Historical Fiction

The Miseducation of Evie Epworth is the debut novel by Matson Taylor, published in 2020.

It was both a Richard & Judy Book Club pick and a Radio 2 Book Club selection.

The Clockmaker’s Wife is Daisy Wood’s debut adult fiction novel, published in 2021.

I’ve read a lot of WW2 fiction recently, but most of them have been based overseas. I’ve recently read Daughters Of The Resistance which was based in Ukraine and The Yellow Bird Sings which was based in Poland. The Berlin Zookeeper was, unsurprisingly, based in Berlin whereas The Book Of Lost Names was based in Paris.

As you may already have gathered, I love historical fiction, particularly WW2 fiction. I have recently read books set in Poland (The Yellow Bird Sings), France (The Book Of Lost Names) and Berlin (The Berlin Zookeeper). However, when I saw Daughters Of The Resistance was set in Ukraine I was keen to read it as I hadn’t previously read about the war from a Ukrainian perspective.

After reading The Berlin Zookeeper, The Yellow Bird Sings and The Girl Who Escaped From Auschwitz, I decided to read another WW2 novel. The Night Train to Berlin is the fourth novel by Melanie Hudson, published in 2021.

The Yellow Bird Sings is the debut historical fiction novel by Jennifer Rosner, published in 2021.

The book is set in Poland during the early 1940s and after reading the synopsis I knew it would be a sad but important read.

The Berlin Zookeeper (previously known as The Zookeeper’s Daughter) was published in 2021 and immediately captured my attention. It seemed it would combine my love of historical fiction and my love of animals.

Things A Bright Girl Can Do is a historical fiction novel written by Sally Nicholls. It was Shortlisted for the Carnegie Medal 2019, National Book Award, Books Are My Bag Readers’ Awards and the YA Book Prize.

Circus of Wonders is a novel by bestselling author Elizabeth Macneal, published in 2021.

Elizabeth Macneal is the author of the popular historical fiction novel, The Doll Factory. Both The Doll Factory and Circus of Wonders were Sunday Times bestsellers.

I’ve been reading a lot of historical fiction recently and it really has become my favourite genre to read. I’ve read a few WW2 novels including The Night Train To Berlin, The Yellow Bird Sings and The Book Of Lost Names, and have been moved by them all.

The Girl Who Escaped From Auschwitz by Ellie Midwood was published in 2021 and promised to be another emotional read.

The Familiars is the debut novel by fellow northerner Stacey Halls, published in 2019. It went on to be a bestseller and was a Richard and Judy Book Club pick in 2019.

I was keen to know more about the notorious witch trials that swept the north of England in the 17th century and couldn’t wait to read the novel described as “historical fiction at its feminist best” by Red Magazine.