Mom It’s Women’s History Month, and with International Women’s Day coming up next week you can bet that my current reads feature some strong women characters. Head to my Goodreads HERE to see which female centric books I’m currently reading.
Women’s History Month is a month long celebration of all thing’s women. Primary focused on celebrating women’s contributions to history and culture, Women’s Month is celebrated each year during March in the United States.
What started in 1978 with a weeklong Women’s History Week celebration in Sonoma, California, quickly caught on with the rest of the community. In 1980, then standing President Jimmy Carter, declared the week of March 8th as Women’s History Week. Barely six years later, it would be expanded to include the entirety of March.
In addition to Women’s History Month, March 8th is International Women’s Day. Starting in 1911, International Women’s Day celebrations global achievements by women in all aspects of life.
Stories with strong female leads are my favorite, especially historical fiction story. These stories based on real-life women are A+ stories but also house tons of history that we can learn from. These are some of my favorite Historical Fictions that demonstrate women changing the world.
I’m always looking for Historical Fictions with strong female leads. Comment below with your favorites or any others that I should be putting on my TBR.
16 Historical Fictions with Strong Female Leads
What started as my 9 top recommendations has quickly spiraled to 16/
The Arctic Fury | Greer Macallister
If you enjoy adventurous women and a little bit of mystery, than The Arctic Fury is perfect for you. Told in alternating timelines and based upon the true story of Lady Franklin’s efforts to find her husband after The Franklin Expedition was lost to the Arctic. Macallister, crafts a story of 12 brave women who brave the frigid temperatures in their search for the Franklin Crews, in a time when women were seen little more than as household decoration . For more info around The Franklin Expedition start HERE
★★★★★ | REVIEW | AMAZON | GOODREADS |
Things in Jars | Jess Kid
While not for everyone, Things in Jars is a fun Victorian mystery , fantasy, historical fiction hybrid. Written in flowery prose, this one took me a hot minute to get into, but once I did I was addicted to our fierce female PI Bridie Devine. Ahead of her time and taught that women are equal to men, Bridie is a fabulous female lead.
★★★★ | REVIEW | AMAZON | GOODREADS
The Alice Network | Kate Quinn
You’ll see that Kate Quinn has multiple books on this list and that’s for good reason. She has way of portraying women characters as strong and fearless. She also explores lesser known events that took place during World War II. In The Alice Network, Quinn explores the elite network of women spies that helped gain information for England during World War II.
The Secrets We Kept | Lara Prescott
Set at the height of the cold war, The Secrets We Kept, is another story of women spies. Inspired by true events, you can learn more about the CIA network of women spies HERE.
★★★★★ | REVIEW | AMAZON | GOODREADS
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo | Taylor Jenkins Reid
One of my all time favorite stories that follows the life of a Hollywood Starlet during the Golden Age of Hollywood. With lots of glitz and glamour, we follow Evelyn as she breaks boundaries for women and interacts with major historical events.
★★★★★ | REVIEW | AMAZON | GOODREADS
A Woman is No Man | Etaf Rum
A wonderful debut that gives us a view into the lives of conservative Arab women and the cycle of trauma that can sometimes take place.
Wild Woman and the Blues | Denny S. Bryce
Set in Jazz age Chicago, this book is wonderfully written. Weaving the stories of two woman one in 1925 and one in 2015, this book is a wonderful depicts of love and family secrets.
★★★★★ | Review to come| AMAZON | GOODREADS
The Paragon Hotel| Lyndsay Faye
Superbly written historical novel exploring racism, violence, and extremist groups in America in the 1920’s.
★★★★ | Review to come| AMAZON | GOODREADS
Remarkable Creatures | Tracy Chevalier
Based on the true story of Mary Anning, this is a fabulous historical fiction. Mary Anning was a prolific English fossil hunter and amateur anatomist credited with the discovery of several dinosaur specimens that assisted in the early development of paleontology. Learn more about Mary Anning HERE
★★★★ | Review to come| AMAZON | GOODREADS
Circling the Sun | Paula McLain
Based on the true story of Beryl Markham, who was the first women to fly across the Atlantic from Britain to North America. Paula McLain writes a wonderful coming of age story set in Colonial Africa. Learn more about Beryl Markham HERE.
★★★★★ | REVIEW| AMAZON | GOODREADS
The Help | Kathryn Stockett
It’s been years since I’ve read The Help, but it’s still one of my favorite historical fiction reads.
The Help | Kathryn Stockett
Set in World War II this is the story of how during the aftermath of WWII, many folks hunted for high level Nazi’s that had fled trial. In this particular book, the character of Nina, is what makes this a perfect Women’s Month Read. Nina is Learn more about the Nazi Hunters HERE
The Invisible Woman | Erika Robuck
Review coming soon | AMAZON | GOODREADS
I hope you found something excellent to read this month for Women’s History Month. Do you have other great reads with strong female leads? Let me know what are some of your favorites in the comments.