Building a TBR list

2025 has been a hit-and-miss year as far as my reading is concerned. Every time I finish a book, I dread the process of finding another one that will captivate me. So what am I looking for?

Now that’s not too much to ask, is it?

These days, I almost always download the kindle sample to see if the story captures my attention. But that can be a tedious way to make decisions. I have a number of favourite authors, however, the production of a new novel takes 2-3 years so that’s not a reliable source, plus there’s always the favourite-author novel that disappoints.

In the last day or two, I’ve looked at various lists promising the ‘best’ historical fiction. Let’s see what the possibilities are.

On Paper Lantern Writers blog I found a list of Top Historical Fiction Picks from January 2025. That list surfaced:

• The Stolen Queen by Fiona Davis – a dual timeline novel (1936 and 1970) promising “an utterly addictive new novel that will transport you from New York City’s most glamorous party to the labyrinth streets of Cairo and back.”
• The Girls of the Glimmer Factory by Jennifer Coburn – set during WWII at Theresienstadt, a model ghetto where the Nazis plan to make a propaganda film to convince the world that the Jewish people are living well in the camps.
• Boudicca by P.C. Cast – “an epic, lusty, magic-filled romantasy about British warrior queen Boudicca.” Hmmmm.
• ** Unruly Human Hearts by Barbara Southard – “A tale of faith, passion, idealism, and betrayal, perfect for book clubs and those fascinated by love triangles, contradictions between public images and private lives, and the limitations faced by women in the nineteenth century.”
• The Family Behind the Walls by Shari J. Ryan – “A heartbreaking, emotional, yet ultimately hopeful World War Two page-turner about the strength of the love between a mother and daughter triumphing over evil.”

From another source, I can across a reader review of Patti Callahan Henry’s latest novel. I’m a fan of her books.

• ** The Story She Left Behind by Patti Callahan Henry – “the sweeping story of a legendary book, a lost mother, and a daughter’s search for them both.”

On Perpetual Page Turner we have Your Guide to New Historical Fiction Books for 2025. This surfaced several possibilities:

• ** Babylonia by Constanza Cassati – set in ancient Assyria in the 9th century, this novel is about the rise to power of the Assyrian empire’s only female ruler — Semiramis.
• The Kennedy Girl by Julia Bryan Thomas – set in 1960s Paris and NYC, “an American orphan who is swept up from her bakery job to the glitz and glamour of 1960’s Paris when a mysterious customer offers her a modeling job in Paris at a famous fashion house. And there’s a Cold War spy angle too!
• The Unexpected Diva by Tiffany L. Warren – “the life story and rise to fame of Elizabeth Taylor Greenfield — the first African American opera singer who was born into slavery.” Set in mid-1800s.
• ** The English Problem by Beena Kamlani – set in 1930s and 1940s England and India, “a story of a young Indian man who is chosen by Mahatma Gandhi to go and study law in England in order to come home and help India gain independence from the British.”
• Harlem Rhapsody by Victoria Christopher Murray – set in Harlem 1919-1926 – the story of Jessie Faust, who is “credited with igniting the Harlem Renaissance as the first African American literary editor of The Crisis.”
• The Queens of Crime by Marie Benedict – set in 1930s England and France, a story “about a group of the greatest women crime writers in 1930’s London who decide to ban together to form a secret society – the Queens of Crime – in order to prove that they are just as good as their male counterparts of the time. I’ve read this – highly recommended.
• ** The Riveter by Jack Wang – set during WWII, about a “Chinese Canadian who wants to enlist in the fight but isn’t initially allowed to due to his race.”
• Maya & Natasha by Elyse Durham – “debut novel set in the fascinating world of Cold War Soviet ballet follows the fates of twin sisters whose bond is competitive, complicated, but never broken.”
• ** Follow Me to Africa by Penny Haw – set in 1935 to 1983 mainly in East Africa; “chronicles the life of Mary Leakey and her journey to becoming one of the most distinguished paleoanthropologists for her work in East Africa”.
• ** The King’s Messenger by Susanna Kearsley – set during “King James I reign in the early 1600s and he has sent his messenger, Andrew Logan, to Scotland with the mission to bring Sir David Moray back in connection with the mysterious death of the the King’s son Henry.”
• ** The Jackal’s Mistress by Chris Bohjalian – an American Civil War setting – “loosely based on a true story of a woman who does in fact help an enemy solider at great risk to herself.”

By the way, there are many more novels and a range of genres featured on Perpetual Page-Turner using lists and reviews.

I also perused Sarah Johnson’s blog Reading the Past, a blog that’s been going for 19 years! A few novels stood out:

• The Cardinal by Alison Weir – set during the time of Henry VIII, “an intimate, adroitly multifaceted portrait of the man (here called Tom) who devoted his career to serving Henry’s interests but whose failure to engineer the annulment of Henry’s first marriage caused his disgrace.”
• The Secrets of the Rose by Nicola Cornick – set during the Jacobite Rebellion of 1716 –  “tells the parallel stories of purported Jacobite heroine Dorothy Forster and a modern biographer who grew up in Dorothy’s family home.”
• ** The Director by Daniel Kehlmann – set during WWII, “a dark account of one man’s descent into fascist complicity, a path strewn with surrealistic scenarios and chilling self-justifications in favor of art.”
• My Name is Emilia Del Valle by Isabel Allende – about a woman who “wangles an assignment as international correspondent for the impending Chilean Civil War of 1891, under her own byline.”
• ** Solitary Walker by N.J. Mastro – set in the 18th century, this is a biographical novel exploring the tumultuous life of Mary Wollstonecraft.

At the moment, I feel like I’ve read too many dual timelines and WWII novels, so I’m unlikely to pursue those stories. I’m also attracted to the thought of reading about a significantly different era or unusual setting. Beyond that, I haven’t read many novels lately written by male authors. I’ve used a double asterisk to mark the ones I’m going to check out.

Wish me luck! Would love to hear your thoughts and recommendations.

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M.K. Tod writes historical fiction. Her latest novel THAT WAS THEN is a contemporary thriller. Mary’s other novels, THE ADMIRAL’S WIFE, PARIS IN RUINS, TIME AND REGRET, LIES TOLD IN SILENCE and UNRAVELLED are available from Amazon, Nook, Kobo, Google Play and iTunes. She can be contacted on Facebook or on her website www.mktod.com.