Popular European Historical Fiction Books
Find historical fiction books written by authors from Europe for the next part of the Read Around The World Challenge. (458)
1.
10 Minutes 38 Seconds in this Strange World by Elif Shafak EN
FranceDescription:
'In the first minute following her death, Tequila Leila's consciousness began to ebb, slowly and steadily, like a tide receding from the shore. Her brain cells, having run out of blood, were now completely deprived of oxygen. But they did not shut down. Not right away . . . ' Our brains stay active for ten minutes after our heart stops beating. For Tequila Leila, each minute brings with it a new memory- growing up with her father and his two wives in a grand old house in a quiet Turkish town; watching the women gossip and wax their legs while the men went to mosque; sneaking cigarettes and Wes... continue
2.
10 minutes et 38 secondes dans ce monde étrange by Elif Shafak FR
Description:
Et si notre esprit fonctionnait encore quelques instants après notre mort biologique ? 10 minutes et 38 secondes exactement. C'est ce qui arrive à Tequila Leila, prostituée brutalement assassinée dans une rue d'Istanbul. Du fond de la benne à ordures dans laquelle on l'a jetée, elle entreprend alors un voyage vertigineux au gré de ses souvenirs, d'Anatolie jusqu'aux quartiers les plus mal famés de la ville. En retraçant le parcours de cette jeune fille de bonne famille dont le destin a basculé, Elif Shafak nous raconte aussi l'histoire de nombre de femmes dans la Turquie d'aujourd'hui. A l'aff... continue
3.
A Ballad for Georg Henig by Viktor Paskov EN
BulgariaDescription:
The poignant story of an elderly, impoverished violin maker, a master craftsman who refuses to trim his values for the modern age, as seen through the eyes of his young prot�g�. A best-seller in Bulgaria, this is one of Paskow's major works.
4.
A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens EN
Country: Europe / 
United Kingdom
United Kingdom
Description:
From the bustling, snowy streets of 19th-century London to the ghostly apparitions of Christmases past and future, award-winning artist Roberto Innocenti vividly renders not only the authentic detail but also the emotional impact of Charles Dickens's beloved Christmas tale. In both crowded urban scenes and intimate portraits of familiar characters, we gain a sense of the timeless humanity of the tale and perhaps catch a glimpse of ourselves.
5.
A Death in Vienna by Frank Tallis EN
Country: Europe / United Kingdom
United Kingdom
Description:
“[An] elegant historical mystery . . . stylishly presented and intelligently resolved” set at the dawn of psychoanalysis (The New York Times Book Review). In Vienna at the turn of the twentieth century, Max Liebermann, a contemporary of Sigmund Freud’s, is at the forefront of psychoanalysis, practicing the controversial new science with all the skill of a master detective. Every dream, inflection, or slip of tongue in his “hysterical” patients has meaning and reveals some hidden truth. When beautiful medium Charlotte Löwenstein dies under extraordinary circumstances, Max’s good friend, Detecti... continue
6.
A Dictator Calls by Ismail Kadare EN
AlbaniaDescription:
Longlisted for the International Booker Prize The Wall Street Journal, A Best Book of the Year Using a sophisticated and literary version of the ever-popular game of telephone to examine the relationship of writers with tyranny, Ismail Kadare reflects on three particular minutes in a long moment of time when the dark shadow of Joseph Stalin passed over the world In June 1934, Stalin allegedly called Boris Pasternak and they spoke about the arrest of Osip Mandelstam. A telephone call from the dictator was not something necessarily relished, and in the complicated world of literary politics it w... continue
7.
A Girl in Exile : Requiem for Linda B. by Ismail Kadare EN
Description:
When a girl is found dead with a signed copy of Rudian Stefa’s latest book in her possession, the author finds himself summoned for an interview by the Party Committee. Unable to guess what transgression he has committed Rudian goes fearfully to meet his interrogators. He has never met the girl in question but he remembers signing the book. As the influence of a paranoid regime steals up on him, Rudian finds himself swept along on a surreal quest to discover what really happened to the mysterious girl to whom he wrote the dedication – to Linda B. ‘Powerful, empathetic, at times harrowing... ex... continue
8.
A Guided Tour Through the Museum of Communism by Slavenka Drakulić EN
CroatiaDescription:
A wry, cutting deconstruction of the Communist empire by one of Eastern Europe's exceptional authors. Called "a perceptive and amusing social critic, with a wonderful eye for detail" by The Washington Post, Slavenka Drakulic-a native of Croatia-has emerged as one of the most popular and respected critics of Communism to come out of the former Eastern Bloc. In A Guided Tour Through the Museum of Communism, she offers a eight-part exploration of Communism by way of an unusual cast of narrators, each from a different country, who reflect on the fall of Communism. Together they constitute an Orwel... continue
Ireland10.
A Perfect Waiter by Alain Claude Sulzer EN
Country: Europe / 
Switzerland
Switzerland
Description:
It is 1966. Erneste works in a grand hotel in Switzerland. He is the 'perfect waiter', a model of order in every way. But inwardly this polite, withdrawn man has been caught in the grip of an overwhelming passion that began in the summer of 1935. Going down to the lakeside back then to meet new staff members off the boat, Erneste sees a tall young man, Jakob, and falls hopelessly in love. For Jakob the affair is just a fling, but for Erneste it is true love. When the great German writer Julius Klinger arrives at the hotel, seeking sanctuary from Hitler's Germany, his gaze, too, lights on Jakob... continue