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What’s better than a full-sized historical novel? A short historical novel that you can read through in a weekend. It’s pure math. All of these historical novels under 300 pages are short, sweet, and to the point. They won’t drag you through dozens and dozens of pages of side-ramblings about the Napoleonic Wars (I’m looking at you, Victor Hugo). Instead, these books lay out the historical framework and get straight to the story. Sometimes that’s exactly what you need.
For all those moments when a doorstop is too daunting, when an endless series seems like too much, these 10 short historical novels have you covered. Whether your attention span is faltering or you’re looking to hit a TBR goal quickly, these are the kinds of books you need.
Half of the books are around 200 pages or less, while the others are a bit longer, hovering somewhere around 200 pages. I can’t guarantee that reading all of these books will help you reach your reading goals, but it certainly can’t hurt. Not to mention, you’ll read some great new books along the way. That’s a win-win if you ask me.
The Dangerous Life of Jade Yeo by Zen Cho
Pages: 81
For writer Jade Yeo, her twenties are going well until she writes a scathing review of London’s most popular author. Jade has always gotten through – and succeeded – by protecting her heart. But when she meets Sebastian Hardie, who is more intrigued than angry by her criticism, their connection is electric. Soon, their growing closeness becomes a lesson in rebellion for Jade, reminding her of the importance of following her heart.
At night all blood is black by David Diop
Pages: 145
A Senegalese soldier fighting for France in World War I loses touch with himself and reality after his childhood friend dies next to him on the battlefield. Mademba Diop begs Alfa Ndiaye to kill him and spare him the painful death that awaits him, but Alfa realizes he is unable to do so. Now, Mademba’s screams haunt him, and he leaves the field every night to kill a soldier behind enemy lines and retrieve his severed hand. His superiors think he is insane. His comrades believe he might be a demon. In reality, he is being haunted. But how far will he go to make amends with the friend he couldn’t save?
That Might Be Enough by Alyssa Cole
Pages: 158
Originally published as part of Hamilton’s Battalion: A Trio of Romances, That could be enough is romantic icon Alyssa Cole’s historical novella about two women who find new hope and meaning in their lives after the Revolutionary War. Mercy Alston works as a maid and assistant to Eliza Hamilton, helping her in her efforts to preserve the memory of her late husband. She knows only too well what love can cost. But when Andromeda Stiel shows up at the Hamiltons’ door for an interview, she turns Mercy’s beliefs – and her world – upside down.
Another Brooklyn by Jacqueline Woodson
Pages: 192
In Jacqueline Woodson’s delightful exploration of girlhood and friendship, an encounter with a childhood friend triggers a series of memories for August. In 1970s Brooklyn, August and her friends saw a wide world before them. They were young and beautiful and brilliant and everything was perfect. Just beneath the surface, it wasn’t. This happy, hopeful world and a darker reality lived side by side for the girls going through puberty. But at least they always had each other.
Bibliolepsy by Gina Apostol
Pages: 201
A young woman obsessed with books, growing up under the harsh rule of Ferdinand Marcos in the Philippines, finds solace and refuge in the pages of books and in the arms of their authors. For Primi, the growing unrest means more writers gathering and more opportunities to get in bed with them. She may not be able to escape the things happening around her, but Primi is determined to save herself in her own unique way.
The Curse of the Flores Women by Angélica Lopes, translated by Zoë Perry
Pages: 220
When the Flores women are shunned because they are cursed for bad luck in love, they turn to the art of lace-making to save themselves. They soon develop codes that they can incorporate into the lace’s patterns, allowing them to communicate with other women without suspicion. The lace they make connects generations of women and leaves behind a legacy that brings as many questions as answers.
You dreamed of empires by Álvaro Enrigue, translated by Natasha Wimmer
Pages: 240
In this stunning reimagining of the conquistadors’ arrival in Tenoxitilan in the 16th century, Enrigue explores how things might have gone down, following a large cast of characters and the complicated courtly machinations of Moctezuma and others. You dreamed of empires follows the story closely but then deviates from it in important ways. It’s a story you won’t put down and won’t soon forget.
Matrix by Lauren Groff
Pages: 260
A girl cast out of the French royal court by Eleanor of Aquitaine and sent to England to become the new prioress of a decrepit abbey finds nothing in her new home. The nuns are starving and the abbey is ravaged by disease. Marie soon finds comfort and meaning in her newfound sisterhood. Coming from a long line of warriors, Marie is determined to forge a brave new path for the women now under her care. She believes in her vision, even if the church does not.
The Secret Keeper of Main Street by Trisha R. Thomas
Pages: 289
A seamstress in an oil-rich Oklahoma town in the 1950s accidentally witnesses a shocking crime. A seamstress to the wives and daughters of local oil barons, Bailey makes a good living and retains a special talent for peeping into the lives of everyone she touches. But when she predicts a terrible future for a bride-to-be just before the son of a prominent family is found dead, Bailey finds herself at the center of a local controversy that, if she’s not careful, could drag her down with it.
The Pull of the Stars by Emma Donoghue
Pages: 295
In the 1910s, the Great War was not the only tragedy ravaging Europe. A devastating flu raged across the battlefields and home fronts, claiming the lives of even the strong and healthy. Julia Power is a nurse in an understaffed hospital in Ireland, where the population is reeling from the double losses of war and disease. On a ward for expectant mothers who have contracted the virus, Julia tries to bring hope and new life into the world, even as her patients suffer one heartbreak after another. But it is a tireless volunteer with an unshakable optimism who brings light back into the ward for Julia and all her patients.
Fill your reading list with more short reads and you will exceed all your reading goals:
The best books under 200 pages
20 short books you absolutely have to read
5 shorter novels from around the world
10 short, fast-paced books
