The Women
Kristin Hannah
A young American nurse serves in Vietnam and struggles to be seen when she comes home.
Cold War · Late 20th century · Military & war · Family saga
Cold War · Military & war · ~1945–1991
Cold War military & war historical fiction books
Looking for historical fiction in the military & war lane set during the Cold War (~1945–1991)? Cold War military & war historical fiction books collects historical novels that match both filters—Spies, partition, civil rights, decolonization. Battles, home fronts, and wartime lives HisFic is a free historical fiction discovery app: open a full reading journey with the same era and story-type filters, then add region, themes, or audience. Shelves mix curated historical fiction picks with Open Library titles so even thin combinations still have books to explore.
Shelf · 12 titles
Curated HisFic picks first, plus Open Library fills for this era + story type.
The Rose Code
Kate Quinn
In 1940 three women—society girl Osla, East End clerk Mab, and shy Beth—are recruited to Bletchley Park to break German codes, then torn apart by secrecy and betrayal. In 1947 an encrypted letter pulls them back together to hunt a traitor still hiding in the rose code—World War II historical fiction of friendship, cryptanalysis, and a postwar reckoning.
World War II era · Cold War · Time-slip · Mystery
The Alice Network
Kate Quinn
In 1947 a pregnant American college student hunts for a missing Frenchwoman and collides with Eve Gardiner, a damaged veteran of a real World War I spy ring. Dual timelines braid the Alice Network’s 1915 missions in occupied France with a postwar reckoning.
World War I era · Cold War · Time-slip · Military & war
A Dangerous Friend
Ward Just
American idealism collides with Vietnam’s reality (SAH Prize co-winner 2001).
Cold War · Literary · Military & war
In the Lake of the Woods
Tim O'Brien
A politician’s marriage unravels under the shadow of Vietnam (SAH Prize 1995).
Cold War · Late 20th century · Literary · Mystery
Matterhorn
Karl Marlantes
Marines fight for a hill in Vietnam—brutal, unforgettable (SAH Prize 2011).
Cold War · Military & war · Literary
Tightrope
Simon Mawer
A female SOE agent’s wartime courage and Cold War aftershocks (Walter Scott Prize 2016).
World War II era · Cold War · Literary · Military & war
Prentice Hall Literature--Timeless Voices, Timeless Themes--The American Experience
Kate Kinsella
alcoholism · baptism · Classic Literature · Cold War
Civil War · Victorian / Gilded Age · Military & war · Literary · Open Library
Plays (All My Sons / Crucible / Death of a Salesman / Memory of Two Mondays / View from the Bridge)
Arthur Miller
fiction classics · historical fiction · witchcraft trials · trials
World War I era · World War II era · Military & war · Literary · Open Library
Prentice Hall Literature--The American Experience
Nance Davidson
freedom · selfhood · self-fulfilment · meaning of love
Civil War · Victorian / Gilded Age · Military & war · Literary · Open Library
The Portable Arthur Miller
Arthur Miller
Literary Collections · Literary Criticism · fiction classics · historical fiction
World War I era · World War II era · Military & war · Literary · Open Library
Collected Plays 1944-1961 (All My Sons / Crucible / Death of a Salesman / Enemy of the People / Man Who Had All the Luck / Memory of Two Mondays / Misfits / View from the Bridge)
Arthur Miller
plays · fiction classics · literary criticism · historical fiction
World War I era · World War II era · Military & war · Literary · Open Library
Other story types in Cold War
Looking for a broader list? See Cold War historical fiction or military & war historical fiction.