Young Adult Historical Fiction

From the moment he and his mother arrived from England, everything about India shouted adventure to 14-year-old John Knight. But John and his mother are not prepared for what they discover when they befriend an Irish missionary named Amy Carmichael. With a heart for justice, John is shocked to learn that a young Indian girl rescued by Carmichael is a "child bride" being legally forced by her wicked uncle to marry an elderly man! Listen to find out more.

Lyrical yet unsentimental, The Midwife's Apprentice won the coveted 1996 Newbery Medal. Filled with striking characters, it paints unforgettable pictures of village life in the Middle Ages, the midwife's craft, and a very remarkable girl's growing independence and pride.

When eighteen-year-old aspiring scientist Elinor Dashwood discovers her beloved father slumped over the desk of his office study, she knows his death means dire straits for the Dashwood women. To make matters worse, an outdated will entails his estate—including Norland & Company, the private investigation firm where her younger sister Marianne worked as her father’s partner and protégé—to their half-brother and his haughty wife, who waste no time in forcing the Dashwoods out of their home and into a cramped apartment on London’s Barton Street.

In a breathless, haunting, and rich historical mystery, New York Times bestselling author Monica Hesse speaks to the depths of trauma and the power of memory. Seven months ago, Edda was on the World War I front lines as one of two hundred “Hello Girls,” female switchboard operators employed...

A historical mystery about a girl who risks everything to track down a vicious serial killer, for fans of The Enigma Game and Last Night at the Telegraph Club. Virginia, 1943: World War II is raging in Europe and on the Pacific front when Kit Sutherland is recruited to help the war effort as a...

Mr. Darcy got his happily ever after in Pride and Prejudice, and now it’s his sister’s turn in this swoony queer romance, perfect for fans of Bridgerton. Georgiana Darcy has only ever kissed one girl before, and the resulting blackmail almost ruined her reputation. Since then, she’s...

Jonathan’s older brother is away fighting with General Washington in Pennsylvania. But at 13, Jonathan is too young to fight. Still too young. Then one morning, April 3, 1778, the tavern bell sounds, calling men to arms. Eager to prove his mettle, with blood pounding in his ears, Jonathan joins the gathering men at the tavern to hear the news. With a 12-pound, six-foot-long flintlock musket loaned to him by the tavern keeper, Jonathan finds a place in with the other men, marching to battle.

In this historical thriller from the bestselling author of Code Name Verity, Stella North enters an air race competition as the only woman—and finds herself thrown into a mystery she must solve before it kills her. When Stella North is chosen to represent Britain in Europe’s first air race...

The last thing fourth-grader Kai Waters remembers (before the world as she knew it disappeared) is being surrounded by bullies on her walk home from school. What happens next can't be explained as Kai finds herself on the run for her life in ancient Egypt! Imagine...The Ten Plagues is the second release in an exciting, brand-new epic adventure series for kids ages eight to 12 written by schoolteacher Matt Koceich. The Imagine series brings the Bible to life for today's kids as they ponder what it would be like to live through a monumental biblical event.

Maia, an orphan, can't wait to reach her distant relatives a thousand miles up the Amazon. She imagines a loving family with whom she will share great adventures. Instead she finds two spiteful cousins who see the jungle as the enemy and refuse to go outdoors.

This fourth adventure finds Will Burrows deep in the “land of the second sun”, reunited with his long-lost father. While Will attempts to decode the cryptic messages scrawled across the land’s three mysterious temples, an army of darkness begins its march. And all the while, the Rebeccas continue their relentless pursuit of Will, determined to destroy him once and for all.

The globetrotting naturalists of the 18th century were the geeks of their day: innovators and explorers who lived at the intersection of science and commerce. Foremost among them was Carl Linnaeus, a radical thinker who revolutionized biology. In What Linnaeus Saw, Karen Magnuson Beil chronicles Linnaeus's life and career in readable, relatable prose.

Cuchu Ramirez and Matias Kim barely survived their first journey through time. Now, as their Seattle high school faces state-level attacks on Indigenous archaeology programs, they're pulled back 4,500 years to witness the Builders of Monuments—and discover that ancient peoples were far more sophisticated than any textbook dared to admit.

In 17th-century Hungary, Anna Darvulia has just begun working as a scullery maid for the young and glamorous Countess Elizabeth Báthory. When Elizabeth takes a liking to Anna, she’s vaulted to the dream role of chambermaid, a far cry from the filthy servants’ quarters below. She receives wages generous enough to provide for her family, and the Countess begins to groom Anna as her friend and confidante. It’s not long before Anna falls completely under the Countess’s spell—and the Countess takes full advantage.

Seventeen young adult authors across the queer spectrum have come together to create a collection of beautifully written diverse historical fiction for teens. From a retelling of Little Red Riding Hood set in war-torn 1870s Mexico featuring a transgender soldier, to two girls falling in love while mourning the death of Kurt Cobain, forbidden love in a 16th-century Spanish convent, or an asexual girl discovering her identity amid the 1970s roller-disco scene, All Out tells a diverse range of stories across cultures, time periods and identities, shedding light on an area of history often ignored or forgotten.

Medraut is the eldest son of Artos, high king of Britain and, but for an accident of birth, would be heir to the throne. Instead, his younger half-brother, Lleu, fragile and inexperienced, is chosen. Medraut cannot bear to be commanded and contradicted by this weakling brother who he feels has usurped both his birthright and his father's favor. Torn and bitter, he joins Morgause, the high king's treacherous sister, in a plot to force Artos to forfeit his power and kingdom in exchange for Lleu's life.

George MacDonald once declared, “I do not write for children, but for the childlike, whether of five, or 50, or 75.” The Day Boy and the Night Girl is a splendid example of such writing. With words of wonder, beauty, and adventure, and with acute spiritual insight and sensitivity, MacDonald spins an enchanting tale of two children, a boy and a girl, who grow up from infancy in the castle of a witch. Unaware of each other’s presence in the castle, the children are victims of an unnatural design upon them.

Eighteen-year-old healer Aliwyn lives in shame after her medical failures. Despite a rebellion brewing against the king, she yearns to practice medicine in peace. But when she agrees to hide an endangered orphan, Aliwyn is plunged into the deadly revolt. A daring escape entangles her with the young rebel leader, Tobias, and she is swept into a world of rival factions and secret alliances. Caught amongst the enemy, she must decide who to save. Worst of all, Tobias' compassionate nature turns her perceptions of the insurgents upside down.

Caroline Kepnes’s You meets Black Swan in this psychological thriller about obsessive love featuring two ballet dancers—identical twin sisters Olivia and Clara Marionetta—with a terrifying climax set in the world of ballet in pre-war London. Fans of historical fiction books with strong...

Meet Penrod Schofield—eleven years old, endlessly curious, and a magnet for scrapes. Set in a Midwestern town at the turn of the twentieth century, Penrod follows a boy whose imagination routinely collides with adult rules: backyard “shows” that spiral into chaos, school pageants gone spectacularly wrong, neighborhood rivalries, and the fierce loyalty between a boy and his dog, Duke. Booth Tarkington’s classic is laugh-out-loud funny and surprisingly tender, a snapshot of American childhood that still feels true.