The Best Novels Set in Europe for Arts-loving Travelers
I'm Carol Cram, novelist and arts travel writer, and founder of Art In Fiction, a curated database of 2,700+ novels inspired by the arts. Artsy Traveler contains affiliate links for products and services I personally use and recommend. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. Please read the Disclosure for more information.
Do you enjoy reading novels set in the countries you visit? I know I do. There is nothing quite like ending a day of sightseeing by opening a book that deepens your connection to the places you have explored.
This list brings together ten arts-inspired novels set across Europe, chosen for their strong sense of place and their connection to art, music, architecture, and literature.
From cathedral towns and artist studios to cultural capitals shaped by creativity, these novels invite readers to experience Europe through story.
Ideal for travel reading or armchair journeys, these books pair beautifully with European itineraries and reward readers who love culture-rich travel.
Table of Contents
Novels Set in England
Entertaining Mr Pepys by Deborah Swift
Entertaining Mr Pepys is the third novel in Deborah Swift’s “Women of Pepys’ Diary” series. All three novels are worth taking along if you are spending time in London and want a fascinating glimpse of what life was like in the 1660s. Famed diarist Samuel Pepys is at the center all three novels (Pleasing Mr Pepys and A Plague on Mr Pepys), each following a different woman who knew Samuel and was mentioned in his diary.
In Entertaining Mr Pepys, the actress Elizabeth (Bird) Carpenter takes center stage as she navigates the world of the theater when women were finally allowed on stage as actresses. If you enjoy impeccably researched historical novels with plenty of intrigue, then the “Women of Pepys’ Diary” series is for you.
The Lost Book of the Grail by Charlie Lovett
While traveling in England, plan on touring some of its awesome cathedrals (don’t miss York Minster, Salisbury Cathedral, and Durham Cathedral—just three of my faves!) and then settle down with The Lost Book of the Grail. The setting is an ancient cathedral in the fictional town of Barchester. Flashback chapters open with succinct descriptions of cathedral areas that I found fascinating, such as cloisters, the nave, chapels, and more.
Through a series of clever flashbacks, Lovett navigates the history of the cathedral from its founding by a martyred saint through the Norman invasion, Reformation, Civil War, Victorian era, World War II, and modern times. The plot’s twists and turns provide enough mystery to make the denouement both surprising and satisfying.
If you would like to explore more fiction set in England, take a look at my dedicated post on novels set in England for arts-loving travelers, where I share additional recommendations inspired by art, culture, and place.
Novels Set in France
Drawing Lessons by Patricia Sands
Are you taking a trip to Provence? Then take along Drawing Lessons, a delicious novel set in Arles that follows a woman’s quest to redefine herself after the death of her husband. Patricia Sands evokes the sensuous delights of Provence so beautifully that you’ll feel like you are there.
And if, indeed, you are there, you’ll have the sights and smells that surround you confirmed in the story.
The Paris Hours by Alex George
This is the novel to read when you’re spending time in Paris. The Paris Hours tells the stories of four “ordinary” people during one day in Paris in 1927. Along the way, they encounter an extraordinary panoply of luminaries including Hemingway, Proust, Picasso, Gertrude Stein, Ravel, Josephine Baker, and even Sylvia Beach, the proprietor of Paris’s most famous English bookstore, Shakespeare & Company.
Alex George brings the ambience, and the people, of Paris to life as he takes readers through streets and parks they can still walk through today. Surprises and twists abound in one of the most cleverly plotted and exquisitely written novels I’ve read in a long while.
If you would like to explore more fiction set in France, take a look at my dedicated post on novels set in France for arts-loving travelers, where I share additional recommendations inspired by art, culture, and place.
Novels Set in Germany
And After the Fire by Lauren Belfer
I am a huge fan of the music of Johann Sebastian Bach (check out my visit to the Bach Museum in Leipzig) and so And After the Fire was the novel for me. It tells the fascinating story of a lost Bach manuscript with a disturbing message. The story spans over two hundred years, from Berlin in the 18th century through the Holocaust to New York in contemporary times.
Inspired by historical events, the compelling narrative of this deeply researched and evocative novel resonates with emotion and immediacy.
Chasing the Wind by C. C. Humphreys
Heading for Berlin? Take along Chasing the Wind, a rollicking good adventure that mixes a Bruegel masterpiece, a female aviator, espionage, and the 1936 Berlin Olympics. It’s a page-turner, so make sure you’ve finished your sightseeing for the day before reading it, lest you decide to stay in your hotel room and read rather than go out to sample Berlin’s many museums (check out Booming Berlin: Your Artsy Guide for suggestions about what to do during a three-day visit to Berlin).
If you would like to explore more fiction set in Germany, take a look at my dedicated post on novels set in Germany for arts-loving travelers, where I share additional recommendations inspired by art, culture, and place.
Novels Set in Italy
Raphael, Painter in Rome by Stephanie Storey
No trip to Rome is complete without experiencing the art of Raphael, Michelangelo and da Vinci. And the perfect novels to accompany you is Raphael, Painter in Rome by Stephanie Storey, and her other novel Oil and Marble. Both chronicle the lives of three of the most renowned artists in Western Europe: Raphael in Raphael, Painter in Rome and Michelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci in Oil and Marble.
Even in the 21st century, there are parts of old Rome in which only a small leap of the imagination is needed to be transported back to the Renaissance when intrigue lurked around every corner and the smell of oil paint was heavy in the air. Raphael. Painter in Rome takes readers deep into the heart of a Rome that may be long gone but still lingers in the imagination after dark.
If you would like to explore more fiction set in Italy, take a look at my dedicated post on novels set in Italy for arts-loving travelers, where I share additional recommendations inspired by art, culture, and place.
Novels Set in The Netherlands
Girl with a Pearl Earring by Tracy Chevalier
One of the things I love about touring the Netherlands is how the light often reminds me of an Old Master painting. One of the most famous is Vermeer’s Girl with a Pearl Earring. So, the perfect read for fans of his work is the novel of the same name by Tracy Chevalier. Set in 17th-century Delft, Girl with a Pearl Earring is a richly-imagined portrait of the young woman who inspired the painting.
I love how Chevalier seamlessly merges history and fiction in this and many of her other novels set in Europe, including The Lady and the Unicorn (14th-century France), Burning Bright (late 18th-century London), Falling Angels (early 20th-century London), A Single Thread (1930s England), and Remarkable Creatures (early 19th-century England).
If you would like to explore more fiction set in the Netherlands, take a look at my dedicated post on novels set in the Netherlands for arts-loving travelers, where I share additional recommendations inspired by art, culture, and place.
Novels Set in Spain
The Return by Victoria Hislop
I picked up a copy of The Return in a second-hand bookstore while wandering the back streets of Antibes seeking shade at the height of the 2019 heat wave (la canicule, as the French called it). It was the perfect novel to read while traveling west into Spain. It takes place both in the present and during the Spanish Civil War, a time in history about which I knew very little.
The story of a flamenco guitar player (a tocaor) and a flamenco dancer (a bailaora) who fall in love in 1930s Granada and are separated during the terrible excesses of the Spanish Civil War will stay with you long after you leave Spain.
The Miramonde Trilogy by Amy Maroney
For a book lover, few things are more enchanting than enjoying a novel and then discovering that it’s the first in a trilogy. I had that experience after reading The Girl from Oto, the first offering in Amy Maroney’s trilogy about a female artist in Renaissance Spain, the other two novels being Mira’s Way and A Place in the World. I read all three not long after I traveled through the Pyrenees where much of the story takes place.
Amy Maroney brings the region to life wonderfully—its wildlife and independent mountain people, the sweeping landscapes and harsh weather, and the turbulent history during the time when King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella were on the throne.
If you would like to explore more fiction set in Spain, take a look at my dedicated post on novels set in Spain for arts-loving travelers, where I share additional recommendations inspired by art, culture, and place.
Frequently Asked Questions About Novels Set in Europe
The best novels for arts-loving readers are those that combine a strong sense of place with themes related to art, music, architecture, or literature. Many are historical or dual-time novels that explore Europe’s cultural heritage.
Yes. Many of these novels are especially rewarding to read while traveling, as they reference real cities, landmarks, and cultural traditions that readers can experience firsthand.
Not at all. While historical fiction is popular for its rich settings, contemporary and dual-time novels can be just as immersive and often offer fresh perspectives on European places.
England, France, Italy, Spain, Germany, and the Netherlands are frequent settings, particularly for novels connected to art, history, and cultural life.
Yes. Each country featured here has a dedicated post with additional arts-inspired novel recommendations for travelers who want to explore specific regions more deeply.
Keep on reading!
Reading novels set across Europe is a wonderful way to deepen your connection to the places you visit, or hope to visit one day. These arts-inspired stories bring history, creativity, and a strong sense of place together, making them ideal companions for travel or thoughtful armchair reading.
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Carol M. Cram writes novels inspired by the arts; runs Artsy Traveler, an arts-focused travel blog, and Art In Fiction, a curated database of 2,700+ novels inspired by the arts; and hosts The Art In Fiction Podcast. She has also authored 60+ textbooks on computer applications and taught at Capilano University for over two decades. Carol lives with her husband, artist Gregg Simpson, on beautiful Bowen Island near Vancouver, BC.
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Thank you for including my book on this fantastic list! I’ll be reading the others that I haven’t discovered yet. My list has just expanded!!
Hi Deborah – My pleasure! I always enjoy your books and must get started on your novels set in Renaissance Italy!