Jennifer Robson first learned about the Great War from her father, acclaimed historian Stuart Robson, and later served as an official guide at the Canadian National War Memorial at Vimy Ridge, France. A former copy editor, she holds a doctorate in British economic and social history from the University of Oxford. She lives in Toronto, Canada, with her husband and young children.
Sisters of Night and Fog (2022) Erika Robuck "Few writers are as skilled as Erika Robuck at the exacting art of spinning the raw truth of history into the vital tapestry of fiction. With Sisters of Night and Fog, based upon the experiences of renowned WWII SOE agents Violette Szabo and Virginia d'Albert-Lake, Robuck works her magic again. She takes the well-documented stories of these two women, whose courage under the most harrowing circumstances almost defies description, and she makes us believe. This impeccably researched and profoundly moving novel will stay with readers long after its devastating and heartfelt conclusion, and they will marvel, as I did, at the valour of its heroines and the artistry of its author."
The Woman at the Front (2021) Lecia Cornwall "An absorbing and immersive portrait of a woman whose courage, determination, and resolve would be exceptional in any age--but forged in the crucible of the Great War, tested again and again by a society riven by change, Dr. Eleanor Atherton is a heroine I will not soon forget...The Woman at the Front is a beautiful book about a terrible war, and the light it shines on the valor of those at the front lines--the medics, the stretcher-bearers, and the wounded themselves--is both welcome and overdue."
The Holiday Swap (2021) Maggie Knox "I love this book! It is deliciously fun and wildly romantic, and the dual settings of a baking show set in LA and a family-run bakery in a small snowy town feels like Great British Bakeoff meets Gilmore Girls.… I wanted to befriend the twins, throttle the villains, fall in love with the heroes—and bake up some sourdough."
The Woman with the Blue Star (2021) Pam Jenoff "As I read this searing story of the Holocaust, I was transported, heart and soul, to a moment in history that still defies comprehension. In Pam Jenoff's sure and sensitive hands, however, this is a story of friendship, love, and hope - hope that transcends even the darkest days of our past. The Woman with the Blue Star is a profoundly moving novel from a writer who is, deservedly, both admired and beloved for the truth, power, and beauty of her work."
Letters Across the Sea (2021) Genevieve Graham "I always look forward to diving into a Genevieve Graham novel, because I know I’ll be swept away by her meticulous evocation of the past, her memorable and wonderfully observed characters, and her unmatchable flair for shining a light into the neglected corners of our shared past. In Letters Across the Sea, she sends us from 1930s Toronto, then under siege by a relentless plague of anti-Semitism, to a different battleground altogether: the last stand of Canadian troops at the Battle of Hong Kong. This is history worth remembering—and fiction that both enlightens and entertains."
Courage, My Love (2021) Kristin Beck "In Courage, My Love, a deeply moving novel of Italy in the Second World War, Kristin Beck plunges the reader deep into the lives of Lucia and Francesca, two women united at first by circumstance and eventually by friendship. It illuminates, often to heartrending effect, the uncertainty, upheaval, violence and viciousness of the Nazi occupation of Rome; and it portrays, with sensitivity and profound empathy, the many ways in which ordinary people confronted evil with selflessness and true valor. In this wonderful novel, Beck brings a lesser-known chapter of wartime history to vivid life with settings that are perfectly observed, down to the smallest detail, and with characters so imperfectly real they all but jump from the page. Courage, My Love is a beautiful and breathtaking book. It is certainly one of the finest works of World War Two historical fiction I have ever read."
Surviving Savannah (2021) Patti Callahan "Riveting...a heartfelt exploration of the pain of survival amid incalculable loss, and a mesmerizing character study of three women...[A] memorable and profoundly moving novel that readers are destined to cherish."
Band of Sisters (2021) Lauren Willig "An affecting and memorable tale of women and the way their friendships are tested by a changing world and the unforgiving crucible of conflict. Altogether it's an utterly entertaining and enlightening work of historical fiction. Brava!"
The Night Portrait (2020) Laura Morelli "The Night Portrait by Laura Morelli, which links Renaissance Italy and the crucible of World War Two in the most absorbing and innovative fashion, is also a novel of profound emotional resonance. A respected art historian, Morelli brings an exceptional depth of research and understanding to a story already made memorable by her beautiful prose. This is a truly original novel that has earned its place among my favorite works of historical fiction."
The Woman Before Wallis (2020) Bryn Turnbull "Bryn Turnbull takes a story we think we know and turns it on its head, with captivating results...A beautifully written, meticulously researched and altogether memorable debut."
Fast Girls (2020) Elise Hooper "...kinetic, mesmerizing, and terrifically entertaining...A wonderful novel...it will surely appeal to anyone with an interest in the pioneering women who paved the rocky and uphill way for today’s female Olympians."
The Imperfects (2020) Amy Meyerson "The Imperfects is many things, all of them wonderful: a tale of the calamity and change of the twentieth century; a finely observed character study that focuses on the deliciously memorable Miller family; and a true page-turner that enthralled me from the start. It's also a work of grace, sensitivity, and perfectly observed attention to detail... Certain to delight and entrance its readers."
Better Luck Next Time (2020) Kate Hilton "Kate Hilton's latest, Better Luck Next Time, is a hilarious, astute, and wonderfully heartwarming tale of a family juggling the complexities of divorce, independence, love, and loss. It's relatable, relevant, and emotionally resonant -- altogether a gem of a book. I loved it!"
Recipe for a Perfect Wife (2019) Karma Brown "I already knew that Karma Brown's contemporary novels are exemplars of thoughtful, compelling, and truly original fiction. What I didn't know before reading Recipe For a Perfect Wife is that she is equally at home when writing historical fiction. In her hands, the constrained and often suffocating lives of 1950s women--illuminated in a deftly handled dual narrative that alternates between the present day and 60 years ago -- are revealed with real sensitivity, depth, and at times tenderness. And true to Karma Brown, this is also a nail-biter of a tale, and one that kept me up long past my bedtime. This is a delicious and thoroughly satisfying book."
The Chelsea Girls (2019) Fiona Davis "The Chelsea Girls is an entirely delightful example of Fiona Davis's inventive and winning approach to historical fiction. The dazzling allure of Broadway, the devastating consequences of McCarthyism, the delights of the legendary Chelsea Hotel, and above all the decades-long friendship of Hazel and Maxine--Davis weaves these narrative threads into a memorable, affecting, and marvelously entertaining novel."
When We Left Cuba (2019) (Cuba Saga, book 2) Chanel Cleeton "With a sure hand for historical detail, an impeccable eye for setting, and a heroine who grasps hold of your heart and never lets go, Chanel Cleeton has created another dazzlingly atmospheric and absorbing story of Cuba and its exiles. A beautiful and profoundly affecting novel from a writer whose work belongs on the shelves of every lover of historical fiction."
The Huntress (2019) Kate Quinn "The Huntress left me breathless with delight... Kate Quinn has created nothing less than a masterpiece of historical fiction."
Things to Do When It's Raining (2018) Marissa Stapley "Things to Do When It’s Raining has heart and soul and guts, and it has achingly beautiful prose and characters so dear and real I couldn’t bear to say goodbye when I reached its final page. It’s a book about friendship and secrets, grief and regret, the peculiar shape of families and the redemptive nature of love. And it is, quite frankly, one of the best books I have read in a very long time."
Last Christmas in Paris (2017) Hazel Gaynor and Heather Webb "Last Christmas in Paris is an extraordinary epistolary novel that explores the history and aftermath of the Great War in a sensitive, memorable and profoundly moving fashion. A book to savor, to share and discuss with friends, and above all to cherish."
Dragon Springs Road (2017) Janie Chang "Dragon Springs Road is simply one of the best novels I have read in a long time."
The Other Side of Midnight (2015) Simone St James "A headily atmospheric and suspenseful mystery that kept me reading until the wee hours. Her command of the period is so immersive, and her characters so real and heartbreakingly broken, that I felt transported..."
