Best Book You've Read

[jk703]

I need a book for my book club coming up, and I want to take my time to pick! We had one recently that was a dud and I don't want to be a dud picker, haha!

What is the best book that you read in the last few years?
What kind of book is it?
Would it work for a discussion?
Any that had surprise twists?

 

[Karen]

I'm reading this right after typing up my thoughts on The Violin Conspiracy. That was a really good book with a twist at the end. We did it for my book club and had a really good discussion about it. This is a mystery, story about family interactions, and deals with racism. It's fast paced and easy to read.

Another recent one is "When the Cranes Fly South" that was really good, but sad. It deals with how people interact with aging and dying people, but in story format. This would also make a great discussion book.

I really enjoyed The Correspondent and think that would make another great book club discussion. This one was more of a slow burn for me, but definitely a good read.

 

[norton94]

Just read "Wild Dark Shore" by Charlotte McConaghy for my IRL book club and was transfixed. It's a family drama with action and mystery/thriller components.

 

[bonnenuit]

I second The Violin Conspiracy.

I'm a big advocate for James by Percival Everett.

Another excellent recent book is The Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon.

Some less recent books that were great for book discussion:

The Hour I First Believed by Wally Lamb
This Tender Land by William Kent Krueger or his book Ordinary Grace
The Extraordinary Life of Sam Hell by Robert Dugoni

 

[jk703]

Thank you ladies! Lots to ponder!

 

[Karen]

Just read "Wild Dark Shore" by Charlotte McConaghy for my IRL book club and was transfixed. It's a family drama with action and mystery/thriller components.

This shows up as not released yet on Goodreads, but funny enough, when I went there to add this to my to-be-read list, I had already marked it To Read. Now I'm wondering who else read it and recommended it to me. But HOW are you reading it. You getting a pre-lease copy?

ETA: Ok that's so weird. I went and looked again at Goodreads and it still says not published yet, but then says first published March 4, 2025. So clearly they are confused. Nevermind. Lol.

 

[norton94]

This shows up as not released yet on Goodreads, but funny enough, when I went there to add this to my to-be-read list, I had already marked it To Read. Now I'm wondering who else read it and recommended it to me. But HOW are you reading it. You getting a pre-lease copy?

ETA: Ok that's so weird. I went and looked again at Goodreads and it still says not published yet, but then says first published March 4, 2025. So clearly they are confused. Nevermind. Lol.

It released march 2025... so strange about Goodreads!