Historical fiction has rampaged across bestseller lists, with diverse and imaginative writing in 2007. During the year, I had the pleasure of meeting John Wilcox, one of the growing crop of Empire novelists who has made Africa his throne. Since his publication of The Horns of the Buffalo, about the Zulu War, he has had a horde of fans.

After breaking away for a sortie into Afghanistan, his latest book, Last Stand at Majuba Hill (Headline, £19.99), tackles another spy mission, this time in the first Boer War. Wilcox's feel for the territory is masterly, his popularity deriving from describing heroic deeds amid tragedy in unsentimental prose.

Former cavalry officer Allan Mallinson's soldier hero Matthew Hervey has taken the world by storm in nine novels set in the post-Napoleon era. The latest, Man of War (Bantam Press, £17.99) is as much about fighting sail (the campaign to free the Greeks from Turkish rule) as affairs of the heart. Mallinson's military world, centred on Hervey's campaigns, is not only authentic, but offers a wealth of danger and intrigue described with intelligence.

A rare exploration into cultural differences suffuses the trilogy of Thalassa Ali. I have just finished the third and last - an epic experience - from an author steeped in knowledge of Afghanistan and Pakistan. Companions of Paradise (Review, paperback £7.99) drew me to it through its association with the British retreat from Kabul in 1842, but within this tragic background lies an unforgettable romance. Ali is extremely good on Afghan society, its honour and cruelty. Describing one of the greatest colonial disasters in British history, this is a book to respect.

Detectives enthral on many levels and recently have invaded the arenas of Rome and Russia. But how about Istanbul and an attempt to revive the Byzantine Empire? Jason Goodwin, who set a remarkable precedent with The Janissary Tree and the eunuch investigator Yashim, continues along the labyrinthine highways of the Ottoman capital with The Snake Stone (Faber, £9.99). Once again there are murders within the realm of political reform and Goodwin is truly excellent in his recreation of the enigmatic atmosphere of the Bosphorous.

Other novels that inspired in 2007 include The Poisoner of Ptah by Paul Doherty (Headline, £19.99), the sixth in his series about Ancient Egypt dealing with murderous events in Thebes; Blood Rock by James Jackson (John Murray, £11.99), concerning the siege of Malta in 1565, when the Knights of St John fought the overwhelming might of the Ottoman Empire; Blood Red, White Snow by Marcus Sedgwick (Orion, £9.99), a spy thriller beautifully set in Russia on the eve of Revolution; and Nefertiti by Michelle Morgan ( Quercus, £12.99), another story set in Egypt, telling how the dangerous radiance of this female Pharoah affected her nation and dynasty.