My recent favorite genre is “unhinged women who may or may not realize they are unhinged”. I’ve really enjoyed “Best Offer Wins” (Marisa Kashino), “Boring Asian Female” (Canwen Xu), “A Good Person” (Kirsten King), and “Make Me Famous” (Maud Ventura). What should be my next delightfully disturbing read?
We're doing a big international trip with our two small kids, and we're going to TRY to set an example for our kids by not just being glued to our phones for hours at a time while we're on planes and trains.
He loved the TV series Station Eleven, Silo, and The Expanse. I've thought about just choosing the book of one of these.
As an edgy teen boy, he read a lot of Kurt Vonnegut.
He read Piranesi on a plane a few years ago and liked it.
He's snobby and hard to impress, but I need something very easy to read, as it will be hard to focus under the circumstances.
I am looking for near-future political or institutional fiction that feels too close instead of too big.
Not laser-gun dystopia. More like bureaucracy, money, media, universities, agencies, committees, and polite public language covering up ugly incentives.
Satire is welcome if it still has real narrative stakes. Thriller pace is a plus.
What books fit that lane?
Looking for non fiction that reads like a mystery or other deep dives into lesser known history. Really loved how killers of the flower moon reads and I plan on checking out the rest of David Grann’s work.
Edit:
Thank you everyone for the suggestions! I'll be adding the ones you suggested as I'd like her to have a massive library. I also will be adding libby and maybe kindle unlimited so I can remotely add more books for her!!!
Hi everyone!
I recently bought my 79yo grandmother a kindle and I'm looking for books to add to it. She likes mysteries and thrillers. However, she doesn't mind any other genres either. I've added a few to her kindle such as:
Thank you so much in advance.
My dad passed away a week ago unexpectedly and I’m feeling pretty flat. On the go at the moment are Things In Nature Merely Grow, One Of Us: The story of Anders Breivik, and The Hundred Years’ War On Palestine - so as you can see I could use some balancing humour…
I don’t mind fiction or non fiction.
Ones that have made me laugh before:
- A Walk In The Woods
- Sorrow And Bliss (also made me cry)
- Why Can’t I Just Enjoy Things
- Anne Of Green Gables
- All Creatures Great And Small
… apparently not many. Send me your funniest! 🙏🏻
I’m about to work a 12 and a half hour shift and I need something to listen to. All genres welcome! I like a little bit of everything. Scary, mystery, thriller, romance, fantasy etc. it helps me stay awake for a long shift. My only preference is that it’s fiction. Please and thank you!
Jack Kerouac - On The Road
Oscar Wilde - The Picture of Dorian Gray
Chuck Palahniuk - Fight Club
anyone who’s familiar with all 3 might suspect a running theme
thank you !
I am taking a trip to the Cape soon, and I would love to have some reading material that fits the scenery (think coastal, lighthouses, beaches, or sea voyages located around the northeast or even Europe). Any genre is welcome but I prefer fiction, contemporary or classic, romance, thriller, maybe horror. Definitely like a moody story focused on the complexities of the human condition.
For reference, authors I like:
Sally Rooney
Margaret Atwood
Albert Camus
Stephen King
Barbara Kingsolver
Books I like:
Intermezzo
Normal People
The Edible Woman
Pride and Prejudice
MadAddam Series
Alas, Babylon
The Unbearable Lightness of Being
Silo Series
The Plague
Dandelion Wine
Library at Mount Char
Lost in the Garden
Frankenstein
House of Leaves
I’m looking for a fantasy novel where the main character is important to the story, but not the center of the universe. I want that Hobbit-like feeling of a small person moving through a huge, mysterious world full of powers, histories, and conflicts beyond them. Ideally something readable, adventurous, and not too dense.
Can anyone recommend a fantasy book where the protagonist feels small within a vast, living world, someone swept into events bigger than themselves, with a sense of wonder, danger, and scale, but without the prose being too dense or the story becoming grimdark?
Bullet point version:
Hi I am tryna find some good YA book recs. The genre does not matter to me i read everything from Deep Psychological thrillers to romance my only request is no spice, little to no innuendos, no strong language (no F word used more than once or B word) I have already read/own all of the hunger games, maze runner, just friends, the giver, my favorite color is your something blue, the count of monte cristo, hatchet, out of my mind, and then there were none, murder on the orient express, the death and life of superman. (sorry for the typos thanks for the help!)
It could be fiction or nonfiction, but ideally very engaging and well-written.
Just had a major set back my career, a very competitive field, and I’m having a hard time to find motivation to keep putting so much effort as it’s required
so i’m not that big of a reader at all, but i’m extremely interested in philosophy and i would like to deepen my knowledge in it through books. i just bought thus spoke zarathustra by Nietzsche and im only three pages in and its very confusing — but very interesting. i think i went to ahead into the more complex books and i would like to keep reading this one but i feel like i should get my basics down before diving into ones like these. do you guys have any recommendations?
Just for background information. I have read several Grady Hendrix books, and I'm not the hugest fan of his work. Something about the way he writes doesn't do it for me.
Other books I have read:
September House - liked this one mostly until the ending
A Head Full of Ghosts - this one I really enjoyed
Diavola - this one was a DNF. Let me know if it gets better.
The Last House on Needless street - I was super confused most of this book. The ending was okay.
The Haunting of Gillespie House - I don't remember much of this one, but I believe I enjoyed the short story at the end of it more.
Middle of The Night - this one kept me on my toes
I Was a Teenage Slasher - I DNF'ed this one. I just couldn't. Maybe gory isn't my thing.
Mexican Gothic - This one was okay. Had a weird premise
La Hacienda - I liked this one a lot. Much more than Mexican gothic.
We Used to Live here - I'm going to be honest. I didn't get this one. I know there's supposed to be different timelines or whatever, it just makes it confusing. Then there's supposedly an ARG? It just felt like it did too much.
The Sun Down Motel - I liked this one a lot, until the very ending. It felt like a let down tbh.
The Guest List - this one I enjoyed quite a bit, and the ending was a bit sad. Still think about this one.
Wrong Place Wrong Time - I don't this counts as suspense/thriller or horror. I enjoyed it for the most part, when they tried to explain time travel or w/e it lost focus I feel.
Haunting of Hill House - I enjoyed it. Entirely different from the show, but for being written 60 years ago it holds up.
Hidden Pictures - this one I will say has kind of a sad/cute ending. I enjoyed the suspense of it.
Home Before Dark - the ending pissed me off so much with this book.
Pet Sematary - I didn't find this one scary, but I was kind of grossed out with the descriptions. I guess that is what Stephen King is known for, his disturbing writing. I enjoyed it nonetheless. I haven't read any of his other books.
I have some books I'm thinking of reading, I'm just in a reading slump.
-strange picture
-strange houses
-Stephen kings on writing and different seasons
-slewfoot (I keep dnf'ing and idk why)
But I feel like I want more of a truly scary haunted house story. More paranormal in a sense I guess. I was also reading a lot of romantasy for a while.
Hey everyone,
I’m in my early 20s and honestly feel like I’m at rock bottom. Lonely, broke, unhealthy, dealing with strong social anxiety and an inferiority complex that makes me scared of almost everything. My dreams of becoming a content creator, traveling the world, and helping people feel like they’re slipping away. I have insane procrastination and laziness — I even pay for a gym subscription every month but never go. My attention span is terrible right now; reading a book feels like my brain is exploding after a few pages.
I know I need to fix myself — build discipline, beat procrastination, improve my mental health, regain confidence, and actually start taking action toward my goals. But I don’t know where to begin.
I’m looking for book recommendations that helped you with:
• Procrastination & building habits/discipline (especially when motivation is gone)
• Depression and negative self-talk
• Social anxiety & inferiority complex
• Rebuilding focus and attention span
• Motivation for creative work (like content creation)
• Overall self-improvement for young guys feeling lost
If you’ve been in a similar place and a specific book actually helped you move forward, please drop the title and a quick reason why it worked for you. Any other advice is also welcome, but books are what I’m focusing on right now.
Thank you — really appreciate any suggestions. Feels good just writing this out.
Howdy gang, my wife got me a kindle for my birthday and I've been getting back into reading.
I'm a fan of like divergent, hunger games, the uglies Scott Westerfield, the selection Kiera Cass. Recently, the forgotten return CC Dietrich and delirium Lauren Oliver.
If anyone has any other suggestions I appreciate it
Hi all!
So I'm trying to get my pre-teen unstuck from a reading rut.
He was a very avid reader, then he slowed down and now wants to start again but nothing sticks.
He recently read Hunger Games I and Maze Runner I and liked them and enjoyed them but the second book of each series was DNF.
I offered Cressida Cowell, Rick Riordan, Terry Pratchett but he says he's "not into fantasy" (my heart!!)
He also says he prefers teen characters at this moment.
So tomorrow we'll go to the library to get something else but if I can get some ideas here, it would be awesome!
Thanks!!
Helllooo I’m looking for my next fantasy read. Here’s my qualifications (just thing I typically like in fantasies):
- 3rd person
- solid magic system
- good but not too extensive/confusing world building (I’m a dumb bitch and lose focus)
- low romance but you know what I do like just a sprinkle
- I don’t mind YA (in fact I typically really enjoy it)
Fantasies I’ve liked in the past:
- Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo (+ all of her other stuff)
- The Sword of Kaigen by M.L Wang
- The Raven Scholar by Antonia Hodgson
- An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir
- Throne of Glass by SJM
- Red Rising (the first one ((I will admit I DNF’d the second idk why I just couldn’t vibe with all the intergalactic battles it felt like we got no where?? Unpopular opinion I know)))
- Heir by Sabaa Tahir
- Vicious by V.E Schwab (+ all her other stuff)
Other fantasies I have read and did not love (so they don’t get recommended):
- Fourth Wing by Yarros (1st was fine? 2nd terrible. Didn’t try the 3rd)
- The Poppy War by R.F Kwang (like it was okay but I just did not vibe with the characters?)
- Mistborn by Sanderson (someone dies and it PISSED me off. Liked the magic system tho)
- One Dark Window by Rachel Gillig (couldn’t vibe with characters)
- Daughter of No Worlds by Carissa Broadbent (magic system was non existent)
- Dungeon Crawler Carl (actually decent but I just could not get locked in. Maybe too weird for me?)
- Other popular romantasies (I usually DNF them so fast bc the characters are ridiculously dumb)
Sooooo anyone got anything?
hey yall! i just got back into reading. im struggling a lot with apathy and a "it doesnt matter" type mindset. are there books anyone could recommend that would help me change my outlook? thanks!
I really like the Dresden Files series and it's been hard to find anything else that measures up. I'd prefer little to no romance. Other than that, I'm pretty open.