Jariabek.com Archive
Image of the Alchemy Thief by R. A. Denny, a historical fantasy novel

Historical Fantasy Book Review: Alchemy Thief by R. A. Denny

Be careful of what you ask of God … as you just might get it.

“…The vastness of the ocean that stretched to meet the sky filled her with a longing to reconnect with the God of the universe. She wanted to feel that closeness and security again. ‘Here I am, God, she prayed. ‘But what am I here for?’”

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Sic Parvis Magna Image: Historical Fiction of Paul Jariabek Halberdier overlaid onto an antique map of the Tavistock Area

Sic Parvis Magna Update and Opening Scene

Had nothing happened, the 8-year-old, ruddy-haired Francis might have followed 300 years of family tradition. He lived in Tavistock, a small village in southwest England. He might have become a tenant farmer, tending to the land and husbanding the animals, or would have followed his father’s footsteps, becoming a preacher, living out his life in quietude and never venturing outside of the village. And history would not have taken a second glance.
But as it pleased the Almighty, the events of 1548 thrust his life in a very different direction. Little did he know that in mere six years, he would be on his way to become one of the greatest mariners, a legendary English admiral, and a feared pirate ‘El Draque,’ the sworn enemy of the Spanish Crown.

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Galleon San Salvador in San Diego Maritime Museum

Researching Francis Drake’s Ship the Tiger

Historical naval fiction novel Sic Parvis Magna is set in the period of Francis Drake’s youth. There are no records, leaving me to speculate what his apprenticeship was like. In this research post, I explore the ship that he apprenticed on.

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The cover of historical fiction novel The Heretic Wind by Judith Arnopp

Historical Fiction Book Review: The Heretic Wind By Judith Arnopp

In The Heretic Wind, author Judith Arnopp introduces us to Mary Tudor, the daughter of Henry the VIII of England and Catherine of Aragon, and the first English Queen in her own right. The book is a fictionalized biography of Mary I (Mary Tudor, whom John Foxe dubs “Bloody” Mary). The historical character is easy to hate… which is why this book is so wonderful—as Arnopp puts us into Mary’s head, we discover…

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