My top 10 historical novels for 2025
What makes a great historical novel? One that I sneak into my bag to read at stations, on trains or in waiting rooms. That allows me to drop through a wormhole in time to live vicariously in a past era and understand the dilemmas of past generations. And one I recommend unreservedly to friends, family and book clubs.
These ten books fall into that category. I read these books in paperback format in 2025, although some were published in prior years. Listed roughly in order of how eagerly I would pick them up again to re-read.
1. There are Rivers in the Sky by Elif Shafak
Sweeping epic connects ancient Nineveh, Victorian Gilgamesh scholar, Yazidi girl & melancholy scientist through Rivers Thames & Tigris. Questions antiquities trade, water pollution & genocide amid intricate, lush prose.
2. The Safekeep by Yael van der Wouden
Holland 1961. Solitary Isabel seeks safety in her family home. Unwanted houseguest Eva unsettles her, stirs up buried emotions and traumatic memories. Closeted desire & suspense builds until a revelation upends everything Isabel believed.
3. Sea of Poppies by Amitav Ghosh
Calcutta 1837. A French orphan, accidental sailor, deposed Raja, opium widow & boatman collide on former slave ship to Mauritius. Rollicking saga spiced with lascar lingo & colonial hubris amid the amoral collusion of opium trade.
4. North Woods by Daniel Mason
Four centuries of Massachusetts history: farmers, hunters, artists, fugitives, scientists, ghosts, wild creatures and nature. All entwined like overgrown tree roots in virtuoso prose styles: poetry, diary, case notes. Worth reading twice.
5. Cecily by Annie Garthwaite
Wars of the Roses as a lethal game of chess, played by fierce Cecily, wife/advisor to Duke of York, who builds alliances, wrong-foots enemies, uses daughters as pawns, trains sons as knights & future kings amid 15thC cold, mud & gore.
6. The Land in Winter by Andrew Miller
A doctor, a farmer plus their expectant wives are isolated in 1962's wintry countryside, where help is elusive & emotions spiral. Tension mounts in an authentic, constrained world where all struggle to escape the trauma of wartime.
Read full review of The Land in Winter
7. Costanza by Rachel Blackmore
Time travel to sultry, oppressive 1630s Rome where egotistical Bernini entices naive yet spirited Costanza into a fateful affair. Sumptuous detail on clothes, customs & constraints on women. Satisfyingly, fiery Costanza rises again.
8. The Painter’s Daughters by Emily Howes
Peggy Gainsborough fears losing her sister if her strange behaviour is discovered. Quirks of Bath society seen vividly through eyes of young girl, till marriage separates the sisters and a family secret brings catastrophe.
9. James by Percival Everett
Runaway slave James dodges danger along Mississippi & protects Huck Finn, encountering shocking racism & unexpected friendship. Amid darkness & despair, James remains resilient, but angry. Breathless action & a subtle dive into language as code.
10. Dance of the Earth by Anna M Holmes
In 1900s London and Europe, talented theatrical twins Nina and Walter seek paths to creativity and love, through ballet and music, connecting with dancers, choreographers and composers.
Read full review of Dance of the Earth
Which of these novels have you read?
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