12 Most-Read Historical Fiction Books of 2025, According to Goodreads

We are sailing through 2025 and I hope you have been reading tons of books. Today, we will be looking at the most read historical fiction books of 2025 so far. Keep reading to see which ones made the list!

Historical fiction is one of my top five favorite genres and I am always looking to find amazing new books to read. And what better way to do that than to see what others are reading? This list was curated by Goodreads and has some of the most popular historical fiction books of the past couple of years.

Two of the biggest novels of 2024 are the most read books of 2025 and that shouldn’t come as a surprise. These novels were everywhere and book lovers and critics alike loved them. Having read both of them, I can see why they are the top books on the list. You can see the full list below!

The Most Read Historical Fiction Books of 2025

• The Women by Kristin Hannah
• James by Percival Everett
• The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah
• The Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon
• The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid
• Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus
• The Great Alone by Kristin Hannah
• Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan
• The Briar Club by Kate Quinn
• Daisy Jones & The Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid
• The Berry Pickers by Amanda Peters
• Weyward by Emilia Hart

The Women is the most read book of 2025 so far and that doesn’t surprise me. It was the bestselling book of 2025 after all and we all know book lovers take their time in reading new books. I enjoyed this novel from front to back and as a big Kristin Hannah fan, I was happy to see her get the recognition she deserves.

In second place is the fantastic novel James by Percival Everett. It was the recipient of the 2025 Pulitzer Prize and deserved it. This was my first time reading a novel by Everett and I was impressed and became a lifelong fan. The storytelling makes this one of the best books I have read in 2025 so far and many people seem to agree.

In third place is Kristin Hannah’s most popular novel The Nightingale. This is the novel that made me a Hannah fan and read the rest of her books. The success of The Women has made many people revisit Hannah’s older works and that has led to three of the top seven books on this list belonging to Hannah as a result.

The 2025 Historical Fiction Ranking at a Glance

This ranking comes from Goodreads’ June 2, 2025 Reading Challenge snapshot. Goodreads counted the books most often marked “Read” by participants at that point in the year. It measures reader activity on Goodreads—not bookstore sales and not a final full-year ranking.

Rank	Book	Author
1	The Women	Kristin Hannah
2	James	Percival Everett
3	The Nightingale	Kristin Hannah
4	The Frozen River	Ariel Lawhon
5	The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo	Taylor Jenkins Reid
6	Lessons in Chemistry	Bonnie Garmus
7	The Great Alone	Kristin Hannah
8	Small Things Like These	Claire Keegan
9	The Briar Club	Kate Quinn
10	Daisy Jones & The Six	Taylor Jenkins Reid
11	The Berry Pickers	Amanda Peters
12	Weyward	Emilia Hart

Why These Historical Fiction Books Connected With Readers

1. The Women by Kristin Hannah

Kristin Hannah’s novel follows Frankie McGrath, a young Army nurse who serves in Vietnam and returns to an America unwilling to acknowledge the women who were there. It combines an accessible emotional story with an overlooked part of military history. I enjoyed it from beginning to end, and its position at the top makes sense after the enormous attention it received.

2. James by Percival Everett

James retells Adventures of Huckleberry Finn through Jim’s perspective, giving him the voice, intelligence and interior life denied to him in the original narrative. Everett’s storytelling impressed me so much that the novel made me want to read more of his work. It is both a gripping historical novel and a sharp conversation with an American classic.

3. The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah

Set in occupied France during World War II, The Nightingale follows two sisters who resist the Nazi occupation in very different ways. This was the book that made me a Kristin Hannah fan. The success of The Women clearly encouraged readers to discover—or revisit—her most famous historical novel.

4. The Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon

Inspired by the life of eighteenth-century midwife Martha Ballard, The Frozen River blends a murder investigation with the realities women faced in early America. It is an especially good choice for readers who like historical fiction with a strong mystery at its center.

5. The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid

A reclusive Hollywood star recounts her career, marriages and carefully protected secrets to an unknown journalist. The novel is fictional, but its portrait of fame, image-making and queer life in old Hollywood gives it the texture of a celebrity biography.

6. Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus

Elizabeth Zott is a gifted chemist navigating institutional sexism in the 1950s and early 1960s. The book balances serious themes with humor, romance and an unusually energetic cast, making it one of the most approachable selections on the list.

7. The Great Alone by Kristin Hannah

Hannah’s Alaska novel follows a family trying to build a new life in an isolated and unforgiving landscape. The historical setting matters, but the book’s emotional power comes from its depiction of survival, domestic violence and the bond between a mother and daughter.

8. Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan

This short novel follows an Irish coal merchant who confronts evidence of abuse connected to a convent and the Magdalene laundries. Keegan accomplishes more in a small number of pages than many writers manage in a much longer book. It is quiet, morally urgent and ideal for readers who prefer literary historical fiction.

9. The Briar Club by Kate Quinn

Set in a Washington, D.C., boardinghouse during the McCarthy era, The Briar Club brings together women with very different backgrounds and secrets. Quinn uses their friendships and conflicts to explore the political suspicion and changing expectations of postwar America.

10. Daisy Jones & The Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid

Told as an oral history, the novel chronicles the rise and collapse of a fictional 1970s rock band. Its interview format makes the characters feel real enough that readers often finish the book wishing they could listen to the band’s entire catalog.

11. The Berry Pickers by Amanda Peters

A young Mi’kmaq girl disappears while her family works in Maine, leaving consequences that stretch across decades. I was amazed by the confidence and emotional control of Peters’ debut. It works as family drama, literary mystery and a moving examination of identity and loss.

12. Weyward by Emilia Hart

Weyward connects three women living in different centuries through family history, nature and accusations of witchcraft. Readers who enjoy dual or multiple timelines will find an accessible blend of historical fiction, magical realism and feminist storytelling.

Conclusion

These are the most read historical fiction books of 2025 so far and what a list it is. Hannah and Everett are must reads and the rest of the list is a solid one. If you need a historical fiction book to read, then this list should be your go to. Happy reading!

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