To Add to Your 2018 TBR

A little over a week ago on Instagram I mentioned that I was in a bit of a reading rut and could use some good book recommendations. And wowza, did y’all deliver the goods….as in 54 titles and 13 book series!  I had such fun going though all of your recs.  I’ve already been to the book store, downloaded a few books on audible, have finished one and am currently in the middle of another.  Yay for getting my reading groove back!  Can’t thank you enough! 

I thought it would be helpful to share all of the awesome recs here on the blog.  In case you’re also looking for a few good reads to add to your 2018 TBR.  I’ve ranked them in order by most recommended…….because I’m a nerd like that and this is my kind of fun.  😉  Also, I added my own notes to the the titles I’ve already read as well as some random thoughts just for fun.  Happy Reading friends!

Reader Book Recommendations

1. The Last Mrs. Parrish by Liv Constantine – This was the most highly recommended book by you all, so I downloaded it on audible right away and finished it in 2 days!  I really enjoyed it.  It was entertaining, and just slightly predictable; but I was so tuned in I couldn’t tear myself away from it until I was finally to the end. I picture Nicole Kidman as Daphne and Cameron Diaz as Amber.  Am I the only person who casts a book’s characters while reading?
2. A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Back-man – I’m in the middle of this one right now!  I really enjoy his writing style.  I read his novella And Every Morning the Way Home Gets Longer and Longer last year and just absolutely loved it!
3. Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo
4. Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty – I read this one four years ago, check out my review of it here.  It was my first Moriarty book. Since then, I’ve read just about every book she’s written.  What Alice Forgot is my personal favorite by her!  You can read my full review of it here.
5. Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman
6. Behind Closed Doors by B.A. Paris – I did this book on audible last year.  You can read my thoughts on it here.
7. Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng – I read her debut novel Everything I Never Told You and really loved it, so I’m looking forward to reading this one very soon.
8. The Alice Network by Kate Quinn
9. Secrets of a Charmed Life by Susan Meissner
10. The Secret Wife by Gill Paul 
11. Before We Were Yours by Lisa Wingate
12. Braving the Wilderness by Brene Brown – My mom has read quite a few books by Brene Brown and is currently reading this one.  She’s encouraged me to give it a read.  I typically prefer fiction, but I think it’s good to step outside of your reading comfort zone from time to time.
13. House Rules by Jodi Piccoult – She’s one of my favorite authors, but I haven’t read anything by her in years.  I’m excited to dive in to this one this year.
14. The Paris Architect by Charles Belfoure
15. The Little Paris Bookshop by Nina George
16. The Kitchen House by Kathleen Grissom
17. Tell Me More by Kelly Corrigan 
18. The Two-Family House by Linda Cohen Loigman
19. The Wolves of Winter by Tyrell Johnson
20. A Dogs Purpose by W. Bruce Cameron
21. Year One by Nora Roberts
22. The O’Briens by Peter Behrens
23. Love Anthony by Lisa Genova 
24. The Other Einstein by Marie Benedict
25. 11.22.63 Stephen King  – The hubs and I started watching the Hulu series….but I hadn’t realized it was based on a book!
26. Elizabeth the Queen: The Life of a Modern Monarch by Sally Bedell Smith – I binge-watched The Crown in a week thanks to the unexpected snow storm we got here in Charleston.  I found it all so fascninating; so while I’m not usually a biography fan, I am definitely interested in this one!
27. Beneath a Scarlet Sky by Mark Sullivan 
28. The Red Tent by Anita Diamant 
29. One True Loves by Taylor Jenkins Reid
30. It Ends With Us by Colleen Hoover  
31. The Royal We by Heather Cocks and Jessica Morgan
32. I Let You Go by Clare Mackintosh
33. Hum If You Don’t Know The Words by Bianca Marais
34. A Murder In Music City by Michael Bishop 
35. The Break Down by B.A. Paris 
36. A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles
37. Moody Bitches by Julie Holland, M.D. – Another non-fiction but the blurb on this one sounds super interesting – A groundbreaking health guide for women of all ages that shows women’s inherent moodiness is a strength, not a weakness, and medication is not always the answer.  
38. The Law of Moses by Amy Harmon – The Song of David was also recommended.
39. The Doomsday Conspiracy by Sidney Sheldon 
40. Jewels by Danielle Steel
41. A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J Maas
42. The Time of my life by Cecelia Ahern
43. The Lake House by Kate Morton  – I’m a huge Kate Morton fan, but I’ve yet read to read this title.  So it’s back on my tbr!  You can read my review of The Forgotten Garden here.  I’ve also read The Secret Keeper but never reviewed it here on the blog.  It was really good, but I enjoyed the story line and characters in The Forgotten Garden a little more.
44. This Is How It Always Is by Laurie Frankel
45. The Essay by Robin Yocum
46. If the Creek Don’t Rise by Leah Weiss
47. The Lilac Girls by Martha Hall Kelly
48. Origin by Dan Brown
49. Bitter is the New Black by Jen Lancaster
50. Camino Island by John Grisham
51. Mad About A Boy Helen Fielding
52. Radiance by Grace Draven
53. A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius by Dave Eggers
54. The Secret Life of Violet Grant

Recommended Series

The two book series that you all most recommended were Outlander and A Discovery of Witches.

1. Outlander Series– I read the first book in this series many years ago and fell in love with the characters and story.  It’s probably the best love story I’ve ever read.  I was happy with the way things ended in the first book, so I never read the rest of the series…….too chicken to find out what the author might do to the characters I loved so much…….am I the only one who does that?!  I’ve also only seen the first season of the Showtime series for the same reason.
2. A Discovery of Witches Trilogy  – This is one I started….only got a chapter or two in….and then life and books I had to read for my book club got in the way, so I’m definitely going to get back in to this in 2018.  I like the idea that it’s only a trilogy, so it doesn’t feel like too much of an upward climb.  I have a hard time starting a series when there are like 7 or 8 books to get through.  My brain almost can’t deal with having that much story line in front of me.
3. Gamache Series by Louise Penny
4. The Selection Series – This one was said to be a Hunger Games meets The Bachelor……um, interesting!
5. Crazy Rich Asians
6. Poirot mysteries by Agatha Christie
7. Bourbon Kings by J.R. Ward – This one sounds like the tv series Dallas but for bourbon not oil.
8. Black Dagger Brotherhood
9. The Half Bad Trilogy by Sally Green
10. The Passage Trilogy by Justin Cronin
11. The Charles Lennox Mystery Series by Charles Finch
12. Mary O’Reilly Series by Teri Reid
13. The Expanse Series 

Recommended for Finding Great Reads

And last but not least, the two things that you all recommended for finding good books to read were the What Should I Read Next? Podcast and Reese Witherspoon’s Book Club account on Instagram.

I seriously can not thank you all enough for taking the time to jot down your book recommendations!  My TBR is now quite full.  I’m currently reading A Man Called Ove and next on my list is Little Fires Everywhere.  What’s in your reading queue?