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. (413)
331.
The Mercies by Kiran Millwood Hargrave EN
Country: Europe / 
United Kingdom
United Kingdom
Description:
A gripping novel inspired by a real-life witch hunt . . . Beautiful and chilling' Madeline Miller, author of CirceOn Christmas Eve, 1617, the sea around the remote Norwegian island of Vardø is thrown into a reckless storm. As Maren Magnusdatter watches, forty fishermen, including her father and brother, are lost to the waves, the menfolk of Vardø wiped out in an instant. Now the women must fend for themselves. Eighteen months later, a sinister figure arrives. Summoned from Scotland to take control of a place at the edge of the civilized world, Absalom Cornet knows what he needs to do to bring ... continue
332.
The Miniaturist : A Novel by Jessie Burton EN
Country: Europe / United Kingdom
United Kingdom
Description:
On a brisk autumn day in 1686, eighteen-year-old Nella Oortman arrives in Amsterdam to begin a new life as the wife of illustrious merchant trader Johannes Brandt. But her new home, while splendorous, is not welcoming. Johannes is kind yet distant, always locked in his study or at his warehouse office–leaving Nella alone with his sister, the sharp-tongued and forbidding Marin. But Nella's life changes when Johannes presents her with an extraordinary wedding gift: a cabinet-sized replica of their home. To furnish her gift, Nella engages the services of a miniaturist–an elusive and enigmatic art... continue
333.
The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley EN
Country: Europe / United Kingdom
United Kingdom
Description:
In the near future, a disaffected civil servant is offered a lucrative job in a mysterious new government ministry. Her role is to work as a 'bridge': living with, assisting and monitoring the expat known as '1847' - Commander Graham Gore. As far as history is concerned, Commander Gore died on Sir John Franklin's doomed expedition to the Arctic, so he's a little disoriented to find himself alive and surrounded by outlandish concepts such as 'washing machine', 'Spotify' and 'the collapse of the British Empire'. During a long, sultry summer he and his bridge move from awkwardness to genuine frie... continue
334.
The Murderer’s Ape by Jakob Wegelius EN
SwedenDescription:
A captivating mystery adventure story, with gorgeously detailed black-and-white illustrations throughout ‘I don't know when I last read a book with such pure and unalloyed pleasure. It's ingenious, it's moving, it's charming, it's beautiful, it's exciting, and most importantly the characters are people I feel I know like old friends. I thank Jakob Wegelius wholeheartedly for giving me several hours of joy." - Philip Pullman Sally Jones is not only a loyal friend, she's an extraordinary individual. In overalls or in a maharaja's turban, this unique gorilla moves among humans without speaking bu... continue
335.
The Muse : A Novel by Jessie Burton EN
Country: Europe / United Kingdom
United Kingdom
Description:
From the #1 internationally bestselling author of The Miniaturist comes a captivating and brilliantly realized story of two young women—a Caribbean immigrant in 1960s London, and a bohemian woman in 1930s Spain—and the powerful mystery that ties them together. England, 1967. Odelle Bastien is a Caribbean émigré trying to make her way in London. When she starts working at the prestigious Skelton Institute of Art, she discovers a painting rumored to be the work of Isaac Robles, a young artist of immense talent and vision whose mysterious death has confounded the art world for decades. The excite... continue
336.
The Mysteries of Udolpho by Ann Radcliffe EN
Country: Europe / United Kingdom
United Kingdom
Description:
A best-seller in its day and a potent influence on Walpole, Poe, and other writers of eighteenth- and nineteenth-century Gothic horror, The Mysteries of Udolpho remains one of the most important works in the history of European fiction. With its dream-like plot and hallucinatory rendering of its characters' psychological states, The Mysteries of Udolpho is a fascinating challenge to contemporary readers.
337.
The Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco EN
ItalyDescription:
In 1327, Brother William of Baskerville is sent to investigate charges of heresy against Franciscan monks at a wealthy Italian abbey but finds his mission overshadowed by seven bizarre murders.
338.
The New Life : A Novel by Tom Crewe EN
Country: Europe / United Kingdom
United Kingdom
Description:
"A brilliant and captivating debut, in the tradition of Alan Hollinghurst and Colm Tóibín, about two marriages, two forbidden love affairs, and the passionate search for social and sexual freedom in late 19th-century London. In this powerful, visceral novel about love, sex, and the struggle for a better world, two men collaborate on a book in defense of homosexuality, then a crime-risking their old lives in the process. In the summer of 1894, John Addington and Henry Ellis begin writing a book arguing that what they call "inversion," or homosexuality, is a natural, harmless variation of human ... continue
339.
The Notebook : The Proof ; The Third Lie : Three Novels by Agota Kristof EN
HungaryDescription:
Kristof's postmodern saga begins with The Notebook, in which the brothers are children, lost in a country torn apart by conflict, who must learn every trick of evil and cruelty merely to survive.
340.
The Orchard : A Novel by Kristina Gorcheva-Newberry EN
RussiaDescription:
Four teenagers grow inseparable in the last days of the Soviet Union—but not all of them will live to see the new world arrive in this powerful debut novel, loosely based on Anton Chekhov’s The Cherry Orchard. “Spectacular . . . intensely evocative and gorgeously written . . . will fill readers’ eyes with tears and wonder.”—Minneapolis Star Tribune Coming of age in the USSR in the 1980s, best friends Anya and Milka try to envision a free and joyful future for themselves. They spend their summers at Anya’s dacha just outside of Moscow, lazing in the apple orchard, listening to Queen songs, and ... continue