Books like The Traitor of Sherwood Forest — picked by fans

I fell deeply in love with Unsworth’s prose style and the striking use of “the play’s the thing” twist as Nicholas Barber and his travelling troupe try to solve a mystery.

As a medievalist, I was impressed with the depth of research that went into the production of the work. Nicholas is a wonderfully flawed character, and I found myself cheering as he left his tedious role to join the troupe.

I always enjoy Unsworth’s work because the plot, while tight and well-focused, is really an excuse to examine social issues and group dynamics.

This is another book I come back to again and again. 

I have always loved the lais of Marie de France and have taught them for years, introducing students to her proto-feminism and sly humor (check out Lanval for a send-up of the conventional medieval romance).

So when I came across this novel, I snapped it up, and it didn’t disappoint. I was captivated by Groff’s depiction of Marie: a rebel against religion and conventional gender roles, an exile in a convent who becomes the hero and hones her craft of writing.

Groff swept me into the book with her luminous descriptions of atmospheres and landscapes. I loved the gawky and ungainly Marie’s lonely fascination with Queen Eleanor of Aquitaine and the way she turns heartbreak into art. 

I was immediately caught by the novel’s premise: a medical examiner mystery set in the Middle Ages!

When King Henry I faces threats to the Jews under his protection because of a spate of murders of young children, he sends to Italy for a “master of the art of death,” only to receive Adelia, a woman. I was enchanted by Adelia’s courage, intelligence and wry humor as she searched for the killer.

I wallowed in the lush description, the tight plot, and the often contentious exchanges between Henry and Adelia. The final confrontation with the killer has all the stark graphic horror of a well-constructed film, and the fate of the killer’s accomplice is a masterpiece of terrible justice.

I do want to warn you, though; once you finish reading this, you’ll want to binge every following text in the series!

This is a book I come back to again and again, each time finding new elements to marvel at!

The Black Death has struck, and Lady Anne of Develish must keep her people safe while negotiating stormy relationships with her daughter and a conniving steward. I cannot love Lady Anne enough: she is ruthlessly intelligent, compassionate, and committed to social justice, helping her serfs to gain independence. 

I was struck by the harrowing descriptions of the Black Death and the complexity of even minor characters. I was on the edge of my seat with each page. As a medievalist, I appreciated the concern for historical accuracy.

This is a book of heartbreak and hope. 

This is the last of the 4 books that Stephen Fry wrote about the Greek myths, and probably the best of the series. I devoured the book!

If you love history (folktale) and humor, look no further than this book; it has plenty of both! It is also the one that gave me the inspiration to write my take on history and folktales from an absurd and funny perspective.

I absolutely loved this book: being well familiar with the classic tale of The Odyssey, reading modern versions of the story, and having seen at least 3 different movies, I have to say this is the best version! I can only wish that somebody makes it into a movie! 

The prose in this book felt like a wolf bite. Stories of destiny and power are juicy, and this has it in abundance. A young woman, Red, sacrifices herself for the good of all to the Wolf of the Wood. The woods are magickal, with haunted trees and shadows, creating an intense atmosphere that held me throughout. So moody! Murderous realms, too, which I sunk into easily.

Not quite like "Little Red Riding Hood," but the suspense certainly had me turning the pages. I admired how the author weaved in the emotional elements among the empowerment and disempowerment themes. The myth and folklore elements brought me back to my childhood nostalgia of curling up in bed, secretly turning the pages without regard for bedtime. 

Of the many retells I have read, this version turns the classic tale on its head the most. With my own reclusive artist tendencies, I found Ra Pu Zel’s wish for alone time to pursue her interests very alluring. I am always curious about new foods and I will set out to find stinky tofu in town, do I follow the smell? The art transports us to a setting with cultural and culinary delights.

From this novel’s opening lines—“My name is Serena Frome (rhymes with plume) and almost forty years ago I was sent on a secret mission for the British Security Service”—Ian McEwan draws readers into the dreary and yet ominous world of Cold War England, circa 1974. 

The story purrs along like a well-oiled machine. Serena has an affair with an older man that ends badly, but not before her ex-lover sets her on an eventful career path with MI5.

Soon she’s recruited for an operation called “Sweet Tooth,” in which government channels funds are channeled to “acceptable” novelists so they can counter the effects of Soviet propaganda. 

In McEwan’s skillfully crafted prose and narrative power, we’re plunged deep inside this undercover world. 

This is an incredible story about the young Marita Lorenz who falls in love with Fidel Castro one month after the Cuban Revolution and then gets persuaded by the CIA to try and assassinate him. Marita Lorenz was a spy for the CIA, had a child with at least one Latin American dictator and several lovers among the New York Mafia. That much we know, but it’s up to you if you believe her take on the JFK assassination. As she puts it herself at the beginning of the book: “I have been a woman in a man’s world. I have lied to protect myself and my children and I have told the truth when it suited me. Now I want to leave things clear”.

Easily one of the top 5 best books that I’ve ever read, The Chemist is an excellent novel that chronicles a female chemist used by intelligence agencies to devise brutal torture methods in her run from and eventually fight against her former employers. The heroine of this novel teams up with a former Special Operator and clandestine agent in her quest for retribution, as they join forces to fight back against those who tried to get them to kill each other so that they could bury the truth of their own misdeeds.

If you’re a fan of action-packed, spycraft-filled, and retribution-seeking hero tales, The Chemist is an excellent example of all of the above.