E
asked
Kate Quinn:
Hello. I adore your writing style- your books are truly breaths of fresh air in a genre that came sometimes be quite plodding or stale. I've read your books over and over, and in this vein wanted to ask you if you can recommend any similar historical fiction authors? Obviously, no two authors are alike, but I figured you might know of similar ones with that special literary *spark* that you have.
Kate Quinn
What a lovely compliment! Delighted you enjoy my writing. As far as books to recommend, well, I love that question.
A good comprehensive (if you haven't read it) is my Pompeii release of a month ago, "A Day of Fire" - it was co-written with five other authors as a series of interlinked novellas around the last days of Pompeii, so it serves as a good introduction to their styles to see if you want to look up the other things they've written. Ben Kane writes ancient Roman blood-and-battle books; Stephanie Dray has a trilogy on Cleopatra's daughter; Vicky Alvear Shecter has several wonderful YA HF novels; E. Knight has two Tudor novels; Sophie Perinot has a novel of medieval France and England. These authors are all friends, but I can recommend their work without hesitation, or I wouldn't have partnered up with them. Try "A Day of Fire," and it should tell you if their style appeals to you.
As for the authors I do NOT know who I find inspiring, I'd start with Judith Merkle Riley - she was my idol as far as being able to make historical fiction funny, dramatic, action-packed, and romantic. She has six or seven books, all wonderful. My favorite is probably "The Oracle Glass."
Elizabeth Loupas is one of the best currently-writing HF novelists out there right now; three books and counting (two on Renaissance Italy, one with Mary Queen of Scots). All superb.
If you like historical mysteries, the Fiona Buckley series around Elizabethan female sleuth Ursula Blanchard is lovely - funny, historically true to its time, exciting action, and good continuing characters.
If you like the blood-and-battle stuff, Bernard Cornwell is as good as it gets. It's more battle-centric and action-heavy, but he has wonderful poetic prose and great character development; I'd probably start with "The Last Kingdom" as the first of his Viking series.
Stephanie Thornton: kickass women of the ancient world. Start with "The Tiger Queens," about the women of Gengis Khan.
I could go on all day! Hopefully that's enough to start with.
A good comprehensive (if you haven't read it) is my Pompeii release of a month ago, "A Day of Fire" - it was co-written with five other authors as a series of interlinked novellas around the last days of Pompeii, so it serves as a good introduction to their styles to see if you want to look up the other things they've written. Ben Kane writes ancient Roman blood-and-battle books; Stephanie Dray has a trilogy on Cleopatra's daughter; Vicky Alvear Shecter has several wonderful YA HF novels; E. Knight has two Tudor novels; Sophie Perinot has a novel of medieval France and England. These authors are all friends, but I can recommend their work without hesitation, or I wouldn't have partnered up with them. Try "A Day of Fire," and it should tell you if their style appeals to you.
As for the authors I do NOT know who I find inspiring, I'd start with Judith Merkle Riley - she was my idol as far as being able to make historical fiction funny, dramatic, action-packed, and romantic. She has six or seven books, all wonderful. My favorite is probably "The Oracle Glass."
Elizabeth Loupas is one of the best currently-writing HF novelists out there right now; three books and counting (two on Renaissance Italy, one with Mary Queen of Scots). All superb.
If you like historical mysteries, the Fiona Buckley series around Elizabethan female sleuth Ursula Blanchard is lovely - funny, historically true to its time, exciting action, and good continuing characters.
If you like the blood-and-battle stuff, Bernard Cornwell is as good as it gets. It's more battle-centric and action-heavy, but he has wonderful poetic prose and great character development; I'd probably start with "The Last Kingdom" as the first of his Viking series.
Stephanie Thornton: kickass women of the ancient world. Start with "The Tiger Queens," about the women of Gengis Khan.
I could go on all day! Hopefully that's enough to start with.
More Answered Questions
Cintia
asked
Kate Quinn:
Hi, my name is Cintia and I'm from Argentina. Being a writer is what I want the most in this world, nothing makes me happier than writing, but I'm more and more frustrated with each passing day, because I've been blocked for 3 years. And it is not that I have an unfinished story. I have NOTHING AT ALL. A blank page in front of me, that only makes me sadder... Is there a way to overcome this? How do you handle it?
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