This tale of an ambitious inventor in France as the Revolution looms is “brilliantly playful . . . full of lore and lewdness” (Chicago Tribune). “A portrait of a young mechanical genius in 18th-century France, delivered along with a gallimaufry of odd and intriguing facts and a rich, lusty picture of society in that time and place.” —Publishers Weekly   In France, on the eve of the Revolution, a young man named Claude Page sets out to become the most ingenious and daring inventor of his time. Over the course of a career filled with violence and passion, Claude learns the arts of enameling and watchmaking from an irascible, defrocked abbé, then apprentices himself to a pornographic bookseller and applies his erotic erudition to the seduction of the wife of an impotent wigmaker.   But it is Claude’s greatest device—a talking mechanical head—that both crowns his career and leads to an execution as tragic as that of Marie Antoinette, and far more bizarre.   “Like a joint effort by Henry Fielding and John Barth” (Chicago Tribune), this “captivating novel” (San Francisco Chronicle) marked the debut of one of the finest literary artists of our time.   “A Case of Curiosities . . . really is brilliant. Also witty, learned, ingenious, sly, and bawdy.” —Entertainment Weekly   “What John Fowles did for the 19th century with The French Lieutenant’s Woman and Umberto Eco did for the 14th with The Name of the Rose . . . Kurzweil now does for the late 18th century.” —San Francisco Chronicle

THE USA TODAY BESTSELLER!"An exquisitely detailed journey through the harrowing field of medicine in mid-19th century London."—Tracey Enerson Wood, USA Today bestselling author of The Engineer's Wife and The War NurseAn unforgettable historical fiction novel about one woman who believed in scientific medicine before the world believed in her.London, 1845: Raised by the eccentric surgeon Dr. Horace Croft after losing her parents to a deadly pandemic, the orphan Nora Beady knows little about conventional life. While other young ladies were raised to busy themselves with needlework and watercolors, Nora was trained to perfect her suturing and anatomical illustrations of dissections.Women face dire consequences if caught practicing medicine, but in Croft's private clinic Nora is his most trusted—and secret—assistant. That is until the new surgical resident Dr. Daniel Gibson arrives. Dr. Gibson has no idea that Horace's bright and quiet young ward is a surgeon more qualified and ingenuitive than even himself. In order to protect Dr. Croft and his practice from scandal and collapse Nora must learn to play a new and uncomfortable role—that of a proper young lady.But pretense has its limits. Nora cannot turn away and ignore the suffering of patients, even if it means giving Gibson the power to ruin everything she's worked for. And when she makes a discovery that could change the field forever, Nora faces an impossible choice. Remain invisible and let the men around her take credit for her work, or step into the light—even if it means being destroyed by her own legacy.Fans of The Other Einstein and The Paris Library will relish this riveting and empowering story about one woman's fight to follow her dreams and build a life—and legacy—beyond what is expected of her.Praise for The Girl in His Shadow: "A suspenseful story of a courageous young woman determined to become a surgeon in repressive Victorian England. Fluidly written, impeccably researched, The Girl in His Shadow is a memorable literary gift to be read, reread, and treasured."—Gloria Goldreich, author of The Paris ChildrenOther Bestselling Historical Fiction from Sourcebooks Landmark:The Mystery of Mrs. Christie by Marie BenedictThe Book Woman of Troublesome Creek by Kim Michele RichardsonSold on a Monday by Kristina McMorris

When the Blitz imperils the heart of a London neighborhood, three young women must use their fighting spirit to save the community’s beloved library in this novel based on true events from the author of The Chilbury Ladies’ Choir.When the new deputy librarian, Juliet Lansdown, finds that Bethnal Green Library isn’t the bustling hub she is expecting, she becomes determined to breathe life back into it. But can she show the men in charge that a woman is up to the task of running the library, especially when a confrontation with her past threatens to derail her? Katie Upwood is thrilled to be working at the library, although she is only there until she heads off to university in the fall. But after the death of her beau on the front line and amid tumultuous family strife, she finds herself harboring a life-changing secret with no one to turn to for help. Sofie Baumann, a young Jewish refugee, came to London on a domestic service visa only to find herself working as a maid for a man who treats her abominably. She escapes to the library every chance she can, finding friendship in the literary community and aid in finding her sister, who is still trying to flee occupied Europe. When a slew of bombs destroys the library, Juliet relocates the stacks to the local Underground station where the city’s residents shelter nightly, determined to lend out stories that will keep spirits up. But tragedy after tragedy threatens to unmoor the women and sever the ties of their community. Will Juliet, Kate, and Sofie be able to overcome their own troubles to save the library? Or will the beating heart of their neighborhood be lost forever?

LORD BYRON's STORY -- THE BOY - THE MAN - THE LEGENDREADERS' FAVORITE BOOK AWARD WINNER"Will seduce the reader right off the bat." IAN BOOK OF THE YEAR AWARD for OUTSTANDING HISTORICAL FICTIONHe was later to become known as "The most beautiful and most famous man in England" -- but not yet.... Beginning when he is a boy of ten years old, we join George Gordon when he is living a miserable life with his manic Scottish mother in a few rented rooms above a shop in Aberdeen, unaware that his true heritage is with the English aristocracy - who soon come to claim him. A life of wealth and privilege is then bestowed upon him, which eventually sets the stage for him to prove his own individual worth, in his own way, and in his own time.Meticulously researched, and adapted into novel form, 'A Strange Beginning' is the first of a series of books about the most iconic young man of his time, whose fame still lives on today. "My name alone shall be my epitaph." -- BYRON Although presented here in novel form and cloaked in the style of fiction, this is the true and meticulously researched story of the most iconic superstar of his time - Lord Byron. Ignoring all the old unproven rumours and sensational scandals fabricated at the time - which have since been regurgitated by biographers of every generation - all the events in this book come from the people who physically were THERE with Byron at the time. If they were not there, and did not write about it, or were not eyewitnesses to the events - they are not included in this book.