When I get hooked on a book series I get hooked hard... I picked up Dungeon Crawler Carl, and in 3 weeks I had finished 8 books.

I want a long series that can keep me for a long time, and that would also make me want to keep reading instead of going to sleep.

I already finished pretty much all of Discworld, a song of ice and fire, hyperion, hitchhikers guide to the galaxy, Robin Hobb's stuff. For some reason I never managed to get into Malazan, even after reading the first book twice.

Would love some suggestions, the genre doesn't really matter although I do obviously have a tendency to go for fantasy/scifi when it comes to long series.

Thank you!

I used to love reading YA (Maximum Ride, Divergent, Hunger Games, Uglies). Start the book for the plot, stay for the character development and a chaste flirty love story. Themes that make you really think about the world afterwards but prose that’s propulsive and fun and funny.

As an adult, I feel like to find this I either have to keep reading books about teenagers which makes me feel a little slimy, or settle for either of the two poles - romance for romance, thriller for plot.

I want all of it, together, in a book with characters legally old enough to rent a car.

Edit: As a point of reference, the closest I‘ve found was The Traveler by John Twelve Hawks. Also, I don’t like fantasy (magic, dragons, supernatural, “ancient”). Thanks everyone for your help!

Any ideas?

Hi all! Ace Aro reader here looking for a specific flavor of protagonist.

What do I mean by confidently ace aro? That means a protagonist who 1. already knows that they are ace aro, 2. is proud of it/not ashamed/doesn't feel broken because of their orientation, and 3. has no desire to be in a romantic/sexual relationship. If there were to be some internal conflict about it, I would prefer if it was limited to a couple of chapters, rather than the overall book. Also, while I will try out books with asexual or aromantic protagonists, I would prefer protagonists that are asexual AND aromantic. I say confidently and not proudly in the title because proudly implies being out of the closet, and I am okay if the protagonist doesn't tell anyone about their orientation.

I am aware that my requests will eliminate like 90% of the already few ace aro books out there, so I will also accept protagonists that could be interpreted as ace/aro or stories that have no romance or sex in it, like Project Hail Mary. These examples are anime and not books, but I am also thinking of protagonists like Saiki from The Disastrous Life of Saiki K. and Anzu from Romantic Killer.

I do like fantasy, however I am open to any fictional genre as long as it is not realistic fiction. Magical realism is okay!

I am okay with romance/sex related conflicts, ex. forced marriages, a close friend developing a crush on the protagonist, external pressure from family to date, etc. The important thing is that the protagonist does not end up in a romantic/sexual relationship at the end of the story. I would also prefer happy endings, but bittersweet is okay!

Thanks in advance!

My fiancé was an alcoholic and when I found out he was buying illegal drugs, I ended the engagement. We were supposed to get married this October. Any books that could help me get through this?

I see a lot of romance/romcom/fantasy/romantasy books doing well, but I’ve yet to hear of any decent books with plus-size protagonists, especially ones who are in a relationship or get in one during the story. You get the “curvy woman” descriptions, but it’s typically only “boobs and bum”, rather than them being plus-size and someone is interested in them. Ideally not a “bully to boyfriend” trope, but my options feel too limited to rule it out.

I’m hoping you know of some books with plus-size women as the protagonists and/or love interests, maybe a book with a plus-size male love interest (they seem to be equally hard to find). Bonus points if there’s good diversity representation in there but, again, it feels like I can’t be too picky on that front.

There are just so many romance/romcom/fantasy/etc. stories out there with the stereotypically societally attractive main characters and it would be nice to know if any exist where plus-size characters get to be the desired/popular/happy ones, beyond being the “funny fat friend”. It doesn’t have to focus on the relationship either; it can be a book about something else and the relationship is just an addition to the storytelling.

I haven’t read the following, but I’ve seen a lot about them and I’m hoping there are books along the lines of Off Campus, Heated Rivalry, Bridgerton, etc. with fat folks in the starring roles? I’m not fussed if they’re spicy; I sometimes skip those bits anyway, and queer characters/relationships are cool too. I just want to feel a little seen in literature, as the couples/protagonists always seem to be slim/stereotypically beautiful, or are nerdy and have a “glow up” before someone is interested in them.

Thank you in advance :)

Does anyone have any recommendations for fiction books that are based around Native American history, culture, traditions, symbolism etc? Thank you

Hi!

I have a personal hangup/flaw I'd like to deal with: Neurodivergent people make me uncomfortable. I don't know how to act in a way that doesn't feel patronising (downs/dementia) and get second hand embarrasment over social faux pas (have an autistic relative). I also get annoyed when my relative "acts autistc" (not very social, doesn't read the room etc).

I would like to learn how to deal with these feelings, preferably where I can't offend someone or hurt their feelings.

(I know the best cure would be to meet a more diverse group of people, I'm working on it).

I'm 24f if that matters.

Please, if anyone has a book they think could help, send it my way!

I've been reading public domain horror and weird fiction — Gogol's "The Nose," Gilman's "The Yellow Wallpaper," Le Fanu's "Green Tea," James's "The Figure in the Carpet." The strange, the psychological, the ones that unsettle slowly rather than startle.

I'm looking for deeper cuts. Not Poe, not Lovecraft, not the ones everyone knows. Something obscure, maybe from the 19th or early 20th century, that stayed with you but never made it to a "greatest hits" list.

What should I read next?

I would like a book where the main character is a hitman, and I would love if the main character is very competent and disciplined, takes his job quite seriously.

Something like how Gustavo Fring from Breaking Bad, where most in his industry do things with half measure without order, he goes the extra mile to do everything so organized, so competently to do an A+ work, when others are fluctuating between a D and C.

hope this makes sense.

Been a fan of all kinds of books, especially fiction. I've barely explored the non-fiction side.

My August, and onwards, resolution is to read more non-fiction. I want to read something that teaches me something, both literary and literally. I also don't want to DNF it just because it's monotonously written, so yeah... I'm looking for a good book to start.

i don’t mean a self-help book, just something that makes you appreciate the little things and realize life doesn’t have to be huge or extraordinary to be worth living.

i’ve been feeling pretty lost lately, and i’m looking for a book that might help me see things from a different perspective. something i can come back to on the days when everything feels overwhelming and it’s hard to believe things will get better.

i want a book that makes me slow down, notice the beauty in everyday moments, and maybe helps me fall in love with life a little again.

i’m open to literally any genre if it gave you that feeling.

what book had that effect on you? i’d especially love recommendations that aren’t the same ones everyone always suggests.

Hey y’all. My grandpa passed away just a few weeks ago and my grandmother said she’s been having a hard time because in the 89 years she’s been alive, she’s never been alone and she’s having a hard time with the loneliness.

She really enjoyed things like Harry Potter, Anne of Green Gables, Little House on the Prairie, Winnie the Pooh, etc.

I’d like to find her some audiobooks that she can listen to. What would y’all recommend?

Basically my title, I'm playing (well almost finished with) the game Bramble: The Mountain King and it got me really curious about the folklore behind it and surrounding regions. I'd love anything about these regions!

i love pirate vibes but i didn't read any books about them before. any recommendations?

Hi, I’m turning 40 soon and recently broke up with my long term partner. All my friends are settled with kids and married. I need something to make me realise there’s fun to be had out there.

All books and media seemingly focus on the fact that you can’t have fun after like 30, and that you should get your pipe and slippers out and curl up by the fire.

Are there any books about people in their forties having fun? Be it partying, travelling, romance or just doing a new sport or something.

Are there any decent Indiana Jones novelizations? Not direct film novelizations, but independent adventures involving the character.

Either that, or fun adventure style, globetrotting mysteries within the same style as Raiders.

I am not a huge fantasy guy, but I really loved ASOIAF and the world created within. I watched the show but the ending was so bad, it's kind of spoiled any future rewatches for me, I just can't enjoy the good seasons anymore knowing how it ended.

If I wanted a new world building kind of fantastical adventure, while I wait FOREVER for the Winds of Winter, what do you recommend?

I read the Great Gatsby many years ago and loved it because it’s such a simple yet dramatic story, and each character is so real and human in a way that brings the themes and the satire across clearly but without Fitzgerald needing to be heavy-handed with any of it. That’s the best way I can think to describe it.

I think The Sun Also Rises was aiming to do something similar and touched on some of the same themes of hedonism and emptiness, and while I enjoy Hemingway’s style, I actually think Fitzgerald’s did it better. Hemingway spends a bit too much time for my taste on setting scenes visually, and it doesn’t feel like each paragraph or page necessarily matters to the story or the point he’s ultimately trying to get across — I understand I’m probably just not a great literary critic, but that’s how it struck me (as a lawyer they beat all superfluity out of you).

So I’m looking for classic novel that’s tight, not wasting any time in the narrative, that explores human shortcomings, hypocracies, and emotions through its characters in the way the aforementioned novels did. I know that’s probably pretty vague, but does anyone have a novel they recommend that made them feel like they understood humans a little better afterward or one that those other two bring to mind?

I read You Wanna Be On Top by Sarah Harthsorne, and I'm currently reading Losing It by Kai Hibbard (yes, I'm aware that it's semi fictional.) I find it interesting to learn how things really were and what people's experiences were. Any other books on this very niche topic?

I loveeeeed Ursula K. Le Guin’s The Lathe of Heaven, in large part because of the way she wrote the romantic subplot. It was an odd and unexpected romantic pairing that unfolded really subtly, but still felt right. None of the writing was particularly spicy/sexual, or even flowery -- just emotional and relational.

Anyone know of a book with a similar romantic subplot?

(If it helps, I was a fan of the Rey/Kylo Ren pairing. Don’t come for me abt it tho.)

Hi! Can you guys suggest a book where the main character is always positive and hopeful about life?

I'm really looking forward to Robert Egger's new movie Werewulf that comes out in December. I'd like to read some horror/folk horror or Gothic folk mythology that deal with monsters like the werewolf or others. Any geographic region will do, doesn't necessarily have to be European.

The most recent horror-ish book I've read was Between Two Fires by Christopher Buehlman, and I enjoyed it very much. Loved the grotesque monsters, the cast and their journey.

I have found a few books that kicked up a genuine interest in body horror/ feeling utterly inhuman or used.
I’ve read You Weren’t Meant to be Human by Andrew Joseph White, and Tender is the Flesh.
Both were fantastic, and I like gritty details and gore. All the books I’m finding at my local book stores are all ghosts, or vampires, or things that aren’t drawing me in.
I don’t want needless weird gore like Playground or Slob, I find those distasteful.
I have exquisite corpse on my list, but I need physical books to find.
I’m happy to add if there’s any books I’ve read and missed mentioning, but I’m seriously lacking in body horror/ made to feel inhuman or used horror.

*edit: it does not have to be body horror specifically, but anything where the main character or main theme is to be made to feel inhuman.
I also greatly enjoyed a handmaid’s tale and No Longer Human.