The 20 most famous historical fiction books that deserve to be read

These convincing novels mix facts and fiction for exciting educational conduct.


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If you cannot decide to know if it is necessary Open the spine From a fiction or non-fiction book, we have a genre for you. Historical fiction, the works that take place in the past and make their historical framework important parts of the narrative intrigue, scratch a itching like a few other genres. You can follow the characters and enter their heads while being transported over time. The best works of historical fiction can help you better understand an era than the simple reading of a non-fiction work on this subject, because the fictional character that you follow in this real time helps you to feel connected to the past.

There are countless examples of historical fiction, as long as there are sub-genres in the genre. There are books of romantic historical fiction, books of historical fiction of horror, books of historical fiction of adventure and many others. To help you start, we have set up a sample of 20 major works of historical fiction, covering several genres, eras and different places. Read the rest to find out which books you should read (or listen) then.

Prices are up to date at the time of publication but are likely to change.

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1
The abominable by Dan Simmons

Books of the rear bay

Dan Simmons is probably better known for Terror , a work of historical fiction which turns into the supernatural when a monster attacks the condemned men of the lost expedition of Franklin to find the passage of the North West. The abominable , whose title refers to the Yetis haunt the Himalayas, first sounds as if it could be too supernatural to qualify for this list, but it is largely a very anchored story on mountaineering, full of Adventure, colorful characters and many research on the history of mountain climbing.

2
All the light that we cannot see by Anthony Doerr

Scriber

Recently adapted in A Netflix mini-series ,, All the light that we cannot see Follows Marie-Laure Leblanc, a blind French woman living in Saint-Malo after the Nazis invade Paris, and Werner Pfennig, a student of the German military school. This novel winner of the Pulitzer Prize explores the themes of war and human nature, and author Anthony Doerr received praise for his sensory writing style.

3
Atonement by Ian McEwan

Anchor books

Ian McEwan's The 2001 acclaimed novel follows Briony Tallis, a wealthy English girl in the 1930s who, in a misunderstanding who is not entirely innocent, to her lover of her older sister Cecilia Robbie in prison, identifying her as the author of an assault that he did not commit. The fallout from this accusation continued in the Second World War and beyond, Briony finally realized that she ruined the life of Cecilia and Robbie and that she wants to atone - if it is even possible. The book has been adapted in an Oscar -winning film with James McAvoy ,, Keira Knightley , And Saoirsle Ronan .

4
Master and Commander by Patrick O'Brian

W. W. Norton & Company

Patrick O'Brian Series of nautical history novels, starting with the years 1969 Master and Commander , are extremely daddy's driver , but their call is widespread. Located in the Napoleonic wars, the series follows Captain Jack Aubrey de la Royal Navy and the surgeon of his ship Stephen Maturin, a strange couple who embarks on many adventures at sea by serving the king and the country. Russel Crowe And Paul Betany Played like the pair in a cinematographic adaptation which drew three of the books: Master and commander: the gap in the world .

The film was acclaimed by criticism but did not have the success necessary to launch a film franchise. Fortunately, there are 21 pounds in the Aubrey / Maturin series for fans of the time and the nautical spirit of O'Brian.

5
The blind murderer By Margaret Atwood

Anchor

Margaret Atwood of The history of the servant Fame wrote this novel of 2000 on a pair of sisters whose life in a port city in Ontario extends over almost a century of Canadian history. Intertwined is a novel with a novel, the holder Blind assassin , a luscious science fiction book one of the sisters has written that has links with their real relationships.

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6
Thieves by David Benioff

Penguin books

David Benioff , better known now as half of the creative duo behind Game Of Thrones , wrote a historic fiction novel acclaimed in 2008 before moving to television. Located during the headquarters of Leningrad during the Second World War, City of Thieves, followed two boys who were responsible for obtaining a dozen eggs for a member of the Russian secret police - stated that it was done in the besieged city . Thieves has been cited as an inspiration For video games The last of us , which was adapted in a successful HBO drama itself.

7
Deadly Dead by Michael Crichton

Ancient

Please don't confuse Deadly Dead with its cinematographic adaptation The 13th Warrior , which is sadly One of the largest box office bombs in history. The book, of jurassic park And The Andromeda strain author Michael Crichton , is an adventure tinged with horror. He follows a Muslim Arab from the 10th century who goes to the north and meets Vikings, documenting his trips with them. Their quest? Fight with a monstrous tribe, which is the attempted Crichton to make the story of Beowulf in semi-plausible historical fiction.

8
Me, Claudius by Robert Graves

Vintage international

Robert Graves' The 1934 novel is written as if it were the autobiography of the Roman emperor Claudius , telling in a first (although fictitious) a story of the Roman history of the assassination of Julius Caesar to death of Caligula , Predecessor of Claudius. The book, as well as its suite Claudius the god , were massive successes. Time appointed Me, Claudius one of his best 100 "everything TIME Romans, "and it was adapted to an extremely popular mini-series by the BBC in the 1970s.

9
Wretched by Victor Hugo

SIAGET CLASSICS

But now somewhat overshadowed today by the beloved musical ,, Victor Hugo The 1862 novel remains one of the most famous works ever published. The book follows Jean Valjean, a former prisoner, and Javert, the police inspector who pursues him over two decades in French history, culminating in the June 1832 rebellion. It is The set -What more can be said?

10
The name of the rose By Umberto Eco

Harpervia

Amazing, more than 50 million copies of the Italian author Umberto Eco's The 1980 novel has been sold internationally since its publication. A mystery of murder, The name of the rose Follows a Franciscan brother who arrives in an Italian monastery in 1327 only to find suspicious and horrible murders that he must try to resolve. He mixes the historical whodunnit with medieval studies and biblical analyzes, which makes it an exciting and enlightening reading.

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11
The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah

Griffin St. Martin

Another story of survival under occupation during the Second World War, Kristin Hannah The 2015 bestseller follows two distant French sisters who deal with the German invasion in different ways. Viann tries to keep her daughter - and possibly other children - as safe as in difficult circumstances. Isabelle joined the Resistance, finally obtaining the code name "Nightingale". AE0FCC31AE342FD3A1346EBB1F342FCB

12
Pachinko By Min Jin Lee

Central edition

Pachinko is a story of generation of a Korean family who emigrated to Japan after the annexation of the peninsula by the country in 1910, when the book begins. Sunja, the ostensible protagonist (although his parents and children are also major characters), faces racism and discrimination while his family tries to do. The novel follows three periods, crossing the Second World War and ending in the late 80s. It was adapted in an Apple TV + acclaimed series.

13
Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett

Penguin books

Ken Follett 1989 Romman concerns the construction of a large Gothic cathedral in 12th century England during a generalized civil war period. Three characters - an ambitious devotee, an architect in conflict and a woman with a dark past - meet in this story of progress and intrigue.

14
Red Badge of Courage by Stephen Crane

Ballard Classics

This seminal American novel is one of the most sustainable works of fiction in the civil war, and it was first published only three decades after the end of the war. Henry Fleming, a young Union army soldier, flees the battlefield when he sees the fight for the first time, and this act of cowardice led him through the rest of the war. Filled with captivating descriptions of battles and acute psychological understanding, Stephen Crane Red Badge of Courage is a classic favorite - and a school reading list - for a reason.

15
Red abundance by Francis SPUFFORD

Graywolf Press

A truly unique work of historical fiction, Francis SPUFFORD Red abundance Add a fictitious story to what is otherwise a deeply studied and complete account of the planned economy of the USSR - in particular a point in the late 1950s when it seemed that the Soviet Union could be a flourishing and prosperous nation of the future. The book is full of information as well as real respect for scientists and other Soviets who have reached the stars, touched them with Spoutnik and finally failed.

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16
Shōgun by James Clavell

Blackstone Publishing Inc

James Clavell The 1975 novel was adapted to not one but two acclaimed mini-series, first in 1980 and again this year. (Some criticisms already praising the FX version as one of the Best 2024 shows .) Shōgun Use fictitious characters, although real historical characters, to tell how the Edo period started and the ambitious lord whose machinations amounted to the position of Shōgun inaugurated a new era for Japan.

17
The things they transported by Tim O'Brien

Mariner Books Classics

Tim O'Brien The interconnected news collection blurs the border between historical fiction and autobiography. His 1990 book on a peloton of American soldiers who fights in the Vietnam War is a captivating and lively memory of what it was on the field. That the protagonist of the book is also called Tim O'Brien is not an accident.

18
The underground railroad By Colson Whitehead

Ancient

Colson Whitehead Makes a major change in fact historic in his 2016 novel: the holder underground railroad, the path that escaped slaves has taken to go from south to north, is redesigned as a real network of clandestine locomotives. On this piece of fantasy, he tells a story that feels horribly real while the former slaves Cora and César try to go to security and true freedom.

19
War and peace By Leo Tolstoy

Vintage classics

It is not exactly a windy reading, but Leo Tolstoy emblematic work of Russian literature, War and peace , deserves all the praise he has received in recent decades. Published in its final version in 1869, the book recounts the French invasion of Russia in the Napoleonic era and how members of five families treat difficult times - the best of them and the worst of them.

20
Wolf room By Hilary Mantel

Picador paper

Hilary Mantel 2009 novel Wolf room is a fictitious biography of Thomas Cromwell , the controversial leader of the era of the English reform. Two suites, Ride the bodies And The mirror and the light , finish telling the story of Cromwell's life, full of dangerous intrigue and common policies.


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