Historical Fiction

There are dozens of novels about the First World War, many of them well worth your time. Here, Alice Winn—author of In Memoriam, a bestselling story of forbidden love between two young soldiers—selects five of the very best, including autobiographical fiction by former officers and historical novels that bring humanity to the horror of the Great War.

If you haven't read any historical fiction by Robert Graves (1895-1985) yet, you're in for a treat, says Five Books editor Sophie Roell. She introduces the books by Robert Graves recommended on Five Books, from his novels set in ancient Rome and England during the civil wars to his memoir of World War I and retellings of the Greek myths.

Bestselling British historian and author Alison Weir plunges us deep into the world of walled-up skeletons, Vikings, poisoning, intrigue, witchcraft and rebellion. This is the best of historical novels – books that never compromise on painstaking research.

Historical novelist K J Whittaker takes us on a time-travelling adventure as she selects five brilliant historical novels for teens.

All archaeologists have to do some imagining because the data they work with is so partial and fragmentary, says Rebecca Wragg Sykes, author of Kindred: Neanderthal Life, Love, Death and Art. She picks five books that help bring to life our closest relations, from a historical novel by a Nobel Prize-winning writer to a work of sci-fi about a hybrid Neanderthal child.

Which are the best historical novels? Bestselling author Vanora Bennett recommends her top five.

What is historical fiction? Does it have to be historically accurate? Zimbabwean novelist Tendai Huchu talks us through five important examples of historical novels, including three set in Africa.

There is some fabulous historical fiction out there for 8-12 year olds, some of it old, some of it new. British novelist Catherine Johnson, author of a number of historical novels for kids and young adults, recommends some of the best—from short stories to epics and from straight historical novels to those with a strong dose of fantasy and magic.

Historical fiction is experiencing something of a golden age at present: there's never been a better time to immerse oneself in the past. The acclaimed novelist Katharine Grant—chair of the judges for the Walter Scott Prize for Historical Fiction—talks us through their 2020 shortlist.

The best historical novels are those so immersive and natural in tone that their period setting is a 'by-the-way,' says Katharine Grant, the novelist and judge for the Walter Scott Prize for historical fiction. Here she discusses the six brilliant books that made the 2019 shortlist.