Must-Read Historical Fiction

The daughter of a powerful tycoon escapes to a glamorous artists’ retreat—where dark secrets and dangerous temptations await—in this gripping Prohibition-era novel from the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Salt to the Sea.

“Enthralling . . . While history is often molded by those in power, there are always those who can wrest control and write a new story of their own. A Fortune of Sand should be required reading.”—Marie Benedict, New York Times bestselling co-author of The Personal Librarian and The First Ladies

Click for More Information
Click for Audiobook Information

For readers of The Nightingale, In Memoriam, and The Postcard, a sweeping novel of siblings, steeped in love, heart-rending loss, and sacrifice, the story of twins who meet shockingly different fates, but whose bond will last forever.

“A wonderfully conceived and remarkably assured first novel, rich in emotion and with a truly compelling narrative drive. A brilliant success.”—William Boyd, bestselling author of Any Human Heart

Click to Read an Excerpt
Listen to a Clip from the Audiobook
Watch a “World War II in Fiction” Author Panel Featuring Lori Inglis Hall

From the bestselling, Pulitzer Prize–winning novelist, a rousing novel that follows two young women fleeing a divided America: one running toward a dazzling future and the other running from a troubled past.

“In this Lidie Newton sequel, narrated in a voice so authentic you’re certain she’s speaking only to you, Smiley takes us on Lidie’s journey from being a young widow in pre-Civil War Kansas to her endeavor to be a free-spirited woman in England. At every turn, we are reminded that Jane Smiley is more than an extraordinary writer—she’s a sculptor who carves out unforgettable characters who live and breathe her stories.”—Victoria Zackheim, author of The Curtain Falls in Paris and Death Times Seven

Click to Read an Excerpt
Listen to a Clip from the Audiobook

*A LibraryReads Pick*

Cleopatra tells her own story in this evocative and sensuous historical epic from the bestselling and award-winning author of Faebound and The Final Strife.

“Enchanting, smart, and subversive—this is El-Arifi’s masterpiece.”—R.F. Kuang, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Katabasis

“Lush world-building and lyrical prose . . . Cleopatra’s fascinating life is portrayed on her own terms, as readers have never encountered her before.”—Jennifer Saint, #1 internationally bestselling author of Ariadne

Click to Read an Excerpt
Listen to a Clip from the Audiobook

A gripping novel of two young women fighting for survival on the edge of the wilderness, and the love that simultaneously sustains them and threatens their very existence, from the author of the Good Morning America Book Club pick River Sing Me Home.

“Fireflies in Winter is simply luminous. Eleanor Shearer powerfully explores the fragile spaces in history where Black citizens negotiate freedom, the harsh choices frequently forced upon them, and the powerful force of love within those spaces. A book to treasure.”—Kate Quinn, New York Times bestselling author of The Briar Club

Click to Read an Excerpt
Click for a Discussion Guide
Listen to a Clip from the Audiobook

*A LibraryReads Pick*

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.

“As stunning as the incomparable leading lady who inspired it, It Girl is a captivating story of resilience, splendor, and strength, at times dark, at times deliciously dishy. Allison Pataki pulls back the curtain on a real-life Cinderella story, bringing Evelyn’s glamour and grit vividly to life. It’s unputdownable, with a twist that will leave you breathless.”—Emily Giffin, New York Times bestselling author of The Summer Pact

Click to Read an Excerpt
Click for a Book Club Kit
Listen to a Clip from the Audiobook

Brought together by chance, bound together by secrets.

From a historic river town to the hinterlands of rural North Carolina, The Lost Girl of Craven County delves into the impossibility of burying secrets forever. It’s a story of love, loss, and—above all—the indelible, world-moving power of female friendship.

“Emotionally riveting and hauntingly relevant. I flew through the pages . . . The Lost Girl of Craven County is the ideal weave of compelling characters you can’t help but root for. I loved it.”—Susan Meissner, USA Today bestselling author of Only the Beautiful

Click to Read an Excerpt
Click for a Discussion Guide
Listen to a Clip from the Audiobook

A woman’s desperate flight from an Apache raid unfolds into a sweeping tale of the Mexico–US border wars. Part epic, part alt-Western, Now I Surrender weaves past and present, myth and history into a searing elegy for a way of life that was an incarnation of true liberty—and an homage to the spark in us that still thrills to its memory.

“Defiantly challenging . . . magical . . . Now I Surrender has been described as a revisionist or ‘alternative Western,’ which it is, but given its scope, I think it might be more apt to call it an ‘expandable Western.’ There’s room for everyone in this epic of conquest and eradication: Native Americans, Mexicans, gringos, formerly enslaved people, immigrants and one lone writer gamely trying to tell their stories before the curtain comes down on the whole enterprise.”—NPR Fresh Air

Click to Read an Excerpt
Listen to a Clip from the Audiobook

They were sent away to be forgotten. This is their story.

In this electrifying historical novel about coming of age in tumultuous 1960s San Francisco, a pregnant teenager reckons with womanhood and agency after being sent to a home for unwed mothers.

“[Kate Schatz’s] prose is like poetry. It’s like hands in a bowl of candy. Thrilling, propulsive, breathless, and brimming with Schatz’s deep understanding of longing and frailty . . . of humanness.”—Catherine Newman, New York Times bestselling author of Sandwich

Click to Read an Excerpt
Click for Audiobook Information

A sweeping novel about a correspondent trapped behind enemy lines during the Korean War, and the women who help her find her way home, from the national bestselling author of Daughters of Shandong.

“The Young Will Remember is a searing indictment of modern warfare and a testimony of human strength . . . Through this remarkable novel, Chung urges us to consider the human cost of wars, a cautionary tale that still rings relevant today, while reminding us that our humanity is ultimately what will save us.”—Karissa Chen, author of Homeseeking, A GMA Book Club Pick

Click to Read an Excerpt
Click for a Book Club Kit
Click for Audiobook Information

A debut novel by the critically acclaimed New York Times bestselling author of The Light of Days, following two very different Jewish women in Warsaw in the late 1930s as they unexpectedly come together in their search for love, meaning, and a sense of home, and as they grapple with the storm clouds gathering around them.

“A powerhouse debut historical fiction novel about two unlikely women who come together in prewar Poland to solve the puzzle of a third who has gone missing. Batalion masterfully harnesses her command of the era with nuanced writing to deliver a powerful tale, combining the harbinger of world events to come with female empowerment and a spine-tingling mystery. Brava!”—Pam Jenoff, New York Times Bestselling Author of Last Twilight in Paris

Click to Read an Excerpt
Click for a Book Club Kit
Listen to a Clip from the Audiobook

It’s never too late for the adventure of a lifetime, even if you can’t remember why you started.

The Unforgettable Mailman is a heartwarming story about intergenerational friendship and the power of human connection, perfect for fans of Fredrik Backman and Virginia Evans’ The Correspondent.

“I adored this book! Right from the first page, I was captured by it’s warmth and found myself instantly rooting for Henry, against all the odds! A story of humanity and hope, this debut novel is a total triumph.”—Evie Woods, Sunday Times bestselling author of The Lost Bookshop

Click for More Information

For readers of Jeannette Walls and Barbara Kingsolver, in this love story set in rural Appalachia during the Vietnam War, a young couple is torn apart by both global conflict and their families’ ancient feud.

“Here is a novel both compelling and meditative, both tender and gritty, and wholly remarkable for the way it conjures a place and time brought to life with vivid sensory details, raw emotion, and complexity. Pamela Steele is a wonderful writer who allows us to luxuriate in precise language and gives us characters we will long cherish. I loved every page of this lovely novel.”—Silas House, author of Southernmost

Click to Read an Excerpt