Historical Fiction – Page 31 – Trigger Warning Database

Washington Black by Esi Edugyan

Washington Black by Esi Edugyan

When his master’s eccentric brother chooses him to be his manservant, Wash is terrified of the cruelties he is certain await him. But Christopher Wilde, or “Titch,” is a naturalist, explorer, scientist, inventor, and abolitionist. He initiates Wash into a world where a flying machine can carry a man across the sky; where two people, separated by an impossible divide, might begin to see each other as human; and where a boy born in chains can embrace a life of dignity and meaning. But when a man is killed and a bounty is placed on Wash’s head, Titch abandons everything to save him… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

Slavery
Racism & racial slurs
Body mutilation & disfigurement
Torture mentioned

Breathless by Beverly Jenkins

Breathless by Beverly Jenkins

As manager of one of the finest hotels in Arizona Territory, Portia Carmichael has respect and stability—qualities sorely missing from her harsh childhood. She refuses to jeopardize that by hitching herself to the wrong man. Suitors are plentiful, but none of them has ever looked quite as tempting as the family friend who just rode into town…and none have looked at her with such intensity and heat. Duchess. That’s the nickname Kent Randolph gave Portia when she was a young girl. Now she’s a stunning, intelligent woman… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

Racism
Parental abandonment recounted
Murder
Kidnapping

Her Night with the Duke by Diana Quincy

Her Night with the Duke by Diana Quincy

When Lady Delilah Chambers finds herself stranded at a country inn on a rain-swept evening, she’s forced to fend off a group of ruffians with the help of a handsome gentleman. Irresistibly drawn to each other, Leela and the stranger spend one reckless night in each others’ arms—and then go their separate ways. But the very next day Leela receives the shock of her life when she meets the duke who is set on wedding her beloved stepdaughter. One night isn’t enough with a woman as fierce, fiery, and brilliant as Leela. Elliot Townsend, Duke of Huntington, cannot believe… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

Racism & racial slurs
Sexism
Sexual assault
Infertility
Emesis

First Class Murder by Robin Stevens

First Class Murder by Robin Stevens

aisy Wells and Hazel Wong are taking a holiday on the famous Orient Express. From the moment the girls step aboard, it’s clear that everyone in the first-class carriages has something to hide. Then there is a scream from one of the cabins, and a wealthy heiress is found dead, But the killer has vanished – as if into thin air Daisy and Hazel are faced with their first locked-room mystery – and with competition from several other sleuths, who are just as determined to crack the case.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

Racism & racist language
Antisemitism
Misogyny
Cheating, on-page
Blood & gore depiction
Dead body, on-page
Emesis
Murder by knife violence, off-page

Anya and the Nightingale by Sofiya Pasternack

Anya and the Nightingale by Sofiya Pasternack

After embarking on a journey to bring her papa home from war, Anya discovers a powerful forest creature who attacks travelers with weaponized sound. But she soon learns that he’s not the monster the kingdom should fear. There’s an even greater evil that lurks under Kiev. Can Anya stop the monster, save her papa, and find her way home? Or will the secrets of Kiev leave Anya and her friends trapped beneath the city forever? In Kiev, Anya and her friends find themselves involved with an aggressive elf, an earnest archer, and a bellicose princess. But who is the real monster?

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

Antisemitism
Sexism
Torture
Animal cruelty

Longshadow by Olivia Atwater

Longshadow by Olivia Atwater

The marriageable young ladies of London are dying mysteriously, and Abigail Wilder intends to discover why. Abigail’s father, the Lord Sorcier of England, believes that a dark lord of faerie is involved – but while Abigail is willing to match her magic against Lord Longshadow, neither her father nor high society believes that she is capable of doing so. Thankfully, Abigail is not the only one investigating the terrible events in London. Mercy, a street rat and self-taught magician insists on joining Abigail to unravel the mystery… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

Classism
Grief & loss depiction
Death of a parent
Kidnapping

Ten Thousand Stitches by Olivia Atwater

Ten Thousand Stitches by Olivia Atwater

Effie has most inconveniently fallen in love with the dashing Mr Benedict Ashbrooke. There’s only one problem; Effie is a housemaid, and a housemaid cannot marry a gentleman. It seems that Effie is out of luck until she stumbles into the faerie realm of Lord Blackthorn, who is only too eager to help Effie win Mr Ashbrooke’s heart. All he asks in return is that Effie sew ten thousand stitches onto his favourite jacket. Effie has heard rumours about what happens to those who accept help from faeries, but life as a maid… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

Domestic abuse

Half a Soul by Olivia Atwater

Half a Soul by Olivia Atwater

Ever since she was cursed by a faerie, Theodora Ettings has had no sense of fear or embarrassment – a condition which makes her prone to accidental scandal. Dora hopes to be a quiet, sensible wallflower during the London Season – but when the strange, handsome and utterly uncouth Lord Sorcier discovers her condition, she is instead drawn into dangerous and peculiar faerie affairs. If Dora’s reputation can survive both her curse and her sudden connection with the least-liked man in all of high society… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

Kidnapping
War themes

The Angel of Waterloo by Jackie French

The Angel of Waterloo by Jackie French

The soldiers she saved called her the Angel of Waterloo. The husband she loved and lost called her Hen. The patients she treated in secret called her Auntie Love. She was Henrietta Bartlett, a surgeon’s daughter, a survivor of the Napoleonic Wars. But now the battlefield is just a blood-soaked memory, and Hen dreams of peace, a home, and a society that allows women to practise medicine. On the other side of the world, the newly founded colony of New South Wales seems like a paradise. But Europe’s wars cast long shadows …

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

Attempted murder
Medical treatment & procedures
Amputation mentioned
Death of a husband in an explosion
Napoleonic War

Beyond a Darkened Shore by Jessica Leake

Beyond a Darkened Shore by Jessica Leake

The ancient land of Éirinn is mired in war. Ciara, Princess of Mide, has never known a time when Éirinn’s kingdoms were not battling for power, or Northmen were not plundering their shores. The people of Mide have thankfully always been safe because of Ciara’s unearthly ability to control her enemies’ minds and actions. But lately, a mysterious crow has been appearing to Ciara, whispering warnings of an even darker threat. Although her clansmen dismiss her visions as pagan nonsense, Ciara fears this coming evil will destroy not just Éirinn, but the entire… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

Slavery mentioned
Threats of rape
Body horror
Animal death
War themes