Best Historical Fiction Series for 9 and 10 year olds

This bookish round-up is for all readers aged 9 to 90 that love the comforting nostalgia of the past.

Historical fiction is a brilliant genre for a number of reasons: we get to explore customs of the past, find out interesting facts about our favourite periods in time and we can escape to worlds that feel very much distanced from our own tech-filled spaces. But most importantly, historical fiction gives us the opportunity to explore universal feelings and themes that stand the test of time.

Here are our favourite historical fiction series, from murder mysteries to funny, fast-paced adventures for readers aged 9+.

Georgina Atwell

Toppsta

2026-02-07

2024-05-06

Best Historical Fiction Series for 9 and 10 year olds

Historical Animal Stories Series

Winner of the British Book Award for Children's Fiction Book of the Year, Phil Earle's middle grade Historical Animal Stories series will tug at all your heartstrings. While the books' single stories are not interconnected and do not need to be read in any particular order, they do all share one thing in common: animals. Each book set in one of the world wars, and in each book a young protagonist develops a unique bond with an animal. In When the Sky Falls, a young boy called Joseph befriends a gorilla. In While the Storm Rages, Noah goes on the run to save his dog and as many animals as they can... The books continue, featuring bonds forged forever, and showing just how special our relationships with animals can be, defying even war.

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Rosie Raja Series

This is a thrilling and empowering series set during WW2 for all historical fiction lovers aged 9+, with at its centre a determined and brave Muslim heroine. Spanning across the first years of the 1940s, Rosina Raja, our half-Indian and half-English main character, goes on incredible adventures. Moving from India to England, France and even Egypt, electrifying, codebreaking-filled escapades await on her fantastic journeys. With new allies and new enemies at every turn, she must help her father complete his missions, save amazing historical artefacts from the Nazis and work against double-crossers and resistance fighters.

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Hetty Feather Series

Written by bestselling author Jacqueline Wilson and illustrated by Nick Sharratt, the Hetty Feather books are brilliant for children who enjoy stories written in the style of a journal. We love the Victorian setting and the feisty but fragile heroines, from Hetty herself to hard-up Clover Moon and sensitive Rose Rivers, who each face their own individual challenges. You can enjoy the books in any order, but we recommend starting with book 1 to understand Hetty’s story. The Hetty feather series is great for readers 9 and over who love mystery stories and children with an interest in history.

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Scarlet and Ivy Series

Scarlet and Ivy is a fantastic middle-grade historical mystery series set in the 1930s at Rookwood School – a creepy boarding school with plenty of dark secrets. The books follow twin sisters, troublesome Scarlet and quiet Ivy, as they investigate the disturbing mysteries that lurk behind closed doors. You can read the books in any order, but we recommend starting with book one to get the girls’ back story.

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The Sinclair's Mysteries Series

Welcome to Sinclair's department store, where among the bonbons, hats and perfumes flying off the shelves, Miss Sophie Taylor and Miss Lilian Rose are set to solve some mysteries and crack impenetrable codes. Join the dynamic duo as find precious jewels gone missing, unmask villains stealing priceless paintings, and uncover terrible plots that could put everything they love at risk! Using only their wits to dodge forgery, trickery and deceit on all sides, the two girls are the department store's only hope in this delightful cosy mystery quartet for middle graders.

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Taylor and Rose Secret Agents Series

The Sinclair's Mysteries author Katherine Woodfine has another historical cosy mystery series for middle-grade readers we highly recommend. Travel around the world with two young detectives who have turned their talents to espionage. Set in the early 1900s, Taylor and Rose put their heads together to solve some of the most baffling and strange mysteries that take them far away from London and out in the biggest cities of the world to solve crime and sniff out trouble.

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Alice Eclair Series

Get ready to be whisked away on fabulous adventures, full of daring action and delicious cakes with Alice Eclair, our protagonist pastry chef who moonlights as a SPY! Armed with her whisk, her wits and her will to succeed, Alice must catch spies, crack codes and even take to the skies to solve her mystery, one at a time...

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A Girl Called Justice Series

For all readers aged 8+ who have murder on their mind, we've got a nostalgic historical fiction series set in a boarding school. Justice Jones is our super-smart super-sleuth protagonist, attending the Highbury House Boarding School for the Daughters of Gentlefolk. In each book of what is currently a four-part series, she gets to the bottom of a new mystery, whether it involves missing chamber maids, mysterious deaths of elderly First World War pirates or ghost sightings ... all while making friends and getting on with school duties!

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The Butterfly Club Series

Readers aged 9+ should get ready to join a secret time-travelling club with this adventure series set in the late 19th century. It all begins with Luna's aunt's butterfly club. It sounds deathly boring, but soon enough Luna is to discover it's actually a secret society which uses time travel to plunder the future for wonders. Together with her friends Konstantin and Aidan, and a clockwork cuckoo, Luna travels into the future time and time again, saving the wireless radio from drowning with the Titanic, finding Tutankhamun's mummy before it gets into the wrong hands, and even helping the first landing on the moon happen.

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I Survived Series

I Survived is a historical fiction series written by Lauren Tarshis. We highly recommend this to adrenaline-loving readers who love a story where the main character must fight for their life. Each book in this series tells the story of a terrifying and totally true event in history, from natural disasters like volcano eruptions and hurricanes, to tragedies at sea and horrific wars. The books are all told in the POV of a child who actually lived through the event and, indeed, SURVIVED, drawing on real facts from history. Though the books do deal with brutal events, the characters are hopeful, courageous and strong. What we love most about this series is that each book is so exciting, diving into its specific time period so that readers feel encouraged to find out more by researching independently.

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