I haven't read any of the books shared above yet as I have been away on holiday, but I am returning to the UK soon so I am very excited to try and see if my local library has them. I love the sound of The Trial of Mrs. Rhinelander by Denny S. Bryce and The Other Princess by Denny S. Bryce! 😊
I won’t even consider most of these books because the covers either cut off the women’s heads or show the women who are the main characters in the story from the back. I am tired of women being minimized in this way. I realize that this is a me thing, but I would like to everyone to try to think of the last time they saw a man portrayed on the cover in the same way.
That's a very interesting observation. One thing I would say is that if they are traditionally published books, the authors either very minimal or no say in how the cover looks.
Thank you particularly for your commentary at the start of this article. It's a really important discussion to address, especially within the realms of women's history - and marginalised women's history at that. The fiction I write is what I call 'fiction based on fact', and I'm very clear that while I have used all of my extensive research to build the world and actions of a real-life character, my stories are fiction. I hope that readers learn from my fiction, and get the bug for history from it, but I never claim it to be fact! This is where I think a beefy historical endnote can be helpful, and I love it when I see one at the end of a book. Thanks again!
Just added 3 of these to my TBR - they all look fantastic! I heard another author recently talking about the Mrs. Rhinelander book - my jaw dropped listening to her speak about it. Looking forward to reading them all.
I think that last one is most interesting to me. I know so little about the history of West Africa at that time, but I have heard of the Yoruba. I'm wondering if they were actually still running a territory as British clients at the time? The question in my head then would be how she could get back there, regardless of how bad things may have been. But this is just me, who would, as they say, rather reign in Hell than serve in Heaven.
You are absolutely correct regarding what we know about female historical figures. But my interests, as you know, are much farther back in time. I'll do a quick self-promotion here, and mention that my own short piece (originally rejected for the annual contest by HTF - full disclosure), 'Just One Iota', in Bewildering Stories, Issue 1125 ( a free online-only magazine) features a ferocious female character, who although technically not the protagonist, steals the show. This is set in, and based on real events, in the Byzantine Empire , on September 11 (of all days!), 1195. Weird ting too - throughout writing that story, the soundtrack in my head was a continuous loop (that I never got sick of at all) of Thin Lizzy's 'Tonight There's Gonna Be a Jailbreak'.
And since the Byzantine Empire is my thing, I can make an academic recommendation, too. While I think primarily aimed at fellow academics, I think the book 'Women in Purple'. by Judith Herrin, although some decades old now could be a fascinating read for anyone with an interest in a history westerners are still largely unfamiliar with, and also women in history. It is basically a set of three case studies of individual Byzantine noblewomen, with three very different life stories, and the unmistakable impact they had on on the course of history.
Such great recommendations! I think I need to do some reshuffling to the order of my ever-growing TBR pile…
It's always a struggle to keep up with the ever growing pile!
Adding these to my TBR pile.
Yay! I would love to hear about which ones you read.
This is such a great list. Thank you for spreading the love!
I have the same issue that you did!!! I didn't realize I missed so many old comments. Thank you as always for the support.
🫶🏽🫶🏽🫶🏽
The Undertaker one has my attention!
Great article and recommendations. Thank you. Adding to my list right now. 🙂📚
Yay! I'm so glad you see some that catch your interest. I would love to know if you read any of them.
These all sound like great books! I will be adding some of them to my TBR, thank you for sharing. 😊📚
Woohoo! I love hearing that you found some to add to your TBR. Have you checked any of them out yet?
I haven't read any of the books shared above yet as I have been away on holiday, but I am returning to the UK soon so I am very excited to try and see if my local library has them. I love the sound of The Trial of Mrs. Rhinelander by Denny S. Bryce and The Other Princess by Denny S. Bryce! 😊
Enjoy your holiday! Can’t wait to hear what you think about them.
I won’t even consider most of these books because the covers either cut off the women’s heads or show the women who are the main characters in the story from the back. I am tired of women being minimized in this way. I realize that this is a me thing, but I would like to everyone to try to think of the last time they saw a man portrayed on the cover in the same way.
That's a very interesting observation. One thing I would say is that if they are traditionally published books, the authors either very minimal or no say in how the cover looks.
Thank you particularly for your commentary at the start of this article. It's a really important discussion to address, especially within the realms of women's history - and marginalised women's history at that. The fiction I write is what I call 'fiction based on fact', and I'm very clear that while I have used all of my extensive research to build the world and actions of a real-life character, my stories are fiction. I hope that readers learn from my fiction, and get the bug for history from it, but I never claim it to be fact! This is where I think a beefy historical endnote can be helpful, and I love it when I see one at the end of a book. Thanks again!
Lol. I love a "beefy historical endnote"! Thanks for the support, Holly
Thank you so much for each one of these recommendations. I plan to read every one of them! I appreciate you!
You've made my day!!!! Have you been able to check any of them out yet?
Just added 3 of these to my TBR - they all look fantastic! I heard another author recently talking about the Mrs. Rhinelander book - my jaw dropped listening to her speak about it. Looking forward to reading them all.
Doing a happy dance! Which ones did you add to your TBR?
I have The Other Princess on my shelf. This inspires me to get to it!
I think that last one is most interesting to me. I know so little about the history of West Africa at that time, but I have heard of the Yoruba. I'm wondering if they were actually still running a territory as British clients at the time? The question in my head then would be how she could get back there, regardless of how bad things may have been. But this is just me, who would, as they say, rather reign in Hell than serve in Heaven.
You are absolutely correct regarding what we know about female historical figures. But my interests, as you know, are much farther back in time. I'll do a quick self-promotion here, and mention that my own short piece (originally rejected for the annual contest by HTF - full disclosure), 'Just One Iota', in Bewildering Stories, Issue 1125 ( a free online-only magazine) features a ferocious female character, who although technically not the protagonist, steals the show. This is set in, and based on real events, in the Byzantine Empire , on September 11 (of all days!), 1195. Weird ting too - throughout writing that story, the soundtrack in my head was a continuous loop (that I never got sick of at all) of Thin Lizzy's 'Tonight There's Gonna Be a Jailbreak'.
And since the Byzantine Empire is my thing, I can make an academic recommendation, too. While I think primarily aimed at fellow academics, I think the book 'Women in Purple'. by Judith Herrin, although some decades old now could be a fascinating read for anyone with an interest in a history westerners are still largely unfamiliar with, and also women in history. It is basically a set of three case studies of individual Byzantine noblewomen, with three very different life stories, and the unmistakable impact they had on on the course of history.