Books Set in the Past featuring Historical Figures

 

 Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.

Books Set in the Past featuring Historical Figures

For this week’s Top Ten Tuesday, I decided to pick books set in the past that feature historical figures.

1. A Warning about Swans by R. M. Romero 

- This is a young adult historical fantasy book written in verse that is loosely based on Swan Lake. The story is set in Bavaria and has the historical figure King Ludwig II. He is famously known as the fairy tale king because of the fairy tale murals he had painted in his castle, Neuschwanstein. Neuschwanstein is also meant to look like a castle from a fairy tale. One of the plot points in this book deals with him having the murals painted by a side character named Franz. 

2. Once Upon a Wardrobe by Patti Callahan 

- This book is a beautiful story about the love between a sister and a brother and the lengths she will go to for him. Megs' little brother George falls in love with The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe and wants Megs to find out where Narnia came from for C. S. Lewis. George is homebound due to his illness and becomes very fixated on the book. Megs goes to meet C.S. Lewis (who goes by Jack) to find the answer to her brother's question. Throughout the novel, Jack tells Megs about his life, and she tells her brother the story. 

- I loved that this story occurred right after the first Narnia book was published. Going into this book, I knew a lot about Jack's life, but I loved learning even more. I also enjoyed how this book showed how deeply George and Jack loved reading and how it helped them in their lives. 

3. My Lady Jane by Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton, and Jodi Meadows

- I love the books by the Lady Janies. They take historical characters and give humorous twists to their stories. This focuses on Lady Jane Grey who is famously known as having the shortest reign in British history. She became the queen of England for nine days until she loses her head to Mary I. In this book, Jane is given a very different story. 

4. King of Shadows by Susan Cooper 

- This is a story about a young man named Nat Field that finds comfort in theater which he doesn’t have in other parts of his life. He is meant to be traveling with an American trope to London to perform A Midsummer Night’s Dream in a replica of the Globe. He becomes sick shortly after arriving in London and mysteriously transports back in time four hundred times to the original production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream. While there, Nat grows close to William Shakespeare himself and finds a father figure in the man. 

5. In the Garden of Monsters by Crystal King

- An eerie historical fiction retelling of the Persephone (Proserpina) and Hades (Pluto) myth which is set in Italy’s Sacro Bosco (The Garden of Monsters). It has such a unique twist on the classic story with a gothic atmosphere which pulled me in from the first page until the last. Along with the retelling, it also features the famous Salvador Dalí and his wife, Gala Dalí, who are such over the top personalities in this story. 

- It is about a woman named Julia who is modeling for Dalí in a work that he is doing of Sacro Bosco. He wants her to be his muse for the goddess Persephone. While at the garden, Julia meets Ignazio who she eerily finds familiar even though she doesn’t believe there is a chance she has met him before. 

- I knew I had to read this book after first seeing the cover and tagline. It is definitely one of the most unique takes I have seen of this myth. 

6. Here, There Be Dragons by James A. Owen

- The Chronicles of Imaginarium Geographica is a series which I am highly enjoying. The first book starts after an unusual murder brings together three complete strangers, John, Jack, and Charles in London, during the first World War. They meet a man named Bert, who explains to them they are now caretakers for an atlas called the Imaginarium Geographica. It is for all of the lands that have ever existed in myths, legends, fables, and fairy tales. The entire series has plenty of historical figures who are mainly all authors such as J. M. Barrie, Edgar Allan Poe, etc. I will not spoil any of the others. 

7. Amber and Clay by Laura Amy Schlitz

- One of my favorite books from last year. It is an intricately woven story told through artifacts, verse, and prose. Rhaskos and Melisto’s story is told through many perspectives, such as their mothers, the Greek Gods, the historical figure Sokrates, and many others in their lives, along with themselves. My favorite of the narrators was definitely Hermes. 

- Each artifact is illustrated and precedes a section of the story. They are meant to be exhibits in a museum which we then get context for in the poetry or prose that follows each piece. It was brilliant how Laura Amy Schlitz chose to play with format throughout the entire book. She has a historical context section at the end of the book where she explains Greek Verse and how she used it for the characters. I definitely recommend this for fans of historical fiction, Greek Mythology, and Greek History. 

8. Mary’s Monster: Love, Madness and How Mary Shelley Created Frankenstein by Lita Judge

- One of my favorite pieces of nonfiction that I have ever read. Going into this book, I knew very little of Mary Shelley’s life and really enjoyed seeing it depicted here. This focuses on her life, how she met and fell in love with horrible Percy Shelley, and where she originally got the ideas for Frankenstein. It is written in verse and a good amount of it was inspired by Mary Shelley’s journals. Along with the beautiful poetry throughout, we also get stunning illustrations. 

- I will never get over the fact that she started writing Frankenstein when she was only eighteen years old. 

9. The Mythmakers: The Remarkable Fellowship of C. S. Lewis & J.R.R. Tolkien by John Hendrix

- Now onto my favorite nonfiction book. I was lucky enough last year to get to read an ARC of this book early in the year. John Hendrix blends prose, images, and narrative comics to chronicle the lives of two literary greats, C. S. Lewis & J.R.R. Tolkien. It not only focuses on their Fellowship but also goes into details about their early lives, inspirations, how they were affected by fighting in WWI, their friendship, and many other aspects of their lives. Hendrix does a wonderful job using this medium to tell his story and I love the use of Mr. Lion and The Wizard, who are takes on Aslan and Gandalf. 

- Along with the information on both authors, Hendrix also has what he calls Portals. They discuss other information such as myth and fairy tales. These are sections which are great extras that add to the overall experience of the book.

- I highly recommend this book to fans of both authors. It was an incredible read that was informative, enjoyable, and heartwarming at times. I know I would have loved this book when I was younger and first reading from both of their fantasy worlds. Definitely, would also love to see more books like this for other fantasy authors, such as L. Frank Baum, Lewis Carroll, etc. 

10. Spear by Nicola Griffith 

- Stories featuring King Arthur have always intrigued me since I was a child and first watched The Sword in the Stone. One of my favorite books featuring the Once and Future King is called Spear, which focuses on a young woman who travels as a man, in hopes of joining Arthur’s knights. It is a sapphic romance with such beautiful writing. I have been meaning to reread this wonderful novella for years and I plan on doing so very soon.  

Middle Grade March 2025

 I will be participating in Middle Grade March again this year and will be reading the group reads and prompts from the channel: Middle Grade March. It was great finding this channel earlier this month and I am definitely looking forward to reading many MG books in March. I adore reading Middle Grade stories and am excited to participate with so many great people.

Below, I will show information on the group reads and prompts from Katie and Krista’s announcement video Middle Grade March 2025 || Announcement and Details. I also will show some of the other middle grade books I will be reading during the month. 

Group Reads: 

~ Moongarden by Michelle A. Barry- A science fiction retelling of The Secret Garden. 

    🌕 Oh my goodness, I cannot wait to read this book. It sounds incredible!

~ The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett 

    🪴 A great classic and I will definitely be rereading along with the group.

Prompts

For each of these prompts, I am going to show some of the ideas I have for books to read. I’m not too sure what I am going to read next month but these are books I am thinking about. My goal is to read a different book for each of these prompts. 

1.) Read a book by an author with 3 names

  🪄 The Lives of Christopher Chant by Diana Wynne Jones- I started the Chrestomanci series last year and want to continue it this year. This is the next book in Diana Wynne Jones’s recommended order.

2.) Read a book with flowers on the cover

   🐸 The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame- A classic I have been wanting to read for years.

3.) Read a book that is part of a series

    📖 Wizkit 2: A Tail of Disruption by Tanya J. Scott- I read the first book in the Wizkit series last year and really enjoyed it. I have an eARC which I am looking forward to. 

4.) Read a book that involves travel

   🍄 Afia in the Land of Wonders by Mia Araujo- Another ARC I have which I’m very excited to read. It’s a retelling of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland with such beautiful art throughout. This will definitely be on my reading list for next month. 

5.) Read a book written in the 1900s

   🕰️ 13 Clocks by James Thurber- A book I have been wanting to read for over ten years and I plan on finally reading it next month. It was originally written in 1950. 

Count to 10 With Me Book Tag

I found this tag on ZeZee With Books blog a week ago and definitely wanted to do it myself. ZeZee’s post

1. First book in a Series

   Here is a first book in a series which I would like to continue with this year: Charmed Life by Diana Wynne Jones. 

2. Two or More Copies of the Same Book

    🍄 I have many copies of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll. Here are my two favorites. The first is Nerdy Ink’s edition and the second is Litjoy’s. They are both stunning editions of one of my favorite books. I adore them. 

 

3. Three Colours on the Cover

    🌕 The most recent book I have read with three colors on the cover is Tress of the Emerald Sea by Brandon Sanderson. I adore this book with all of my heart and will have a review for it at the end of the month on this blog. My review is also on Goodreads right now. 

4. Four or More Perspectives

    🗡️ The first thing I thought of for this question is The Song of Ice and Fire series. My favorite of those books is the third: A Storm of Swords by George R. R. Martin. The perspectives are Chett (for the prologue, he is one of the brothers of the Night’s Watch), Jaime Lannister, Jon Snow, Catelyn Stark, Tyrion Lannister, Sansa Stark, Arya Stark, Bran Stark, Samwell Tarly, Davos Seaworthy, Daenerys Targaryen, and Merrett Frey (for the epilogue). 

5. A Five- Star Read

    🦁 One of my favorite books of last year was The Mythmakers: The Remarkable Fellowship of C.S. Lewis & J. R. R. Tolkien by John Hendrix and I just want to take the time to recommend it yet again. It is one of my favorite nonfiction books of all time and I love the way John Hendrix decided to write it. 

6. Six (or More) Short Stories

    🖊️ A Stroke of the Pen: The Lost Stories by Terry Pratchett- One of Terry Pratchett’s wonderful collections of short stories. I adore reading Terry’s works and seeing his such distinct voice. These were found and published after he passed away. 

7. A Seven on the Cover or Spine

    🏺Lore Olympus: Volume Seven by Rachel Smythe- The last volume of Lore Olympus that I have read. I’m looking forward to the next two volumes this year. 

8. Eight Letters in the Title

    🏹 I have been wanting to read Atalanta by Jennifer Saint for years and I plan on finally reading it this year. Atalanta is one of the Greek Mythology figures that I don’t know much about. I enjoyed Jennifer Saint’s Hera quite a lot and am looking forward to pick up more of her stories. 

9. Book Ends on a Page Ending in a Nine

    💀Inkdeath by Cornelia Funke- which has 699 pages. The Inkworld trilogy is one of my favorite series of all time and I love this book. 

10. Ten Books in the Series

    🐇  At the moment there are only ten books in Insanity series by Cameron Jace, but I’m pretty sure there will be more. This is one of my favorite series and I will recommend it forever. It is a dark thriller retelling of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. 

Books I LOVE that have an Average Rating Below 4 Stars on Goodreads

 Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.

Books I LOVE that have an Average Rating Below 4 Stars on Goodreads (Love Freebie)

Today’s Top Ten Tuesday is to come up with an idea that fits within the topic of “love.” I was trying to come up with something different for the love freebie and thought of all the books I love which are rated lower on Goodreads. These are all books rated below 4 stars that I rated 5 stars. 

1. That Way Madness Lies edited by Dahlia Adler

- Rated 3.44 on Goodreads

- That Way Madness Lies is one of the best short story collections I have read. I enjoyed how each of the writers used different genres to retell the Shakespeare plays. My favorite in the collection was a cross between Hamlet and Dracula. I am going to have to pick this up again soon. 

2. Upon a Frosted Star by M. A. Kuzniar

- Rated 3.53 on Goodreads

- As soon as I heard that this was going to be a cross between The Great Gatsby and Swan Lake, I knew I had to read it. I enjoyed this world so much and had a great time getting drawn into Forester and Odette’s story. It was such an entertaining take on the Swan Lake premise. 

3. Midnight in Everwood by M. A. Kuzniar

- Rated 3.54 on Goodreads

- It surprises me that both of M. A. Kuzniar’s books I have read are rated lower on Goodreads. A beautiful retelling of The Nutcracker. I adored the magical aspects of this novel that still has me hoping for more books from this world. This had me thinking of the Wood between Worlds in The Magician’s Nephew by C. S. Lewis, which is the reason I first got into portal fantasies to begin with. 

4. The Hazel Wood by Melissa Albert

- Rated 3.56 on Goodreads 

- I love the dark fairy tale world Melissa created in this book and the rest of the series. It was one of my favorites from 2020 and I still to this day remember it fondly. 

5. Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller

- Rated 3.58 on Goodreads 

- I first read Death of a Salesman in tenth grade back in 2010. Over the years, I have watched the play performed many times and I have read it a few more times myself. It is one of my favorites plays of all time. 

6. Midnight Strike by Zeba Shahnaz

- Rated 3.59 on Goodreads

- I was lucky enough to get an ARC copy of this book back in 2023 and I fell in love with this time loop fairy tale. A time loop is one of my favorites elements in books along with time travel stories. I love any story that messes with time in interesting ways. And I loved watching Anais try to fix everything going on in this story so many different times. This was a clever take on the “Cinderella” fairy tale that I highly enjoyed. 

7. The North Wind by Alexandria Warwick 

- Rated 3.64 on Goodreads

- Both of Alexandria’s books in The Four Winds series could get onto this list, but I figured I would talk about my favorite of the two. I adored The North Wind when I first read my ARC of it in 2022. It is a romantasy book with elements from “Beauty and the Beast,” Greek Mythology with the gods of the winds playing an integral role, and Hades and Persephone retellings. I love slow-burn enemies-to-lovers romances. It was great to watch Wren and Boreas throughout the book and seeing their relationship grow over the course of the story. 

8. An Assassin’s Guide to Love and Treason by Virginia Boecker

- Rated 3.65 on Goodreads

- This is one of my favorites books on this list. I first read this book because it was recommended for lovers of Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night and the movie A Knight’s Tale. These are great comps for this book because of the type of humor infused into the story. I love historical fiction books which deal with Shakespeare and this is one of my favorites. 

9. The Court of Miracles by Kester Grant

- Rated 3.69 on Goodreads

- This book was another one I got to read an ARC copy of back in 2020. I was excited to read this book when I heard it drew some inspiration from Les Miserables which is one of my favorite musicals. Kester wrote such an interesting system with the Guilds in this book and I enjoyed following Nina throughout her plans in this book. I’m still waiting for the rest of the series and hope one day she will finish it. Supposedly the second book is supposed to be out this year, but that has been said many times before.

 

10. I’m Afraid You’ve Got Dragons by Peter S. Beagle 

- Rated 3.69 on Goodreads

- I’m Afraid You’ve Got Dragons was my first book of this year and I enjoyed it so much. I love Peter S. Beagle’s writing style. He has this whimsical way of writing which pulls me in from the first page. Such an entertaining book. Not my favorite of Peter’s but still a great read. 

2024 Releases I Was Excited to Read but Still Haven’t Gotten To

 

Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.

2024 Releases I Was Excited to Read but Still Haven’t Gotten To 

It has been a long time since I have done a Top Ten Tuesday and I’m looking forward to getting back into them this year. Here are 10 books which released last year that I want to prioritize in 2025. 

1. Rewitched by Lucy Jane Wood 

- I got this book for Christmas and have yet to get to it but I will be reading it in February. Love me a cozy fantasy book with witches. 

2. Odyssey by Stephen Fry

- This is the last book in Stephen Fry’s series about Greek Mythology, focused on Odysseus’s journey home from Troy. I love this series and have been looking forward to this book ever since I read Troy. The only reason I have yet to get to Odyssey is because the audiobook has not come out in the USA and I love listening to Stephen’s narration. I’m really looking forward to it coming out later this year. 

3. My Salty Mary by Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton, and Jodi Meadows

- I love the Janies books and have yet to pick this one up. It is described as a cross between a pirate story and “The Little Mermaid” which sounds perfect to me. I will be picking this up soon. 

4. The Book of Doors by Gareth Brown

- Books about books are always favorites to me. This was another book I got for Christmas that I am highly looking forward to reading soon. 

5. North is the Night by Emily Rath

- This came out at the end of last year and I have wanted to read it ever since I first heard about it. Folklore and mythology are two of my favorite things. I especially love when a book deals with a folklore or mythology which I don’t really know much about. I cannot wait to pick this up. 

6. Dreadful by Caitlin Rozakis

- I was recommended this book last year because of my love for T. Kingfisher’s writing, so it definitely went on my TBR list of 2024 releases. It looks absolutely hilarious. 

7. Shoestring Theory by Mariana Costa

- Time travel, cat familiars, and a friends-to-lovers-to-enemies-to-lovers queer romance… Sounds great to me. 

8. Bloom by N.R. Walker

- The fact that this book has been out for almost a year and I have yet to read it upsets me. N. R. Walker is one of my favorite romance writers and I love Floriography (The Language of Flowers). This is literally my perfect book and I will be reading it this month. 

9. The Little Shop of Grand Curiosities by Iris Lake

- This has been comped with Howl’s Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones, which is my favorite book of all-time. The description of this book makes me think of The Vermillion Emporium by Jamie Paxton and I love that book. So I have to pick this up. 

10. The Thirteenth Child by Erin A. Craig

- A book about the goddaughter of Death which just sounds so interesting and is a retelling of a fairytale I enjoy quite a bit. I love dark twisted retellings of fairytales, so this is right up my alley.