12 spring reading picks from your favorite historical fiction authors

"When I settle in with a book, I want to read about women who make me stand up and cheer. So my fave spring read was The Women of Chateau Lafayette by Stephanie Dray, a fantastically ambitious historical novel centering around three timelines, three wars, three steel-strong women, and the castle in France that ties them all together. And for summer, the book I can't wait for is Kaia Alderson's Sisters in Arms, which stars the only all-Black female battalion to be deployed overseas during WWII — a story that needs to be told, and finally is!" — Kate Quinn, author of The Rose Code

"M. Shelly Conner's everyman is a brilliant literary debut! I love how this story superbly and deftly tackles race and identity. Conner showcases her skilled, nuanced command of history, dialogue and prose creating marvelously complicated characters where I found remnants of myself. It was hard to let go of this story even as I read the last page. Everyman is a story for everyone." — Catherine Adel West, author of Saving Ruby King

"I'm currently obsessing over Kate Quinn's The Rose Code, which is about three female codebreakers working at Bletchley Park during WWII. We learn early in the book that these three women, initially the best of friends, have a mysterious falling-out and one of them lands in an asylum. I'm turning the pages as fast as I can to learn why, which makes me feel a bit like one of the codebreaker characters myself. There are a few romantic entanglements, too. Who knew ciphers could be so sexy?" — Sarah Penner, author of The Lost Apothecary

"The spring is full of spectacular releases, but Patti Callahan’s deeply researched Surviving Savannah stands out for its unique subject matter. It’s based on the true story of a doomed ship known as the “Titanic of the South,” which sank off the Carolina coast in 1838. The book’s fascinating core question — 'How do we survive the surviving?’ — resonates deeply in 2021, too." — Kristin Harmel, The Book of Lost Names

"From Algeria to France over the span of three generations, this transporting novel explores the impacts of colonialism, war, and immigration, but also family history. It asks the question, 'Where are you really from?' and follows the protagonist as she tries to discover it for herself, instead of letting others define her." — Karin Tanabe, author of A Hundred Suns

"As a fan of New York Times bestselling author Chanel Cleeton’s historical fiction, including her most recent book The Last Train to Key West, Denny is anxious to dig into the author’s next novel, The Most Beautiful Girl in Cuba: The late 19th century was a such a volatile period in American newspaper history and this novel centers on the story behind some of those headlines. Cleeton is skilled at immersing readers into the culture and the period of her stories while creating vibrant characters, especially women, in a fast-paced, thoroughly engaging read. Her new novel promises to deliver the same and more. Inspired by real-life events, the novel includes the true story of a legendary Cuban woman, Evangelina Cisneros." — Denny S. Bryce, author of Wild Women and the Blues

"I’m currently captivated by Pam Jenoff’s heart-wrenching new WWII novel The Woman With the Blue Star. It tells the story of Sadie, a young woman hiding with her mother in the sewers of Krakow, Poland, after the Nazis liquidate her ghetto. When Ella, an affluent Polish girl, glimpses her underneath the sewer grate one day, an unlikely friendship forms between the two women. Based on harrowing true stories, this is a novel about the power of female friendships and the incredible strength of the human spirit to persevere in the darkest of times. Jenoff’s’ meticulous historical details and beautifully drawn characters will enchant her many fans, and no doubt gain her many new ones." — Jane Healey, author of The Secret Stealers

"The Ladies of the Secret Circus by Constance Sayers is just the kind of book I love: a perfect blend of historical fiction and fantasy, with sinister magic bubbling up just beneath the surface of the real world — although who is to say what is real and what is not within the Secret Circus? This dazzling tale has stayed with me long after I finished reading." — Alyssa Palombo, author of The Spellbook of Katrina Van Tassel

"Finding Napoleon is a fresh look at a larger-than-life figure we think we know and have come to understand — Napoleon Bonaparte. Told through the eyes of his lover whose name has been lost in time, Albine de Montholon, is a bright and compelling character living on St. Helena. She comes to know the military man in retreat and in retirement, and a man who ruminates on what is important in the final chapters of his life. Rodenberg brings the spirit of the revolutionary era and what follows it to vibrant life in a sensory debut." — Heather Webb, author of Becoming Josephine

"I'm not the shivering type. But knee-deep inside Hur's taut, suspenseful snare, I felt the cold touch of secrets poking at my shoulder and sometimes, neck.  Disappearances, quests, and family tension? I'm all the way in." — Rita Williams-Garcia, author of A Sitting in St. James

"Angela Jackson-Brown’s riveting novel is about the past — the summer of 1936 in the segregated South — but as we all know, the past is never really completely past. The story of Opal Pruitt and her family in Parsons, Georgia, is a compelling one--sure to make you think about the atrocities of our country’s racist history, but this novel also makes you think deeply about our present, about grace and empathy, and how we got here. I couldn’t put this novel down, and you won’t be able to put it down either. Jackson-Brown grapples with love, empathy, and racial strife while making her reader think deeply about love, empathy, and grace in today’s climate and its protagonist, Opal Pruitt, will steal your heart." — Crystal Wilkinson, author of The Birds of Opulence

"Martha Hall Kelly's latest is a beautifully written, intricately researched window into the lives of women in a world we can scarcely imagine today. Deeply rooted in little-known history, Sunflower Sisters took me on a journey that swept me up in its pages and left me pondering deeper truths in the end. It's a read filled with sisterhood, risk, reward, and plenty of fodder for book clubs. Grab it and enjoy!" — Lisa Wingate, The Book of Lost Friends