Books like 'Things Past Telling: A Novel'
Readers who enjoyed Things Past Telling: A Novel by Sheila Williams also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.
historical romance historical-fiction slavery poc-mc literary-fiction drama black-mc family female-mc
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The Sea Speaks His Name by Leila S. Chudori
Rated: 4.63 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsThe tragic yet inspiring story of a group of friends, all young and idealistic political activists who faced the iron fist of power in the waning days of the Suharto regime, in the late 1990s.In the twilight hours of a day in March, Biru Laut was ambushed by four unknown men. Together with his friends, Daniel, Sunu and Alex, he was taken to an unknown location...Categorized as:
drama family historical-fiction literary-fiction book female-author fiction friendship -
![Kromme ploeg by Itamar Vieira Junior]()
Kromme ploeg by Itamar Vieira Junior
Rated: 4.58 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsKinderlijke nieuwsgierigheid naar een mysterieuze koffer onder het bed van hun grootmoeder komt de zusjes Bibiana en Belonísia duur te staan. Het ongeluk verandert hun leven voorgoed, maar brengt ze ook dichter bij elkaar – zo dicht zelfs dat de een letterlijk de stem wordt van de ander... -
![The Secrets of the Tea Garden by Janet MacLeod Trotter]()
The Secrets of the Tea Garden by Janet MacLeod Trotter
Rated: 4.56 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsShe’s gone in search of happy memories. But was her idyllic childhood in India an illusion? After the Second World War, Libby Robson leaves chilly England for India, and the childhood home where she left her heart—and her beloved father, James—fourteen years ago. At first Libby is intoxicated by India’s vibrant beauty: the bustle of Calcutta, the lush tea gardens of Assam...Categorized as:
drama family historical-fiction literary-fiction poc-mc 20th-century adult audiobook -
![Butterfly 2 by Ashley Antoinette]()
Butterfly 2 by Ashley Antoinette
Rated: 4.57 of 5 stars · 14 ratings“One of the biggest names in Urban-fiction, Ashley Antoinette, is back … An intense start to this new series with characters that are real and genuine. It’s a story about love, trying to put the past behind and moving on with your life” - Red Carpet Crash on ButterflyMorgan Atkins is used to losing, but losing Messiah Williams was the most tragic of them all... -
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![The Shadow Sister by Lucinda Riley]()
The Shadow Sister by Lucinda Riley
Rated: 4.32 of 5 stars · 31 ratingsFollowing on from the bestselling The Seven Sisters and The Storm Sister, The Shadow Sister is the third book in Lucinda Riley's spellbinding series, loosely based on the mythology of the Seven Sisters star cluster...Categorized as:
drama family female-mc historical-fiction literary-fiction 20th-century adult audiobook -
![The House of Eve by Sadeqa Johnson]()
The House of Eve by Sadeqa Johnson
Rated: 4.37 of 5 stars · 19 ratingsFrom the award-winning author of Yellow Wife, a daring and redemptive novel set in 1950s Philadelphia and Washington, DC, that explores what it means to be a woman and a mother, and how much one is willing to sacrifice to achieve her greatest goal... -
![Little Black Girl Lost by Keith Lee Johnson]()
Little Black Girl Lost by Keith Lee Johnson
Rated: 4.43 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsJohnnie Wise was just fifteen years old when her mother sold her virginity to an unscrupulous white insurance man named Earl Shamus. Stunningly beautiful, with long naturally wavy black hair, she possessed the voluptuous body of a thirty-year-old woman. Her skin was the color of brown sugar. Johnnie had heard about Earl Shamus and his escapades among the poor black women in New Orleans... -
![Red Skies by Kay Bratt]()
Red Skies by Kay Bratt
Rated: 4.43 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsIn the fourth book of the Tales of the Scavenger’s Daughters series, the fates of three people who’ve never met converge in profound and unexpected ways.Mari, the daughter of the town scavenger, grew up knowing hardship, but she never could have anticipated the struggles that now face her as an adult. Feeling alone and isolated, she dreams of a better life...Categorized as:
drama family female-mc historical-fiction literary-fiction action-adventure adult asia -
![Camellia by Lesley Pearse]()
Camellia by Lesley Pearse
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsHow far would you go to discover your true identity? Camellia Norton is orphaned at fifteen when her mother's body is fished from a river in rural Sussex. And when she discovers a cache of letters amongst her mother's effects she realises that the past she has always been so sure of has been built on a tissue of lies... -
![Four Classic Novels by Jane Austen]()
Four Classic Novels by Jane Austen
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsThe complete novels of Jane Austen's Pride & Prejudice, Sense & Sensibility, Emma and Persuasion in one large, brand new and giftable hardcover with perfect dj...Categorized as:
historical-fiction drama family literary-fiction romance classics fiction historical -
![Tara by Lesley Pearse]()
Tara by Lesley Pearse
Rated: 4.36 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsCan you ever be free from the past?In the East End, twelve-year-old Tara witnesses her villain of a father almost kill her mother. She forges a determination then and there to change her life.This is the story of three beautiful and talented women... -
![Wild, Beautiful, and Free by Sophfronia Scott]()
Wild, Beautiful, and Free by Sophfronia Scott
Rated: 4.31 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsFrom award-winning author Sophfronia Scott comes the story of one young woman’s bold journey to reclaim her birthright and carve out her own place in a world that tells her she doesn’t belong. Born the daughter of an enslaved woman and a Louisiana plantation owner, Jeannette Bébinn is raised alongside her white half sister―until her father suddenly dies... -
![The Woodcutter's Wife by David Johnson]()
The Woodcutter's Wife by David Johnson
Rated: 4.31 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsSet against the backdrop of the Civil War comes a tale of love lost and found. Mary Thomson is no ordinary woman. She works alongside her husband William cutting firewood to sell in the city, earning the nickname “The Woodcutter’s Wife.” She kills a bear with her bare hands. And she prefers plowing a field to cooking a meal... -
![Bitter Winds by Kay Bratt]()
Bitter Winds by Kay Bratt
Rated: 4.31 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsThe third book of the Tales of the Scavenger’s Daughters series, Bitter Winds continues the saga of Chinese couple Benfu and Calli, and the abandoned young women in their care.Since the night her sister was almost burned alive in a fire and they were taken from their mother, Ivy has been the self-appointed guardian and guide to her blind twin, Lily... -
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![The Fire Blossom by Sarah Lark]()
The Fire Blossom by Sarah Lark
Rated: 4.28 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsThe bestselling author of the Sea of Freedom Trilogy returns with a sweeping family saga of two women in nineteenth-century New Zealand and their epic journey to survive in a world of their own making. It’s 1837, and immigrating to a small New Zealand fishing village is an opportunity for Ida Lange’s family to build a better future... -
![The Empty Hearth by Kitty Neale]()
The Empty Hearth by Kitty Neale
Rated: 4.40 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsBattersea in the 50s and 60s. The Pratchett family have to contend with Alfie Pratchett's obsessive jealousy. Although Alfie is a bully, his two teenage children, John and Millie, have learned to dodge him and his moods. Their main concern is to protect their mum... -
![Green City in the Sun by Barbara Wood]()
Green City in the Sun by Barbara Wood
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsA magnificent saga of two proud and powerful families—one British, one African—and their battle over Kenya’s destiny in the twentieth century.In 1917, Dr. Grace Treverton arrives in Kenya, determined to bring modern medicine to the African natives. Her brother, Sir Valentine Treverton, has his own dream for the British protectorate: to establish an agricultural empire to rival any in England...Categorized as:
drama family historical-fiction literary-fiction action-adventure adult book fiction -
!['Til Morning Light by Ann Moore]()
'Til Morning Light by Ann Moore
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsShe crossed an ocean to escape the suffering of famine-torn Ireland. Haunted by loss, but determined to build a life in the New World, Gracelin O'Malley then crosses the country with her young children to accept a San Francisco sea captain's practical proposal of marriage. But when she arrives, he is not there, and the City of Gold is no place for widows and children... -
![Dreams of Silver by Mina Baites, Alison Layland]()
Dreams of Silver by Mina Baites, Alison Layland
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsA single treasured keepsake links one unforgettable family across continents in this enthralling saga by Mina Baites, the author of The Silver Music Box. London, 1963. I dream about my sister almost every night. Lilian Morrison has one memento of her beloved sister, Emma: a battered silver music box...Categorized as:
drama family female-mc historical-fiction literary-fiction 20th-century adult audiobook -
![Gabrielle by Marie Laberge]()
Gabrielle by Marie Laberge
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsQuébec, 1930. Gabrielle est mariée avec Edward depuis bientôt dix ans. Entre la maison de l’île d’Orléans et celle de la Grande-Allée, elle mène une vie bien remplie, entourée de ses cinq enfants. De toute évidence, il s’agit d’un mariage heureux. Mais cette chose qui devrait être si simple fait pourtant froncer bien des sourcils dans l’entourage de Gabrielle... -
![Married Men (A Man's World Series) by Carl Weber]()
Married Men (A Man's World Series) by Carl Weber
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsStep into the world of four married men whose vows didn't guarantee them a "happily ever after". . . Kyle runs a booming business, but his main job is hiding his wife from the sistahs who would skin him alive for marrying a woman like her. . .. Easy-going Allen can please his bossy Mama and his gold-digging fiancée--just not at the same time. . . -
![The French House by Helen Fripp]()
The French House by Helen Fripp
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsThe vineyards stretched away in every direction as he plucked a perfect red grape, sparkling with dew. “Marry me,” he’d said. “We’ll run these vineyards together.” But now he is gone. There is no one to share the taste of the first fruit of the harvest... -
![Homecoming by Beverly Jenkins]()
Homecoming by Beverly Jenkins
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsA historical holiday story of homecoming and second-chance romance by NAACP Image Award Nominee, Beverly Jenkins. In 1883, Lydia Cooper is happily traveling back home to celebrate the simple joys of the holidays when an unexpected complication appears in the all-too-distracting form of Gray Dane, the man she loved as a girl; the man she left behind... -
![Princess Ces'alena by Mercedes Keyes]()
Princess Ces'alena by Mercedes Keyes
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsBook one revolves around the world of Manny and Lena, as they struggle to live and love in a world where such passion, loyalty and devotion between a master and his slave is forbidden and taboo. Together with every breath they take, they go against convention to keep true what they deeply feel between them. A desire, an obsession so strong, they will pay the price of hell to stay together... -
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![Duet for Three Hands by Tess Thompson]()
Duet for Three Hands by Tess Thompson
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsA story of forbidden love, lost dreams, and family turmoil. The first book in a new historical series from bestselling author Tess Thompson, Duet for Three Hands is equal parts epic love story, sweeping family saga, and portrait of days gone by. Set against the backdrop of the American South between 1928 and 1934, four voices blend to tell a tale of prejudice, fear, and love... -
![The Wartime Vet by Ellie Curzon]()
The Wartime Vet by Ellie Curzon
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsEngland, 1941. Dedicated local vet Laura cares for the farm animals of the little village of Bramble Heath. But falling bombs aren’t the only danger as the war hits close to home…Despite everyone telling her it’s not a suitable career for a woman, Laura has worked hard to become a successful livestock vet...Categorized as:
historical-fiction literary-fiction female-mc family ww2 fiction 20th-century romance -
![Cinderella Sister by Dilly Court]()
Cinderella Sister by Dilly Court
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsLily Larkin is the youngest of six and the least important member of her talented, argumentative, temperamental family. With their father dead and their mother a stranger to them, she must stay at home and keep house whilst her elder siblings go out to work. As she goes about her daily chores, and minds her ailing grandfather, her head is full of dreams... -
![The Fourth Daughter by Lyn Liao Butler]()
The Fourth Daughter by Lyn Liao Butler
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsIn Taiwan, the bond between grandmother and granddaughter opens up a healing world for them both in an inspiring family saga about the comfort of food, untold histories, and indomitable mother love.Chef Liv Kuo’s star is on the rise…until a traumatic incident leaves her emotionally unable to venture outside her Manhattan apartment...Categorized as:
historical-fiction family literary-fiction female-mc romance fiction mystery historical -
![Women & Children First by Gill Paul]()
Women & Children First by Gill Paul
Rated: 4.19 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsShe was the most magnificent ship ever built, yet on the eve of 14th April the Titanic sank in the North Atlantic, leaving the lucky ones floating in wooden rowing boats, and the rest struggling for their lives in the icy water...Categorized as:
drama family historical-fiction literary-fiction 20th-century adult alternate-history book -
![Song of the Skylark by Erica James, Nathalie van Gent]()
Song of the Skylark by Erica James, Nathalie van Gent
Rated: 4.19 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsLizzie has an unfortunate knack for attracting bad luck, but this time she's hit the jackpot. Losing her heart to her boss at the radio station where she works leads directly to losing her job, and with no money in the bank she's forced to swallow her pride and return home to her parents...Categorized as:
drama family female-mc historical-fiction literary-fiction adult anthologies audiobook -
![Call of the Kiwi by Sarah Lark, D.W. Lovett]()
Call of the Kiwi by Sarah Lark, D.W. Lovett
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsIn the exhilarating conclusion to the internationally bestselling In the Land of the Long White Cloud trilogy, the spirited Warden and McKenzie clan continues its trials—and triumphs—in New Zealand and beyond...Categorized as:
drama family historical-fiction literary-fiction audiobook book coming-of-age fiction -
![Toward the Sea of Freedom by Sarah Lark]()
Toward the Sea of Freedom by Sarah Lark
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsIn mid-nineteenth-century Ireland, charming Kathleen and dashing Michael harbor secrets and dreams. Imagining a life beyond the kitchen and fields of the wealthy family they both work for, they plot to leave their homeland, marry, and raise the child Kathleen is secretly carrying. The luck of the Irish, however, is not on their side... -
![Flowers in the Snow by Danielle Stewart]()
Flowers in the Snow by Danielle Stewart
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsIf you step across the threshold of Betty Grafton’s house, you can be sure of two things: she’ll feed you until you’re ready to bust and she’ll love you before you even realize you’re worthy of it. She’s spent her life building a family that finally feels complete. But as sad news forces her to relive the darkest moments of her life, she decides to share the story with those she loves... -
![The Garment Maker's Daughter by Hillary Adrienne Stern]()
The Garment Maker's Daughter by Hillary Adrienne Stern
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsThe Garment Maker’s Daughter is a multigenerational saga of immigrant dreams and sweatshop realities, labor strikes and women’s rights... -
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![The Immigrants by Howard Fast]()
The Immigrants by Howard Fast
Rated: 4.15 of 5 stars · 20 ratingsIn a passionate, multigenerational novel set against the backdrop of San Francisco, the son of an Italian fisherman struggles from the rubble of the great earthquake to build a shipping empire. Reprint... -
![The Irish Boarding House by Sandy Taylor]()
The Irish Boarding House by Sandy Taylor
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 24 ratings24 Merrion Square. The house stands empty, the old stone steps overgrown with thorny rose bushes. But Mary Kate feels a deep connection to the neglected, silent rooms. Could this be the place to help her heal?Dublin 1952. When Mary Kate Ryan receives a surprise inheritance from the woman who abandoned her as a tiny baby, she’s stunned...Categorized as:
historical-fiction drama family literary-fiction female-mc romance fiction audiobook -
![Rhythms by Donna Hill]()
Rhythms by Donna Hill
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsIt all began in 1927, in the small town of Rudell, Mississippi, after the sudden and tragic death of Cora Harvey's parents. She has nothing left except her burning desire to become a singer. But her dream will never come true in Rudell, especially if she marries the man she adores, Dr. David Mackey... -
![A More Perfect Union by Tammye Huf]()
A More Perfect Union by Tammye Huf
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsA breathtaking, romantic debut novel by Tammye Huf. Based on the true story of the author’s great-great grand-parents, A More Perfect Union is an epic love story between an Irish immigrant and a black slave, set in the pre-Civil War Southern state of Virginia in 1849 when inter-racial marriage was illegal... -
![Return to the Irish Boarding House by Sandy Taylor]()
Return to the Irish Boarding House by Sandy Taylor
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsMary Kate takes a deep breath as she stands outside 24 Merrion Square with its red front door and pretty rose garden. Grieving from her recent heartbreak, will returning to the Irish boarding house be the second chance she so desperately needs?Dublin, 1956: When Mary Kate Ryan loses the love of her life, she’s not sure how she can keep going...Categorized as:
historical-fiction literary-fiction family female-mc small-town historical fiction epic -
![The Fancy by Mercedes Keyes]()
The Fancy by Mercedes Keyes
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsThe slave trader, "fancy" dealer was saving the best for last, for a special auction. However, at hearing how close he'd come to losing his mother - his priorities, his plan shifted. Dr. Quinton Thaddeus Caine had saved his mother's life - for this deed, the young surgeon deserved the best that he could give in compensation. A gift - the best - a Fancy... -
![Drinking from a Bitter Cup by Angela Jackson-Brown]()
Drinking from a Bitter Cup by Angela Jackson-Brown
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratings“1978. The year I turned ten and the year my mama killed herself. She was thirty-five, and dying is the last thing that should have been on her mind.” After the death of her mother, Sylvia Butler’s father, a man she knows only from an old photo, takes her from Louisville, Kentucky to Ozark, Alabama to live with his family... -
![Blues Dancing by Diane McKinney-Whetstone]()
Blues Dancing by Diane McKinney-Whetstone
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsVerdi and Rowe have been living a comfortable existence for the past twenty years... -
![In Borrowed Light by Barbara Keating, Stephanie Keating]()
In Borrowed Light by Barbara Keating, Stephanie Keating
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsA breathtaking story of friendship and love set against the backdrop of twentieth-century Kenya Fourteen years after independence, the enduring childhood friendship of three women has carried them through times of violence and loss in Kenya, their chosen homeland... -
![The Whaler by Ines Thorn]()
The Whaler by Ines Thorn
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsIn the opening epic novel of The Island of Sylt trilogy by bestselling author Ines Thorn, a young woman must choose between love and poverty, or thrilling adventure and tormented passion. Germany’s North Sea Coast: The Island of Sylt, 1764 Life in the windswept village of Rantum in the North Sea is fraught with peril and hardship. Most families must rely on arranged marriage just to survive... -
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![Matilda's Last Waltz by Tamara McKinley]()
Matilda's Last Waltz by Tamara McKinley
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsAfter the tragic death of her husband, Jenny travels to Churinga, a remote sheep-station in the Australian Outback that he intended to give to her for reasons she doesn't understand.Churinga is harsh and unforgiving, but also has its beauty...and its secrets... -
![The Gamekeeper's Wife by Clare Flynn]()
The Gamekeeper's Wife by Clare Flynn
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsMartha Walters is the widow of an abusive man. Christopher Shipley is the reluctant heir to a substantial family fortune. He has more money than he needs or wants – but responsibilities he can’t shirk. She has nothing, and now stands to lose even her home. They were never meant to fall in love …but sometimes you know the wrong person is the right one...Categorized as:
drama family female-mc historical-fiction literary-fiction 20th-century action-adventure adult -
![The Brontë Sisters - The Complete Novels + Extras by Anne Brontë, Emily Brontë]()
The Brontë Sisters - The Complete Novels + Extras by Anne Brontë, Emily Brontë
Rated: 4.36 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsExplore this wonderfully put together e-book designed specifically for Kindle format by our team. Includes the major works of the Brontë sisters as well as the lesser known ones. Also includes the beautiful poetry collection by the Brontë sisters as well as poems and two sermons by their father Patrick Brontë... -
![Leaving Ireland by Ann Moore]()
Leaving Ireland by Ann Moore
Rated: 4.14 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsAfter crossing an ocean from her beloved Ireland and traversing thousands of miles of frontier and canyon, Gracelin O'Malley finds a new home for her family, halfway around the world from her old one. She's haunted by echoes of the past, even when a man she misjudged proves himself worthy and her children soon acclimate. All this-and a wish Grace thought would never come true...Categorized as:
drama family historical-fiction literary-fiction action-adventure adult book female-author -
![Father Unknown by Lesley Pearse]()
Father Unknown by Lesley Pearse
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsWould you sacrifice your future for the sake of your past? One young woman in search of a past - and a future ... Sweet-natured but dappy Daisy Buchan drifts from job to job and takes her policeman boyfriend Joel for granted. She's happy, but she doesn't know what she wants from life... -
![The Wedding Dress by Danielle Steel]()
The Wedding Dress by Danielle Steel
Rated: 4.11 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsIn Danielle Steel's epic new novel, the lives of four generations of women in one family span fortune and loss, motherhood, tragedy and victories...
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