Historical Fiction

All countries Afghanistan Albania Algeria Angola Antigua and Barbuda Argentina Armenia Australia Austria Azerbaijan Bangladesh Barbados Belize Benin Bosnia and Herzegovina Brazil Bulgaria Burundi Canada Chile China Congo, Democratic Republic Côte d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast) Croatia Cuba Cyprus Denmark Djibouti Dominica Dominican Republic Egypt El Salvador Ethiopia Fiji France Georgia Germany Ghana Greece Guatemala Hungary Iceland India Indonesia Iran Iraq Ireland Italy Jamaica Japan Kazakhstan Kenya Kuwait Latvia Lebanon Liberia Libya Madagascar Malaysia Mali Mexico Moldova Morocco Mozambique Myanmar Netherlands Nigeria North Korea Oman Pakistan Palestine Philippines Poland Portugal Puerto Rico Romania Rwanda Saudi Arabia Senegal Sierra Leone Singapore Slovenia South Africa South Korea Spain Sri Lanka Sudan Sweden Switzerland Syria Taiwan Tanzania Thailand Tunisia Türkiye Turkmenistan Uganda Ukraine United Arab Emirates United Kingdom United States Uruguay Uzbekistan Vietnam Yemen Zambia Zimbabwe

Newest first Oldest first

Gardens of Silihdar

Gardens of Silihdar

The Gardens of Silihdar is a memoir of Zabel Yesayan’s childhood in Constantinople, offering a vivid portrait of Armenian family and community life during the late nineteenth century. Through memories of her neighbourhood, relatives, gardens, and everyday encounters, Yesayan recreates a world shaped by cultural traditions, social hierarchies, and the tensions of a changing Ottoman Empire. Her recollections capture the curiosity and independence of a young girl gradually discovering the complexities of the society around her. Beyond its intimate family scenes, the memoir preserves a picture of Armenian life in Constantinople before the devastating events that would transform the community. Yesayan combines personal reflection with cultural memory, exploring childhood, belonging, and the importance of remembering a world that political upheaval would eventually threaten to erase.

All Quiet on the Western Front

All Quiet on the Western Front

Erich Maria Remarque

All Quiet on the Western Front follows Paul Bäumer, a young German soldier who enlists in the First World War alongside his school friends after being encouraged by patriotic teachers. Once at the front, the young men discover that the heroic ideals used to recruit them bear little resemblance to the reality of trench warfare. Constant bombardment, hunger, exhaustion, and the loss of comrades gradually destroy their innocence and their faith in the society that sent them to fight. When Paul returns home on leave, he finds himself unable to reconnect with civilians who cannot understand his experiences. Remarque portrays war as a force that damages not only bodies but also the emotional and moral foundations of a generation. The novel explores trauma, disillusionment, and the devastating distance between military rhetoric and the human cost of conflict.

Sun Also Rises

Ernest Hemingway

The Sun Also Rises follows a group of American and British expatriates living in Europe after the First World War. Its narrator, Jake Barnes, is a journalist whose war injury has left him unable to pursue a conventional romantic relationship with Lady Brett Ashley, a charismatic woman whose independence and restlessness affect everyone around her. Their circle travels from Paris to the Spanish countryside, where fishing trips and the festivities of Pamplona’s bullfighting season offer temporary escape from emotional uncertainty. Beneath the characters’ drinking, flirtation, and restless movement lies a profound sense of disillusionment. Hemingway captures a generation struggling to find meaning after war, exploring unfulfilled desire, damaged masculinity, and the loneliness that can persist even among friends.

United States 1926

Heidi (Puffin in Bloom)

Heidi (Puffin in Bloom)

Heidi tells the story of a young orphaned girl who is sent to live with her reclusive grandfather in a small Alpine village in Switzerland. Initially unfamiliar with her new surroundings, Heidi soon develops a deep affection for her grandfather and the breathtaking mountain landscape. She befriends Peter, a young goatherd, and discovers the joys of life outdoors, surrounded by wildflowers, fresh air, and mountain animals. However, her happiness is interrupted when she is taken to Frankfurt to serve as a companion to Clara, a wealthy girl who cannot walk. Although Heidi struggles with homesickness, her warmth and kindness bring joy to those around her. Through themes of friendship, compassion, and the healing power of nature, Johanna Spyri celebrates the importance of belonging, simple pleasures, and the emotional connection between people and their environment.

Switzerland 1881

The Black Tulip

The Black Tulip

Alexandre Dumas

Set in the Netherlands in 1672, The Black Tulip follows Cornelius van Baerle, a passionate and wealthy tulip grower whose greatest ambition is to cultivate the first completely black tulip. His peaceful life is shattered when political intrigue leads to his imprisonment, after he is falsely accused of conspiring against the powerful brothers Cornelis and Johan de Witt. Behind bars, Cornelius continues his botanical pursuit with the help of Rosa, the jailer’s daughter, who becomes his devoted ally and eventually his beloved. As jealousy, betrayal, and greed threaten his dream, Cornelius must fight to protect both his flower and his freedom. Blending historical adventure, romance, and political drama, Dumas explores the destructive power of envy alongside the redemptive strength of loyalty and compassion. The black tulip becomes a symbol of perseverance and the pursuit of an extraordinary goal in a world shaped by ambition and injustice.