94 books like Virgin and the Crab

CJ Sansom, a renowned historian, released this first fiction novel to huge acclaim. I was fascinated to find the investigator was a London lawyer during the reign of Henry VIII. It ticked all the boxes: history, a juicy murder, crime, and mystery. I was not disappointed. In my own writing, I endeavour to make my characters individual and memorable and, therefore, look for that in books I read.

The protagonist, lawyer Matthew Shardlake, has the brain, persistence, and vision of a Holmes or Poirot in uncovering the clues and is admired by all for his ability to win cases. Despite this, one thing continually erodes his confidence: he is a hunchback. Not restricted by twenty-first-century political correctness, his enemies take delight in reminding him of this. I loved the way the author handled that.

I enjoyed the detective story in an entirely different setting. It is a magnificent first book;… show more.

This is my all-time favourite history book. It’s non-fiction, but is far from dry or academic, it grabs you from the get-go and is like a thriller, a real page-turner.

We all know about the religious persecutions of Mary I’s reign, a queen who has gone down in history as Bloody Mary, but in God’s Traitors, historian Jessie Childs explores just how dangerous it was being a Catholic in Elizabethan England.

Childs focuses on the Vaux family and their experiences of being Catholic as Elizabeth I swings from religious tolerance to viewing Catholics as the enemy.

It’s a fantastic read.

Gareth Russell can do no wrong in my eyes! He brings history to life with storytelling that many novelists could only hope to emulate. Not only that, his books are based on meticulous research

In Young and Damned and Fair Russell tells the story of Catherine Howard, Henry VIII’s ill-fated wife, and what I love about Russell’s narrative is the way it brings Catherine to life. Here, she’s not the wayward ‘tart’ who betrayed Henry VIII, or the victim of sexual abuse, she’s fully three-dimensional and all facets of her life are explored.

I particularly loved Russell’s examination of her queenship, which is so often neglected. A riveting read!

We’ve all heard of Lady Jane Grey, "The Nine Day Queen”, but not many know that all three Grey sisters had tragic lives. Their Tudor blood and proximity to the throne made them rivals to the monarch, whether they wanted to be or not.

Leanda de Lisle does a wonderful job telling the stories of these three fascinating women: Jane, Katherine, and Mary. I love how she banishes the many myths surrounding them. Jane may have been a victim of the executioner, but the Jane that rises from the pages of this book was one tough cookie, as were her sisters.

All three of them challenged authority and were willing to pay the price. An excellent read.

Alan Green hosts a popular Youtube channel that explores the mysteries and secret codes built into the works of Shakespeare and his decryptions are quite extraordinary in their depth.

Green has been investigating these hidden “Bard codes” for more than 15 years and his book reflects the incredible effort he has put into his work. He was at one time the musical director of The Monkees!)

This is an excellent, yet brief history of the Black Arts and the famous (or infamous) people who practiced them. It was while reading this book, particularly the chapter on LaVoisin, that inspired the story of Christina Lafage, the main character in Widdershins. The book also describes other interesting practitioners, such as Dr. John Dee, Eliphas Levi, Nostradamus, Aleister Crowley, and many more. The chapters on Black Magic and Sorcery and Raising the Dead also contributed to my ideas for my book. I often find myself referring to this book over and over again for great source material.

Crowley is the author of the timeless classic Little, Big, of course (which is also essential reading), but his novel, The Solitudes, began a tetralogy that explores history, alternate history, and the grand Hermetic framework which contains it all.

Centering around a historian working to connect an alternate imagined world, Ægypt, with the real one today, Crowley’s readers take a deep dive into the Renaissance world of Giordano Bruno, Doctor Dee, Shakespeare, and others, while simultaneously exploring the arcane world of the present.

It feels strangely akin to something Umberto Eco might come up with if he ever wanted to write fantasy.

As with any Crowley novel, the prose is absolutely gorgeous—a masterclass of beautiful, thoughtful writing. This series has been unjustly overlooked. Give it a try.

The third book of The Elizabeth of England Chronicles has Elizabeth finally becoming Queen of England and trying to unite a divided country. A Protestant queen surrounded by Catholic kings, all she has to do is marry well and secure the succession. Gemma Lawrence has a talent for developing convincing characters and evoking a compelling sense of time and place.

I am a sucker for something a bit different.

And when I first learned of the wonderful SJ Bennett’s series where her lead detective is Queen Elizabeth II, I was completely sold.

What I love most about this novel, and the series as a whole, is that there’s a wonderful story, cast of supporting characters, and everything, really, that support that simply brilliant concept. Look beyond the fact that the Queen is your protagonist and it’s a completely brilliant novel.

The fantastic, unique, and utterly compelling twist on the sleuth, however, is the cherry on top of the icing on top of the cake. 

Carole Levin’s magisterial work has now appeared in its second edition, a testament to its importance. Carole explores the myriad ways the unmarried, childless Elizabeth represented herself and the ways members of her court, foreign ambassadors, and subjects represented and responded to her as a public figure. Like her recently deceased successor, Elizabeth II, Elizabeth Tudor understood that she had to be seen to be believed. She fashioned herself into both the Virgin Queen and the mother of her people. Carole interrogates the gender constructions, role expectations, and beliefs about sexuality that influenced her public persona and the way she was perceived as a female Protestant ruler and points us to paths along which can travel to investigate other female monarchs regardless of time period and on a global scale.