A detailed study of an increasingly popular genre, this book offers readings of a group of significant and representative works, drawing on a range of interpretative strategies to examine the ways in which the contemporary historical novel engages with questions of nation and identity to illuminate Britain's post-imperial condition.
Introduction: The Novel of History 1969-2005 Tradition and Renewal The Romance of the Past Empire and the Politics of Representation Political Engagement and the Romance of Withdrawal Conclusion: Fictions of the Garden Bibliography Index