Shadow of the Wind

By Carlos Ruiz Zafón; translated by Lucia Graves

Place: Publisher & Year: New York: Penguin Books, c2001, 2004, 2005

Genres: General fiction, historical fiction, mystery, romance, suspense

ISBN: 9780143034902

Intended audience: Adult

Number of pages: 487

Setting: Barcelona, Spain

Time period: 1945-1966 (although some events occur prior to 1945)

Plot summary: As a boy, Daniel Sempere, finds a copy of The Shadow of the Wind by Julián Carax and immediately becomes engrossed in the story.  When he tries to find other works by Carax, he discovers that someone has been mysteriously buying all of Carax’s books and then setting fire to them.  It is possible that Daniel holds the last known copy of a Carax book.  As Daniel grows older, the mystery of Carax gnaws at Daniel until he begins his own investigation of Carax.  As Daniel dives deeper into the past, he discovers many horrors of love and war intertwined with Carax’s fate.  Daniel continues his quest, until the past slams fully into the present and Daniel’s own life is in danger from the knowledge of Carax and his life.

Drums of Autumn

By Diana Gabaldon; narrated by Davina Porter

Place: Publisher & Year: Prince Frederick, Md.: Recorded Books, p1999

Genres: Historical fantasy, fantasy, historical fiction, romance, time travel fantasy

Format: Audiobook

Series: Outlander; 4

ISBN: 9781419359743

Intended audience: Adult

Recorded time: 39 sound discs (45 hr., 45 min.)

Settings: North Carolina – Wilmington & Cape Fear River, Tuscarora & Mohawk Nations, Scotland, the Atlantic Ocean

Time periods: 1767-1770 & 1968-1970

Plot summary: As Claire and Jamie seek relatives and a home in the US colonies (specifically in North Carolina), Brianna and Roger discover startling news about the two.  With the knowledge of her parents’ future deaths, Brianna decides to travel to the past to warn them.  When Roger discovers what Brianna has done, he feels compelled to follow her.

Heart’s Blood

By Juliet Marillier

Place: Publisher & Year: New York: Roc, 2009

Genres: Fantasy, historical fiction, historical fantasy, paranormal, romance, paranormal romance

ISBN: 9780451462930

Intended audience: Adult

Number of pages: 402

Setting: Whistling Tor & Market Cross, Ireland

Time period: 12^th century

Plot summary: When Caitrin, a young female scribe, finally musters the courage to flee her tormentors at home, she travels as far as her limited funds take her.  She ends up in the village of Whistling Tor, a place filled with wary residents.  There she learns that the local chieftain, Anluan, is seeking a scribe for a project.  Caitrin eagerly heads to the fortress to apply for the job and discovers first hand along the way why the villagers are so wary.  Whistling Tor is a place filled with many secrets and unusual residents.  When Caitrin finally makes it to the fortress she finds many more surprises, including a very unusual chieftain with a dark family history.

The Hummingbird’s Daughter

By Luis Alberto Urrea

Place: Publisher & Year: New York: Little, Brown, and Company, c2005, 2006

Genres: Historical fiction, magical realism

Series: Not a series, but the author is currently working on a sequel to this book.

ISBN: 9780316154529

Intended audience: Adult

Number of pages: 499

Setting: Ocoroni, Sinaloa & Cabora (near Alamos), Sonora, Mexico

Time period: 1873 – 1892

Plot summary: When Teresita Urrea was born, Huila – the curandera of The People – knew that Teresita would become a powerful person one day.  Born into extreme poverty as the daughter of a Mayo native and rich Mexican landowner, Teresita endures many hardships until Huila becomes responsible for her and begins teaching her the practice of healing.  Teresita grows up on her father’s ranch as a wild child – riding horses and hanging out with the vaqueros – until she becomes an acknowledged member of the family as a teenager.  After dying and returning to life, her healing practices and her life takes a radical shift as she becomes known as the “Saint of Cabora”.

Island of the Blue Dolphins

By Scott O’Dell; narrated by Tantoo Cardinal

Place: Publisher & Year: Santa Ana, CA : Listening Library, c1960, p2003

Genre: Historical fiction

Format: Audio book

ISBN: 9780307243164

Intended audience: Children – tweens

Number of discs: 4 (about 5 hrs.)

Setting: Ghalas-at (San Nicolas Island, Channel Islands, CA)

Time period: Not stated, but likely early 1800’s

Plot summary: When strangers come to the island to hunt for sea otters, they cause disturbances which will radically alter Karana’s life.  Karana will need to become incredibly self reliant in order to survive.

The Highlander’s Touch

By Karen Marie Moning

Place: Publisher & Year: New York: Dell, c2000, 2007

Genres: Romance, paranormal romance, fantasy, time travel fantasy, historical fiction

Series: The Highlander romances; 3

ISBN: 9780440236528

Intended audience: Adult

Number of pages: 356

Setting: Cincinnati, Ohio and Scotland

Time period: Contemporary and 1314

Plot summary: Lisa Stone works two jobs to support herself and her dying mother.  When exhaustion catches up with her at her night job at a museum, she falls asleep to be woken the next morning by her boss and another man conversing about one of the museum’s recently acquired artifacts.  She remains hidden throughout the conversation because she is not supposed to be in the museum at that hour.  After they leave, she emerges from her hiding spot and inspects the artifact that was left out.  Unbeknownst to her, the artifact was cursed hundreds of years earlier by a Scottish warrior.  As soon as Lisa touches it, she finds herself transported back in time to Circenn Brodie, the man who cursed the object and vowed to kill the one carrying it.

Voyager

By Diana Gabaldon, narrated by Davina Porter

Place: Publisher & Year: Prince Frederick, Md.: Recorded Books, p1999.

Genres: Historical fantasy, fantasy, historical fiction, romance, time travel fantasy

Format: Audiobook

Series: Outlander series; 3

ISBN: 141935972X

Intended audience: Adults

Number of discs: 36 (43.75 hrs)

Setting: Scotland, England, Boston, the Atlantic Ocean, and the West Indies

Time periods: 1746 – 1766 and 1948 -1968

Plot summary: Twenty years after leaving the love of her life, Claire Randall realizes that her lover never died at the Battle of Culloden the way he had intended to.  With the help of her daughter, Brianna, and a young historian, Roger Wakefield, Claire becomes convinced that Jamie not only survived the battle and other hardships, but managed to become a printer in Edinburgh.  With their help, Claire manages to slip through the stone circle once more to try to reconnect with the love of her life and father of of her daughter.  But what will she find when she arrives?

Lord John and the Hand of Devils

By Diana Gabaldon

Place: Publisher & Year: New York: Delacorte Press, 2007

Genres: Historical fiction, mystery

Series: Lord John Grey series

ISBN: 9780385311397

Intended audience: adults

Number of pages: 302

Setting: England and Germany

Time period: Eighteenth century

Plot summary: The book is a compilation of three different stories – “Lord John and the Hellfire Club”, “Lord John and the Succubus”, and “Lord John and the Haunted Soldier”.   In each story, Lord John is presented with a mysterious death and is compelled to discover the truth behind it.

Dragonfly in Amber

By Diana Gabaldon

Place: Publisher & Year: New York: Dell Pub., 1993, c1992

Genres: Historical fantasy, fantasy, historical fiction, romance, time travel fantasy

Series: Outlander series; 2

ISBN: 0440215625

Intended audience: Adults

Number of pages: 743

Settings: Scotland and Paris

Time periods: 1744-45 and 1968

Plot summary: In 1968, Claire Randall and her daughter, Brianna, return to Scotland from the United States after the death of Clarie’s husband, Frank.  Here, Claire tells both Brianna and Roger Wakefield the truth about Brianna’s father, Jaimie Fraser, and Claire’s trip through time.  Claire’s story about the past begins where Outlander ended- in the winter of 1744 in France.  Claire and Jaimie help Jaimie’s kinsman, Jared, run his wine business in Paris while at the same time trying to prevent Bonnie Prince Charles from ever returning to Scotland (in hopes of preventing the future massacre at Culloden).  When a series of life changing events befall Jamie and Claire, the Lord and Lady of Broch Tuarach find themselves returning to Scotland with a full pardon where they immediately find themselves in the midst of clan politics and a rebellion which they know is doomed to fail.

Outlander

By Diana Gabaldon, narrated by Davina Porter

Place: Publisher & Year: Prince Frederick, Md.: Recorded Books, 1997

Genres: Historical fantasy, fantasy, historical fiction, time travel fantasy, romance

Format: Audiobook

Series: Outlander series; 1

ISBN:9781419359682

Intended audience: Adults

Number of discs: 28 (32 hr., 30 min.)

Setting: Scotland

Time periods: 1945 and 1743-44

Plot summary: In 1945, Claire Randall and her husband, Frank, are enjoying a vacation in Scotland after being separated from each other for years during the war. While exploring a stone circle one afternoon, Claire, a former field nurse, suddenly finds herself transported back in time two hundred years and hurdled into the midst of a conflict between British soldiers and Scottish warriors.  Will Claire ever be able to return to her own time? And even if she can, will she still want to, as her relationship with the warrior, Jamie Fraser, grows ever deeper?