Best historical fiction on Reddit
130 reviews from r/suggestmeabook, r/booksuggestions, r/ancientrome and 2 more subreddits
130 reviews from
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By Brand
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#1
Ken Follett
4.9
(10)
"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."
"Maybe look into him."
#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
Connie Willis
5.0
(3)
"It’s fabulous and I go back and reread it every couple of years."
"Blackout by Connie Willis."
"The first two are about the Black Death."
#10
Hilary Mantel
5.0
(3)
"Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel."
"Wolf Hall Trilogy by Hilary Mantel."
"A Place of Greater Safety by Hilary Mantel."
#11
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."
#12
Edward Rutherford
4.7
(3)
"Have you read Sarum by Edward Rutherford?"
"Sarum being my first read."
"Sarum by Edward Rutherford."
#13
Samuel Shellabarger
4.3
(3)
"My personal favorites are Captain From Castle and Prince of Foxes by Samuel Shellabarger."
"Captain from Castle and Prince of Foxes by Samuel Shellabarger."
"Prince of Foxes is Medici Italy in a similar time period."
#14
Noah Gordon
5.0
(2)
"The physician by Noah Gordon."
"The Physician by Noah Gordon."
#15
C.J. Sansom
5.0
(2)
"The Matthew Shardlake series by C.J. Sansom."
"The Matthew Shardlake series by C.J. Sansom."
#16
Anthony Doerr
5.0
(2)
"All the light we cannot see by Anthony Doerr"
"All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr"
#17
Donna Woolfolk Cross
5.0
(2)
"Pope Joan by Donna Woolfolk Cross"
"Pope Joan by Donna Woolfolk Cross."
#18
Jean Plaidy
5.0
(2)
"Jean Plaidy Tudor and Plantagenet books are classics."
"These are older authors but they wrote books about Anne Boleyn."
#19
Sarah Dunant
5.0
(2)
"I love The Birth Of Venus by Sarah Dunant"
"The Birth of Venus by Sarah Dunant."
#20
Simon Turney
5.0
(2)
"The Marius Mules series by Simon Turney are top notch."
"Marius' Mules series by Simon Turney"
#21
Min Jin Lee
5.0
(2)
"Pachinko by Min Jin Lee."
"Pachinko, Babel!"
#22
Emma Donoghue
5.0
(2)
"*The Wonder* by Emma Donoghue"
#23
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."
#24
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."
#25
Patrick O'Brian
5.0
(2)
"Master and Commander by Patrick O'Brian."
"The Aubrey/Maturin series by Patrick O'Brian."
#26
Dorothy Dunnett
5.0
(2)
"Dunnett is very adept at mixing her fictional characters w"
"The Lymond Chronicles by Dorothy Dunnett."
#27
George Macdonald Fraser
5.0
(2)
"The Flashman Papers. George Macdonald Fraser."
"Flashman by George Macdonald Fraser."
#28
Gore Vidal
5.0
(2)
"Burr by Gore Vidal."
"Creation by Gore Vidal."
#29
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."
#30
John Steinbeck
5.0
(2)
"*The Grapes of Wrath* by John Steinbeck."
"Grapes Of Wrath by John Steinbeck."
#31
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."
#32
Lisa See
5.0
(2)
"Lady Tan’s Circle of Women by Lisa See."
#33
Ursula le Guin
4.5
(2)
"Lavinia by Ursula le Guin retelling the Aeneid."
"Lavinia by Ursula le Guin."
#34
John Williams
4.5
(2)
"Augustus by John Williams"
"John Williams's 'Augustus' and 'Butcher's Crossing' come to mind."
#35
Kathleen Winsor
4.5
(2)
"Kathleen Winsor's Forever Amber."
"Set in 17th century Europe and includes details about the plague."
#36
Henryk Sienkiewicz
5.0
(1)
"Is excellent."
#37
Traci Chee
5.0
(1)
#38
Stephen Pressfield
5.0
(1)
"Gates of Fire (based during Greco-Persian wars, so not Roman, but worth noting) by Stephen Pressfield"
#39
Amy Bloom
5.0
(1)
"*White Houses* by Amy Bloom"
#40
Jessie Burton
5.0
(1)
"*The Miniaturist* by Jessie Burton"
#41
Juliet Grames
5.0
(1)
#42
Ben Kane
5.0
(1)
"Hannibal series by Ben Kane"
#43
Vincent B. Davis II
5.0
(1)
"Sertorius Scrolls (my personal favorite) by Vincent B. Davis II"
#44
Nicholas Guild
5.0
(1)
#45
Jabari Asim
5.0
(1)
#46
Robert Fabbri
5.0
(1)
"Vespasian series by Robert Fabbri is excellent!"
#47
Michelle Good
5.0
(1)
#48
Beverly Jenkins
5.0
(1)
"Everything by Beverly Jenkins. My all time favorite is Indigo."
#49
Lauren Groff
5.0
(1)
"*Arcadia* by Lauren Groff"
#50
Jenny Tinghui Zhang
5.0
(1)
#51
John Drake
5.0
(1)
#52
Christian Cameron
5.0
(1)
#53
George McDonald Fraser
5.0
(1)
"The Flashman series by George McDonald Fraser."
#54
Mary Pat Kelly
5.0
(1)
#55
C.S. Forester
5.0
(1)
"I second C.S. Forester’s books, esp. the Hornblower series."
#56
James Michener
5.0
(1)
"James Michener books like The Source, Centennial, Chesapeake"
#57
Tiphanie Yanique
5.0
(1)
"*Land of Love and Drowning* by Tiphanie Yanique"
#58
Isabelle Allende
5.0
(1)
#59
S.J.A. Turney
5.0
(1)
#60
Sarah Perry
5.0
(1)
"*The Essex Serpent* by Sarah Perry"
#61
Conn Iggulden
5.0
(1)
"Conn Iggulden’s series about the mongols is excellent."
#62
Julie Orringer
5.0
(1)
"*The Invisible Bridge* by Julie Orringer (the only WWII on this list but you have to trust me)"
#63
Alice Winn
5.0
(1)
#64
Kathleen Grissom
5.0
(1)
"The Kitchen House by Kathleen Grissom."
#65
Eleanor Catton
5.0
(1)
"*The Luminaries* by Eleanor Catton"
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