Blog

I prefer my history lessons with a healthy dose of make-believe. Historical fiction gives me the chance to experience the past through the lives of characters I really care about. Done well, it can transport you to a bygone time and place, recreating the sights, sounds, and smells of the past. I love the endless opportunities this genre provides for learning about the events that have shaped our world. Here are six new novels that are full of historical detail, each breathing new life into a distinct slice of history.

All six novels have gotten a lot of buzz in the publishing world and five come from authors who have wowed us in the past, so if you have to place a hold on one of these hot new books, while you wait, check out a proven winner by the same author or another suggested read alike.

The Invention of Wings

by Sue Monk Kidd

The bestselling author of The Secret Life of Bees takes us to pre-Civil War Charleston, beginning when Sarah, the 11 year-old daughter of a wealthy family is given a young slave girl, Handful, for her birthday. The story develops over the next 30 years of their lives.

Readalike: The Help by Kathryn Stockett

Under the Wide and Starry Sky

by Nancy Horan

In the same vein as her perennial book club favorite, Loving Frank, author Nancy Horan's new book reimagines the unconventional love affair and marriage of Robert Louis Stevenson to American divorcee Fanny Van de Grift Osbourne.

Readalike: Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald by Therese Fowler

The Museum of Extraordinary Things

by Alice Hoffman

This novel follows the parallel stories of Eddie Cohen, a Russian Jewish immigrant who photographs powerful images of the Triangle Shirtwaist factory fire and Coralie Sardie, the “mermaid” daughter of a controlling Coney Island freak show manager. With an effective blend of historical fiction and magical realism, the bestselling author of The Dovekeepers and Practical Magic brings the changing face of early 20th century New York to life.

Readalike: The Golem and the Jinni by Helene Wecker

Frog Music

by Emma Donoghue

In the sweltering summer of 1876 San Francisco, burlesque dancer Blanche Beunon and cross-dressing frog-catcher Jennie Bonnet form an unlikely friendship. Jenny’s shocking murder sends Blanche on a harrowing race to catch her killer. A departure from the author’s breakout novel, Room, this fast-paced literary thriller is based on a real unsolved crime and rich with period details.

Readalike: The Immigrants by Howard Fast

The Ghost of the Mary Celeste

by Valerie Martin

Martin's earlier novel, Mary Reilly, took us behind closed doors with the fictional Dr. Jekyll. Her latest work draws together a spiritual medium and the journalist out to debunk her, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, and the real-life mystery surrounding the lost crew of the Mary Celeste.

Readalike: The Seance by John Harwood

The Wife, The Maid, and the Mistress

by Ariel Lawhon

Lawhon fictionalizes the headline-grabbing 1930 disappearance of Justice Joseph Crater. Through the perspectives of the three women who knew him best, we see into Crater's world; one rife with corruption, scandal, and backroom politics.

Readalike: Empire Rising by Thomas Kelly