Past or Present?

I finished a book the other day and went on to the next book in my stack. Crown of Dust by Mary Volmer had received good reviews and sounded like an interesting story. A young girl runs away to find her fortune in California during the gold rush, posing as a boy. I just could not get into it. I realized that the author had written it in the present tense and it was really irritating me to read a historical novel written in the present tense. No worries, on to the next book in my little hoard. The Red Queen by Philippa Gregory is another well reviewed book with the added bonus of glowing reviews from other library staff. Just the ticket. I picked up this historical novel about Margaret Beaufort, the matriarch of the Tudor line. Aaaagh! Once again it is written in the present tense, and to top it off it is in the first person singular. I do not like first person singular narratives, just another quirk of mine. So now I am down to the last book in my stack, a modern Gothic novel taking place in the Great Lakes. It is not written in the present tense or first person singular. So far, so good.

What do you think, should a historical novel be written in the past tense? Do you have any quirky reading habits?