Kirjahaku

Italy at the turn of the 15th century is a dangerous place to be away from home.Rosso's brief career as a mercenary left him longing for peace. He's settled into a quiet, contemplative life in Rome as a novice monk.Or is he? On the eve of taking his final vows, Rosso disappears. None of his friends know where he's gone, or why.And he's not the only one who's missing. There's a rumor that Rosso's friend Marco and his family were carted away by sinister strangers in the dead of night.The intrigues of Cesare Borgias and his sister, Lucrezia, reach into the farthest corners of the countryside. They have the power of their father, Pope Alexander VI, and the Vatican behind them. But what would a power-hungry dynasty want with an Augustinian scholar or a Roman blacksmith's family?Does Rosso hold the secret to what happened?Priests, tavern owners, shepherds, and street urchins must band together to find out. In the process they'll discover that heroism comes in many forms, and often from those who least expect it.

On the death of an Italian Cardinal, a young woman comes into an unexpected yet fabulous inheritance and her life promises to change forever. An ancient title, a vast estate and a fortune equal to a King's ransom seem a glittering prize but it's all far, far away from her simple life as a blacksmith's daughter in medieval Rome. Clare's inheritance sees her become the Duchess of Villeprieux near Paris in France, but she must get to her estates as fast as she can before her cousin usurps her title.Once there, she finds herself alone facing the intrigues of the hostile French court of Louis XIV. The King threatens her with a forced marriage if she is to keep her title and her lands, and behind her back her conniving cousin Philippe constantly plots her downfall. Deceit, kidnaping, betrayal, greed all seem a natural part of life at the Royal Court, how can one woman survive against such powerful men?When all seems lost, help arrives from an unexpected quarter whilst a phantom figure from her childhood days brings both joy and despair. With her whole life in the balance Clare tries to plot a road to freedom, but dangers lurks everywhere.

In 1882 a wild, young American is sent to Dublin to smarten up and study law, or face dis-inheritance. Even worse, he is to stay with his childless, aged uncle and aunt. But then strange things often emerge from unlikely alliances.In the 1830's John Scully was an early settler in the remotest part of Western Australia, and as he recounts his experiences of life in those isolated regions, Frankie Scully learns that there is more to the man than meets the eye.As the story unfolds, John finds the son he never had and Frankie finds a father figure that he can at last respect.This is a story of love and loss, of suffering, struggle and survival. It's the story of how one great nation overwhelmed an ancient one and in the process brutal acts were committed, the echoes of which linger to this day.The story is based on archival material I uncovered on the real John Scully RM and nearly all of the events are based on historical fact.