Historical Novels

[paranoid marvin]

Currently I'm reading the Shardlake novels by Sansom - up to Sovereign now , and really enjoying the series. I really like historical novels - not necessarily factually correct , but based on real events

My favourites are Bernard Cornwells's Grail series (btw have Thomas of Hookton's adventures come to an end?) and of course Sharpe. I also enjoyed the Hornblower series , but the character portrayed in the novels is far more believable than that in the tv series

Another series I have tried to get into is Cadfael - I loved the tv series with Derek Jacobi (as I did with his portrayl of Claudius from the Graves' novels) but the books seem to be quite hard work to get into (unlike the I Claudius ones which are some of the most enjoyable I've read)

Does anyone else enjoy historical fiction , and are there any other novels I should try - one I've been thinking about is the Julius Casear novels by Iggulden - are these any good?

 

[urchin]

I read fantasy to get away from everything and everyone real. I don't want to read about people I was taught about at school or places I can visit for the weekend.
I want to meet people I know nothing about in places I can only imagine being.
That why I read fantasy, but it'd be pretty boring if we were all cut from the same cloth, so enjoy your history, but its not for me.

 

[Rane Longfox]

I'm a big fan of Steven Pressfield's Pendragon Cycle (but we'll just pretend the last two books never happened), and also Steven Lawhead's ancient greek novels, particularly Gates of Fire (which they should have done a film version of instead of 300) and Tides of War.

Never read any Iggulden books, but they've got a fairly decent reputation, I think.

 

[Riselka]

Rane Longfox,

I believe you've got the two Stevens mixed up. Lawhead wrote The Pendragon Cycle, and Pressfield wrote Gates of Fire and Tides of War.

By the way, there was talk a few years back of the intent to make Gates of Fire into a motion picture. Michael Mann was supposed to be directing it, and Bruce Willis was supposed to be starring in it. I guess things changed though.

 

[Quokka]

Not a huge fan of historical fiction but some of the better ones I've read would be:

Schindler's Ark/List by Thomas Keneally. First released as Schindler's Ark outside of America, since the movie it's reprinted as Schindler's List everywhere, I seem to have mentoined this one a few times here lately. A really great book that gives a fuller impression of the man Oskar Schindler than the movie does.

True History of the Kelly Gang by Peter Carey. A retelling of the life of Ned Kelly, a famous Australian bushranger/outlaw. Although I believe he did alot of reseach, I'm guessing this is very much a fictional account that holds true to the major events, atleast as far as they are known. Good read but from memory the majority of story is in the form of a letter from Ned to his daughter, with grammer, terminology etc to match so particuarly people from outside Australia may struggle a little with some references. Having said that I've enjoyed reading books where some of the cultural references go over my head so maybe not a huge problem.

Druids by Morgan Llwelyn. A lot more fictional than the first two it tells of the last days of the Gauls resisting the Roman Empire from the point of view of a young druid and his warrior friend. Not a great read (IMO) but entertaining enough.

Edward Rutherford seems to do alot of historical fiction, I've got his Dublin here to read at some point but I've heard mixed reviews about it so I'd be interested to here what anyone else thought of it.

 

[Overread]

Well I see you like the naval stories - try Master and Commander by Patrick O'Brian - great reads and a long series - gets a little complex with naval termanology, but you can pick a lot of it up throught the novel.

 

[Gav]

Following on from another thread I would recommend the Patrick O'Brian books. These are some of [possibly] the best historical novels I've ever read. Truly brilliant.

 

[Pyan]

Then there's the Bolitho novels by Alexander Kent, the Flashman books by George MacDonald Fraser, the Falco series by Lindsey Davis.......

 

[Ursa major]

Another series I have tried to get into is Cadfael - I loved the tv series with Derek Jacobi (as I did with his portrayl of Claudius from the Graves' novels) but the books seem to be quite hard work to get into (unlike the I Claudius ones which are some of the most enjoyable I've read)

Does anyone else enjoy historical fiction , and are there any other novels I should try - one I've been thinking about is the Julius Casear novels by Iggulden - are these any good?

If you enjoyed I, Claudius by Robert Graves try his The Golden Fleece (US title: Hercules, My Shipmate). I read this more than twenty-five years ago. I can't remember much except: it was an historical (i.e. not mythical) take on the Argonauts' voyage; I enjoyed it.

(I gave both titles, because my father's copy of the book bore the US one; I expect he picked it up at an airport over there.)

 

[Pyan]

Thanks, Ursa - must confess I'd never heard of this one.
In the same era, there's The King Must Die, and The Bull from the Sea - retellings of the Theseus story, by Mary Renault: and Jason, by Henry Treece.

 

[Rane Longfox]

Rane Longfox,

I believe you've got the two Stevens mixed up. Lawhead wrote The Pendragon Cycle, and Pressfield wrote Gates of Fire and Tides of War.

You're right, of course. Dunno how I managed that one

 

[Cerberus]

Theres always Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco, and its only a single novel not a series.

 

[paranoid marvin]

Thanks for the tips guys

Actually one book I considered reading is The Ilyad (obviously translated into English!) Has anyone tried reading this , and is it an enjoyable read , or hard work?

 

[Anne Lyle]

Sorry, haven't read the Illiad - I guess difficulty of reading would depend on the translation.

The first few Cadfael books are good, but after a while they get very samey, IMHO. I've also enjoyed Philippa Gregory's books, though they are aimed more at a female audience.

My OH recommends Thomas Holt's books - some are set in Ancient Greece, whilst "Meadowland" is about the Vikings in America, I think.

 

[bryanspellman]

I will 2nd anything by Morgan Llwelyn, I loved her Lion of Ireland series...

As for Igguldenm there are historically incorrect. He admits to it and says he changed history to make the story flow. The books themselves are great, I loved them. But do not think you are getting a lesson in history when reading them. That aside, I think you would enjoy them!

bryan

 

[murphy]

For Roman history, try Colleen McCullough's series starting:

The First Man in Rome
The Grass Crown
Fortune's Favorite
Caesar's Women
Anthony & Cleopatra


Also, on a lighter note, try Lindsey Davis Marcus Didius Falco mysteries starting with The Silver Pigs.

For accurate historical novels in the middle ages, I recommend Sharon Kay Penman. The Sunne in Splendor was her first book.

For ancient Greece, Mary Renault is classic.

 

[Rosemary]

Edward Rutherford seems to do alot of historical fiction, I've got his Dublin here to read at some point but I've heard mixed reviews about it so I'd be interested to here what anyone else thought of it.

I've read all of his books but not Dublin. Starting with Old Sarum, which I have re-read a number of times, Ruska, London and The Forest. As a great reader of historical fiction I would certainly recommend these books. Rutherfurd is a great author and really brings these times in history to life with some marvelous characters.

 

[paranoid marvin]

Can anyone recommend a book or series similar in style to that of I , Claudius?

 

[murphy]

Can anyone recommend a book or series similar in style to that of I , Claudius?

The closest thing I could think of would be Julian by Gore Vidal. See here for a synopsis.

 

[Connavar]

Currently I'm reading the Shardlake novels by Sansom - up to Sovereign now , and really enjoying the series. I really like historical novels - not necessarily factually correct , but based on real events

My favourites are Bernard Cornwells's Grail series (btw have Thomas of Hookton's adventures come to an end?) and of course Sharpe. I also enjoyed the Hornblower series , but the character portrayed in the novels is far more believable than that in the tv series

Another series I have tried to get into is Cadfael - I loved the tv series with Derek Jacobi (as I did with his portrayl of Claudius from the Graves' novels) but the books seem to be quite hard work to get into (unlike the I Claudius ones which are some of the most enjoyable I've read)

Does anyone else enjoy historical fiction , and are there any other novels I should try - one I've been thinking about is the Julius Casear novels by Iggulden - are these any good?

Julius Caesar series by Conn Iggulden is very good. I have to warn you its not 100 historical accurate. He changed alot of things but not the important stuff like how Ceaser became powerful and did what he is most famous for,for example his time in Gaul,how he handles his famous rivals etc

He captures Caesar,other historical characters very well and the times very well too. Specially the way they talk and act are very Roman. Not like other historical fiction where you read people talk british modern english despite being ancient people from Greece or Rome.

I think its a great story.

His new Ghengis Khan series is alot more accurate and he has become alot better than with Ceasar so i recommend it even higher.