Historical fiction recommendations wanted...read the Edward Rutherfurd Series.

[libdem4life]

Last edited Tue Nov 13, 2018, 10:45 PM - Edit history (1)

and interested in something similar. Thanks in advance.

[RockRaven]

1. Have you read any James Michener?

He wrote many books generally similar in style to Sarum, Russka, London.

addendum: on reflection, I guess I should recommend some specific titles -- The Source, Poland, Centennial, Chesapeake, Texas, Alaska, Hawaii.

[libdem4life]

6. Think I'll start with The Source.

[RockRaven]

10. That was the first one I read, and IMO one of his best.

[libdem4life]

60. Thanks for the recommendation.

[northoftheborder]

12. One of my favorite books of all time; also "Hawaii".

[wcast]

51. I also like Hawaii.

Chesapeake is also a good book.

[libdem4life]

62. Perhaps I'll read Chesapeake before re-reading Hawaii. Thanks.

[libdem4life]

61. Must be getting old...I read that back in college.

Another likely on the "Reread List"

[ashling]

71. Loved that book

Unfortunately I left the book somewhere and never finished it.

[ashling]

72. Oliver Cornwell has some great stuff

One , etc. about English longbow archers

series is about Anglo-Saxon Englad;

alfred, Ethelflaed, etc.

Another series include Crecy, Agincourt

He has a few stand alone novels - about Shakespeare, et al.

I believe his Anglo Saxon series has been made intoTVseries on
bbc

Also: The Ionia Sanction (An Athenian Mystery): Gary Corby about a "private investigator hired by Periclese to investigate a murder

[libdem4life]

84. Like the Athenian recommendation...good to get a Greek novel in the mix. Thanks.

[Marthe48]

93. The Drifters

I almost walked out of my life when I finished reading it. All of his books were gripping.

[Marthe48]

94. Mary Renault

The Persian Boy and others

Mary Stewart's Merlin trilogy (The Crystal Cave, The Hollow Hills, The Last Enchantment) and The Wicked day, from Mordred's p.o.v.

I personally love the Jane Auel books (Clan of the Cave Bear and the entire series)

[libdem4life]

2. No, I haven't. I never got into them and they seemed so long .....

but I will do just that. There should be plenty of copies/choices in the Library.

Just happened onto one of Rutherford's ...they are long...but was hooked from there.

Thank you.

[yellowdogintexas]

14. one of my favorite things about reading Michener is the way he arranges the story

Each section of the book is essentially a standalone short novel, dealing with a specific time frame within the long overarcing story, which of course always begins back when there was only water....

You can read a section, which will have a definite conclusion, put the book down and come back to it later, then start the next section. He often jumps forward in time by several decades, or even a century or two.

My favorites are The Source and Centennial

[libdem4life]

57. That tip will help me to plunge in...thank you.

[malthaussen]

47. Mr Michener arranged them that way.

He once said he made the introductions long and boring to get rid of the unmotivated readers (or words to that effect). Seems like a somewhat arrogant attitude, not to mention uncommercial. But authors are like judges, they can do whatever they want.

That said, The Source does remain among my favorite novels.

-- Mal

[libdem4life]

58. Just dealing with a MD specialist surgeon...same idea.

Love them or not so much...well, thank god they are there when we need them. Thankfully, have not had to deal with a judge.

[Squinch]

3. How about the Ken Follet "Pillars of the Earth" series?

[libdem4life]

5. The Trilogy looks fascinating...just what I was looking for. Thanks.

[Squinch]

11. They're a lot of fun.

[zanana1]

21. I highly recommend this series. nt

[libdem4life]

64. Thank you for the recommendation.

[zanana1]

92. I wasn't trying to sound like a literary critic.

I've read the trilogy and it's my personal opinion.

[libdem4life]

95. Ha...anyone who has read a good book qualifies for a literary...

...at least for that particular book.

[Cracklin Charlie]

4. I love those books!

There is a good biography of Lewis and Clark, written bySteven Ambrose, I think.

I can’t remember the title. I really enjoyed it.

[libdem4life]

65. Will look for it. Love reading about this period in history.

[Ohiogal]

76. It's called "Undaunted Courage"

and I do recommend it.

[Cracklin Charlie]

85. That's it!

I gave my copy to my brother in law when he deployed to Kuwait.

[dameatball]

7. Bernard Cornwell; Jeff Long; Conn Iggulden

[libdem4life]

8. These will require some research. Have not heard of them. Thank you.

[dameatball]

9. Cornwell is prolific. Everything from middle ages to Revolutionary war.

[Cartoonist]

13. Neal Stephenson's Quicksilver trilogy

?w=500&h=268

Probably more fiction than reality, but an entertaining story with Isaac Newton in a central but not starring role.

[libdem4life]

26. Fantastic artwork, I must say. Thank you.

[malthaussen]

49. Ya beat me to it

Best books of this century, so far, IMO. But then, I've read a lot of intellectual history, so I'm like on a first-name basis with most of the characters.

I wonder why he did some of the things he did, though. Why re-invent the CABAL, when there are plenty of more-or-less straight historical figures in the novel? The CABAL are not really central characters, so he's not libelling them retroactively.

One should also include The Cryptonomicon, which is related.

-- Mal

[libdem4life]

55. Probably never catch up to you, but giving it a go.

Amazing how many classics cover this period...thank you.

[Bradshaw3]

15. I'm almost finished with London

Rutherfurd (with a "u" BTW) is a terrific writer and the research he did was amazing. I have learned so much as well as being entertained. Think I'll try Paris next.

[applegrove]

17. I liked Paris cause i'd been there and stayed near Notre Dame for a week so

i knew the Paris geography of historical places. Rutherford's London was hard because, even though there was a map i think, i find London impossible to visualize.

[Bradshaw3]

18. With good reason

The little streets that are hard to figure out and the many places that have gone through so many changes over the centuries. The novel made me want to go back to London and spend some time just exploring the neighborhoods.

Was Paris as good a novel as London?

[applegrove]

19. I honestly can't remember. I think because I have such a visual memory 'Paris' worked

for me. Plus I am not an Anglophile since my parents were and of course you want to be the opposite of them when you are young. Plus I speak french. Plus Paris history was novel for me and i like novelty in what i read. I get the feeling i would fit in better in London than Paris. But i got more out of the Paris book. London was pretty exciting though.

[Bradshaw3]

24. Thanks for the input

I would like to read Paris and revisit that most beautiful of cities.

[libdem4life]

66. I visited in the 80s...first international trip. Not nearly enough time,

however. Just bad scheduling on my part. Always vowed to go back...thinking about it now we talk about it. Fast forward to our current political trainwreck that just left that beautiful, cultured, magnificent city. Everything he does NOT represent.

One quick memory haven't thought about in years...when we left, we discovered that the first French made super sonic (I think) airplane...can't remember the name...but it was the one the US initially refused to accept in its airports ...was incoming.

The news came by listening to some of the passengers waiting there on that outer circle deck, literally as we were there preparing to board another plane. It came in majestic wonder. We went back into the airport, chucked our regular tickets and just barely found two seats...not together...available. One ticket was around $1200...a lot back then. Took awhile for my credit card to recover, but the flight was spectacular. The First US flight! We arrived to a red carpet in NYC...kid you not.

After reading Londinium, it kind of helped build it out in your mind. That, and many, many looks at the map in the book, it more or less made sense.

Thanks for the memory.

[applegrove]

73. I am more a 3D person so being in Paris was better than looking at a map.

It is details I can't quite get into in a 2D map of London. I did start and stop a trip to Europe in London. I was late catching my plane in Heathrow. I told the first security guard at the airport and he radioed ahead and as I ran security guards in the lobbies would be waving me through and pointing in the direction I needed to run next. I made it. I am usually good with directions but their cooperation meant I didn't have to stop and think...just run.

[libdem4life]

27. I found that each book revolutionized my historical reference.

London was amazing. The one that really reorganized my thinking was Russka. I came away with a respect for the Russian people that politics doesn't even come close to. It was hard to relate the people with their current political/cultural organization, although I did see how it happened. Fascinating.

[Bradshaw3]

33. I may check out that too but ...

... my current feelings would make it hard to get motivated for the time it takes to read his books. I don't blame the Russian people and maybe that will change but not now with what's going on.

[libdem4life]

35. The way he writes, there is no way in the beginning to connect it with anything but

the Family he chooses to feature. You become so involved with their personal and familial struggles that it overshadows the political. This chronicles their people before there even was a Russia. The unbearable and unbelievable lives of hardship and death...I think more than any of the books...because of the weather and lack of transportation, i.e. sea ports, will make you cheer them on.

Even in the current political environment, you understand that they have little in common with, say, Putin and the Oligarchs.

Go for it !!!

[libdem4life]

39. Just do it !!! If you get through that one, here's a big challenge...The Princes of Ireland.

It's his only writing...that I know of...that needs two volumes. When I looked it up, it has The Rebels of Ireland...maybe he combined them and re-titled it? The mastery of these volumes was how deftly he managed to weave multiple political, geographical and family plot elements over centuries into a fairly tight read.

Again, you come away with a pretty clear understanding of the "two" Irelands and their tricky relationships within and also with Britain.

[sarge43]

16. If you have a taste for romance, recommend Anya Seton's books.

Katherine Katherine Swynford, mistress and eventually wife of John of Gaunt, son of Edward III. They're the ancestors of just about every European royal.

Green Darkness Religion and politics in the Tudor era.

Both are solid history and ripping good reads

[libdem4life]

28. Indeed...some romance figures in every story, it seems.

Particularly given that it was pretty much the only role women had. Taylor Caldwell...I read every book I could find...really played up that aspect magnificently.

[sarge43]

34. Well, I'd say her heroines weren't wimps

Within the limitations of their times they held their own.

Speaking of bad ass women, have you read I' Claudius?

/on edit/ And The French Lieutenant's Woman?

[libdem4life]

37. That's for sure...bad ass women ... LOL

I did read "I' Claudius" decades ago back in college. Your post sent me to Google to find a synopsis and, even though I read it, definitely time for a re-read ... as it came up ! Robert Graves...intense.

Thanks.

[sarge43]

40. If you haven't seen the tv version, that's definitely worth a look. Just get the unedited one.

Sian Philips as Livia. She owned the role.

"Grandmother, why did you poison all those people?"

"I never forgot for a moment I am a Claudian."

Sacre merde!

[fNord]

20. "The Illuminatias trilogy!"....

By Robert Shea and Robert Antwon Wilson.....best historical fiction ever written in English (mostly, some Latin, good bit of German, a few others, but that’s mostly to get the extra jokes, not dangerously relevant to the “plot?”)

Highly recommend

[libdem4life]

29. Thank you. Another new one...sounds delighful. The jokes, too !!

[malthaussen]

48. I'm not exactly sure I'd call "Illuminatus!" historical fiction...

... more like an extended acid trip. But I can see why someone who uses the name fnord would want to push it. OPer will be pushing the envelope on this one, though.

-- Mal

[libdem4life]

56. Oh my...I backed away from that in college...the acid trip, that is.

This probably goes down the list..thanks for the tip.

[malthaussen]

59. Basically, "Illuminatus!" is a wild ride through myth and fantasy...

... it was published in 1975, but is really a relict of the 60's protest movements. Its basic theme is that Everything is a Conspiracy. The Wikipedia review ain't a bad place to start to see if it's your cup of tea: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Illuminatus!_Trilogy

It's a lot of fun, but if you don't have the proper paranoid Baby Boomer mentality, it might seem just strange to you.

-- Mal

[libdem4life]

67. Does college student in Whittier, CA in the 60's-70's qualify?

Attended Richard Nixon's alma mater and we hung him in effigy. Very satisfying...among other rowdy and mischievous things. Nothing illegal...but "Those were the days, my friend..." Great time to be alive and grown up and liberal.

Another song title...."Thanks for the Memories !" Going to look it up...but sounds like it goes on the list.

[malthaussen]

70. Oh, then you should like it.

It will remind you of the good old days.

-- Mal

[Harker]

22. There are often great truths to be found in fiction

while what is labeled non-fiction can be made up of lies.

[libdem4life]

30. In a way, this describes my sense of the popularity and central role of The Joker

back in the days of the Court Intrigue...and the secrets...etc. I think our comedians today somewhat play that role.

[Harker]

36. Yes.

That's a deeper level of context, and a good one! The best qualitiy of humor lies most often in its unexpected nature.

Comedians seldom get me to laugh. It's usually those that take themselves most seriously that crack me up.

[libdem4life]

38. Well, you do have an interesting point there.

Have to think about that one.

I also enjoy when they take an everyday event or normal situation, stand it on its head and skew it, and we laugh at the absurdity of what was formerly normal. Kind of getting us to laugh at, or lighten up on, our pre-conceived notions. I love to shift, change or challenge my point of view. I think that's why I'm "liberal".

[Harker]

41. That's probably much of it.

We do tend to challenge ourselves, rather than sticking to dogma.

The resultant mental flexibility does tend to add volume to our understanding, and broaden our perspectives, I believe. Rigidity is a sort of death.

Thanks for giving me some things to ponder!

[Coventina]

23. I highly recommend Irving Stone's "The Agony and the Ecstasy"

Tells the story of Michelangelo's life.

Warning: You will want to go to Italy!

[libdem4life]

31. Ahhh, yes. This is one I've read. May need to read it again. Thanks.

[malthaussen]

25. I'll recommend the Flashman series

By George MacDonald Fraser. They are well-researched and hugely funny (he made his rep as a "comic novelist" and was considered Britain's best before Terry Pratchett), and he footnotes them, which can lead to some very interesting primary sources. But he has been criticized for being racially insensitive, as people will always attribute a character's personality to the author. If you can live with a realistic voice, it shouldn't bother you; if it rubs you the wrong way, then you'd probably want to stay away. His novel Black Ajax, about pugilist Tom Molyneux, is also outstanding.

Fraser also has some chops as a screenwriter. His Three Musketeers trilogy is also a more humorous, realistic take on M Dumas's classic.

-- Mal

[libdem4life]

32. A bit of history, a good story and a hearty occasional laugh

really makes reading time fly by. I feel like I add value not only to my store of knowledge, but am changed, if ever so slowly or slightly. Thank you.

[bif]

42. "The Boys in the Boat".

Total page turner. What a great story. It really should be made into a movie.

[libdem4life]

43. A new one...went straight to a synopsis...that small piece went

straight to my heart. The quest of the common man. Goes up the list. It would make a fantastic movie.

Reminds of this year's midterms a bit...all the newcomers/first time voters of all backgrounds, the young, the minorities both religious and cultural, the women, LGBT...winning offices all over the country. A similar current paradigm shift in consciousness.

Thank you.

[sakabatou]

44. Harry Turtledove's Southern Victory series?

[libdem4life]

45. That's a new one. Not quite what I imagined. Enjoying the challenge.

[raccoon]

46. Sharon Kay Penman's novels about medieval England

And Wales are very entertaining.

[libdem4life]

63. Yes, indeed. Years ago, a friend had the entire set. He loaned them to

me...one at a time. Not taking any chances. We had a good laugh over that.

[malthaussen]

50. Dorothy Dunnett.

She is best-known for the House of Niccolo series (8 parts), and The Lymond Chronicles, (6 parts); the former serving as a sort of prequel to the latter. However, the latter is very challenging, the author uses dialect, French, Latin, and Spanish promiscuously. The House of Niccolo is more reader-friendly. There does exist a Dorothy Dunnett Companion, by Elspeth Morrison, which translates and documents both series. So that is the kind of ride you'll be in for, series that need a whole other book to explain them.
That said, even though Niccolo is the "prequel," the author suggests one read the Chronicles first. The series are worth it, they will definitely take you on a far journey, and you will learn a lot of history (Renaissance/Reformation) from them.

Be advised, though: Dunnett is not above killing off characters, even well-beloved ones, although the body count is not as high as fantasy authors like Glen Cook or George R.R. Martin.

-- Mal

[libdem4life]

53. Think I'll start with the Companion. My reading list is happily increasing. Thank you.

[bobbieinok]

79. Lymond Chronicles are great. Was only able to read 1st vol in Niccolo series

[Thomas Hurt]

52. The Camulod Chronicles are great books, by Jack Whyte.

He takes the myth of King Arthur and puts them in a more plausible historical framework. He begins with Arthur's grandparents and explains how Excalibur came into being. Good books.

[malthaussen]

54. I like Catherine Christian's treatment of the mythos...

... only a single volume, but she fixes Arthur in late Roman antiquity with a Celtic background. It came out before the better-known Mists of Avalon, to which it is similar, prompting the usual controversies about borrowing.

-- Mal

[libdem4life]

68. Read the Mists of Avalon...loved it.

[libdem4life]

69. Not heard of these...anything about King Arthur fascinates me.

Always a good read...will check it out. Thanks.

[mulsh]

74. The Flashman series by George MacDonald Frazer. Flashman, Tom Brown's nemisis. has many "heroic"

adventures through the years. 12 books, most are novels but there are a couple of short stories. Well written, I found them very funny and when I tried to verify the historic aspects I found his research is spot on.

He also wrote a short 3 novel series, McAuslan stories compiled in a single volume The Complete McAulslan. McAuslan is the British army's dirtiest soldier. The narration and stories are loosely based on Fraser's WWII career. Very different but equally as well written as the Flashman books.

Fraser was an unrepentant British Imperialist and pretty conservative but being an outstandingly talented writer goes far in mollifying my natural revulsion to his beliefs. Plus he's damn funny.

He wrote the screen play for the 70's Three Musketeer movies, which I think are the best versions of those tales.

[libdem4life]

75. Those were really funny...I like novel series so will dig into the Complete McAulslan.

A good read is always up for stretching our boundaries. War stretches mine, but seems American history at every educational level is taught using wars as definition of historical boundaries...Revolution to Civil War to WW1... WW II...Vietnam, etc. Seems like global history is often told and defined using wars. Maybe they are points of human reckoning, in one way or the other...power shifts. Reminded of Ernest Hemingway...hard time getting through a couple of his.

This memorial week...here we are at 100 years. The least we can do is try and understand and experience just a bit of the drama...the evil...and redemption??

Thanks for the suggestions.

[bobbieinok]

77. Roberta Gellis historical romances. I learned about King Stephen from her books

Hadn't even realized he existed before I read some of her books set in the period just before King Henry Ii and Queen Eleanor (of Acquitaine).

There's a follow-up series about King John.

[libdem4life]

80. Sounds a bit like Taylor Caldwell? History, romance, war and intrigue. Thanks.

[elfin]

78. Really liked the Shardlake series by Sansom

Mysteries set in Tudor England during the Reformation. Written by a historian. Fum and informative. Really sets the scenes well.

https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_1_6?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=shardlake+series+by+cj+sansom&sprefix=shards%2Caps%2C164&crid=3MF173X9XNEG7

[libdem4life]

82. Thanks for the visual link. The covers are great, good descriptions and the Tudors never run out

of good stories. I have a feeling I'll be visiting Amazon for a number of these great recommendations. Libraries often do not carry, or have available, an entire series, I've found. Again, thanks for the recommendation.

[bobbieinok]

81. Judith Merkle Riley's book A Vision of Light and following. Midwife in medieval England

[libdem4life]

83. That's an interesting perspective on history/life...seems to be where all are fairly equal...

at the point of passing from one world into another...often a matter of life and death in those days. Also, could be a dangerous role full of political intrigue. Look forward to reading it. Thank you.

[bobbieinok]

86. She's periodically in trouble with Church

In the book, if a woman does not cry and yell in childbirth, Church believes Satan was helping her. So there is need that midwife NOT work to alleviate pain. NB, I do not know if this was true in that time.

Also, there are several instances when people questioned by the Church re their being a 'true Christian' are unable to say the precisely correct words (because they are scared or uneducated), they are arrested for heresy.

Riley is a fascinating author.

[libdem4life]

89. What I remembered, vaguely, was that midwifery and witchcraft were somehow or sometimes linked.

That would surely make sense. Even up to royalty in producing successors/heirs...and some chicanery regarding sex reflecting on actions taken at childbirth. Girls not often welcome in the wrong setting and how that was accomplished. Will definitely read it.

[cemaphonic]

87. Colleen McCullough's "Masters of Rome" series.

It's simultaneously a really detailed education on the history of the final decades of the Roman Republic (covering the career of Marius through Augustus's victory over Antony), while also being a gripping page-turner of a soap opera

If you want more Rome after that, Robert Graves' "I Claudius" and "Claudius the God" are also excellent.

[libdem4life]

90. Graves is definitely on the list. Thank you.

[malthaussen]

88. Well, speaking of Rome...

... if you'd like to read a detective series set in the Roman empire right after the Four Emperors, there's Lindsey Davis's Marcus Didius Falco series ( The Silver Pigs, Shadows in Bronze, Venus in Copper, etc). She does her homework (in the latest edition of Pigs, she says that current research suggests that pigs were not formed in the way previously thought, so "it's possible that when Falco describes the process to Petronius, he is wrong.&quot , and her characterizations are lively.

-- Mal

[libdem4life]

91. Looks like I'll be reading into the next decade...where to start?

I have each recommendation on a 3x5 card and look forward to starting my extended education. Hopefully the local library or its system will have a lot of them. Some may end up gracing my bookshelf.

In a literary tragedy, I lost 12-13 or so boxes of books going back to my college texts, early reading and my own and my son's children's books to a fire. It felt like a death. This is my rebirth...sounds a bit over the top perhaps, but true. The loss of photos was devastating, but at least I still have the people in my life. But not the books.

I greatly appreciate all the literary DUers who kindly shared their knowledge.

Thanks to all !!!