Tasha Alexander Books In Order
Book links take you to Amazon. As an Amazon Associate I earn money from qualifying purchases.Publication Order of Lady Emily Books
Publication Order of Standalone Novels
| Elizabeth: The Golden Age | (2007) | Description / Buy at Amazon |
| Christmas Magic | (2017) | Description / Buy at Amazon |
Tasha Alexander is a New York Times bestselling author of the Lady Emily Series and Elizabeth: The Golden Age. She is a self-described author of “smart historical fiction.”She majored in English with a concentration in Medieval Studies at the University of Notre Dame. Her education made her a stickler for meticulous accuracy when it comes to her novels. She has been nominated for a number of awards for her accomplishments.
Her husband is also an author and they split their time between Chicago, Illinois and the UK. She has written 11 novels in the Lady Emily Series, and Elizabeth: The Golden Age, a novel based upon the Academy Award winning movie “The Golden Age.”
Character: Lady Emily
Emily is reminiscent of strong, independent female leads, like Jane Eyre, and Elizabeth from Pride and Prejudice. What sets these types of characters apart is their questioning of societal norms in a time when women were not valued as independent thinkers. Perhaps most endearing is Emily’s nontraditional manners. While she has had tea with the Queen, she still prefers cigars and solving mysteries, and cares little about what others think of her, making her the subject of gossip on the social scene.
Alexander has said that when she created Emily, she wanted her transformation to be realistic. Alexander thought long and hard about what a transition from a typical Victorian Era woman of means into a woman who openly questions social norms would look like. Alexander developed Emily slowly, beginning with an “intellectual awakening”, followed by an expansion of her horizons through travel.
What makes Emily a fascinating character is that in a time when women were expected to be married at a young age, she had no desire to get married, but did so to escape her controlling mother. Her husband’s unexpected death frees her in a sense, allowing her to move to London and pursue her dreams.
And Only to Deceive (Lady Emily Book #1)
Tasha is best known for her Lady Emily Series, which she began writing in 2002, inspired by Gaudy Night, written by Dorothy L. Sayers. And Only to Deceive, the first installment in the Lady Emily series, was published in 2005.
The novel takes place in Victorian England, where we find our protagonist widowed after her husband Philip is unexpectedly killed during a hunting expedition in Africa.
It wasn’t until after the death of her husband that she discovered his journals, revealing some questionable activity, but heartbreakingly illuminating how much he truly loved her, making her fall a bit in love with him post-mortem.
This prompts Emily to embark on a journey of change and empowerment, a transformation we witness throughout the entire series. Emily embraces her newfound independence and travels to London to pursue her true love, reading. She develops an obsession with Greek culture and literature, which she reads in Greek.
In her new home, she befriends Cecile du Lac, who quickly becomes the Watson to her Sherlock. As Philip’s secrets continue to emerge, combined with information from two of his friends, the duo begin to question whether Philip’s death was actually an accident, or if he is trulydead at all. She also meets a new suitor, Colin Hargreaves.
In this very first novel, we witness the start of Emily’s transformation Into a strong, intelligent and independent woman, leaving readers craving not only answers to the mysteries left unsolved about her deceased husband, but also the continuation of Emily’s own personal growth during an age where she is ahead of her time.
A Poisoned Season (Lady Emily Book #2)
After a move to Tennessee, Tasha Alexander wrote A Poisoned Season entirely in a Starbucks, which was published in 2007. The story continues in London in the midst of a new mystery, a thief with a penchant for the belongings of Marie Antoinette. Now that might not sound incredibly interesting, but once someone reports the theft of one of the Queen’s belongings, that person is murdered, prompting Lady Emily to begin her own investigation, continuing her personal growth as a freethinker and problem solver.
At the same time, Emily faces a personal mystery of her own. She seems to have acquired an admirer. The admirer obviously knows of her love for all things Greek, because he leaves her message after message in Greek. Colin continues to court her, with each gesture revealing how much he knows about her and loves her.
Alexander has an ability to subtly tie in historical references and norms without itfeeling forced or out of place. In this novel, we see Lady Emily’s reputation come into question simply because she visits a single man’s apartment on her own, paired with her natural tendency to be a freethinker and amateur sleuth, which was generally frowned upon in Victorian high society.
Emily continues to shine as we witness her personal journey. She’s remains resistant in the face of societal expectations. She shuts down her mother’s attempts to convince her to marry either Colin or her childhood friend, Jeremy, the Duke of Bainbridge. Lady Emily, despite her existence being two centuries in the past, remains a good role model for the strong female.
Elizabeth: The Golden Age
Tasha Alexander, stays true to her fascination with European history and strong female leads,bywritingElizabeth: The Golden Age, a novel based upon the Academy Award winning movie “The Golden Age”, which was a sequel to the Academy Award nominated movie “Elizabeth.” The novel’s focal point is Queen Elizabeth I.
Queen Elizabeth I is an inspirationalleader who refuses to back down. She is reminiscent of Alexander’s Lady Emily character. Unafraid to face war in order to stand up for what she believes in, she prepares to fight against King Phillip of Spain and his powerful army. He wishes to forcefully convert the entire nation of England to Catholicism.
What makes this tale truly relatable are the notions of love and betrayal. As she prepares for war, the Queen falls deeply in love with Sir Walter Raleigh, but as Queen, she cannot pursue romance, as her allegiance is to her country before all else.
Despite this devotion, the Queen discovers that her most trusted advisors and family members have been plotting against her. Her strength in the face of all of these obstacles is what makes her character lovable, strong and influential.
Tasha Alexander’s portrayal of women during a time that was difficult for women to express themselves is an inspiration to all and her books are worth a read. The mystery aspect makes them impossible to put down and educates the reader at the same time.
Book Series In Order » Authors »
Any issues with the book list you are seeing? Or is there an author or series we don’t have? Let me know!
Due to my eyes, I only read large print. Just finished my first “Emily”, “And Only TO Deceive”! I was so hoping that Philip was alive in Greece, a favorite place of ours. However, I liked Colin a lot and his job after he surfaced as a GOOD GUY for her personality. Love her personality and her way of thinking. My husband calls me, “The wonderer”, because I wonder about everything as I go about trying to solve unknowns. Really enjoyed reading this LG print book. NEED large print!!!
@MarthaSteadman
I just found out she has a new book coming out in October. Found out you can preorder it while looking for her books for my Mom. She was quite happy to see how many books she will get to read lol.
Also does anyone know if and where I can find Lady Emily Christmas series in paperback or hardcover?
I love reading about the Lady Emily series. I love it when you entwine her with someone who lived before her. Very interesting!
Will there be more books in the Lady Emily series? If so, when? Really enjoy the read.