I am not picky about genre (magical realism is good- just not fantasy worlds or romance, or too much of a slow burn) I just like good unique stories/plots with literary writing, I do typically prefer stories that aren't a modern setting with cell phones and jobs in the city etc. So historical or based in nature. In my opinion Dianne Setterfield was born for writing, particularly in "once upon a river." The descriptive nature of her language is top tier, I think Brom & Gillian Flynn (believe it or not), are on or close to her level as well.
It's really tough for me to find writers like this as so many popular books just feel "produced for the masses," and I really don't enjoy anything less than a masterpiece lol. It takes me days of wading through audible previews to settle on my next book, so if you've got any hidden gems I should check out please let me know!
by GoblinQueen765