# Any Good Historical Fiction Recommendations?



## Varin (May 12, 2009)

Please, anything so long as it's not England, I'm tired of Kings and Queens and court intrigue....

*available on the Kindle, please ^^;


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## Monique (Jul 31, 2010)

This recent thread had some good recommendations:

http://www.kboards.com/index.php/topic,33870.0.html


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## PraiseGod13 (Oct 27, 2008)

Without a doubt.... our very own KB's Jeff Hepple's books!!  You won't be disappointed!!


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## tamborine (May 16, 2009)

The Matthew Corbett series by Robert McCammon. http://www.matthewcorbettsworld.com/

It's set in NYC circa 1700.


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## history_lover (Aug 9, 2010)

Varin said:


> Please, anything so long as it's not England, I'm tired of Kings and Queens and court intrigue....
> 
> *available on the Kindle, please ^^;


Are you tired of English royalty or royalty in general? Because there were a lot of royal courts outside England...

But I mostly read about European royalty so I can't really recommend anything


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## Gordon Ryan (Aug 20, 2010)

Varin said:


> Please, anything so long as it's not England, I'm tired of Kings and Queens and court intrigue....
> 
> *available on the Kindle, please ^^;


The term historical fiction has such a broad chronological connotation that it's far more difficult to place someone's interest. Victorian or Arthurian England is a common theme of course, although you have voiced having had you fill of such. A recent single volume I read was an excellent 300 year romp through New York city and was in fact entitled, New York. As an author myself, I am embarrassed to say I have forgotten the author's name. Another wrinkle on historical fiction is alternate history, where the events of the past are changed somewhat to allow for a different outcome. My favorite author in this regard is Harry Turtledove, a master at deviating from factual history, while maintaining a very plausible outcome, complete with real characters and how they might have acted.

Historical fiction can be as short as twenty-five years ago, to thousands of years, but most seem to center in the period from seventh or eighth century all the way up to the middle twentieth century. Take your pick. Lots have nothing to do with royalty, English or otherwise.

Gordon Ryan


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## Harry Shannon (Jul 30, 2010)

Michael Scharra's "The Killer Angels," "Shogun" by James Clavell and "The Source" by James Michener remain three of my all time favorites. Also loved "Gates of Fire" about ancient Sparta. Brilliant stuff. Oh, and Larry McMurtry's "Lonesome Dove" of course.


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## Taborcarn (Dec 15, 2009)

Novelist said:


> A recent single volume I read was an excellent 300 year romp through New York city and was in fact entitled, New York. As an author myself, I am embarrassed to say I have forgotten the author's name.


I believe the author you're thinking of is Edward Rutherfurd. I also read and enjoyed this novel earlier this year.


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## Neekeebee (Jan 10, 2009)

Here are a few good ones:








This is the first of a trilogy about Josephine Bonaparte.








Also the first of a trilogy, about Genghis Kahn. (I'll admit, I've only read the first so far, but plan to read the rest.)

and







about the history of Ancient Rome, in the form of several vaguely connected short stories. Currently a bargain at $2.99.

Happy reading!

N


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## The Hooded Claw (Oct 12, 2009)

Another vote for The Killer Angels.


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## Shayne Parkinson (Mar 19, 2010)

Varin said:


> Please, anything so long as it's not England, I'm tired of Kings and Queens and court intrigue....
> 
> *available on the Kindle, please ^^;


A crossover between hist. fic. and fantasy is Guy Gavriel Kay's _Under Heaven_, set in a fictionalised version of Tang Dynasty China. This was a lovely read.


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## catherinedurkinrobinson (Sep 3, 2010)

Leon Uris is my favorite: The Exodus, The Haj, and (drumroll please) Trinity.


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## askenase13 (Mar 1, 2009)

I would recommend my favorite book "Tai Pan" by James Clavell.  Swashbuckling and intrigue set in 1840's Hong Kong and Macau.  Fascinating.


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## N. Gemini Sasson (Jul 5, 2010)

American historical set in the Badlands during the Dust Bowl:


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## Joel Arnold (May 3, 2010)

*The Tenderness of Wolves* by Stef Penney is a good one.


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## Thalia the Muse (Jan 20, 2010)

Some cool historical fiction with non-European settings:

The Tale of Murasaki (ancient Japan)
The Old Capital (early 20th-century Japan)
Giants in the Earth (Norwegian pioneers in the upper Midwest)
Angle of Repose (more pioneers)
Kim, Rudyard Kipling (India during the Raj, but seen through the eyes of a boy who has "gone native")


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## Varin (May 12, 2009)

Thanks everyone, sorry I didn't clarify.

Anything non european right now is a safe bet.... I've read just a bit too many of those  right now and wasn't having much luck finding any others in the Kindle store...


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## Guest (Sep 7, 2010)

The Things They Carried!


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## Gordon Ryan (Aug 20, 2010)

catherinedurkinrobinson said:


> Leon Uris is my favorite: The Exodus, The Haj, and (drumroll please) Trinity.


Catherine, on another thread on the KB, they were talking about favorite first lines. My favorite of all time comes from Leon Uris and the Trinity series, specifically Redemption. This is because of my heritage and my living experience in foreign countries. The line in question:

_*"If the earth were flat, New Zealand would have fallen off long ago, it's that far from Ireland."*_

If someone has lived in either, or in my case, both of these countries, who could resist buying this book?

Gordon Ryan


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## Gordon Ryan (Aug 20, 2010)

askenase13 said:


> I would recommend my favorite book "Tai Pan" by James Clavell. Swashbuckling and intrigue set in 1840's Hong Kong and Macau. Fascinating.


 I read this one too. Interesting premise as the son takes over from the father and is accepted by the other characters as the leader. It's not always so easy to do.

Gordon Ryan


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## D. Nathan Hilliard (Jun 5, 2010)

How about Brother Cadfael? These are some great Medievil mysteries.


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## Meemo (Oct 27, 2008)

Another thumbs up for The Killer Angels.

Also, if you can handle British without the royalty (or for others who might be interested), there's a wonderful trilogy by R.F. Delderfield available on Kindle, as well as his last book, "To Serve Them All My Days", which was on Masterpiece Theater. I read these back in the 80's but I still remember loving them. It's tempting to revisit them on Kindle....

Swann Family Saga
1. God Is an Englishman (1970)
2. Theirs Was the Kingdom (1971)
3. Give Us This Day (1973)

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Ddigital-text&field-keywords=delderfield&x=0&y=0


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## lorezskyline (Apr 19, 2010)

I'd reccomen Conn Iggulden's series of books on Genghis Khan which are available on Kindle Wolf of the Plains is the 1st in the series.  His Roman series are also excellent.


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## CNDudley (May 14, 2010)

Thalia the Muse said:


> Some cool historical fiction with non-European settings:
> 
> The Tale of Murasaki (ancient Japan)
> The Old Capital (early 20th-century Japan)
> ...


I third The Killer Angels and Angle of Repose is one of my all-time favorites.

This is my favorite Willa Cather. Ugly Kindle cover:


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## CaraMarsi27 (Aug 7, 2010)

I recommend Pompeii by Robert Harris; the ancient Rome series by Colleen McCollaugh. A book I love which is a fantasy time travel, but contains so much history is Household Gods by Judith Tarrand and Harry Turtledove. It's mesmerizing.


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## Jeff (Oct 28, 2008)

Here's a link to KB authors that write historical fiction:

http://www.kboards.com/index.php/topic,27235.msg506230.html#msg506230


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## 911jason (Aug 17, 2009)

Feel free to click the link in the sig of the post above mine. Jeff Hepple is an incredible author of epic historical fiction. Huge books at bargain-basement prices. Highly recommended!


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## Cuechick (Oct 28, 2008)

I really enjoyed The Red Tent, excellent book and far from the UK. Another good one is Alias Grace by Margaret Atwood, though
I don't think it is ava for Kindles in the U.S. yet, it is a fictional account of a true infamous Canadian murder.


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## Five String (Jun 6, 2010)

If you don't mind Britishness, Bernard Cornwell has a lot of books about different historical periods. He's pretty good. I never got too into them, but some people swear by his Sharpe series, about an english infantryman in Spain in the Napoleonic wars.


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## Jen (Oct 28, 2008)

Five String said:


> If you don't mind Britishness, Bernard Cornwell has a lot of books about different historical periods. He's pretty good. I never got too into them, but some people swear by his Sharpe series, about an english infantryman in Spain in the Napoleonic wars.


My husband is on book 12 I think. He loves them. Miltary fiction isn't my bag, but he loves them.


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## strether (Dec 15, 2008)

Readers might want to consider one of Dorothy Dunnett's series, which have recently become available as ebooks. I particularly recommend the House of Niccolo series. The books' (eight in the series) settings range from continental Europe to Eastern Asia, to Russia, Iceland and Scotland. Alas, I own them all in excellent paperback versions, so can't justify buying them again as ebooks, though it would be nice to have them available in less bulky form.

http://www.amazon.com/Niccolo-Rising-First-House-ebook/dp/B003XT60HW/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2&s=digital-text&qid=1284569998&sr=1-6


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## lorezskyline (Apr 19, 2010)

Five String said:


> If you don't mind Britishness, Bernard Cornwell has a lot of books about different historical periods. He's pretty good. I never got too into them, but some people swear by his Sharpe series, about an english infantryman in Spain in the Napoleonic wars.


He also has a series set in the American Civil War I think there were 3 books in this series so I gues that counts as a non-European setting but it is very simmilar to Sharpe in a lot of ways.


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## Guest (Sep 17, 2010)

PraiseGod13 said:


> Without a doubt.... our very own KB's Jeff Hepple's books!! You won't be disappointed!!


100% AGREED! Jeff Hepple is your man.


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## Gertie Kindle (Nov 6, 2008)

Jeff said:


> Here's a link to KB authors that write historical fiction:
> 
> http://www.kboards.com/index.php/topic,27235.msg506230.html#msg506230


I really need to browse through this list more. I'm ready for some new reads.



M.R. Mathias said:


> 100% AGREED! Jeff Hepple is your man.


Ditto, Ditto, Ditto.


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## Jeff (Oct 28, 2008)

I never know what to do when someone recommends my books in a readers' thread. It seems self-serving to reply but it also seems rude not to say thanks so - thank you Judy, Jason, MR and Margaret (and anyone I may have missed) for your kind words.

Thanks to everyone else for the other recommendations.

I've read, enjoyed and can recommend the below Historical Novels by KB authors:

*Libby Cone* - _War on the Margins_
*Margaret Lake* Ariana's Pride, Catherine and the Captain
*Paul Clayton* - _White Seed: The Untold Story of the Lost Colony of Roanoke_
*Shelley Stout* - _Radium Halos, A Novel About the Radium Dial Painters_
*Edward C. Patterson* - _The Jade Owl_


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## Gertie Kindle (Nov 6, 2008)

Jeff said:


> I never know what to do when someone recommends my books in a readers' thread. It seems self-serving to reply but it also seems rude not to say thanks so - thank you Judy, Jason, MR and Margaret (and anyone I may have missed) for your kind words.
> 
> Thanks to everyone else for the other recommendations.
> 
> ...


Well deserved, young man. 

Good list. Oh, wait, I wrote two of them  Thanks back atcha.

I've got White Seed and I'm looking forward to reading that.


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## SuzanneTyrpak (Aug 10, 2010)

*Pompeii* by Robert Harris is one of my favorites--fast paced, a thriller, and well researched. I had intended to write a thriller set in Pompeii, but after reading this I thought, it's already been written!

And I see Harris has a number of books set in ancient Rome up on Kindle. Check him out.










http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_1_5?url=search-alias%3Ddigital-text&field-keywords=pompeii+robert+harris&sprefix=pompe


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