Books in Thorndike Press large print historical fiction series

A USA Today Bestseller A #1 Globe and Mail Historical Fiction Bestseller A Reese Witherspoon Book Club Summer Reading Pick An Amazon Best Book A Goodreads Best Book A Summer Book Pick from Good Housekeeping, Parade, Library Journal, Goodreads, Liz and Lisa, and BookBub In an enthralling new historical novel from national bestselling author Kate Quinn, two women ― a female spy recruited to the real-life Alice Network in France during World War I and an unconventional American socialite searching for her cousin in 1947 ― are brought together in a mesmerizing story of courage and redemption.

From New York Times bestselling author Kristina McMorris comes another unforgettable novel inspired by a stunning piece of history. 2 CHILDREN FOR SALEThe scrawled sign, peddling young siblings on a farmhouse porch, captures the desperation sweeping the country in 1931. It's an era of breadlines, bank runs, and impossible choices. For struggling reporter Ellis Reed, the gut-wrenching scene evokes memories of his family's dark past. He snaps a photograph of the children, not meant for publication. But when the image leads to his big break, the consequences are devastating in ways he never imagined.Haunted by secrets of her own, secretary Lillian Palmer sees more in the picture than a good story and is soon drawn into the fray. Together, the two set out to right a wrongdoing and mend a fractured family, at the risk of everything they value.Inspired by an actual newspaper photo that stunned readers across the nation, this touching novel explores the tale within the frame and behind the lens -- a journey of ambition, love and the far-reaching effects of our actions.

Alaska, 1920: a brutal place to homestead, and especially tough for recent arrivals Jack and Mabel. Childless, they are drifting apart from the weight of the work and the loneliness. In a moment of levity during the season's first snowfall, they build a child out of snow. The next morning, it is gone - but they find a young, blonde-haired girl who calls herself Faina, and seems to be a child of the woods ...

Havana, 1958. A sugar baron's daughter, nineteen-year-old Elisa Perez is sheltered from the growing political unrest -- until she embarks on a clandestine affair with a passionate revolutionary. Miami, 2017. After the death of her beloved grandmother, freelance writer Marisol Ferrera travels to Cuba to scatter Elisa's ashes in the country of her birth. Arriving in Havana, Marisol comes face-to-face with the contrast of Cuba's timeless beauty and its perilous political climate. When more family history comes to light and Marisol finds herself attracted to a man with his own secrets, she'll need the lessons of her grandmother's past to help her understand the true meaning of courage.

"When her grandmother's will wrenches Sara back home from New Orleans, she learns more about Margaret Van Buren in the wake of her death than she ever did in life. After her last remaining family member dies, Sara Jenkins goes home to The Hideaway, her grandmother Mags's ramshackle B&B in Sweet Bay, Alabama. She intends to quickly tie up loose ends then return to her busy life and thriving antique shop in New Orleans. Instead, she learns Mags has willed her The Hideaway and charged her with renovating it-- no small task considering Mags's best friends, a motley crew of senior citizens, still live there. Rather than hurrying back to New Orleans, Sara stays in Sweet Bay and begins the biggest house -- rehabbing project of her career. Amid Sheetrock dust, old memories, and a charming contractor, she discovers that slipping back into life at The Hideaway is easier than she expected. Then she discovers a box Mags left in the attic with clues to a life Sara never imagined for her grandmother. With help from Mags's friends, Sara begins to piece together the mysterious life of bravery, passion, and choices that changed Mags's destiny in both marvelous and devastating ways. When an opportunistic land developer threatens to seize The Hideaway, Sara is forced to make a choice -- stay in Sweet Bay and fight for the house and the people she's grown to love or leave again and return to her successful but solitary life in New Orleans" --

A #1 New York Times Bestseller A Winner of the 2019 Indie Choice Award Shortlisted for the 2019 Women's Prize for Fiction In the house of Helios, god of the sun and mightiest of the Titans, a daughter is born. But Circe is a strange child ― not powerful, like her father, nor viciously alluring like her mother. Turning to the world of mortals for companionship, she discovers that she does possess power ― the power of witchcraft, which can transform rivals into monsters and menace the gods themselves. Threatened, Zeus banishes her to a deserted island, where she hones her occult craft, tames wild beasts and crosses paths with many of the most famous figures in all of mythology, including the Minotaur, Daedalus and his doomed son Icarus, the murderous Medea, and, of course, wily Odysseus. But there is danger, too, for a woman who stands alone, and Circe unwittingly draws the wrath of both men and gods, ultimately finding herself pitted against one of the most terrifying and vengeful of the Olympians. To protect what she loves most, Circe must summon all her strength and choose, once and for all, whether she belongs with the gods she is born from, or the mortals she has come to love.

"The Great War is over, and change is in the air, in this novel that brings to life the exciting days of early British radio...and one woman who finds her voice while working alongside the brilliant women and men of the BBC. London, 1926. American-raised Maisie Musgrave is thrilled to land a job as a secretary at the upstart British Broadcasting Corporation, whose use of radio--still new, strange, and electrifying--is captivating the nation. But the hectic pace, smart young staff, and intimidating bosses only add to Maisie's insecurity. Soon, she is seduced by the work--gaining confidence as she arranges broadcasts by the most famous writers, scientists, and politicians in Britain. She is also caught up in a growing conflict between her two bosses, John Reith, the formidable Director-General of the BBC, and Hilda Matheson, the extraordinary director of the hugely popular Talks programming, who each have very different visions of what radio should be. Under Hilda's tutelage, Maisie discovers her talent, passion, and ambition. But when she unearths a shocking conspiracy, she and Hilda join forces to make their voices heard both on and off the air...and then face the dangerous consequences of telling the truth for a living. READERS GUIDE INCLUDED"--

A stunning story about the Women Airforce Service Pilots, whose courage during World War II turned ordinary women into extraordinary heroes 1941. Audrey Coltrane has always wanted to fly. It's why she implored her father to teach her at the little airfield back home in Texas. It's why she signed up to train military pilots in Hawaii when the war in Europe began. And it's why she insists she is not interested in any dream-derailing romantic involvements, even with the disarming Lieutenant James Hart, who fast becomes a friend as treasured as the women she flies with. Then one fateful day, she gets caught in the air over Pearl Harbor just as the bombs begin to fall, and suddenly, nowhere feels safe. To make everything she's lost count for something, Audrey joins the Women Airforce Service Pilots program. The bonds she forms with her fellow pilots reignite a spark of hope in the face war, and--especially when James goes missing in action--give Audrey the strength to cross the front lines and fight for everything she holds dear. Shining a light on a little-known piece of history, The Flight Girls is a sweeping portrayal of women's fearlessness in the face of adversity, and the power of friendship to make us soar"--

Not since Gone with the Wind has a single-volume family saga so brilliantly portrayed the triumphs, trials, and sins of a family in the American South. ERIKA ROBUCK, author of The House of HawthorneFrom her earliest days, Patsy Jefferson knows that though her father loves his family dearly, his devotion to his country runs deeper still. As Thomas Jefferson s oldest daughter, she becomes his helpmate, protector, and constant companion in the wake of her mother s death, traveling with him when he becomes America s minister to France.It is in Paris, at the glittering court and among the first tumultuous days of the French Revolution, that fifteen-year-old Patsy learns about her father s troubling liaison with Sally Hemings, a slave girl her own age. Meanwhile, Patsy has fallen in love with her father s protege, William Short, a staunch abolitionist and ambitious diplomat. Torn between love, principles, and the bonds of family, Patsy questions if she can choose a life as William s wife and still be a devoted daughter.Her choice will follow her in the years to come to Virginia farmland, to Monticello, and even to the White House. And as scandal, tragedy, and poverty threaten her family, Patsy must decide how much she will sacrifice to protect her father s reputation, in the process defining not just Jefferson s political legacy but that of the nation he founded. Delectable and poignant. . . . You re going to want to savor this one. Bravo. Steve Berry, New York Times bestselling author"

For fans of All the Light We Cannot See and The Women in the Castle comes a riveting literary novel that is at once an epic love story and a heart-pounding journey across WWI-era Russia, about an ambitious young doctor and her scientist brother in a race against Einstein to solve one of the greatest mysteries of the universe.A BOSTON GLOBE BESTSELLERIn Russia, in the summer of 1914, as war with Germany looms and the Czar's army tightens its grip on the local Jewish community, Miri Abramov and her brilliant physicist brother, Vanya, are facing an impossible decision. Since their parents drowned fleeing to America, Miri and Vanya have been raised by their babushka, a famous matchmaker who has taught them to protect themselves at all costs: to fight, to kill if necessary, and always to have an escape plan. But now, with fierce, headstrong Miri on the verge of becoming one of Russia's only female surgeons, and Vanya hoping to solve the final puzzles of Einstein's elusive theory of relativity, can they bear to leave the homeland that has given them so much? Before they have time to make their choice, war is declared and Vanya goes missing, along with Miri's fianc�. Miri braves the firing squad to go looking for them both. As the eclipse that will change history darkens skies across Russia, not only the safety of Miri's own family but the future of science itself hangs in the balance. Grounded in real history -- and inspired by the solar eclipse of 1914 -- A Bend in the Stars offers a heartstopping account of modern science's greatest race amidst the chaos of World War I, and a love story as epic as the railways crossing Russia.

In this beautifully written novel of historical fiction, bestselling author Susan Holloway Scott tells the story of Alexander Hamilton's wife, Eliza--a fascinating, strong-willed heroine in her own right and a key figure in one of the most gripping periods in American history. "Love is not easy with a man chosen by Fate for greatness . . ." As the daughter of a respected general, Elizabeth Schuyler is accustomed to socializing with dignitaries and soldiers. But no visitor to her parents' home has affected her so strongly as Alexander Hamilton, a charismatic, ambitious aide to George Washington. They marry quickly, and despite the tumult of the American Revolution, Eliza is confident in her brilliant husband and in her role as his helpmate. But it is in the aftermath of war, as Hamilton becomes one of the country's most important figures, that she truly comes into her own. In the new capital, Eliza becomes an adored member of society, respected for her fierce devotion to Hamilton as well as her grace. Behind closed doors, she astutely manages their expanding household, and assists her husband with his political writings. Yet some challenges are impossible to prepare for. Through public scandal, betrayal, personal heartbreak, and tragedy, she is tested again and again. In the end, it will be Eliza's indomitable strength that makes her not only Hamilton's most crucial ally in life, but also his most loyal advocate after his death, determined to preserve his legacy while pursuing her own extraordinary path through the nation they helped shape together.