← Historical Fiction

The Historical Fiction Top 100 — Best Historical Fiction Books

The best historical fiction — immersive stories that bring the past vividly to life.

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The Pillars of the Earth
1
The Pillars of the Earth
Ken Follett
1989
Gone with the Wind
2
Gone with the Wind
Margaret Mitchell
1936
Wolf Hall
3
Wolf Hall
Hilary Mantel
2009
The Book Thief
4
The Book Thief
Markus Zusak
2005
All the Light We Cannot See
5
All the Light We Cannot See
Anthony Doerr
2014
Memoirs of a Geisha
6
Memoirs of a Geisha
Arthur Golden
1997
The Women
7
The Women
Kristin Hannah
2024
Pachinko
8
Pachinko
Min Jin Lee
2017
Outlander
9
Outlander
Diana Gabaldon
1991
Beloved
10
Beloved
Toni Morrison
1987
I Claudius
11
I Claudius
Robert Graves
1934
War and Peace
12
War and Peace
Leo Tolstoy
1869
Circe
13
Circe
Madeline Miller
2018
The Song of Achilles
14
The Song of Achilles
Madeline Miller
2011
A Gentleman in Moscow
15
A Gentleman in Moscow
Amor Towles
2016
Bring Up the Bodies
16
Bring Up the Bodies
Hilary Mantel
2012
The Mirror and the Light
17
The Mirror and the Light
Hilary Mantel
2020
The Other Boleyn Girl
18
The Other Boleyn Girl
Philippa Gregory
2001
The Kite Runner
19
The Kite Runner
Khaled Hosseini
2003
A Thousand Splendid Suns
20
A Thousand Splendid Suns
Khaled Hosseini
2007
The Thorn Birds
21
The Thorn Birds
Colleen McCullough
1977
Roots
22
Roots
Alex Haley
1976
Shogun
23
Shogun
James Clavell
1975
Les Miserables
24
Les Miserables
Victor Hugo
1862
A Tale of Two Cities
25
A Tale of Two Cities
Charles Dickens
1859
The Count of Monte Cristo
26
The Count of Monte Cristo
Alexandre Dumas
1844
The Three Musketeers
27
The Three Musketeers
Alexandre Dumas
1844
The Mists of Avalon
28
The Mists of Avalon
Marion Zimmer Bradley
1983
The Once and Future King
29
The Once and Future King
T.H. White
1958
The Last Kingdom
30
The Last Kingdom
Bernard Cornwell
2004
Sharpe's Rifles
31
Sharpe's Rifles
Bernard Cornwell
1988
The Winter King
32
The Winter King
Bernard Cornwell
1995
World Without End
33
World Without End
Ken Follett
2007
Hamnet
34
Hamnet
Maggie O'Farrell
2020
The Underground Railroad
35
The Underground Railroad
Colson Whitehead
2016
The Nickel Boys
36
The Nickel Boys
Colson Whitehead
2019
Washington Black
37
Washington Black
Esi Edugyan
2018
Lincoln in the Bardo
38
Lincoln in the Bardo
George Saunders
2017
The Sympathizer
39
The Sympathizer
Viet Thanh Nguyen
2015
All Quiet on the Western Front
40
All Quiet on the Western Front
Erich Maria Remarque
1929
Catch-22
41
Catch-22
Joseph Heller
1961
The English Patient
42
The English Patient
Michael Ondaatje
1992
Cold Mountain
43
Cold Mountain
Charles Frazier
1997
The Shadow of the Wind
44
The Shadow of the Wind
Carlos Ruiz Zafon
2001
Captain Corelli's Mandolin
45
Captain Corelli's Mandolin
Louis de Bernieres
1994
The Remains of the Day
46
The Remains of the Day
Kazuo Ishiguro
1989
Girl with a Pearl Earring
47
Girl with a Pearl Earring
Tracy Chevalier
1999
Lonesome Dove
48
Lonesome Dove
Larry McMurtry
1985
The Color Purple
49
The Color Purple
Alice Walker
1982
Jazz
50
Jazz
Toni Morrison
1992
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