Finding the right book can feel like an overwhelming task. With countless recommendations and trending reads, it's a challenge to decipher which book is worth your time. The volume of options can produce a bit of information overload, and make it hard to know where to begin. And sometimes, trusting other people’s recommendations and opinions can feel like a shot in the dark! It can become particularly tiresome when you encounter the same suggestions, especially with the rising trend of media usage for book recommendations. That’s why we’re adding a compact list of the best books we’ve read so far, in each genre so we can recommend a little something for everyone. Hopefully, this guide can help inspire you to add more reading into your life instead of adding hours on to your screen time!
Best books in Historical Fiction:
Stone Blind by Natalie Haynes
Synopsis: The only mortal in a family of gods, Medusa is the youngest of the Gorgon sisters. Unlike her siblings, Medusa grows older, experiences change, and feels weakness. Her mortal lifespan gives her an urgency that her family will never know. When the sea god Poseidon assaults Medusa in Athene's temple, the goddess is enraged. (Amazon)
Circe by Madeline Miller
Synopsis: In the house of Helios, god of the sun and mightiest of the Titans, a daughter is born. But Circe has neither the look nor the voice of divinity, and is scorned and rejected by her kin. Increasingly isolated, she turns to mortals for companionship, leading her to discover a power forbidden to the gods: witchcraft. (Bluntly Bookish)
Best books in Romance:
Beach Read by Emily Henry
Synopsis: Set in the late 2010s, the narrative follows 29-year-old protagonist January Andrews, a millennial romance author coming to terms with her father's death and her recent breakup as she attempts to write her next bestseller with a shattered view of romance. (Penguin Random House)
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid
Synopsis: This hugely popular tale centers around reclusive Hollywood legend Evelyn Hugo, who chooses an unknown reporter, Monique Grant, to tell her life story. Evelyn recounts her time in the Golden Age of Hollywood, her rise to fame, and her seven marriages — revealing stunning secrets and lies (Galmour Magazine).
Best books in Science fiction:
The Hunger Games by Susanne Collins
Synopsis: In what was once North America, the Capitol of Panem maintains its hold on its 12 districts by forcing them each to select a boy and a girl, called Tributes, to compete in a nationally televised event called the Hunger Games. Every citizen must watch as the youths fight to the death until only one remains. (Google)
Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro
Synopsis: Klara and the Sun is a science fiction/dystopian novel with themes of environmentalism, artificial intelligence, loneliness, and what it means to have compassion. Klara, the protagonist and narrator, is an artificial intelligence companion who excels at observation and adapting to her circumstances. (USU)
Best book for Mystery/Thriller:
The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins
Synopsis: Walter Hartright, a young art teacher, encounters and gives directions to a mysterious and distressed woman dressed entirely in white, lost in London; he is later informed by policemen that she has escaped from an asylum. (Wikipedia)
The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman
Synopsis: The Thursday Murder Club is an intelligent mystery about a group of senior citizens who find themselves in the center of a murder investigation. Every Thursday, Elizabeth, Joyce, Ibrahim, and Ron, residents of Coopers Chase Retirement Village, meet to review cold case murder files. (Goodreads)
Best in Young Adult:
The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan
Synopsis: A light-hearted fantasy about a modern 12-year-old boy who learns that his true father is Poseidon, the Greek god of the sea. Percy sets out to become a hero by undertaking a quest across the United States to find the entrance to the Underworld and stop a war between the gods. (rickriordan.com)
The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
Synopsis: 1970s Afghanistan: Twelve-year-old Amir is desperate to win the local kite-fighting tournament and his loyal friend Hassan promises to help him. But neither of the boys can foresee what would happen to Hassan that afternoon, an event that is to shatter their lives. (Goodreads)
So while yes, finding the right book for you can seem hard, there are so many options to choose from in a variety of genres! Take a page out of one of our books, and start reading!
Nice list! Needs more ACOTAR though