From one of the original leading ladies of historical fiction, this reissued classic captures the life of sir Walter Raleigha man of extraordinary ambition whose complex relationship with Elizabeth I followed him around the globe. Beloved historical novelist Norah Lofts was the queen of royal tales for generations. Lofts books are back, and in Here Was a Man, one of the greatest adventurers of the sixteenth century vividly and romantically comes to life. When young Walter Raleigh first presented himself before Elizabeth I, he dreamt of carving out an empire in the New World to lay at her feet. But Elizabeth is equally determined to keep this handsome, witty young man at her side. Through years of frustration, violent quarrels, reconciliation, and the challenges and rewards of exploration, Raleigh desperately tries to hold on to his dream. Lofts peoples her rich tale with some of the greatest personalities of the age, including Shakespeare, Marlowe, Sir Phillip...

Released for the first time in decades, this international bestseller powerfully tells of the life of Katharine of Aragon, from her childhood in Spain to her reign and downfall in England as the first wife of Henry VII. A princess by birth and a queen by marriage, Katharine always held the highest aspirations for her life, never doubting a vision both she and her mother, Isabella of Spain, had of her becoming one of the great rulers of Europe.

Sir Godfrey Tallboys: A knight-errant at the top of his profession and with little thought beyond the next tourney. A long way from being wealthy but in need of a house for his pretty young wife.Lady Sybilla Tallboys: A loving wife, tolerant of her husband’s shortcomings—and with a strong desire for a home where she could raise their four children instead of relying on the charity of relatives. Forethought was rare for Sir Godfrey but he decided to build a house even though it took the last of his money. A magnificent tourney in Spain would make his fortune so, leaving England, he went off to fight. But tourney turned to treachery and at home he was reported dead. It fell to Sybilla to fend for herself and her children in the hope that, one day, Sir Godfrey would return.

The Town House is the first in a trilogy of novels by Norah Lofts about the inhabitants of a country house in Suffolk from the late fourteenth century to the middle of the twentieth. It begins with the story of Martin Reed, a serf existing under the control of a universally accepted and supported hierarchy. His rebellion, in defence of the woman he loves, casts both of them into the unknown. Freed from his acceptance of circumstance, Reed forges a new path, a path which culminates in the building of the House, and the foundations of a dynasty.

Eleanor of Aquitaine rules as a modern heroine in the twelfth century, in this beloved classic of royal fiction from renowned author Norah Lofts. At a time when a woman's value was measured solely by her wealth and the number of sons she bore, Eleanor was the high-spirited, stubborn, and intelligent heiress to the vast duchy of Aquitaine. Her leadership inspired the loyalty of her people, but she was continually doubted and silenced by the men who ruled beside her—the less wise but far more powerful men of the church and court who were unwilling to lose power to a woman, regardless of her rank or ability. Through marriages to two kings, two Crusades, and the births of ten children— including the future King Richard the Lionhearted—Eleanor solidified her place in history. In Eleanor the Queen, Norah Lofts brings to life a brave and complex woman who was centuries ahead of her time.

Henry Tallboys: The eldest son of Sir Godfrey and Lady Sybilla Tallboys is tied to the plough and scratching a living on Knight’s Acre. Henry’s stubbornness and honesty means he even puts aside much-needed money for a missing brother long believed dead. Joanna Serriff : The daughter of an Arabian woman who saved Sir Godfrey and born at Knight’s Acre. Joanna is heiress to fabulous jewels which Henry refuses to use to support the land she loves so passionately. Instead, she must be sent to learn to become a lady, against her will. Lost in a world of jealousy, corruption in both Church and State and witch hunts, can Henry and Joanna finally find the elusive happiness they seek?

Caroline-Matilda - Captive Queen to a Royal Madman... She came to the bridal bed half child, half woman, and looked with terror upon the king who barely troubled to mask his contempt for her. There had been whispers about the fledgling ruler of Denmark...about his dark moods, his murderous tantrums, his strange lusts. But no one could speak out against a marriage that united two such powerful kingdoms as England and Denmark. Bewildered, lonely, and hungry for affection, she turned to the one man who dared to be her friend--the king's physician. He knew the trugh, knew that without his warmth and protection Caroline could not survive. He became her refuge...and her lover...and her greatest danger. In "The Lost Queen," Norah Loft has created a spellbinding tale that vividly evokes the stark contrasts of 18th-century Denmark: the cruelty, poverty, and oppression of existence under an absolute monarch sinking into madness; the royal court with its pomp and pageantry; and the hatreds and intrigues that swirled around the young, lovely figure who was, briefly, its queen. *** "A gem of a novel...rich in the atmmosphere of the 18th century...a poignant and romantic love story in Norah Lofts' best style." -- Book Press.