Hello! My college friends and I started a book club after graduating, and am in need of book recs! We all have slightly different tastes (historical fiction, fantasy, romance), but these are the books we've read:
– Circe by Madeline Miller
– The Grace Year by Kim Liggett
– Blood Over Bright Haven by M. L. Wang
– Recursion by Blake Crouch
It seems that we gravitate toward strong, female protagonists. We recently read Recursion, which is a Sci-Fi book (outside of our comfort zones). Unfortunately, we didn't like it as much because it didn't lend itself much to discussion.
We all LOVED Blood Over Bright Haven, though. It spoke to everyone. We loved how thought-provoking it was, and the characters were so flawed but real. It's hard to top a book like that, but do you have any recs for (standalone) books that make you think but are still enjoyable? Character-driven stories are a plus.
by kaireth
25 Comments
I am currently reading h{{Death of the Author}} and I typically hesitate to recommend books I haven’t finished in case the ending sucks but this one might be a good fit
Your Life Does Not Exist by Robert Pagano is a light scifi with a female MC. Focuses more on the emotional journey rather than the technology.
Demon Copperhead
The Secret Life of Addie LaRue
* Peng Shepard: The Book of M
* Paolo Bacigalupi: The Windup Girl
Piranesi by Susanna Clarke
My book club had great discussion on this and it’s a short book so it was easy for everyone to get through. People had very different opinions on it which was interesting to hear
I just finished Theo of Golden and would highly recommend it. I also always enjoy anything by TJ Klune (Under the Whispering Door was especially moving for me).
The last book our club unanimously loved was The Correspondent by Virginia Evans. The book is a collection of letters over time. We enjoyed discussing how the plot unfolded and also how written letters have impacted our lives.
Life after Life by Kate Atkinson
My book club just read Pride and Prejudice, which led to a good discussion.
I also recommend The Lion Women of Tehran by Marjan Kamali, Yellowface by RF Kuang, and anything by Taylor Jenkins Reid.
Those who walk away from Omelas
“Hester” by Laurie Lico Albanese. It’s “The Scarlet Letter” from the woman’s POV.
The End of Men by Christina Sweeney-Baird
The Eights by Joanna Miller
Margo’s Got Money Troubles by Rufi Thorpe
More or Less Maddy by Lisa Genova
All the Ever Afters by Danielle Teller
The Push by Ashley Audrain
The Measure by Nikki Erlick
The Light Pirate by Lily Brooks Dalton
A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Housseini
Kindred by Octavia E. butler or Wild Dark Shore by Charlotte McConaghy
The Wall by Marlen Haushofer
The Road to Tender Hearts by Annie Hartnett (check trigger warnings)
This is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone – there were mixed reactions to this one that inspired great conversation and prompted some to go back and reread it.
Once and Future Witches or The Ten Thousand Doors of January, both by Alix E. Harrow
Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi – this one is heavy and deals with some really tough topics, but honestly the best discussion books do. Thought provoking and well written.
Let me know if you want more!
Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt was a 5 star read for me last year.
My book club just read Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer and we all loved it. The chapters are also fairly broken up into different thoughts and stories so people who didn’t finish could easily participate!
The Light Pirate by Lily Brooks Dalton!
I Who Have Never Known Men will probably be right up your alley. Shorter but very thought provoking, plus it’s showing up a lot in discussions online so your club members may have heard of it.
Educated
My Bookclub is very diverse. We’ve been together for over 10 years! These have been some of our favorites, although not all have the female protagonist.
The goldfinch
The Nightingale
A prayer for Owen meany
The winemaker‘s wife
The red tent
The invisible life of Addie LaRue
Tomorrow, tomorrow, and tomorrow
Lessons in chemistry
Also, I vote a second for educated
My book club loved the historical fiction novel, The Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon. It’s set in Maine in the late 1700’s, based on a true story about an intelligent and resilient midwife and healer.
Demon Copperhead
The Goldfinch
Remarkably bright creatures
The extraordinary life of Sam Hell
The Women
Never Let Me Go – Kazuo Ishiguro. Also, his Remains of the Day is pretty much perfect literature
Don’t Forget to Write by Sarah Goodman Confino, Breaking from Frame by Jazz Forrester (if a queer book doesn’t bother anyone) and Restoration Garden by Sarah Blaydes.
The fantasy friend may not be happy but the ones who enjoy romance / historical fiction may love these. They were my top 3 favorites last year.