I am joining the Historical Fiction Reading Challenge for 2021. The challenge is hosted by a new host, Marg at The Adventures of an Intrepid Reader. It runs for the entire year.
To participate, you only have to follow the rules:
- Add the link(s) of your review(s) including your name and book title to the Mister Linky we’ll be adding to our monthly post (please use the direct URL that will guide us directly to your review)
- Any sub-genre of historical fiction is accepted (Historical Romance, Historical Mystery, Historical Fantasy, Young Adult, History/Non-Fiction, etc.)
The sign-up post is HERE on Adventures of an Intrepid Reader.
Participants can select from the following levels:
- 20th Century Reader - 2 books
- Victorian Reader - 5 books
- Renaissance Reader - 10 books
- Medieval - 15 books
- Ancient History - 25 books
- Prehistoric - 50+ books
Even though I had a hard time writing reviews for all the historical fiction I read last year, I am going to aim for The Renaissance Reader level at 10 books.
I have already read one book for this challenge, Black Robe by Brian Moore, and I am doing a slow read of Master and Commander by Patrick O'Brian.
Here are some possibilities from my TBR piles:
- Mad About the Boy? by Delores Gordon-Smith
- Murder in the Place of Anubis by Lynda S. Robinson
- Goodnight Sweet Prince by David Dickinson
- Elizabeth, Captive Princess by Margaret Irwin
- The Mirror & The Light by Hilary Mantel
- Gallows Court by Martin Edwards
- Confusion by Elizabeth Jane Howard
- In Farleigh Field by Rhys Bowen
- Poor Tom is Cold by Maureen Jennings
- Beware This Boy by Maureen Jennings
- The Ghost Rider by Ismail Kadare
- Dark Fire by C.J. Sansom
- The Meaning of Night by Michael Cox
- A Decline in Prophets by Sulari Gentill
- Then We Take Berlin by John Lawton
18 comments:
Pleased to see you're doing this one too. Dark Fire and The Meaning of Night are superb and Gallows Court was very good too. Nice selection!
Cath, I am looking forward to all of those on the list. I am glad you vouched for The Meaning of Night. It is about 700 pages which puts me off every time I think about reading it. But this year I am going to get to it.
Well you are about to embark on a reading quest that takes you through centuries and around the world. I look forward to your reports from the journey.
Bill, some of these historical fiction reads take me farther back in history than I have normally read about. Black Robe was definitely a challenging read.
Great variety! Gallows Court, The Mirror and the Light, and In Fairleigh Field are on my mental list too. Of course, I am a fan of Margaret Irwin, as you know.
My mother is a huge Patrick O'Brian fan but I am not sure I read more than the first one. I was reminded that I skimmed the sailing bits in Swallows & Amazons.
I liked the Cazalet Chronicles but read them so long ago I don't remember them well.
I have not read a one of these, which suggests I read very little historical fiction. Too true.
This really sounds like a fun challenge, Tracy. You've got so many options, too, and so much to explore. I really hope you'll enjoy it, and I look forward to your posts.
Constance, I am so glad I discovered Margaret Irwin's books. I am still enjoying Master and Commander, even though I am reading only a chapter a week. At least for the first book, I think that works well because I take the time to look up unfamiliar terms, not all of them of course.
I am disappointed that I did not read Confusion in the Cazalet Chronicles sooner after book 2, but I have all 5 of them, so maybe I will get through the rest this year. They are longish though.
Patti, I do enjoy historical fiction, obviously, but there can be problems with it. Focusing too much on the history and less on the story can be a problem. Sometimes I wonder how true to real history it is, although that matters less to me if I enjoy the story. It is fiction after all. And sometimes I learn really interesting things I never knew or don't remember. Now I am hooked on reading about Tudor times... a new topic for me.
Margot, I really do hope I can read all these books on the list, I am looking forward to them all.
I read Murder...Anubis years ago, don’t recall much. I liked In Farley Field quite a bit.
Rick, Glen passed on the series set in ancient Egypt to me, and it gets enough praise I want to try it out. I bought In Farleigh Field because you liked it so well. So I am looking forward to reading it.
I've only read a couple of these. One I didn't get on with so won't name it so as not to put you off! But Dark Fire is great - I do hope you manage to fit it in.
FictionFan, I plan to get to Dark Fire this year. That time period has become my favorite to read about.
Dark Fire is a fun novel, not too demanding.
The Mirror and the Light is so long it counts as 3 novels but is absolutely brilliant
BookerTalk, I was put off by the length of The Mirror and the Light initially, but I decided I had to finish the trilogy. I am reading so many big thick books this year, I should join a Chunkster challenge.
Ha I think I'd have to be a two if I signed up! Good luck, I'll be keen to see how it goes for you.
Col, thanks for the encouragement. So far I have read 3 books for this challenge and reviewed them all. Reviewing is the hard part for me.
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