Adult Historical Fiction

Adult Historical Fiction

Updated January 23, 2026
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1

Last days of Marilyn Monroe
Patterson, James.
Paper Book
From the world's #1 bestselling author, The Last Days of Marilyn Monroe is a true crime thriller about a woman who changed Hollywood history, and whose indelible image captures our imagination to this day. "Electrifying ... A spellbinding new...

2

Miss Morgan's book brigade
Skeslien Charles, Janet
Stand-alone player

3

The Goddess of Warsaw : a novel
Barr, Lisa
Paper Book
USA TODAY BESTSELLER "Utterly gripping. . . a transformative and immersive story so powerful and captivating that I could not put it down. . . . Truly one of the best books I've read."--Liv Constantine, bestselling author of The Last Mrs. Parrish "Lisa Barr's new historical fiction,...

4

Shelterwood
Wingate, Lisa.
Paper Book
USA TODAY AND PUBLISHERS WEEKLY BESTSELLER * "Wingate's stellar latest explores a centuries-long legacy of missing child cases. . . . Her portrayal of the region's history, culture, and landscape enthralls. Wingate is at the top of her game."--Publishers Weekly, starred...

5

The Briar Club : a novel
Quinn, Kate
Paper Book
"Quinn evocatively balances the outward cheerfulness of the 1950s with historical observations exploring racism, misogyny, homophobia and political persecution in this sharply drawn, gripping novel." - People Magazine The New York Times bestselling author of The Diamond Eye and The...

6

The safekeep
Wouden, Yael van der
Paper Book
* SHORTLISTED FOR THE 2024 BOOKER PRIZE * * WINNER OF THE NATIONAL JEWISH BOOK AWARD FOR DEBUT FICTION * * WINNER OF THE 2025 WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR FICTION * Shortlisted for the 2025 Dylan Thomas Prize and Aspen Words Literary Prize * A Best Book...

7

Time of the child
Williams, Niall
Paper Book
"The writing in this book is lyrical . . . a beautiful book that you will love." -Good Morning America's #1 Favorite Book of the Year "I am utterly obsessed with Niall Williams." -Ann Patchett, New York Times...

8

Farewell, Amethystine
Mosley, Walter
Paper Book
Shamus Award Finalist for Best Hardcover PI Novel From "master of the genre" (Washington Post) Walter Mosley, Detective Easy Rawlins' latest client sends him down a warren of memory and nostalgia--blinding him to reason and risk.

9

Hold strong : a novel
Dugoni, Robert
Paper Book
From Robert Dugoni, Jeff Langholz, and Chris Crabtree comes an epic and inspiring novel--based on true events--about love, heroism, and resilience during the darkest chapters of World War II. Sam Carlson is a projectionist in small-town Minnesota, where fantasies unspool in glorious...

10

Isola : a novel
Goodman, Allegra
Paper Book
REESE'S BOOK CLUB PICK * NATIONAL BESTSELLER * "A shocking story, made all the more stunning by the fact that it has its roots in true history."--Jodi Picoult, author of By Any Other Name "A new generation of survival story . . . an extraordinary book that reads like a...

11

Saint of the Narrows Street
Boyle, William
Paper Book
As an Italian American family's decades-old secret begins to unravel, they will have to bear the consequences--and face each other--in this thrilling south Brooklyn-set tragic opera of the highest caliber from crime fiction luminary William Boyle. William...

12

The sirens : a novel
Hart, Emilia
Paper Book
INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * A GOOD MORNING AMERICA BOOK CLUB PICK * #1 LibraryReads Pick * Indie Next Pick A spellbinding novel about sisters separated by centuries, but bound together by the sea, from the author of the...

13

The stolen life of Colette Marceau
Harmel, Kristin
Paper Book
INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER Kristin Harmel, the New York Times bestselling author who "is the best there is at sweeping historical drama" (Kelly Harms, author of The Seven Day Switch), returns with an electrifying new novel about two jewel thieves, a...

14

The second sun
Deutermann, P. T.
Paper Book
A taut, suspenseful historical thriller set in the months of WWII: Did Japan also have an atomic weapon, and did America bomb Hiroshima and Nagasaki to pre-empt an attack on its fleet? A masterful historical thriller set during the waning months of World War II, The Second...

15

The sweetness of water
Harris, Nathan
Paper Book
An Instant New York Times bestseller / An Oprah's Book Club Pick In the spirit of The Known World and The Underground Railroad, an award-winning "miraculous debut" (Washington Post) about the unlikely bond between two freedmen who are...

16

The marriage portrait
O'Farrell, Maggie
Paper Book
WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR FICTION FINALIST * REESE'S BOOK CLUB PICK * NEW YORK TIMES BEST SELLER * The author of award-winning Hamnet brings the world of Renaissance Italy to jewel-bright life in this unforgettable fictional portrait of the captivating young duchess Lucrezia de' Medici...

17

Wandering stars
Orange, Tommy
Paper Book
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * The Pulitzer Prize-finalist and author of the breakout bestseller There There ("Pure soaring beauty."The New York Times Book Review) delivers a masterful follow-up to his already classic first novel. Extending his constellation of narratives into...

18

The forest of vanishing stars
Harmel, Kristin
Paper Book
Parade "Best Books of Summer" pick * Real Simple summer reading pick * SheReads "Best WWII Fiction of Summer 2021" pick The New York Times bestselling author of the "heart-stopping tale of survival and heroism" (P...

19

The glassmaker
Chevalier, Tracy.
Paper Book
Named a Best Historical Novel of 2024 by The Sunday Times, The Independent, and BookPage "The Glassmaker is as finely wrought as a dazzling Murano bead. . . . Chevalier reaffirms her status as one of the reigning queens of historical fiction." --The...

20

The Briar Club : a novel
Quinn, Kate
Paper Book
"Quinn evocatively balances the outward cheerfulness of the 1950s with historical observations exploring racism, misogyny, homophobia and political persecution in this sharply drawn, gripping novel." - People Magazine The New York Times bestselling author of The Diamond Eye and The...

21

Some murders in Berlin
Robards, Karen
Paper Book
This pulse-pounding, brilliantly twisting new historical thriller is a gripping tale that will leave you questioning everything. September 1943: Berlin is the heart of darkness--and the last place Dr. Elin Lund wishes to be. An expert in psychological profiling, she's...

22

Butcher : father of modern gyno-psychiatry
Oates, Joyce Carol
Paper Book
From one of our most accomplished storytellers, an extraordinary and arresting novel about a women's asylum in the nineteenth century, and a terrifying doctor who wants to change the world In this harrowing story based on authentic historical documents, we follow the career of Dr...

23

The Frozen River [Release date Dec. 5, 2023]
Lawhon, Ariel.
Paper Book
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * GMA BOOK CLUB PICK * AN NPR BOOK OF THE YEAR * From the New York Times bestselling author of I Was Anastasia and Code Name Hélène comes a gripping historical mystery inspired by the life and diary of Martha...

24

The little liar : a novel
Albom, Mitch
Paper Book
An Instant New York Times Bestseller Beloved bestselling author Mitch Albom returns with his most important novel to date, an unforgettable work of World War II historical fiction about truth and lies set during the Holocaust. Eleven-year-old Nico Krispis has...

25

The cabinet of Dr. Leng
Preston, Douglas J.
Paper Book
Preston & Child continue their #1 bestselling series featuring FBI Special Agent Pendergast and Constance Greene, as they cross paths with New York's deadliest serial killer ...Pendergast's own ancestor ... and now his greatest foe. AN INCREDIBLE JOURNEY<...

26

Sisters under the rising sun
Morris, Heather (Screenwriter)
Paper Book
From the New York Times bestselling author of the multi-million copy bestseller The Tattooist of Auschwitz comes a story of sisterhood and survival, inspired by a true story. A phenomenal novel of resilience and survival from bestselling author of The Tattooist of...

27

The invisible hour : a novel
Hoffman, Alice
Paper Book
The latest New York Times bestseller from beloved author Alice Hoffman celebrates the enduring magic of books and is a "wonderful story of love and growth" (Stephen King). One June day when Mia Jacob can no longer see a way to survive, the power of words saves her. The...

28

I am homeless if this is not my home
Moore, Lorrie
Paper Book
A NATIONAL BOOK CRITICS CIRCLE AWARD WINNER * A NEW YORKER ESSENTIAL READ * From "one of the most acute and lasting writers of her generation" (The New York Times)--a ghost story set in the nineteenth and twenty-first centuries, an elegiac consideration of grief, devotion...

29

Stars in an Italian sky
Santopolo, Jill
Paper Book
Genoa, Italy, 1946. Vincenzo and Giovanna fall in love at twenty-one the moment they set eyes on each other. The son of a count and the daughter of a tailor, they belong to opposing worlds. Despite this, the undeniable spark between them quickly burns into a deep and passionate relationship spent...

30

Everyone knows your mother is a witch
Galchen, Rivka
Paper Book
The startling, witty, highly anticipated second novel from the critically acclaimed author of Atmospheric Disturbances. The story begins in 1618, in the German duchy of Württemberg. Plague is spreading. The Thirty Years'' War has begun, and fear and suspicion are in the...

31

Mrs. Porter calling : a novel
Pearce, A. J.
Paper Book
From the author of the bestselling "jaunty, heartbreaking winner" (People) Dear Mrs. Bird, a charming, heartwarming World War II novel featuring aspiring journalist and advice columnist Emmy Lake as she navigates life, love, and female friendship in wartime London--perfect for fans...

32

Flags on the bayou : a novel
Burke, James Lee
Paper Book
EDGAR AWARD WINNER FOR BEST NOVEL OF THE YEAR From New York Times-bestselling author James Lee Burke comes a novel set in Civil War-era Louisiana as the South transforms and a brilliant cast of characters - enslaved and free women, plantation gentry, and battle-weary...

33

The spectacular : a novel
Davis, Fiona
Paper Book
New York Times bestselling author Fiona Davis transports us back to 1950s Manhattan and glamorous Radio City Music Hall.... New York City, 1956- Nineteen-year-old Marion is over the moon to have been selected to be one of the Rockettes, Radio City Music Hall's glamorous...

34

The vaster wilds
Groff, Lauren
Paper Book
AN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER ONE OF BARACK OBAMA'S FAVORITE BOOKS OF 2023 NAMED A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR BY NPR, TIME, ESQUIRE, VOGUE, LA TIMES, SLATE, HARPER'S BAZAAR and others "Part historical, part...

35

The Mitford affair
Benedict, Marie
Paper Book
"Plunges readers into a world of glamorous, charismatic young British debutantes and then turns that shiny world on its head...the most delicious storytelling." --Allison Pataki, New York Times bestselling author of The Magnificent Lives of Marjorie Post From New York Times bestselling...

36

Loyalty
Scottoline, Lisa.
Paper Book
#1 bestselling author Lisa Scottoline presents Loyalty, an emotional, action-packed epic of love and justice, set during the rise of the Mafia in Sicily. Loyalty can save a soul--or destroy one.     Franco Fiorvanti is a handsome...

37

The last Russian doll
Loesch, Kristen
Paper Book
EDGAR AWARD NOMINEE FOR BEST FIRST NOVEL A haunting, epic novel about betrayal, revenge, and redemption that follows three generations of Russian women, from the 1917 revolution to the last days of the Soviet Union, and the enduring love story at the center. In a...

38

Dawnlands : a novel
Gregory, Philippa
Paper Book
Palace intrigue, defiant heroism, and a long-awaited love fulfilled from New York Times bestselling author Philippa Gregory in her Fairmile series. It is 1685 and England is on the brink of a renewed civil war. King Charles II has died without an heir and his brother James...

39

The golden doves : a novel
Kelly, Martha Hall
Paper Book
Two female spies risk everything to hunt down an infamous Nazi in this sweeping, profound tale of bravery from the bestselling author of Lilac Girls. "A riveting story of two brave and amazing women who work in the French resistance during World War II . . . a triumph!"...

40

The girl in the castle
Patterson, James
Paper Book
The world's #1 bestselling author James Patterson delivers a thrilling novel about a teen caught between two worlds and the truths that could set her free--or trap her forever.   My name is Hannah Dory and I need you to believe me.  

41

Carrie Soto is back : a novel
Reid, Taylor Jenkins
Paper Book
#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * "An epic adventure about a female athlete perhaps past her prime, brought back to the tennis court for one last grand slam" (Elle), from the author of Malibu Rising, Daisy Jones & The Six, and The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo

42

Just once : a novel
Kingsbury, Karen
Paper Book
The #1 New York Times bestselling author "known for her deeply heartfelt novels" (Woman's World) and the Baxter Family novels writes a sweeping World War II love story about a young woman torn between two brothers. In 1941, beautiful Irvel Holland is too focused on...

43

The last paladin
Deutermann, P. T.
Paper Book
Winner of the 2023 W.Y. Boyd Literary Award for Excellence in Military Fiction: A gripping tale of anti-submarine warfare in the World War II Pacific Theater, by a master of military adventure fiction. The Last Paladin by P.T. Deutermann is based on the true story of...

44

Trust
Da?z, Hern?
Paper Book
WINNER OF THE PULITZER PRIZE FOR FICTION ONE OF THE NEW YORK TIMES'S 100 BEST BOOKS OF THE 21ST CENTURY A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER ONE OF BARACK OBAMA'S FAVORITE BOOKS OF 2022 LONGLISTED FOR THE 2022 BOOKER PRIZE "Buzzy and...

45

Booth : a novel
Fowler, Karen Joy
Paper Book
Best Book of the Year Real Simple * AARP * USA Today * NPR * Virginia Living Longlisted for the 2022 Booker Prize From the Man Booker finalist and bestselling author of We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves comes an epic...

46

The good left undone : a novel
Trigiani, Adriana
Paper Book
AN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER "[An] immersive saga. . . . A celebration of family and a paean to the power of storytelling."--People, "Book of the Week" "Trigiani conveys the beauty of Italy, the hardships of war, the taste of family recipes, and...

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