Top new historical-fiction books in April 2025
Last updated:
February 9, 2025
April 2025 featuring new releases by Sarah Penner, Alka Joshi, Sabrina Jeffries, Genevieve Graham, Sandra Dallas, India Holton, Nghi Vo, Amalie Howard, Kester Grant, Jo Harkin and many more.
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The Amalfi Curse by Sarah Penner
Powerful witchcraft. A hunt for sunken treasure. Forbidden love on the high seas. Beware the Amalfi Curse…Haven Ambrose, a trailblazing nautical archaeologist, has come to the sun-soaked village of Positano to investigate the mysterious shipwrecks along the Amalfi Coast... -
Six Days in Bombay by Alka Joshi
From the New York Times bestselling author of THE HENNA ARTIST, this sweeping novel follows a young Anglo-Indian nurse who embarks on a journey from her home in Bombay, through Prague, Florence, Paris, and London, to uncover a mystery and prove her innocence after a famous painter dies in her care...historical-fiction · fiction · historical · literary-fiction · poc-mc · audiobook · 20th-century · female-mc · book · adult -
Hazardous to a Dukes Heart by Sabrina Jeffries
For readers of Regency romance by Julia Quinn, Lisa Kleypas, and Madeline Hunter, New York Times bestselling author Sabrina Jeffries debuts a brand new series in trade paperback in which a lord, detained in France during the Napoleonic war, returns home to find he’s inherited a dukedom and vows to make a match for his deceased mentor’s daughter...romance · historical · historical-fiction · industrial-era · regency · fiction · female-mc · book · adult -
On Isabella Street by Genevieve Graham
From #1 bestselling author Genevieve Graham comes a gripping novel set in Toronto and Vietnam during the turbulent sixties about two women caught up in powerful social movements and the tragedy that will bring them together—perfect for fans of Kristin Hannah’s The Women .Toronto, 1967... -
Tough Luck by Sandra Dallas
In this homage to True Grit, a young woman makes a perilous journey west in 1863 in search of her gold-mining father.After their mother dies, Haidie Richards and her younger brother, Boots, are put to work in an orphanage. Their father left four years earlier to find a gold mine in Colorado Territory, and since then he’s sent only three letters...historical-fiction · western · historical · fiction · action-adventure · female-mc · industrial-era · book · adult -
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The Geographer's Map to Romance by India Holton
Geography professors in a failed marriage of convenience inconveniently reconnect for an emergency mission in this swoony historical-fantasy rom-com.Professor Elodie Tarrant is an expert in magic disasters. Nothing fazes her--except her own personal disaster, that is: Professor Gabriel Tarrant, the grumpy, unfriendly man she married for convenience a year ago, whom she secretly loves...romance · fantasy · historical-fiction · historical · fiction · industrial-era · victorian · paranormal · humor · book -
Don't Sleep with the Dead by Nghi Vo
From award-winning author Nghi Vo comes Don't Sleep with the Dead, a standalone companion novella to The Chosen and the Beautiful, her acclaimed reimagining of The Great Gatsby.“A vibrant and queer reinvention of F. Scott Fitzgerald's jazz age classic. . . . I was captivated from the first sentence...fantasy · lgbtq · retellings · historical-fiction · historical · fiction · horror · dark · romantic-love · literary-fiction -
Lady Knight by Amalie Howard
The daughter of a duke defies the rules of London high society with the help of the resident rake—who just so happens to be her brother’s best friend—in this fun teen historical romance from the USA Today bestselling author of Queen Bee.“A ridiculously romantic, womanist, hilarious, and hugely entertaining romance that had me smiling and swooning from start to finish...romance · historical-fiction · historical · young-adult · industrial-era · regency · enemies-to-lovers · poc-mc · friendship · feminism -
The Voice of the Wretched by Kester Grant
The Sunday Times bestselling adventure inspired by Les Miserables continues. Return to a dark and dangerous alternate Paris in book 2 of The Court of Miracles Trilogy... -
The Pretender by Jo Harkin
A sweeping historical novel in the vein of Hilary Mantel and Maggie O’Farrell set during the time of the Tudors’ ascent...historical-fiction · historical · fiction · coming-of-age · politics · family · literary-fiction · book · adult -
Coram House by Bailey Seybolt
A haunting novel—inspired by a true story—about a crime writer who risks everything as she investigates the mystery of two deaths, decades apart, at a crumbling Vermont orphanage.On a blistering summer day in 1968, nine-year-old Tommy vanishes without a trace from Coram House, an orphanage on the shores of Lake Champlain. Some say a nun drowned him, others say he ran away...mystery · fiction · suspense · true-crime · contemporary · historical-fiction · psychological · thriller · female-mc · young-adult -
Murder by Cheesecake by Rachel Ekstrom Courage
The first novel in the all-new Golden Girls Cozy Mystery Series!When Dorothy’s obnoxious date is found dead in a hotel freezer, it not only ruins a gorgeous cheesecake but threatens the elaborate St. Olaf–themed wedding Rose is hosting.Things are heating up, and not just because of Blanche’s hot flashes. Rose’s cousin is eloping to Miami, and Rose is playing host...mystery · cozy · fiction · humor · historical-fiction · contemporary · crime · sci-fi · satire · book -
The Bright Years by Sarah Damoff
One family. Four generations. A secret son. A devastating addiction. A Texas family is met with losses and surprises of inheritance, but they’re unable to shake the pull back toward each other in this big-hearted family saga perfect for readers of Mary Beth Keane and Claire Lombardo.Ryan and Lillian Bright are deeply in love, recently married, and now parents to a baby girl, Georgette...fiction · literary-fiction · historical-fiction · contemporary · family · tragedy · drama · book · adult -
When the Tides Held the Moon by Venessa Vida Kelley
In Coney Island, true love rises to the surface. With lush illustrations and buoyant prose, Venessa Vida Kelley forges an unforgettable New York fairytale.Benigno “Benny” Caldera knows an orphaned Boricua blacksmith in 1910s New York City can’t call himself an artist...romance · fantasy · lgbtq · historical-fiction · historical · fiction · mermaids · monsters · mlm · paranormal -
fantasy · fiction · historical-fiction · historical · season-spring · family · romance · book · adult
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The Gentleman and His Vowsmith by Rebecca Ide
Set in Regency England, The Gentleman and His Vowsmith by Rebecca Ide is a queer historical fantasy of magic, murder, high heat and humour.Lord Nicholas Monterris, the last remaining heir of a crumbling ducal house, must marry to save his family from complete decline. His father chooses Lady Leaf Serral, eldest daughter of his greatest rival, at which point Nic is sure it can’t get any worse...romance · fantasy · lgbtq · historical · mystery · historical-fiction · industrial-era · regency · mlm · gothic