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Historical Fiction April 2025 |
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| The Jackal's Mistress by Chris BohjalianWith her Confederate husband in a Union prison, Libby Steadman runs their gristmill in Virginia's Shenandoah Valley, helped only by her 12-year-old niece, a 60-year-old freedman, and his freed wife. Libby faces many dangers as war surrounds her, especially when she hides an injured Union officer. If you enjoy this fast-paced book, which is based on a true story, try Paulette Jiles' Chenneville or Robert Hicks' Widow of the South. |
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| Harlem Rhapsody by Victoria Christopher MurrayIn 1919, Jessie Redmon Fauset becomes the first Black woman literary editor of The Crisis magazine, putting her at the forefront of Harlem's cultural renaissance, where she discovers talents such as Langston Hughes and Nella Larsen. But her ambitions and a secret affair with W.E.B. Du Bois threaten it all. Try these next: Piper Huguley's By Her Own Design; Tia Williams' A Love Song for Ricki Wilde. |
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The King's Messenger
by Susanna Kearsley
1613: King James sixth of Scotland, first of England, son of Mary, Queen of Scots - has unified both countries under one crown. But the death of his eldest son, Henry, has plunged the nation into mourning, as the rumours rise the prince was poisoned. Andrew Logan has heard the rumours, but he’s paid them little heed. As one of the King’s Messengers, he has plenty of secrets to guard, including his own. In these perilous times, when the merest suggestion of witchcraft can lead to torture and hanging, men like Andrew must hide well the fact they were born with the Sight - a gift that allows him to see things others cannot.
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| The Ghosts of Rome by Joseph O'ConnorWith the Nazis in control of Rome, Monsignor Hugh O'Flaherty (who's based on a real person) leads the Choir, a covert network made up of an Italian countess, a British diplomat, an Irish medical student, and others. As the Gestapo desperately try to stop them, they help Allied soldiers and Jewish people escape. Though this is the stirring sequel to My Father's House, readers can start here. Try these next: From These Broken Streets by Roland Merullo; Shanghai by Joseph Kanon. |
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| The Café With No Name by Robert SeethalerIn 1966 Vienna, Austria, 31-year-old laborer Robert Simon takes a leap and signs a lease for a café. He builds a neighborhood hub, where patrons navigate life and love together. Fans of evocative, character-driven stories will love this "gem of a novel" (Kirkus Reviews). For a more contemporary novel about found family, pick up Welcome to the Hyunam-Dong Bookshop by Hwang Bo-Reum. |
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| The Riveter by Jack WangBarred from military service in 1942 due to his race, Chinese Canadian Josiah Chang works in a Vancouver shipyard where he meets white Poppy Miller, but her parents take exception to their relationship. Trying to prove himself, Josiah goes to Toronto, where he's allowed to join the 1st Canadian Parachute Battalion headed to Europe. Read-alikes: Adriana Allegri's The Sunflower House; Jamie Ford's Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet. |
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| The Sable Cloak by Gail Milissa GrantTaking place in the first half of the 20th century in South Carolina and St. Louis, Missouri, this moving saga follows different members of a powerful Black family as they get involved in politics, run a funeral parlor, and face tragedies. "Delivered with style and heart" (Publishers Weekly), this posthumously published debut novel is based on the family history of author and diplomat Gail Milissa Grant. For fans of: Kim Coleman Foote's Coleman Hill.
Available as a digital audiobook from cloudLibrary only. |
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Contact your librarian for more great books!
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