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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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Barren Ground
Barren Ground
by Ellen Glasgow
The Edge of Nowhere
The Edge of Nowhere
by C. H. Armstrong
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Olga
Olga
by Bernhard Schlink
The Silver Eagle
The Silver Eagle
by Ben Kane
Orlando
Orlando
by Virginia Woolf
To Catch a King
To Catch a King
by Jack Higgins
The Painted Bird
The Painted Bird
by Jerzy Kosinski
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24 Epic World War II Books
Speaks the Nightbird
Speaks the Nightbird
by Robert McCammon
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A Farewell to Arms
A Farewell to Arms
by Ernest Hemingway
Black Bottom Saints
Black Bottom Saints
by Alice Randall
All Change
All Change
by Elizabeth Jane Howard
Frenchman's Creek
Frenchman's Creek
by Daphne du Maurier
The Sea House
The Sea House
by Elisabeth Gifford
The Company
The Company
by Robert Littell
The Florios of Sicily
The Florios of Sicily
by Stefania Auci
The Last of the Mohicans
The Last of the Mohicans
by James Fenimore Cooper
The Eternal Wonder
The Eternal Wonder
by Pearl S. Buck
Night of the Fox
Night of the Fox
by Jack Higgins
The Good German
The Good German
by Joseph Kanon
The King's Witch
The King's Witch
by Tracy Borman
The Red Address Book
The Red Address Book
by Sofia Lundberg, Alice Menzies
The Hope
The Hope
by Herman Wouk
Calico Captive
Calico Captive
by Elizabeth George Speare
Tropic of Orange
Tropic of Orange
by Karen Tei Yamashita, Sesshu Foster
The Wolf's Hour
The Wolf's Hour
by Robert McCammon
Legends of the Fall
Legends of the Fall
by Jim Harrison
The Magdalen Girls
The Magdalen Girls
by V. S. Alexander
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The Scandalous Marriage
The Scandalous Marriage
by M. C. Beaton
GodPretty in the Tobacco Field
GodPretty in the Tobacco Field
by Kim Michele Richardson
The Winemaker
The Winemaker
by Noah Gordon
An Extraordinary Union
An Extraordinary Union
by Alyssa Cole
Shadow of Ashland
Shadow of Ashland
by Terence M. Green
The Life She Was Given
The Life She Was Given
by Ellen Marie Wiseman
Our Man in Havana
Our Man in Havana
by Graham Greene
A Prayer for the Dying
A Prayer for the Dying
by Stewart O'Nan
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My Ántonia
My Ántonia
by Willa Cather, Kathleen Norris
The Color Purple
The Color Purple
by Alice Walker
The Winthrop Woman
The Winthrop Woman
by Anya Seton
Euphoria
Euphoria
by Lily King
Trouble at the Brownstone
Trouble at the Brownstone
by Robert Goldsborough
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When a Marquis Chooses a Bride
When a Marquis Chooses a Bride
by Ella Quinn
The Temple of My Familiar
The Temple of My Familiar
by Alice Walker
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Gentleman's Agreement
Gentleman's Agreement
by Laura Z. Hobson
Cathedral
Cathedral
by Ben Hopkins
A Tale of Two Cities
A Tale of Two Cities
by Charles Dickens
Between Earth and Sky
Between Earth and Sky
by Amanda Skenandore
Dragonwyck
Dragonwyck
by Anya Seton
The Rebels
The Rebels
by John Jakes
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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.