Monday, September 14, 2015

Top Ten Tuesday - Historical Fiction (Freebie Week!)



My first Top Ten Tuesday on my own! It so happens that this week is a freebie week so I took a gander at previous Top Ten's I hadn't participated in and spotted the perfect topic for me : Historical Fiction. Historical Fiction is a genre I always find myself bouncing back to. It's always been a favorite genre of mine. It's like YA in the way that it reaches across a variety of different genres. So my freebie topic for this week is : Top Ten Historical Fiction Books and/or Authors.

Books

1. Pirates by Celia Rees 

I loved/love this. It's one of those stories I have consistently gone back and re-read over the years. Pirates, sistership, rebellion. I'm all for girls rebelling against their prescribed roles and the two main characters in this story definitely rebel. If you've ever wanted to run away and become a pirate...well...go read Pirates. Good stuff. 






The Scarlet Pimpernell by Baroness Emmuska Orcey

Classic! I haven't picked it up in forever but I'm a fan of excitement and spies and cleverness. All of which this delivers while giving you a good dose of history. (And the Author's name is so mysterious!). 
The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd

Sue Monk Kidd ALMOST made it below in the author list but since this work of hers by far outshines the rest of her historically set novels (at least in my head) it gets put up here! I wish I had read this book sooner. Lily Owens is some kind of spirit animal to me. I understood her and I rooted for her and my heart broke for her. As I did for the wonderful cast of mothers she sought and found refuge with. I appreciated the spiritualism and feminine wisdom woven through the chapters.



The Red Tent by Anita Diamant

As I was posting it I was filled with the overwhelming urge to go to my bookshelf and pick it up. This is a gorgeous, insightful peek into the secret lives of the women of the Old Testament through the voice of one that was overshadowed by her brothers and father (and mother's) stories.






The Girl With A Pearl Earring by Tracy Chevalier

Another historical fiction that set itself apart in my head. It's set in a place and time of history that I wasn't too familiar with. I barely recognized the art work when I picked it up (I think I was probably in High School) but it left me with such a clear and vivid picture of her world.






Esperanza Rising by Pam Munoz Ryan

It's a kids book but don't judge! It's a sweet, eye-opening, heartfelt book that I would definitely bring out when you're looking for a shorter read or something to share with the kids in your life.








Authors


My Dad's really into this author. He used to drive trucks and listened to book on tapes (or CD's nowadays) from the library. I think my first Follett was Jackdaws. But Pillars of the Earth pops out to me the most. As does the sequel. He's a take-no-prisoners kind of author and doesn't pretty up the time he's writing in. He's definitely one of the best historical fiction authors I've encountered. 






SHE WAS MY FAVORITE GROWING UP. I always wanted an Ann Rinaldi book growing up. A large majority of her stories are set in the Civil War or the Revolutionary War but she's branched out to other areas as well. The Last Silk Dress was one that I always checked out of the library. And I read The Quilt Trilogy more than once. I think she's probably covered the entire span of American History up to the early 20th century (Brooklyn Rose - I'm looking at you! lol).




So...pretty sure most of you know who she is due to the TV series. I honestly didn't know about her until I started watching the series. It's definitely...steamy. To my surprise the books were incredibly researched. Like..I half-suspected that the historical accuracy and authenticity of the show was due to the work of the show itself. NOPE. The books given an very strong foundation of accuracy and authenticity while...yea...giving us that steamy love story we all secretly (or not) want in our historical novels. I haven't read the books she's written (branching out in the same world as Outlander) but I suspect they are of the same quality. 


I put the cover of The Kingmaker's Daughter up because I'm (according to family research) a descendent of the Kingmaker's family (his brother - making the main character a...very, very, very distant cousin. But still super cool!). Gregory has the ability to bring to life very real historical characters - even the questionable ones. 






Ok. I feel so accomplished. I FINISHED IT! I hope you added a book or two on your TBR list. :) 

Jess

20 comments :

A Reading Writer September 14, 2015 at 11:45 PM  

Hi there! You have a great list in here. :D Keep it up!

Marie - Pages To Explore September 15, 2015 at 12:05 AM  

I haven't read much historical fiction. But, many of these sound really good and I'll have to look into them.
Happy reading!
My TTT: Marie @ Pages to Explore

Unknown September 15, 2015 at 4:04 AM  

I love this topic! Historical fiction is one of my favourite genres :-D Although, I haven't actually read any of these titles *hides face*. But to make up for it, most of them are on my TBR! I love Philippa Gregory's novels - I was so sad to see so much hate for them on Goodreads! :/

Sarah @ Novels & Whimsy

Ely @ Tea & Titles September 15, 2015 at 8:28 AM  

I love historical fiction, but the only ones I've read from my list are The Girl With a Pearl Earring and The White Queen. I tend to stick to more Victorian era through to 1940's fiction though I really should branch out more!

My list

Jessica Henry September 15, 2015 at 9:06 AM  

Thank you! :)

Jessica Henry September 15, 2015 at 9:08 AM  

You should definitely look into them! I think there's a little bit of everything in the list. I'm sure you can find something that tickles your fancy. Happy Reading! :)

Jessica Henry September 15, 2015 at 9:10 AM  

I wish I could tell which one to start out with but they're all so good. lol. I've only read part of Philippa Gregory's novels but I think she does a pretty good job. She's definitely a go-to for that area of history!

Jessica Henry September 15, 2015 at 9:12 AM  

Ooh and I usually stick with the earlier time periods. Although, I do love a good WW2 novel. I find the 20th century so romantic and exciting (in the first half!).

Mallory @ The Local Muse September 15, 2015 at 2:08 PM  

I really want to read The Girl with the Peal Earring and something by Phillipa Gregory! I have heard great things about Gregory's novels, I just don't know where to start! I will add some of these to my TBR for sure.
Thanks for stopping by the The Local Muse

Obikitty September 15, 2015 at 3:30 PM  

The Scarlet Pimpernell has been on my list for a while, Outlander too, but SP seems more exciting. Plus, I agree her name is awesome and mysterious!

Jessica Henry September 15, 2015 at 5:10 PM  

My first Gregory was the Other Boleyn Girl. It's a good place to start. :) The Girl with the Pearl Earring is a beautiful read. I'm thinking of it right now and I can specifically remember some of the descriptions used to express the artistic view point of the main character. :) Thanks for popping by too! I'll keep an eye out on your blog from now on. It looks like we have similar taste!

Jessica Henry September 15, 2015 at 5:11 PM  

It's so much fun to read. I have this old hardback copy that I rescued from my High School Library. It's a staple item on my bookshelves. :)

Alicia @ A Kernel of Nonsense September 15, 2015 at 5:13 PM  

I haven't read The Scarlet Pimpernel, but I've read several retellings and I ought to pick the original up soon. Nice list!

Jessica Henry September 15, 2015 at 6:21 PM  

Thank you! And the SP is a fun read, you should definitely pick it up. :)

MeezCarrie September 16, 2015 at 6:51 AM  

One of my fave genres :) I've got Philippa Gregory on my TBR list! My TTT

Jessica Henry September 16, 2015 at 9:46 AM  

Awesome! :) Ooh, I love your TTT! Excellent topic. :)

Veronika @ Wordy and Whimsical September 17, 2015 at 12:56 PM  

I love your choice of topic! I don't read much historical fiction, even though the ones I've read were all very good. Some of these are on my TBR but I'm going to check out the rest right now and see if I like any of them. :)

Mariela September 22, 2015 at 6:59 PM  

OMG! Outlander! That should be the first book from your list to start reading! It is the best book I've ever read.

Jessica Henry September 22, 2015 at 7:51 PM  

So awesome! :) I'm glad you found some things you liked! I think I like Historical Fiction because it's got some depth to it but you can get the excitement and the drama too. :)

Jessica Henry September 22, 2015 at 7:52 PM  

Outlander is amazing! I love it! :)