Books set in Europe from Next Chapter [March 2023]
Europe is a continent located in the northern hemisphere and bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the south. It is the second smallest continent in terms of land area, but it is the third most populous continent in the world. Europe has a rich history and culture, and it is home to some of the world's most iconic landmarks, such as the Eiffel Tower in Paris, the Colosseum in Rome, and the Big Ben in London.
Europe is also known for its diverse economies, with some of the wealthiest nations in the world, such as Germany and France, alongside struggling economies like Greece and Ukraine. Europe has a long tradition of cooperation and integration, dating back to the formation of the European Coal and Steel Community in 1951, which eventually led to the creation of the European Union. Today, the EU is a political and economic union of 27 member states, with a combined population of over 440 million people.
Despite its many achievements, Europe also faces significant challenges, including the ongoing refugee crisis, rising nationalism and populism, and the effects of climate change. However, through cooperation and a commitment to democratic values and human rights, Europe continues to make progress towards a more prosperous and peaceful future.
On this page, we’ve collected the best books set in Europe from Next Chapter authors, now available from all major online bookstores. Whether it’s historical fiction, romance or mystery, we believe any of the books on this page will do!
We hope you enjoy the stories by our authors - and if you do, please don’t forget to leave the author a review! Don’t agree with our choices? Please leave a comment and let us know which book is your favorite :)
Books featured on this page
The Other Side Of Silence (Silence And Shadows Book 1) by Dodie Bishop
The Vienna Connection (Darren Priest Mysteries Book 1) by Dick Rosano
The Ghost Of Villa Winter (Canary Islands Mysteries Book 4) by Isobel Blackthorn
A Very Mersey Murder (Mersey Murder Mysteries Book 5) by Brian L. Porter
The Other Side Of Silence (Silence And Shadows Book 1) by Dodie Bishop
Book excerpt
James Villiers led them through the crowd, turning heads with his dark and glossy handsomeness. He might have turned mine too, had my inclinations been such and I lacked knowledge of his reputation for violence and absence of scruples. No. Villiers seemed a man best avoided.
Yet many eyes both male and female followed him. Many lips were licked. While there is no doubt he is a very fine fellow, he had the look of a man too much reliant on his foppish clothing to get him noticed and in that he was not alone, of course. Though, as a Florentine not long to these shores, what did I know of English fashion and its artifice? My own clothes were tailored in Florence and sent by my father. Though I did appreciate the current English vogue for high-heeled shoes, which I adopted with deep gratitude. In truth, I know more of an English lady’s clothing than of a gentleman’s, I am somewhat ashamed to admit, with no little experience gained from its removal. I had moved away then, vexed by Villiers strutting; every stride, every arch sideways glance had the look of a performance refined before a looking glass. Although I turned back on hearing the name Susannah murmured through the crowd, intrigued to know who this might be and why her presence should cause such a stir.
Sir Richard Gresham followed behind James with his wife, Lady Catherine, upon one arm – just as polished and gem-encrusted as her son – and a slender girl on the other. So, this was Susannah Gresham. That I had never seen her until then was perhaps unsurprising considering the interest her attendance had provoked. It was her paleness that held my gaze. For I come from a land where such colouring is so rare and eye-catching, heads turn on the street to stare. Pale hair. Pale skin. Though with too little womanly flesh to be thought a beauty at court, she was without artifice in fine blue silk and a simple mantua. Should I not regret her lack of gems for I am here to sell them, after all? Yet she took my breath away.
I could not help but imagine peeling off those layers to expose more of that silky whiteness. But how was I back to such thoughts, as a man of seven and twenty, when I had once foresworn them? Though, Christ help me, I now took what was offered again. Which was plentiful enough. Though I do not know entirely why this should be.
Please do not think me unaware of my own shortcomings. Three elder sisters took care of that. I was only outstanding in my ordinariness and never at any stage in my life have I had sufficient stature. Hence, the heels. Still, I could not be entirely without charm. A warm body rolled in against me then, a small hand caressing my chest and moving slowly southwards.
‘Raphael, my dearest, you must soon away. My husband expects me prompt to supper, so I should begin to dress for it.’
The Vienna Connection (Darren Priest Mysteries Book 1) by Dick Rosano
Book excerpt
The event at Ristorante Firenze was as good as billed. The wines were spectacular, and I had the chance to taste some that were not available in the States. Sipping my way through about fifty wines as planned, I carried Simone through the protocol and was rewarded with increasingly flirtatious comments and body touches.
But I was here on an assignment and being sidetracked by the American Ambassador didn’t seem like a good idea. After completing my task, I bid her good night which she insisted on sealing with a warm kiss on the cheek. I escorted her to the sidewalk and a waiting cab, then turned toward Stephansplatz, heading toward Weihburggasse and the four-block walk back to the Vienna Marriott and my room. Morning came early today, and I woke to the rising sun shining through the windows that I had failed to curtain the night before. I reached for the TV remote and clicked on CNN to see what was brewing at home, then rose from the bed to shower.
I was often told that Café Central was the best place for coffee in Vienna and I decided that this was the day to find out. It was a ten-minute walk from the hotel and the air was fresh, so I donned a light jacket and exited the Marriott toward Stephansplatz.
The café occupies a prestigious corner at the intersection of Strauchgasse and Herrengasse and serves as an all-day gathering place for the Viennese as well as tourists who’ve done their research and read up about the place. Over the years, the establishment has been visited by a long list of historic figures, including politicians, statesmen, and scientists, from Leon Trotsky, Joseph Stalin, and Adolph Hitler to Sigmund Freud, Adolph Loos, and Alfred Adler. That guest list would have been incentive enough to visit, but the café’s reputation for the best coffee and pastry in the city was my reason for stopping by.
As I walked in, I looked up at the high, vaulted ceilings sectioned by arches that connect at geometric angles above the room. The entire area is lit by grand chandeliers which cast majestic lighting on the comfortable tables and booths below. The center of the café is dominated by a bar that, in mornings such as this, is filled with sugary morning delights and the heady aromas of just-roasted coffee beans. A seated sculpture of 19th century Austrian writer Peter Altenberg greets those arriving from the street, catching them in his penetrating gaze as the door swings open onto the dining area.
The hostess guided me to a booth near the window but, just as I was about to slide onto the seat, I saw a familiar face at a small table by the back wall.
“Danke, fräulein,” I said, but waved her off and proceeded to the table at the other end of the dining room.
“Hello,” I said, greeting Weber who was sitting alone with her morning paper and black coffee. I had heard that the cappuccino and latte here were famous, but I wasn’t surprised that the inspector would be sipping from a cup of black coffee. It was simple, direct, and no-nonsense. Just like her.
The Ghost Of Villa Winter (Canary Islands Mysteries Book 4) by Isobel Blackthorn
Book excerpt
She turned and attempted to bolt through the room in the blackness, managing to stub her toe on the side of a trunk on her way by. She slowed and took a few more steps. Once she was reasonably confident she was out of the path of the window, she switched on her phone torch and ran over to the armchairs.
‘Richard!’
He was still snoring. She shone the torch in his face and shook him awake.
‘What on earth,’ he said, covering his eyes.
‘Get up and get moving.’
‘Just hold on a minute,’ he said, easing himself to his feet.
‘We don’t have time to muck about. We’ve got company. We have to get out of here.’
She went and kicked out of the way the jacket they were using as a door sausage, then thought better of it and picked it up. There wasn’t time to put it back where it came from. There wasn’t time to replace the metal pail Richard had fetched either. Still, it was unlikely to arouse suspicion unless whoever it was carried an inventory of every item in the room and its precise location. They were out the door in no time, Clarissa leading the way.
‘What about our food?’ Richard said.
‘It’ll have to stay there. Hurry up.’
The crunch of tyres on gravel grew ever closer. Light appeared at the entrance to the courtyard as they entered the tower room.
Clarissa raced over to the stairs.
‘Where to?’
‘The bunkers.’
‘You have to be kidding.’
‘We’ve no choice. If we climb the stairs to the tower there’s every chance we’ll be seen. Follow me. And be careful,’ she hissed. ‘Don’t make a sound and don’t, whatever you do, trip.’
Si Tu M'Aimes: If You Love Me by Simone Beaudelaire
Book excerpt
The days passed. Nick didn't get tired of Breanne. Breanne didn't get tired of Nick. They clung to each other, unable to let go, unwilling to resist. They grew closer and closer. As they learned about each other, the wild infatuation gave way to a true, soul-deep connection; no less explosive, but far more secure.
One weekend in July, Nick took Breanne out for a special lunch.
“Where are we going?” she asked as he steered the Beamer into an industrial part of town. “Are you sure I’m dressed right?” She indicated her embroidered jeans, thin summer blouse, and flip flops.
He stopped at a red light and turned, taking a quick glance at her appearance. “You look charming. Anything more would be too much.”
The light changed, and he pulled through the intersection and immediately merged into the turning lane. Breanne regarded the golden arches in consternation. “We’re going here?”
He laughed. “Surprising, isn’t it? I don’t go in much for fast food, but there’s a reason for this. Can you stand it?”
Breanne shrugged. How mysterious. “I’m surprised, but I told you I’m not picky. It’s fine.”
He pulled into a parking space but made no move to exit the car. Instead, he seemed to scan the other vehicles.
“Nick, what’s going on?” she demanded. “Why are we eating fast food, and what are you looking for?”
He grinned at her, but the crinkles around his eyes looked more like strain than joy. “Wait and see. It’s a surprise. Come on, let’s go inside.”
Breanne could feel his heart pounding against her side as he wrapped his arm around her waist and escorted her in. “What would you like?” he asked, indicating the cashier at the front counter.
A Very Mersey Murder (Mersey Murder Mysteries Book 5) by Brian L. Porter
Book excerpt
“Albert Cretingham?” Ross asked the man who responded to his second knock on the door. Albert Cretingham looked older than his years, standing around five feet ten or eleven, his brown hair cut short in an old-fashioned short back and sides style. There were a few patches of premature grey visible at the sides and back, and Cretingham had a thin, hawkish face, with heavy eyebrows that gave him a slightly demonic look in Drake's mind,
Both Ross and Drake had taken note of the small but pristine garden at the front of the cottage style house, even the concrete path to the door being totally clear of weeds or moss, unusual in this day and age.
“Who wants to know?” the man replied.
Both detectives held up their warrant cards.
“Detective Inspector Ross and Detective Sergeant Drake, Merseyside Police.”
“I've already spoke to your lot,” the man replied.
“So I understand. But we have some questions for your father too,” Ross wasn't going to give the younger Cretingham the chance to deny the existence of his father.
“My father?”
“Yes, your father; the one you forgot to mention as being here when D.C. Curtis called on you earlier.”
“Oh yeah, right. Well, Dad's not well you see, and I didn't think he could tell the detective much as he doesn't go out much these days, so he wouldn't have seen anything useful anyway.”
“We'd like a word with your father anyway, Mr. Cretingham. We understand he has a very good memory and we'd like to talk to him about the murders of three women in 1966.”
“What? I thought you were investigating the recent murders here in Hale, not some shit from all that time ago.”
“We are, but it's just possible that the two events might be connected.”
There you go: the books set in Europe from Next Chapter in 03/2023. We hope you enjoy the novels above - and if you do, please leave a comment below, or a review in Goodreads or your favorite store. It would mean a lot to us!
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