Sparrowhawk — Jack Frake

The first volume of Cline’s six-book Sparrowhawk sequence, which follows two young Englishmen from smuggling and the customs wars of the 1740s through to the American Revolution.

Why it’s on the list: Named in the replies to @moseskagan asking what historical fiction to read next — a crowd-sourced list Kyle recovered by hand and saved. A series explicitly about trade, contraband and the ideas that turned into a revolution.

Kyle’s line reads “Sparrowhawk series by Edward Cline” — one card for the series, filed under its first volume.

Where I saw it: In the replies to @moseskagan asking “What historical fiction should I read next? (Bonus points for something involving building or trade, rather than violence)” (April 13, 2025). Kyle recovered the reply list by hand and saved it to his “Books To Read” Apple Note; the full transcribed list lives on What historical fiction should I… (tweet).

Connections

• What historical fiction should I… (tweet) — the thread this came out of; the full recovered list lives there.
• Historical Fiction — the genre the thread was asking about.