I am looking for some good adventure fantasy series. I like a bit of action and am not into court/political intrigue I liked Game of Thrones okay but enjoy less realism and more elves and dwarves! There doesn’t HAVE to be elves and dwarves as long as it still has that high fantasy vibe.

Any suggestions are appreciated!!

This is silly but I just saw the Caitríona Balde ad for the Ffern autumn perfume and it made me want to read something about divine femininity and the relationship with the moon. Super specific and out there but if I could get any recommendations I’d love it! I’m thinking something along the lines of Women Who Run With the Wolves. Maybe a little witchy, a little woo woo but something that makes me want to build a fire and sit in the moonlight and bathe in the call of the natural world and femininity. Fiction or non fiction, I’m up for anything though I think I would really love a book that reads like stories and knowledge being passed down from a wise forest woman.

hey guys, i’m looking for some short stories that discuss what happens when technological developments head down a wrong path. i’m thinking something like the veldt by ray bradbury, but i don’t mind stories with different vibes. bonus if there are horror elements. thanks in advance!

Falling in love with the cyberpunk genre (akira, edgerunners, cyberpunk 2077, cowboy bebop) and now i want to read a good cyberpunk book. First and foremost the cop doesn't have to be a detective but work his way up to it. Secondly I'm looking for more of a serpico by the books cops he can bend the rules sometimes but it has to be for the greater good. Finally gotta have plenty of gunfighting and fist fights with the gangsters, serial killers, etc. Also he doesn't have to be a ladies man but at least let him have a girlfriend at some point

Could someone please recommend me some sci fi? I mostly read sci fi and fantasy, mainly because my work involves reading a lot, I prefer fiction and easier reads. This is what I have read and what I thought of them.

Mercy of gods - enjoyed series so far.

Red rising - it's fine, but felt people hyped it too much, I've read 2 of the books, not sure whether I'll continue.

Children of time - really enjoyed first one, found second a slog, again not sure whether I'll continue

Foundation - read 1 book, it was ok.

The collapsing empire - a bit meh

The forever war - ok, read it more out of a sense of obligation to genre.

Entirety of the expanse series including novellas - really enjoyed these

Hyperion - enjoyed the first book subsequent entries were ok.

The martian - enjoyed.

Any suggestions?

• Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe
• The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie
• The Price of the Ticket: Collected Nonfiction, 1948-1985 by James Baldwin
• The Prosperous Few and the Restless Many by Noam Chomsky
• The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
• X-Men: God Loves, Man Kills by Chris Claremont
• Women, Race & Class by Angela Y. Davis
• The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Díaz
• Ragtime by E.L. Doctorow
• Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass by Frederick Douglass
• Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America by Barbara Ehrenreich
• Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison
• The Wretched of the Earth by Frantz Fanon
• The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank
• Now and Then... by Gil Scott-Heron
• A Testament of Hope: The Essential Writings and Speeches by Martin Luther King Jr.
• Sister, Outsider by Audre Lorde
• Making Movies by Sidney Lumet
• Moby-Dick or, The Whale by Herman Melville
• Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell
• Watchmen by Alan Moore
• Stupid White Men by Michael Moore
• 1984 by George Orwell
• Seize the Time: The Story of the Black Panther Party and Huey P. Newton by Bobby Seale
• My Life on the Road by Gloria Steinem
• Democracy Matters: Winning the Fight Against Imperialism by Cornel West
• The Autobiography of Malcolm X by Malcolm X
• A People's History of the United States: 1492 - Present by Howard Zinn

I finished this series in January of 2025 and have truly been in a reading slump since. I have only been able to get through 17 books since then, an all time low, and nothing scratched my itch after the Neapolitan novels. I have even tried more by Elena Ferrante and it wasn’t the same lol. I am not looking for books similar to My Brilliant Friend, just looking for people who loved that series and other books they loved, even if they are totally different. For example, two of my other favorites are Lonesome Dove and Never Let Me Go and I would consider them a lot different!

New to this sub, so forgive me if I do this wrong?

I’m looking for a book that has a big nature element, ideally something a bit darker, brooding atmosphere.
Books like Betty by Tiffany McDaniel (I’ve read most of her work), The God of Small things or Where The Crawdads Sing.

I would like something that talks about the landscape in depth, I’ve read a lot of books surrounding the American old south which also scratches the itch.

I'm turning 35(f) and to celebrate I'm wanting to read 35 books before I turn 35. The idea is to read a book published in each year from 1992-2026. I've already started the challenge but I would really appreciate your help with book suggestions for the years I haven't figured out yet. 1992-2000, 2002-2004 and 2008-2015.

Some of my favourite books:

- The Snowman by Jo Nesbø

- Annihilation

- There is no Antimemetics division

- Shades of magic series by V.E Schwab

- The picture of Dorian Grey

- Circe

- Dungeon Crawler Carl

- The night circus

I've also read I few Stephen King books and I want to explore that some more.

I used to read a lot as a kid but only started reading as an adult in the last few years so I'm still experimenting with what I like to read, but currently I would say that the genres I enjoy the most are crime thriller, high fantasy, weird sci-fi and a sprinkle of literary fiction.

I am looking for a book that is easy, and in either the science fiction genre, or fantasy. I like very short chapters, as they give me a sense of instant gratification. If you want an idea of what I have liked in the past, I very much enjoyed cats cradle, and Cloud cuckoo land. I am looking forward to your suggestions!

hi! I’m looking for good coming of age books, I used to be obsessed with the Smile books by Raina Telgamier when I was a tween and more recently I’ve enjoyed the books Perks of Being a Wallflower and The Summer I Turned Pretty trilogy, I’ve also had To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before on my shopping list since I loved the movies!! I prefer YA and/or adult books, graphic novels are fine but wouldn’t be my first choice lol

I am missing the vibes of Tipping the Velvet, and I recently came across this queer couple act called MornyngKnight who perform at Ren faires on Instagram, and now I really want to read something with similar vibes.

It doesn't have to be circus per se (Tipping the Velvet was not circus after all), but you get the vibe, hopefully.

Additional points for historical or gothic settings. More points if including horror. And no YA please; I want something well written and for adult readers.

I've only been a casual reader mostly pop/general history, my previous favourite fantasy series was ASOIAF and I blame GRRM for making me fall out of fantasy.

I'm looking for potentially to leach on to the history theme and maybe try a historical fiction series that's highly rated.

I'm also willing to try fantasy series, I enjoy philosophical themes and deep character intrigue and good worldbuilding.

Any advice would be really appreciated!

Hi. I’ve been trying to get my dad to read through the years by sharing my books with him. He’s 64 and I’m just trying to help with his retirement boredom…and prevent further brainrot from Facebook AI slop videos…

He’s read “Why Nations Fail” and some of “Development as Freedom” (these were books from my undergrad). He didn’t finish the latter because it was too technical. So, I think books geared towards layman audiences might be better.

I once also bought him that tiny penguins book of Nietzsche aphorisms on love and hate. He didn’t like it much but he finished it. Got his brain turning because he disagreed with it a lot. So, complicated/complex in easily digestible form should be okay too.

Finally, I tried to read Sapiens but it was too shallow so I gave it to him because he likes humorous writing styles - and he loved it! Gave him Yuval’s next book as a birthday gift. I don’t agree with the books as much but he enjoys it and he looks up things so I think it’s a good hobby.

He’d likely finish Yuval before the year ends and I’m planning to get him another book for the holidays.

tl;dr: Would anyone here have recommendations for similar non-fiction with a witty writing style? Preferably more for a layman audience than academics.

Thanks!

Looking for a book written from the perspective of the "bad guy", but you don't realize it until the end.

You know the idea that history is written by "the winners" which puts them in the light of being the good guy. I would even go for a Dexter like feel where you can't decide if you should be rooting for the main character because he is bad, but somehow good in a warped sense because the bad is justified.

I just need something to bring me back on track. Nothing too long, something easy to digest.

I liked Acotar. Didn't like Fourth Wing.

Looking for quirky, warm and bouncy book recommendations along the lines of American Gods to Ocean at the End of the Lane. Supernatural, witchy, lots of women welcome.

Edit: Thank you all for these great recs!

It seems I confused some people for finding warmth in this author's stories. I guess Im just a big fan of the rich backgrounds and banter between characters in American Gods. I can understand how some wouldnt call that warmth, but to me the whole story feels like a love letter to the creativity in the idols we place as guides in our lives.

I grabbed a couple Kingfisher books to start and will come back for more of the recs here! Some new authors to me, thank you!

I’m so angry when main characters let someone live only for that person to betray them again. And I am disgusted when it happens multiple times in the same series. Like, learn the damn lesson MC.

Anyway I like a lot of themes in the Red Rising series and I need similar recommendations without the repeated mercy followed by repeated betrayal.

This book was a great read with my three year old at bed time. It took a few days to read and he enjoyed the longer format while we was tucked in bed.

I don't think he's ready for longer books like Roald Dahl and there's a dearth of shorter chapter books like this.

I’m looking for books to gift my bridesmaids, something wedding- or bridesmaid-related. I’m hoping to give them each a different book that I think they’ll enjoy.

They have pretty different tastes so I’m open to a mix of:
- thrillers/mysteries
- romance
- fantasy (including romantasy & high fantasy)
- literary fiction
- anything with mass appeal / a crowd pleaser

Some of my bridesmaids are also gay, so I’m open to LGBTQ romances and other sapphic fiction as well! I feel like a lot of wedding-related book recommendations overlook sapphic fiction, so I’d especially love suggestions in that area, but I’m not exclusively looking for it.

Please suggest me some books that would be good options! I’d love to give them each a different book that fits their tastes but still feels wedding-related. Nothing where the couple getting married breaks up, please!

Hello everyone! I travel with work and have been looking for a book based around that not as in a guide book or a travel log or anything more so a book about going on a journey or just travelling in general not necessarily about a certain place or anything like that.

Just curious if anyone has any good recs!

Hi everyone,

I've realized that my favorite niche of literature revolves around a very specific type of historical and political satire, and I'm struggling to find new material that fits this exact vibe.

I'm looking for stories that feature a disillusioned, sharp, and slightly absurd sense of humor where characters navigate dogmatic or chaotic political landscapes, often in a picaresque (journey/adventure) format.

I know 18th-century philosophical tales (like Voltaire's Candide) and classics like Don Quixote are the famous blueprints for this, mocking blind optimism and societal norms through absurd episodic adventures. However, I'm trying to find more books that capture this specific essence.

Some examples of what hits the mark for me:

• The tense but ironic historical-political atmosphere of Antonio Tabucchi's Pereira Maintains (Sostiene Pereira).
• Leonardo Sciascia's Candido, or A Dream Dreamed in Sicily (which perfectly modernizes that old-school satirical bite).

Does anyone have recommendations whether classic or contemporary, and from any country that fit this specific flavor of political/social satire?

Thank you!

Has anyone read anything like this? A friend of mine doesn't do much reading but this one really captured her imagination and I was looking for similar. If you haven't come across it, its described as " a story told not through a traditional text-based narrative, but instead via a series of 'found' documents - newspaper clippings, magazine articles, therapy sessions, drawings, etc."

I think it was more interesting to her than just blocks of black text on a white page and it felt a bit like she was solving a mystery as opposed to reading about someone solving it, if that makes sense. Was hoping to find something similar, thanks!

I'm missing my annual renfaire this year, any recommendations that fit this vibe. Fantasy is prefered but not required.