Recommendations based on "The Theban Mysteries"

The New York Times bestselling “Grande Dame of historical mystery” (Washington Post) returns with another thrilling tale of mystery,As the l921-22 season begins, the Emersons are enjoying a busy period of excavation in Egypt, when they hear a lurid description of a man’s mysterious death. His widow is convinced he died of a curse, and implores the Emersons to return the “deadly” little statue that killed him to the tomb from which it was stolen--before it adds her to its list of victims. Clearly, it would be a serious error for the Emersons to start chasing tomb robbers, just when they have finally received permission to return to the Valley of the Kings, from which they were barred several years earlier. But the family soon realizes that the curse may be more real than they ever imagined….and they may be the next victims.

“Irresistible….Amelia is still a joy.”—New York Times Book ReviewThe intrepid archeologist Amelia Peabody and her fearless family, the Emersons, are back in Egypt, and something very nasty is afoot in Lord of the Silent—New York Times bestselling Grandmaster Elizabeth Peters’s sparkling adventure with more riddles than the Sphinx and more close calls and stunning escapes than an Indiana Jones movie. Reviewers are simply agog over Lord of the Silent, calling it, “Wonderfully entertaining” (Washington Times), “Deeply satisfying” (Entertainment Weekly), and in the words of the Toronto Globe and Mail, “The hype is true. This is Peters’s best book.”

Calling upon his former governess, William Jones, gentleman, is startled when his knock is answered by an uncommonly beautiful servant, the soft-spoken Emma. Throughout his visit, William's eyes drift to the maid whenever she enters the room, and he contrives to meet Emma socially as she goes about her errands. But London society is a web of strict codes and divisions. For the son of a wealthy merchant, seeking out a working-class girl is simply not done! William's father plans for his son to marry into the peerage and elevate the Jones family to greater heights, but although William says and does what is expected of him, he longs only for Emma's company...

This is the magical tale of Edith Lane, who sets off to find her fortune in the beautiful city of Paris. Fortune, however, is a fickle thing and Edith ends up working in a vintage bakery in the positively antique town of Compiègne. Escaping heartache and singledom in Ireland, Edith discovers that the bakery on Rue De Paris is not exactly what it seems and that some ghosts from the past are harder to escape than others. A heart-warming story that is sure to appeal to all of the senses, The Mysterious Bakery On Rue De Paris is a mouth-watering journey of love, liberty and la vie en rose.

Elena Weaver, in her skimpy dresses and bright jewellery, exuded intelligence and sexuality. A student at St Stephen's College, Cambridge, she lived a life of casual but intense physical and emotional relationships, with scores to settle and targets to achieve. Until someone, lying in wait on the bank of the River Cam, where Elena went running every morning, bludgeoned the young woman to death. Called into the rarefied world of academia, Inspector Thomas Lynley and his partner Barbara Havers find a tangled skein of love, obsession and desire -- a maelstrom of emotion that has claimed Elena Weaver's life.

After a broken love affair, biographer Kate Kennedy retires to a remote cottage on the wild Essex coast to work on her new book until her landlord's daughter uncovers a Roman site nearby and long-buried passions are unleashed! In her lonely cottage, Kate is terrorized by mysterious forces. What do these ghosts want? That the truth about the violent events of long ago be exposed or remain concealed? Kate must struggle for her life against earthbound spirits and ancient curses as hate, jealousy, revenge and passion do battle across the centuries.

With her student days behind her and her career well underway, Sue and Bill, now married, together try to run a little hospital in the New England hills that was presented to the community by the town's wealthiest citizen, Elias Todd. Sue is Superintendent of Nurses, and her old friend Kit is helping her along with many of her fellow students from her years of training.After all the exciting nursing adventures these two girls have shared together, one might think they would find their new work rather tame. It is anything but tame for Sue, however, with that irrepressible street urchin, Marianna, as a student nurse; with Jean Ditmarr, sophisticated New Yorker, thinking she could put something over on the young Superintendent; with Dr. Bill so busy being a good doctor that Sue feared for a while he might not prove such a good husband; and above all, with the mysterious disappearance of the hospital sheets! Sue Barton is at her best with all the excitement and fun that this nurse seems destined to find in her nursing profession. The authentic setting of rural hospital life is the perfect backdrop for another great Sue Barton story.

Love and need make unexpected bedfellows, and both are blind. As the grip of a long hard winter tightens on Lydmouth, a dead woman calls the dying in a seance behind net curtains. Two provincial newspapers are in the throes of a bitter circulation war. A lorry-driver broods, and an office boy loses his heart. Britain is basking in the warm glow of post-war tranquillity, but in the quiet town of Lydmouth, darker forces are at play. The rats are fed on bread and milk, a gentleman's yellow kid glove is mislaid on a train, and something disgusting is happening at Mr Prout's toyshop. Returning to a town shrouded in intrigue and suspicion, Jill Francis becomes acting editor of the Gazette. Meanwhile, there's no pleasure left in the life of Detective Chief Inspector Richard Thornhill. Only a corpse, a television set and the promise of trouble to come.

'What a page turner!' Daisy Wood, author of The Forgotten Bookshop in Paris 'A delicious Art Deco novel with a delightfully acerbic heroine.' Marius Gabriel, author of The German Daughter 'Original and immersive.' Eva Glyn, author of An Island of Secrets In a bookshop nestled in the sprawling streets of Lisbon, a shopkeeper leads a double life... Looking for a new start after her father's death, Lara Hope arrives in Lisbon in search of a family she's never met. As war storms across Europe, Lara finds solace and belonging in her landlady's tranquil bookshop in one of the most beautiful corners of the city. But when she witnesses a customer secretly swapping a book, she realises the bookshop is not all it seems. Lara is plunged into a labyrinthine world of mystery and facades, encountering new friends, an unexpected romance, and even royalty... Is she prepared to risk it all for this new life? Readers love The Bookshop of Secrets: 'The ending left me wanting more...these characters are too engaging and too ingenious to disappear into the ether' Historical Novel Society 'I lapped it up!' Eliza Graham 'A must-read for historical fiction fans and for me, Kerry Barrett's best book yet.' Annie Lyons 'A gripping 'what if' tale with a larger-than-life heroine at its heart.' Tessa Harris 'This book was an absolute joy. I didn't want to finish it.' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 'I adored this novel and found it hard to put down. The plot unfolds with ease and you easily warm to the characters.'⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 'Beautifully written.' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 'An exceptional read.' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

The nightmare is just beginning... A short story and prequel featuring DCI Matilda Darke, star of Michael Wood’s darkly compelling crime series. Perfect for fans of Angela Marsons and Patricia Gibney. She invited the killer into her home... The body of a young woman is found in an apartment block in a Sheffield suburb. She was attacked at home, in a sudden moment of violence that sends shockwaves through the community. DCI Matilda Darke has no choice but to work with her rival, DI Ben Hales, as the investigation takes them undercover into the dark world of a serial rapist targeting innocent women on the streets of the steel city. But can Matilda and Ben finally put their grievances aside and work together? Or will this case be their last?