Historical Fiction

The Great Divide

Cristina Henriquez’s polyvocal novel is a moving and powerful epic about the human cost of building the Panama Canal. It’s easy to imagine, in these snippets of lives, just how many more love stories, deaths, migrations, protests and other life-altering moments occurred during the canal’s construction.

The Bullet Swallower

By Elizabeth Gonzalez James

Elizabeth Gonzalez James’ dual-timeline magical realist tour de force presents the dynastic legacy of the Sonoro family—one that is shrouded in mystery and carries more than a hint of danger.

The Women

By Kristin Hannah

Kristin Hannah demonstrates her knack for blending broad sweeps of history with page-turning plots in this salute to military and civilian women who served during the Vietnam era.

Wolves of Winter

By Dan Jones

Wolves of Winter is another rollicking success for Dan Jones, leaving us counting the days until we can read what the Essex Dogs do next.

Wolves of Winter is another rollicking success for Dan Jones, leaving us counting the days until we can read what the Essex Dogs do next.

Familiaris

By David Wroblewski

The author of instant classic The Story of Edgar Sawtelle, a Hamlet retelling featuring a family of dog breeders in northern Wisconsin, returns with a follow-up, also about the Sawtelle family. In Familiaris, it’s 1919 and John and Mary Sawtelle set off into the Wisconsin woods with their dogs, beginning a remarkable adventure.

The author of instant classic The Story of Edgar Sawtelle, a Hamlet retelling featuring a family of dog breeders in northern Wisconsin, returns with a follow-up, also about the Sawtelle family. In Familiaris, it’s 1919 and John and Mary Sawtelle set off into the Wisconsin woods with their dogs, beginning a remarkable adventure.

Clear

By Carys Davies

As in her debut novel, West, Carys Davies writes exquisitely of the wilderness in Clear, telling the tale of two men who connect on a nearly uninhabited Scottish island during the Highland Clearances of the 1800s, when many rural Scots were forcibly evicted from their land.

As in her debut novel, West, Carys Davies writes exquisitely of the wilderness in Clear, telling the tale of two men who connect on a nearly uninhabited Scottish island during the Highland Clearances of the 1800s, when many rural Scots were forcibly evicted from their land.

Wandering Stars

By Tommy Orange

This remarkable novel is both a prequel and a sequel to Tommy Orange’s Pulitzer Prize finalist, There There, picking up with his unforgettable characters Orvil Red Feather and Opal Viola Victoria Bear Shield. Beginning in 1864 with the Sand Creek Massacre, Orange takes readers back in time to tell the stories of these characters’ ancestors, before sweeping forward to 2018 and the aftermath of the tragic shooting at the heart of There There.

This remarkable novel is both a prequel and a sequel to Tommy Orange’s Pulitzer Prize finalist, There There, picking up with his unforgettable characters Orvil Red Feather and Opal Viola Victoria Bear Shield. Beginning in 1864 with the Sand Creek Massacre, Orange takes readers back in time to tell the stories of these characters’ ancestors, […]

The Seventh Veil of Salome

By Silvia Moreno-Garcia

Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s Silver Nitrate was one of our Best Books of 2023, so we’re excited to see what she has in store with The Seventh Veil of Salome. Set in Hollywood during the 1950s, it focuses on the rivalry between two actresses over the role of princess Salome.

Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s Silver Nitrate was one of our Best Books of 2023, so we’re excited to see what she has in store with The Seventh Veil of Salome. Set in Hollywood during the 1950s, it focuses on the rivalry between two actresses over the role of princess Salome.

The Hazelbourne Ladies Motorcycle and Flying Club

By Helen Simonson

The Hazelbourne Ladies Motorcycle and Flying Club brings to life a historical moment, just after WWI, when both everything and nothing had changed for women in England—plus a summer’s worth of fresh seaside descriptions and romantic entanglements.

The Hazelbourne Ladies Motorcycle and Flying Club brings to life a historical moment, just after WWI, when both everything and nothing had changed for women in England—plus a summer’s worth of fresh seaside descriptions and romantic entanglements.

Long Island

By Colm Tóibín

Long Island revisits Eilis Lacey more than 20 years after the events of Colm Toíbín’s 2009 novel, Brooklyn, which introduced readers to this self-possessed, elusive young woman.

James

By Percival Everett

In an era of retellings, Percival Everett’s James stands out for staying true to Mark Twain’s voice, tale-spinning talent and humor, while also accurately depicting what Twain failed to acknowledge: the reality of life for enslaved people.

In an era of retellings, Percival Everett’s James stands out for staying true to Mark Twain’s voice, tale-spinning talent and humor, while also accurately depicting what Twain failed to acknowledge: the reality of life for enslaved people.

The Fox Wife

By Yangsze Choo

The stunning, evocative cover of this historical novel is reason enough to add it to your TBR: a lone woman in red walks through winter wilderness, reflected in a frozen pond as a snow-white fox. Of course, readers of The Night Tiger would be eagerly awaiting Yangsze Choo’s next book even if the cover were a paper bag. This epic adventure set in Manchuria at the very end of the Qing Dynasty promises to bring together mystery and legend to vibrant effect.

Cold Victory

By Karl Marlantes

In Karl Marlantes’ new novel, an American and a Soviet soldier decide on a booze-fueled lark to have a cross-country skiing race. This is a terrible idea.

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