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There’s nothing quite like long cozy nights curled up with a good book. Fall and winter definitely feel like the best part of the year to make extra time for reading. So, whether it’s a lighthearted romance novel to get you through a long flight or a gripping mystery to entertain you in the evenings, here are the top seven books you need to check out before ringing in the new year.
1. Bonfire
by Krysten Ritter
Ritter’s debut book promises to be a huge hit. This suspense novel follows a lawyer, Abby, who has to confront her troubling past when a case she’s working on winds up being related to another case involving her childhood friends. To get to the bottom of both situations, she must confront her hometown’s ugly secret.
2. A Column of Fire
by Ken Follett
In 1558 England, the political climate was less than friendly. A Column of Fire tells the story of one of Queen Elizabeth’s personal guards, his unrequited love story, and the tumultuous political climate at the time. This book is part of the Kingsbridge series, but no worries if you haven’t read the previous books. The plots are unrelated, so if you can’t commit to reading two other 1,000 page novels first, you can definitely start here.
3. Mothers, Daughters & Body Image: Learning to Love Ourselves as We Are
by Hillary L. McBride
For a more serious and thought-provoking read, McBride’s latest book delves into her own recovery from an eating disorder. She also shares true stories from other survivors and research around body positivity and self-love. Pick this up if you’d like a nightly quiet-time read as it’s the only title on this list not available in audiobook form.
4. I Capture the Castle
by Dodie Smith
How about an oldie but a goody? I Capture the Castle was written in the late ’40s but is still endearing and heartwarming today. It tells a story of love and life through the journal entries of a charming 17-year-old girl in England.
5. Before We Were Yours
by Lisa Wingate
This is the book that everyone will be talking about over holiday dinners. Before We Were Yours has been on Amazon’s lists of most-read and most-sold books for the past 13 weeks in a row. Grab the tissues, because this book can be prove to be quite the tear jerker. Based on a true story, it tells the tale of how poor children in Tennessee were kidnapped and sold to wealthy families under the guise of adoption.
6. The Red Notebook
by Antoine Laurain
Not ready to take on the emotional work of reading about fragmented families? That’s okay. If what you want is a feel-good read to fly through during holiday travel, pick up The Red Notebook. Quick, easy, and heartfelt doesn’t get much better than this. It tells the story of a man in Paris finding a lost handbag with no information about its owner inside other than the thoughts penned in a red notebook. With little to go on, the man searches for the satchel and tell-all’s rightful owner.
7. A Wrinkle in Time
by Madeleine L’Engle
This nostalgic classic is slated to be a blockbuster come March 2018. The star-studded cast, which includes Oprah herself, ensures the film adaptation of A Wrinkle in Time will be a hit. If you’re in the mood for a childhood classic you can read cover to cover over your holiday break, this is the one. It’s just around 250 pages, and the dynamic plot is sure to keep you hooked. Having a hard time picking just one? Us too! But hey, is it really the holidays if you don’t have an Amazon wishlist filled with books?
