Reclaiming the Past: 10 Must-Read Historical Fiction Books That Illuminate Hidden Histories

During the dark years of the First World War, radium dazzled as the wonder drug of the medical world and the darling of beauty products. From glowing body lotion to sparkling tonic water, its allure captivated a nation. Meanwhile, young women worked in radium-dial factories, their bodies dusted in glittering radium as they painted luminous clock faces. They were the “shining girls,” and they were the luckiest—until they weren’t. When these women began to fall mysteriously ill, the factories dismissed their claims, ignoring the gruesome truth of radium’s deadly poison. As their health deteriorated, the brave shining girls stood together, exposing corporate greed and launching a battle for workers’ rights that changed history. A powerful tale of courage and resilience, this is the story of the women who refused to be silenced.

In 1943, Irene Woodward leaves behind an abusive fiancé in New York to join the Red Cross and serve in Europe. In training, she bonds with Dorothy Dunford, a sharp-witted Midwesterner, and together they join the elite ranks of the “Donut Dollies.” Tasked with bringing comfort and camaraderie to soldiers on the front lines, Irene and Dorothy become a vital lifeline to troops heading into battle. After D-Day, the friends find themselves deep in the heart of the war, from the Battle of the Bulge to the liberation of Buchenwald. Amid the horrors of war, Irene discovers love with Hans, a brave American fighter pilot, and a renewed sense of trust through Dorothy’s friendship. But as the war intensifies, Irene’s greatest hope is that they all make it out alive.

Alma Cruz, a celebrated writer, fears ending up like her friend—a novelist whose obsession with finishing a book cost her sanity. When Alma inherits a small plot of land in the Dominican Republic, she decides to bury her untold stories—literally. In her homeland, Alma creates a cemetery for abandoned manuscripts and the characters she couldn’t bring to life. But Alma’s unfinished creations have other ideas. They refuse to rest, talking back to their author and rewriting themselves. With the help of Filomena, the graveyard’s compassionate groundskeeper, Alma navigates the secret lives of her characters, including Bienvenida, dictator Rafael Trujillo’s forgotten wife, and Manuel Cruz, a doctor-turned-rebel. The Cemetery of Untold Stories is a magical, poignant tale about memory, history, and the stories that refuse to be silenced.

1950s Hollywood: Every actress wants the lead role in Salome, a big-budget epic about the legendary princess who has inspired artists for centuries. When the film’s brilliant but temperamental director casts Vera Larios, a young and unknown Mexican actress, as Salome, the decision sends shockwaves through Tinseltown. Vera quickly becomes a rising star—and a target of envy for Nancy Hartley, a struggling actress who will do anything to claim the fame she believes she deserves. Two women navigate the cutthroat world of Golden Age Hollywood, where gossip and scandal lurk behind every camera lens. Meanwhile, the story of Salome herself unfolds: a woman torn between duty and forbidden desire, consumed by her fiery obsession with the prophet who foretells her stepfather’s doom. In this sizzling Technicolor saga, ambition, passion, and betrayal collide with devastating consequences.

Siberia, 1963: Former nuclear specialist Valery Kolkhanov knows how to survive in prison—make the right connections, stay warm, and find small pleasures to keep from losing his mind. But when his former university mentor unexpectedly intervenes, Valery is whisked away from the frozen camp to the shadowy City 40. In this mysterious town, surrounded by rusting forests and housing a set of nuclear reactors, Valery is reinstated as Dr. Kolkhanov. Tasked with studying the effects of radiation on local wildlife, Valery soon discovers troubling questions his work raises—questions even his overseer, a surprisingly kind KGB officer named Shenkov, fears to answer. What is the source of the radiation? What is being hidden from the thousands who live in the city? And how far can Valery push for the truth before it costs him everything?

Bestselling author Jeff Guinn uncovers the real story behind Bonnie and Clyde, two kids from a Dallas slum who traded their lives for a fleeting taste of excitement and fame. During the Great Depression, they became household names, their photos splashed across newspapers and newsreels, captivating a nation desperate for escapist entertainment. But behind their cool, calculating public image was a messy truth. Bonnie and Clyde were far from criminal masterminds. Their two-year crime spree was more of a reign of error, targeting small mom-and-pop stores and sometimes coming up empty-handed. Crippled, desperate, and always on the run, they lived like animals—yet their devotion to each other never wavered. With newly discovered material and cinematic storytelling, Jeff Guinn paints a vivid and human portrait of the infamous lovers and the troubled times that made them legends.

Flor has a gift: she can predict the exact day someone will die. So when she announces her plans for a living wake—a party to celebrate her life—her sisters are stunned. Has Flor foreseen her own death, or someone else’s? She refuses to reveal her motives, leaving Matilde, Pastora, and Camila to grapple with their own secrets as questions swirl. Across three days leading up to the wake, the Marte family’s intricate past and present unravel, spanning Santo Domingo and New York City. The next generation, cousins Ona and Yadi, face their own turmoil, adding another layer to the family’s rich tapestry. Told in Elizabeth Acevedo’s luminous voice, Family Lore is a poignant and unforgettable exploration of love, secrets, and the threads that bind us across generations.

The House of the Spirits introduced Isabel Allende as one of the world’s most gifted storytellers, weaving a spellbinding epic of love, magic, and revolution. The story follows three generations of the Trueba family, whose lives are shaped by triumphs and tragedies. Esteban Trueba, the volatile patriarch, is driven by his hunger for political power but anchored by his love for Clara, his ethereal wife with a mystical connection to the spirit world. Their daughter, Blanca, defies Esteban with a forbidden love affair, giving rise to Alba, the strong-willed granddaughter who will carry her family into a revolutionary future. Spanning decades, The House of the Spirits masterfully intertwines the personal and the political in a universal tale of love, fate, and resilience, cementing its place as one of the most important novels of the twentieth century.