Some of my top books of all times:

One Thousand White Women: The Journal of May Dodd -- a fictionalized account of an attempt to "cross breed" Indians and "white women" in the 1800s in an attempt to bring the two cultures together. Fascinating.

Two books by Phillipa Gregory -- The Other Boleyn Girl (a fictionalized account of Anne Boleyn's sister, who was the first one Henry VIII was attracted to), or The Queen's Fool

Pope Joan -- WAS there a female pope back in the 1400s? Rumor has it there was. This is a fictionalized account of how that might have happened and just fascinating.

Second the earlier nomination for The Mermaid's Chair by Sue Monk Kidd, as well as her novel before that, The Secret Life of Bees.

Chloe by Jean Brody -- can be hard to find, but worth your time looking for it.

The Year of Wonders by Geraldine Brooks -- about a small village that chooses to quarantine itself during the Bubonic Plague so it doesn't spread the disease to other village. Told from the point of view of a young, uneducated woman who learns about herb and other natural healing methods and takes care of the sick in the village.