I read books and I know things: May 2026

Tuesday, May 19, 2026

Some Starry Night by Irene Latham

SOMe Starry Night

by Irene Latham

Publication Date: April 14th, 2026

Publisher: Historium Press

Pages: 264

Genre: Historical Fiction

Under the pale glow of a Parisian spring in 1886, two restless souls move toward the same horizon-unaware that their meeting will ignite a love as luminous and fleeting as the stars themselves.

Vincent van Gogh arrives in Paris with little more than paint-stained hands and an aching determination to create something worthy of the world. Living in the cramped apartment of his brother Theo, he struggles against poverty, doubt, and the relentless pull of his own restless mind.

Across the ocean in Amherst, Emily Dickinson receives news that changes everything. Faced with the nearness of death, the reclusive poet does the unthinkable: she leaves the quiet safety of the Homestead and sails for Paris, determined to taste life before it slips beyond her reach.

When Emily agrees to sit for Vincent's portrait, their worlds collide in a blaze of color, poetry, and dangerous intimacy. Through letters, poems, and whispered confessions, the two artists discover in one another a fierce, unguarded understanding-one that will shape their art, their faith, and the fragile hours they have left.

But love between stars is never simple. As time grows short and darkness gathers, Vincent and Emily must decide whether beauty is meant to last...or simply to burn bright enough to change the night forever.

Some Starry Night is a sweeping, lyrical imagining of the hidden story behind Vincent van Gogh's most iconic painting – an unforgettable tale of love, creativity, and the courage to live fiercely, even in the shadow of the end.

Excerpt

[tree climbing scene]

He threw up his hands. “I can’t believe it. I won’t believe it.” He swiped a fallen branch from the ground and flung it back toward the pond. “I only wanted to bring you out here to show you what it means to be an artist. I didn’t ask for this.”

“I didn’t ask for this, either.” She hadn’t come to Paris to see skeletons or climb a tree. Or to meet an artist. “I didn’t ask for you.”

The intensity of his gaze awakened the anaconda in her brain. It uncoiled, undulating in its nest. She hadn’t expected anger from him, nor regret. She opened her mouth to comfort, to explain. To beg him not to leave.

No. She set her jaw. She was done begging men, as she’d begged Thomas to please-please-please read her poems. She was done masterminding and manipulating. It never worked anyway.

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Irene Latham

Irene Latham writes poems and stories from the Purple Horse Poetry Studio & Music Room in Blount County, Alabama. She is the author or co-author of many books for young people, including African Town, winner of the Scott O'Dell Award for Outstanding Historical Fiction.

This is her first novel for adults.

Connect with Irene:

Website • Blog • Author Page at Historium Press

Pinterest • YouTube

Amazon Author Page • Goodreads

Monday, May 18, 2026

Escape of the Grand Duchess by Susan Appleyard

Publication Date: 27th July 2025

Publisher: Ingenium Books Publishing Inc.

Page Length: 412

Genre: Biographical Historical Fiction

Escape of the Grand Duchess by Susan Appleyard is a gripping historical novel that shatters the notion that royalty is synonymous with privilege and ease. At its heart is Grand Duchess Olga Alexandrovna, the youngest sister of Tsar Nicholas II—a Romanov who defied a doomed destiny and survived.

Unlike her ill-fated brother and his family, Olga’s story is one of resilience, sacrifice, and daring escape. Trapped in a loveless marriage to a reckless gambler—who harbours secrets of his own—she finds hope in the arms of a dashing army lieutenant. But before she can claim her own happiness, she must first endure the brutal realities of World War I, where she serves as a nurse on the frontlines.

As the Russian Empire teeters on the brink of collapse, the infamous Siberian mystic Rasputin tightens his grip on the imperial court, setting the stage for revolution. With the Bolsheviks seizing power and the Romanovs marked for death, Olga faces an impossible choice: risk everything to stay or flee into the unknown with her true love and their children.

Rich in historical detail and driven by an unforgettable heroine, Escape of the Grand Duchess is a sweeping riches-to-rags tale of survival, love, and the strength it takes to forge a new life in the face of unimaginable upheaval.

A Five Star Read

I really loved Escape of the Grand Duchess by Susan Appleyard. What surprised me most was how quickly I became emotionally invested in Olga. She never feels like some untouchable royal figure from history. Most of the time she just feels like a woman trying to get through an incredibly difficult life while everything around her slowly falls apart.

There’s a real sadness to the story, especially as the war and revolution begin creeping closer, but it never feels cold or heavy. The scenes where Olga works as a nurse were probably the parts that stayed with me most because they make the suffering feel very real and remind you that being royal didn’t protect anyone from fear or heartbreak.

I also really liked the romance because it felt quiet and genuine rather than dramatic. It gives the story warmth without taking over everything else that’s happening.

What made the book hard to put down for me was the constant feeling that disaster was coming. Even during the calmer moments, there’s this tension underneath because you know history isn’t going to be kind to the Romanovs.

* Olga felt real and easy to care about.

* The atmosphere becomes more emotional as the story goes on.

* The mix of history and personal drama worked really well for me.

My thoughts summed up in one posh sentence

A beautifully written historical novel that blends romance, tragedy, and survival into a deeply human story about one woman trying to endure the collapse of an empire.

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Escape of the Grand Duchess

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Susan Appleyard

Susan was born in England, which is where she learned to love English history, and now lives in Canada in the summer. In winter she and her husband flee the cold for their second home in Mexico. Susan divides her time between writing and her hobby, oil painting, although writing will always be her first love. She was fortunate in having had two books published traditionally. Since joining the ebook crowd, she has published nine books, some of which have won various awards.

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HEROICA: Three women, three centuries, three reckonings Roma Nova by Alison Morton

HEROICA:

Three women, three centuries, three reckonings

Roma Nova

by Alison Morton

Publication Date: May 14th, 2026
Publisher: Pulcheria Press
Pages: 162
Genre: Collection of alternative history short(ish) stories

Even the strongest state is vulnerable to its past.

2020, Roma Nova. Carina Mitela investigates a potential rebellion but discovers the long-buried secret that ignited the attempted uprising links directly to her own powerful family.

1683, Vienna. As Europe struggles against the Ottoman onslaught, Honoria Mitela leads her troops into the desperate battle to save besieged Vienna. The fate of Europe – and of Roma Nova itself – hangs in the balance.

1849, Central Italy. Statia Mitela’s impulsive act saves one life but jeopardises Roma Nova’s very existence and threatens her descendants with public disgrace, financial ruin and permanent exile.

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Three stories of the women of the Mitela family, descendants of the founders of Roma Nova, bound by blood and courage.

Praise for HEROICA:

“All three stories in this collection deal with honour and the question of being true to oneself, especially if this entails running the risk of coming into conflict with the state and the status quo. All three central women are physically and morally brave, even rash. Their strength of spirit is never in doubt.”
~ Lorna Fergusson, Fictionfire

“For anyone who has read and enjoyed the Roma Nova stories before, this collection of novellas is a must. And if you haven’t, then please start from the beginning with INCEPTIO – you’ll be hooked!”
~ Christina Courtenay, bestselling author of romantic time-travel fiction

Excerpt

Excerpt from The Idealist, the third story in the HEROICA collection

Present day, Roma Nova. Carina Mitela, head of the ancient Mitela family, is going through the effects of the family archivist who has just died.

At the bottom of the second box was a flat, rectangular parcel wrapped in old-fashioned brown paper and tied with string. I lifted it out and pulled on the string bow. Inside was a pale green book with a tooled leather spine and corners. In the middle of the front cover was a faded cream label with the date 1873 in copperplate writing.

‘What’s this, buried treasure?’ Conrad said, half laughing.

I opened it.

Today, I am forty-two years of age, that same age my mother, Statia Mitela, had reached when Mercury conducted her to the edge of the Styx to take Charon’s ferry. It is thus fitting that I recount my understanding of those events.

Leonia, Countess Mitela

And there were pages and pages of neat classical Latin, under headings of days and months, written in a careful and dry style. We sat in the atrium and took turns to read it out loud. Allegra came and settled next to me, leaning on my shoulder. Between the stilted words my imagination filled in the rest.

Outskirts of Rome, Italy, 2nd July 1849

‘Mercury be thanked,’ Statia rasped when she saw the ancient milestone ‘Roma VI’. And these would be six good Roman miles. She swallowed hard, which made her dry throat worse. Despite the broad-brimmed riding hats the four of them wore, the brutal heat of the early July sun beat down, exhausting them all. Statia reined in her mount under the shade of one of the occasional clumps of pines and patted his shoulder almost absent-mindedly. The poor horse, a hired animal, was as weary as she was. And as dusty from the road. If only the following generations had maintained the Via Valeria as it had been in the Ancients’ time, it would have been a smoother journey.

‘Domina?’ Her leading companion drew up beside her.

‘I need a drink, Ranius,’ she said and swivelled round in her saddle. The other two riders were only a few paces behind. ‘And so do the animals.’

‘The Anio below us would be best and we can rest by the bank,’ he replied.

They picked their way down to the river where Ranius supervised the two servants in watering the horses. After a few moments, he left them to it and sat by Statia on the wool rug she had pulled from her saddle pack.

‘Yes,’ she said as he stared at it. ‘I know. Well and good for the mountains we’ve come through from the Adriatic, but inappropriate for Rome in June. But even though we’re incognito, I don’t want to enter Rome with grass stains or mud on my breeches’ arse.’

Ranius laughed. The first time, Statia noted, since they’d left Roma Nova eleven days ago under the cover of darkness. She hadn’t known what a terrible sailor he was until they’d slipped out of Pula in Istria on the merchant ship. He’d kept a pale, grim, nearly green face until they’d landed safely at Aternum, or Pescara as the Italians called it now. A former Praetorian centurion, he was used to travelling fast through mountains on ramshackle cold trails. These days, he guarded her home, the Domus Mitelarum, but more than that, he gave her, informally, wise counsel almost as a father would. He’d tried to stop her mission, calling it demented, but had given in with a grunt when she said she would go with or without him. Now they were near Rome, Statia was starting to have her doubts. Perhaps she should have stayed on the farm at Castra Lucilla where she knew what she was doing.

No, she must go on, whatever the cost. She had promised and that was an end on it. She knew the consequences could be harsh, but she was sure the imperatrix would see the justice of it. Well, Statia hoped she would. Constantia Apulia’s disinclination to help the new Roman Republic created by the people of Rome themselves played on Statia’s mind. While the imperatrix and her council supported the overthrow of the bishop of Rome’s rule, they preferred to remain neutral until matters clarified. Now, unfortunately, they had.

Consulted in strictest confidence, Councillor Branca, the imperatrix’s chief advisor, had pursed her lips.

‘This self-imposed mission is beyond reckless, Statia. It cannot end well.’

‘I must save this man. He is Italy’s future. As Romans ourselves we should be supporting him.’

‘He’s a dangerous revolutionary intent on bringing in a republic.’

‘And the Gracchi, Scipio Africanus, Fabius and Cincinnatus weren’t true republicans in ancient times?’

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