Who is the best Historical Fiction author?

[Cloud]

oh, it's great! I like the missionary part the best. The trick to Michener is to um . . . just skim over the beginning parts.

 

[Tumbleweed]

I've just read all of Elizabeth Chadwick's novels, based in 12 century britain and I thought they were all very good. Hard to put down once you've got into them. They explore the lives of important historical characters in some novels and the lives of more 'ordinary' people of those times in others.

 

[Pyan]

Robert Graves - I, Claudius and Claudius the God, Count Belisarius

C.S. Forester - the Hornblower series.

Lindsey Davies - the Falco series (detection and murder in Imperial Rome)

George MacDonald Fraser - the Flashman books

Umberto Eco - The Name of the Rose

and for Alternate History:

Harry Turtledove - most of his books, especially the Southern Victory arc, the results of the Confederacy winning the American Civil War.

All personally highly recommended.

 

[leehow]

james clavell,shogun is simply brilliant. my second favorite is bernard cornwell

 

[that old guy]

Bit surprised I didn't see Gore Vidal's name somewhere in this thread. A couple I've read:

Julian, a fictionalized life of the last pagan emperor of Rome, Julian "the Apostate", is excellent. Probably my favorite work of historical fiction of all time.

Creation, about ancient Persia, Greece, India and China is also quite good, even if it does seem to ramble a bit. And the main character meets everybody from Zoroaster to Buddha to Socrates, which got kind of silly.

Burr, a fictionalized life of Aaron Burr, Vice-President, indicted for treason and also the guy who shot Alexander Hamilton in a duel, good, but only if you have an interest in that period of US history.

I'll also give Ken Follett's The Pillars of the Earth a hearty recommendation, though I'm not all that crazy about most of the other stuff the wrote.

 

[Rosemary]

I too enjoyed reading The Pillars of the Earth!

However, I still much prefer the writing of Edward Rutherfurd, begining with his story of Old Sarum. My copy being well thumbed. What a marvellous writer! As you can tell, I would certainly recommend him...

 

[Stormlight_USMC]

Bernard Cornwell. Having read almost a score of his historical fiction novels, I can give him my highest recommendation.

Thanks to this thread, I've picked up Steven Pressfield's Gates of Fire and I must admit it gives Cornwell's battle-writing a run for its money. An excellent read through and through, on every level.

James Michener, although lacking the blood-pounding pace of many contemporary historical fiction writers, is unrivaled in his panoply of detailed knowledge and the richness and realism of his characters. For those unwilling to give the 800-page commitment necessary for his full novels, Return to Paradise provides small doses of Michener. It's a short story collection, with each tale set in the mid-20th century South Pacific islands.

 

[High Eight]

Patrick O'Brian. His Aubrey/Maturin novels are not just wonderful sea stories, they're wonderful historical fiction.

 

[The Ace]

Walter Scott ? A victorian propagandist, great stories, lousy accuracy. Dumas and Cooper I can respect,but for me, Cornwell's brilliant evocations of the peninsular war are breathtaking,and he always sticks in an historical note,to show where he mucked about to give Sharpe something to do.
Another author I like is G.M. Fraser, with the "Flasman," series,daft in places, but his first-hand accounts of historical moments is absolutely fascinating, and Fraser's exhaustive research makes these stories all the more believable.

 

[iansales]

Kate Ross wrote four detective novels set in Regency England that are excellent reads: Cut to the Quick (1994), A Broken Vessel (1995), Whom the Gods Love (1996), and The Devil in Music (1998).

 

[Chun the unavoidable]

Cecela Holland - "Until the Sun Falls"
"Belt of Gold"
"The Firedrake"
"The Sea-Beggars"

Gore Vidal - "Burr"
"Lincoln"

David Poyer's Civil war Novels are good, but he has taken a lot of liberties with events. He also has another series dealing with the modern Navy that is very good.

 

[Fourth Hunter]

Sorry if somebody already brought this up but Micheal Shaara and his son Jeff Shaara have to be mentioned somewhere on this list. Killer Angels is one of the best books of any genre that I have ever read, and the son did a magnificent job with WWII.

 

[Riselka]

Another great Historical Fiction novel is "The Light Bearer" by Donna Gillespie. The level of research that went into this novel is quite impressive and the storyline is excellent.

After being unavailable for quite some time, it was recently reprinted in conjunction with the English language publication of its sequel "Lady of the Light". (The sequel has been available in German since 2003.)

She's currently at work on a third novel in the series.

 

[aarti]

Another great Historical Fiction novel is "The Light Bearer" by Donna Gillespie. The level of research that went into this novel is quite impressive and the storyline is excellent.

After being unavailable for quite some time, it was recently reprinted in conjunction with the English language publication of its sequel "Lady of the Light". (The sequel has been available in German since 2003.)

She's currently at work on a third novel in the series.

Oooh, nice I have the massive Light Bearer on my list of books to read this year! I didn't know that it was a trilogy!

 

[Homer Hoose]

Raphael Aloysius Lafferty, that's who.

Ancient Rome is still standing civilized and won't fall until you ride and rape and pillage along with the civilized barbarians and R. A. Lafferty in this best of historical fiction books -- The Fall of Rome.

Look in libraries and check the dusty shelves of seedy bookstores because this most accurate account of fictional events is out-of- print.
And if, by chance, you meet a stranger who owns a hardback copy, marry that person no matter which sex because Lafferty is that good.

You'll be glad you did.

 

[murphy]

Raphael Aloysius Lafferty, that's who.

Ancient Rome is still standing civilized and won't fall until you ride and rape and pillage along with the civilized barbarians and R. A. Lafferty in this best of historical fiction books -- The Fall of Rome.

Look in libraries and check the dusty shelves of seedy bookstores because this most accurate account of fictional events is out-of- print.
And if, by chance, you meet a stranger who owns a hardback copy, marry that person no matter which sex because Lafferty is that good.

You'll be glad you did.

Or try eBay.

 

[Riselka]

Or try eBay.

One copy for sale on Ebay - price ... $250.00 US

​

10 available through Amazon.com - prices range from $42.00 US to $154.50 US:

Amazon.com: Used and New: The fall of Rome

But most places classify the book as Non-Fiction, not Historical Fiction.

*** runs away before she can be swatted by Homer Hoose ***

 

[SpaceShip]

Alexandre Dumas and Wilbur Smith

 

[paranoid marvin]

I like my historical ficion to be based on historical fact
Cornwell has a knack of mixing fact and fiction so that it can be difficult to separate one from the other.

The fact is I enjoy his novels, especially the Sharpe and Grail Quest series - and the fact that they're easy to read also helps!

I also like Graves for the I,Claudius books - the BBC should be applauded for creating a series,which whilst not entirley true to the events of the books - is entirley true to Graves' vision of a Caesarian dynasty

 

[tangaloomababe]

I have now purchased a third copy of Pillars of the Earth - Ken Follet, as the first one I lent out (never came back) the second one read so many times, it fell apart. For anyone who has never read it, please do!!!!! It is the best historical novel
London - Edward Rutherfurd is also good but not in the same league as "Pillars" and one I read recently comes close
The Historian - Elizabeth (i've forgotten her last name) Its not to bad, the ending lets it down a little but its well written, its not Pillars but its not bad.