I never enjoyed history when I was in school but my boyfriend just told me some very interesting things about the World Wars, and it reminded me of GOT. So now I am wondering if there are any historical fiction books about world history that you would recommend. Doesn't necessarily have to be war related. But I would like to learn about history from the broader view of the whole world rather than just, for example, US history. But in a way that will keep my attention better than my school books.
by NationalTourist3619
7 Comments
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You might like FALL OF GIANTS by Ken Follett. It’s the first in a trilogy of historical fiction that explores most of the 20th century. FoG covers World War One, the russian revolution, and women’s suffrage. They are big books, epic stories, but relatively easy reads.
Shogun is an historical fiction book with a lot of politics and a reasonable degree of accuracy, I loved it.
I know I’m not answering the question, but for nonfiction you could try The Plantagenets by Dan Jones.
The Plantagenets were a messy messy dyNASTY.
Bernard Cornwell’s The Last Kingdom series sounds like what you’re looking for. There are thirteen books, although they’re all around 300-400 pages so not tomes like Martin’s books. Each one tells a more or less stand-alone story that also advances the overall plot surrounding the main character Uhtred’s quest to regain the castle that was meant to be his birthright before his uncle stole it from him after his father’s death at the hands of Vikings and also the story of the unification of England. He interacts with quite a few historical figures over the course of his adventures. Cornwell plays a bit fast and loose with history, but I do appreciate that he mentions what he changed and, often, why at the end of each book.
Shogun by James Clavell would be another good choice. It’s loaded with political intrigue and romance and is just generally a wonderful novel that never feels its length. It’s worth noting that the characters in Shogun are generally not real historical figures but are often based on them.
Hillary Mantel wrote three historical fiction books about the life of Thomas Cromwell, which were all amazing.
CJ Sansom’s Shardlake series – historical fiction mystery novels set in the time of Henry VIII.
Alan Furst wrote a historical fiction series about spies during World War II. I’m reading the first one now and love it.
Sharon Kay Penman wrote quite a few historical books about England, Wales and France from around 1100 to 1300.
*The Guns of August* by Barbara Tuchman. Austria, Germany, France, Britain, Russia, Serbia, etc., but very little U.S. history in this book.