My wife loves to read but has a majorly high stress job. So she kinda oscillates between reading fiction that really engages and challenges her and more frivolous but very fun, plotty books that help her decompress. All of these are valid.
She also engages in some genre fiction, particularly some light sci-fi, though I definitely wouldn't classify her as a hardcore sci-fi fan. She just enjoys the space and enjoys some graphic novels and series with fantastical elements too like Saga, Sweet Tooth, Chew, Paper Girls, etc etc. I'm particularly looking for fiction books in this recommendation here though – so if you have a MUST read graphic novel I'd take it but would prefer to skew to written fiction novels.
Some of her recent favorites from the past couple years include:
The Bee Sting – Paul Murray
The Life Impossible – Matt Haig
A Woman is No Man – Etaf Rum
Ohio – Stephen Markley
Book Lovers – Emily Henry
Trust – Hernan Diaz
The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August – Claire North (she really loved this one)
Project Hail Mary – Andy Weird
Lessons in Chemistry – Bonnie Garmus
So yeah if any of those inspire any "If she likes that, try this" reactions I would so appreciate the assist!
by PagingDrFreeman
4 Comments
Your wife has good taste in books! Here are some recently published books she might enjoy.
The Loneliness of Sonia and Sunny by Kiran Desai. It’s on a lot of “Best Books of the Year” lists, including the NYT. It’s a love story touching on lots of bigger themes.
These Summer Storms by Sarah MacLean. A billionaire father dies and the family gathers for the funeral. Family secrets and romance.
Buckeye by Patrick Ryan. On a lot of “Best Books of the Year” lists. Follows two mid-western couples throughout their lives, from the 1920’s through the 1960’s.
Project Hail Mary
– Bobiverse series, starting with We Are Legion (We Are Bob) by Dennis Taylor.
– The Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wells
– Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman.
– The Martian by Andy Weir
Lessons in Chemistry
– The Personal Librarian by Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray
– Eleanore Oliphant Is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman.
– Matt Haig’s The Midnight Library
– the Only Woman in the Room by Marie Benedict
– Hidden Figures by Margot Lee Shetterley
Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt is a completely different type of story. But it has the same human/other intelligent being interactions that make PHM so much fun.
[Interior Chinatown](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/53479022) by Charles Yu
I am also a woman with a high stress job who loves many of the books you listed so I hope my recommendations are helpful:
Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman. Right after I finished reading all seven books, some with over 600 pages, I immediately started the series again. It lives up to the hype.
Everyone talks about Fifth Season by N.K. Jemisin, but The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms (the Inheritance Trilogy) should also get more attention.
I could not stop reading The Talented Ribkins by Ladee Hubbard once I started. I read it in one sitting.
You cannot go wrong with Becky Chambers. Both the Wayfarer Series and the Monk and Robot Series are excellent. I also loved her standalone novella: To Be Taught, If Fortunate.
The Psychology of Time Travel by Kate Mascarenhas. I will never understand why this book is not more popular.
The Space Between Worlds by Micaiah Johnson is my favorite parallel universe story ever.
Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir. I truly don’t know how to describe this book or series, but it’s phenomenal.
The Daughter of the Moon Goddess by Sue Lynn Tan js a phenomenal retelling of Chinese Lore.
Hollow Kingdom by Kira Jane Buxton is the funniest book I’ve ever read. The narrator is a pet crow during a zombie apocalypse. My friends I’ve recommended it to love it.