Books like 'Checkmate'
Readers who enjoyed Checkmate by Dorothy Dunnett also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.
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Ponniyin Selvan- Whirlwinds : Part 2 by Kalki
Rated: 4.66 of 5 stars · 31 ratingsWhirlwinds, the exciting second part of Kalki R Krishnamurthy's historic magnum opus Ponniyin Selvan, our hero Vallavarayan Vandhiyathevan's adventures continue as he rides into marshy quagmires, befriends a mysterious girl, becomes the object of intense suspicion by the wily Pazhuvettarayars - and meets the hero of his dreams... -
![Whirlwinds by Kalki]()
Whirlwinds by Kalki
Rated: 4.65 of 5 stars · 31 ratingsWhirlwinds, the exciting second part of Kalki R Krishnamurthy's historic magnum opus Ponniyin Selvan, our hero Vallavarayan Vandhiyathevan's adventures continue as he rides into marshy quagmires, befriends a mysterious girl, becomes the object of intense suspicion by the wily Pazhuvettarayars - and meets the hero of his dreams... -
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![Sword of Slaughter by Kalki]()
Sword of Slaughter by Kalki
Rated: 4.66 of 5 stars · 30 ratingsKalki Krishnamurthy’s Ponniyin Selvan is a masterpiece that has enthralled generations of Tamil readers. Many authors have written phenomenal books in Tamil literature after Kalki Krishnamurthy, but Ponniyin Selvan remains the most popular, widely-read novel... -
![Ponniyin Selvan-Part 1-Fresh Floods by Kalki]()
Ponniyin Selvan-Part 1-Fresh Floods by Kalki
Rated: 4.64 of 5 stars · 31 ratingsPonniyin Selvan is Kalki’s magnum opus based in the 10th century and presents the early life of Raajaraajan and the kings of Chozha Empire. Though written more than 60 years ago this saga is timeless, reeling the readers in its gripping plot which is interwoven with intrigue, conspiracies and romance... -
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![The Ringed Castle by Dorothy Dunnett]()
The Ringed Castle by Dorothy Dunnett
Rated: 4.62 of 5 stars · 30 ratingsFor the first time Dunnett's Lymond Chronicles are available in the United States in quality paperback editions.Fifth in the legendary Lymond Chronicles , The Ringed Castle leaps from Mary Tudor's England to the barbaric Russia of Ivan the Terrible. Francis Crawford of Lymond moves to Muscovy, where he becomes advisor and general to the half-mad tsar... -
![The Sun Sister by Lucinda Riley]()
The Sun Sister by Lucinda Riley
Rated: 4.47 of 5 stars · 34 ratingsThe Sun Sister is the sixth epic story in the Seven Sisters series by the number one international bestseller Lucinda Riley.To the outside world, Electra d'Apliese seems as though she is the woman who has everything: as one of the world's top models, she is beautiful, rich and famous... -
![The Curse of Braeburn Castle by Karen Baugh Menuhin]()
The Curse of Braeburn Castle by Karen Baugh Menuhin
Rated: 4.34 of 5 stars · 29 ratingsA centuries-old skeleton is discovered in a lonely Scottish Castle. It wears a crown and hides a curse. Lennox's detective friend, Swift, now lives at Braeburn Castle and it was he who uncovered the skeleton. As ghosts are heard and treasure-seekers appear, the murders begin. Lennox must go to Braeburn and investigate as Halloween draws near... -
![The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton]()
The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton
Rated: 4.15 of 5 stars · 72 ratingsA lost child: On the eve of the First World War, a little girl is found abandoned on a ship to Australia. A mysterious woman called the Authoress had promised to look after her - but has disappeared without a trace. A terrible secret: On the night of her twenty-first birthday, Nell Andrews learns a secret that will change her life forever... -
![Winter Warriors by David Gemmell]()
Winter Warriors by David Gemmell
Rated: 4.23 of 5 stars · 31 ratingsWinged demons gather, silent and unseen, above the city of Usa, their talons long and sharp. Their purpose is clear, as is the Upon the deaths of the three kings, the demon riders of the Krayakin will become flesh, free to slake their thirst with human blood - and the stench of evil will cover the land. Two of the kings are already dead... -
![The Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco]()
The Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco
Rated: 4.11 of 5 stars · 84 ratingsThe year is 1327. Franciscans in a wealthy Italian abbey are suspected of heresy, and Brother William of Baskerville arrives to investigate. When his delicate mission is suddenly overshadowed by seven bizarre deaths, Brother William turns detective... -
![A.D. 33 by Ted Dekker]()
A.D. 33 by Ted Dekker
Rated: 4.24 of 5 stars · 27 ratingsNew York Times bestselling author Ted Dekker delivers the gripping story of Maviah, a slave who becomes a queen in Arabia, A.D. 33. They call her the Queen of the Outcasts. Maviah, a woman whose fate was sealed on her birth by this world-unwanted, illegitimate, female, a slave-subject to the whims of all. But then she met a man named Yeshua who opened her eyes... -
![The City of Tears by Kate Mosse]()
The City of Tears by Kate Mosse
Rated: 4.22 of 5 stars · 29 ratingsFollowing on from the Sunday Times number one bestseller, The Burning Chambers, Kate Mosse's The City of Tears is the second thrilling historical epic in The Burning Chambers series, for fans of Ken Follett and Dan Brown... -
![The Archer's Tale by Bernard Cornwell]()
The Archer's Tale by Bernard Cornwell
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 41 ratingsFrom New York Times bestselling author Bernard Cornwell, now available in paperback—the first book in the Grail Series--a spellbinding tale of a young man, a fearless archer, who sets out wanting to avenge his family's honor and winds up on a quest for the Holy Grail... -
![Dovetail by Karen McQuestion]()
Dovetail by Karen McQuestion
Rated: 4.18 of 5 stars · 36 ratingsFrom the bestselling author of Hello Love comes a spellbinding new novel of enduring love, family secrets, and mysterious death.Joe Arneson’s ordinary life is upended by troubling dreams of himself as a different man in another place and time. It isn’t until he visits his estranged grandmother, Pearl, in her Wisconsin hometown that a startling connection emerges... -
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![Beyond the Horizon by Ella Carey]()
Beyond the Horizon by Ella Carey
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 20 ratingsSuddenly, it became hard to breathe and the sound of the engine throbbed in Eva’s head. The plane crashed and skidded. She heard the wail of sirens. The last thing she remembered was pulling her body across the tarmac an inch at a time—before her world went black.Sweetwater, Texas, 1943. Eva has always wanted to fly away... -
![Heretic by Bernard Cornwell]()
Heretic by Bernard Cornwell
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 36 ratingsWith Calais in English hands, hostilities are suspended, but Thomas' quest to find the Holy Grail continues. His cousin Guy of Vexille still pursues him with deadly purpose, convinced that there is a link between Thomas and what he covets... -
![The Language of Bees by Laurie R. King]()
The Language of Bees by Laurie R. King
Rated: 4.16 of 5 stars · 35 ratingsBONUS: This edition contains an excerpt from Laurie R. King's The God of the Hive and Pirate King.For Mary Russell and her husband, Sherlock Holmes, returning to the Sussex coast after seven months abroad was especially sweet. There was even a mystery to solve—the unexplained disappearance of an entire colony of bees from one of Holmes’s beloved hives... -
![A.D. 30 by Ted Dekker]()
A.D. 30 by Ted Dekker
Rated: 4.16 of 5 stars · 33 ratingsA sweeping epic set in the harsh deserts of Arabia and ancient Palestine. A war that rages between kingdoms on the earth and in the heart.The harrowing journey of the woman at the center of it all. The story of Jesus in a way you have never experienced it. Step back in time to the year of our Lord, Anno Domini, 30... -
![Golden Stage by 苍梧宾白 [Cang Wu Bin Bai], 苍梧宾白]()
Golden Stage by 苍梧宾白 [Cang Wu Bin Bai], 苍梧宾白
Rated: 4.23 of 5 stars · 20 ratingsThe notorious imperial court lackey and the meritorious military general were well-known for their mutual dislike, a pair of arch-enemies set in stone. Who could have foreseen the unexpected change in the winds of heaven: the general injured on the battlefield, both legs disabled, and even forced by the emperor to marry his nemesis... -
![黄金台 [Huángjīn Tái] by Cang Wu Bin Bai, 苍梧宾白]()
黄金台 [Huángjīn Tái] by Cang Wu Bin Bai, 苍梧宾白
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 21 ratingsThe notorious imperial court lackey and the meritorious military general were well-known for their mutual dislike, a pair of arch-enemies set in stone. Who could have foreseen the unexpected change in the winds of heaven: the general injured on the battlefield, both legs disabled, and even forced by the emperor to marry his nemesis... -
![On Mother Brown's Doorstep by Mary Jane Staples]()
On Mother Brown's Doorstep by Mary Jane Staples
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsThe big event of the Walworth year was to be the wedding of Sammy Adams, King of Camberwell, to Miss Susie Brown. Everyone was looking forward to it, and Susie was particularly overjoyed when her soldier brother suddenly turned up on leave from service in India in time for the approaching 'knees-up'... -
![Ticket Out by Michelle Diener]()
Ticket Out by Michelle Diener
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsIt’s the summer of 1963 and Gabriella Farnsworth is a newly-minted London traffic warden. She’s used to temper tantrums, swearing, and threats, but finding a dead body is an entirely new low... -
![The Premonition at Withers Farm by Jaime Jo Wright]()
The Premonition at Withers Farm by Jaime Jo Wright
Rated: 4.36 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsIn 1910 Michigan, Perliett VanHilton is a self-proclaimed rural healer, leaving the local doctor, George Wasziak, convinced she practices quackery. It doesn't help that her mother, Maribeth VanHilton, is a Spiritualist who regularly offers her services to help others speak to their dearly departed... -
![Vagabond by Bernard Cornwell]()
Vagabond by Bernard Cornwell
Rated: 4.10 of 5 stars · 36 ratingsFrom New York Times bestselling author Bernard Cornwell, the sequel to The Archer's Tale—the spellbinding tale of a young man, a fearless archer, who sets out wanting to avenge his family's honor and winds up on a quest for the Holy Grail.In 1347, a year of conflict and unrest, Thomas of Hookton returns to England to pursue the Holy Grail... -
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![The Golden Wolf by Linnea Hartsuyker]()
The Golden Wolf by Linnea Hartsuyker
Rated: 4.19 of 5 stars · 17 ratingsThe fates of Ragnvald and his sister Svanhild unfold to their stunning conclusion in this riveting final volume in The Golden Wolf Saga, a trilogy that conjures the ancient world with the gripping detail, thrilling action, and vivid historical elements of Game of Thrones and Outlander... -
![The Engineered Throne by Megan Derr]()
The Engineered Throne by Megan Derr
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 22 ratingsLord Vellem is a man desperate for escape. His father hides from his problems in alcohol, his mother hides from her misery in drugs, and his brother fled to the relative safety of the royal palace. Vellem eventually found solace in the Royal Army Corp of Engineers, but still could not entirely escape... -
![The Half Life of Valery K by Natasha Pulley]()
The Half Life of Valery K by Natasha Pulley
From the author of The Watchmaker of Filigree Street and The Kingdoms, an epic Cold War novel set in a mysterious town in Soviet Russia... -
![A Place Called Freedom by Ken Follett]()
A Place Called Freedom by Ken Follett
Rated: 4.04 of 5 stars · 42 ratingsNEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER Scotland, 1766. Sentenced to a life of misery in the brutal coal mines, twenty-one-year-old Mack McAsh hungers for escape. His only the beautiful, highborn Lizzie Hallim, who is trapped in her own kind of hell. Though separated by politics and position, these two restless young people are bound by their passionate search for a place called freedom... -
![The Swift and the Harrier by Minette Walters]()
The Swift and the Harrier by Minette Walters
Rated: 4.16 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsDorset, 1642. England is on the cusp of civil war.Jayne Swift, a daughter of the Dorset gentry, has resisted all offers of marriage and instead trained as a physician, using her skills to tend to her Royalist father's tenants and the local population. When civil war sweeps England she vows to remain neutral and aid the injured whether they be Royalist or Parliamentarian... -
![Night Train to Marrakech by Dinah Jefferies]()
Night Train to Marrakech by Dinah Jefferies
Rated: 4.08 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsMARRAKECH 1966 Vicky Baudin steps onto a train winding through Morocco, looking for the grandmother she has never met. It’s an epic journey that’ll take her to the edge of Atlas Mountains – and closer to the answers she’s been craving all her life. But dark secrets whisper amongst the dunes. And in unlocking the mystery of Clemence’s past, Vicky will unearth great danger too . . -
![A Year of Ravens by Ruth Downie, Stephanie Dray]()
A Year of Ravens by Ruth Downie, Stephanie Dray
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsBritannia: land of mist and magic clinging to the western edge of the Roman Empire. A red-haired queen named Boudica led her people in a desperate rebellion against the might of Rome, an epic struggle destined to consume heroes and cowards, young and old, Roman and Celt . . . and these are their stories. A calculating queen sees the sparks of revolt in a king’s death... -
![Home Fires by Luanne Rice]()
Home Fires by Luanne Rice
Rated: 4.02 of 5 stars · 26 ratingsAnne Davis has returned to the house where she grew up, trading her glamorous Manhattan lifestyle for a harsh winter on a wind-whipped New England island. Her marriage has crumbled in the wake of a tragic accident. Now she has returned to the home on Salt Whistle Raod that has always meant shelter, security, family and love... -
![Dawn of Empire by Sam Barone]()
Dawn of Empire by Sam Barone
Rated: 4.02 of 5 stars · 23 ratingsFive millennia ago, on the eastern bank of the river Tigris, the course of human history changed forever . . .The people of Orak cherish their peaceful village and the life they have made. Though not proficient with the bow or sword, they possess a weapon far stronger: the ability to coax food from the ground. This is why the barbarian leader Thutmose-sin hates and fears them... -
![Firstborn by Tosca Lee]()
Firstborn by Tosca Lee
Rated: 4.11 of 5 stars · 9 ratingsFrom New York Times bestselling author Tosca Lee comes the much-anticipated, high-speed sequel to The Progeny. Face-to-face with her past, Audra Ellison now knows the secret she gave up everything—including her memory—to protect. A secret made vulnerable by her rediscovery, and so powerful neither the Historian nor the traitor Prince Nikola will ever let her live to keep it... -
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![The Smoke Hunter by Jacquelyn Benson]()
The Smoke Hunter by Jacquelyn Benson
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 8 ratings"Indiana Jones meets Lara Croft in Benson's engrossing action thriller."-RT Book Reviews, Top Pick THE DEBUT OF A CAPTIVATING VOICE AND RIVETING STORYTELLER!Frustrated suffragette and would-be archaeologist Ellie Mallory stumbles across a map to a city that shouldn't exist, a jungle metropolis alive and flourishing centuries after the Mayan civilization mysteriously collapsed... -
![To Free the Stars by J'nell Ciesielski]()
To Free the Stars by J'nell Ciesielski
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsThe Great War consumes all in its path, but for the assassins at Talon it’s just another day on the job . . . until a new threat rises from the smoke of war-torn Europe to obliterate the world as they know it... -
![The Clockmaker’s Wife by Daisy Wood]()
The Clockmaker’s Wife by Daisy Wood
Rated: 4.04 of 5 stars · 11 ratingsThe world is at war. And time is running out…London, 1940. Britain is gripped by the terror of the Blitz, forcing Nell Spelman to flee the capital with her young daughter – leaving behind her husband, Arthur, the clockmaker who keeps Big Ben chiming. When Arthur disappears, Nell is desperate to find him... -
![The Secret of the Three Fates by Jess Armstrong]()
The Secret of the Three Fates by Jess Armstrong
Rated: 4.03 of 5 stars · 11 ratingsFollowing the atmospheric and award-winning gothic historical mystery debut, The Curse of Penryth Hall, USA Today bestselling author Jess Armstrong's heroine, Ruby Vaughn, returns in The Secret of the Three Fates, where the Scottish Hills hold ghosts of the past that threaten Ruby’s present.American heiress Ruby Vaughn still hasn't entirely forgiven her octogenarian employer and housemate Mr... -
![The Scent of Jasmine by Jude Deveraux]()
The Scent of Jasmine by Jude Deveraux
Would you risk your life—on the love of a lifetime? Charleston, 1799: A daughter of Southern gentility and a gifted painter, Catherine Edilean Harcourt has no lack of suitors at home in Virginia, waiting to fulfill her dream of marriage and family. But Cay’s adventurous spirit, fostered by growing up with her three brothers, is piqued while visiting her godfather in South Carolina... -
![The Burning Chambers by Kate Mosse]()
The Burning Chambers by Kate Mosse
Rated: 3.96 of 5 stars · 36 ratingsCarcassonne 1562: Nineteen-year-old Minou Joubert receives an anonymous letter at her father’s bookshop. Sealed with a distinctive family crest, it contains just five words: SHE KNOWS THAT YOU LIVE. But before Minou can decipher the mysterious message, a chance encounter with a young Huguenot convert, Piet Reydon, changes her destiny forever... -
![Fire from Heaven by Mary Renault]()
Fire from Heaven by Mary Renault
Rated: 3.96 of 5 stars · 32 ratingsAlexander the Great died at the age of thirty-three, leaving behind an empire that stretched from Greece and Egypt to India and a new cosmopolitan model for western civilisation. In Alexander's childhood, his defiant character was molded into the makings of a king... -
![Cleopatra's Tomb by Nellie H. Steele]()
Cleopatra's Tomb by Nellie H. Steele
Rated: 4.02 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsIndies Today Best Book 2020 Award FinalistWhy in the world would her uncle send her a bejeweled golden scarab? When Maggie Edwards opened the mysterious package from her archeologist uncle, Oliver Keene, she had no clue what it was for. At first, she couldn’t understand why he had sent her something so obviously valuable when he had never done so before... -
![The Librarian of Burned Books by Brianna Labuskes]()
The Librarian of Burned Books by Brianna Labuskes
Rated: 3.95 of 5 stars · 30 ratingsBerlin 1933. Following the success of her debut novel, American writer Althea James receives an invitation from Joseph Goebbels himself to participate in a culture exchange program in Germany. For a girl from a small town in Maine, 1933 Berlin seems to be sparklingly cosmopolitan, blossoming in the midst of a great change with the charismatic new chancellor at the helm... -
![The Librarian of Burned Books by Brianna Labuskes]()
The Librarian of Burned Books by Brianna Labuskes
Rated: 3.95 of 5 stars · 30 ratingsFor fans of The Rose Code and The Paris Library, The Librarian of Burned Books is a captivating WWII-era novel about the intertwined fates of three women who believe in the power of books to triumph over the very darkest moments of war. Berlin 1933... -
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![The Librarian of Burned Books by Brianna Labuskes]()
The Librarian of Burned Books by Brianna Labuskes
Rated: 3.95 of 5 stars · 30 ratingsFor fans of The Rose Code and The Paris Library, The Librarian of Burned Books is a captivating WWII-era novel about the intertwined fates of three women who believe in the power of books to triumph over the very darkest moments of war. Berlin 1933... -
![Dreaming Death by J. Kathleen Cheney]()
Dreaming Death by J. Kathleen Cheney
Rated: 4.11 of 5 stars · 9 ratingsIn the Novels of the Golden City, J. Kathleen Cheney created a “mesmerizing” (Publishers Weekly) realm where magic, history, and intrigue combine. Now, she presents a new world ruled by psychic talents and fatal magic... Shironne Anjir's status as a sensitive is both a gift and a curse... -
![Enchanted Hill by Emily Bain Murphy]()
Enchanted Hill by Emily Bain Murphy
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsEscape to Enchanted Hill in this historical mystery where two people with a dark, shared past collide while working undercover at a glittering mansion on the California coast. The year is 1930 and Cora McCavanagh is posing as a maid at Hollywood magnate Truman Byrd’s legendary estate. She’s closing in on the damning evidence she needs for a high-profile client... -
![Cloud of Sparrows by Takashi Matsuoka]()
Cloud of Sparrows by Takashi Matsuoka
Rated: 3.93 of 5 stars · 31 ratingsIt is the dawn of the New Year, 1861. After two centuries of isolation, Japan has been forced to open its doors to the West, igniting a clash of cultures and generations. And as foreign ships threaten to rain destruction on the Shogun’s castle in Edo, a small group of American missionaries has chosen this time to spread the word of their God... -
![Murder at the Mayfair Hotel by C.J. Archer]()
Murder at the Mayfair Hotel by C.J. Archer
Rated: 3.91 of 5 stars · 34 ratingsIt was the most fashionable place to stay in London, until murder made a reservation. Solve the puzzle in this new cozy historical mystery from USA Today bestselling author of the Glass and Steele series.December 1899. After the death of her beloved grandmother, Cleopatra Fox moves into the luxury hotel owned by her estranged uncle in the hopes of putting hardship and loneliness behind her... -
![Dreamland by Nancy Bilyeau]()
Dreamland by Nancy Bilyeau
Rated: 3.90 of 5 stars · 24 ratings'Achingly believable' - Publishers Weekly 'Beautifully written and impeccably researched, Dreamland is a rollicking ride...
![Golden Stage by 苍梧宾白 [Cang Wu Bin Bai], 苍梧宾白](https://s3.amazonaws.com/romance.io/books/small/67b18f5b4bcff8a72e4450c7.jpg)
![黄金台 [Huángjīn Tái] by Cang Wu Bin Bai, 苍梧宾白](https://s3.amazonaws.com/romance.io/books/small/67027402d5380c3acde5b70f.jpg)
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