Books like Dark fire by C. J. Sansom

Oliver Twist, Charles Dickens’s 1837-39 social novel, follows an orphan raised in a workhouse who flees to London, joins a gang of pickpockets, and uncovers family secrets while exposing child labour and exploitation.

John Grisham’s debut legal thriller follows a murder trial in Mississippi that explores capital punishment, racial discrimination, and the complexities of the judicial system.

Dan Simmons’ historical thriller follows Charles Dickens after a train accident in 1865, reexamining his life, London society, and the unresolved mystery of his final unfinished novel.

Set in 15th‑century London amid the Reformation, "Dissolution" follows lawyer Matthew Shardlake as he confronts intrigue surrounding the closing of Benedictine monasteries.

In 1933 London, a young Indian woman’s body is found in a canal. Maisie Dobbs, the city’s leading private investigator, steps in when Scotland Yard’s investigation stalls, uncovering a web of secrecy and injustice.

Montauk lawyer Tom Dunleavy defends a local man accused in a triple murder, but finds the case rests atop a volcano of money and forbidden desires.

When Henry VIII courts Lady Catherine Parr, rebelling reformers plot a purge and a teenage religious fanatic is held in Bedlam – Shardlake must uncover the murders that threaten to tear London apart.

Erast Fandorin, a young Russian diplomat, and police commissioner “Papa” Gauche board the steamship Leviathan to solve a crime of a stolen statue and a murder before the ship reaches Calcutta.

Widowed Lady Cassandra St. Ives finds herself drawn to a mysterious long-distance admirer, Count Basilio Montevarchi. When she visits his home, the passion that blossoms is torn by duty and an existing betrothal.

Erast Fandorin, Russia’s charming sleuth, tackles two thrilling cases in 19th‑century Moscow: a cunning swindler who rigs fortunes, and a brutal serial killer who calls himself the ‘Decorator,’ each demanding clever disguises and sharp deduction.

After a heated war's end, star‑crossed lovers Virginia Brandon and Steve Morgan face trials that tear them apart, yet their fierce bond refuses to die, promising a fiery reunion that redefines romance.

After a stay in Italy, Lady Julia returns to her Sussex estate, only to discover a murder at a nearby abbey. With private investigator Nicholas Brisbane, she navigates intrigue, family secrets and a snowbound conspiracy to uncover the killer before another tragedy.

During the American Revolutionary War, Carlisle Kincaid, a vessel of untouchable virtue, resists the advances of rugged adventurer Chase Lancaster, whose protective instinct is challenged by love and loyalty.

Set in the summer of 1549, lawyer Matthew Shardlake investigates the death of a distant relative of Henry VIII's daughter Lady Elizabeth, amidst the chaos of Kett's Rebellion

A diver running a resort on Seafire Isle can't escape the lure of a buried treasure. When her ex‑lover and mysterious guests arrive, she faces kidnapping, deception, and a deadly secret that may claim her life.

A compelling thriller and love story set in post–Civil War Spain Fans of Carlos Ruiz Zafon's The Shadow of the Wind and Sebastian Faulks's Birdsong will fall in love with Winter in Madrid, the arresting new novel from C. J. Sansom. In September 1940, the Spanish Civil War is over and Madrid lies in ruins while the Germans continue their march through Europe. Britain stands alone as General Franco considers whether to abandon neutrality and enter the war. Into this uncertain world comes Harry Brett, a privileged young man who was recently traumatized by his experience in Dunkirk and is now a reluctant spy for the British Secret Service. Sent to gain the confidence of Sandy Forsyth, an old school friend turned shadowy Madrid businessman, Brett finds himself involved in a dangerous game and surrounded by memories. Meanwhile, Sandy's girlfriend, ex-Red Cross nurse Barbara Clare, is engaged in a secret mission of her own—to find her former lover Bernie Piper, whose passion for the Communist cause led him into the International Brigades and who vanished on the bloody battlefields of the Jarama. In a vivid and haunting depiction of wartime Spain, Winter in Madrid is an intimate and riveting tale that offers a remarkable sense of history unfolding and the profound impact of impossible choices.

Detective Jon Kent meets radio personality Tracy Michaels in an arson investigation and finds himself caught in a web of passion and danger.

Jun Nakayama, a forgotten silent‑film icon, is drawn out of obscurity by a writer's curiosity, only to confront a past steeped in racial tension, Hollywood ambition, and an unsolved murder in 1922.

A collection of two novels by John Grisham featuring legal narratives and investigative stories.