Historical fiction lovers have plenty to choose from in this month’s Read This Next, with new novels from Pip Williams, Fiona McIntosh and Tania Blanchard exploring relationships and ambitions shaped by extraordinary circumstances. Jeffrey Archer brings a sweeping wartime story to the selection, while Freida McFadden and David McCloskey offer two different kinds of suspense. Whether you prefer a love story with complications or a thriller that leaves you questioning who to trust, these six books offer somewhere to begin.
Following The Dictionary of Lost Words and The Bookbinder of Jericho, Pip Williams returns to the First World War with a story of forbidden love between an English nurse and a German doctor.
In France in 1915, he is a prisoner of war and she has little regard for rules. Their relationship might have remained unknown were it not for drawings by an Australian artist, discovered more than a century later. The woman who finds them begins investigating the lovers’ identities and what became of them.
The drawings give this premise its particular appeal, turning private moments into clues that someone must interpret. Alongside the romance is a question about how personal experiences survive history, especially when they cross the boundaries imposed by war.
Verdict: A promising choice for readers who enjoy historical fiction with an intimate focus. The art mystery offers another reason to become invested in the lovers’ fate, particularly for fans of stories connecting past and present.
After losing her job and apartment, Julia Barlow retreats to Pemberton, her family’s seventeenth-century estate in rural Massachusetts. She is supposedly checking on her ageing grandmother, although she also needs somewhere to escape her own problems.
Pemberton offers little comfort. A grandfather clock stops at precisely 3.41am, lights flicker and a voice cries for help outside Julia’s bedroom. Digging into the house’s history leads her to a woman executed for witchcraft in 1692 and secrets her family has kept buried.
The uncertainty surrounding Julia’s experiences is the attraction here. A troubled woman returning to an unsettling home creates plenty of opportunity for suspicion, while the witchcraft connection adds a historical dimension to the family mystery.
Verdict: An appealing pick for readers who like gothic settings and thrillers that keep possible explanations competing. If an old house with a disturbing history is your idea of an enjoyable evening, put this on your list.
Born on November 11, 1918, as the First World War ends, Adam and Eve begin life on opposite sides of Britain’s class divide. Eve is an earl’s daughter, while Adam is the son of a shepherd, but their connection develops despite the expectations surrounding them.
Their story stretches into the Second World War, moving from Norfolk to Dunkirk and towards a September night in 1940 when their actions have consequences beyond their own futures. The book is billed as Archer’s final novel.
The appeal lies in that combination of personal ambition and historical scale. Following two lives from childhood into wartime gives the relationship room to develop before larger events test it.
Verdict: One for readers who enjoy expansive historical sagas, class barriers and courage under pressure. The premise should particularly interest Archer fans drawn to characters whose opportunities are shaped by their circumstances.
In wartime Valletta, barkeeper’s daughter Valentina Camilleri falls for Flight Lieutenant Peter Fox after he survives the loss of his Spitfire and enters her life.
An art historian, Peter becomes fascinated by Malta’s cathedral and its Caravaggio artwork while recovering. His enthusiasm helps Valentina imagine a future beyond the one she fears awaits her. Twelve years later, he returns ahead of a visit by the newly crowned Queen Elizabeth and discovers how troubling her circumstances have become.
The gap between their meetings gives this romance its strongest hook. Valentina is now a mother, with responsibilities that complicate any possibility of reclaiming her earlier dreams. Malta and its artistic heritage provide an attractive setting for those choices.
Verdict: A promising selection for readers who enjoy European historical fiction and romance complicated by adult responsibilities. Valentina’s struggle for her son and independence gives the premise substance beyond the possibility of reunion.
What happens when intelligence services that have worked together for decades begin treating each other as opponents? That question drives London Station, which brings Artemis Procter back into a dangerous dispute between American and British intelligence.
A new US administration appoints a CIA director suspicious of the agency’s British relationship. As agents working for both services begin dying, Procter and her London team must decide whether protecting their mission and friends requires disobeying their employer.
The conflict offers a compelling variation on familiar espionage territory, placing distrust inside an established alliance. McCloskey’s background as a former CIA analyst adds interest for readers curious about the mechanics behind intelligence work.
Verdict: The choice for readers who prefer political intrigue to romance. Competing loyalties give the premise a strong foundation, especially if you enjoy characters forced to question the organisations they serve.
Australian grazier Maddy Rainforth is determined to produce exceptional Merino wool, despite drought, bushfires and an industry resistant to change.
As European fashion houses seek quality materials after the Second World War, her ambition connects Australian sheep country with international couture. The Paris Wool Prize brings opportunity, but pursuing it could demand more than she can afford.
That connection between farming and fashion is the standout attraction. Behind the prospect of glamorous success are difficult seasons, financial risks and a woman deciding how much she will sacrifice.
Verdict: An appealing prospect for Australian historical fiction fans. Maddy’s ambition and the distinctive wool industry setting offer plenty of potential for book club conversations about achievement and its cost.
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