Best historical fiction on Reddit
125 reviews from r/suggestmeabook, r/booksuggestions, r/Tudorhistory and 3 more subreddits
125 reviews from
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By Brand
/By Product
#1
Ken Follett
5.0
(6)
"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
(5)
"Shogun by James Clavell."
"Shogun by James Clavell."
"King Rat by James Clavell."
"Shogun by James Clavell."
"King Rat by James Clavell."
#3
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."
#4
Bernard Cornwell
5.0
(4)
"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?"
#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
Hilary Mantel
5.0
(3)
"Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel."
"Wolf Hall Trilogy by Hilary Mantel."
"A Place of Greater Safety by Hilary Mantel."
#9
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."
#10
Edward Rutherford
4.7
(3)
"Have you read Sarum by Edward Rutherford?"
"Sarum being my first read."
"Sarum by Edward Rutherford."
#11
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."
#12
C.J. Sansom
5.0
(2)
"The Matthew Shardlake series by C.J. Sansom."
"The Matthew Shardlake series by C.J. Sansom."
#13
Min Jin Lee
5.0
(2)
"Pachinko by Min Jin Lee."
"Pachinko, Babel!"
#14
Jean Plaidy
5.0
(2)
"Jean Plaidy Tudor and Plantagenet books are classics."
"These are older authors but they wrote books about Anne Boleyn."
#15
Donna Woolfolk Cross
5.0
(2)
"Pope Joan by Donna Woolfolk Cross"
"Pope Joan by Donna Woolfolk Cross."
#16
Noah Gordon
5.0
(2)
"The physician by Noah Gordon."
"The Physician by Noah Gordon."
#17
Sarah Dunant
5.0
(2)
"I love The Birth Of Venus by Sarah Dunant"
"The Birth of Venus by Sarah Dunant."
#18
Anthony Doerr
5.0
(2)
"All the light we cannot see by Anthony Doerr"
"All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr"
#19
James Michener
5.0
(2)
"James Michener books like The Source, Centennial, Chesapeake"
"Anything by James Michener."
#20
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."
#21
Dorothy Dunnett
5.0
(2)
"Dunnett is very adept at mixing her fictional characters w"
"The Lymond Chronicles by Dorothy Dunnett."
#22
John Steinbeck
5.0
(2)
"*The Grapes of Wrath* by John Steinbeck."
"Grapes Of Wrath by John Steinbeck."
#23
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."
#24
George Macdonald Fraser
5.0
(2)
"The Flashman Papers. George Macdonald Fraser."
"Flashman by George Macdonald Fraser."
#25
Patrick O'Brian
5.0
(2)
"Master and Commander by Patrick O'Brian."
"The Aubrey/Maturin series by Patrick O'Brian."
#26
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."
#27
Conn Iggulden
5.0
(2)
"All of Conn Igguldens series are very good."
"Conn Iggulden’s series about the mongols is excellent."
#28
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."
#29
Robert Harris
5.0
(2)
"The Cicero trilogy by Robert Harris."
"Imperium, by Robert Harris - a fictional biography of Cicero."
#30
Connie Willis
5.0
(2)
"Blackout by Connie Willis."
"The first two are about the Black Death."
#31
Gore Vidal
5.0
(2)
"Creation by Gore Vidal."
"Burr by Gore Vidal."
#32
Ursula le Guin
4.5
(2)
"Lavinia by Ursula le Guin retelling the Aeneid."
"Lavinia by Ursula le Guin."
#33
Kathleen Winsor
4.5
(2)
"Kathleen Winsor's Forever Amber."
"Set in 17th century Europe and includes details about the plague."
#34
John Williams
4.5
(2)
"Augustus by John Williams"
"John Williams's 'Augustus' and 'Butcher's Crossing' come to mind."
#35
Stephanie Dray
4.5
(2)
"The Women of Chateau Lafayette by Stephanie Dray."
"Was interesting."
#36
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."
#37
S Craig Zahler
5.0
(1)
"Wraiths of the Broken Land by S Craig Zahler."
#38
Sara Donati
5.0
(1)
"Sara Donati Wilderness Series. She’s a wonderful writer and tells her stories from a woman’s perspective."
#39
Richard Powell
5.0
(1)
"Whom The Gods Would Destroy by Richard Powell."
#40
Margaret Verble
5.0
(1)
"*When Two Feathers Fell From the Sky* by Margaret Verble."
#41
Charles Portis
5.0
(1)
"True Grit by Charles Portis."
#42
Sarah Waters
5.0
(1)
"If not I definitely recommend {Tipping the Velvet by Sarah Waters}."
#43
C.S. Lewis
5.0
(1)
"Till we have faces by c s Lewis retelling the legend of psyche."
#44
Thomas Flanagan
5.0
(1)
"*The Year of the French* by Thomas Flanagan."
#45
Allan Eckert
5.0
(1)
"Allan Eckert’s 'The Winning of America' Series."
#46
Anne O’Brien
5.0
(1)
"I particularly loved The Virgin Widow (about Anne N)."
#47
Dan Simmons
5.0
(1)
"The Terror by Dan Simmons."
#48
J. G. Farrell
5.0
(1)
"J. G. Farrell’s *The Siege of Krishnapur,* if you'd be into something solidly historical."
#49
Donna Everhart
5.0
(1)
"The Saints of Swallow Hill by Donna Everhart."
#50
Anita Diamant
5.0
(1)
"The Red Tent by Anita Diamant."
#51
Barbara Kingsolver
5.0
(1)
"The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver"
#52
Manreet Sodhi Someshwar
5.0
(1)
"The Partition Trilogy by Manreet Sodhi Someshwar."
#53
Kelly Rimmer
5.0
(1)
"I just finished and thoroughly enjoyed “The Paris Agent” by Kelly Rimmer."
#54
Kristin Hannah
5.0
(1)
"Th Nightingale by Kristin Hannah"
#55
Frans Bengtsson
5.0
(1)
"The Long Ships by Frans Bengtsson is a very fun read."
#56
Michael Curtis Ford
5.0
(1)
"For straight historical fiction, Michael Curtis Ford's The Last King genuinely read to me as a fantasy novel."
#57
Upton Sinclair
5.0
(1)
"*The Jungle* by Upton Sinclair."
#58
Annie Barrows and Mary Ann Shaffer
5.0
(1)
"The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society by Annie Barrows and Mary Ann Shaffer."
#59
Pearl S. Buck
5.0
(1)
"*The Good Earth* by Pearl S. Buck."
#60
Yangsze Choo
5.0
(1)
"*The Ghost Bride* by Yangsze Choo."
#61
Alice Hoffman
5.0
(1)
"The Dove Keepers by Alice Hoffman."
#62
Celia Bell
5.0
(1)
"You might enjoy The Disenchantment by Celia Bell."
#63
Sylvia Townsend Warner
5.0
(1)
"The Corner Ghat Held Them by Sylvia Townsend Warner."
#64
Pramoedya Anata Toer
5.0
(1)
"It's a wonderful story with women that are realistic and inspiring."
#65
Kim Michele Richardson
5.0
(1)
"The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek by Kim Michele Richardson."
#66
Markus Zusak
5.0
(1)
"The Book Thief by Markus Zusak."
#67
Neal Stephenson
5.0
(1)
"The Baroque Cycle by Neal Stephenson."
#68
Shannon Chakraborty
5.0
(1)
"*The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi* by Shannon Chakraborty."
#69
Philippa Gregory
5.0
(1)
"Six Tudor Queens: Anne Boleyn is my favourite."
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