Böcker av Cecelia Holland

In this YA novel, Holland shows us a raging San Francisco during the beginning of the 1849 Gold Rush. Many different types of people are flocking to California. Preachers, con men, miners, Mormons, army deserters, and Native Americans are trying to start over. Here are Frances Hardhardt, an escaped slave whose goal is to never be controlled again as she has been controlled; Daisy, a gorgeous singer who is Hardhart's protegee and tool; and Mitya, an Aleut Indian with a troubled past whose talent as a builder creates the central locale of the book, the Shining Light Saloon. That location becomes the glue that binds people and story together in a multicultural drama.

Guided and guarded by an angel, a young Spanish knight saves Paris from the Vikings during one of the darkest eras of Christendom-and turns out to be a girl.

Sixteen-year-old Jenny Dolf hates being a girl. She resents the restrictions on her life, and she just feels wrong, and trapped, in her female's body. When the Revolution breaks out, she takes her father's musket and poses as a boy named Jack, to join George Washington's army on the heights of Long Island. From the first terrible losses, to the great victory at Trenton, in savage battles and long hard marches, Jack learns the value, and the cost, of freedom.

When the Mongols sack Baghdad in the year 1258, the renegade Templar Knight Rikart al-Shah'b-Rikart the Ghost-escapes the city. He tries to save two others as well-the Arab boy Daud and Dinah, the teenage daughter of a Jewish scholar-but they are separated in the chaos. Rikart and Daud make their escape separately, but Dinah is captured by the Mongols. In the time that follows, as the Mongols continue to overwhelm Heart of the World-what a later age would call the Middle East-Rikart tries to persuade whichever Muslim or Christian leaders he encounters to unite against the invaders from the steppes. Eventually, he and Daud are reunited and together they liberate a captive Egyptian Mameluke leader whom they believe could lead the needed resistance. Dinah, meanwhile, has been taken into the household of the wife of Hulegu Khan, brother of the Mongol emperor and leader of the Mongol army. Over time, a love affair develops between her and Nikola, one of the great khan's sons. All of their lives will come back together at the great battle of Ain Jalut, where the Mamelukes and their allies make a desperate stand against the mighty forces from Central Asia who seek to conquer Heart of the World.

The year is 1846, and war is brewing between the United States and Mexico. Under the pretext of a scientific research expedition, Lt. John C. Fremont arrives in Sutter's Fort with Kit Carson, famous Indian Scout, and a few men. Also arriving in Sutter's Fort is Cat Reilly, who has been widowed on the long trip west and is now in desperate circumstances. She becomes romantically involved with a Russian count as well as in Fremont and Carson's political scheming and maneuvers. Soon, she is plunged into a political maelstrom as Fremont sets up a California Republic and later brings California into the union.

Introducing Grow by Cecelia Holland - a gripping novel that takes you on a thrilling journey into the heart of a close-knit northern California community, where secrets smolder and danger lurks in the shadows. In this captivating tale, Jenny Meek, an unexpected heroine, navigates a world fraught with peril. As a pot-growing grandmother, she treads a fine line between the law and her livelihood, all while grappling with the specter of forest fires that threaten to consume her cherished home. But Jenny's challenges are far from over, for a sinister string of murders rocks her peaceful enclave, shattering the tranquility she once knew.Amidst the chaos, the return of her long-lost daughter adds a layer of complexity to Jenny's life. With the past and present colliding, she must summon her inner strength to confront the truth, protect her family, and unearth the dark secrets that threaten to consume her community.Experience a tale of suspense, resilience, and redemption in Grow - a riveting novel that will keep you on the edge of your seat until the very last page.

A seminal feminist SF novel of the highest literary quality, comparable to the works of Joanna Russ and Ursula K. LeGuin.