This week's theme for Top Ten Tuesday, hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl, is "Bookish Discoveries I Made in 2025." I am going to list 10 authors that I hadn't heard of before or ones I now know about that would be added to my TBR pile. I have either read one of their books or own one to read this year. The link will take you to their Goodreads page if you want to see a full book list and bio. Happy reading!
1. Michael Jecks- Focusing on the first crusade, historical fiction on a subject that is hard to find
2. Abigail Keam- She runs a Facebook cozy mystery page I love and has written some cute cozies herself.
3. Vanessa Kelly- Her cozy country house mysteries have a Jane Austen feel to them and look cute.
4. Michael Livingston- Non-fiction author focusing on medieval history...my favorite!
5. C.W. Gortner- His novels about more obscure queens intrigue me enough to start collecting them...Juana of Castile and Isabella of Castile are two that I want to read more about.
6. Raymond Wemmlinger- His novels also feature historical subjects less known....Queen Anne of Scotland is one I'd like to read about.
7. Beth Cowan-Erskine- she writes 1930's country house murder mysteries set in Scotland....and there are only two books so far so this might be a series I can actually stay caught up with.
8. Katherine Kurtz- She has written several novels about The Knights Templar and their origins. These books were written in the 1990's so they are becoming classics.
9. Jenny Telfer Chaplain- She writes "sweeping, historical family sagas" and the box set I have is set in Ireland and Scotland around the late Victorian era.
10. Myra Hargrave McIlvain- Her novels and specialty is Texas historical fiction set in the mid-1800's. I am from Texas so they looked intriguing.
Do you know any of these great authors? Which of their books are you familiar with and would you recommend them?


Jenny Telfer Chaplain sounds like an author I might really like!
ReplyDeleteI've read C.W. Gortner's books about Juana of Castile and Lucrezia Borgia and enjoyed both. I haven't tried any of the other authors on your list and haven't heard of some of them!
ReplyDeleteI don't know anything about Juana of Castile so yes, I'd probably start there. Thanks Helen :)
DeleteI just read a book by Jess Walter, a Washington author, so I know how much is to be enjoyed by reading a local author.
ReplyDeleteI'm late posting today but here is what I wrote: https://headfullofbooks.blogspot.com/2026/01/ttt-bookish-related-events-of-2025.html
It's fun when you are from a spot and can see it through history. Thanks Anne :)
DeleteThis looks so interesting: 1. Michael Jecks- Focusing on the first crusade, historical fiction on a subject that is hard to find.
ReplyDeleteyes, they are hard to find.
All of these are new to me! I hope you find even more new authors to love this year!
ReplyDeleteLooks like a great list! I haven't tried any of them, but I've always vaguely intended to try Katherine Kurtz's work.
ReplyDeleteThey are all new to me, thanks for sharing your #TTT discoveries
ReplyDeleteI read a number of CW Gortner books over the years. I was sad to hear that he passed away not so long ago.
ReplyDeleteVanessa Kelly's books sound so good! I love cozy mysteries, so I might check them out. I hope you find many more amazing authors this year 😊.
ReplyDeleteIf you'd like to visit, here's my TTT: https://thebooklorefairyreads.wordpress.com/2026/01/26/top-ten-tuesday-bookish-discoveries-i-made-in-2025/
~ Marwah @ The Booklore Fairy