The plains, prairies, and lakes of the Midwest have inspired many authors to write novels set in states like Ohio or Nebraska or everywhere in between.
Pick up one of these novels to visit the frontier of Lake Michigan in the late 1800s or stop by a small town in Illinois or experience a Minnesotan winter. The characters in the books below remind us that the Midwest isn’t “flyover country,” it’s a place where people help one another, work together, and share meaningful stories.
No matter if you’ve lived in the Midwest or always wanted to visit, these are the novels for you!
If you’re participating in the Crazy4Fiction Reading Challenge, pick a book to fulfill the set in a state you haven’t lived in prompt!
The Lumber Baron’s Wife
By Lynn Austin
Michigan
Centuries apart, Hannah and Ashley both move to Michigan to follow their husbands’ career ambitions. In 1873, Hannah is asked by a lumber baron to help his wife, Kate, fit into polite society. But when Kate goes missing, Hannah fears for her safety. In present day, Ashley is captivated by their historic home and a nearby mansion. As she begins to help renovate the mansion, she becomes enthralled by the disappearance of the lumber baron’s wife.
Dear Henry, Love Edith
By Becca Kinzer
Illinois
Edith takes a short-term nursing job in a small Illinois town while waiting for her paperwork to go through for an international humanitarian trip. While there, she agrees to stay at a friend’s uncle’s house, who she thinks is elderly. But unbeknownst to her, Henry isn’t the grumpy old man she thinks he is. And Edith isn’t the elderly widow he assumes she is. While they have different schedules, they exchange letters via the kitchen counter and unknowingly bump into each other around town.
The Baxter series, the Redemption Collection
By Karen Kingsbury
Indiana
The original Baxter Family books begin with the Redemption Collection, set in and around Bloomington, Indiana. In Redemption, Kari Baxter Jacobs is at a crossroads when she discovers her husband is having an affair. In Remember, Ashley Baxter faces heartbreaking decisions in the aftermath of tragedy. In Return, Luke Baxter’s life is turned upside-down after a secret is revealed. In Rejoice, Brooke Baxter faces tremendous loss. And in Reunion, a family reunion brings the Baxter family together and a diagnosis threatens to tear them apart.
The Christensen series
By Susan May Warren
Minnesota
The hockey-loving Christiansen family grew up in Deep Haven, Minnesota. Now the adult children are all looking for love in these romance novels. In Take a Chance on Me, Darek starts falling for Ivy, who has an unexpected connection to the death of his first wife. When her younger brother is injured in a pro-hockey accident in It Had to Be You, Eden reluctantly teams up with the bad boy captain Jace to help. Grace visits Hawaii on a cooking retreat, only to be partnered with her brother’s hockey teammate, Max, in When I Fall in Love. Casper, an archaeologist, comes home to Deep Haven to confess his true feelings for Raina, only to be met with a surprise in Always on My Mind. In The Wonder of You, Amelia is shocked when Roark, the man who broke her heart, follows her across the Atlantic for a second chance. And in You’re the One That I Want, Owen’s chance at love with his ship captain’s daughter Scotty might be over before it starts when his past catches up with him.
Just Look Up
By Courtney Walsh
Michigan
Lane returns home to Harbor Pointe, Michigan, after her brother is in an accident. There, she reconnects with Ryan, a veteran working on a revitalization project for the town. But issues from their pasts come back to jeopardize their relationship.
Until Then
By Cindy Woodsmall and Erin Woodsmall
Ohio
When Celeste finds her husband Vin’s drawings, she knows they could be shunned from their Old Order Amish community in Ohio. After a fight between the two, Vin vanishes, leaving Celeste to wonder if he chose art over his family. But Vin mysteriously wakes up in 1822, saved by the kindness of strangers. Separated by time, Vin is desperate to find a way to get back to his family.
The Deep Haven series
By Susan May Warren
Minnesota
Susan May Warren explores the town of Deep Haven, Minnesota, where the Christiansen family also lives, with these six romance novels. In Happily Every After, Mona hires handyman Joe to help fix her bookstore-coffee shop. In The Perfect Match, sparks fly between interim fire chief Ellie and volunteer firefighter Dan. Anne and Noah must face the past Anne left behind in Tying the Knot. In My Foolish Heart, Issy and Caleb are next door rivals who unknowingly fall for each other over the radio. An accident erases part of Noelle’s memory and husband Eli tries to make her fall in love with him all over again in The Shadow of Your Smile. Nathan must come to terms with a secret his wife Annalise has been hiding for twenty years in You Don’t Know Me.
Before I Wake
By Dee Henderson
Illinois
The sheriff of Justice, Illinois, is hunting a killer. Women visiting town are being murdered; they go to sleep and never wake up. When a new detective arrives in town to work the case on behalf of the victims, the sheriff is not happy. But they’ll have to work together when it looks like the new detective could be the next victim.
The Sisters of Sugarcreek
By Cathy Ligget
Ohio
The day a fire burned down the Faith Community Church changed the small town of Sugarcreek, Ohio. Amish widow Lydia struggles with what life looks like now without her husband. Single mom Jessica is determined to keep her aunt’s knitting shop open, despite not knowing how to knit. And Liz lost the friend who helped her with an anonymous gift-giving society. These three women will form an unlikely friendship in the aftermath of the tragedy.
The Brotherhood
By Jerry B. Jenkins
Illinois
Boone Drake is a Chicago police officer on track for the Organized Crime Division. But when his personal life is destroyed and his career is in jeopardy, Boone buries himself in bitterness. Then Boone comes face-to-face with a vicious gang leader and his outlook on life begins to change.
All for a Song
By Allison Pittman
Missouri
A trip to St. Louis, Missouri, will change Dorothy Lynn Dunbar’s life forever. During the Roaring Twenties, Dorothy Lynn has her life planned out, down to marrying the pastor taking over her father’s pulpit. But when she visits St. Louis and discovers a whole new way of life and a charismatic evangelist, she wonders if there’s something more for her than she’d planned.
John 3:16
By Nancy Moser
Nebraska
For a small Nebraska town, one sign will change everything. Roman’s life revolves around his son, Billy, a college football hero. But when someone holds up a sign at a college football game, Roman and four other people will have their lives turned upside down by one simple message: John 3:16.
Before I Saw You
By Amy K. Sorrells
Indiana
Set in a small Indiana town ravaged by the heroin epidemic, Before I Saw You centers around Jaycee Givens. Jaycee is hiding an unplanned pregnancy from the baby’s abusive father while she works at the local diner. While she has a group of friends as close as family, Jaycee faces choices about the safety of her unborn baby that will have long-lasting consequences.
A Dangerous Silence
By Catherine Palmer
Kansas
Dr. Marah Morgan returns home to Cowley County, Kansas, to take care of her injured, estranged father. After she reluctantly agrees to take care of the family farm, she discovers a mysterious farmhand and a crew claiming to be looking for Indian remains on the land. Marah tries to get to the bottom of her suspicions while uncovering secrets from the past.
