u/Connect_Assistance65

For context I am 11 months postpartum and most books I start these days I am finding boring. I start a new full time job in September so I want to read a really good series of books before then!

I like most genres: crime, romance, classics, fantasy etc. My husband helpfully points out that I prioritise a gripping storyline over literary writing!

Vibe I am going for: Harry Potter (not the magical school setting specifically, more that feeling of being totally invested in the characters and their world where you’re desperate to know what happens next), Twilight, Hunger Games, Noughts and Crosses, Series of Unfortunate Events.

I have read a lot of the romantasy books but find them samey. Ideas I have so far are the Outlander Series and A Discovery of Witches.

Other books I’ve loved: The Time Traveller’s Wife, Project Hail Mary, I Who Have Never Known Men, The Wedding People, A Grace Year. A series I quite liked was Birthmarked. I found all of these books from Reddit.

I am a quick reader and any recommendations you may have would be very much appreciated!

I had a baby last June and started training properly again from around November. My VO2 max jumped quickly from \~47.5 to \~52.5, which felt great. But it’s plateaued and dipped slightly over the last couple of months, sitting around 51 now.

I’m training for a half marathon in July (hopefully sub 1:35) and doing structured Garmin Coach sessions including intervals. I ran a 5k PB of 20:23 at the weekend and am aiming to run 40-50k per week. Garmin puts my lactate threshold at 4:23/km at 175bpm.

Is the plateau just normal after the initial post-partum adaptation effect wears off? And what actually moved the needle for people? More interval volume, longer aerobic base, something else?​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​