Past Kindle Book Deals but Still Must Read Books!
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685 past books matching Historical Fiction
A boy who escapes Nazi Germany carries grief, rage, and the weight of those left behind into a war that will ask him to confront all of it.
That Such Men Lived
Historical Fiction · War Fiction · World War 2
Our take
A boy who escapes Nazi Germany carries grief, rage, and the weight of those left behind into a war that will ask him to confront all of it. In That Such Men Lived, Johannes is transformed from a hunted teenager into a soldier trained to help dismantle the regime that shattered his life. This World War II novel centers sacrifice, identity, and hard-won hope under impossible pressure.
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"It is foolish and wrong to mourn the men who died. Rather, we should thank God that such men lived."
—General George S. Patton
Seventeen-year-old Johannes Schmitt can do nothing but watch as the Gestapo murders his father in his own home.
Forced to flee Germany, Johannes is torn from the girl he loves and the mother he swore to protect, boarding a ship to America with nothing but a suitcase, a broken Star of David, and the weight of survivor’s guilt. He arrives alone, enraged, and powerless to help those he loves.
That is, until he’s finally drafted into the US Army.
From there, Johannes is sent to the most unlikely of places: the top-secret Camp Ritchie, where he and fellow Jewish immigrants learn advanced interrogation techniques and German order of battle, strategies that promise to change the tides of the war. From the burning streets of Briedheim to the secretive Camp Ritchie to the very walls of Hitler’s Fortress Europe, Johannes must navigate a journey haunted by the past as he tries to keep his honor intact.
In this evocative retelling of the real-life German-born Jewish immigrants known as the Ritchie Boys, That Such Men Live is a gritty and emotional story of sacrifice, war, and maintaining hope when all seems lost.
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It fits readers who want emotionally grounded historical fiction shaped by sisterhood, sacrifice, and survival under impossible conditions.
Angels of the Pacific
Historical Fiction · War Fiction · World War 2
Our take
War narrows the world until courage becomes a daily act of endurance. In Angels of the Pacific, an American Army nurse and a Filipina student face occupation, imprisonment, and resistance in the Philippines during World War II, each forced to discover how far she will go to protect others. It fits readers who want emotionally grounded historical fiction shaped by sisterhood, sacrifice, and survival under impossible conditions.
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"Absolutely riveting. A stay-up-all night read about two very different women who discover just how strong they can be—and just how much they'll dare—during the brutal Japanese occupation of the Philippines in World War II. This story of endurance and sisterhood will have you turning pages late into the night." —Lauren Willig, New York Times bestselling author
If you loved Beantown Girls by Jane Healey and Hazel Gaynor’s When We Were Young & Brave, then you won’t want to miss critically acclaimed author Elise Hooper’s powerful new novel of the Angels of Bataan, nurses held as prisoners during the occupation of the Philippines in World War II.
Their survival would depend on sisterhood and service.
Inspired by the extraordinary true stories of World War II’s American Army nurses famously known as the Angels of Bataan and the unsung contributions of Filipinas of the resistance, this novel transports us to a remarkable era of hope, bravery, perseverance, and ultimately—victory.
The Philippines, 1941: Tess Abbott, an American Army nurse, has fled the hardships of the Great Depression at home for the glamour and adventure of Manila, one of the most desirable postings in the world. But everything changes when the Japanese Imperial Army invades with lightning speed and devastating results. Tess and her band of nurses serve on the front lines until they are captured as prisoners of war and held behind the high stone walls of Manila’s Santo Tomas Internment Camp.
When the Japanese occupation of her beloved homeland commences, Flor Dalisay, a Filipina university student, will be drawn into the underground network of resistance, discovering within herself reserves of courage, resilience, and leadership she never knew she possessed.
As the war continues, Tess and Flor face danger, deprivation, and terror, leading them into a web of danger as they unexpectedly work together to save lives and win their freedom.
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A strong match for readers drawn to literary historical fiction about occupation, identity, betrayal, and divided allegiance.
The Gift of Rain
Historical Fiction · Asian Fiction · World War 2
Our take
A Man Booker Prize nominee, The Gift of Rain follows a young man on the island of Penang whose bond with a Japanese mentor leaves him caught between competing loyalties during World War II, with a 4.4-star rating from more than 7,100 Amazon reviewers. A strong match for readers drawn to literary historical fiction about occupation, identity, betrayal, and divided allegiance.
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In the tradition of celebrated wartime storytellers Somerset Maugham and Graham Greene, Tan Twan Eng's debut novel casts a powerful spell.
The recipient of extraordinary acclaim from critics and the bookselling community, Tan Twan Eng's debut novel casts a powerful spell and has garnered comparisons to celebrated wartime storytellers Somerset Maugham and Graham Greene. Set during the tumult of World War II, on the lush Malayan island of Penang, The Gift of Rain tells a riveting and poignant tale about a young man caught in the tangle of wartime loyalties and deceits.
In 1939, sixteen-year-old Philip Hutton-the half-Chinese, half-English youngest child of the head of one of Penang's great trading families-feels alienated from both the Chinese and British communities. He at last discovers a sense of belonging in his unexpected friendship with Hayato Endo, a Japanese diplomat. Philip proudly shows his new friend around his adored island, and in return Endo teaches him about Japanese language and culture and trains him in the art and discipline of aikido. But such knowledge comes at a terrible price. When the Japanese savagely invade Malaya, Philip realizes that his mentor and sensei-to whom he owes absolute loyalty-is a Japanese spy. Young Philip has been an unwitting traitor, and must now work in secret to save as many lives as possible, even as his own family is brought to its knees.
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Survival becomes both a physical and spiritual struggle in a novel shaped by grief, memory, and the brutal machinery of slavery.
Let Us Descend
Historical Fiction · Literary Fiction · People of Color
Our take
Survival becomes both a physical and spiritual struggle in a novel shaped by grief, memory, and the brutal machinery of slavery. Let Us Descend follows Annis as she is sold south and forced through an unforgiving landscape, sustained by the voices of her mother, her ancestors, and a world of spirits that blurs myth and history. This literary historical novel offers a harrowing, lyrical reading experience centered on endurance, rebirth, and reclamation.
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About the book
OPRAH’S BOOK CLUB PICK • Instant New York Times Bestseller • Named one of the best books of 2023 by The Washington Post, Vanity Fair, The Boston Globe, Time, The New Yorker, and more.
“Nothing short of epic, magical, and intensely moving.” —Vogue • “A novel of triumph.” —The Washington Post • “Harrowing, immersive, and other-worldly.” —People
From “one of America’s finest living writers” (San Francisco Chronicle) and “heir apparent to Toni Morrison” (LitHub)—comes a haunting masterpiece about an enslaved girl in the years before the Civil War that’s destined to become a classic.
Let Us Descend describes a journey from the rice fields of the Carolinas to the slave markets of New Orleans and into the fearsome heart of a Louisiana sugar plantation. A journey that is as beautifully rendered as it is heart wrenching, the novel is “[t]he literary equivalent of an open wound from which poetry pours” (NPR).
Annis, sold south by the white enslaver who fathered her, is the reader’s guide. As she struggles through the miles-long march, Annis turns inward, seeking comfort from memories of her mother and stories of her African warrior grandmother. Throughout, she opens herself to a world beyond this world, one teeming with spirits: of earth and water, of myth and history; spirits who nurture and give, and those who manipulate and take. While Annis leads readers through the descent, hers is ultimately a story of rebirth and reclamation.
From one of the most singularly brilliant and beloved writers of her generation, this “[s]earing and lyrical…raw, transcendent, and ultimately hopeful” (The Atlanta Journal-Constitution) novel inscribes Black American grief and joy into the very land—the rich but unforgiving forests, swamps, and rivers of the American South. Let Us Descend is Jesmyn Ward’s most magnificent novel yet.
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Freedom becomes more dangerous the closer it feels.
The Boy Who Said No
Historical Fiction · Suspense · War Fiction
Our take
Freedom becomes more dangerous the closer it feels. In The Boy Who Said No, Frank Mederos comes of age under Castro’s regime and risks everything to escape the army, evade a relentless manhunt, and reach the life he wants beyond Cuba. This historical novel draws its momentum from true events, blending political danger, personal loss, and the stubborn courage it takes to refuse submission.
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As a boy Frank Mederos' grandfather teaches him to fish, to navigate the seas, and to think for himself, much needed skills under the new Castro regime. When Frank is drafted into the army, he is soon promoted to the Special Forces, where he is privy to top military secrets. But young Frank has no sympathy for Fidel. He thirsts for freedom and longs to join his girlfriend who has left Cuba for America.
Frank yearns to defect, but his timing couldn't be worse. After two unsuccessful escape attempts, Frank learns that the departure of the next available boat conflicts with upcoming military exercises. If he stays, he will miss the boat. If he doesn't, he will be the object of a massive manhunt.
Problems abound: How will Frank escape the army base without being seen? Where will he hide until the boat comes? How can he outwit his commanding officer? And how can he elude hundreds of soldiers ordered to bring him back "dead or alive"?
Frank's true story, a tale of love, loss and courage that will keep you on the edge of your seat until the last page is turned.
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It fits readers who want wartime survival fused with folk horror and mounting dread.
The Sarvàn
Historical Fiction · Horror · Occult Horror
Our take
War strips everything down, but the mountains hold a different kind of terror. In The Sarvàn, a group of Allied POWs escape a brutal German camp during World War I only to find themselves trapped in an alpine wilderness shaped by old customs, buried fear, and whispers of something hunting the snow. It fits readers who want wartime survival fused with folk horror and mounting dread.
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About the book
Midsommer meets All Quiet on the Western Front in this masterful blend of mystery, adventure, and folk-horror.
In the midst of the First World War, a handful of allied POWs escape the torments of Germany’s most brutal internment camp only to find themselves stranded deep in the merciless wilderness of the Alps.
The locals there are odd, and their traditions ancient. With hushed voices they whisper of a beast that roams the frozen mountains. They call it... The Sarvàn.
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As Europe edges toward war, suspicion spreads faster than loyalty and no one in intelligence can be trusted.
Every Spy a Traitor
Historical Fiction · Thriller · Historical Thriller · Political Thriller · Spy Thriller · World War 2
Our take
As Europe edges toward war, suspicion spreads faster than loyalty and no one in intelligence can be trusted. Every Spy a Traitor follows a young British writer drawn into a hunt for Soviet agents, only to find himself trapped in a world of divided allegiances and shifting identities. This is historical spy fiction with mounting paranoia, political danger, and the moral instability that defines the best espionage novels.
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About the book
A Financial Times Best Book of 2024'One of the superstars of modern spy fiction' Daily Express
'One of the best spy novels I've read' I. S. Berry, author of The Peacock and the Sparrow
'Gerlis is at the top of his game' Paul Vidich, author of Beirut Station
Trust no one. Suspect everyone.
It's 1937. Fear and suspicion stalk the Continent. A million have died in Stalin's Great Purge and the Nazi terror grips Germany. But British intelligence is still trying to work out who the enemy is.
As Europe heads towards war, treason is in the air. British spymasters know there is one Soviet agent in their ranks, codenamed Agent 'Archie', and there's a frantic search to find them. What they don't know is that he is not the only traitor.
The life of Charles Cooper, a young British writer travelling Europe to research his novel, is about to change for ever
The thrilling first novel in Alex Gerlis' new Double Agent espionage series, perfect for fans of Charles Cumming and Mick Herron.
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A good pick for fans of historical thrillers built around espionage, political intrigue, and prewar Europe.
Corpus
Historical Fiction · Thriller · Political Thriller · Spy Thriller
Our take
In 1936, Cambridge professor Thomas Wilde investigates a pair of murders and uncovers a conspiracy reaching from Britain to Berlin and into the highest levels of government, with a 4.0-star average from more than 5,600 Goodreads ratings. A good pick for fans of historical thrillers built around espionage, political intrigue, and prewar Europe.
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About the book
The gripping spy thriller for fans of Robert Harris from Sunday Times bestseller Rory Clements, author of the award-winning NUCLEUS.
1936 - Europe is in turmoil. The Nazis have marched into the Rhineland. In Russia, Stalin has unleashed his Great Terror. Spain has erupted in civil war.
In Berlin, a young Englishwoman evades the Gestapo to deliver vital papers to a Jewish scientist. Within weeks, she is found dead, a silver syringe clutched in her fingers.
In an exclusive London club, a conspiracy is launched that threatens the very heart of government. When a renowned society couple with fascist leanings are found brutally murdered, a maverick Cambridge professor is drawn into a world of espionage he knows only from history books. The deeper Thomas Wilde delves, the more he finds to link the murders with the girl with the silver syringe - and even more worryingly to the scandal surrounding the Abdication . . .
Set against the gathering drumbeat of war and moving from Berlin to Cambridge, from Whitehall to the Kent countryside, and from the Fens to the Aragon Front in Spain, this sweeping international thriller, like C J Sansom's WINTER IN MADRID, marks the beginning of a brilliant new series for Rory Clements.
What the critics are saying about CORPUS:
'Dramatic . . . pacy and assured . . . Well crafted, it has all the pleasures of an intriguing lead character, intricate plot and fascinating historical context' Daily Mail
'Rory Clements's timely spy thriller set in the 1930s evokes a period of political polarisation, mistrust and simmering violence. Corpus is fast-paced and there are plenty of red herrings to keep you guessing. This is the first of a promising series and Wilde is a likeable hero' The Times
'This clever novel, rich in deceptions and intrigue, shows the reach of Stalin and Hitler into every class of British society, threatening violence on horrific scale. Corpus is a standout historical novel and spy thriller' Daily Express
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War shatters youth and certainty in Angels of War, where a nurse’s first posting becomes a fight to endure loss, danger, and betrayal.
Angels of War
Historical Fiction · World War 2
Our take
War shatters youth and certainty in Angels of War, where a nurse’s first posting becomes a fight to endure loss, danger, and betrayal. In 1941 Manila, Rose Williams arrives eager for adventure and connection to her late father’s past, only to see her life torn apart when Japan bombs the city. This is an emotional World War II novel shaped by courage, heartbreak, and survival under siege.
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Don't miss this brand-new WWII historical novel, perfect for fans of Anna Stuart and Daisy Wood.
The Philippines, 1941. Rose Williams arrives in Manila on her first assignment as a US Army nurse, enthralled by the new environment and its promise of adventure. Although worlds away from the land she grew up in, Rose feels connected to her father, who worked in the Philippines before he died.
War seems like a distant possibility as Rose takes midnight dips in a warm sea with the other nurses, explores secret corners of the island, and falls in love with a locally stationed US Army officer.
But when Japan bombs Manila, the nurses’ lives change. Torn away from the man she loves, Rose faces constant threat, not only to her life, but from those around her she thought she could trust…
Will Rose and those close to her survive in the turmoil of war?
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Faith, wonder, and catastrophe converge in The Sparrow, where a mission meant to make peaceful first contact ends in profound ruin.
The Sparrow
Literary Fiction · Historical Fiction · Speculative Fiction
Our take
Faith, wonder, and catastrophe converge in The Sparrow, where a mission meant to make peaceful first contact ends in profound ruin. Jesuit priest and linguist Emilio Sandoz leads an expedition to intelligent extraterrestrial life, but small misunderstandings slowly turn hope into devastation. This is thoughtful, emotionally intense science fiction that pairs first-contact discovery with questions of belief, guilt, and the cost of human certainty.
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A visionary work that combines speculative fiction with deep philosophical inquiry, The Sparrow tells the story of a charismatic Jesuit priest and linguist, Emilio Sandoz, who leads a scientific mission entrusted with a profound task: to make first contact with intelligent extraterrestrial life. The mission begins in faith, hope, and beauty, but a series of small misunderstandings brings it to a catastrophic end.
Praise for The Sparrow
“A startling, engrossing, and moral work of fiction.”—The New York Times Book Review
“Important novels leave deep cracks in our beliefs, our prejudices, and our blinders. The Sparrow is one of them.”—Entertainment Weekly
“Powerful . . . The Sparrow tackles a difficult subject with grace and intelligence.”—San Francisco Chronicle
“Provocative, challenging . . . recalls both Arthur C. Clarke and H. G. Wells, with a dash of Ray Bradbury for good measure.”—The Dallas Morning News
“[Mary Doria] Russell shows herself to be a skillful storyteller who subtly and expertly builds suspense.”—USA Today
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Friendship becomes a weapon in The Girls of the Glimmer Factory, where two women meet again inside a system built on lies, performance, and terror.
The Girls of the Glimmer Factory
Historical Fiction · World War 2
Our take
Friendship becomes a weapon in The Girls of the Glimmer Factory, where two women meet again inside a system built on lies, performance, and terror. As Hannah risks everything to expose the truth of Theresienstadt and Hilde helps shape the Nazi propaganda meant to hide it, the novel becomes a story of resistance, betrayal, and moral collapse under unimaginable pressure.
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THE NATIONAL BESTSELLER!
"A gripping, powerful read. A valuable lesson for our own times." —Heather Morris, New York Times bestselling author of The Tattooist of Auschwitz
From the author of Cradles of the Reich comes a poignant and inspiring tale for fans of The Forest of Vanishing Stars and The German Wife about resistance, friendship, and the dangers of propaganda, based on the real story of the Nazi "show camp" Theresienstadt.
Hannah longs for the days when she used to be free, but now, she is a Jewish prisoner at Theresienstadt, a model ghetto where the Nazis plan to make a propaganda film to convince the world that the Jewish people are living well in the camps. But Hannah will do anything to show the world the truth. Along with other young resistance members, they vow to disrupt the filming and derail the increasingly frequent deportations to death camps in the east.
Hilde is a true believer in the Nazi cause, working in the Reich Ministry of Enlightenment and Propaganda. Though they're losing the war, Hilde hasn't lost faith. She can't stop the Allied bombings, but she can help the party create a documentary that will renew confidence in Hitler's plans for Jewish containment. When the filming of Hitler Gives a City to the Jews faces production problems due to resistance, Hilde finds herself in a position to finally make a name for herself. And when she recognizes Hannah, an old childhood friend, she knows she can use their friendship to get the film back on track.
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Disaster arrives with terrifying speed, but its human cost keeps unfolding long after the explosion itself.
Chernobyl
Historical Fiction · Thriller · Historical Thriller
Our take
Disaster arrives with terrifying speed, but its human cost keeps unfolding long after the explosion itself. In Chernobyl, Frederik Pohl turns a real nuclear catastrophe into a tense, immersive novel shaped by technical detail and personal consequence. This works as disaster fiction with historical weight, capturing fear, confusion, and the scale of lives altered by a single irreversible event.
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About the book
The Hugo and Nebula award-winning author presents a "gripping and vivid" fictional account of the worst nuclear disaster in human history (Kirkus).
Chernobyl: The very name conjures the terror of nuclear catastrophe. On April 26, 1986, a power surge caused an explosion that spewed radioactive steam into the air. More than four thousand people died, as many as a half-million had potentially cancer-causing exposure, and the surrounding city became a toxic wasteland in which nothing could live. When the Chernobyl plant was destroyed, the scenario many had feared became a sudden and terrifying reality.
Frederik Pohl's novel about this disaster was written months after the tragic events. He had the cooperation of many people inside the USSR with access to technical information and first-person accounts of the events. This fictional account vividly brings to life the most tragic nuclear event in human history, only one of two level-7 nuclear accidents, along with the Fukushima disaster of 2011.
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