Books like The Greenlanders by Jane Smiley

A historical novel set in the 12th century, focusing on the building of a cathedral and the surrounding community's fortunes amidst historical events of the time.

Nathaniel Philbrick's 2000 National Book Award winner chronicles the harrowing ordeal of the Essex whale ship crew that survived a near-sinking and subsequent harrowing journey on the ocean's surface.

Giovanni Boccaccio's Decameron is a 14th‑century collection of 100 Italian tales told by ten young people who flee the plague‑ravaged Florence to a villa in Fiesole, each day presenting stories framed by a rule and a closing canzone.

Four young children discover a mysterious letter buried by a knight during a mass killing in the woods in 1327, but its secrets threaten the future of their lives and the kingdom of England.

In 12th‑century Scotland, warrior Lord Lion—knighted for his bravery—faces a ransom in a Viking bride, Mellyora MacAdin, whose fierce independence and hidden past test his loyalty and desire.

In seventh‑century Britain, the powerful but ruthless King Edwin schemes for an Anglian empire. Hild, his brilliant youngest niece and a prophetess, watches the court’s violence while navigating her prophetic gifts and her bloodline’s destiny.

A newly ordained priest sails to Greenland in 1787 to evangelise the Inuit, but he finds himself entangled in a community of dissenters, a starving trader’s wife, and a fatalistic widow, all of whom test his faith.

Set in a 12th‑13th‑century French castle, Argile follows a noble couple as they navigate court life and the upheavals of the Second and Third Crusades.

Barry Holstun Lopez: “Arctic Dreams; Imagination and Desire in a Northern Landscape” ( 1986) This is an account of the author's exploration of the Western Arctic region, between Bering Strait and Davis Strait. It is an account both of the natural history of the Arctic, and equally of how the Arctic grips the human spirit and imagination. The chapters are rich in their descriptions of the Arctic –of the physical land itself, the native peoples that the author met, the Arctic animals and plants, both terrestrial and aquatic, the ice and the Arctic light that make the region so distinctly different from the temperate and tropical parts of Earth. But Lopez also gives us a sense of how the Arctic fascinates the mind and spirit – through his own personal experiences and through the history of the Arctic - both of the native peoples and the discovery expeditions.

Through the eyes of Henry IV’s youngest son, John of Lancaster, Georgette Heyer portrays the turbulence of late‑14th‑century England, blending court intrigue, warfare, and the personal ambitions of a youthful prince.

Set in 1187 Jerusalem, the novel follows Knight Rannulf Fitzwilliam as he witnesses the clash of Crusader politics, religious fervor, and the looming threat of Saladin while intertwined with King Baudouin’s fragile reign and Princess Sybilla’s defiant claim.

The story follows Picture Maker, an Inuit woman who, after being taken from her tribe, faces the long journey north and ultimately becomes the bride of Halvard.

In medieval Prior Byfield, plague and famine grip the village while a twisted web of adultery, crime, and intrigue threatens its inhabitants. Nuns Sister Frevisse and Sister Thomasine investigate the betrayal that endangers the nunnery and the community.