I tend to trust books like The Silver Book when they sound built for regulars who want an inviting recommendation with some personality rather than for everyone in the abstract.
In historical fiction, I keep looking for books that understand bookseller instinct and practical recommendation value and do not settle for bland competence.
If the execution matches the setup, this becomes the kind of recommendation I would pass along quickly and mean it. Farrar, Straus and Giroux has it listed for 11-Nov-2025.