Hi, historical fiction fans!
This week we’re talking about women acting as spies, saboteurs, and codebreakers in WWII, as well as great alternate history books. You know, the kind that makes you rethink everything about how history went down. I was inspired by reading You Dreamed of Empires this past weekend. Now, I can’t stop thinking about what it would’ve been like to actually tour Tenochtitlan.
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Bookish Goods
Elizabeth Bennett Art Print from Carrington Story Art on Etsy
Can you ever have enough bookish art? I don’t think so! If you love Pride and Prejudice, this is definitely a print worth adding to your collection. $34
New Releases
The Woman with No Name by Audrey Blake (March 12, 2024)
After being faced with the devastation of war, a middle-aged woman joins up as Britain’s first female saboteur. She’s soon sent to France with a new name and a mission to cause chaos amongst the Nazis. With her skill for explosives, it doesn’t take long for her to become infamous. But will she be able to complete her mission without losing herself in the process?
Lady Codebreaker by K.D. Alden
Based on a true story, Lady Codebreaker follows Grace Smith, a woman who used her codebreaking skills to take on Prohibition-era gangsters and WWII Nazis before helping to found the CIA. Through it all, she balances life as a wife, mother, and works as a pioneering member of the U.S. government’s cryptanalysis program.
For a more comprehensive list of new releases, check out our New Books newsletter.
Riot Recommendations
I lost track of time this weekend getting lost in Álvaro Enrigue’s richly reimagined Tenochtitlan in You Dreamed of Empires, which made me want to look into even more great alternate history stories. These stories reimagine history by changing one death, one detail, or one moment that completely alters the course of events to come.
The Impeachment of Abraham Lincoln by Stephen L. Carter
What if Lincoln survived the assassination attempt made on his life in 1865? Now, two years later, he’s facing impeachment for overstepping his constitutional authority during and after the war. Abigail Canner is a young Black woman working for the law firm taking on Lincoln’s defense. She’s already lived a life that defies society’s norms. But when Lincoln’s lead counsel is found murdered just before they go to trial, Abigail has to dig even deeper into the lengths some people will go to keep the country divided.
Pages from the Textbook of Alternate History by Phong Nguyen
This short story collection doesn’t just explore one alternate history; it explores dozens of them! Stories imagine a timeline in which Hitler died in WWI, Jesus was never crucified, and the atomic bomb was never dropped on Hiroshima.
That’s it for now, folks! Stay subscribed for more stories of yesteryear.
If you want to talk books, historical or otherwise, you can find me @rachelsbrittain on various social media platforms.
Right now, I’m reading Emily Wilde’s Map of the Otherlands by Heather Fawcett. What about you?