Historical fiction is gradually dominating our reading tastes. Thus, while the historical novel was a fairly limited genre and in many cases branded as fanciful, now it is a totally alive genre that even teachers use to explain society or the context of certain times.
So taking advantage of this whole situation, in Todo eReaders We wanted to offer you a list of the 10 most important historical novels of the moment, or rather, of the works that any passionate of this genre should read. In some cases, the work itself is not very important, but its author or the role that he gives to the work is. Thus we have great masters like Umberto Eco whose work mentioned is not as important as The Name of the Rose, but that after being the last work, it plays an important role. Another similar case occurs with the work of Ken Follet, a work that is part of a trilogy. The work itself is important like all works, but in this case if not all the trilogy is considered, the work will not have special relevance.
We have also added a special touch that many lists do not have or do not have. We have included works from the so-called Actual World. After the fall of the Berlin Wall, many historians brand the following events as a new stage known as the Present World. Trying to get into this stage, which many of us have experienced, we have selected the work The Sniper, a work that speaks quite well of the time that many of us live in and that seems so distant to our children.
1.- Africanus, the Consul's son
The historical fiction of our time as well as the lists of bestsellers they wouldn't make much sense without a good play set in ancient Rome. Africanus, the consul's son is a work that takes us to Rome in 300 BC where Rome was not the only empire in the Ancient World. At that time Hannibal the Carthaginian had made a serious alliance with Philip V of Macedon, thus threatening the supremacy of Rome in the Mediterranean. This is when the legend of Publius Cornelius Scipio was born, better known as the Africanus since he was the first to conquer almost all of North Africa. Scipio not only achieved this but was able to stop Hannibal's armies, even preventing a Carthaginian army from reaching the Italian peninsula. This work is written by Santiago Posteguillo, author of other important works such as The Cursed Legions o The betrayal of Rome. If the ancient world attracts you, you should not miss one of the best works of fiction that exist about Rome.
2.- The threshold of eternity
The threshold of eternity is the third part of the last trilogy of the British Ken Follet. The work in question speaks of the historical period known as the Cold War. But more than talking about the historical stage, what Ken Follet does is talk about how the descendants of the five main families live in the previous works. Ken Follet's trilogy is known as The Century. In this trilogy, Ken Follet tries to talk about the experiences of five families: an American family, a Russian family, a German family, a British family and a Welsh family. The first part of this trilogy is called The fall of the giants, a work that begins the trilogy with World War I.
3.- Maids and ladies
Written by author Kathryn Stockett, the play takes us back to the mid-XNUMXth century where a small community in the southern United States still lives in the chains of slavery. Specific, Maids and ladies It is about the treatment and the society of those times to the black race, how hatred, manias and indiscriminate treatment suffer a small setback provided by a young journalist, Skeeter and two nice black maids who begin to relate all the adventures they have had to live like maids. The work ends when the young journalist's book is finally published, Help! (the original title of Kathryn Stockett's work) a book that highlights the injustices people of color face in American society. Maids and ladies It has not had a great publicity but word of mouth and the launch of a film make Kathryn Stockett's work a best-seller in historical fiction in recent months.
4.- The Prague cemetery
The Prague cemetery is a work by the master Umberto Eco that narrates the adventures of Captain Simonini, a Piedmontese living in Paris who makes a living by falsifying documents. The central theme will be the Judeo-Masonic conspiracy, thus during the course of the novel various historical biographies are discussed that Captain Simonini will have to remake. The great master of historical fiction tells us about great diplomatic and historical cases, in which Captain Simonini participates since his scruples allow him to sell himself to the highest bidder, from someone who wants an inheritance to governments like France, Prussia or even himself. Hitler
5.- The sniper: memories of the most lethal SEAL in history
Time passes for everyone, including the time of historical fiction novels. The Sniper as the story of Chris Kyle, an American who quickly becomes one of the deadliest snipers in history. After an accident with his arm, Chris joins the SEALs where he stands out as a marksman, to such an extent that in Iraq they offered a reward of $ 80.000 for his head. Chris dies in 2013 assassinated while helping a war veteran. The Sniper offers a vision of our most recent history: the war in Iraq, without forgetting the current life in professional armies.
6.- The immortal pyramid
If we talk about historical fiction, ancient Egypt and its magic are elements that should not be missing. Currently, one of the best works of fiction that have these elements is called The immortal pyramid by Javier Sierra, an updated and improved work of the first work called Napoleon's Egyptian Secret. The immortal pyramid takes us to the year 1799 where a young Frenchman is trapped in the Great Pyramid of Egypt. This young Frenchman is none other than Napoleon Bonaparte, who will be able to learn the greatest secret kept so far by the Egyptians, the secret of eternal life. Javier Sierra is specializing in historical fiction works related to the mystery, his last work was El Maestro del Prado, which they preceded The lost angel y The secret dinner. If the Da Vinci Code caught your attention, surely The immortal pyramid it is your work.
7.- The eagle in the snow
The eagle in the snow It is written by Wallave Breem and is about one of the many stories that occurred in the Roman limes. The work tells specifically about the disappearance of the last Roman legion in Superior Germany, the XX Valeria Victrix. The work is related in the first person. It is the legacy of this legion, Paulino Gayo Máximo, who tells us the story that the Legion lives near the Rhenus river. It can be said that the work is divided into two parts, a part that talks about the adventures of the legacy before reaching the Valeria Victrix Legion and a second part that talks about the end of the Valeria Victrix Legion. Before coming to the Legion Valeria Victrix, Paulino Gayo Máximo was assigned to Britain, to care for and protect Hadrian's Wall, one more frontier of the Roman Empire that suffered constant attacks and that Paulino tells us about.
8.- The tragic fate of the children of the Catholic Monarchs
Una obra escrita por Vicenta Márquez de la Plata. Es una obra que está a caballo entre la ficción histórica y la obra histórica propiamente dicha. En ella se relata la vida de los hijos de los Reyes Católicos, sus desdichas y sus trágicos fines. The Catholic kings They were the first rulers of current Pre-Spain and curiously none of them came to govern or succeed their parents in the government. Moreover, with the exception of Juan and Juana, elder children who were destined to rule the country, the rest of the brothers were related in the various houses of the European monarchies and none of the children managed to perpetuate the lineage of the Trastamara in Europe. This circumstance is what the writer of the work tries to show, all this between historical documents and supposed conversations "invented" to give homogeneity to the story. The tragic fate of the children of the Catholic Monarchs It is a very popular work after the success of the Isabel series and atypical, due to the way it deals with the subject.
9.- The betrayal of Rome
Work written by Santiago Posteguillo, author of Africanus, the Consul's son. It is the last part of the trilogy dedicated to the figure of Publius Cornelius Scipio the African and in this part it deals with the decline of the life of Scipio the African. After the success in Zama, Scipio returns to Rome victorious, but it is not a Rome with a great memory, they quickly forget the great general and relegate him to the darkest ostracism. Something similar will happen with the other characters who have accompanied the African in his life or more specifically, in the trilogy. The betrayal of Rome It is the last part of a trilogy, so if you liked it Africanus, the consul's son, this work you can not miss.
10.- To blood and fire. Heroes, beasts and martyrs of Spain
It is a compilation work that brings together several stories and stories about the Spanish Civil War. Its author was Manuel Chaves Nogales, a journalist who lived through the harshness of the Spanish Civil War. The work was written in 1937 but it was not until 2001 when it was published. In it, through nine stories and stories, it talks about the harshness of the war in Madrid and the Spaniards who lived through it. Unlike other works, Manuel Chavez Nogales shows the vision of the War and the Spanish Left from the left itself. Manuel Chaves was a militant of the Republican Left who rejected not only the fascism and autarky of the right but also the Russian communism that many on the left supported. Perhaps this vision is what enhances and gives importance to the work since so far not many works have been published like this. It is unique in its kind, but also the harshness and reality with which they relate the most important events of XNUMXth century Spain make this work a must-read for all those who like XNUMXth century stories.
As you can see, it is a somewhat personal list that dances between works of historical fiction and historical works, but in each case the tendency is to relate the events as if they had really happened, so the only difference between them is that the reader knows or not if it actually happened. All these works can be found on paper and in ebook format, which are ideal for all audiences to read regardless of the format.
I know that there are not all the works of historical fiction that have to be, but I do know that the works that are there have to be. But this is not a closed list, on the contrary, so if you want to comment on a work or contribute more works, do it!
I recommend Posteguillo. His books introduce you to Rome and the time which is a blessing.