Best historical fiction on Reddit
130 reviews from r/suggestmeabook, r/booksuggestions, r/Tudorhistory and 3 more subreddits
130 reviews from
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By Brand
/By Product
#1
Ken Follett
5.0
(9)
"It's amazing."
"The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett."
"Ken Follett: Pillars of the Earth"
"I’d recommend Ken Folletts Pillars of the Earth series."
"King Hereafter is a retelling of Macbeth and is brilliant."
"Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett."
"If you like large epics with lots of characters, Ken Follett's Kingsbridge series and his Century Trilogy are both worth checking out."
"I just recently finished Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett. It's really good."
#2
James Clavell
5.0
(8)
"Is fantastic and is fine as a stand-alone read."
"James Clavell: The Asian series (Noble House, Shogun, Tai-Pan, King Rat, Whirlwind, Gai-Jin or you may want to read them in publication order)"
"Shogun by James Clavell."
"Shogun by James Clavell."
"King Rat by James Clavell."
"Shogun by James Clavell."
"King Rat by James Clavell."
"Tai Pan. Clavell’s Hong Kong book."
#3
Bernard Cornwell
4.8
(5)
"Anything from bernard cornwell! My favorite is azincourt"
"Bernard Cornwell has some really good ones."
"Sharpe's Tiger by Bernard Cornwell."
"What about The Last Kingdom by Bernard Cornwell?"
"I like Bernard Cornwell too, but there’s a sameness to the Sharpe novels after you’ve read a couple."
#4
Umberto Eco
5.0
(4)
"Umberto Eco: The Name of the Rose"
"Umberto Eco, The Name of the Rose."
"If you love the Middle Ages and havent read it already, please RUN to get 'The Name of the Rose' by Umberto Eco."
"The Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco."
#5
Sharon Kay Penman
5.0
(4)
"So is *The Sunne in Splendour* by the same author."
"*Here Be Dragons* by Sharon Kay Penman is wonderful."
"Pretty much anything by Sharon Kay Penman"
"Sharon Kay Penman’s 5-book series on the Plantagenets."
#6
Gary Jennings
4.8
(4)
"Aztec by Gary Jennings."
"Aztec by Gary Jennings."
"Journeyer by Gary Jennings."
"Journeyer by Gary Jennings, Aztec by Gary Jennings."
#7
Mary Renault
5.0
(3)
"Anything by Mary Renault."
"Books set in ancient Greece by Mary Renault."
"No Rome, but how about Greece? Mary Renault is extremely knowledgeable."
#8
Robert Harris
5.0
(3)
"Robert Harris' Cicero Trilogy (Imperium etc)"
"The Cicero trilogy by Robert Harris."
"Imperium, by Robert Harris - a fictional biography of Cicero."
#9
Hilary Mantel
5.0
(3)
"Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel."
"Wolf Hall Trilogy by Hilary Mantel."
"A Place of Greater Safety by Hilary Mantel."
#10
Margaret George
5.0
(3)
"She might enjoy something by Margaret George."
"Highly recommend Margaret George's books on Henry VIII and Elizabeth I."
"Highly recommend Margaret George's books on Henry VIII and Elizabeth I."
#11
Edward Rutherford
4.7
(3)
"Have you read Sarum by Edward Rutherford?"
"Sarum being my first read."
"Sarum by Edward Rutherford."
#12
Samuel Shellabarger
4.3
(3)
"My personal favorites are Captain From Castle and Prince of Foxes by Samuel Shellabarger."
"Prince of Foxes is Medici Italy in a similar time period."
"Captain from Castle and Prince of Foxes by Samuel Shellabarger."
#13
C.J. Sansom
5.0
(2)
"The Matthew Shardlake series by C.J. Sansom."
"The Matthew Shardlake series by C.J. Sansom."
#14
Sarah Dunant
5.0
(2)
"I love The Birth Of Venus by Sarah Dunant"
"The Birth of Venus by Sarah Dunant."
#15
Donna Woolfolk Cross
5.0
(2)
"Pope Joan by Donna Woolfolk Cross"
"Pope Joan by Donna Woolfolk Cross."
#16
Simon Turney
5.0
(2)
"The Marius Mules series by Simon Turney are top notch."
"Marius' Mules series by Simon Turney"
#17
Anthony Doerr
5.0
(2)
"All the light we cannot see by Anthony Doerr"
"All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr"
#18
Min Jin Lee
5.0
(2)
"Pachinko by Min Jin Lee."
"Pachinko, Babel!"
#19
Jean Plaidy
5.0
(2)
"Jean Plaidy Tudor and Plantagenet books are classics."
"These are older authors but they wrote books about Anne Boleyn."
#20
Noah Gordon
5.0
(2)
"The physician by Noah Gordon."
"The Physician by Noah Gordon."
#21
Tracey Chevalier
5.0
(2)
"She takes famous works of art and then tells a fictional story behind them."
"I’ve loved Tracey Chevalier’s books - Girl with a Pearl Earring, the Lady and the Unicorn - both really good."
#22
James Michener
5.0
(2)
"James Michener books like The Source, Centennial, Chesapeake"
"Anything by James Michener."
#23
Guy Gavriel Kay
5.0
(2)
"I particularly recommend The Lions of al-Rassan."
"Sailing to Sarantium and Lord of Emperors by Guy Gavriel Kay."
#24
Dorothy Dunnett
5.0
(2)
"Dunnett is very adept at mixing her fictional characters w"
"The Lymond Chronicles by Dorothy Dunnett."
#25
John Steinbeck
5.0
(2)
"*The Grapes of Wrath* by John Steinbeck."
"Grapes Of Wrath by John Steinbeck."
#26
Tan Twan Eng
5.0
(2)
"Look at The Gift of Rain or The Garden of Evening Mists by Tan Twan Eng."
"Look at The Gift of Rain or The Garden of Evening Mists by Tan Twan Eng."
#27
George Macdonald Fraser
5.0
(2)
"The Flashman Papers. George Macdonald Fraser."
"Flashman by George Macdonald Fraser."
#28
Patrick O'Brian
5.0
(2)
"Master and Commander by Patrick O'Brian."
"The Aubrey/Maturin series by Patrick O'Brian."
#29
Diana Gabaldon
5.0
(2)
"Diana Gabaldon's Outlander series."
"I feel like ‘Outlander’ by Diana Gabaldon is probably the heaviest hitter for historical fiction."
#30
Conn Iggulden
5.0
(2)
"All of Conn Igguldens series are very good."
"Conn Iggulden’s series about the mongols is excellent."
#31
Lisa See
5.0
(2)
"My favorites are The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane and Lady Tan’s Circle of Women."
"Lady Tan’s Circle of Women by Lisa See."
#32
Connie Willis
5.0
(2)
"Blackout by Connie Willis."
"The first two are about the Black Death."
#33
Gore Vidal
5.0
(2)
"Creation by Gore Vidal."
"Burr by Gore Vidal."
#34
Ursula le Guin
4.5
(2)
"Lavinia by Ursula le Guin retelling the Aeneid."
"Lavinia by Ursula le Guin."
#35
Kathleen Winsor
4.5
(2)
"Kathleen Winsor's Forever Amber."
"Set in 17th century Europe and includes details about the plague."
#36
John Williams
4.5
(2)
"Augustus by John Williams"
"John Williams's 'Augustus' and 'Butcher's Crossing' come to mind."
#37
Stephanie Dray
4.5
(2)
"The Women of Chateau Lafayette by Stephanie Dray."
"Was interesting."
#38
Irving Stone
4.5
(2)
"Is Van Gogh's life story and it's a great read."
"*The Agony and the Ecstasy* by Irving Stone."
#39
Stephen Pressfield
5.0
(1)
"Gates of Fire (based during Greco-Persian wars, so not Roman, but worth noting) by Stephen Pressfield"
#40
Amy Bloom
5.0
(1)
"*White Houses* by Amy Bloom"
#41
Emma Donoghue
5.0
(1)
"*The Wonder* by Emma Donoghue"
#42
Jessie Burton
5.0
(1)
"*The Miniaturist* by Jessie Burton"
#43
Eleanor Catton
5.0
(1)
"*The Luminaries* by Eleanor Catton"
#44
Kathleen Grissom
5.0
(1)
"The Kitchen House by Kathleen Grissom."
#45
Julie Orringer
5.0
(1)
"*The Invisible Bridge* by Julie Orringer (the only WWII on this list but you have to trust me)"
#46
Sarah Perry
5.0
(1)
"*The Essex Serpent* by Sarah Perry"
#47
Tiphanie Yanique
5.0
(1)
"*Land of Love and Drowning* by Tiphanie Yanique"
#48
C.S. Forester
5.0
(1)
"I second C.S. Forester’s books, esp. the Hornblower series."
#49
George McDonald Fraser
5.0
(1)
"The Flashman series by George McDonald Fraser."
#50
Lauren Groff
5.0
(1)
"*Arcadia* by Lauren Groff"
#51
Beverly Jenkins
5.0
(1)
"Everything by Beverly Jenkins. My all time favorite is Indigo."
#52
S Craig Zahler
5.0
(1)
"Wraiths of the Broken Land by S Craig Zahler."
#53
Sara Donati
5.0
(1)
"Sara Donati Wilderness Series. She’s a wonderful writer and tells her stories from a woman’s perspective."
#54
Richard Powell
5.0
(1)
"Whom The Gods Would Destroy by Richard Powell."
#55
Margaret Verble
5.0
(1)
"*When Two Feathers Fell From the Sky* by Margaret Verble."
#56
Charles Portis
5.0
(1)
"True Grit by Charles Portis."
#57
Sarah Waters
5.0
(1)
"If not I definitely recommend {Tipping the Velvet by Sarah Waters}."
#58
C.S. Lewis
5.0
(1)
"Till we have faces by c s Lewis retelling the legend of psyche."
#59
Thomas Flanagan
5.0
(1)
"*The Year of the French* by Thomas Flanagan."
#60
Allan Eckert
5.0
(1)
"Allan Eckert’s 'The Winning of America' Series."
#61
Anne O’Brien
5.0
(1)
"I particularly loved The Virgin Widow (about Anne N)."
#62
Dan Simmons
5.0
(1)
"The Terror by Dan Simmons."
#63
J. G. Farrell
5.0
(1)
"J. G. Farrell’s *The Siege of Krishnapur,* if you'd be into something solidly historical."
#64
Donna Everhart
5.0
(1)
"The Saints of Swallow Hill by Donna Everhart."
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