankincense (1969), about a Scot on a mission to the Ottoman Empire, where he also searches for a missing child; #4 in the Lymond Chronicles. Review Dorothy Dunnett, The Ringed Castle (1971), about a Scot who becomes an adviser to the Russian tsar Ivan the Terrible; #5 in the Lymond Chronicles. Review Dorothy Dunnett, Checkmate (1975), about a Scot who goes to France to lead an army against England; #6 in the Lymond Chronicles. Review
Ben Elton, Upstart Crow (2019), a humorous novel about William Shakespeare, based on a BBC television series.
Kate Emerson, Between Two Queens (2010), about a lady-in-waiting who catches the eye of Henry VIII after the death of Jane Seymour; #2 in the Secrets of the Tudor Court series. Kate Emerson, By Royal Decree (2010), about a young woman brought to the court of the aging Henry VIII because of her beauty who falls in love with a divorced man and finds that what the king approves for himself is not necessarily open to others; #3 in the Secrets of the Tudor Court series. Kate Emerson, At the King’s Pleasure (2011), about the beautiful Anne Stafford, a lady-in-waiting to Catherine of Aragon, and who is already married and in love with another man when King Henry VIII expresses interest in her; #4 in the Secrets of the Tudor Court series. Kate Emerson, The King’s Damsel (2012), about a young gentlewoman who becomes the mistress of Henry VIII after he marries Anne Boleyn; #5 in the Secrets of the Tudor Court series. Kate Emerson, Royal Inheritance (2013), about a young woman who has grown up believing herself the illegitimate daughter of the king's tailor but begins to suspect her true father is Henry VIII; #6 in the Secrets of the Tudor Court series.
Carolly Erickson, Rival to the Queen (2010), about Lettice Knollys, the second wife of Elizabeth I's favorite Robert Dudley. Review or Author Interview Carolly Erickson, The Memoirs of Mary Queen of Scots (2009), the story of Mary, Queen of Scots, told in the form of a memoir. Carolly Erickson, The Unfaithful Queen (2012), about Catherine Howard, the fifth wife of King Henry VIII. Carolly Erickson, The Spanish Queen (2013), a "historical entertainment" about Catherine of Aragon.
Cerridwen Fallingstar, The Heart of the Fire Marina Fiorato, Beatrice and Benedick Alan Fisk, Forty Testoons, about a young English priest ministering to fishermen in Newfoundland during the winter of 1504. Ford Madox Ford, The Fifth Queen, a literary novel about Katharine Howard, the fifth wife of Henry VIII. James Forrester, Sacred Treason (2010), a thriller about Anne Boleyn's first marriage and her interest in Luther's teachings; #1 in the Clarenceux trilogy. James Forrester, The Roots of Betrayal (2011), a thriller about a Catholic official in Elizabethan England who must recover a dangerous document stolen while it was in his custody; #2 in the Clarenceux trilogy. James Forrester, The Final Sacrament (2012), about a London man in 1566 who has a politically dangerous document in his possession; #3 in the Clarenceux trilogy. George MacDonald Fraser, The Candlemass Road (1993), a novella about the violent raiding on the sixteenth century border between England and Scotland. Elizabeth Fremantle, Queen’s Gambit (2013), about Katharine Parr, the sixth and last wife of Henry VIII; #1 in the Tudor trilogy. Elizabeth Fremantle, Sisters of Treason (2014), about Lady Jane Grey's sisters during the reigns of Mary Tudor and Elizabeth I; #2 in the Tudor trilogy. Laurien Gardner, The Spanish Bride: A Novel of Catherine of Aragon, about Henry VIII's first wife, who believed she had married her chivalrous ideal. Laurien Gardner, A Lady Raised High: A Novel of Anne Boleyn, about Henry VIII's second wife, who held out for marriage when he wanted to make her his mistress. Laurien Gardner, Plain Jane: A Novel of Jane Seymour (2006), about Henry VIII's third wife, who had no suitors and little hope of marriage before she attracted his attention. George Garrett, Death of the Fox George Garrett, The Succession, a literary novel about Queen Elizabeth I of England and King James VI of Scotland; #2 in the Elizabethan trilogy. George Garrett, Entered from the Sun: The Murder of Marlowe, a literary novel about the murder of the Renaissance playwright Christopher Marlowe; #3 in the Elizabethan trilogy. Ginger Garrett, In the Shadow of Lions (2008), a story narrated by an angel about Anne Boleyn and her efforts to reform the Church, bringing the Protestant revolution to England, and support an English translation of the Bible; Christian message; #1 in the Chronicles of the Scribe series. Ginger Garrett, In the Arms of Immortals (2008), a story narrated by an angel about the Catholic Church's efforts to prevent the scientific study of medicine amid the disaster of the Black Death epidemic in Italy; Christian message; #2 in the Chronicles of the Scribe series.
Margaret George, Mary, Queen of Scotland and the Isles (1992), about Mary Queen of Scots. Margaret George, Elizabeth I (2011), a biographical novel about Queen Elizabeth I. Review at the Washington Post
Rosemary Goring, Dacre's War Winston Graham, The Grove of Eagles (1963), about a family defending the coast of Cornwall in the aftermath of the Spanish Armada.
Philippa Gregory, The Other Boleyn Girl, about Mary Boleyn and her more famous sister Anne; gives a different, less sympathetic perspective on Anne than most novels about her life. Philippa Gregory, The Queen's Fool (2003), about a young woman who dresses as a boy to serve in the Renaissance court of Queen Elizabeth I. Philippa Gregory, The Virgin's Lover, about Amy Dudley, the wife of Queen Elizabeth's admirer Robert Dudley; shows Queen Elizabeth in a less flattering light than most novels about her. Philippa Gregory, The Constant Princess, about Katherine of Aragon, King Henry VIII's first wife. Philippa Gregory, The Boleyn Inheritance, about Anne of Cleves and Katherine Howard, the fourth and fifth wives of Henry VIII. Philippa Gregory, The Wise Woman, about a former nun who must fend for herself after Henry VIII closes her convent. Philippa Gregory, The White Princess (2013), about Elizabeth of York, the sister of the "Princes in the Tower" and wife of Henry VII, the first Tudor king. Review Philippa Gregory, The Taming of the Queen (2016), about Kateryn Parr, the sixth and last wife of Henry VIII.
Sarah Gristwood, The Girl in the Mirror (2011), about an exiled French girl who grows up in London, disguised as a boy, where she finds work as a clerk and during the last years of Elizabeth's reign and becomes drawn into the intrigue surrounding the Earl of Essex; published in the U.K. and not readily available in the U.S. Francis Hackett, Queen Anne Boleyn
Diane Haeger, The Queen's Mistake (2009), about Catherine Howard, the fifth wife of Henry VIII. Diane Haeger, The Queen’s Rival (2011), about Elizabeth Blount, an early mistress of Henry VIII who bore him a son during the time he was married to Katherine of Aragon. Diane Haeger, I, Jane: In the Court of Henry VIII (2012), about Jane Seymour, the third wife of Henry VIII.
Deborah Harkness, Shadow of Night (2012), historical fantasy about a witch and a vampire who join Walter Raleigh's "School of Night" group; sequel to A Discovery of Witches, which takes place in the present.
Karen Harper, The Queen's Governess (2010), about Katherine Ashley, the country girl hired by Thomas Cromwell as a spy and lady-in-waiting to Anne Boleyn, who became governess to the future Queen Elizabeth I. Karen Harper, Mistress Shakespeare (2009), about Anne Whatley, betrothed to William Shakespeare a few days before he was forced to wed the pregnant Anne Hathaway. Review Karen Harper, The Irish Princess (2011), about "the fair Geraldine," Elizabeth Fitzgerald, an Irish princess whose family is the target of brutal repression by Henry VIII, but who eventually becomes a trusted lady-in-waiting to Queen Elizabeth I.
Pamela Hartshorne, The Memory of Midnight Pamela Hartshorne, House of Shadows Alice Harwood, The Star of the Greys (1939), about Jane Grey's younger sister Katherine, who married Edward Seymour, the Earl of Hertford, without royal consent; out of print and not readily available. Molly Costain Haycraft, The Reluctant Queen Katie Hickman, The Aviary Gate (2008), about an Englishman in 1599 who discovers evidence that the woman he once loved may now be a captive in the sultan's harem in Constantinople, set within a frame story about a modern researcher who discovers a centuries-old document with the key to the woman's story. Katie Hickman, The Pindar Diamond (2010), about an English merchant working in Venice who becomes obsessed with acquiring the Sultan's Blue, a gigantic blue diamond; sequel to The Aviary Gate. Joanna Hickson, The Tudor Bride (2015), about Katherine of Valois, the French bride of King Henry V of England. Susan Higginbotham, Her Highness, The Traitor (2012), about Lady Jane Grey. Pamela Hill, Green Salamander Tobias Hill, The Love of Stones, about a modern woman searching for a jewel once owned by Queen Elizabeth I. Victoria Holt, My Enemy the Queen, about Lettice Knollys, second wife of Queen Elizabeth's favorite, the Earl of Leicester. Sarah A. Hoyt, No Will But His (2010), about Catherine Howard, the fifth wife of Henry VIII.
C.C. Humphreys, Blood Ties C.C. Humphreys, Shakespeare's Rebel (2013), about a friend of Shakespeare who hopes to avoid being caught up with the court intrigues and military adventures of the Earl of Essex.
Margaret Irwin, Elizabeth: Captive Princess (1948), about the life of Elizabeth Tudor before she became Queen of England; #2 in the Good Queen Bess trilogy. Review Margaret Irwin, Elizabeth and the Prince of Spain (1953), about the complicated relationship between Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip of Spain, the husband of her sister, Queen Mary Tudor; #3 in the Good Queen Bess trilogy. Review Margaret Irwin, The Galliard: The Great Love of Mary Queen of Scots (1941; originally titled The Gay Galliard), about Mary Queen of Scots and the Earl of Bothwell.
Kathryn Johnson, The Gentleman Poet (2010), about a maidservant shipwrecked on an island with her demanding mistress and a disguised William Shakespeare. Review or Author Interview Susan Kay, Legacy Faye Kellerman, The Quality of Mercy (1989), about the daughter of Queen Elizabeth's physician, a Jew who must practice the religion in secret, who meets young Will Shakespeare and goes adventuring with him. Sarah Kennedy, The Altarpiece (2013), about a prioress's adopted daughter in Yorkshire during the Dissolution of the Monasteries in 1535; #1 in the Cross and the Crown series. Sarah Kennedy, City of Ladies (2014), about a former nun evicted from her convent during the Dissolution, who goes to stay with Princess Elizabeth and the displaced Mary Tudor during the reign of Henry VIII; #2 in the Cross and the Crown series.
Barbara Kyle, The King's Daughter (2009), about a young woman who risks all, enlisting the aid of a Spanish soldier of fortune in her scheme to save her father from the fate of a condemned heretic during the reign of Bloody Mary; #2 in the Thornleigh Saga series. Barbara Kyle, The Queen's Captive (2010), about a family which returns from exile to help Princess Elizabeth survive and retain her place in the succession during the reign of Bloody Mary; #3 in the Thornleigh Saga series. Barbara Kyle, The Queen's Gamble (2011), about a Catholic woman who returns to England from Peru after she hears her mother has been charged with murder; #4 in the Thornleigh Saga series. Barbara Kyle, Blood Between Queens Barbara Kyle, The Queen's Exiles Barbara Kyle, The Traitor’s Daughter (2015), about a husband-and-wife team of spies who discover a plot against Queen Elizabeth; #7 in the Thornleigh saga.
Mercedes Lackey and Roberta Gellis, Ill Met By Moonlight (2005), historical fantasy about the legendary Sidhe people and their efforts to protect the eight-year-old Princess Elizabeth; #2 in the Doubled Edge series. Mercedes Lackey and Roberta Gellis, By Slanderous Tongues (2007), historical fantasy about the legendary Sidhe people and their efforts to protect the fourteen-year-old Princess Elizabeth during the reign of her brother; #3 in the Doubled Edge series. Mercedes Lackey and Roberta Gellis, And Less Than Kind (2008), historical fantasy about the legendary Sidhe people and their efforts to protect Princess Elizabeth as Edward VI lies dying and Princess Mary is groomed to become queen; #4 in the Doubled Edge series.
Jane Lane, Sow the Tempest Julianne Lee, A Question of Guilt: A Novel of Mary Stuart and the Death of Henry Darnley (2008), about a Scottish-born English merchant's wife who, three days after the execution of Mary, Queen of Scots, sets out to prove her innocent by uncovering the real truth, an investigation that plunges her into danger. Julianne Lee, Her Mother's Daughter (2009), a sympathetic novel about Queen Mary I of England, the daughter of Henry VIII and Katherine of Aragon, narrated by Mary. Doris Leslie, The King's Traitor Hilda Lewis, I Am Mary Tudor Hilda Lewis, Rose of England Hilda Lewis, Heart of a Rose Freda Lightfoot, The Queen and the Courtesan (2012), about Henriette d'Entragues, the mistress of King Henry IV of France, and her ambition to become queen. Philip Lindsay, One Dagger For Two Morgan Llywelyn, The Last Prince of Ireland (1992; also titled O'Sullivan's March), about Donal Cam O'Sullivan and the Battle of Kinsale in 1601, in which England established its sovereignty over Ireland and ended the rule of the Irish kings. Morgan Llywelyn, Grania: She-King of the Irish Seas, based on the life of a woman pirate in sixteenth century Ireland.
Norah Lofts, The Concubine (1963), about Anne Boleyn's rise to Queen of England and her fall from grace when she fails to give Henry VIII a male heir. Review Norah Lofts, The King's Pleasure (1969), about Catherine of Aragon, the first wife of King Henry VIII. Norah Lofts, Here Was a Man (1970), about Sir Walter Raleigh and Queen Elizabeth I. Norah Lofts, The Old Priory
Alison Macleod, The Trusted Servant Marie Macpherson, The First Blast of the Trumpet (2012), about Scottish reformer John Knox from his childhood into his mid-thirties; #1 in a planned trilogy. Jenny Mandeville, A Crown of Despair Hilary Mantel, Wolf Hall (2009), about Thomas Cromwell, who becomes King Henry VIII's adviser after Cardinal Wolsey's downfall due to his failure to help the king end his marriage to Katherine of Aragon so he can wed Anne Boleyn. Review Hilary Mantel, Bring Up the Bodies (2012), about Henry VIII's adviser Thomas Cromwell during the period when Henry becomes disenchanted with Anne Boleyn and enamored of Jane Seymour; sequel to Wolf Hall. Review D.K. Marley, Blood and Ink (2010), a novel about the playwright Christopher Marlowe which explores the idea that he may have written the plays of Shakespeare. Rhona Martin, Gallows Wedding Rhona Martin, The Unicorn Summer A.E.W. Mason, Fire Over England F. van Wyck Mason, Golden Admiral (1953), about Sir Francis Drake and his efforts to defend England against the Spanish Armada. F. van Wyck Mason, Log Cabin Noble (1973), about an effort to salvage the sixteenth-century Spanish treasure ship Nuestra Senora de la Concepcion.
Robin Maxwell, The Secret Diary of Anne Boleyn, a novel about Queen Elizabeth I and her mother, Anne Boleyn. Robin Maxwell, Mademoiselle Boleyn, about Anne Boleyn and her sister Mary. Robin Maxwell, The Queen's Bastard, based on the speculation of some historians that Elizabeth I may have had a child by the Earl of Leicester. Robin Maxwell, The Wild Irish, about Queen Elizabeth I and the Irish pirate Grace O'Malley.
May McGoldrick, Heart of Gold (1996), historical romance about an artist who falls in love with a Scottish diplomat; #2 in the MacPherson Clan series. May McGoldrick, The Beauty of the Mist (1997), historical romance about a young woman who flees her betrothal to the next king of Scotland only to fall for the commander of the ship she escapes on; #3 in the MacPherson Clan series. May McGoldrick, The Intended (1997), about a young Scottish woman in England who has an unexpected opportunity to rekindle the flames of an old romance; #4 in the MacPherson Clan series. May McGoldrick, Flame (1997), historical romance about a young woman who vows revenge after her parents are killed when their castle burns; #5 in the MacPherson Clan series.
Elisabeth McNeill, Blood Royal (2008), about a pedlar who first sees Mary Queen of Scots as a baby and becomes drawn into her life. Susan Meissner, Lady in Waiting (2010), about a modern woman whose husband has left her who finds an old ring in a jumble sale which links her life to that of the nine-days-queen, Lady Jane Grey; Christian message. Rosalind Miles, I, Elizabeth, a straightforward historical novel about Queen Elizabeth I by an author who usually writes in the fantasy genre. Pérrine Moncrieff, The Rise and Fall of David Riccio (1976), about a fictional secretary to Mary, Queen of Scots; New Zealand publication hard to find outside Australasia. Nicholas Monsarrat, Running Proud (1978) about an Elizabethan seaman doomed to live and sail the seas until the end of time; #1 in the two-book Master Mariner series, also published in a single volume as The Master Mariner Nicholas Monsarrat, Darken Ship: The Unfinished Novel (1980) about an Elizabethan seaman doomed to live and sail the seas until the end of time, with the ending provided via notes and outlines left by the author on his death; #2 in the two-book Master Mariner series, also published in a single volume in 2000 as The Master Mariner. Fidelis Morgan, My Dark Rosaleen Jude Morgan, The Secret Life of William Shakespeare (2012), about William Shakespeare and his wife Anne Hathaway.
Gilbert Morris, When the Heavens Fall (2010), about a young man who sinks into vice after being expelled from the army but finds his conscience when he witnesses executions of Protestants during Mary Tudor's reign; Christian message; #2 in the Winslow Breed trilogy. Gilbert Morris, As the Sparks Fly Upward (2011), about a gentle young man whose career in medicine during the reign of Elizabeth I brings him into contact with high court officials and a role in political intrigue; Christian message; #3 in the Winslow Breed trilogy.
William Napier, The Red Sea (2012; also titled The Blood Red Sea), about two young Englishmen caught up in the Ottoman attack on Cyprus in 1571; #2 in the Clash of Empires series. William Napier, The Last Crusaders: Ivan the Terrible (2014), about an Englishmen sent on a diplomatic mission to Constantinople and then Russia after the czar proposes marriage to Queen Elizabeth; #3 in the Clash of Empires series.
Robert Nye, Falstaff (1976), a bawdy novel written in the form of the memoirs of Shakespeare's character Falstaff as an old man. Robert Nye, Mrs. Shakespeare: The Complete Works (1993), a bawdy novel written in the form of Anne Shakespeare's memoirs. Robert Nye, The Voyage of the Destiny (2003), about the final voyage of Sir Walter Raleigh. Jane Oliver, Flame of Fire Jane Oliver, The Lion and the Rose Neil Oliver, Master of Shadows (2015), about a boy with an unusual sensory ability who grows up in Scotland and travels to Constantinople, where his life intersects with that of Prince Constantine and a mysterious woman as the Turks plan an assault on the city. Sally O'Reilly, Dark Aemilia (2014), about Aemilia Bassano, a poet who lived during Shakespeare's time and may have been the "dark lady" of his sonnets. Sonia Overall, A Likeness (2005), about a humbly born portrait painter struggling to make his fortune in Elizabethan England with the help of a courtesan who likes paint.
Maureen Peters, Mary, The Infamous Queen Maureen Peters, Anne, The Rose Of Hever Maureen Peters, Princess of Desire
Jean Plaidy, Katharine, the Virgin Widow Jean Plaidy, The Shadow of the Pomegranate Jean Plaidy, The King's Secret Matter (1962), about Katharine of Aragon's struggle to preserve her marriage after Henry VIII becomes infatuated with Anne Boleyn; #3 in the Katharine of Aragon trilogy (collected in a single edition as Katharine of Aragon). Jean Plaidy, Katharine of Aragon, a new edition of the Katharine of Aragon trilogy about the first wife of King Henry VIII, with all three novels (see above) collected in a single volume; #1 in the Wives of Henry VIII series. Jean Plaidy, Murder Most Royal (1949; also titled The King's Pleasure Jean Plaidy, The Lady in the Tower (1986), about Anne Boleyn; #2 in the Wives of Henry VIII series. Jean Plaidy, The Rose Without a Thorn (1993), about Katherine Howard; in the Wives of Henry VIII series. Jean Plaidy, The Sixth Wife (1953), about Katherine Parr; in the Wives of Henry VIII series. Jean Plaidy, The Thistle and the Rose (1963), about Henry VIII's sister Margaret, the wife of James IV of Scotland. Jean Plaidy, Mary, Queen of France (1964), about Henry VIII's sister Mary Rose. Jean Plaidy, The Spanish Bridegroom (1954), about the courtship of Philip of Spain and Mary Tudor. Jean Plaidy, Gay Lord Robert Jean Plaidy, The Royal Road to Fotheringay (1955; also titled Mary, Queen of Scotland: The Triumphant Year), about Mary, Queen of Scots, from her childhood up to her capture and imprisonment at Fotheringay Castle. Jean Plaidy, The Captive Queen of Scots (1963), about Mary Queen of Scots. Jean Plaidy, Queen of This Realm (1984), about Queen Elizabeth I.
Brandy Purdy, The Tudor Throne (2011; also published in the U.K. as Mary and Elizabeth under the pen name Emily Purdy), about King Henry VIII's daughters Mary and Elizabeth in the years after his death. Brandy Purdy, The Queen’s Pleasure (2012), about Elizabeth I's favorite Robert Dudley and his wife Amy Robsart, whose death brings him under suspicion. Brandy Purdy, The Queen’s Rivals (2013), about Lady Jane Grey and her sisters. Brandy Purdy, The Boleyn Bride (2014), about Elizabeth Boleyn, the mother of Anne and Mary.
Judith Merkle Riley, The Serpent Garden, about a woman miniature-painter in the time of King Henry VIII. Keith Roberts, Pavane (1968), an alternative history novel which imagines that Queen Elizabeth was assassinated in 1588. Felicia Rogers, There Your Heart Will Be Also Christopher Rush, Will (2007), a bawdy and violent imagining of Shakespeare's life, narrated by the ailing playwright as he dictates his will to his lawyer. Arliss Ryan, The Secret Confessions of Anne Shakespeare (2010), a novel which imagines that William Shakespeare's wife was his secret collaborator. Rafael Sabatini, The Sea Hawk, about a sixteenth century Cornishman who joins a group of Barbary pirates. Judith Saxton, The Bright Day is Done Judith Saxton, The Queen's Corsair Judith Saxton, Sir Walter’s Lady (2002), historical romance about Bess Throckmorton, who angers Queen Elizabeth by falling in love with and marrying Sir Walter Raleigh. Simon Scarrow, Sword and Scimitar (2012), about a disgraced knight sent to Malta to recover an important document in 1565 as the Ottoman Siege of Malta is about to begin. Lawrence Schoonover, To Love a Queen: Walter Raleigh and Elizabeth R. Anya Seton, Green Darkness, about a modern woman who must travel in time to the Tudor period to regain her health. Mary Sharratt, The Dark Lady’s Mask (2016), a novel which imagines that Aemilia Bassano Lanier, the first professional woman poet in Renaissance England, was the "dark lady" of Shakespeare's sonnet. Beatrice Small, Blaze Wyndham (1988), historical romance about a young widow who catches the eye of Henry VIII. Beatrice Small, Love, Remember Me (1994), historical romance about a lady-in-waiting in Henry VIII's court who draws the king's wrath; sequel to Blaze Wyndham. John Stack, Armada (2012), about a captain in Sir Francis Drake's navy who is a secret Catholic and, when the Spanish Armada attacks, must face his estranged father, who is fighting for the Spanish. Rosemary Sutcliff, Lady in Waiting Beverly Swerling, Bristol House (2013), about a present-day historian researching the Tudor-era "Jew of Holborn" and her ghostly visitor, a Carthusian monk who greatly resembles an investigative reporter who offers help with her quest. Reay Tannahill, Fatal Majesty: A Novel of Mary Queen of Scots (1998), about the religious conflicts stirred up by the return of the Catholic Mary to Scotland. Grace Tiffany, My Father Had a Daughter, about William Shakespeare's daughter Judith. Grace Tiffany, Will, about William Shakespeare's youth.
Nigel Tranter, James by the Grace of God Nigel Tranter, Rough Wooing Nigel Tranter, A Stake in the Kingdom Nigel Tranter, Marie and Mary (2004), about two queens who ruled Scotland during the sixteenth century: Marie de Guise, who succeeded her husband James V, and Mary Queen of Scots. Nigel Tranter, The Marchman Nigel Tranter, Warden of the Queen's March Nigel Tranter, The Queen's Grace Nigel Tranter, A Rage of Regents Nigel Tranter, Right Royal Friend (2003), about the young King James VI and his Cupbearer and Master of the Horse David Murray. Nigel Tranter, Children of the Mist
Harry Turtledove, The United States of Atlantis (2008), alternative history about the settlers of an eighth continent, located between Europe and the Americas, and their rebellion against England; #2 in the Atlantis series. Harry Turtledove, Liberating Atlantis (2009), alternative history about a black slave in an eighth continent, located between Europe and the Americas, and the revolution he leads; #3 in the Atlantis series.
Peter Walker, The Courier's Tale (2010), about the courier who carries messages to Cardinal Reginald Pole in Rome as Henry VIII contemplates a break with the Catholic Church so he can wed Anne Boleyn. Review Beryl Walthew, The Queen's Rival (1978), about Lettice Knollys, a first cousin of Queen Elizabeth, who had an affair with Elizabeth's favorite, the Earl of Leicester, and later married him; out of print and not readily available. Beryl Walthew, Sister to Essex
Alison Weir, The Lady Elizabeth (2008), about Elizabeth Tudor before she became Queen of England. Alison Weir, A Dangerous Inheritance (2012), a novel which imagines that Lady Catherine Grey, while imprisoned in the Tower of London, finds papers that could solve the mystery of the Princes in the Tower. Alison Weir, The Marriage Game (2015), about the newly crowned Queen Elizabeth and her romance with Robert Dudley as her counselors urge her to make a political marriage and produce an heir.
Jeane Westin, The Virgin's Daughters (2009), about Lady Katherine Grey and Mistress Mary Rogers, ladies-in-waiting to Queen Elizabeth I, each of whom had to choose between duty and passion when they became enamored of the queen's favorites. Jeane Westin, His Last Letter (2010), about Queen Elizabeth and the man she loved, Robert Dudley, the Earl of Leicester. Jeane Westin, The Spymaster’s Daughter (2012), a novel which imagines Lady Frances Sidney, the daughter of Elizabeth I's spymaster Sir Francis Walsingham, engaged in code-breaking work which uncovers a conspiracy against the queen. Charles Gidley Wheeler, Armada (1987), a love story about a seafaring Irishman during the time when the Spanish Armada threatened England. Phillipa Wiat, Five Gold Rings: An Elizabethan Love Story Virginia Woolf, Orlando (1928), a literary novel about a young man in the Elizabethan age who decides never to grow old and, during a later century, is transformed into a woman. Sandra Worth, Pale Rose of England (2011), about Lady Catherine Gordon, the wife of Perkin Warbeck, who claimed to be Richard, one of the "Princes in the Tower" and therefore the rightful king of England. Tudor and Elizabethan Mysteries and Thrillers
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Nancy Bilyeau, The Chalice (2013), about a novice Dominican nun who may be destined to play a role in an unfolding prophecy which threatens Henry VIII; #2 in the Joanna Stafford series. Review Nancy Bilyeau, The Tapestry (2015), about a former nun who tries to save her friend Catherine Howard from becoming the next victim of Henry VIII; #3 in the Joanna Stafford series.
Fiona Buckley, The Doublet Affair (1998), about a lady-in-waiting to Queen Elizabeth I who worries that some old friends of hers may be involved in a plot against the queen; #2 in the Ursula Blanchard mystery series; Fiona Buckley is a pen name of Valerie Anand. Fiona Buckley, Queen's Ransom (2000), about a noblewoman sent on a secret mission to Catherine de Medici in France for Queen Elizabeth I; #3 in the Ursula Blanchard mystery series; Fiona Buckley is a pen name of Valerie Anand. Fiona Buckley, To Ruin a Queen (2000), about a noblewoman loyal to Queen Elizabeth who is living in France with her husband, a supporter of Mary, Queen of Scots, when she learns that the daughter she left at home in England may have been kidnapped; #4 in the Ursula Blanchard mystery series; Fiona Buckley is a pen name of Valerie Anand. Fiona Buckley, Queen of Ambition (2001), about a noblewoman who goes undercover at a pie shop frequented by students to investigate a possible plot against Queen Elizabeth I; #5 in the Ursula Blanchard mystery series; Fiona Buckley is a pen name of Valerie Anand. Fiona Buckley, A Pawn for a Queen (2002), about a noblewoman loyal to Queen Elizabeth who must intercept her Catholic cousin before he commits treason by going to Scotland with a list of English supporters of Mary, Queen of Scots; #6 in the Ursula Blanchard mystery series; Fiona Buckley is a pen name of Valerie Anand. Fiona Buckley, The Fugitive Queen (2004), about a noblewoman sent on a mission to deliver a warning to Mary, Queen of Scots, from Queen Elizabeth I; #7 in the Ursula Blanchard mystery series; Fiona Buckley is a pen name of Valerie Anand. Fiona Buckley, The Siren Queen (2004), about an illegitimate half-sister to Queen Elizabeth and a letter in code that may be linked to a plot to kill Elizabeth and put Mary, Queen of Scots, on the throne in her place; #8 in the Ursula Blanchard mystery series; Fiona Buckley is a pen name of Valerie Anand. Fiona Buckley, Queen Without a Crown (2011), about a lady-in-waiting to Queen Elizabeth I who investigates a plot to put Mary Queen of Scots on the throne; #9 in the Ursula Blanchard mystery series; Fiona Buckley is a pen name of Valerie Anand.
Mark Chadbourn, The Scar-Crow Men (2011), historical fantasy about a spy who must stay alive as spies across England are being murdered and playwright Kit Marlowe disappears the day his play "Doctor Faustus" opens; #2 in the Sword of Albion trilogy. Mark Chadbourn, The Devil’s Looking Glass (2012), historical fantasy about a spy who must find Dr. John Dee, who has disappeared with a mirror of great magical power; #3 in the Sword of Albion trilogy.
P.F. Chisholm, A Season of Knives (1995), about a deputy warden on the Scottish border who finds himself accused of murder; #2 in the Sir Robert Carey mystery series. P.F. Chisholm, A Surfeit of Guns (1997), about an English deputy warden who crosses the Scottish border in pursuit of a stolen gun shipment and risks charges of treason in both countries; #3 in the Sir Robert Carey mystery series. P.F. Chisholm, A Plague of Angels (1998), about a deputy warden on the Scottish border, who returns to London to find himself under accusation in a case of forgery and murder; #4 in the Sir Robert Carey mystery series. P.F. Chisholm, A Murder of Crows (2010), about a royal deputy warden whose return from London to the English border with Scotland is delayed when a corpse washes up from the Thames onto the queen's privy steps; #5 in the Sir Robert Carey mystery series. P.F. Chisholm, An Air of Treason (2014), about a royal deputy warden whose return from London to the English border with Scotland is further delayed when the queen orders him to investigate the death 30 years previously of Amy Dudley, whom the queen is suspected of murdering; #6 in the Sir Robert Carey mystery series. P.F. Chisholm, A Chorus of Innocents (2015), about a royal deputy warden on the English border with Scotland who investigates the rape of a pregnant woman and the murder of her husband in 1592; #7 in the Sir Robert Carey mystery series. P.F. Chisholm, A Clash of Spheres (2017), about a royal deputy warden sent to Edinburgh to investigate a suspected conspiracy against England amid a debate over the new theory of Copernicus; #8 in the Sir Robert Carey mystery series. P.F. Chisholm, A Suspicion of Silver (2018), about a royal deputy warden sent to arrest a man suspected of plotting to assassinate the Scottish king; #9 in the Sir Robert Carey mystery series.
Rory Clements, Revenger (2010), a thriller in which Will Shakespeare's elder brother, John, while trying to recover papers in the possession of the Earl of Essex, discovers a plot against Queen Elizabeth's life; winner of the 2010 Ellis Peters Historical Award; #2 in the John Shakespeare series. Rory Clements, Prince (2011), a thriller in which John Shakespeare investigates an outbreak of bombing attacks on Dutch immigrants in London; #3 in the John Shakespeare series. Rory Clements, Traitor (2012), a thriller in which Will Shakespeare's elder brother, John, must escort Doctor Dee, whose invention the Spanish are keen to acquire, to safety in Scotland amid threats of a new invasion by the Spanish Armada; #4 in the John Shakespeare series. Rory Clements, The Heretics (2013), a thriller in which Will Shakespeare's elder brother, John, is sent to find out what happened to a young woman who disappeared after a cruel exorcism ritual; #5 in the John Shakespeare series. Rory Clements, The Queen's Man (2014), a thriller in which Will Shakespeare's elder brother, John, investigates a conspiracy to free the imprisoned Mary Queen of Scots; #6 in the John Shakespeare series. Rory Clements, Holy Spy (2015), a thriller in which Will Shakespeare's elder brother infiltrates a group of conspirators plotting to assassinate Queen Elizabeth, while also trying to save the woman he loves from a charge of murder; #7 in the John Shakespeare series.
Michael Clynes, The Poisoned Chalice Michael Clynes, The Grail Murders Michael Clynes, A Brood of Vipers (1994), an English nobleman solves mysteries during the reign of Henry VIII; #4 in the Sir Roger Shallot series; Michael Clynes is a pen name of Paul (P.C.) Doherty. Michael Clynes, The Gallows Murders Michael Clynes, The Relic Murders
Iris Collier, Reluctant Spy Iris Collier, Death at Candlemas Iris Collier, The Secrets of the Black Canons
Jacopo della Quercia, License to Quill (2016), a spy thriller featuring William Shakespeare and Christopher Marlowe during the Gunpowder Plot of 1605. Phillip DePoy, A Prisoner in Malta (2016), about Christopher Marlowe as a nineteen-year-old, before his career as a playwright, asked by Queen Elizabeth's spymaster, Francis Walsingham, to investigate rumors of a plot against the queen's life. Michelle Diener, In a Treacherous Court (2011), a thriller which imagines how artist Susanna Horenbout and Henry VIII's courtier John Parker might have met; #1 in the Susanna Horenbout series. Review Michelle Diener, Keeper of the King’s Secrets (2012), about a Dutch woman painter in the service of Henry VIII who must find a missing diamond with the help of her betrothed after an attempt to kill her; #2 in the Susanna Horenbout series. Ann Dukthas, A Time for the Death of a King (1994), about a time-traveling Jesuit scholar who investigates the mystery surrounding the death of Lord Darnley, the husband of Mary Queen of Scots; #1 in the Nicholas Segalla series of which #2 and #3 are set in the nineteenth century; Ann Dukthas is a pen name of Paul (P.C.) Doherty. Ann Dukthas, In the Time of the Poisoned Queen Kathy Lynn Emerson, Murder in the Queen's Wardrobe (2015), about a woman with a knowledge of ciphers and codes who is recruited by Queen Elizabeth's spymaster to serve as lady-in-waiting to Elizabeth's cousin, who is being courted by Ivan the Terrible of Russia.
Patricia Finney, Unicorn's Blood (1998), a thriller about the theft of Queen Elizabeth's diary. Patricia Finney, Gloriana's Torch (2003), a thriller about a spy for Queen Elizabeth who discovers some of the gunpowder from the English arsenal is missing, perhaps diverted to the Spanish Armada.
Philip Gooden, Death of Kings (2001), about an aspiring actor forced to work as a government spy; #2 in the Shakespearean mystery series. Philip Gooden, The Pale Companion (2002), about a young actor whose trip to a country house with his company to perform "A Midsummer Night's Dream" for a wedding turns into a nightmare; #3 in the Shakespearean mystery series. Philip Gooden, Alms for Oblivion (2003), about a young actor who must prove he is not guilty of murder when the friend he has taken in is found dead in his lodgings; #4 in the Shakespearean mystery series. Philip Gooden, Mask of Night Philip Gooden, An Honorable Murderer
C.W. Gortner, The Tudor Conspiracy (2013), about a squire who spies for Princess Elizabeth while she is held captive during the reign of Mary Tudor; #2 in the Spymaster Chronicles mystery series. C.W. Gortner, The Tudor Vendetta (2014), about a spy summoned back from exile when Queen Elizabeth ascends the throne, in order to help her find a lady-in-waiting who has disappeared; #3 in the Spymaster Chronicles mystery series.
Karen Harper, The Tidal Poole (2000), featuring the sleuthing abilities of Queen Elizabeth I; #2 in the Bess Tudor mystery series. Karen Harper, The Twylight Tower (2001), featuring the sleuthing abilities of Queen Elizabeth I; #3 in the Bess Tudor mystery series. Karen Harper, The Queene's Cure (2002), featuring the sleuthing abilities of Queen Elizabeth I; #4 in the Bess Tudor mystery series. Karen Harper, The Thorne Maze (2003), featuring the sleuthing abilities of Queen Elizabeth I; #5 in the Bess Tudor mystery series. Karen Harper, The Queene's Christmas (2003), featuring the sleuthing abilities of Queen Elizabeth I; #6 in the Bess Tudor mystery series. Karen Harper, The Fyre Mirror (2005), featuring the sleuthing abilities of Queen Elizabeth I; #7 in the Bess Tudor mystery series. Karen Harper, The Fatal Fashione (2005), featuring the sleuthing abilities of Queen Elizabeth I; #8 in the Bess Tudor mystery series. Karen Harper, The Hooded Hawke (2007), featuring the sleuthing abilities of Queen Elizabeth I; #9 in the Bess Tudor mystery series. Karen Harper, Mistress of Mourning (2012), about a young widow asked by Henry VII's queen to investigate the sudden death of Prince Arthur in 1501.
Peg Herring, Poison, Your Grace (2011), a mystery in which Princess Elizabeth and an apothecary's apprentice investigate the poisoning death of an adviser to the young King Edward VI; #2 in the Simon and Elizabeth mystery series.
Victoria Lamb, His Dark Lady (2013), a novel which imagines the "dark lady" of Shakespeare's sonnets was a lady-in-waiting at Queen Elizabeth's court who has secrets of her own during the waning days of Elizabeth's reign; #2 in the Dark Lady mystery trilogy. Victoria Lamb, Her Last Assassin (2014), about a lady-in-waiting to Queen Elizabeth who is drawn to William Shakespeare, as the Spanish declare war and send their Armada to attack England; #3 in the Dark Lady mystery trilogy.
Mary Lawrence, The Alchemist’s Daughter (2015), about an herbalist accused of murder in 1540s London; #1 in the Bianca Goddard mystery series.
Edward Marston, The Merry Devils Edward Marston, The Trip to Jerusalem Edward Marston, The Nine Giants Edward Marston, The Mad Courtesan Edward Marston, The Silent Woman (1994), a stage manager for an Elizabethan theatre company takes his players on tour after a fire destroys their theatre and a messenger dies of poisoning; #6 in the Nicholas Bracewell series. Edward Marston, The Roaring Boy (1995), a stage manager for an Elizabethan theatre company has them perform a controversial new play about a recent case of murder which sets off a riot; #7 in the Nicholas Bracewell series. Edward Marston, The Laughing Hangman Edward Marston, The Fair Maid of Bohemia Edward Marston, The Wanton Angel Edward Marston, The Devil’s Apprentice (2001), catastrophes start to pile up after the stage manager for an Elizabethan theatre company is forced to take on a new apprentice and perform a newly written play; #11 in the Nicholas Bracewell series. Edward Marston, The Bawdy Basket Edward Marston, The Vagabond Clown Edward Marston, The Counterfeit Crank Edward Marston, The Malevolent Comedy (2005), a stage manager for an Elizabethan theatre company must find out who poisoned their obnoxious new playwright onstage; #15 in the Nicholas Bracewell series. Edward Marston, The Princess of Denmark
Shirley McKay, Fate and Fortune (2010), about a young lawyer who goes to Edinburgh in 1581 after his father's death and encounters a disturbing case of murder; #2 in the Hew Cullan mystery series. Shirley McKay, Time and Tide (2011), about a Scottish lawyer who investigates the case of a wrecked ship and the death of the only man aboard when it lands in St. Andrews; #3 in the Hew Cullan mystery series. Shirley McKay, Friend and Foe (2014), about a Scottish lawyer who investigates the cause of a bishop's illness while James VI is confined at Falkland palace; #4 in the Hew Cullan mystery series. Shirley McKay, Queen & Country
Audrey Peterson, Murder in Stratford: As Told By Anne Hathaway Shakespeare John Pilkington, Marbeck and the Double Dealer (2012), about an Elizabethan spy who must uncover the identity of a spy working for the Spanish government; #1 in a planned mystery series. Matthew Reilly, The Tournament (2013), a mystery featuring Princess Elizabeth of England and her tutor Roger Ascham traveling to a chess tournament in Constantinople in 1546 where Ascham is asked to investigate the murder of a guest of the Sultan. Phil Rickman, The Bones of Avalon (2011), a mystery featuring Queen Elizabeth's astrologer Doctor John Dee as sleuth, teaming up with Robert Dudley to find out what happened to King Arthur's bones after the dissolution of Glastonbury Abbey. Review
C.J. Sansom, Dark Fire (2005), about a hunchbacked lawyer in Henry VIII’s court and his efforts to help a friend's niece who has been accused of murder; winner of the 2005 Ellis Peters Historical Award; #2 in the Matthew Shardlake mystery series. C.J. Sansom, Sovereign (2007), about a hunchbacked lawyer in Henry VIII’s court who discovers that a murder he is investigating could be connected with the royal family; #3 in the Matthew Shardlake mystery series. C.J. Sansom, Revelation (2008), about a hunchbacked lawyer in Henry VIII's court who discovers links between a case of religious mania and the murder of a friend; #4 in the Matthew Shardlake mystery series. C.J. Sansom, Heartstone (2010), about a hunchbacked lawyer in Henry VIII's court who travels to Portsmouth to look into the case of a mistreated orphan as the city prepares for a French attack; #5 in the Matthew Shardlake mystery series. C.J. Sansom, Lamentation (2015), about a hunchbacked lawyer who in the fall of 1546 as Henry VIII is on his deathbed is asked to track down Queen Catherine's dangerous memoir after the London printer it was entrusted to is murdered; #6 in the Matthew Shardlake mystery series. C.J. Sansom, Tombland (2019), about a lawyer in the service of Princess Elizabeth who, amid a peasant's revolt during the reign of eleven-year-old Edward VI, investigates the murder of one of her distant relations; #7 in the Matthew Shardlake mystery series. Review
Martin Stephen, The Galleons' Grave Martin Stephen, The Rebel Heart M.J. Trow, Dark Entry (2011), a mystery featuring the young Christopher Marlowe as sleuth in 1583 as an old friend is discovered dead shortly before Marlowe graduates from university; #1 in the planned Kit Marlowe series. D.K. Wilson, The First Horseman D.K. Wilson, The Traitor's Mark Reformation and Renaissance Europe
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The Renaissance was an exciting time when the struggle for survival became less desperate for many (if not for the wives of a certain monarch), making way for a flowering of art, music and new ideas. Religious reform was among those new ideas, making life more hazardous for some outspoken Protestants and Catholics. For more information, see the 
(1989), about a fictional lady-in-waiting who served all six of Henry VIII's wives. 
(1993), about a modern London man who begins to have mysterious dreams and visions after he inherits a house owned by Dr. Dee, a mathematician, astrologer and philosopher who served as an adviser to Queen Elizabeth. 
(2013), a novel of alternate history which imagines the life of the son Anne Boleyn might have had, beginning shortly before his eighteenth birthday; #1 in the Boleyn trilogy.
(2013), a novel of alternate history about the reign of Anne Boleyn's son; #2 in the Boleyn trilogy.
(2014), a novel of alternate history about Anne Boleyn's daughter, Elizabeth, who must make the choice between loyalty to her brother or to her country amid the threat of invasion; #3 in the Boleyn trilogy.
(2015), a novel of alternate history which imagines Queen Elizabeth I married Philip of Spain and gave birth to a daughter; #1 in the Tudor Legacy trilogy, which follows on from the Boleyn trilogy.
(2013), about a lady-in-waiting in Queen Elizabeth's court who travels to the New World as part of the Roanoke Colony founded by Sir Walter Raleigh.
(1932; also published under the pen name L. Adams Beck; both Beck and Barrington were pen names for author Eliza Louisa Moresby Beck), about Anne Boleyn.
(1992), about a playwright and his troupe of traveling players in Elizabethan England; a sequel, Fallen Angels, is set in seventeenth century England.
(1941), a satirical novel about Elizabethan England, in which Shakespeare struggles to write "Love's Labours Wunne" and Walter Raleigh worries about the potato he is cooking for the queen. 
(2010), about Katherine Howard, the fifth wife of Henry VIII.
(1966), about the female Irish pirate Gráinne Ní Mháille (Grace O’Malley). 
(2015), a novel which imagines the younger lives of the witty lovers in Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing.
(2013), about a Scottish survivor of the Battle of Flodden Field and the woman who asks him to help her find out whether her brother survived the battle.
(2015), about the leader of a Scottish clan who in 1523 seeks revenge on the powerful Englishman who killed his father.
(1939), about Anne Bolyen.
(1988), about Anne Boleyn and her sister Mary.
(2012), about a present-day woman who returns to York after her godmother's death and finds herself haunted by a girl drowned as a witch in 1577.
(2013), about a woman in Elizabethan York married to the brutal brother of the man she really loves, and a woman in modern-day York who has left her husband and begins having memories of a life in Elizabethan times.
(2015), about a woman with amnesia who, as her memory begins to return, can recall only the life of a woman in the time of Elizabeth I.
), about the son of the aging French swordsman who beheaded Anne Boleyn, and the Roman cardinal who summons him to find her missing hand; #2 in the French Executioner series.
(2013), about a young woman sent to spy on Mary Queen of Scots; #5 in the Thornleigh Saga series.
(2014), about a Scottish woman who makes her living salvaging damaged ships who teams up with an English baron to find his traitorous wife and their children; #6 in the Thornleigh Saga.
(1960), about Anne Boleyn.
(1958; also titled As the Tree Falls), historical romance about a couple who meet as children in the court of Henry VIII and fall in love during the reign of his son Edward.
(1971), about Mary Tudor, who became queen of England after the death of her father, Henry VIII.
(1932), about Christopher Marlowe, the Elizabethan playwright who was Shakespeare's contemporary. 
(1954; also titled Queens House), about the generations of people who live in an English house from the time of Queen Elizabeth through the following centures.
(1981), a family saga beginning in 1590 when a young sailor acquires the ruins of an old priory despite local legends that say it was cursed when King Henry VIII turned out the monks.
(1968; also titled The Hireling), about a fictional assassin sent to Italy by Henry VIII to do away with Cardinal Pole.
(2013), about Katherine Parr, the sixth and last wife of Henry VIII.
(1967), about Katherine Howard, the fifth wife of Henry VIII.
(1968), about Mary Tudor.
(1969), about Anne Boleyn.
(1970), about Mary Tudor, the sister of Henry VIII and wife of Louis XII of France, who following King Louis's death secretly married Charles Brandon, the first Duke of Suffolk, in defiance of her brother's wishes.
), about Anne Boleyn and Catherine Howard.
, about Shakespeare and his wife, narrated by their dog. 
(2011), historical romance about an English lord's daughter who takes measures to keep suitors at bay after her father dies, and a dispossessed Scot who comes to fight for England; Christian message.
(1974), historical romance about Amy Robsart, the wife of Queen Elizabeth's favorite Robert Dudley, the Earl of Leicester.
(1999), historical romance about Mary Newman, the wife of Sir Francis Drake.
(1957), about Bess Throckmorton, the wife of Sir Walter Raleigh.
(1979), about Lettice Knollys and her three children; sequel to The Queen's Rival.
(1983), about Jane Grey's younger sister Katherine, who married Edward Seymour, the Earl of Hertford, without royal consent.
(2004), about a young actor who goes to Oxford when his theater is shut down because of plague in London, and finds that death is haunting Oxford, too; #5 in the Shakespearean mystery series.
(2005), about an actor in Shakespeare's company who needs to find out why so many people are dying as the Spanish negotiate a peace treaty with England; #6 in the Shakespearean mystery series.
(2015), about a lawyer who returns to Scotland after the death of Mary, Queen of Scots, and is asked to investigate the source of a subversive painting; #5 in the Hew Cullan mystery series.
(2005), a mystery set during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I; #3 in the Henry Gresham mystery series (#1 and #2 are set in the 17th century).
(2006), a mystery set at the end of Queen Elizabeth’s reign; #4 in the Henry Gresham mystery series.
(2014), about a London goldsmith searching for the killer of his friend Robert Packington, a mercer who was the first man ever murdered by a handgun in London; based on an unsolved historical crime; #1 in the Thomas Treviot mystery series.
(2015), about a London goldsmith who decides to investigate the disappearance of court painter Hans Holbein; #2 in the Thomas Treviot mystery series.
(1986), about the six blind men used as models by the Flemish painter Pieter Brueghel for his painting "The Parable of the Blind."
(1979), about the secretary to the Florence's embassy to the Borgias in Rome during the early sixteenth century. 
(2014), about Countess Elizabeth Bathory, who killed young women in order to bathe in their blood, and a present-day psychoanalyst and her teenaged patient who discover the "curse of Bathory" is still alive.
(1941), about a woman in a rural Breton village who begins to suspect that the man she has accepted as her husband, returned to her after a long absence, is not the man she originally married; based on an actual sixteenth century court case.
(2010), about a woman whose mother insists she become mistress to a series of men before she falls in love with Henry of Navarre.
(2012), about a Portuguese witch hunter sent to the colony of Goa in India to work for the Inquisition, where he becomes obsessed with acquiring a navaratna, a jewelled amulet.
(2012), about a Portuguese falconer's daughter who must travel to Iceland to rescue her father from the Inquisition. 
(1979 in the original French; first English edition 2015), about a young man who leaves his family home in 1566 to study at the university in Montpellier, a center of Renaissance humanism; #2 in the Fortunes of France series.
(1980), a humorous thriller based on the story of Faust.
(2012), about a Venetian woman who has learned medicine from her father and journeys across Europe to find him after he goes missing.
(1997), about a boy in Volterra during the town's revolt against Florentine rule in the 1470s and its brutal suppression by Lorenzo de' Medici's army, after which fate brings him to Florence; #1 in the Botticelli trilogy. 
(2012), about the rogueish Carmelite friar and painter Filippo Lippi and his patron Cosimo de' Medici. 
(2010), about the spirit of an Old Testament woman prophet and a young, gay man who discovers his family are secret Jews in 1491 on the eve of the expulsion of Jews from Spain.
(1955), about Isabella of Spain and the 1492 reconquest of Granada from the Moors. 
(2014), about a Venetian nun who in 1511 questions her faith after an earthquake as she sits for her portrait; and composer Erik Satie reflecting on his life after his death when he is asked to select a memory to take with him into the afterlife.
(1957), about the Italian son of an English soldier of fortune who discovers to his astonishment that he has inherited an earldom in the Welsh Marches. 
(original Finnish edition 1948; English edition 1950), about a young Finn in the sixteenth century, illegitimate and orphaned, who travels Europe and studies theology in an effort to improve his position.
(original Finnish edition 1949; English edition 1951), about a sixteenth-century Finn forced to covert to Islam by pirates, whose further travels bring him to the Ottoman empire, where he rises to a high position in the court of Sultan Suleiman I.
(2014), about a young woman in fifteenth-century Florence who investigates her mother's death after learning she had joined a Luciferian cult.
(2003); a mystery featuring Lucrezia Borgia as sleuth after her husband accuses her of poisoning his mistress.
, Leonardo da Vinci teams up with a dwarf to find out who is assassinating cardinals connected with the Duke of Milan's court; #1 in the Leonardo mystery series.
, Leonardo da Vinci teams up with a dwarf to find out who killed a courier and made off with the magnificent diamond necklace he was carrying; #2 in the Leonardo mystery series.
(1999), a mystery featuring Niccolo Machiavelli engaged on a secret mission for Rodrigo Borgia, Pope Alexander VI.