# Historical Fiction Recommendations: WW I, WW II and Intervening Period

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/historical-fiction-recommendations-ww-i-ww-ii-and-intervening-period/994359>\
**Category:** Cafe Society\
**Created:** [December 10, 2023, 9:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/historical-fiction-recommendations-ww-i-ww-ii-and-intervening-period/994359 "2023-12-10T09:45:18Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 3

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**Author:** ![Wallaby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/dc4da7/32.png) [@Wallaby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wallaby)\
**Post date:** [June 8, 2024, 5:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/historical-fiction-recommendations-ww-i-ww-ii-and-intervening-period/994359/41 "2024-06-08T05:24:48Z")

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Len Deighton wrote several books set in and around on WW2 - all are pretty good.  
For an interesting alternative, try his _ **SS-GB** _ - a murder mystery set in England after the Germans have successfully invaded and conquered the island. Since the case eventually involves the highest levels of all major nations that were involved in WW2, it explores many ‘what-ifs’ regarding alliances, balance of power, governments etc.

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**Author:** ![gkster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gkster/32/14107_2.png) [@gkster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gkster)\
**Post date:** [June 14, 2024, 6:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/historical-fiction-recommendations-ww-i-ww-ii-and-intervening-period/994359/42 "2024-06-14T06:05:12Z")

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I don’t know if John Buchan’s books of WW1 qualify as historical novels, since they were written during the war itself. _Greenmantle_ was published in 1916 and _Mr. Standfast_ in 1918. Around 1/3 of _Greenmantle_ is set in Germany, and much of the 2nd half of _Mr. Standfast_ is set in France.  
[The Project Gutenberg eBook of Greenmantle, by John Buchan](https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/559/pg559-images.html)  
[Mr. Standfast, by John Buchan (gutenberg.org)](https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/560/pg560-images.html)

And seconding the recommendation for Irene Nemirovski’s _Suite Francaise_.

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