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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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The Return
The Return
by Victoria Hislop
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Imperial Woman
Imperial Woman
by Pearl S. Buck
The Queen of Palmyra
The Queen of Palmyra
by Minrose Gwin
A God in Ruins
A God in Ruins
by Leon Uris
The Good German
The Good German
by Joseph Kanon
The Florios of Sicily
The Florios of Sicily
by Stefania Auci
A Tale of Two Cities
A Tale of Two Cities
by Charles Dickens
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Long Summer Day
Long Summer Day
by R. F. Delderfield
How We Disappeared
How We Disappeared
by Jing-Jing Lee
The Thief of Time
The Thief of Time
by John Boyne
The Refugees
The Refugees
by Viet Thanh Nguyen
The Young Lions
The Young Lions
by Irwin Shaw
Refuge
Refuge
by Dot Jackson
The Color Purple
The Color Purple
by Alice Walker
The Robber Bridegroom
The Robber Bridegroom
by Eudora Welty
Confederates
Confederates
by Thomas Keneally
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The Temple of My Familiar
The Temple of My Familiar
by Alice Walker
The Jacobite's Wife
The Jacobite's Wife
by Morag Edwards
Heroes, Gods and Monsters of the Greek Myths
Heroes, Gods and Monsters of the Greek Myths
by Bernard Evslin
The Sand Pebbles
The Sand Pebbles
by Richard McKenna
Tropic of Orange
Tropic of Orange
by Karen Tei Yamashita, Sesshu Foster
Fanny Hill
Fanny Hill
by John Cleland
A Soldier of the Great War
A Soldier of the Great War
by Mark Helprin
The Magdalen Girls
The Magdalen Girls
by V. S. Alexander
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The Salt Roads
The Salt Roads
by Nalo Hopkinson
Peony
Peony
by Pearl S. Buck
Z
Z
by Therese Anne Fowler
Iola Leroy
Iola Leroy
by Frances E. W. Harper
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The Lady Hellion
The Lady Hellion
by Joanna Shupe
Gentleman's Agreement
Gentleman's Agreement
by Laura Z. Hobson
The Winemaker
The Winemaker
by Noah Gordon
An Extraordinary Union
An Extraordinary Union
by Alyssa Cole
Portraits
Portraits
by Cynthia Freeman
World's End
World's End
by Upton Sinclair
Tender the Storm
Tender the Storm
by Elizabeth Thornton
The Nakano Thrift Shop
The Nakano Thrift Shop
by Hiromi Kawakami, Allison Markin Powell
The Last of the Wine
The Last of the Wine
by Mary Renault
The Eight
The Eight
by Katherine Neville
Jubilee
Jubilee
by Margaret Walker, Nikki Giovanni
Sophie's Choice
Sophie's Choice
by William Styron
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The Condor Passes
The Condor Passes
by Shirley Ann Grau
Penmarric
Penmarric
by Susan Howatch
Old Filth
Old Filth
by Jane Gardam
Answer as a Man
Answer as a Man
by Taylor Caldwell
Beyond the Pale
Beyond the Pale
by Elana Dykewomon
The Comedians
The Comedians
by Graham Greene
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Bridge of Scarlet Leaves
Bridge of Scarlet Leaves
by Kristina McMorris
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Paragon Walk
Paragon Walk
by Anne Perry
Evening Is the Whole Day
Evening Is the Whole Day
by Preeta Samarasan
The Return of Captain John Emmett
The Return of Captain John Emmett
by Elizabeth Speller
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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.