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Historical Fiction March 2026 |
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Ashland
by Dan Simon
"Powerfully poetic...a testament to American virtues--and flaws."--Kirkus Reviews (starred review.) A deeply moving family story unfolding in richly evocative prose during the final decades of the American century, Ashland is a book of metamorphoses, of the dance between permanence and transformation. The story takes place in Ashland, New Hampshire, a former mill town in the lakes region, and is told in six voices, among them Carolyn, a twenty year old writer at a turning point in her life; Gordon, who arrives in Ashland in the twilight of his years; Andy, a local boy; Geoff, Carolyn's writing teacher at Plymouth State; and Edith, Gordon's wife, who is inadvertently Carolyn's spiritual guide and friend. Then there is Jennie, Carolyn's aunt, who seems to offer her a model for how to live. But things aren't always what they seem, and Carolyn must discover her own rules and make her own way.
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A Far-Flung Life
by M. L. Stedman
From the author of the acclaimed bestseller The Light Between Oceans comes a breathtaking and epic novel set in the vast outback of Australia, A Far-flung Life by M. L. Stedman. 1958: here, for generations, the MacBrides have lived on a vast sheep station, Meredith Downs. It is a million acres, an ocean of arid land. On an ordinary day, on a lonely road, under the unending blue sky, patriarch Phil MacBride swerves to avoid a kangaroo. In seconds, the lives of the entire MacBride family are shattered. And then, tragedy revisits when a twist of consequences claims the life of one sibling, and leads another to give up everything for the sake of an innocent child. Matt, the youngest MacBride, is plunged into a moral and emotional journey for which there is no map, no guide. The secrets at the heart of this gutting and beautiful story force him to choose between love and duty, sacrifice and happiness. A Far-flung Life is a tale about family and belonging, fate and time.
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From Cradle to Grave
by Rhys Bowen
Lady Georgiana Georgie Rannoch is just like any other new mother, balancing responsibilities of being 34th in line for the British throne and solving the shocking deaths of several young men, in this new Royal Spyness novel from the queen of historical mystery, Rhys Bowen. Georgie may be figuring out what it means to be a new mother but she does know one thing for sure: she absolutely despises the strict nanny who was foisted upon her by her meddlesome sister-in-law. In search of a new nanny, Georgie travels to London to see her old friend ZouZou only to find her about to depart for a funeral, after the unexpected death of a young man in her social circle. It quickly becomes clear there's more than one mysterious death around town, when another friend reveals he's also just returned from the funeral of a school friend, who seemingly died in a boating accident. But when word arrives that the son of family friend has also died tragically and unexpectedly, Georgie is certain it can't be a coincidence. Yet the victims don't seem to have any connection to one another. As Georgie delves deeper, she can't help worrying that her own husband, Darcy, may be next. It seems likely there is a serial killer at work and Darcy fits the bill to be their next victim.
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A Ghastly Catastrophe
by Deanna Raybourn
Veronica and Stoker are practically dying for a new adventure, but when their wish is granted, they find themselves up against a secret society and a darkly seductive duo in this landmark historical mystery from beloved New York Times bestselling and Edgar(R) Award-nominated author Deanna Raybourn. When the corpse of an entitled young man is found entirely drained of blood in a carriage next to Highgate Cemetery, Veronica's interest is piqued. And then a second victim is found, his death made to look like a suicide and Veronica and her intrepid beau Stoker know the hunt is on.
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It Girl
by Allison Pataki
A sweeping, sensational novel of America's first It Girl, whose dramatic journey to center stage echoes through the decades, from the New York Times bestselling author of The Magnificent Lives of Marjorie Post.
At the dawn of the twentieth century, New York's streets teem with change: electricity, automobiles, the brash young President Teddy Roosevelt, and the It Girls. As artists' muses and working models, these independent young women soar to stardom not because of their pedigrees or inherited wealth, but because of their talent, charisma, and irresistible beauty. Pop culture is born, and in a world alight with Mr. Edison's new bulbs, no one shines brighter than America's sweetheart, Evelyn Talbot. But the journey to stardom is not simple or straight. While working as a shopgirl, the young Evelyn is recruited as a studio model and soon catches the eye of the preeminent artists of the age. When Broadway comes calling, Evelyn solidifies her status as the first self-made American female celebrity: the iconic Gibson Girl, the most sought-after figure and face of her time. Enter a parade of powerful and power-hungry men, from world-famous architect Stanley Pierce, the visionary behind Manhattan's mansions and iconic landmarks, to Hal Thorne, the shockingly wealthy railroad heir and premier playboy of high society. Each man promises comfort, glamour, security, even love. But fame and fortune are cruel teachers, and Evelyn learns that the only person she can rely on is herself. When Evelyn finds herself at the center of a murder of passion declared the Crime of the Century, she is blamed for the acts of the men in her life. In the media frenzy that spirals around her, Evelyn realizes that to survive, she will have to write her own ending.
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The Seven Daughters of Dupree
by Nikesha Elise Williams
From the two-time Emmy Award-winning producer and host of the Black and Published podcast comes a sweeping multi-generational epic following seven generations of Dupree women as they navigate love, loss, and the unyielding ties of family in the tradition of Homegoing and The Love Songs of W.E.B. DuBois. It's 1995, and fourteen-year-old Tati is determined to uncover the identity of her father. But her mother, Nadia, keeps her secrets close, while her grandmother Gladys remains silent about the family's past, including why she left Land's End, Alabama, in 1953. As Tati digs deeper, she uncovers a legacy of family secrets, where every generation of Dupree women has posed more questions than answers. From Jubi in 1917, whose attempt to pass for white ends when she gives birth to Ruby; to Ruby's fiery lust for Sampson in 1934 that leads to a baby of her own; to the night in 1980 that changed Nadia's future forever, the Dupree women carry the weight of their heritage. Bound by a mysterious malediction that means they will only give birth to daughters, the Dupree women confront a legacy of pain, resilience, and survival that began with an enslaved ancestor who risked everything for freedom.
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Wait for Me
by Amy Jo Burns
When young folk singer Elle Harlow reaches the height of her prowess in 1973, she has two wildly beloved albums to her name and a hidden history of impossible heartbreak. After she sets foot on the famed Grand Ole Opry stage, a far cry from the mountain that raised her, Elle gives the biggest performance of her life. Then, to the dismay of shocked fans, her producer, and the man who still loves her, she vanishes. Almost two decades later, eighteen-year-old Marijohn Shaw is spending her summer pumping gas, writing songs on her broken mandolin, and longing for a mother. Her father Abe has always sworn he was the last person to see Elle Harlow alive, but when a meteor strikes the woods of their sleepy Pennsylvania town and a piece of Elle's past emerges from the wreckage, the truth of her disappearance sets fire to everything Marijohn believes about herself, her music, and her ability to love with abandon. Wait for Me is an unapologetic, deeply emotive story set in Appalachia and Nashville that defies the trope of the missing woman and gives us a female duo who can find hope in each other and sing the ache in every good song-- Provided by publisher.
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Contact your librarian for more great books!
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