Historical Fiction

A powerful debut that combines historical fiction with fantasy and explores themes of enslavement and empire. 'Powerful' Irenosen Okojie, author of Butterfly Fish The year is 1748. Elewa, known as ‘the...

Gunpowder, treason and a plot to destroy the British Empire… 1770. Delphine lives in the shadows of London: a secret, vibrant world of smugglers, courtesans and small rebellions. Four years...

The powerful and evocative story of a young West Indian man''s search for home in 1960s London - by the multi-award-winning author dubbed ''one of the literary giants of our...

The venue was the canteen block of the Red Hammer Cement Works. It was the usual set-up: way out of town, secretive directions to get there, and disco lights blazing… ...

London, 1936. Two sisters are ready to take the city and the world by storm.Bath, 2012. Two young Black men are figuring out who they are, and who they want...

AN OBSERVER TOP TEN DEBUT 2020 'The kind of novel you never knew you were waiting for. An explosive work that reels from sex, to sin, to salvation all the...

Black Britain: Writing Back A visceral reimagining of 1780s London, showcasing the untold stories of African-American soldiers grappling with their freedom after the American revolution In the years just after...

A stunning new reissue of one of the most iconic fictional debuts of all time, to mark the 25th anniversary of this modern classicFirst published in the year 2000, Zadie...

A tale of survival from one of the most beloved Nigerian writers, now in Penguin Modern Classics for the first time When Adah's dream of moving to England becomes a...

Winner of the Desmond Elliot Prize 2020 A beautiful, brutal and breath-taking novel-in-verse from one of the brightest young British writers of today. Anansi, your four gifts raised to nyame...

Shortlisted for the 2021 Booker PrizeA heart-wrenching novel based on a true miscarriage of justice from an award-winning authorMahmood Mattan is a fixture in Cardiff's Tiger Bay, 1952, which bustles...

Two children trapped in the same attic, almost a century apart, bound by a secret. 1907: Twelve-year-old Celestine spends most of his time locked in an attic room of a...

Aphrodite wishes to escape the marriage mart but will a second chance with the elusive Duke of Everely change her mind?Aphrodite Du Bell is a diamond of the first water...

London, 1936 Lena Aldridge is wondering if life has passed her by. The dazzling theatre career she hoped for hasn’t worked out. Instead, she’s stuck singing in a sticky-floored basement...

A furious, blistering, deeply tender novel about family, violence and the hope of redemption, set against the vivid backdrop of 80s Manchester Wythenshawe, South Manchester. 1985. The Dodds family once...

A groundbreaking and critically-acclaimed debut novel of friendship and freedom that crosses continents and centuries, in a timeslip story exploring the legacy of slavery, selected as The Times Children's Book...

The chronicler of contemporary London, acclaimed and bestselling author Zadie Smith, returns with her first historical novelTruth and fiction. Jamaica and Britain. Who gets to tell their story? In her...

Translated from the German by Jon Cho-Polizzi "Set to be one of the best books of 2023" — GQ Magazine "Soaring, spellbinding, utterly epic" — MUSA OKWONGA "A time-travelling wonder...

Shortlisted for the Women’s Prize 2023  In a scorching story of music, passion and self-discovery, love will set Yamaye free... It's time to dance, to love, to be free...'Mesmerising' BERNARDINE EVARISTO,...

Inspired by true historical events in the Caribbean, River Sing Me Home will break your heart and then lift you up. A soaring story of courage and sacrifice, this novel...

An immersive historical debut which tells the story of a mixed-race woman who plays a freak on the stage in Victorian London and finds herself caught in a reckoning with...

For fans of Yaa Gyasi, Toni Morrison, and Richard Flanagan — gripping historical novel of a Black soldier's experience in the Second World War — a rare, moving, untold tale...

For fans of The Miniaturist and The Confessions of Frannie Langton comes this award-winning novel of illuminating historical fiction. Meet Charles Ignatius Sancho: his extraordinary story, hidden for three hundred...