Novels

Tamil literature has a really long history of novels. We are talking about 150 plus years of writing, from the very first Tamil novel published in 1879 (which was Pratapa Mudaliar Charitram by Mayuram Vedanayagam Pillai), all the way to today's bestsellers.

If you are looking for a specific kind of Tamil novel, you can browse by author or genre using the menu. But if you want to just explore, this main novels page is a good starting point. You will find romance, family drama, historical fiction, thrillers, social novels and a lot more.

Tamil novels are not just one style. Here are some you will find in our collection:

• Romance and family novels by authors like Ramanichandran, Sujatha, Mythili Sampath
• Historical fiction by Kalki Krishnamurthy, Sandilyan, Akilan and others
• Crime and detective stories from Rajesh Kumar (more than 1500 titles)
• Social novels by Jayakanthan, Indra Soundar Rajan, Balakumaran
• Modern literary fiction by Perumal Murugan, B Jeyamohan

If you have not tried Tamil novels before, romance and crime are the easiest to start with because the writing is fast and you get pulled in quickly.

Some Tamil novels have become so famous that even people who don't read regularly have heard of them. Ponniyin Selvan by Kalki Krishnamurthy is probably the biggest example, especially after the movie. Sila Nerangalil Sila Manithargal by Jayakanthan won the Sahitya Akademi award. Sandilyan's historical novels like Kadal Pura and Yavana Rani are also very loved.

From recent times, books like Velpari by Su. Venkatesan and the works of Perumal Murugan have a strong reader base.

Tamil books are not always easy to find, especially if you live outside Tamil Nadu. Many older books are out of print. Some bookshops only stock newer titles. And shipping Tamil books abroad costs a lot. Reading online or downloading PDFs solves most of these problems.

You can carry a whole library on your phone. You can read on the bus, at lunch break, or before bed.