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223 ratings | 78 reviews | avg rating:4.45

Jess’s Year In Books

Jess’s 2025 Year in Books

Take a look at Jess’s Year in Books, including some fun facts about their reading.

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Jess Wells’s Followers (92)

Jess’s Bookshelves

to-read (5)
currently-reading (2)
read (236)
did-not-finish (5)
abandoned (19)
women-in-history (6)

Jess’s Friends (492)

Gwen

71,196 books | 17 friends

L.J. Reynolds

332 books | 254 friends

Ching-In

18,981 books | 1,616 friends

Paulette Mahurin

229 books | 989 friends

Lynn Kear

16 books | 110 friends

Vannessa Anderson

4,405 books | 2,544 friends

Kate

1,839 books | 3,553 friends

Claire

83 books | 783 friends

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Jess Wells

Goodreads Author

Born

The United States

Website

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jess_Wells

Twitter

JessWellsAuthor

Genre

Literature & Fiction, Historical Fiction, Fantasy

Influences

Faulkner, Rushdie, Garcia-Marquez, Winterson

Member Since

March 2008

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Wells is the author of seven novels and five books of short stories. Her latest work, Dancing Through a Deluge is set in post-plague England, 1351, when a lapsed nun's mistaken identity offers her the dangerous chance to free indentured peasants.

Winner of the Nautilus Silver Prize, Jaguar Paloma and the Caketown Bar is set in 1865 when two extraordinary women establish a raucous trading post for cast-off women. Their mirth is challenged by a greedy mayor and a murderous forger. Reviewers are calling it “exquisitely written.”

She recently re-released The Mandrake Broom: When the Witches Fought Back, a historical novel dramatizing the fight to save medical knowledge during the witch-burning times in Europe, 1465-1540.

Her previous novel,
Straig ...more

120 posts
Jess Wells's Blog

Musings on Historical Fiction with Quintillion Words

What a pleasure to chat with Emily Quinn of Quintillion Words about historical fiction. Questions like:

How did you weave the themes of strength and freedom into a time period that often suppressed these qualities?
How did you approach the research for this book? Did you find out anything that surprised you along the way?
Were there any particular relationships in the book that you found most challen Read more of this blog post »

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Published on January 04, 2025 00:00

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Jess Wells’s books

Average rating: 3.9 · 321 ratings · 60 reviews · 24 distinct works • Similar authors

	Fahişeliğin Tarihi 3.81 avg rating — 37 ratings — published 1997	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Straight Uphill: A Tale of Love and Chocolate 3.66 avg rating — 35 ratings — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Mandrake Broom 3.73 avg rating — 30 ratings — published 2007 — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Jaguar Paloma and the Caketown Bar 4.25 avg rating — 16 ratings — published 2021 — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Love Shook My Heart 2: Lesbian Love Stories 4.13 avg rating — 15 ratings — published 2001	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Lesbians Raising Sons: An Anthology 3.88 avg rating — 16 ratings — published 1997	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	A Slender Tether 4.58 avg rating — 12 ratings — published 2013 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Dancing Through A Deluge: A medieval woman’s fight for freedom. 4.60 avg rating — 10 ratings — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Aftershocks 4.40 avg rating — 10 ratings — published 1992 — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Two Willow Chairs 4.67 avg rating — 6 ratings — published 1999 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

More books by Jess Wells…

Jess is Currently Reading

Jess is currently reading

How to Stay Alive in the Woods: A Complete Guide to Food, Shelter and Self-Preservation Anywhere

by Bradford Angier

bookshelves: currently-reading

read in March 2023

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Feb 26, 2020 12:02PM

Jess is currently reading

I Want a Better Catastrophe: Navigating the Climate Crisis with Grief, Hope, and Gallows Humor

by Andrew Boyd (Goodreads Author)

bookshelves: currently-reading

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Apr 14, 2026 06:40AM

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Jess’s Recent Updates

Jess rated a book it was amazing Astreya’s Sorrow (Seventh book in The Astreya Trilogy by Seymour Hamilton (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
I’m in awe of anyone who can bring characters on a journey as long and complex as Seymour Hamilton’s Astreya's series, an example of excellent world building and a deep understanding of human nature. Immerse yourself in the world of Astreya, across l ...more
Sep 13, 2026 11:22AM · like · see review
Jess rated a book it was amazing Cook This Book: Techniques That Teach and Recipes To Repeat by Molly Baz	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Apr 14, 2026 06:52AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Cook This Book by Molly Baz. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Cook This Book by Molly Baz <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Jess rated a book it was amazing The Complete Cooking for Two Cookbook: 650 Recipes for Everything You'll Ever Want to Make by America's Test Kitchen	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Apr 14, 2026 06:52AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The Complete Cooking for Two Cookbook by America's Test Kitchen. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Complete Cooking for Two Cookbook by America's Test Kitchen <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Jess rated a book it was amazing The Complete Cooking for Two Cookbook: 650 Recipes for Everything You'll Ever Want to Make by America's Test Kitchen	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Apr 14, 2026 06:51AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The Complete Cooking for Two Cookbook by America's Test Kitchen. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Complete Cooking for Two Cookbook by America's Test Kitchen <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Jess did not finish The Moral Arc: How Science Makes Us Better People by Michael Shermer	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Apr 14, 2026 06:44AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The Moral Arc by Michael Shermer. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Moral Arc by Michael Shermer <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Jess started reading How to Stay Alive in the Woods: A Complete Guide to Food, Shelter and Self-Preservation Anywhere by Bradford Angier	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Apr 14, 2026 06:44AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of How to Stay Alive in the Woods by Bradford Angier. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — How to Stay Alive in the Woods by Bradford Angier <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Jess did not finish The Mosquito: A Human History of Our Deadliest Predator by Timothy C. Winegard (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Apr 14, 2026 06:42AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The Mosquito by Timothy C. Winegard. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Mosquito by Timothy C. Winegard <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Jess did not finish Code Girls: The Untold Story of the American Women Code Breakers Who Helped Win World War II by Liza Mundy (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Apr 14, 2026 06:42AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Code Girls by Liza Mundy. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Code Girls by Liza Mundy <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Jess did not finish Midnight's Borders: A People's History of Modern India by Suchitra Vijayan (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Apr 14, 2026 06:41AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Midnight's Borders by Suchitra Vijayan. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Midnight's Borders by Suchitra Vijayan <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Jess did not finish Legacy of Ashes: The History of the CIA by Tim Weiner (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Apr 14, 2026 06:41AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Legacy of Ashes by Tim Weiner. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Legacy of Ashes by Tim Weiner <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">

More of Jess's books…

Jess’s Quotes

“Though a living cannot be made from art, art makes life worth living. It makes starving, living.”
― John Sloan, John Sloan on Drawing and Painting

tags: art, inspirational, life

7 likes

Jess’s Friend Comments

Comments (showing 1-7) post a comment »

date

newest »

message 7: by Mark

Dec 19, 2015 09:56PM

Thanks for connecting Jess! I wish you continued success on your fourth novel. Check out my books: "100 Years: A Journey to End a Vicious Cycle" and "These Are Your Flowers" on Amazon http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B00TLXK5L6

reply | flag

message 6: by Bradley

Jan 18, 2009 01:10AM

I hope you are having a good day! =)

http://www.cardshark.com/content/view...

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message 5: by ♀☻ஆ(¸.•'´Pal2aSt0o `'•.¸)

Sep 27, 2008 06:13AM

Hi, Jess!

Thanks for adding me

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message 4: by Holly

Sep 16, 2008 08:42AM

Hi, Jess!

Thanks for the invite!!

Holly

ONCE UPON A THANKSGIVING...available on eHarlequin.com now and on shelves in October!

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message 3: by ROSALIE

Jul 28, 2008 11:48AM

Silly me...I've just realized there are blogspot addresses as part of our profiles. I would be happy if you dropped by sometime. And is it okay for me to visit yours? You sound like a very interesting person.

justmeRosalie

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message 2: by ROSALIE

Jul 19, 2008 04:59PM

Hi,Jess,
How kind of you to agree to be my friend. Thanks for responding.
I'll type you later.
justmeRosalie

reply | flag

message 1: by Catherine

Mar 14, 2008 02:21PM

Hi there! Nice to see you out here too. :-)

reply | flag

Jess Wells’s Followers (92)

Jess Wells

Goodreads Author

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