Having the memory of a baked potato, I had to skim my own blog entries to compile a list. As I was doing that anyway, I linked reviews to the titles. There's a majority in the first few months of the year, due to Christmas presents and gift card spending.
Sword of Destiny, by Andrzej Sapkowski
The second (I think) Witcher book. I like the grim and gritty world, and the Eastern European inspiration is something that's pretty novel to me.
Stalin: the Court of the Red Tsar, by Simon Sebag Montefiore
This is bloody grim in large places, a cross between 1984 and Animal Farm (perhaps unsurprisingly as the far left were the 'inspiration' behind those Orwellian worlds). It filled in a lot of blanks I had about a regime every bit as wretched as the Nazis but bizarrely underrepresented in popular culture, both with dramas and documentaries. It's not a nice book but I strongly recommend it.
Silent Heroes, by Evelyn le Chene
It's a book about heroic animals in war (as you might expect, not all of them made it). It's still a great read, though, even if you might feel inadequate when you read about a certain dog that was a parachuting member of the SAS.
Medea and Other Plays, by Euripides
I first read these a long old time ago. More into history than literature by some way, but these are fantastically emotive plays that work with timeless themes (sexual jealousy, the bitterness of divorce, vengeance, and that's just in the first of four plays).
Musashi, by Eiji Yoshikawa
Another re-read. Maybe as much as two decades had passed since my initial reading and I had vague memories of liking it but finding it heavy weather at times. This time, I just thought it was fantastic and read it relatively quickly despite its large size (just under a thousand pages). Very well-written, cunningly interwoven story arcs of numerous interesting characters, and a great book.
Red Sister, by Mark Lawrence
I'll be honest, I only bought this as it was on sale. Well, that and the fact I'd like the Thorns series. As it happens, I liked it a lot. If you liked Prince of Thorns etc, this should be up your street. Follows Nona, a violent young lady who becomes a nun in a world where nuns are often rather poisonous and violent.
The Time Traveller's Guide to Restoration Britain, by Ian Mortimer
I've read the other two books in the series, and this is the same approach with a drastically different time period. Science explodes onto the scene whilst people still believe in witchcraft, the postal system really gets going, clocks are invented, street lighting comes on, and the majority are still poor and some live in literally medieval conditions. Enthralling, as always.
Angel's Knight, by AJ Grimmelhaus
The trilogy's final part so I can't say too much, but I enjoyed the series and the world-building behind it (mixing, perhaps, elements of a mostly fantastical world and a sci-fi one). The Angelwar series is well worth a look.
The Norman Conquest, by Marc Morris
I got this in a sale, and it may be the best £3 I ever spent. A fantastic book that covers both the preceding period, painting a good picture of England pre-1066, the invasion itself, and the subsequent years (including the rather brutal Harrowing/Harrying of the North). Top notch history.
The Fears of Henry IV, by Ian Mortimer
This begins almost as a dual biography of Richard II and Henry IV, two men of roughly the same age, roughly the same prestige, and utterly different characters. Henry IV is a fascinating chap, much harder to pigeonhole than some monarchs, and I was utterly ignorant (beforehand) of both his and Richard's reigns. Another great history.
Kill Them All, by Sean McGlynn
A cheery title, this is about the Albigensian Crusade which took place in the early 13th century in Languedoc (southern France) where the Cathar heresy was proving popular. An unhealthy cocktail of power politics and papal desire to crush heresy led to a war that was pretty brutal even by medieval standards, and features a surprisingly large number of men called Raymond (honestly, practically all the counts are called Raymond). A grim but engaging history.
Those of you who have been paying attention will notice I've listed 11. Or, 10, in base 11.