General Historical/Biographical Novels

The Stone Cutter by Brock Meier

Nahor, a young sculptor in first-century Petra, is on the fast-track of the Mediterranean art world, but secrets of his implication in the deaths of his sister and mother, and ultimate abandonment by his father dog his life. Events conspire to destroy his rise, but he seeks a mysterious object he believes will resurrect his ruined career. The quest takes him to the farthest reaches of the known world. The quest’s price?—more than he can possibly imagine. Join Nahor on his perious journey, as he discovers bright possibility hidden within the darkest impossibility.

The Donoghue Girl by Kim Fahner

The Donoghue Girl is the story of Lizzie Donoghue, the spirited daughter of Irish immigrants who desperately wants to not only escape Creighton–the Northern Ontario mining town where her family runs a general store–but also the oppressive confines of twentieth century patriarchy. Set in Northern Ontario, Canada, as well as Finland during the start of the Winter War, the novel is Lizzie’s story of survival and growth. 

The Last Light Over Oslo by Alix Rickloff

Based on true events and set in Norway and Sweden in 1940, the novel follows one of the first female US ambassadors, Daisy Harriman and her niece Cleo, as the two of them are unexpectedly caught up in the German invasion of Norway. When Daisy is tasked with escorting the Norwegian Crown Princess and her young children to America, she must balance her responsibilities as a diplomat with her desire to help Cleo find the man she loves who’s gone missing in war-torn Poland. 

Red Clay Running Waters by Leslie K. Simmons

An epic story of the true events behind the Cherokee Trail of Tears, Red Clay, Running Waters follows the little-known lives of John and Sarah Ridge, the courageous mixed-race couple swept into the center of the Indian Removal crisis and the fate of the Cherokee Nation. Grappling with timely and universal themes, this is a story of profound love, commitment, and sacrifice in one family’s search for justice that weaves a vibrant and heart-breaking portrait of the Antebellum Era and the fate of Native Americans. propelling readers to a haunting and moving conclusion.

Dulcinea by Ana Veciana-Suarez

Dolça Llull Prat is besotted with Miguel Cervantes from their first meeting, but she refuses to give up her life of luxury to follow him, even as she always welcomes his attentions. When he portrays her as the lowly Dulcinea in his great Quixote, revealing their association, she cuts all ties. Years later, after she receives his deathbed request, she travels the dangerous roads of Spain to see him one last time —and to unburden herself of a secret. Will she arrive in time?

Dulcinea explores the choices we make, the regrets we harbor, and the courage we find to make amends.

Becoming Madam Secretary by Stephanie Dray

Armed with nothing but a parasol and pride, Frances Perkins takes 20th century New York by storm. By day, she fights for children in Hell’s Kitchen; by night, she rubs elbows with Greenwich Village’s bohemian elite. And when she clashes with a young Franklin Delano Roosevelt, sparks fly in all the wrong directions. But their unlikely partnership will take them all the way to the White House, where Frances becomes FDR’s right hand during the Great Depression. 

The Secret War of Julia Child by Diana R. Chambers

For readers of Kate Quinn and Jennifer Chiaverini—and fans of America’s most beloved chef—comes The Secret War of Julia Child, an illuminating historical fiction novel inspired by the famed chef’s secret espionage service in the China-Burma-India Theater of World War II.  Revelatory and riveting, it the spotlight on the oft-ignored China-Burma-India Theater of World War II and the unlikely and brave past of a woman with no idea of the mark she will leave on the world.

The Refugee’s Daughter by Carolyn Newton

Winter 1945.  The Soviets sweep into East Prussia bent on revenge against the Nazis’ reign of terror. The Binz siblings, Giti and Otto, endure a terrifying attack only to be separated by a cruel twist of fate. Decades later, Otto’s daughter promises her dying father that she will find the sister he lost so long ago. To fulfil her mission, she must confront Otto’s secrets and pursue the heartbreaking story of the children known as the Wolfskinder. The Refugee’s Daughter is the tale of a fractured family and the power of a loving daughter to bring about redemption and reconciliation.  

Charlotte Salomon Paints Her Life by Pamela Reitman

This novel is inspired by a young German-Jewish artist sent into exile on the Côte d’Azur, where she creates “Life? Or Theater?,” a masterpiece of 850 paintings that tells about a coming-of-age during Hitler’s rise and a coming-to-terms with a legacy of familial suicide. The story explores the creative process behind this unique work, illustrating the power of art to transform trauma. Haunted by the Third Reich and the threat of psychological disintegration, Charlotte is determined to become a serious modernist painter and risks her life to turn her project over to a trusted steward before capture by the Nazis.

Let’s Call Her Barbie by Renee Rosen

In 1956, the only dolls on the market for little girls let them pretend to be mothers. Ruth Handler’s vision for a doll shaped like a grown woman and outfitted in an enviable wardrobe will let them dream they can be anything.

As Ruth assembles her team of creative rebels—head engineer Jack Ryan and designers Charlotte Johnson and Stevie Klein—she knows they’re working against a ticking clock to get this wild idea off the ground.

In the decades to come—through soaring heights and devastating personal lows, public scandals and private tensions— Barbie will change the world.