Sponsored by Harper Perennial, publisher of BEAUTIFUL LITTLE FOOLS by Jillian Cantor.
“Jillian Cantor beautifully re-crafts an American classic, placing the women of The Great Gatsby center stage: more than merely beautiful, not so little as the men in their lives assume, and certainly far from foolish.” —Kate Quinn. USA Today bestselling author Jillian Cantor reimagines and expands on the literary classic The Great Gatsby in this atmospheric historical novel with echoes of Big Little Lies, told in three women’s alternating voices: Daisy Buchanan, Jordan Baker, and Catherine McCoy. Jillian Cantor revisits the glittering Jazz Age world of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, retelling this timeless American classic from the women’s perspective.
With Valentine’s Day just around the corner, I thought it would be appropriate to dive into a genre that overlaps with historical fiction but is often considered something else entirely: historical romance. I’ll admit, it’s not a genre I’ve read very much of, and I probably tend to think of it more as a subgenre of romance rather than historical fiction. And yet, good historical romance can be just as thoughtful in its depictions of the past as any other historical fiction.
So, if you want to add a little romance to your historical fiction reading this February, here are three great historical romances to add to your TBR.
An Extraordinary Union by Alyssa Cole
During the Civil War, a formerly enslaved woman with an eidetic memory returns to the South to work as a spy for the Union. A Pinkerton agent, meanwhile, faces his toughest mission yet as he tries to infiltrate a Rebel enclave in Virginia. The two undercover agents join forces to take on a plot that could turn the tide of the war, while also facing their attraction to each other–and the fact that doing whatever it takes to win the war, might mean losing each other.
Tempest by Beverly Jenkins
Shooting your intended isn’t the traditional way for a mail-order bride to greet her future husband, but for Regan Carmichael, it’s a genuine mistake. Colton, her intended, claims he’s only looking for someone to care for his daughter, not his heart. But soon, the idea of a bold, independent woman like Regan, willing to travel to Wyoming Territory for a widower and his child, begins to seem like something to long for, rather than deny.
A Little Light Mischief by Cat Sebastian
Reformed thief Molly Wilkins is now a lady’s maid, which means she should really keep her hands to herself. But despite her best efforts, she can’t seem to keep herself from being tempted by her employer’s prim companion. Alice, for the first time in her life, has nothing to occupy her. Nothing, except a desire to find out the secret’s behind a lady’s maid with a sharp tongue and strange manner.
Make sure to get your own Read Harder Book Journal from Book Riot to track your reading for the year!
MORE FROM AROUND THE WEB:
How Beverly Jenkins brings history to life in her historical romance novels.
A Q&A with Alexis Hall the author of Something Fabulous.
BOOK RIOT RECS:
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That’s it for now, folx! Stay subscribed for more stories of yesteryear.
If you want to talk books (historical or otherwise), you can find me @rachelsbrittain on Instagram, Goodreads, Litsy, and occasionally Twitter.
Right now I’m reading Something Fabulous by Alexis Hall. What about you?