Reader recommendations
Looking for a good read? Below you'll find some of the books our readers have been recommending recently.
Top pick! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
![Hattie Brings the House Down by Patrick Gleeson](/assets/hattie-89fabde5bd5b0a21b9556a39f814cafcefa3fa81f257ce89e7af680d6119b98b.jpg)
Hattie Brings the House Down
A reader says:
Wonderful. Absolutely wonderful. Engaging, poignant, hilarious, full of twists and turns, just the perfect mystery novel.
![Twenty eight and a half wishes by Denise Grover Swank](/rails/active_storage/blobs/redirect/eyJfcmFpbHMiOnsibWVzc2FnZSI6IkJBaHBBdklIIiwiZXhwIjpudWxsLCJwdXIiOiJibG9iX2lkIn19--d7ce8c312c297a879936837ae4ddc9857fc984ac/2940012812001_p0_v6_s600x595.jpg)
Twenty eight and a half wishes
Buy this bookRachael says:
I love a series and this one is a great series. It's about a repressed young woman who decides to take on the world and enjoy life to the fullest. It gets her in a lot of trouble along the way, but it's an easy read for a bit of escapism.
![Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens](/rails/active_storage/blobs/redirect/eyJfcmFpbHMiOnsibWVzc2FnZSI6IkJBaHBBdkVIIiwiZXhwIjpudWxsLCJwdXIiOiJibG9iX2lkIn19--f7a85c3087c0c37bfde97e6b403ae08f29d989eb/9780735219106_p0_v11_s192x300.jpg)
Where the Crawdads Sing
Buy this bookJKtring says:
Book just draws you in and you feel as if you are actually there
![Wide Sargasso sea by Jean Rhys](/rails/active_storage/blobs/redirect/eyJfcmFpbHMiOnsibWVzc2FnZSI6IkJBaHBBdkFIIiwiZXhwIjpudWxsLCJwdXIiOiJibG9iX2lkIn19--a19615e151b1cbaeb189a84db98ffab631df1ed0/9780393352566_p0_v4_s192x300.jpg)
Wide Sargasso sea
Buy this bookLisa Writes says:
Prequal to Jane Eyre
![Hopeless by Elsie Silver](/rails/active_storage/blobs/redirect/eyJfcmFpbHMiOnsibWVzc2FnZSI6IkJBaHBBdThIIiwiZXhwIjpudWxsLCJwdXIiOiJibG9iX2lkIn19--2613fdfacc29deb1427e865a35f173a59fef83f2/9781728297040_p0_v2_s600x595.jpg)
Hopeless
Buy this bookCharley says:
This series in general (the chestnut springs series) is a lovely little collection of books. They’ve all got a bit of humour, easy to read but with serious conversations and undertones throughout, and everyone loves a broody cowboy right?
![The Space Between Us by Thrity Umrigar](/rails/active_storage/blobs/redirect/eyJfcmFpbHMiOnsibWVzc2FnZSI6IkJBaHBBdTBIIiwiZXhwIjpudWxsLCJwdXIiOiJibG9iX2lkIn19--54e76086e1c3957ae5bcce80981422efaede8241/9780060791568_p0_v1_s600x595.jpg)
The Space Between Us
Buy this bookLisa says:
This book challenged me as it was not a genre I would ordinarily read but I really enjoyed it. It tackles some difficult issues but remains uplifting.
![River God by Wilbur Smith](/rails/active_storage/blobs/redirect/eyJfcmFpbHMiOnsibWVzc2FnZSI6IkJBaHBBdXdIIiwiZXhwIjpudWxsLCJwdXIiOiJibG9iX2lkIn19--f9e5d09886cd7c8ebaf44b1758bc78497ba1ea54/9781499860801_p0_v2_s192x300.jpg)
River God
Buy this bookNicky54 says:
I love Wilbur Smith’s series set in Africa and can picture myself there having been to the locations where some of them are set.
![Animal farm by George Orwell](/rails/active_storage/blobs/redirect/eyJfcmFpbHMiOnsibWVzc2FnZSI6IkJBaHBBaUVJIiwiZXhwIjpudWxsLCJwdXIiOiJibG9iX2lkIn19--fe21f06a23ca122f0ff53081c1faa9a244f09295/Screenshot%202024-01-03%20at%2011.38.58.png)
Animal farm
Buy this bookMark says:
A brilliant allegory of power and corruption as seen through the eyes of farm animals.
![Pride and prejudice by Jane Austin](/rails/active_storage/blobs/redirect/eyJfcmFpbHMiOnsibWVzc2FnZSI6IkJBaHBBdVFIIiwiZXhwIjpudWxsLCJwdXIiOiJibG9iX2lkIn19--16132cd9b97d9e8db5adb02ba43bd5a4623073f1/51105516.jpg)
Pride and prejudice
Buy this bookClare says:
One of the funniest, wittiest books Ive read. Always happy to re-read and makes me laugh out loud.
![A Tale of Love & Darkness by Amos Oz](/rails/active_storage/blobs/redirect/eyJfcmFpbHMiOnsibWVzc2FnZSI6IkJBaHBBdUlIIiwiZXhwIjpudWxsLCJwdXIiOiJibG9iX2lkIn19--0db4866e8cb112bfd9cc07d8a1d2468fe99efaa5/9780156032520_p0_v7_s192x300.jpg)
A Tale of Love & Darkness
Buy this bookHephxibah says:
The human factor
![Suttree by Cormac McCarthy](/rails/active_storage/blobs/redirect/eyJfcmFpbHMiOnsibWVzc2FnZSI6IkJBaHBBdDhIIiwiZXhwIjpudWxsLCJwdXIiOiJibG9iX2lkIn19--8e0320aadf2871afa56291caf6c8f60f3fd9f7ff/9780679736325_p0_v2_s192x300.jpg)
Suttree
Buy this bookKeiran says:
Delves into a little wrote subculture within America through the eyes of a protagonist that's just completely real and through which someone becomes one of the saddest books in McCarthy's lineup
![A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini](/rails/active_storage/blobs/redirect/eyJfcmFpbHMiOnsibWVzc2FnZSI6IkJBaHBBdDRIIiwiZXhwIjpudWxsLCJwdXIiOiJibG9iX2lkIn19--f57a1eeb429da529d55ff00460059c969062b1cf/Screenshot%202023-12-27%20at%2008.45.06.png)
A Thousand Splendid Suns
Buy this bookDev says:
Beautiful portrayal of the Afghani culture
A reader says:
This was the follow up to the Kite Runner, but in my opinion more heart wrenching and a better book.
I have read all three books by this author, which although uncomfortable reading at times, ultimately moves onto less emotional ground.
Bessy says:
My first ever book that kept me going to finish off within few weeks
![Piranesi by Susanna Clarke](/rails/active_storage/blobs/redirect/eyJfcmFpbHMiOnsibWVzc2FnZSI6IkJBaHBBdDBIIiwiZXhwIjpudWxsLCJwdXIiOiJibG9iX2lkIn19--a409c00080a8cf7f865b653fc2e8b056c7e9acc1/9781635577808_p0_v5_s192x300.jpg)
Piranesi
Buy this bookHelen says:
Really unusual and compelling. You don’t know what’s going on until you start to realise there are more and more clues explaining the strange situation.
cinammonbunarchives says:
It’s so whimsical and magical and it’s a great place to escape to
![I'm sorry you feel that way by Rebecca Wait](/rails/active_storage/blobs/redirect/eyJfcmFpbHMiOnsibWVzc2FnZSI6IkJBaHBBdFlIIiwiZXhwIjpudWxsLCJwdXIiOiJibG9iX2lkIn19--8dc344c2b299e777716866fe2222a0fafef50fce/59203767.jpg)
I'm sorry you feel that way
Buy this bookGeorgie23 says:
Funny, moving and also set locally!
![The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon](/rails/active_storage/blobs/redirect/eyJfcmFpbHMiOnsibWVzc2FnZSI6IkJBaHBBdE1IIiwiZXhwIjpudWxsLCJwdXIiOiJibG9iX2lkIn19--21f963ebf560ec8e68399389d97846a0369670d8/9781635570304_p0_v3_s192x300.jpg)
The Priory of the Orange Tree
Buy this bookKatie says:
I love this book so much, it's like if all the fantasies I grew up reading suddenly had female leads and diverse representation and dragons. The world building is phenomenal, I felt like I lived inside this book and I honestly never wanted to leave.
![The Girl Who Sewed Parachutes by Chris Baker](/rails/active_storage/blobs/redirect/eyJfcmFpbHMiOnsibWVzc2FnZSI6IkJBaHBBdElIIiwiZXhwIjpudWxsLCJwdXIiOiJibG9iX2lkIn19--a4d8bbd23d86bee3a3ee5e4f9fefe2b78bff9493/parachutes.jpg)
The Girl Who Sewed Parachutes
Buy this bookChris_author says:
At its heart it is a love story - set in war-torn Britain during the 1940's - it explores how women worked in factories during the war and how the protagonist deals with a dark secret - the +100 ratings on Amazon give it a 4.6 score - so I don't need to say more! -
![The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank](/rails/active_storage/blobs/redirect/eyJfcmFpbHMiOnsibWVzc2FnZSI6IkJBaHBBc3dIIiwiZXhwIjpudWxsLCJwdXIiOiJibG9iX2lkIn19--31cec46b07ae6c3c79dbf82b868d428333ef23c7/9780385480338_p0_v5_s192x300.jpg)
The Diary of a Young Girl
Buy this bookHarry says:
The way Anne is expressing her thoughts and that at the very young age of 13 years old is beyond my imagination.
![The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas](/rails/active_storage/blobs/redirect/eyJfcmFpbHMiOnsibWVzc2FnZSI6IkJBaHBBaWNJIiwiZXhwIjpudWxsLCJwdXIiOiJibG9iX2lkIn19--65ddc45abf8d44eb019e494c63c3a447257326aa/9780140449266_p0_v2_s192x300.jpg)
The Count of Monte Cristo
Buy this bookDanny says:
This is the greatest story I've ever read. It was the book that changed everything for me. After sitting on my bookshelf for four years, I finally forced myself to read it, in 2018, and I'm glad I did. It was the first fiction book I ever read, and it absolutely blew my mind.
Graeme says:
It's an epic sweeping historical romance. It's complex and intriguing and for a long book, is a real page turner.
![They Both Die At The End by Adam Silvera](/rails/active_storage/blobs/redirect/eyJfcmFpbHMiOnsibWVzc2FnZSI6IkJBaHBBc29IIiwiZXhwIjpudWxsLCJwdXIiOiJibG9iX2lkIn19--2247b217e5afbe12ea6561ca3c25d0d9ced6e5cb/9780062457806_p0_v3_s192x300.jpg)
They Both Die At The End
Buy this bookOlivia says:
Two people that are brought together by death. Enjoying each others company before they leave the world they live in. Heart-breaking, but such an amazing read.
![The Book of Joy by Douglas Abrams](/rails/active_storage/blobs/redirect/eyJfcmFpbHMiOnsibWVzc2FnZSI6IkJBaHBBZ29JIiwiZXhwIjpudWxsLCJwdXIiOiJibG9iX2lkIn19--f25c2f1e54cc4da6a1f8e92c4d9ce3971f193960/29496453.jpg)
The Book of Joy
Buy this bookKamran says:
How to be happy and joyful
![Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes](/rails/active_storage/blobs/redirect/eyJfcmFpbHMiOnsibWVzc2FnZSI6IkJBaHBBc2NIIiwiZXhwIjpudWxsLCJwdXIiOiJibG9iX2lkIn19--56c5056ef23d9a65170f4be38ca5983649303e8c/9780156030304_p0_v5_s192x300.jpg)
Flowers for Algernon
Buy this bookAbbey says:
Loved the style of writing and the premise of the novel itself - so original and very captivating. Is my current fave :)
![Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus](/rails/active_storage/blobs/redirect/eyJfcmFpbHMiOnsibWVzc2FnZSI6IkJBaHBBajhJIiwiZXhwIjpudWxsLCJwdXIiOiJibG9iX2lkIn19--cc2656f30a580632ec208207a7cb6495203d45e3/9780385547345_p0_v18_s192x300.jpg)
Lessons in Chemistry
Buy this booksevcan says:
for woman
Angie says:
A feminist, a chemist and a love story. It's gorgeous and made me feel warm inside (not all the time though to be fair) but I adored this book
Jan says:
It is both very funny and very serious.
![The Sixpenny Orphan by Glenda Young](/rails/active_storage/blobs/redirect/eyJfcmFpbHMiOnsibWVzc2FnZSI6IkJBaHBBc1VIIiwiZXhwIjpudWxsLCJwdXIiOiJibG9iX2lkIn19--f45fecfe114a5c5c12173db513005f19e6acba35/64393629.jpg)
The Sixpenny Orphan
Buy this bookStuckinaBook01 says:
The book is in so many words beautiful and heart-warming, I never thought when I bought the book I wouldn't be able to put it down!! I love how the two main characters are sisters who are torn apart after a tragedy and each page just makes you want to know more.
![The Seven Moons of Maali Almaeda by Shehan Karunatilaka](/rails/active_storage/blobs/redirect/eyJfcmFpbHMiOnsibWVzc2FnZSI6IkJBaHBBc1FIIiwiZXhwIjpudWxsLCJwdXIiOiJibG9iX2lkIn19--1f44b9cd2438787c67f726cbb7b2e2ed05e1372b/9781324064824_p0_v2_s192x300.jpg)
The Seven Moons of Maali Almaeda
Buy this bookHelena says:
An extraordinary idea that provides the context for a gripping novel set in Sri Lanka.