Best Historical Fiction
This is my collection page for the best historical fiction books, which I will be adding to over time. You’ll find curated reading lists, short summaries, interpretive essays for great reads.
What’s inside:
- Freshly updated “top 10 must read historical fiction books” roundups
- Interpretive Essays
- Author spotlights and context pieces
- Links to to the books themselves, many of which are available for free from Project Gutenberg and elsewhere
Tolstoy's War: The Chill of Napoleon's False Shadow
Discover why Leo Tolstoy remains essential reading for historical fiction fans—his epic vision, moral insight, and war stories still shape the genre today.
Best Historical Fiction Books: War and Peace
Discover Tolstoy's War and Peace—an epic tale of love, war, and Russian society during the Napoleonic era that remains one of literature's greatest achievements.
Best Historical Fiction Books: Anna Karenina
Experience Tolstoy's Anna Karenina—a tragic tale of forbidden love and social constraint in Imperial Russia, widely considered one of the greatest novels ever written.
Historical Fiction Books, Essays, and Recommendations by Paul Jariabek
Explore historical fiction—books, essays and short stories, and curated best historical fiction. Lose yourself in the past.
Historical Fiction of Paul Jariabek
Blood-soaked battles, political intrigue, and history's forgotten voices. Historical fiction that resurrects the untold stories of the past.
Best Historical Fiction Books
Discover the best historical fiction books set before 1900—timeless, immersive stories that transport you far beyond living memory.