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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.

Historical Fiction on Sale Now!

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The Kashmir Shawl
The Kashmir Shawl
by Rosie Thomas
The Strays
The Strays
by Emily Bitto
Ain't No Grave
Ain't No Grave
by Mary Glickman
The Refugees
The Refugees
by Viet Thanh Nguyen
Bitter Greens
Bitter Greens
by Kate Forsyth
The Old Religion
The Old Religion
by David Mamet
The Gladiator's Master
The Gladiator's Master
by Fae Sutherland, Maguerite Labbe
There Is Confusion
There Is Confusion
by Jessie Redmon Fauset
Max
Max
by Howard Fast
The Kings in Winter
The Kings in Winter
by Cecelia Holland
Boat of Stone
Boat of Stone
by Maureen Earl
The Jacobite's Wife
The Jacobite's Wife
by Morag Edwards
Difficult Daughters
Difficult Daughters
by Manju Kapur
Sixty Blades of Grass
Sixty Blades of Grass
by Elizabeth Millane
Gordo
Gordo
by Jaime Cortez
The Autobiography of an Ex–Colored Man
The Autobiography of an Ex–Colored Man
by James Weldon Johnson
The Betrayal
The Betrayal
by Helen Dunmore
Turncoat
Turncoat
by Aaron Elkins
Human Voices
Human Voices
by Penelope Fitzgerald, Mark Damazer
Very Old Bones
Very Old Bones
by William Kennedy
The Marathon Conspiracy
The Marathon Conspiracy
by Gary Corby
Sugar Money
Sugar Money
by Jane Harris
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12 Books Like This Tender Land
The Age of Innocence
The Age of Innocence
by Edith Wharton
Stealing Heaven
Stealing Heaven
by Marion Meade
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8 Romance Books for Adults
The Salt Roads
The Salt Roads
by Nalo Hopkinson
Silver Stallion
Silver Stallion
by Ahn Junghyo
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6 Korean Books You Shouldn't Miss
The Secret River
The Secret River
by Kate Grenville
Black Flower
Black Flower
by Young-ha Kim, Charles La Shure
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Dangerous Betrayal
Dangerous Betrayal
by Bill Blowers
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8 Books Set During the Gilded Age
The Dressmaker
The Dressmaker
by Beryl Bainbridge
Queen Margot
Queen Margot
by Alexandre Dumas
The Prince and the Pauper
The Prince and the Pauper
by Mark Twain
Desperadoes
Desperadoes
by Ron Hansen
The Folly of the World
The Folly of the World
by Jesse Bullington
Coffee Will Make You Black
Coffee Will Make You Black
by April Sinclair
The Miracle at St. Bruno's
The Miracle at St. Bruno's
by Philippa Carr
Whitefire
Whitefire
by Fern Michaels
The Company She Keeps
The Company She Keeps
by Mary McCarthy
Sugar and Spice
Sugar and Spice
by Ruth Hamilton
The Body
The Body
by Richard Ben Sapir
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15 Authors Like Dan Brown
The Night Mark
The Night Mark
by Tiffany Reisz
Disoriental
Disoriental
by Negar Djavadi, Tina Kover
Actress
Actress
by Anne Enright
The Anchoress
The Anchoress
by Robyn Cadwallader
All Out
All Out
by Saundra Mitchell, Sara Farizan, Shaun David Hutchinson, Kody Keplinger, Mackenzi Lee, Malinda Lo, Anna-Marie McLemore, Tehlor Kay Mejia, Robin Talley, Elliot Wake
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Crooked Heart
Crooked Heart
by Lissa Evans
More Than Riches
More Than Riches
by Josephine Cox
The Island of the Day Before
The Island of the Day Before
by Umberto Eco
Fanny Hill
Fanny Hill
by John Cleland
To Name Those Lost
To Name Those Lost
by Rohan Wilson
Showing 201-250 of 336 results

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.