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HISTORICAL FICTION

You might not be able to remember Henry VIII and all his wives, but if you enjoy historical fiction, have a go at this quiz and test your knowledge. All the answers can be found on the 'historical fiction' compass...

 

 Question 1.
Which of Peter Ackroyd's books is a 'version' of Chaucer, set in 14th century London and opening with Sister Clarisse's story?

Dan Leno and the Limehouse Golem

Chatterton

The Clerkenwell Tales

The Lambs of London

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 Question 2.
In Beryl Bainbridge's 2001 novel According to Queeney, which famous historical man of letters is a central character?

Alexander Pope

John Dryden

Samuel Johnson

Charles Lamb

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 Question 3.
Which novel by Susannah Clarke, set in the nineteenth century, centres around the myth of the magical Raven King?

Jonathan Norrell & Mr Strange

Mr Norrell & Jonathan Strange

Strange Norell & Mr Jonathan

Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell

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 Question 4.
Who wrote the novel The Siege, a harrowing fictionalised account of the siege of Leningrad during the Second World War?

Helen Dunmore

Jennifer Donnelly

Anita Desai

Sarah Dunant

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 Question 5.
Which of Louis de Bernieres' novels is set in Anatolia in the dying days of the Ottoman Empire?

Captain Corelli's Mandolin

Birds Without Wings

The War of Don Emmanuel's Nether Parts

The Troublesome Offspring of Cardinal Guzman

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 Question 6.
Who wrote The Crimson Petal and the White, a Victorian pastiche which sees London through the eyes of a prostitute called Sugar?

Robert Edric

Sarah Waters

Daniel Mason

Michel Faber

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 Question 7.
Which novel by Barbara Kingsolver is told in the voices of the wife and four daughters of Nathan Price, a fierce evangelical Baptist who takes his family and mission to the Belgian Congo in 1959?

The Poisonous Bible

The Poisonwood Bible

The Pompous Bible

The Pointless Bible

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 Question 8.
Philippa Gregory's book The Constant Princess imagines the life of which historical figure?

Katherine of Aragon

Catherine The Great

Ann of Cleeves

Ann Boleyn

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 Question 9.
In which novel by Rohinton Mistry do the gathering clouds of the Indo-Pakistan War start to impinge on the lives of Gustad Noble, a Bombay doctor, and his family?

Such a Long Journey

A Fine Balance

Family Matters

The Glass Palace

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 Question 10.
Who wrote the novel Labyrinth, set in 1209, when a young girl is given a mysterious book by her father, which he claims contains the secret of the true Grail?

Hilary Mantel

Joanne Harris

Kate Mosse

Pat Barker

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