S/O Seeking recommendations for best books of last decade…

[jordancatalano4ever]

So I got a kindle for my birthday in July and just finished the five game of thrones books and now I need something new to read. I just read everyone’s recommendations from the other thread but I haven’t been much of a reader for the last decade. I’ve read Dreams from my Father, John Grisham, the twilight series, and Harry Potter lol

So imagining someone who’s been in a coma or sheltering underground, what are your can’t miss book or book series that you’ve read in the last 10 years?. One caveat would be that it should be escapist popcorn style reading. I don’t want to learn anything lol and nothing political 
 

Thanks!

[Jalapeñomel]

The Heart’s Invisible Furies

[expectantsteelerfan]

Do you want tragically sad? A Little Life is the book that has stayed with me most over the past few years, but it's a rough one.
And actually, I think all the books that really stayed with me are sad ones, like Before We Were Yours, Migrations, Once There Were Wolves, The Four Winds, Water for Elephants, This is How it Always Is, The Exiles

Some not quite tragic books I'd recommend: Where'd You Go, Bernadette, The Hunger Games books if you somehow never read/watched those, anything by J. Courtney Sullivan.

Other lighter reading I love books by Rainbow Rowell, like strongly most by Jennifer Weiner, and like most books by Elin Hildebrand

[TR]

Ditto Hearts Invisible Furies by John Boyne

Becoming - Michelle Obama
When Breath Becomes Air - Paul Kalanithi
The Great Believers - Rebecca Makkai
Pachinko - Min Jin Lee
All The Light We Cannot See - Anthony Doer

I’ll think of more I’m sure lol

ETA: LOL I totally missed the popcorn escapist reading. I will reevaluate and re-recommend.

[orangello]

A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara. I read it years ago and I still think about it. Fair warning, not a happy read.

For a lighter option - I loved The House on The Cerulean Sea.

[VillainV]

The Liane Moriarty books are good easy reads, even if they are a bit formulaic.

[TR]

Jan 9, 2022 20:53:12 GMT -5 orangello said:

A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara. I read it years ago and I still think about it. Fair warning, not a happy read.

For a lighter option - I loved The House on The Cerulean Sea.

Ditto both of these, too!

[krystee]

For light, my favorites are Elian Hilderbrand and Jennifer Weiner. Maybe Jane Green’s earlier and latest stuff, but not some of the middle. Also, the Mary Higgins Clark and Alafair Burke mystery series is popcorn fun.

For more literary but still uplifting, I also liked House in the Cerulean Sea.

[jordancatalano4ever]

Jan 9, 2022 20:45:22 GMT -5 expectantsteelerfan said:

Do you want tragically sad? A Little Life is the book that has stayed with me most over the past few years, but it's a rough one.
And actually, I think all the books that really stayed with me are sad ones, like Before We Were Yours, Migrations, Once There Were Wolves, The Four Winds, Water for Elephants, This is How it Always Is, The Exiles

Some not quite tragic books I'd recommend: Where'd You Go, Bernadette, The Hunger Games books if you somehow never read/watched those, anything by J. Courtney Sullivan.

Other lighter reading I love books by Rainbow Rowell, like strongly most by Jennifer Weiner, and like most books by Elin Hildebrand

Yeah. Definitely not tragically sad. I mean nothing rooted in our reality if that makes sense. Like there was definitely highs and lows in the game of thrones series but I know it’s all fictional. I hope that makes sense. There’s enough in the day to day world that I don’t need more in my bedtime reading lol. I’m definitely searching for more of the escape into a new world frame of mind. I used to read Janet Evanovitch and dean Koontz in high school lol. I was thinking about trying the Outlander series or reading The Stand (I know that’s not recent decade)…

[sproctopus]

Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi

[shopgirl07]

I’ve loved everything by Lisa Jewell, Tana French and Beatriz Williams.

Beach Read and The People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry are good escapist love stories too.

A Little Life is probably the most impactful book I’ve ever read but man is it heavy. Like I really wouldn’t recommend it for anyone looking for light or escapist.

[shopgirl07]

Oh, I’ve also really enjoyed both The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo and Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid.

[scribellesam]

Sarah J Maas books are great escapism: Court of Thorns and Roses series (4 books plus a novella) and the Throne of Glass series (7 books I think).

Leigh Bardugo is also great: Shadow and Bone series. There’s a trilogy and two duologies now. All very fun and addicting.

The Winternight trilogy by Katherine Arden - based on Russian folklore, very good fantasy series.

[konapoppy]

Evvie Drake Starts Over
Jasmine Guillory books (but not the latest- that was the worst in the series IMO)

[nicolewi]

I really like lighter books, too. I don’t know that these are the best of the decade, but here are some I remember enjoying.

The Flatshare
Big Little Lies
The Rosie Project
Elin Hilderbrand books, as people have said
The Stephanie Plum series?



ETA: I have also been reading a lot of my 12-year-old daughter’s books!
Can You See Me?
Coo—this is a strange story but for whatever reason I really enjoyed it
Other Words For Home
Wonder
The Westing Game
Every Soul a Star

[tcu2003]

Circe and Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
People We Meet on Vacafuon by Emily Henry
The Guncle by Steven Rowley
The Chicken Sisters by K.J. Dell’Antonia
Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens
One Plus One by Joni Moyes
Evvie Drake Starts Over by Linda Holmes
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid
Other People’s Houses by Abbi Waxman


Biographies:
A Very Punchable Face by Colin Jost
We’re Going to Need More Wine by Gabrielle Union
Me by Elton John
700 Sundays by Billy Crystal
Born a Crime by Trevor Noah
Born to Run by Bruce Springsteen
The Astronaut Wives Club by Lily Koppel


If you like YA:
The Inheritance Games by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
The Hate U Give and On the Come Up by Angie Thomas
Any of the Rick Riordan series (Percy Jackson and the Olympians is my favorite)
Wonder by RJ Palacio
The Girl Who Drank the Moon by Kelly Barnhill

[rupertpenny]

Jan 9, 2022 23:00:47 GMT -5 jeaniebueller said:

Skip A Little Life and read The Heart’s Invisible Furies instead. ALL is very divisive for many reasons and it always surprises me how many people liked it.

I agree. I read A Little Life and it was definitely an emotional journey and hard to put down. I'm not sure it's a very good book though, it verges into trauma porn. 

If you don't mind mysteries I love the Bruno, Chief of Police series by Martin Walker and the Commissario Brunetti series by Donna Leon. There are serious themes, but also have enough distance from 2022 America to not be too stressful. 

I love the His Dark Materials trilogy by Philip Pullman if you're interested in more fantasy YA type stuff. 

[Gato]

David Sedaris - Holidays on Ice or Me Talk Pretty One Day (okay, these are older)
Maria Semple - Where'd You Go, Bernadette?
Paul Beatty - The Sellout
Miranda July - No One Belongs Here More Than You
John Hodgeman - Vacationland
Less - Andrew Sean Greer

[7costanza]

Not light reading, but I could not put down Bad Blood by John Carreyrou.

Crazy Rich Asians

Waiter to the Rich and Shameless (pretty sure this was self published but I thought it was a fun read if you’re into celebrity gossip)

Anything Liane Moriarty or Taylor Jenkins Reid

[Pilsy]

I'm really loving everything by Jennifer Close.

[sugarbear1]

Jan 9, 2022 20:41:01 GMT -5 Jalapeñomel said:

The Heart’s Invisible Furies

This is the first book that came to mind for me, too.

[followyourarrow]

I get the feeling I have very different taste.

A Man Called Ove
In an Instant
One to Watch

[msmerymac]

Susanna Kearsley - The Winter Sea is my favorite
The Laini Taylor Daughter of Smoke and Bone series (YA)

[rootbeerfloat]

Ditto the recommendations for Pachinko, Homegoing, and the memoirs by Trevor Noah, Gabrielle Union, and Michelle Obama, as well as most of the books by Taylor Jenkins Reid, Susanna Kearsley, Jasmine Guillory, Frederik Backman, Sarah J. Maas, Rainbow Rowell, and Angie Thomas.

Also: Kristen Cashore (fantasy), Red White and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston.

[Ashley&Scott]

The Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon.

[jinkies]

I liked The 7 1/2 deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle". It's part mystery, part fantasy, part Groundhog's Day. LOL.

For light, beachy type reading I usually recommend The Royal We, Crazy Rich Asians, and The Secret Life of Violet Grant.

[gardengal]

Like, if you just want to have a good time-not necessarily a RELATIONSHIP—with a book:

+2 Throne of Glass, Sarah J Maas
set in modern times but I also enjoyed Readers of Broken Wherl Recommend
Stalking Jack the Ripper series, Kerri Maniscalco
The Lady Sherlock series by Sherry Thomas (haven’t finished all the books yet)
Ayesha at Last Uzma Jalaluddin (this is a Jane Austen fan fic-y tale set in Muslim community of Toronto)
Helen Hoang romance novels
The Vine Witch
The Culling Trials series by KF Breene (she does a LOT of brain candy fantasy)
Shadow spell Academy by Shannon Meyer (ditto lots of brain candy fiction)

My personal preference is historical fiction, Jane Austen fan fic, cozy mystery, romance w sassy main characters & not depressing fantasy. I do not want to be sad, have women or children assaulted, or there not be a happy ending. I used to only read heavy, literary stuff but life got too heavy for that! I just want one night stands w my books!

[pooh8402]

I love long book series so I'm starting Wheel of Time. I know I am way behind the rest of the world.

The Bridgerton novels were fun and lighthearted reads.
The Bennet Women by Eden Appiah-Kudi was a modern take on Pride and Prejudice
Another vote for Throne of Glass series

[ny96]

I just finished The Every by Dave Eggers, which is the sequel to The Circle. Not amazing writing, but a fun dystopian couple of books.

[jaycee]

If you like WWII historical fiction, then The Nightingale (Kristin Hannah) is a must read. Based on a real person. It has the single best one line I've ever read in a book. It's epic and it's stayed with me for a very long time. It's coming out as a movie too.