Why am I passionate about this?

I’ve loved history since I was a child and majored in it at university. So it makes sense that historical fiction is my favourite reading genre. It allows me to travel the world during other times. Not only do I learn about places and cultures of other eras, I get to do it through story. And that is like being there. Sprinkle in a bit of fantasy—not so much that I must imagine a make-believe world—but enough to add another layer of interest to the existing one, and the experience becomes that much richer. The historical elements remain true, but the story takes on a new dimension.


I wrote

The Druid and the Dragon

By Kristin Butcher,

Book cover of The Druid and the Dragon

What is my book about?

Maeve is a simple farm girl who daydreams when she should be doing chores. She gets lost in wild imaginings…

Shepherd is reader supported. When you buy books, we may earn an affiliate commission.

The books I picked & why

Book cover of Outlander

Kristin Butcher Why did I love this book?

Like most readers I was immediately drawn into this first book of the series and gobbled it up. On a holiday with her husband in post-WW II Inverness, nurse Claire Randall inadvertently walks through standing stones and is transported to the rugged moors of 18th-century Scotland. Almost immediately she meets young Jamie Fraser, and thus begins one of the greatest adventures and love stories of literature. Unable to return to her own time, Claire is forced to fit in as best she can, and readers experience the culture, people, and politics of the time right along with her. It is fascinating to watch Claire adapt to her situation while applying 20th-century medical and historical knowledge to 18th-century Scotland without altering history.

By Diana Gabaldon,

Why should I read it?

34 authors picked Outlander as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • The first book in Diana Gabaldon’s acclaimed Outlander saga, the basis for the Starz original series.

One of the top ten best-loved novels in America, as seen on PBS’s The Great American Read!
 
Unrivaled storytelling. Unforgettable characters. Rich historical detail. These are the hallmarks of Diana Gabaldon’s work. Her New York Times bestselling Outlander novels have earned the praise of critics and captured the hearts of millions of fans. Here is the story that started it all, introducing two remarkable characters, Claire Beauchamp Randall and Jamie Fraser, in a spellbinding novel of passion and…


Book cover of The Chrysalids

Kristin Butcher Why did I love this book?

This is one of my all-time favourite books. Most classify it as science fiction—of which I’m not a fan—but the author described it as ‘logical fantasy’ when he wrote it in the 1950s, so I’m going with that. The setting is a post-apocalyptic agricultural community in Southwestern Labrador. As a result of nuclear fallout, the chances of breeding true are low, and mutants are weeded out and ostracized to a desolate area known as the Fringes. All fear those who live there. When David and a group of other young people with telepathic abilities are discovered, they have no choice but to flee, and the Fringes is their only option. Though there’s a fantastic element to the story, Wyndham makes you believe it’s possible.

By John Wyndham,

Why should I read it?

9 authors picked The Chrysalids as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

In the community of Waknut it is believed mutants are the products of the Devil and must be stamped out. When David befriends a girl with a slight abnormality, he begins to understand the nature of fear and oppression. When he develops his own deviation, he must learn to conceal his secret.


Book cover of The Crystal Cave

Kristin Butcher Why did I love this book?

I have always been intrigued by Merlin and Arthur Pendragon, and I’ve read everything Mary Stewart has written about them. There is something about castles and kings and magic that is irresistible. It’s all too fantastic to be real—or is it? These are the elusive elements that initially prompted me to attempt writing historical fantasy. This first book of the Arthurian Saga focuses on Merlin’s childhood and emerging gift of sight and places the reader firmly in 5th century Britain. Stewart brings the period to life through her vivid recounting of political treachery, secrets, and inevitable war. The novel is great fun and sets the scene for the introduction of Arthur in the next book.

By Mary Stewart,

Why should I read it?

14 authors picked The Crystal Cave as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

The spellbinding story of Merlin's rise to power.

Vivid, enthralling, absolutely first-class - Daily Mail

So begins the story of Merlin, born the illegitimate son of a Welsh princess in fifth century Britain, a world ravaged by war. Small and neglected, with his mother unwilling to reveal his father's identity, Merlin must disguise his intelligence - and hide his occasional ability to know things before they happen - in order to keep himself safe.

While exploring the countryside near his home, Merlin stumbles across a cave filled with books and papers and hiding a room lined with crystals. It is…


Book cover of The Lovely Bones

Kristin Butcher Why did I love this book?

This is one of the most beautifully written novels I’ve ever read. The author takes a horrendous subject—the brutal murder of teenage Suzie Salmon (based on a real murder) and recounts it in such a way that it becomes a tender story. It takes place from 1973 to 1981 in a small town near Philadelphia. The only fantasy element is that the story is narrated by the victim. She can see her parents and siblings and knows their thoughts and feelings as they search for her killer and struggle to find meaning in their lives after her death. She also provides some insight into where she is since she died. I dare the hardest heart not to be touched by this novel.

By Alice Sebold,

Why should I read it?

9 authors picked The Lovely Bones as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

The internationally bestselling novel that inspired the acclaimed film directed by Peter Jackson.

With an introduction by Karen Thompson Walker, author of The Age of Miracles.

My name was Salmon, like the fish; first name, Susie. I was fourteen when I was murdered on December 6, 1973.

In heaven, Susie Salmon can have whatever she wishes for - except what she most wants, which is to be back with the people she loved on earth. In the wake of her murder, Susie watches as her happy suburban family is torn apart by grief; as her friends grow up, fall in…


Book cover of The Water Dancer

Kristin Butcher Why did I love this book?

This novel is set in the Southern U.S. prior to the Civil War, a time and place I seem drawn to in my reading. Slave Hiram Walker is the illegitimate son of the plantation owner. His mother was sold away when he was young, and though Hiram has a photographic memory, he can’t remember her, a fact that troubles him. Unforeseen circumstances reveal he also has the gift of conduction—an ability to transport himself across great distances, a skill that comes in handy as he escapes and becomes involved in the Underground Railway. The fantasy element aside, this is primarily historical fiction at its finest with multiple storylines that are all eventually resolved. Coates creates a time and place that truly come alive.

By Ta-Nehisi Coates,

Why should I read it?

6 authors picked The Water Dancer as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

THE NEW YORK TIMES #1 BESTSELLER

OPRAH BOOK CLUB PICK

'One of the best books I have ever read in my entire life. I haven't felt this way since I first read Beloved . . .' Oprah Winfrey

Lose yourself in the stunning debut novel everyone is talking about - the unmissable historical story of injustice and redemption that resonates powerfully today

Hiram Walker is a man with a secret, and a war to win. A war for the right to life, to family, to freedom.

Born into bondage on a Virginia plantation, he is also born gifted with a…


Explore my book 😀

The Druid and the Dragon

By Kristin Butcher,

Book cover of The Druid and the Dragon

What is my book about?

Maeve is a simple farm girl who daydreams when she should be doing chores. She gets lost in wild imaginings so often that folk thinks there's something wrong with the girl who sells eggs in the village. But when she meets a Druid seer who claims she has the gift of sight, and then a dragon who tells her she has a role to play in the future of the kingdom, her fate is set. With war on the horizon, Maeve must dig deep within herself to discover who she really is if she is to survive the dangers ahead.

By Maeve's side, readers make their way through Celtic Ireland, rife with dangers and mysteries along a challenging path of adventure, espionage, and self-discovery.

You might also like...

Stormwalker Series Connections In Time Bain's Story Book 1

By S.G. Boudreaux,

Book cover of Stormwalker Series Connections In Time Bain's Story Book 1

S.G. Boudreaux Author Of Earth

New book alert!

Why am I passionate about this?

I've always loved fiction, fantasy, and adventure stories. Growing up in the Star Wars generation, I was seven when A New Hope was released at the theaters. Living in the hollows of West Virginia there weren’t libraries close by, and movies were a great, though seldom, treat. Suggestive material and cursing was not something that we saw in books or movies growing up in a more simple period of time. I still thoroughly enjoy many well-written, clean, books or shows. As an active member of the body of Christ, I now serve with my writing, and hope that kids of all ages can enjoy epic fantasy and adventure books from a clean and wholesome perspective.

S.G.'s book list on clean-reading fantasy with religious undertones

What is my book about?

Finding Family, Discovery, Destiny. This is what nineteen-year-old Bain Brinley is searching for.

In his homeland, far in the mountains, he stepped into what he could only describe as a time-portal and landed in a strange land known as Egypt. Then he falls through another portal during a storm, only to end up in another world known as Harilhia. Here, he soon discovers a creature he knew from home. He was back, but it wasn't Zanchier.

Can he find his family, and figure out what the Creator wanted him to do with time-travel?

Stormwalker Series Connections In Time Bain's Story Book 1

By S.G. Boudreaux,

What is this book about?

Where was he and how did he get here?

Nineteen-year-old Bain Brinley has just inadvertently stepped into a time portal and was deposited into a world like none he had ever seen before. He turned to go back through the portal and back to Zanchier to find his family, only to find the portal gone. Now, Bain must face this strange, new, world without anyone else on whom he can depend.

As he gazes out over the hot, dry, desert climate at the large pyramid shaped structures, he is unsure where to go. He is soon thrust into a strange,…


5 book lists we think you will like!

Interested in murder, murder mystery, and wizards?

Murder 1,032 books
Murder Mystery 542 books
Wizards 98 books