Favourite book this year (2016) so far.

We have now reached halfway through 2016. What is the favourite historical fiction book you have read so far in 2016?

The Clifton Chronicles by Jeffrey Archer
The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne
Cloudsplitter by Russell Banks
City of Thieves by David Benioff

>2 EadieB: This series is certainly one of my favourites this year - all of them!

I'm working my way through Lindsey Davis's Falco series, which begins with The Silver Pigs and continues with enough books to keep me going all through next year! Well written, well researched fun.

>4 dajashby: I read the first one of these earlier this year and enjoyed it.

I've been lucky to find a lot of good ones this year, notables are The Book Thief and The Shadow of the Wind.

I just finished a re-read of Lucia StClair Robson's Ride the Wind - twenty years after my first read of it, and I was still entertained. I am hoping to seek out a few others of hers, and hope that they don't all have such a sad ending.

>6 Darth-Heather: Don't know Ride the Wind but love the other two books.

>6 Darth-Heather: look out for Lucia StClair Robson's Tokaido Road... It is her best work IMHO but I have read 3 others by her and enjoyed them all as well.

MY vote for best historical novel is one I just finished Gates of Fire... a very informative, gripping story of Sparta and the famous battle against 2 million Persians at Theropylae.

>8 Lynxear: thanks for the suggestion! I would like to find more of hers, so it's good to know where to start. I just love how descriptive her writing is - she takes the time to describe how things smell and feel and really flesh out the scene.

>9 Darth-Heather: I agree completely and she has a message as well when she writes about American natives...

Tokaido Road is a different book all together. It is set in feudal Japan and is a bit of a thriller. It is apparently based on history and is about a courtesan who is not a legitimate daughter of a noble and when she was a little girl was placed in a pleasure palace when her father was murdered. She has no skills in the real world, but she decides after an attempt is made on her life to take revenge on those who killed her father. She needs the help of her father's advisor and must travel along the Takaido road with 50+ gates, no papers, and being chased by samurai of the family who tried to kill her and a ronin hired by the pleasure palace to bring her back.

Lucia StClair Robson in this book takes you on a great chase of a woman living on her wits with a gripping story and humour.

For pure historical fiction I would choose:
1. Edge of Eternity by Ken Follett, #3 in the Century Trikogy.
2. The Wide World Trilogy by Robert Goddard
3. The Corpse Reader by Antonio Garrido

>9 Darth-Heather:
I loved Ride the Wind. It might be time for a reread. Several years ago, I read a few of her others. I thought they were good, but not quite as captivating.

I read a YA book about Cynthia Ann Parker, too, that was good. Not quite as detailed as Robson's, though. It was Where the Broken Heart Still Beats by Carolyn Meyer.

>10 Lynxear:
I'm adding that one to my TBR! It sounds good - Thanks!

>10 Lynxear: and I have already discussed our love of Ride the Wind on another thread, but I just have to add here that my poor husband was thoroughly sick of me talking about it over the duration of my reading of it. He never fails to mention it when I start to get a bit long-winded sharing what I'm currently reading. It certainly is one of my favorites!

>13 Zumbanista: would that novel now be Tokaido road?

>14 Lynxear: No, but it's defo on my list!

All the Light We Cannot See and the Outlander series.

Easily Staying On. You can't read the Raj Quartet and not read this one.

Ooh dear me! You guys - your asking hard questions! I'm not only an avid reader, I'm a devouted book blogger - so I spend a lot of time contemplating the books I'm reading on a daily/weekly/monthly basis... whenever I see a new Top Ten Tuesday topic broaching to arrive in the book blogosphere I shudder - as I haven't mastered the art of scaling down my answers to 'fit' the 10 slots in question! Oy.

However! I joined this group as I wanted to reach out to other historical fiction lovers - not only sharing my personal favourites but learning about new authors I might not even realise exist out there to read! :)

Ergo...

Top 15! HistFic Thus Far Read in 2016: (unordered)

Becoming George Washington by Stephen Yoch*
a biographical sketch on our First President from an interesting POV

Worlds of Ink and Shadow by Lena Coakley
an origin tale on behalf of the Bronte siblings; I was so taken by her vision of this story!

Renegade Queen by Eva Flynn
truly gutted me to read, but it's important history for all women to know; started my unplanned journey into 'Feminist Historical Fiction' which I'm maintaining!

Emmy Nation by L Davis Munro
second Feminist HistFic which truly led the way for me to see Suffragette (film) starring Meryl Streep

The Particular Appeal of Gillian Pugsley by Susan Ornbratt
heart-pulsing war drama with such a breadth of conviction

Daughter of Destiny by Nicole Evelina
loved her take on an after canon glimpse into Guinevere!

The Silver Locket by Margaret James
incredible depth of a character's journey during war; nursing POV

Moonlight Over Paris by Jennifer Robson
ached to have read this trilogy in sequence; loved!

The Secret Life of Anna Blanc by Jennifer Kincheloe
this one just took me by wicked surprise!

Death Sits Down to Dinner by Tessa Arlen
so enraptured and guilty had no time to read the first in series!

The Scarlet Kimono by Christina Courtenay
incredible visionary historical set in Japan; so beautiful!

A Captain for Laura Rose by Stephanie Grace Whitson
my first by this INSPY author & I adored it!

Loving Eleanor by Susan Wittig Albert
broke my heart to read this biographical histfic; so tragically sad

A Grave Matter by Anna Lee Huber
reading & reviewing all the Lady Darbys; this one stood out!

The Ninja's Daughter by Susan Spann
love this series & this one broached where it's going to dynamically change course!

*tried the touchstone but it routed to the wrong book(s)

If anyone has read these or is interested in them, all my reviews are housed on my blog. I'd welcome feedback or discussion on any of them. OR any other historical stories I've featured that your curious about talking about. I'm new to LT - unsure if we're meant to simply say 'we blog our bookish thoughts' or add links in the msgs in the forums. Forgive me as I still get my feet wet!

Clearly, I'm one of those readers who just *loves!* stories beyond the point of answering a 'top ten' question with a sort of definiteness! Is anyone else in love with these series or one-off lovelies?!

UPDATE: I decided to create my first list on LT with my response to this Q! See it here: http://www.librarything.com/list/10943/all/Top-15-Historical-Fiction-Novels-2016...

>16 Tess_W:: I truly want to read this one eventually! :) Thanks for reminding me to mark it TBR! I have continuously heard positive things about the story but I originally felt it was one I might enjoy before I heard the readerly responses!

>18 joriestory: the thing that stands out in all of your books is that they are all female authors... do you not have favourites in historical fiction by male authors?

>20 Lynxear: Ooh wow. You're right?! Honestly, as a book blogger, I read a lot of different stories from a variety of authors - including men, as I just finished reading about Kepler (Kepler and the Universe) written by David K. Love which not only inspired me but fused me so intuitively into the historic origins of Astronomy & Space Science. It's breadth of interest was very much a historical biographical sketch, too.

I happily read over a year ago, the Thomas de Quincey series by David Morrell, however, this was specifically a questions pertaining to this year's reads. I went back through the books I've been reading and these were my top picks. I don't have a preference for reading women or men, as that's just silly; I look for books whose synopsis moves me and inspires me to read the story.

Curious - did you miss that my first favourite read of the year was a biographical sketch on behalf of George Washington written by a male writer?

I am surprised by your comment in one way - why would it matter if one year I am drawn more into feminist historical fiction or strong historicals writ by women more than I am from the releases of men?

For me, this year has been an incredible one for reading historical fiction - I never would have thought someone would look at my list - across genres and timescapes and call me out for reading historical fiction writ by women? The sad bit is that you missed how incredible these stories moved me - not only for their historical settings but the incredible time I spent inside their worlds.

>18 joriestory: >21 joriestory: Thanks for these great recommendations Joriestory, whether the books are written by male or female authors can just depend on the books you've read this year. Interestingly my 3 were all by male authors but most of my favourite historical fiction authors are women, including Sharon Kay Penman, Elizabeth Chadwick, Barabra Erskine and Anya Seton to name but a few. You could of course balance it up with some male authors - Bernard Cornwell, Conn Iggulden, Ken Follett and Simon Scarrow. The books I choose at a particular time frame tend to be based on my moods at that time, e.g. The period, person or time in history I want to read about.

I have to say I only know one of your authors ( Susan Wittig Albert - although not read her). I will need to research these authors obviously. I'm also interested in the book about Kepler!

It was an observation...nothing more. It just struck me odd as I read down your list.

I read a fairly wide mixture of male/female fiction authors especially historical fiction.

I am currently reading Ahab's Wife by Sena Jeter Naslund which is a rather long novel written in first voice about a woman from age 11ish to I don't know how old. She has an abusive father so is taken to an aunt who live on an island with a lighthouse, later disguises herself as boy and sails as a cabin boy on whaler which is destroyed by a huge whale, lives for weeks on in a lifeboat before rescue, later transferred to Ahab's whaler and on and on it goes... a very good story.

I also like St. Lucia Clair Robson I have read almost all that she has written... a very good historical history writer, Gil Adamson, Sara Donati, Anna L. Waldo and others.

For male historical fiction writers I like Bernard Cornwell, CS Forrester, Stephen Harrigan, Steven Pressfield, Michael Shaara, Winston Graham, Mike Blakely and Herman Woulk and others