As a tenacious reader, I feel like it is my duty to at least put out one article of book recommendations. From my first book love, horror phase, and current romance fascination, I have gone through numerous reading eras so I think I have a recommendation for just about anyone. I started my tireless reading journey in the summer, when I was probably ten years old, doing The Scott County Library summer reading program with my grandma. I had read many books that summer and the summers following, but the one book that made me fall in love with reading was The Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls . . . and here comes my first recommendation.
Memoirs
The Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls follows young girl Jeanette in a first-person POV. In the first chapter of the book, Jeanette leaves us confused, she encounters her parents digging through trash in an alley as she is on her way home in New York City, and deciding to ignore them Jeanette feels guilty and recounts her whole childhood in the rest of the book until we work back up to that exact moment once again. The Glass Castle is based on the true story of the author and her abnormal upbringing. This book is a tear-jerking and stomach-turning read that will for sure make you appreciate the people you call family.
Romance
In Five Years by Rebecca Serle is a quick and impactful read. The book follows Dannie Kohan, a female lawyer who seemed to have her whole life planned out . . . until she didn't. Dannie is recently engaged to her dream man and has nearly bagged her dream job, but the morning after her engagement she wakes up five years in the future married to another man, in another house, and living a life she never planned. Dannie struggles with what to do and begins to wonder if her five-year plan is worth it when she begins falling for this new man. In Five Years is a powerful love story that will make you question your path and plans.
The Things We Leave Unfinished by Rebecca Yarros follows Georgia Stanton, a new divorcee who left her whole life behind. Soon after her author/writer Grandma, Scarlett, dies, Georgia is left with her grandma's unfinished novel and a drive to finish it. After stumbling across best-selling author Noah Harrison, she is determined to leave him alone and not let him finish the novel. In this enemies-to-lovers story, Georgia attempts to learn from her grandmother's mistakes and the clues she left behind for Scarlett as she navigates both her new life and her new love interest.
Romance/Fantasy
The ACOTAR series by Sarah J. Maas; if you're a reader, you have probably heard about this series. This series follows the main character Feyre Archeron. Feyre is a 19-year-old huntress who is on a journey to protect her family from the faerie world, (yes fairies but like not in a weird way I promise) until a forbidden romance gets in her way and makes her ultimately question all of her morals and values. After killing a faerie wolf, Feyre is kidnapped and brought to the faerie lands of Prythian and that is where everything changes.
The Fourth Wing and Iron Flame books by Rebecca Yarros I always recommend to Game of Thrones fans. This series has dragons and drama! Although the book is considered romance, I think a wide variety of people would enjoy these books. The main character Violet is forced into a job by her mother after her father, her best friend, dies. She is forced to become someone she isn’t when she is thrown into the Riders Quadrant, a group of people designated to own dragons and fight in the war, and forced to survive both dragons and backstabbing friends. Navarre, where she lives, is a never-ending war and her ruling mom wants nothing more than to change Violet and the ideas her father had put in her head; Violet is training to be a warrior when all she wanted to be was a scribe. Violet fights both internal and physical battles in The Fourth Wing series.
Dystopian
The Shatter Me series by Tahereh Mafi was my first read in 2024, I read all six main books in a week. The series includes six novels and five novellas. The novellas consist of the same story from a different POV, the last two books in the series preview the novellas in a way --they bounce back and forth between the main character and side characters' POV. The dystopian series starts with a teen girl, Juliette, who is locked up from the rest of society questioning her sanity. Eventually, she finds people similar to her, people that understand her. The Shatter Me series gives a Hunger Games/Divergent vibe in a man (girl) vs government plot. Juliette fights the world while trying to figure out who she is as well. This is one of my number one recommendations, if you’re thinking about reading this, do it!
With the new Hunger Games movie coming out I also reread The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins. Any of The Hunger Games books are always a good read/re-read; however, if you have only ever seen the movies, there are some differences in the books so beware.
The Grace Year by Kim Liggett is another dystopian novel also following a young girl who lives in a society that is disrespectful to women. The book sheds light on how not just this dystopian society, but also how our society treats women. The Grace Year has a little bit of a thriller vibe in it as well, leaving the readers constantly on the edge of their seats, and maybe a little angry depending on who you are.
Mystery
The Inheritance Games by Jennifer Lynn Barnes follows the main character Avery Kylie Grambs, a teenage girl who just lost her mother and is now living with her step-sister Libby. Avery did not grow up wealthy or expecting to have much. On a random day, she gets word that billionaire Tobias Hawthorne has left her in his will. However, she won't just receive the money easily, she has to play Hawthornes inheritance games. In this rags-to-riches story that teaches the lesson of classism, Avery learns more about herself and the world she is getting herself into.
Mystery/Horror
Stephen King started my love for spooky reading. Two of his books that I really enjoyed were The Stand and Fairy Tale. These books could also be considered Science Fiction in a way if that is more your vibe as well. The Stand is a post-apocalyptic novel that questions the connections between good and evil. It’s really good and I don’t want to give any spoilers, there is also a movie and TV Show that are literal masterpieces. The storyline is perfect and each character plays such an important role in it, please read this.
Fairy Tale is another dark novel that focuses on the battle of good and evil. However, this book follows Charlie Reade, a 17-year-old boy with a lot of issues, who starts to learn who he is while he watches the whole world he knows change entirely. Charlie gets keys to a parallel universe where good and evil are at war. He soon realizes that the fate of both this world and ours are at stake.
Science Fiction
Dark Matter by Blake Crouch is a mix between psychological thriller and science fiction. I had to read this book twice because I was not understanding anything at first, but it is worth reading. This book was also my first science fiction read and let's just say, I was not used to it. This book follows the main character Jason Dessen. Jason is your average family man until he becomes not-so-average. One random day he is yanked from his life and kidnapped by a mysterious stranger. Jason finds himself in a whole new world, both similar, yet so different from the world he lived in; his real life (hint hint). This book is mind-bending and makes you question everything. I physically could not put this book down, the second time around, it is amazing.
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