A sequence of 20 novels, published between 1871 and 1893. The cycle, described in a subtitle as The Natural and Social History of a Family Under the Second Empire, is a documentary of French life as seen through the lives of the violent Rougon family and the passive Macquarts. [Britannica]

Zola's recommended reading order.

Some novels have the same characters, but they're standalone and can be read in any order (although many recommend starting with The Fortune of the Rougons and finishing with Doctor Pascal as a nice beginning and end to the history).

No time limit!