Books like The Ruby in Her Navel by Barry Unsworth
In the glittering yet fragile kingdom of Norman Sicily, the novel opens in Palermo, a city where Latin Christians, Greek Orthodox, Muslims, and Jews coexist in uneasy harmony. Thurstan Beauchamp, son of a Norman knight, serves in the royal treasury, managing bribes, blackmail, and intelligence for King William. Faced with internal unrest and external threats, he is tasked with uncovering plots against the crown. During his investigations he encounters a former love and the enigmatic presence of an itinerant dancing girl, prompting a spiritual and moral introspection that questions chivalric ideals, ambition, and blind obedience.
Unsworth’s evocative prose and precise narrative bring the medieval setting to life, highlighting the complex racial, tribal, and religious tensions that echo into the present day.
First publish date: 2006
Genre: Historical Fiction/Medieval Historical Fiction
Authors: Barry Unsworth
★
★
★
★
★
0.0 (0 community ratings)
How are these books recommended?
The books recommended for The Ruby in Her Navel by Barry Unsworth are shaped by reader interaction. Votes on how closely books relate, user ratings, and community comments all help refine these recommendations and highlight books readers genuinely find similar in theme, ideas, and overall reading experience.
Have you read any of these books?
Your votes, ratings, and comments help improve recommendations and make it easier
for other readers to discover books they’ll enjoy.
Books similar to The Ruby in Her Navel (22 similar books)
During World War II, a foster girl in Nazi Germany steals books to share with neighbors and a hidden Jewish man, proving literature’s power to nourish the soul amid darkness.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
A 1930s wartime tale of a blind French girl and a German boy whose lives intersect in occupied France, weaving themes of survival, friendship, and the moral choices people make amid World War II.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
In an elite New England college, a charismatic classics professor lures a group of eccentric students into obsessive study, leading them from intellectual curiosity to corruption, betrayal, and ultimately murder.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
Cora, a woman enslaved on a Georgia cotton plantation, partners with a new slave named Caesar to flee the South. Their daring escape follows a literal underground network of tunnels that mirrors the perilous journey of countless fugitive slaves toward freedom.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
Americanah follows Ifemelu, a Nigerian student who moves to the United States for university, exploring her life and love across continents while reflecting on identity, immigration, and cultural belonging.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
A young scholar uncovers a labyrinthine family legacy, tracing the truth of Vlad the Impaler and the myth of Dracula across centuries and borders, risking life and sanity to confront an ancient evil.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
After the Civil War, a veteran newspaper‑reader, Captain Jefferson Kidd, journeys through Texas and agrees to escort an orphaned Kiowa girl, Johanna, to San Antonio—a perilous trek that tests their survival and trust.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
After a tragic gunshot wound, former chief detective Carl Mørck is reassigned to cold‑case work, where he is drawn into a five‑year investigation of a missing Danish politician.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
A historical fiction recounting the 480 BC Battle of Thermopylae, where 300 Spartans faced the Persian army led by King Xerxes, exploring the themes of courage, honor, and the enduring human spirit.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
Mario Puzo traces the rise of the Borgia family, revealing the intertwined forces of ambition, faith, and power that shaped one of Italy’s most notorious dynasties.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
A spirited young traveler arrives at Emperor Akbar’s court with a tale of a mysterious, enchantress woman whose story travels to Florence, juxtaposing the hedonistic Mughal capital with the sensual High Renaissance city.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
Hugh De Luc's quest to find Sophie, kidnapped during the Crusades, is fraught with danger and historical intrigue.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
A Scottish crusader named Sir Kenneth proves his honor and discovers his destiny in Sir Walter Scott’s tale of chivalry, romance, and deceit during the Third Crusade.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
Through a Glass Darkly follows Barbara Alderley, a beautiful fifteen‑year‑old noblewoman, as love, ambition and family intrigue unfold within the ruthless circles of the English aristocracy.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
A boy travels to Jerusalem to save his family’s lands and discovers a legendary relic in 'The Celtic Crusades' trilogy.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
Sarah Dunant revisits Renaissance Italy’s most infamous family, the Borgias, as Cesare Leone Borgia seeks to unite the Italian city‑states, while Florence sends Niccolò Machiavelli and Lucrezia excels in ruthless political intrigue.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
In 1855 Lucy Lobdell cuts her hair, adopts a male persona, and boldly gains freedoms forbidden to women—traveling solo, carrying a rifle, drinking in bars, and forming same‑gender relationships—while confronting public scorn and a nascent understanding of her own sexual identity.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
In fifteenth‑century Rome, Spanish Cardinal Rodrigo Borgia becomes Pope Alexander VI, wielding papal power to advance his Italian city's fortunes through his ruthless family—sons Cesare and daughter Lucrezia—against a backdrop of corruption and ambition.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
Caitriona, heartened by her father's quest, follows the trail of the Holy Cup through Constantinople, Damascus and Aragon, confronting the Knights Templar and the Moors while seeking revenge and a sacred relic.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
An historical fiction portrait of the powerful d'Este family in Renaissance Ferrara, weaving intrigue and family drama into a vivid depiction of Italian noble life.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
Some Other Similar Books
The Name of the Rose by Umberto EcoThe Thirteenth Tale by Daphne du Maurier
The Little Friend by Donna Tartt
The Man Who Loved Books by Lynn Freed
Have a similar book in mind? Let others know!
Please login to submit books!