Hello, I mostly spend my free time watching movies and TV series.I have tried reading before, but usually after a day or two I completely lose interest and never open the book again.
These are some of my all-time favourite shows/anime:
Breaking Bad, Dark, Vikings, The Last Kingdom, Attack on Titan, steins gate. Read only manga called Vinland Saga.
A few things to note:
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I don’t like Harry Potter or Lord of the Rings movies (felt too kid-oriented / fantasy-heavy for my taste)
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I prefer mature themes, morally complex characters, psychological & philosophical, power struggles, etc. Also tried to read some philosophical books of Nietzsche and plato but couldn't complete..
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I’m also very interested in world history (real or well-researched historical fiction)
I want books that feel as gripping as a great TV series something that can pull in someone who isn’t a natural reader.
Thanks in advance .
by Wise-Candle-7240
14 Comments
Dark Matter by Blake Crouch
Kindred by Octavia Butler. Don’t try the tv series, it’s terrible completely unrelated to the book
The Bloodsworn Trilogy by John Gwynne
You’d love The First Law books by Joe Abercrombie and the Gentlemen Bastards by Scott Lynch. The fantasy elements are low key enough for it not to be off-putting. TFL in particular is similar to Vikings and The Last Kingdom with a little bit of Berserk thrown in.
You might try some adult oriented suspense/mystery by James Lee Burke, Sue Grafton, John Grisham, or Michael Connelly.
I’m the same as you. I start books and don’t finish them. I read from the authors above and made it through.
You might also try a biography or autobiography about someone who interests you.
So I’m going to throw this one out there. It’s funny, easy to read, great characters, and a series (one season so far) has been made for AppleTV.
The “Murderbot” series by Martha Wells. Is it deep? No. Awe-inspiring? Nah. Life-changing? Definitely not. But you’ll love the characters, sharp writing, wit, and good storytelling.
Unwind by Neal Shusterman.
It’s YA so it’s “beginner” adult level reading if that’s what you mean. I am a 30 year old woman and I devoured these books. It’s got thrill, it’s gripping, it’s got psychological and philosophical themes and moral/political power struggle (be sure to read the prologue for context).
Lincoln Lawyer
The First Law series by Joe Abercrombie is one you might enjoy, starting with **The Blade Itself**. Dark, gritty, character-driven fantasy. Endlessly quotable, featuring a cast of highly-flawed and complex bastards you’ll come to love, violent, but also pretty funny a lot of the time, with lots of commentary on the human condition/life, etc. The audiobooks are particularly great and really elevate the series, narrated by Steven Pacey. Just start at the beginning and read in publication order without skipping, and you’ll be good. 10 books in total, all excellent.
For something even darker, bleak and brutal, check out **The Darkness that Comes Before** by R Scott Bakker, the first book in The Second Apocalypse series. A very epic, philosophical fantasy series, filled with morally complex characters, rich world building, and all kinds of interesting, messed up, concepts. People sometimes compare the series to Berserk, among other things, and it literally opens with a quote from Nietzsche (but requires no deep philosophical study or anything to enjoy). The first trilogy centers around a fantasy Holy War modeled after the real life First Crusade, and the various factions and characters who are caught up in it. The second series, The Aspect Emperor (books 4-7), digs deeper into the darkness, the lore and mythology of the world, the fucked up characters.
Thank god somebody else dislikes harry potter!
The Getaway by James Thompson is a really good thriller/crime book.
11/22/63 by Stephen King is based on the assassination of JFK. Basically a man is given the opportunity to travel back to 1958, and live there for 5 years to stop Lee Harvey Oswald.
It’s very complex cause the main character, Jake/George, is grappling with multiple identities. One is the person he was before time traveling, the nice school teacher. One is the version of him that is traveling back to stop Oswald. And the other is the life he’s starting to like, living in the past, but clouded by his mission and lies.
This is a horrible description of the book, but wow, its easily top 5 books of all time for me. I am like you, I struggle with having interest in books, and ive tried to read many many political/philosophy books, like Plato’s Republic for example. I got bored of all of them, no matter how many times I attempted. But I was able to read 11/22/63 in 3 days, (90,000 words per day).
If you enjoy Vikings and historical fiction you should check out The Long Ships by Frans G. Bengtsson. It was an awesome adventure.
Bernard Cornwell (author of The Last Kingdom) has many other historical fiction books. Agincourt is my favorite.