Uploaded April 2026 | Updated September 2026, 1 week ago
Book riot article: bookriot.com/the-best-historical-fiction-books-of-the-century-so-far
0:00 intro
1:04 lesser known history
6:18 Spanish Civil War
7:45 Myth Retellings/Fantasy Historical Fiction
9:42 WWII
12:40 French + Art
14:00 middle grade
15:00 British Historical Fiction
17:20 American Historical Fiction
21:52 final thoughts
Books listed according to the last name of the author.
A Long Petal of the Sea by Isabel Allende
Salt Houses by Hala Alyan
Life After Life by Kate Atkinson
The Last Nude by Ellis Avery
The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett
The Queen of the Night by Alexander Chee
The Inheritance of Orquídea Divina by Zoraida Còrdova
Cantoras by Caro De Robertis
All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr
You Dreamed of Empires by Álvaro Enrigue, translated by Natasha Wimmer
James by Percival Everett
My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante, Ann Goldstein (Translator)
The Other Boleyn Girl by Philippa Gregory
Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi
The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah
The Mercies by Kiran Millwood Hargrave
A Thousand Ships by Natalie Haynes
The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
The Forest of Stolen Girls by June Hur
The Buffalo Hunter Hunter by Stephen Graham Jones
The Known World by Edward P. Jones
The Thirty Names of Night by Zeyn Joukhadar
Lavinia by Ursula K. Le Guin
Pachinko by Min Jin Lee
Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo
Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel
The Good Lord Bird by James McBride
The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
Gods of Jade and Shadow by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell
The Mountains Sing by Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai
Atmosphere by Taylor Jenkins Reid
Esperanza Rising by Pam Muñoz Ryan
Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi
The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt
The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows
Mademoiselle Revolution by Zoe Sivak
The Bonesetter’s Daughter by Amy Tan
The Lilac People by Milo Todd
A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles
Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese
Fingersmith by Sarah Waters
Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein
The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead
One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia
Red at the Bone by Jacqueline Woodson
Boxers & Saints by Gene Luen Yang, Lark Pien (Inker)
How Much of These Hills Is Gold by C Pam Zhang
The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafón
The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
Makeup used:
Hannah Louise Poston X Salt New York saltnewyork.com/?srsltid=AfmBOoph11sTSWTtHEC29jmbZOj9FJRr_zNY9j-lwPrR4n_qhlAS5BR3
Amuse me in my inbox - rachelle.e.swearingen (at) gmail.com
Befriend me on Goodreads -goodreads.com/user/show/139310469-shelly-swearingen
Drop by on Instagram - Shellyish
Book riot article: bookriot.com/the-best-historical-fiction-books-of-the-century-so-far
0:00 intro
1:04 lesser known history
6:18 Spanish Civil War
7:45 Myth Retellings/Fantasy Historical Fiction
9:42 WWII
12:40 French + Art
14:00 middle grade
15:00 British Historical Fiction
17:20 American Historical Fiction
21:52 final thoughts
Books listed according to the last name of the author.
A Long Petal of the Sea by Isabel Allende
Salt Houses by Hala Alyan
Life After Life by Kate Atkinson
The Last Nude by Ellis Avery
The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett
The Queen of the Night by Alexander Chee
The Inheritance of Orquídea Divina by Zoraida Còrdova
Cantoras by Caro De Robertis
All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr
You Dreamed of Empires by Álvaro Enrigue, translated by Natasha Wimmer
James by Percival Everett
My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante, Ann Goldstein (Translator)
The Other Boleyn Girl by Philippa Gregory
Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi
The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah
The Mercies by Kiran Millwood Hargrave
A Thousand Ships by Natalie Haynes
The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
The Forest of Stolen Girls by June Hur
The Buffalo Hunter Hunter by Stephen Graham Jones
The Known World by Edward P. Jones
The Thirty Names of Night by Zeyn Joukhadar
Lavinia by Ursula K. Le Guin
Pachinko by Min Jin Lee
Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo
Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel
The Good Lord Bird by James McBride
The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
Gods of Jade and Shadow by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell
The Mountains Sing by Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai
Atmosphere by Taylor Jenkins Reid
Esperanza Rising by Pam Muñoz Ryan
Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi
The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt
The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows
Mademoiselle Revolution by Zoe Sivak
The Bonesetter’s Daughter by Amy Tan
The Lilac People by Milo Todd
A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles
Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese
Fingersmith by Sarah Waters
Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein
The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead
One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia
Red at the Bone by Jacqueline Woodson
Boxers & Saints by Gene Luen Yang, Lark Pien (Inker)
How Much of These Hills Is Gold by C Pam Zhang
The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafón
The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
Makeup used:
Hannah Louise Poston X Salt New York saltnewyork.com/?srsltid=AfmBOoph11sTSWTtHEC29jmbZOj9FJRr_zNY9j-lwPrR4n_qhlAS5BR3
Amuse me in my inbox - rachelle.e.swearingen (at) gmail.com
Befriend me on Goodreads -goodreads.com/user/show/139310469-shelly-swearingen
Drop by on Instagram - Shellyish
