What is the best historical fiction series to start with?

Ken Follett's The Pillars of the Earth (medieval cathedral building) and Hilary Mantel's Wolf Hall (Tudor court) are two of the most acclaimed. For Ancient Rome, Colleen McCullough's Masters of Rome series begins with The First Man in Rome. For 19th-century fiction with a crime element, C.J. Sansom's Shardlake series begins with Dissolution.

Does historical fiction need to be read in order?

It depends on the series. Some historical fiction series are closely sequential (each book follows directly from the last), while others are more loosely connected — sharing a setting or era but with self-contained stories. The individual series pages on this site indicate the recommended reading order for each.

Historical Fiction 271 authors

Historical fiction authors and their series in reading order. Immerse yourself in the past with these acclaimed writers of historical novels.

Historical fiction resurrects the past — Tudor courts, medieval battlefields, frontier homesteads — with enough research to convince and enough story to compel. The best of it makes history feel urgent again.

Bernard Cornwell's battle-soaked sagas, Ken Follett's cathedral epics and Hilary Mantel's Booker-winning Cromwell trilogy show the range. Expect vivid period detail and characters caught in the gears of great events.

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Historical Romance

Tracking 271 authors and 2318 series in Historical Fiction.

Popular Historical Fiction Authors — Series in Reading Order

All Historical Fiction Authors — Complete Series in Order

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the best historical fiction series to start with?: Ken Follett's The Pillars of the Earth (medieval cathedral building) and Hilary Mantel's Wolf Hall (Tudor court) are two of the most acclaimed. For Ancient Rome, Colleen McCullough's Masters of Rome series begins with The First Man in Rome. For 19th-century fiction with a crime element, C.J. Sansom's Shardlake series begins with Dissolution.
Does historical fiction need to be read in order?: It depends on the series. Some historical fiction series are closely sequential (each book follows directly from the last), while others are more loosely connected — sharing a setting or era but with self-contained stories. The individual series pages on this site indicate the recommended reading order for each.

Historical Fiction 271 authors

Popular Historical Fiction Authors — Series in Reading Order

All Historical Fiction Authors — Complete Series in Order

Frequently Asked Questions

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