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The Best Historical Fiction Books

While time travel will probably never happen, we’ll always have the next best thing: historical fiction novels. Through the magic of fiction (and authors’ dedication to researching endless incredible details), readers can feel as though they’ve been everywhere and every time, from Ancient Greece to colonial Asia to the American Revolution. If you’re a fiction lover who wants to learn more about the past but isn’t sure about diving into the world of history books, it’s the best of both worlds. 

Another reason to love historical fiction is that it can be crossed with any other genre. From historical mysteries to steamy historical romance to hilarious historical fiction, whatever genre you enjoy can be placed in another period.

Clearly, this is a genre that truly has something for everyone. Whether you prefer novels that bring you to times of war and terror or more whimsical stories set in the past; historical fiction that is surprisingly accurate or tales that take creative license with their settings, you'll find endless books to add to your TBR pile in the lists below.

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All the Beautiful Sinners
All the Beautiful Sinners
by Stephen Graham Jones
Fallen Angels
Fallen Angels
by Walter Dean Myers
The Bold Frontier
The Bold Frontier
by John Jakes
Someone Knows My Name
Someone Knows My Name
by Lawrence Hill
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The Flight of the Maidens
The Flight of the Maidens
by Jane Gardam
The War of the End of the World
The War of the End of the World
by Mario Vargas Llosa, Helen R. Lane
The Overmountain Men
The Overmountain Men
by Cameron Judd
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Forbidden Places
Forbidden Places
by Penny Vincenzi
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The Lightkeeper's Daughters
The Lightkeeper's Daughters
by Jean E. Pendziwol
The Devil in the Marshalsea
The Devil in the Marshalsea
by Antonia Hodgson
The Company
The Company
by Robert Littell
The Last of the Mohicans
The Last of the Mohicans
by James Fenimore Cooper
The Physician
The Physician
by Noah Gordon
The Mermaid and Mrs. Hancock
The Mermaid and Mrs. Hancock
by Imogen Hermes Gowar
The Enchanted Life of Adam Hope
The Enchanted Life of Adam Hope
by Rhonda Riley
The Seamstress
The Seamstress
by Frances De Pontes Peebles
The Hope
The Hope
by Herman Wouk
My Antonia
My Antonia
by Willa Cather, Kathleen Norris
Confederates
Confederates
by Thomas Keneally
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Her First American
Her First American
by Lore Segal, Stanley Crouch
The Color Purple
The Color Purple
by Alice Walker
Songs in Ordinary Time
Songs in Ordinary Time
by Mary McGarry Morris
Calico Captive
Calico Captive
by Elizabeth George Speare
Euphoria
Euphoria
by Lily King
The Familiars
The Familiars
by Stacey Halls
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Girl in Hyacinth Blue
Girl in Hyacinth Blue
by Susan Vreeland
Tropic of Orange
Tropic of Orange
by Karen Tei Yamashita, Sesshu Foster
The Magdalen Girls
The Magdalen Girls
by V. S. Alexander
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GodPretty in the Tobacco Field
GodPretty in the Tobacco Field
by Kim Michele Richardson
When a Marquis Chooses a Bride
When a Marquis Chooses a Bride
by Ella Quinn
The Jerusalem Diamond
The Jerusalem Diamond
by Noah Gordon
The Life She Was Given
The Life She Was Given
by Ellen Marie Wiseman
Desperadoes
Desperadoes
by Ron Hansen
Between Earth and Sky
Between Earth and Sky
by Amanda Skenandore
Dragonwyck
Dragonwyck
by Anya Seton
The Folly of the World
The Folly of the World
by Jesse Bullington
Velvet is the Night
Velvet is the Night
by Elizabeth Thornton
Vile Bodies
Vile Bodies
by Evelyn Waugh
I, Claudius
I, Claudius
by Robert Graves
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Baudolino
Baudolino
by Umberto Eco
This Side of Murder
This Side of Murder
by Anna Lee Huber
Promised to the Crown
Promised to the Crown
by Aimie K. Runyan
Body & Soul
Body & Soul
by Frank Conroy
Short Stories
Short Stories
by Irwin Shaw
The Thin Red Line
The Thin Red Line
by James Jones
The Kindly Ones
The Kindly Ones
by Jonathan Littell
Z
Z
by Therese Anne Fowler
The Heart of the Matter
The Heart of the Matter
by Graham Greene
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Historical fiction is a genre where a fictional plot is set in a real historical setting or uses real historical characters. While there can be a mix of real and fictional events in the plot, historical fiction focuses on its fictional plot-points. 

The goal of historical fiction is to transport readers to another time. To do that, you’ll need to make the details of your story believable, even though it’s fiction. You want to focus on time period significance, historical accuracy, and detailed descriptions of characters and settings. 

Castle Rackrent by Maria Edgeworth is often considered the first historical fiction novel.