Top new historical-fiction books in May 2024
Last updated:
May 31, 2024
May 2024 featuring new releases by Mark T. Sullivan, Natalie Jenner, T.E. Kinsey, Janet Skeslien Charles, Graham Moore, Luanne G. Smith, Jessica Shattuck, Sarah Perry, Monica Hesse, Helen Simonson and many more.
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All the Glimmering Stars by Mark T. Sullivan
Inspired by a true story, two teens kidnapped by an African warlord find salvation through love in a powerful and healing historical novel from the #1 bestselling author of Beneath a Scarlet Sky and The Last Green Valley.Anthony Opoka and Florence Okori are coming of age in Uganda in the 1990s... -
![Every Time We Say Goodbye by Natalie Jenner]()
Every Time We Say Goodbye by Natalie Jenner
The bestselling author of The Jane Austen Society and Bloomsbury Girls returns with a brilliant novel of love and art, of grief and memory, of confronting the past and facing the future.In 1955, Vivien Lowry is facing the greatest challenge of her life...europe · south-europe · italy · urban · vatican · england · romance · historical-fiction · fiction · historical -
![An Assassination on the Agenda by T.E. Kinsey]()
An Assassination on the Agenda by T.E. Kinsey
They’re hoping this visit is a return journey—but it might be a one-way ticket to murder.July 1912. Lady Hardcastle and her tenacious lady’s maid, Florence Armstrong, are enjoying a convivial gathering at the home of their dear friends, the Farley-Strouds...mystery · historical-fiction · historical · fiction · murder · cozy · amateur-sleuth · law-enforcement · investigator · female-mc -
![Miss Morgan's Book Brigade by Janet Skeslien Charles]()
Miss Morgan's Book Brigade by Janet Skeslien Charles
The New York Times and internationally bestselling author of the “captivating, richly drawn” (Woman’s World) The Paris Library returns with a brilliant new novel based on the true story of Jessie Carson—the American librarian who changed the literary landscape of France...historical-fiction · fiction · historical · ww1 · war · female-mc · romantic-love · literary-fiction · friendship · 20th-century -
![The Numbers Man by Graham Moore]()
The Numbers Man by Graham Moore
A midwestern tax attorney joins a secret mission to crash the Nazi economy in this historical thriller based on a true story, from the Academy Award-winning screenwriter of The Imitation Game and bestselling author of The Last Days of Night .What would you do if you saw the world was ending—but nobody believed you?1939...historical-fiction · fiction · ww2 · historical · mystery · espionage · action-adventure · suspense · war · audiobook -
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![The Wolf's Eye by Luanne G. Smith]()
The Wolf's Eye by Luanne G. Smith
Under the full moon of World War I, a baleful curse threatens to tear apart a witch’s found family in a novel by the Amazon Charts and Wall Street Journal bestselling author of The Raven Spell.Petra Kurková—a witch who wields magic worth its weight in gold—is tasked with combating the undead on World War I’s eastern front...fantasy · paranormal · historical · historical-fiction · magic · witches-wizards · shapeshifters · alchemy · magical-realism · romance -
![Last House by Jessica Shattuck]()
Last House by Jessica Shattuck
"An ambitious historical epic that doubles as an intimate family saga. Jessica Shattuck captures and connects it all—the imperial ambitions of the postwar generation, the rebellion of their offspring in the Sixties, and the fallout we’re still sifting through today. . . . This is a wide-ranging novel to savor...historical-fiction · fiction · historical · political-intrigue · 20th-century · literary-fiction · family · book · adult -
![Enlightenment by Sarah Perry]()
Enlightenment by Sarah Perry
A dazzling new work of literary fiction from the author of The Essex Serpent, a story of love and astronomy told over the course of twenty years through the lives of two improbable best friends. Thomas Hart and Grace Macaulay have lived all their lives in the small Essex town of Aldleigh...fiction · historical-fiction · literary-fiction · fantasy · historical · religion · lgbtq · audiobook · family · horror -
![The Brightwood Code by Monica Hesse]()
The Brightwood Code by Monica Hesse
Seven months ago Edda was on the World War I front lines as one of two hundred “Hello Girls,” female switchboard operators employed by the US Army. She spent her nights memorizing secret connection codes to stay ahead of spying enemies and her days connecting calls between platoons and bases and generals, all trying to survive—and win—a brutal war...historical-fiction · young-adult · historical · mystery · fiction · 20th-century · season-spring · children · ww1 · law-enforcement -
![The Hazelbourne Ladies Motorcycle and Flying Club by Helen Simonson]()
The Hazelbourne Ladies Motorcycle and Flying Club by Helen Simonson
"Constance Haverhill is without prospects. Her mother has just passed away, her brother is newly married, and now that the Great War is over, she has been asked to give up managing the estate she helped to run when the men all joined the army. It is suggested to her that she become a governess. But first, she will act as caretaker to Mrs...europe · british-isles · united-kingdom · england · romance · historical-fiction · fiction · historical · feminism · drama -
![All the Colors of the Dark by Chris Whitaker]()
All the Colors of the Dark by Chris Whitaker
From the New York Times bestselling author of We Begin at the End comes a soaring thriller and an epic love story that spans decades.“Impeccably crafted, deeply emotional, entirely shattering. I was captivated from page one.” ―Bonnie Garmus, New York Times bestselling author of Lessons in Chemistry1975 is a time of change in America. The Vietnam War is ending. Mohammed Ali is fighting Joe Frazier...mystery · fiction · crime · suspense · historical-fiction · contemporary · thriller · audiobook · kidnapping · friendship -
![The Silence Factory by Bridget Collins]()
The Silence Factory by Bridget Collins
From the acclaimed author of the #1 international bestseller The Binding—a captivating story of gothic suspense about a powerful family, the magical and dangerous silk their fortune is built upon, and the exploitative history they are desperately trying to hide...fantasy · historical-fiction · gothic · fiction · historical · magical-realism · mystery · lgbtq · spooky · audiobook -
![Nero by Conn Iggulden]()
Nero by Conn Iggulden
From this New York Times bestselling author, the first novel in a new trilogy that finds Empress Agrippina and her young son, Nero, fending off ambitious rivals while shaping their own destiny—if Nero is to become the most feared and notorious emperor of them all.The story begins with a hand curled around another man’s throat... -
![Bluebeard by Jim Clemente, Peter McDonnell]()
Bluebeard by Jim Clemente, Peter McDonnell
A NEW THRILLER BASED ON THE TRUE STORY OF LA’S FIRST KNOWN SERIAL KILLERIn 1919, Kathryn Wombacher finds a lonely-hearts ad placed by one Walter Andrew:"Would be pleased to correspond with a refined young lady or widow. Object, matrimony."Kathryn and Walter fall in love and marry within weeks...audiobook · mystery · fiction · true-crime · crime · historical-fiction · suspense · historical · serial-killers · retellings -
![Return to the Irish Boarding House by Sandy Taylor]()
Return to the Irish Boarding House by Sandy Taylor
Mary Kate takes a deep breath as she stands outside 24 Merrion Square with its red front door and pretty rose garden. Grieving from her recent heartbreak, will returning to the Irish boarding house be the second chance she so desperately needs?Dublin, 1956: When Mary Kate Ryan loses the love of her life, she’s not sure how she can keep going...historical-fiction · small-town · literary-fiction · historical · family · fiction · female-mc · epic · romance · book -
![The Last Hope by Susan Elia MacNeal]()
The Last Hope by Susan Elia MacNeal
All will be revealed in this no-holds-barred finale of the New York Times bestselling and Edgar Award–nominated Maggie Hope series as the intrepid spy teams up with fashion designer—and possible double agent—Coco Chanel to bring down the physicist behind Nazi Germany’s nuclear program.“Intrepid Maggie Hope’s high-stakes mission is fraught with danger and moral questions. . . . A heartfelt story...historical-fiction · mystery · historical · ww2 · fiction · espionage · war · friendship · female-mc · law-enforcement -
![The Men From Echo Creek by N.R. Walker]()
The Men From Echo Creek by N.R. Walker
In the winter of 1882, a boy from the mountains has to prove himself a man.When Albie Bramwell’s father died, he was left with two thousand hectares of mountain to farm, and little help to run it. Abandoned by all but two of his workers, the whole town of Alpine Falls called him too young to run the farm alone.Young, yes. At just nineteen, he was determined to prove them wrong...oceania · australia · romance · historical · mlm · historical-fiction · western · lgbtq · audiobook · found-family -
![The Medicine Woman of Galveston by Amanda Skenandore]()
The Medicine Woman of Galveston by Amanda Skenandore
Caught in the great Galveston Hurricane of 1900, a female doctor who’s joined a traveling medicine show to support her disabled son is forced to weather the storm and its aftermath in a town hostile to the troupe’s unconventional ways but desperate for their help...historical-fiction · fiction · historical · western · womens-fiction · medical · family · friendship · female-mc · 20th-century -
![The Stolen Child by Ann Hood]()
The Stolen Child by Ann Hood
An unlikely duo ventures through France and Italy to solve the mystery of a child’s fate in this moving, page-turning novel from “a gifted storyteller” ( People ). For decades, Nick Burns has been haunted by a decision he made as a young soldier in World War I, when a French artist he’d befriended thrust both her paintings and her baby into his hands―and disappeared...fiction · historical-fiction · historical · audiobook · mystery · literary-fiction · war · ww2 · female-mc · 20th-century -
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![The Passionate Tudor: A Novel of Queen Mary I by Alison Weir]()
The Passionate Tudor: A Novel of Queen Mary I by Alison Weir
The New York Times bestselling author of the Six Tudor Queens series explores the dramatic and poignant life of King Henry VIII's daughter—infamously known as Bloody Mary—who ruled England for five violent years... -
![Locked in Pursuit by Ashley Weaver]()
Locked in Pursuit by Ashley Weaver
The fourth instalment in the delightful series following safecracker Electra McDonnell fighting Nazis at every turn as World War II looms over London...romance · mystery · historical-fiction · historical · fiction · ww2 · espionage · suspense · cozy · audiobook -
![Long Island by Colm Tóibín]()
Long Island by Colm Tóibín
From the beloved, critically acclaimed New York Times bestselling author comes a spectacularly moving and intense novel of secrecy, misunderstanding, and love , the story of Eilis Lacey, the complex and enigmatic heroine of Brooklyn , Tóibín’s most popular work twenty years later...historical-fiction · fiction · historical · literary-fiction · 20th-century · audiobook · parenthood · marriage · family · book -
![Long After We Are Gone by Terah Shelton Harris]()
Long After We Are Gone by Terah Shelton Harris
An explosive and emotional story of four siblings—each fighting their own personal battle—who return home in the wake of their father's death in order to save their family's home from being sold out from under them, from the author of One Summer in Savannah . "Don't let the white man take the house." These are the last words King Solomon says to his son before he dies...north-america · usa · north-carolina · fiction · historical-fiction · contemporary · family · literary-fiction · drama · audiobook -
![The Goddess of Warsaw by Lisa Barr]()
The Goddess of Warsaw by Lisa Barr
The Goddess Of Warsaw is an enthralling tale of a legendary Hollywood screen goddess with a dark secret about her life in the Warsaw Ghetto. When the famous actress is threatened by someone from her past, she must put her skills into play to protect herself, her illustrious career, and those she loves, then and now. Los Angeles, 2005...historical-fiction · fiction · historical · ww2 · war · suspense · assassinations · new-adult · vigilante · justice -
![The Heiress's Daughter by Anne Gracie]()
The Heiress's Daughter by Anne Gracie
A dashing rake must prove he has changed his scandalous ways to win his one true love from the arms of another, in a witty new Regency romance from the national bestselling author of The Rake's Daughter. Heiress Clarissa Studley yearns to be loved for more than her fortune...romance · historical · historical-fiction · industrial-era · regency · friendship · family · friends-to-lovers · audiobook · fiction -
![The Berlin Sisters by Soraya M. Lane]()
The Berlin Sisters by Soraya M. Lane
From the bestselling author of The Secret Midwife comes a story of bravery, sacrifice and resilience in war-torn Berlin―and two sisters who will risk it all to make a difference. Berlin, 1943: Ava Müller is a proud supporter of the German war effort, working for Joseph Goebbels alongside her father, a high-ranking official in the Reich...historical-fiction · audiobook · ww2 · historical · fiction · romance · friendship · family · 20th-century · literary-fiction -
![This Strange Eventful History by Claire Messud]()
This Strange Eventful History by Claire Messud
Over seven decades, from 1940 to 2010, the pieds-noirs Cassars live in an itinerant state—separated in the chaos of World War II, running from a complicated colonial homeland, and, after Algerian independence, without a homeland at all...historical-fiction · fiction · historical · family · literary-fiction · 20th-century · epic · book · adult -
![You Should Be So Lucky by Cat Sebastian]()
You Should Be So Lucky by Cat Sebastian
An emotional, slow-burn, grumpy/sunshine, queer mid-century romance for fans of Evvie Drake Starts Over, about grief and found family, between the new star shortstop stuck in a batting slump and the reporter assigned to (reluctantly) cover his first season—set in the same universe as We Could Be So Good.The 1960 baseball season is shaping up to be the worst year of Eddie O’Leary’s life...romance · lgbtq · historical · historical-fiction · sports · fiction · mlm · grief · new-adult · slow-burn -
![Flawless Girls by Anna-Marie McLemore]()
Flawless Girls by Anna-Marie McLemore
The Soler sisters are infamous in polite society—brazen, rebellious, and raised by their fashionable grandmother who couldn’t care less about which fork goes where...horror · young-adult · lgbtq · fantasy · mystery · contemporary · fiction · gothic · magical-realism · wlw -
![Tomorrow Is for the Brave by Kelly Bowen]()
Tomorrow Is for the Brave by Kelly Bowen
Based on true events, Tomorrow Is for the Brave is a gripping World War II page‑turner about a courageous woman who risks it all for what is right—perfect for fans of Natasha Lester and Kristen Harmel.1939, France: Lavish parties, fast cars, and a closet full of the latest fashion—to the average eye, socialite Violet St. Croix seemingly has it all... -
![The Shadow of War: A Novel of the Cuban Missile Crisis by Jeff Shaara]()
The Shadow of War: A Novel of the Cuban Missile Crisis by Jeff Shaara
New York Times bestselling author Jeff Shaara brings alive the heart-stopping days and nights of the Cuban Missile Crisis in a novel featuring his trademark "you are there" immediacy. Ripe for Jeff Shaara's vivid alchemy of fact-based fiction, here is the Cuban Missile Crisis as readers have never seen it...historical-fiction · fiction · historical · war · cold-war · politics · nautical · 20th-century · violent-conflict · action-adventure -
![The Incorrigibles by Meredith Jaeger]()
The Incorrigibles by Meredith Jaeger
From USA Today bestselling author Meredith Jaeger comes an emotionally resonant novel about two women whose lives intersect as one resists the gentrification of her San Francisco neighborhood, and the other, eighty years earlier, fights for her freedom in nineteenth-century America. . . .1890, San Francisco...historical-fiction · historical · fiction · feminism · mystery · law-enforcement · female-mc · crime · book · adult -
![A Darkness in Seven Dials by Jennifer Ashley, Ashley Gardner]()
A Darkness in Seven Dials by Jennifer Ashley, Ashley Gardner
March 1820When James Denis is arrested for murder and lands himself in Newgate, it falls to me to prove his innocence. I have nowhere to start but in a dark street in Seven Dials and the name of the unknown man Denis is supposed to have killed.I soon find myself beleaguered by enemies from Denis’s past, secret societies, and a host of people who want Denis to hang...mystery · historical-fiction · historical · industrial-era · regency · cozy · fiction · animals · book · adult -
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![With Each Tomorrow : by Tracie Peterson, Kimberley Woodhouse]()
With Each Tomorrow : by Tracie Peterson, Kimberley Woodhouse
Even in the midst of adversity, love and faith can flourish.As the formation of Glacier National Park takes Eleanor Briggs and her conservationist father on a journey west to advocate for public lands, her heart carries the weight of a painful past...romance · historical · christian · historical-fiction · wholesome · suspense · family · spirituality · fiction · book -
![Fever by Jordan L. Hawk]()
Fever by Jordan L. Hawk
Tired of living as con artists, Colin Muir and his brother Doug join the stampede to the gold fields of the Klondike. If they can strike it rich, they’ll be wealthy beyond their wildest dreams. But nightmares await alongside the gold. On a claim owned by a dead man, haunting voices call out from the forest, and strange tracks surround their cabin at night...romance · horror · historical · paranormal · historical-fiction · mlm · lgbtq · supernatural · mystery · fiction -
![The Dangerous Ones by Lauren Blackwood]()
The Dangerous Ones by Lauren Blackwood
A romantic historical fantasy from New York Times bestselling author Lauren Blackwood, set in the American Civil War with vampires and people with demigod-like abilities.1863, PennsylvaniaWar doesn’t scare Jerusalem—she’s a Saint. Thanks to powerful demigod-style reflexes, endurance, and strength, she’s fearless...romance · fantasy · young-adult · historical-fiction · vampires · historical · fiction · sci-fi · sword-sorcery · urban-fantasy -
![Rednecks by Taylor Brown]()
Rednecks by Taylor Brown
A historical drama based on the Battle of Blair Mountain, pitting a multi-ethnic army of 10,000 coal miners against mine owners, state militia, and the United States government in the largest labor uprising in American history...north-america · usa · west-virginia · historical-fiction · fiction · historical · literary-fiction · western · drama · audiobook -
![The Song of Sourwood Mountain: by Ann H. Gabhart]()
The Song of Sourwood Mountain: by Ann H. Gabhart
While the century began with such promise, it is 1910 when Mira Dean's hopes of being a wife and mother are dashed to pieces. Her fiancé dead from tuberculosis, Mira resigns herself to being a spinster schoolteacher--until Gordon Covington shows up. No longer the boy she knew from school, Gordon is now a preacher who is full of surprises...romance · historical-fiction · christian · fiction · historical · marriage-of-convenience · small-town · rural · spirituality · book -
![Butcher by Joyce Carol Oates]()
Butcher by Joyce Carol Oates
From one of our most accomplished storytellers, an extraordinary and arresting novel about a women’s asylum in the 19th century, and a terrifying doctor who wants to change the worldIn this harrowing story based on authentic historical documents, we follow the career of Dr. Silas Weir, “The Father of Gyno-Psychiatry,” as he ascends from professional anonymity to national renown...historical-fiction · fiction · historical · suspense · mystery · horror · season-autumn · medical · literary-fiction · drama -
![The Lost Letters from Martha's Vineyard by Michael Callahan]()
The Lost Letters from Martha's Vineyard by Michael Callahan
A tantalizing novel of two women bound by blood but divided by a long-buried secret, and the island that holds the key to the fateful summer that changed everything forever.In 1959, Hollywood ingenue Mercy Welles seems to have the world at her feet...historical-fiction · fiction · mystery · historical · drama · season-summer · crime · literary-fiction · cozy · family
