So here we are, with the fall reading slump looming and the target still out of reach (10 more to go), and I’m doing what any reasonable person would do: reaching for the slim volumes. Call it cheating if you want. I call it strategy.

If you’re in the same boat, here are five reads you can finish in a day or two, maybe even in a single sitting if you clear your evening. But don’t let the page counts fool you. These books are short, not light. Between a Tehran orchard full of women walking away from their lives, a postman bargaining with the Devil, and an essay collection that will make you want to throw your phone across the room, you will feel things. Some of it will be rage. Some of it will be grief. A little of it, thanks to Nora Ephron, will be laughter through gritted teeth. Enjoy!

Women Without Men by Shahrnush Parsipur

Five women in 1953 Iran, each at the end of her rope, walk away from the lives that were chosen for them and end up in the same orchard outside Tehran. One of them believes she is turning into a tree. I wish I were joking.

It’s magical realism with a very sharp edge, and it’s the kind of book that was banned in its home country and got its author imprisoned, which tells you everything about how much it threatens people. It’s short, strange, and quietly furious, and it will make you want to quit everything and go live in a garden.

Men Explain Things To Me by Rebecca Solnit

It starts with a man at a party explaining a book to Solnit, not realizing she wrote it. Yes, this is where “mansplaining” comes from, and no, the book isn’t just that. Solnit moves from the small, infuriating moments of being talked over to the much bigger violence women face, and she does it with so much wit that you’ll be laughing right up until you’re not. Read it with a pen in hand, and maybe a stress ball for the rage.

One Day, Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This by Omar El Akkad

A former war correspondent writes about watching the West respond to Gaza, and about the distance between the values people claim to hold and what they actually do. It is raw, personal, and unapologetically angry. I’ll be honest, it’s not a comfortable read, and it isn’t meant to be. This is the one where you let yourself feel all of it, then sit with it for a while after you close the book shut.

If Cat’s Disappeared from the World by Genki Kawamura

A postman is told he has days to live, and then the Devil shows up wearing his face with an offer: for every thing he lets disappear from the world, he gets one more day. Phones go first. Then movies. Then, of course, we get to the cats. It’s gentle and funny in a melancholy way, and it will sneak up on you. Keep tissues nearby. I’m not saying I cried, but I’m not saying I didn’t.

Heartburn by Norah Ephron

Rachel is seven months pregnant when she finds out her husband is cheating, and her response is to be devastated, hilarious, and extremely good at cooking. Loosely based on Ephron’s real divorce, it’s heartbreak served with a side of recipes and zero self-pity. This is your palate cleanser: you’ll still feel things, but this time through gritted-teeth laughter.

I must admit, it was very difficult to narrow down to just ten books. So you best believe that you’re in for a treat with stories filled with crumbling mansions, whispered secrets, windswept islands and the uneasy sense that something is waiting just beyond the candlelight.

The Secret History by Donna Tartt

The novel follows a working-class Californian who transfers to an elite Vermont college and is drawn into a small, secretive circle of classics students led by an enigmatic professor. As the group’s obsession with ancient Greek ideals pushes them toward a terrible act, the novel unfolds as a confession, told from the start with the knowledge that a murder has happened.

Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier

A shy young woman marries the wealthy, brooding Maxim de Winter and moves to his grand estate. There, she's haunted by the lingering presence of his first wife, Rebecca, whose memory is kept alive by the sinister housekeeper. The unnamed narrator struggles with insecurity and suspicion as the truth about Rebecca and her death slowly emerges.

Notes on an Execution by Danya Kukafka

On the last day of his life, death-row inmate Ansel Packer awaits execution for murder. The story moves between Ansel's final hours and the perspectives of the women whose lives he touched: his mother, a detective who hunted him, and the twin sister of a victim. Rather than centering the killer, it examines the people shaped by violence and the systems around it.

You Are Here by David Nicholls

Marnie, a copy editor recovering from a painful divorce, and Michael, a geography teacher with a guarded nature, are brought together by a mutual friend for a walk across England's Coast to Coast path. Over the miles, two lonely, awkward people slowly open up to each other.

The Memory Police by Yōko Ogawa

On an unnamed island, objects regularly "disappear," and with them the memories and meaning attached to them, enforced by a totalitarian Memory Police who hunt down anyone who remembers. A young novelist discovers her editor is immune to the forgetting and decides to hide him.

House of Hollow by Krystal Sutherland

As children, the three Hollow sisters vanished for a month and returned with no memory of what happened, along with strange physical changes. Years later, Grey, the eldest, is back in Edinburgh when her older sister Vivi goes missing, and she must uncover the truth about their disappearance and their unnatural origins.

Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

In 1950s Mexico, socialite Noemí Taboada travels to a remote mountain mansion called High Place after receiving a disturbing letter from her newly married cousin. The decaying house and its eccentric English family hide terrifying secrets, and Noemí finds herself plagued by nightmares and sinister forces.

The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson

Lawyer Gabriel Utterson investigates the strange connection between his respectable friend Dr. Henry Jekyll and the cruel, violent Edward Hyde. His inquiry reveals Jekyll's experiments with a potion that separates the good and evil aspects of the self.

The Lighthouse Witches by C.J. Cooper

In 1989, a group of schoolgirls and a teacher's family arrive at a remote Scottish island lighthouse where something sinister seems to lurk. Decades later, Lucy, now an adult, is drawn back when her own daughter goes missing in the same place, forcing her to confront a haunting past tied to local witch legends.

The Death of Mrs. Westaway by Ruth Ware

Hal, a struggling young tarot reader in Brighton, receives a letter saying she's inherited from a grandmother she's never met. Knowing it must be a mistake, but desperate for money, she attends the funeral and poses as the heir. As she spends time with the wealthy Westaway family at their crumbling estate, she realizes there are dangerous secrets surrounding her own past.

“All great and precious things are lonely.”

In an effort to read more classics, I spent the end of summer reading East of Eden by John Steinbeck and I have to say, it was one of the most challenging books I’ve read this year. When I say challenging, I don’t mean that it was a difficult read in terms of the language, but because I found that I had to read with a level of focus I haven’t had to in a very long time.

The story follows the intertwined destinies of two families—the Trasks and the Hamiltons—whose generations helplessly reenact the fall of Adam and Eve and the poisonous rivalry of Cain and Abel. Set in the rich farmlands of California’s Salinas Valley, Steinbeck has written about the location in particular with such love and care, serving as both the physical setting and a symbolic landscape for the eternal struggle between good and evil.

This book is very much a slow burn, brilliantly exploring themes of mystery of identity, the inexplicability of love, and the murderous consequences of love’s absence, featuring some of the most mesmerizing characters including my new favourite female villain, Cathy.

She’s heinous in many ways, often described as a “monster” but also, kind of a girl boss. Yes, she uses methods of manipulation and has a cold philosophy on human weakness, but this was all a survival tactic at a time where sexism was so prevalent and women had no say over their bodies or their lives.

In addition to the sexism, the casual racism really set the tone of how much this book is a product of its time - originally published in 1952. The descriptions of the early Salinas Valley characterises indigenous people as an “inferior breed without energy, inventiveness, or culture”. That they were lazy because they lived off basic foraging as opposed to hunting or fishing.

With that being said, characters like Lee (the Chinese-American servant) received a more nuanced treatment, which I found to be an interesting choice. While some interactions touch upon prevailing societal prejudices and the necessity of code-switching, however, Lee’s character is written with such depth, challenging the flat, stereotypical tropes applied to other groups in the book.

While I did enjoy the story, I must admit that it dragged on a bit at times and could’ve been made significantly shorter. I am excited to see how the adaptation turns out, particularly Florence Pugh’s portrayal of Cathy, which I’m sure she’ll play beautifully.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Of course, not everyone gets into reading slumps as the seasons change - it can happen sporadically, for many different reasons. In that event, I have taken upon myself to compile a list of short-ish (under 300 pages) books that I believe will hook you from start to finish. And if they don’t, apologies in advance.

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I Want You To Be Happy by Jem Calder is a tender and witty novel about the passions and peculiarities of modern love.

“Getting older is just a mass die-off of dreams; your hopes expire one by one and your options taper down to the life you actually have.”

Page count: 272

Small Boat by Vincent Delecroix takes the very real drowning of 27 refugees in the English Channel in 2021, and turns it into an examination of the morals of one female coastguard.

“What sent them to the bottom wasn’t my so-called errors of judgement, or my so-called lack of humanity or my so-called incapacity to get my head round their suffering.”

Page count: 122

Heart The Lover by Lily King tracks a college love triangle and how its choices echo across three decades.

“Isn’t love a form of hope?’ I said.

‘No. Love is crushing. Love is something you let yourself feel at your own peril.”

Page count: 256

Things In Nature Merely Grow by Yiyun Li is a memoir written by a mother about enduring the unimaginable loss of both her children to suicide.

“Sometimes people ask me where I am in the grieving process, and I wonder whether they understand anything at all about losing someone. How lonely the dead would feel, if the living were to stand up from death’s shadow, clap their hands, dust their pants, and say to themselves and to the world, I am done with my grieving; from this point on it’s life as usual, business as usual.”

Page count: 192

Giovanni’s Room by James Baldwin is a story of death and passion that reveals the unspoken complexities of the heart.

“There are so many ways of being despicable it quite makes one’s head spin. But the way to be really despicable is to be contemptuous of other people’s pain.”

Page count: 178

The Safekeep by Yael van der Wouden is a twisted tale of desire, suspicion, and obsession between two women staying in the same house in the Dutch countryside during the summer of 1961.

“She had made the kitchen a lovely place. Isabel could cry at it: at how a room could be made, and left behind, and turn terrible by way of absence. How a space could miss a person.”

Page count: 272

Notes On An Execution by Danya Kukafka presents a chilling portrait of womanhood as it simultaneously unravels the familiar narrative of the American serial killer, interrogating our system of justice and our cultural obsession with crime stories.

“She had known from a young age that everyone had darkness inside-some just controlled it better than others. Very few people believed that they were bad, and this was the scariest part. Human nature could be so hideous, but it persisted in this ugliness by insisting it was good.”

Page count: 306 (slightly over the page count…worth it!)

Well…the books I’m about to recommend to you right now were discovered on a similar book shopping excursion. It’s rare for me to go looking for books blindly, I almost always have a list with me. But when I do get in the mood for something new and unexpected, I can say I’ve been pleasantly surprised. This has become my favourite way to shop for new reads, especially if I’m in a bit of a reading slump or not in the mood for anything on my current shelf. After all, the books we read are to be read at the right time, the right place, and the right mood.

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Here are some books I’ve stumbled upon where the plot was equally as compelling as the cover that initially caught my eye.

Colony by Annika Norlin is a story about a group of misfits who have formed a “cult” essentially and are living off the grid in Sweden. The book successfully challenges conventional society and the power we have over others and that others have over us.

The cast of characters complemented each other well - and the natural forming of hierarchy and leadership when trying to escape their past lives was interesting to see unfold.

What I liked about the cover: colours, image, matte finish

Heartburn by Nora Ephron is about the breakup of a perfect marriage, filled with adultery and revenge, wrapped up beautifully in comedic dialogue. What I found interesting was that there wasn’t much depth or complexity to the story or characters, and yet, I was entertained from start to finish.

What I liked about the cover: design, texture of embossing

Fire Exit by Morgan Talty is a somber and depressing story following a man who has spent over two decades secretly watching his daughter from across the river on a reservation. You can’t help but feel sympathy and frustration for the protagonist who has nothing good going for him, and constantly lets life slap him around. The writing is incredible, showcasing the true exploration of legacy, bloodlines, culture and inheritance.

What I liked about the cover: simplicity, opening paragraph on the cover

Babel by R.F. Kuang is a historical fantasy epic that grapples with student revolutions, colonial resistance, and the use of language and translation as the dominating tool of the British Empire. The world building and lore is so intricate that I was swept up in the story in a way that felt like I was there. The characters are so well thought out - complex, multi-faceted, flawed, and so utterly human.

It’s not an easy read; it’s slow, dense and highly academic. But if you have the time and patience, you will be confronted with a reckoning you’ve never experienced.

What I liked about the cover: design, monochrome colours, magic vibes

I Who Have Never Known Men by Jaqueline Harpman is a haunting, heartbreaking post-apocalyptic novel of female friendship and intimacy, and the lengths people will go to maintain their humanity in the face of devastation. The story starts with forty women who live imprisoned in a cage. They have no memory of how they got there, no notion of time, and only a vague recollection of their lives before.

This book is quite literally a journey that left me with a sense of dread and many unanswered questions that I think about to this day.

What I liked about the cover: ominous imagery, title

We all have those books and I wanted to share a few of mine. The books that I think about often, characters I wish I could meet in real life, and worlds I could only dream of teleporting to. Oh how wonderful it would be if there were some way we could re-read our favourite books for the very first time. If only…

Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

I never thought that I would used the words atmospheric, beautiful, creepy and spooky all to describe a singular novel. Silvia has written a sublime piece of post-colonial gothic literature with a loveable protagonist and a mysterious house that never lets it’s inhabitants go.

The story unsettled me in a way that I can’t even describe; I couldn’t put the book down. By the end, I remember sighing with horrified relief, unable to shake off this novel for days afterwards. A prime example of a wonderful, well-told story that you won’t be able to escape. Perfect for your autumn/winter reading list.

On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong

I don’t gravitate towards memoirs very often, but this one pleasantly surprised me. Written as a letter to his mom, who doesn’t speak english, Ocean explores everything from sexual orientation and identity to cultural family history. It’s artistic and poetic; questions how to survive, and how to make of it a kind of joy. It will make you cry and occasionally laugh. Just read it.

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The Island of Missing Trees by Elif Shafak

I love when I read fiction and come out learning something new. Elif taught me about the ongoing conflict between Greek and Turkish communities in Cyprus through this delicate story about forbidden love, division, history and eco-consciousness. The pov from the fig tree throughout the book, that bares witness to the journey of the protagonist made the book all the more special. Truly magical.

The Secret History by Donna Tartt

This was my introduction to dark academia, which has quickly become my favourite genre. This slow-burn read does require some focus, not going to lie, but once you’re in it, you’ll be transported to an elite New England college filled with characters you’ll hate and love. Donna’s storytelling is like nothing I’ve ever read before, filled with ancient Greek history and an inverted detective story. Another great pick for your autumn/winter reading list.

Reservoir Bitches by Dahlia de la Cerda

I’ve never read a book that’s written with pure rage, and rightly so. Dahlia brilliantly showcases the brutal and highly complex reality of young women in Mexico through a collection of interlinked short stories.

Did you know that ten women are murdered by men every day in Mexico and only 5 per cent of cases ever result in conviction? Absolutely outrageous. I felt so many emotions while reading this book - mostly anger and disgust, and at times inspired by the strength and resilience of these women.

It got me thinking of some of the books I’ve read that I feel deserve more praise and hype. So, I thought I’d share a list of books that I don’t hear a lot of people talking about, at least not on my side of the web. These picks are all incredible and unique in their own right, and left me feeling like “wow, that was a great book”.

Instead of sharing a full synopsis or review, I’m leaving you with a quote from each, which I want you to read, take in the language style and vibe, and decide only based on that if you’d be interested in reading it. Of course, feel free to judge the cover too.

If Cat’s Disappeared From The World by Genki Kawamura

“When you think about it, it’s the future you’ll never get to see that you regret missing the most when you die.”

The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield

“One gets so used to one’s own horrors, one forgets how they must seem to other people.”

Looking for Jane by Heather Marshall

“It all comes down to having the right to make the choice. Every child a wanted child, every mother a willing mother.”

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Days at the Morisaki Bookshop by Satoshi Yagisawa

“When I looked up, I saw the nearly full moon, missing just a sliver on the left, floating in the night sky.”

The Rest Of Us Just Live Here by Patrick Ness

“Because sometimes there are problems bigger than this week’s end of the world and sometimes you just have to find the extraordinary in your ordinary life.”

The Death Of A Bookseller by Alice Slater

“It was like a switch was flipped and I was somewhere else, deep in the dungeon of my mind, lost in some depraved thought.”

The White Hare by Jane Johnson

“Once you’ve lived in this valley, you’ll never be free of it. Its uncanny beauty gets inside you, right into the marrow. It has its own climate, its own peculiar character. In the same way as people can draw you in and repel you at the same time; both beguile and frighten you.”

I would love to hear from you about any unique, weird, niche books you love, and believe deserve more praise than they currently do. Feel free to drop your recommendations in the comments.

William Rayfet Hunter’s debut Sunstruck transports you to the South of France where a working-class, mixed-race student (the unnamed narrator) is invited to spend the summer with his wealthy friend Lily’s family at their lavish Chateau. He is instantly embraced by the Blake family, and ends up falling for the golden boy, Felix.

I found it quite interesting how the narrator was not once treated like an outsider by the Blakes, which to be honest, made me a little uneasy because people with power aren’t to be trusted. There’s always some leverage or motive behind their gestures, which we see unfold in the second half of the book.

As summer comes to an end and everyone returns to their life in London, you see a rather toxic situationship form between the two boys. The narrator is simultaneously marginalised and massively elevated by his proximity to the Blakes. All I could think of throughout the entirety of this book is that if there’s no happy ending to their “love story”, the narrator will lose it all.

I liked how classism and racism is subtly addressed in this book - not really in your face until the very end. The choice of having an unnamed protagonist, and ending the book the way it ended, with a line that held such power, was genius.

It felt reminiscent of the film Saltburn but with a strong focus on race. Overall, an enjoyable read - one that I really took my time to get through quite lazily. It is summer after all.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5

This story about two people searching for meaning and connection in modern times was written for a very specific generation: millennials. It’s not a unique story but one that we’ve all heard time and time again from a single friend who is genuinely trying to meet someone but have found it incredibly difficult and exhausting in the digital age.

Calder brilliantly touches on the male loneliness epidemic through the lens of a self-destructive, emotionally immature, manchild in his mid-thirties named Chuck who you can’t help but hope ends up alone.

After blowing up his life by ending his engagement to a woman who is more successful than him, he meets Joey - a women in her early 20’s who works at a cafe and is an aspiring poet.

It’s obvious Chuck doesn’t feel good about himself - he abandoned his ambition of being a novelist for a copywriter role at an ad agency, and low key felt threatened by his ex-fiance’s success. He wants to feel superior to the woman he’s with, hence why he’s entertaining a much younger woman who doesn’t have everything figured out and is super impressed with his accomplishments.

There’s a scene where Chuck gives Joey the first draft of his novel and when she provides feedback, his ego is hurt and so in retaliation, he belittles her. And then it’s all downhill from there.

The world building and unlikeable characters felt reminiscent of Sally Rooney’s style but done so in fewer words. Some aspects of the story also reminded me of Dolly Alderton’s novel Good Material.

Did this book blow me away? No. But it was an enjoyable, albeit infuriating read, and one many will relate to.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5

I never thought that I would say this but I’m starting to really enjoy audiobooks. While I still have a hard time listening to fiction, it’s been a great way for me to foray into more non-fiction titles.

Here are three that I’ve listened to recently and really enjoyed, based on the narration, engaged storytelling and overall plot.

One Day, Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This should be required reading.

Journalist Omar El Akkad chronicles the hypocrisy that makes empire possible and powerful in this short but impactful book. He brilliantly anchors the book with Gaza and genocide while exploring the deep fracture which has occurred for Black, brown, indigenous Americans, as well as the upcoming generation, many of whom had clung to a thread of faith in western ideals, in the idea that their countries, or the countries of their adoption, actually attempted to live up to the values they espouse.

Yes, it’s a heavy read but an incredibly important one.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Strangers is one for the ladies - a deeply personal and emotionally raw account of a marriage undone.

Belle Burden revisits her marriage through a new lens, reckons with her own family history and the lessons she intuited about how a woman is expected to behave in the face of betrayal. Through all of it, she is transformed. The discreet, compliant woman she once was gives way to someone braver, someone determined to use her voice.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

True-crime fans, you will be handcuffed to London Falling.

The book is a meticulously researched descent into London’s billionaire-fuelled criminal underworld, and a deeply intimate family portrait of love and loss across generations. But what brings it to life, and gets the reader/listener completely hooked, is Patrick Radden Keefe’s incredibly detailed writing. I was in thrall with Zac Brettler’s story, from start to finish. This is not a short read.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This memoir, written by a woman named Belle, is a deeply personal and emotionally raw account of a marriage undone. It’s not, however, a story of the end of a marriage, but what comes after.

Belle discovers her husband has been having an affair in the wake of the Covid pandemic. His abrupt departure leaves her grappling with her identity - what was truly hers and what was tied to him.

The betrayal, confusion and grief she felt, left trying to steady her daughters at a time when the world itself felt unstable was heartbreaking to read.

It’s no secret that Belle comes from privilege, nor does she shy away from her upbringing within a prominent and wealthy family. She goes into the details of her prenup, and the changes her husband asked her to make despite her lawyers advising her against them. This makes her divorce process quite messy and upsetting.

But as time goes on, you get to witness a gradual shift from devastation to self-awareness as she renews her sense of purpose in her legal work, advocating for children and teenagers seeking immigration status.

Writing also becomes her refuge - her method of processing, healing, and, eventually, reimagining her path forward. She begins to rebuild not just a life, but a sense of identity.

I think every woman should read this book - or just get the audiobook that’s narrated by Belle herself. It starts off as a cautionary tale that ends with opportunity and wisdom.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

With that being said, Lost Lambs by Madeline Cash and Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke were two that I did read in a relatively timely manner upon acquiring them. These books have completely taken over my fyp and graced every bookshop window I have walked by in the past month so naturally, I was curious.

🚨 Spoilers ahead 🚨

Let’s start with Lost Lambs; it was fine.

The story follows a dysfunctional family living in a small coastal town where an Epstein-esque character has casted a shadow on their lives. The parents are having marital issues while their three daughters (teenagers) are running wild - one is dating a war criminal in his 20s, one has fallen for a terrorist online and one is hell bent on proving there’s criminal activity taking place right under their noses.

I enjoyed the bluntness of the writing style and the ridiculous plot line as it unfolded, but the lack of character development and the way Madeline tackled some of the more serious storylines (human trafficking, blood drinking ceremony, ending up on a no fly list because you’ve been engaging with a terrorist online) felt kind of tone deaf. They were brushed off lightly with humour that just didn’t land for me. It’s obvious the reaction the author is after is shock but there seems to be some underlying propaganda at play. All in all, a pointless read.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️.75

Moving on to Yesteryear; the hype is justified.

The story follows “tradwife” influencer, Natalie, who has built a social media empire off of the traditional life she leads on an idyllic farm. Life is good for her until one day, she wakes up to the brutal reality of 1855 where she must unravel whether this living nightmare is an elaborate hoax, a twisted reality show, or something far more sinister.

Hats off to Caro for writing a protagonist that is incredibly insufferable and unlikeable. This book is very much a cautionary tale about women’s roles in society and their internal vs external identities. You see that with Natalie who marries quite young, gets pregnant right away and as a result, drops out of college. So naturally what follows is an identity crisis, which she turns to social media to create for herself.

As much as I disliked Natalie, I couldn’t help but feel sorry for her in the end because women are constantly faced with endless expectations and pressures. Whether you choose to focus on your career or raise a family or try to have it all, we’re scrutinized for whatever decision we make. And in Natalie’s case, she ends up losing it all.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

What viral book should I read next?

In actuality, it explores how staying in a domestic abusive relationship can effect the life of the kids in the family. Now you can only imagine how much of an emotional roller coaster reading this book was – a little trigger warning would’ve mentally prepared me for what was to come.

The book starts with Cora trying to decide on a name for her son, and finds herself at an internal crossroad as she believes the name she chooses will depict the type of person he will become.

Spanning 35 years, the story follows three alternate versions of one life (Bear/Julian/Gordon), each playing out in relation to the mother’s decision to stay with her abuser, NOT because of the name chosen for him. The relevance of the names are more to do with his reactions to certain scenarios, not the reasoning for his life’s destiny.

I found all three storylines quite powerful in their own right. But what really brought each of the stories to life was how the different paths shaped the fates of the supporting characters, and how each plot effected their relationships with one another.

The epilogue in this book is probably one of the best epilogues I’ve ever read. After all the turmoil and pain the husband put this family through, it was only at deaths door that he took any accountability for his actions. Incredibly frustrating, however, realistic for a shitty person.

The messy ties of family, and the possibilities for autonomy and healing are at the heart of this book. Florence writes with such warmth and emotion, inviting the reader to consider the one precious life we are given.

It really made me think about how much of our lives are shaped by things that are completely out of our control, and how little are actually shaped by things in our control. You can make all the right decisions, but that doesn’t guarantee the life you expect for yourself.

An incredible read that would make for a great book club pick!

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Her debut, Looking For Jane, was based on the true story of the Jane Collective—an illegal underground abortion service that operated in the 1960’s. It reimagined the fraught battle for reproductive rights and the devastating consequences that come from a lack of choice. Needless to say, this book had me in tears and is one I will never stop recommending.

Her most recent novel, Liberty Street, follows the mystery of a body discovered in Huron County in the 1990s, which leads the female detective on the case to Toronto, where she discovers the story of a journalist who went undercover in the 1960s to report on the deplorable conditions of the Mercer Women’s Prison.

🚨 Spoilers ahead, you’ve been warned! 🚨

The book opens with the above quote, which I found to be so fitting as it sums up “incorrigibility” perfectly. This term is deemed subjective, and yet was good enough of a reason to lock a woman up simply based on her parents or husband’s perceptions.

Heather is a dedicated champion of women’s rights and it so clearly shows through her writing and storytelling about the injustices placed on women’s lives throughout history.

The characters in this book felt so real that I found myself wanting to reach through the pages to shout at them at times, but also wanting to give them a big hug.

You really get a vivid sense of the horrible conditions these inmates faced, particularly the scenes with the female doctor who was injecting these women with diseases and then curing them with trial medications in exchange for money.

I think what made the story even more horrific was that those inflicting the torture and pain on these women were also women.

This book will make you ache, evoke anger, and you’re likely to cry your eyes out like I did. It’s a hard read, and I definitely felt anxious and incredibly protective of the characters. I think it’s such an important read, especially if you’re from Toronto and the surrounding areas.

As someone who grew up near Toronto, spent many nights out in Liberty Village, where the real-life Albert Mercer Reformatory for Women once stood, it’s wild to me that I had never even heard of this place before. Why do history lessons in school not cover this, especially in Canada given this is Canadian history? Why are we so afraid to reveal the hard truths behind untold women’s stories?

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5

Now shortlisted for the prize, this nesting-doll interpretation of colonial power, wrapped up in a tale about two women eating, reading and flirting, is a brilliant commentary on imperialism, identity, and the ways even the best intentions can betray an unconscious bias.

Set in 1938, the story follows Japanese author Aoyama as she sets sail for Taiwan on a year-long voyage of culinary discovery. Her interpreter Chi-chan goes above and beyond to ensure her boss’s larger-than-life appetite is satisfied.

🚨 Spoilers ahead, you’ve been warned! 🚨

During their adventures together, traveling around the island, eating their way from one city to another, Aoyama is completely infatuated with Chi-chan and is intent on drawing her closer. The spark between the two women is undeniable from the start, but the power imbalance inherent in their relationship makes it ultimately difficult, and at times impossible, to navigate.

Can there be true friendship between the oppressed and oppressor? If not, then what else can there be? Yáng doesn’t give us a direct answer, but leaves the reader to consider possibilities, if any. On the one hand, I know Aoyama’s heart is in the right place, albeit she is a bit brute at times. While on the other hand, Chi-chan’s reasoning for resistance to forming a friendship is also justified.

Now, let’s talk about the food writing, which in itself, is no easy feat. The detail and care Yáng put towards the descriptions of the various foods, listing out ingredients, methods of cooking, taste – it was as if I was there myself, seated in front of Aoyama, stuffing our faces with endless delicious dishes. Suffice it to say, I was left feeling very hungry and having cravings for foods I’ve never tried before.

I think Yáng did an excellent job at keeping the reader hooked with a straightforward plot, using food at the centre of the plot to keep things light, while discussing heavy topics and revealing twists and secrets meticulously as the story progressed.

Translator Christina Ng described it as peeling an onion: “with each layer you peel, the smells gets more intoxicating, pungent, intense, and at the very end, it brings tears to your years.”

And that, it did. So I leave you with a quote that made me choke up.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I have read a total of 10 books so far - here are the standouts/the ones that should be on your radar.

Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell

The story may be about one of the most famous and celebrated writer’s in history, he is not named once throughout the book, which I thought was a brilliant move. Because the star of this story is truly his wife, Agnes, who helped shape his life. Who spent long periods of time alone in Stratford, raising their three children, so he could work in London and become the acclaimed playwright he is known as today. You know what they say, behind every successful man, is a woman.

Now, I deeply dislike all things Shakespeare (sorry, not sorry), and I found the book definitely dragged at times, but Maggie’s writing is what kept me hooked. The way she wrote about the twin bond between Hamnet and Judith felt incredibly real, which made the unexpected death of Hamnet that much more gut wrenching.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Small Boat by Vincent Delecroix

This is such an important read, especially in today’s political climate.

The story takes the very real drowning of 27 refugees in the English Channel back in 2021, and turns it into an examination of the morals of coastguards. In this fictionalised tale, the coastguard is a woman, a mother, who took the emergency calls and failed to help the migrants. Throughout the book, she insistently refuses to be held more responsible than others for the disaster. Why should she be more responsible than the sea, than the war, than the crisis behind these tragedies?

This book will make you angry and break your heart because sadly, the situation is very real for many escaping horrible circumstances that are caused by the West.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5

Wild Dark Shore by Charlotte McConaghy

I sat on my sofa for 20 minutes after reading this book, sobbing in silence - letting the beauty and tragedy of this story sink in. Thrillers don’t tend to evoke such strong emotions in me. This was a first.

The book is an exploration of how climate change could threaten humanity’s future, but also, an education on the beauty of nature and wildlife that is taken for granted. It follows a family protecting the world’s largest seed bank on a remote island called Shearwater that is at risk of being lost to rising sea levels. When a woman washes up to their shore one night, secrets start to unravel…

The storytelling was exquisite. It transported me to that island. I could envision the lush greenery, hear the crashing of the waves, see the yellow eyebrows of the penguins, the albatross gliding in the air, the seals giving birth to their pups, the mama whale and her baby swimming side by side…this book is so special and one that will stay with me.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Heart the Lover by Lily King

If you don’t typically gravitate towards romance novels, then this is for you. It perfectly balances desire, loss and the lasting impact of first love, narrated in a way that feels so intimate. There’s zero cringe dialogue, which is a big win in my books as this is one of the main reasons I’m selective/easily turned away from love stories.

The first half of the book, the college/young adult years, felt nostalgic to me. The decisions you make in your youth and how they affect the rest of your life…so relatable. The second half of the book, however, broke me. You’ve been warned.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Things in Nature Merely Grow by YiYun Li

In the face of unspeakable tragedy, Yiyun makes sense of the insensible through this memoir, which she wrote after the loss of her second son – both of which committed suicide a few years apart.

This book is not about the grief of a mother, but rather reflections on love and endurance; written with such wisdom and clarity. The result is powerful yet somehow, unsentimental. How does one move on from such pain, sorrow and loss? Yiyun shares how she has found a sense of solace in her life, offering up some hope to those who are dealing with the unexpected death of a loved one.

Suffice it to say, this book broke my fragile little heart.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

P.S. This was a great audiobook listen.

The corny dialogue, predictable story lines, and often one dimensional characters – it all just gives me the ick. So now, I just gravitate towards love stories that are unconventional and likely aren’t classified as romance novels at all, but have elements of love that feel a bit more realistic.

So without further ado, here are the books that tugged at my heartstrings, put a smile on my face and had me ugly crying in public.

Heart the Lover by Lily King

This novel perfectly balances desire, loss and the lasting impact of first love. It felt nostalgic at times, narrated in a way that felt quite intimate. Needless to say, it completely broke me.

Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier

While this book is categorised as a gothic suspense novel, it features themes of romance that isn’t traditional, filled with secrets and obsession set against a haunting backdrop. One of the best classics ever written, imo.

The Island of Missing Trees by Elif Shafak

Forbidden love is one my favourite tropes when it comes to romance. Pair that with magical realism (the story features a fig tree that serves as a narrator and observer of human events), and you’ve got yourself a story that will keep you up at night.

Every Summer After by Carley Fortune

This is the perfect beach/summer read set in idyllic cottage country in Ontario, Canada. It’s a classic second-chance love story, featuring tropes of childhood friends-to-lovers and small-town summer romance. Plus, some spicy elements that actually weren’t cringe.

You Are Here by David Nichols

David Nichols does modern romance so well. This is very much a slow burn – a love story that comes into fruition between two divorcees in the most natural, raw way. Plenty of wit and humour here.

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid

Set in the Golden Age of Hollywood, this novel is full of drama and secrets. Following a glamorous Old Hollywood star recounting her scandalous life in the 1950s–80s, this novel explores forbidden love and the complex romantic life of a bisexual protagonist.

Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell

For a YA love story, this novel about bittersweet first love between two misfit teenagers navigating difficult family lives, identity, and social challenges had me in tears. It felt incredibly raw and emotional, with realistic life issues, which I find is rare for books about young teen love.

Having been sheltered all her life by her conservative parents, the chaos and destruction of war while gambling life and death each day, naturally shocks her to her core. Little does she know that the real battle lies in coming home to a divided America, to angry protesters, and to a country that wants to forget Vietnam all together.

You would think that putting your life in harm’s way for your country would get you some praise. Sadly, this was not the case for women, especially, during this era.

I found the story to be powerful and compelling, especially given the current state of the world at this very moment. It’s action-packed and it does a good job at capturing the various perspectives of the war/war zone, and then the PTSD and life afterwards that is just unimaginable.

With that being said, this novel doesn’t stay true to its title, focusing mainly on the protagonist. The friends Frankie makes in Vietnam, Ethel and Barb, play a huge role in helping her maintain some sanity during and post-war. And yet their presence here is limited, which is a shame because they were both written to be incredibly inspiring and cool women.

🚨 Spoilers ahead, you’ve been warned! 🚨

As for Frankie, my thoughts and feelings are complicated. I found myself really rooting for her, especially since she didn’t receive the celebratory return from her parents that she obviously deserved. With the help of her veteran friends, she begins to get her life back on track, but then the man she fell in love with in Vietnam, who she thought was dead all this time, returns. It would’ve been a cute reunion had he not lied to her about being married and having a child. Does that drive her away? Nope. She falls for his lies yet again and well, it ends badly.

Her veteran friends, who now all have their own lives in other parts of the country, help Frankie, once more, to picks herself up. She ends up moving to Montana where she creates a safe space of women who served in Vietnam. This would’ve been the perfect ending, but sadly, it was ruined.

You would think bringing back one dead love interest would’ve been enough? Nope. Another one rises from the ashes at the very end of the book, resulting in a “happily ever after” Frankie didn’t really need. She was genuinely happy and fulfilled with the life she had created for herself, despite the trauma and rejection from her parents. Felt a bit forced just to have that neat and tidy ending.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5

Oscar Wilde once wrote, “To do nothing at all is the most difficult thing in the world, the most difficult and the most intellectual.” It’s day 64 of my “funemployment” journey, and I can confirm, that doing nothing (in my case, not working) really is the most difficult thing. Is it the most intellectual? Time will tell.

Sitting with my thoughts, and really paying attention to them, how they make me feel, has made me spiral many a times. I can’t help but overthink, panic, and stress about the state of world. Interestingly though, I’m not panicking, stressing or spiralling over not having a job right now. With that being said, I do feel a bit lost and incomplete without a job. As if working has been my main purpose, which I know isn’t the healthiest way to live. There has to be more, right?

Days of the week are a blur. I don’t particularly look forward to the weekends anymore. Tuesday, which was once a day I dreaded, is now my favourite day of the week. Setting a routine and actually sticking to it is something I am finding a bit challenging.

I spend about two to three hours applying for jobs everyday, which keeps me occupied mentally. The rest of my time is spent working on my novel (which has been a struggle), binging shows that have been on my watch list (Palm Royal, Two Broke Girls and Dexter recently), reading a lot more (mostly books I own), some sort of physical activity (off-peak reformer classes are my fave), and farming on my husband’s PS5 (Coral Island is so therapeutic). Oh, and doom scrolling, of course, which really feeds my spiral episodes.

I’m consuming A LOT of content and there’s a lot of noise in the world right now. So to combat that a bit, and get back into creating and writing, I’m giving The Libry, my bookish Instagram account (also on TikTok), a formal platform. This space will be an extension of my social channels where I’ll share book reviews, what’s on my tbr, book-related news I’m excited about, the occasional bookish travel diaries and more.

So welcome – let’s read and discuss, together.