The first half is all the books I read & recommend.
The second half are books I started reading / read but do not think highly enough of to recommend (although some I had to finish simply because I got too invested in what was happening and needed to know the ending).
No book links because I thoroughly encourage you to use a library or a local, independent bookseller and absolutely by all means possible, avoid Indigo/Chapters, and Amazon.
If you need one that delivers in Canada, I very much like McNally Robinson. They can order any book you like.
WHAT I RECOMMEND
Great Big Beautiful Life: Emily Henry
100% amazing. I love how it wasn’t focused on the relationship and more on the mystery and each biographer finding out more about themselves as they take on this competition to ‘win’ the hand of an elusive celebrity. I really loved it, and the mystery was what drew me in – I wanted to find out more and I couldn’t put the book down. Beautifully written.
This American Ex-Wife: Lyz Lenz
A wonderful book on the horrors of marriage (especially for women) and contrasting it with being divorced. Read this if you want to come to the realization you may not have as equal of a marriage as you think, and what to do about it.
Another great book I recommend on this topic is 100% – Fair Play by Eve Rodsky.
One-Star Romance: Laura Hankin
An unusual romcom book actually.. it focused a lot less on the relationship (I mean he gave her book ONE STAR) and more on the evolution of the characters are people, which I loved. I enjoyed the journey, and the ending..
Same as Ever: Morgan Housel
A GREAT book to read. I highly recommend reading anything by Housel actually. Talks about optimizing risk, opportunity and taking chances in life.
The Night Shift: Alex Finlay
Trigger warning: Abuse
A serious mental thriller. I had my heart in my throat the whole time, and obviously, reading it then sleeping at night was not a good move .. lol … I couldn’t put it down however!!!
Chaucer’s People: Liza Picard
A great peek into the way people lived back in the time of Chaucer. A nice portrait of each person / life, and told in a funny way (at least, to me).
The Silver Star: Jeanette Walls
Trigger warning: Sexual abuse
A seriously heartbreaking novel about making waves in a world that doesn’t allow them. She stood up for her rights, against all odds, and the ending was seriously satisfying.
Before She Knew Him: Peter Swanson
An unusual mental thriller.. imagine if you met your neighbour and he wasn’t all that he seems? It really made me grip the pages until the end, and then the TWIST? I did NOT see that coming.
The Wife Upstairs: Rachel Hawkin
Another great mental thriller, and the ending was not at all what I expected. Totally caught me off guard (either I am easy to fool or they are great books, I am opting for the latter). You think you know what is going on and you are caught off guard completely.
The Girl on the Train: Paula Hawkins
This one was a bit harder to follow especially at night when I am tired and I have to keep two story lines straight in my head with so many names (I am old, fight me..). But.. it was a great book and seriously a twist. AGAIN. I don’t want to say too much about these books because I am scared I will give the plots away, but basically a girl is on a train, on a schedule and witnesses something…
The Advocate’s Daughter: Alex Finlay
Trigger warning: Death of a child
I almost wish I didn’t read this one because I cannot take any more talk of the deaths of children.. honestly.. But this child at least, was in her twenties so it was less triggering for me. At any rate, it was a good mystery about a father trying to pick through what happened in the weeks leading up to her death and finding out the why.
I think I will need to take a break from these kinds of books for a while, I am crying too much as it is…
All our missing pieces: Sophie Ranald
I usually devour her books but this one, was more reflective.. and less of her typical style of writing, which I did not hate, but is a departure from her typical series if you used to her other works.
Basically, a woman inherits a crumbling house and restores it, taking on tenants.. and the book goes into the lives of each tenant (from their point of view), and how they all end up connecting to each other, and the endings for each of them.
The endings were of course, bittersweet for some, and happy for others. I think she could have spent more time on a few of the storylines, to flesh them out more, but it was still a good read, regardless.
Want more book recommendations?
All of my previous book recommendations are here.
DO NOT READ
Maybe Not: Colleen Hoover
Definitely not. Do not read this terrible book. Her other books in the series with characters all from the same life (you know, the ex-girlfriend, or the roommate), are excellent but this one is just awful.
Maybe NoW: Colleen Hoover
Same as Maybe Not. AWFUL writing. She really put all her work in the first book and then left the other two to rot.
My Husband: Maud Ventura
The cover is deceiving because it is more of a mental thriller than a book about.. I don’t know, marriage, based on the title. I hovered between recommending it or not because while I love mental thrillers, this one fell super flat for me and felt forced, redundant, and kind of annoying if I am to be honest. It was like a McFadden wannabe novel. I read it, and felt “meh” at the end because the protagonist was so unrealistic as a woman to me, and the obsession over her husband was making me eyeroll.
Lonely Castle in the Mirror: Mizuki Tsujimura
A terribly difficult, intellectual book. That tells you everything. I tried to make it through chapter one and fell asleep.