Historical Fiction!!.....

Simi

@simikr

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Posted: 13 years ago

Hi Guys,

Visiting here after a looong time...😊

I searched and saw that there was no topic posted abt historical fiction..Mods if there is plz close this and kindly direct me to it!!..

I am a grt fan of historical fiction of all sorts..and am always looking for recs!!

So if you have any recs please post them here..and perhaps a small blurb abt why you like it!!

Thanx!!😃

I have a huge list, here are just a few of them!!....

1. Pompeii, Imperium, Conspirata..all by Robert Harris abt ancient Rome, the first one abt the famous volcano and the other two abt the rise and fall of the famous orator Cisero.

2. Heretic Queen, Nefertiti by Michelle Moran

3. No historical fiction list is complete without metioning Phillippa Gregory..I recommend The Constant Princess..abt Henry VIII's first wife.

4.Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden

5. I, Claudius by Robert Graves~ A Must Read!!

I will add to the list as I recall more books!!....

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amail1601

@amail1601

IF-Sizzlerz

Posted: 13 years ago

Hey nice topic! :)

1. I've been reading Homer lately - The Odyssey, and The Iliad. I liked The Odyssey since I love Greek mythology, but haven't been able to finish The Iliad yet.

I'll post a review I'd written about Odyssey for my college magazine as soon as I find it. :P

There's a debate though whether these stories are fact or fiction - but the general view is that they are fictionalised accounts based on facts.

2. In the same category are Shakespeare's plays, especially Macbeth.

3. For a modern take on Greek Mythology, I would suggest the Percy Jackson series by Rick Riordan.

Percy Jackson is a teenage demigod - the son of the Greek God of sea Poseidon, and a human mother. The whole series is about how he overcomes the evil forces to save the world.

It is really nice - witty, fast-paced, beautiful descriptions, and of course, even the uninitiated readers can quickly understand the complex interrelationships of the Gods!

4. My teacher suggested the plays of Sophocles, though I haven't looked for them yet. Beware though...they are not for the faint-hearted!

I'll post more soon. :)

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Simi

@simikr

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Posted: 13 years ago

Thanx Amail 1601...shud I call U that??:)

Grt suggestions..wow, I have the Odyssey on my shelf..but I haven't been able to finish it..Yet!

Yes, I'm wud def be picking up the Percy Jackson series now..

In the same realm I would recommend Mary Renault's series on Ancient Greece of which I was only able to read Fire From Heaven which chronicle's Alexander the Great's life from the age of four upto his father's death..:)

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Sunayna

@x.sunayna.x

IF-Dazzler

Posted: 13 years ago

Great topic :)

Historical's are probably one of my faves,

So i would recommend any of Edward Rutherford's books - Sarum, London, New York and Ireland. And basically he picks up the storyline from way back in the day (thousands of years ago) and then he comes to what the city/country has developed into. I personally love them and how he sneakily adds a storyline to each place.

Also Figures in silk by Vanora Bennet, So its British history, about a 'young girl' who is married off, and how she brings the silk industry from Italy to Britain, about 500-600 years ago.. I found it quite interesting reading especially how politically it had been illegal.

I recently read the Peter Jackson series which I thought were a pretty good read as well!

At the moment i have really bad mind blank and I'm sure i'll remember some more soon !

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Simi

@simikr

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Posted: 13 years ago

Hey Sunayna..thanx for yr recs!!:)

I hv read read Figures in Silk..and did like it a lot...!!

If anybody's into historical mysteries..you wouldn't go wrong with Ariana Franklin's series abt a Female physician trained in the forensic sciences during the time of King Henry II....something completely unheard of but the author makes it very believable!!

The series includes..Mistress of the Art of Death, The Serpent's Tale and Grave Goods..

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amail1601

@amail1601

IF-Sizzlerz

Posted: 13 years ago

@simiv .....sorry, forgot to sign off properly. :P you can call me Adi. :)

@sunayna...nice suggestions.

all the titles sound interesting. :)

The Good Earth is also quite nice, though a bit depressing. Don't remember the author right now, but it's all about Chinese peasants and their struggle for survival.

Some of Robin Cook's medical thrillers are also based on historical stuff - one was about the Shroud of Turin, and one about the debate regarding the birth of Christ/Mother Mary's story.

Again, I'll have to check for the correct titles - they are kind of confusing.

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Sunayna

@x.sunayna.x

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Posted: 13 years ago

I'll have to look out for The Good Earth - sounds interesting :)

Went through the bookshelf and found Painting Mona Lisa By Jeanne k..... , and i really enjoyed that one - set in Italy and it is about a girl who meets Leonardo da Vinci as he is painting the Mona Lisa. The LDV part is kind of a side story but i highly recommend it !

The Magdalene Legacy by Laurence Gardner, It starts in present day with a man interested in investigating Mary Magdalene. And goes back in time to BC and AD. Its all factual and very informative, if your interested in art history at all it'd be a great read, but i recommend it anyway :)

And if you want a read not so old more like the mide 1950's - The Bronzehorseman trilogy - one of my faves!

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Simi

@simikr

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Posted: 13 years ago

The Good Earth is by Pearl S Buck and she won the Nobel Price for Literature..

I was very fond of Robin Cook's books coz am a medico myself but haven't checked out his other books except Sphinx...

The Mary Magdalene series does sound interesting...

I must mention Anita Diamant's The Red Tent...a fascinating narrative of Dinah who is the daughter of Jacob and the sister of Joseph, who was a minor character in the Bible but the author has broadened her story in a beautiful way!!

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Sunayna

@x.sunayna.x

IF-Dazzler

Posted: 13 years ago

I absoulutely loved The Red Tent ! Initially I wasn't to interested in it, but once I started I just couldn't put it down !

The Physician by Noah Gordon (another favourite), about a boy who is taken in as an apprentice - taught about medicine. He then travels all over Europe learning more. Its set in 1000 and something so the methods and beliefs are quite different from today.

^ A must read !

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405751

Inactive

Posted: 13 years ago

I quite enjoy stories that have a blend of historical and present-day narratives. Kate Mosse is AWESOME for those. I started with Labyrinthe and moved on to Sepulchre, I honestly don't remember what those two were about but they were definitely way cool, I think they even had a little bit of magical mysticism in them.

Then there's Madame Proust and the Kosher Kitchen by...I can't remember which author, I'll edit this with her name once I remember. That one has three narratives interspersed with each other. One is Madame Proust, mother of Marcel Proust, whose narrative is told in diaries transcribed by the third narrator, a present-day translator who is translating Mme Proust's diaries. The second narrator is, if I remember correctly someone in WW2. Yeah, I think she's from France but she moves to Canada in WW2, gets adopted by a Canadian couple, and it's her life.

So yeah. Those are my suggestions! 😳
Love,
Bhav (:

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