One of the changes I’m most excited about this year is that I’ve gotten back into the love of reading fiction. Below are some of the best fiction books on my bookshelf that I highly recommend!
If you’ve followed me for a while, you may remember that I used to read fairy tales regularly. Getting lost in a good story was one of my favorite ways to relax and recharge. But somewhere, that trend gradually disappeared.
Looking back, I think part of it was the grief we felt after saying goodbye to C, who we raised for 8½ months after bringing him home from the NICU in 2020. Then life got very full with raising and taking in David, getting pregnant with Micah, and navigating all the beautiful and difficult responsibilities that come with those seasons.
At the same time, I gradually stopped reading and adopted other habits—mostly scrolling on my phone at night and keeping up with politics. (Most of you know that I’m a bit of a politician, although I rarely talk about politics in public!)
Little by little, the fairy tales disappeared from my life. I still read fiction almost every day, but I missed the joy of being completely absorbed in a good story.
My sister first encouraged me to pick up fiction again, and this past year, I finally decided to make the change. I committed to reading for five minutes before bed and started using the Opal app to block distracting apps after 8pm.
The results completely surprised me. Not only have I found that I almost always have at least 30 minutes of reading each throughout the day (sometimes broken up into small snippets), but regularly reading stories before bed helps me sleep better, look forward to sleep, and wake up more rested!
Today, I wanted to share seven of my favorite fiction books – in case you need some great ideas for what to read next.
My Favorite Fiction Books:
1. Sea Salt
I really liked this book. It was well written, very engaging, and I learned a lot about an event in history (which took place during World War II) that I had never heard of before. I also liked that it was the same story written in multiple ways, which made it really interesting.
It’s a sad story, but the author has handled it in a way that will be suitable even for young readers. Our teenager studied with me over the summer and we all really enjoyed it.
One thing I will say is that since it is told from multiple perspectives, it can take a while to figure out who and what is… but keep reading the first 30-40 pages and you probably won’t want to stop reading!
And, because I liked it so much, I went ahead and listened to all three of the author’s other YA!
2. Mr. Dear Knightley
The book starts off slow, but when I got to about page 40, I couldn’t put it down. It delves into the deep issues of how past hurts and rejections can hurt people so deeply that they hide their true selves for fear of being hurt and rejected. A beautiful story of healing and redemption and how to love and reach out to hurting people.
Have you ever read a book that you don’t want to finish and when you finish it, you want to meet the characters in real life? That was a book for me.
3. The Nightingale
I cried many times while reading this book – especially the part where she says goodbye to the boy who was like her son (if you’ve read it, you know!).
I remembered so many emotions when we said goodbye to C – putting her in her car seat and telling her how much I loved her, and crying wondering if I would ever see her again. He knows it’s better for him to meet his mother again but I also don’t know if I can close the hole in my heart when he is no longer at home. It was an emotional book with many touching but also redemptive parts.
4. The Strange Death of Mrs. Kip
The book was slow in some respects but there was beauty in the slowness. I loved Mrs. Kip and I learned a lot from him – and I actually got emotional towards the end because of everything I got from his fictional life.
(I feel like the mark of great fiction is when it stays with you, opens your eyes or teaches you something, you don’t want it to end, and/or you feel so connected to the characters and the writing that it makes you cry.)
If you want to read a clean fairy tale that is different and can touch your heart, I would recommend this one. I will say that there were parts where I felt the writing could use some tightening up as it seemed a little choppy, but for the way this book moved me, I still highly recommend it.
5. Frozen River
This is the first book I picked up when I started reading fiction regularly. It was a really interesting historical novel based on a true story. I found it sad to hear that women had absolutely no voice during this time. If you like historical fiction, I recommend this book.
6. Only the Beautiful
This is a sad and touching story of lives that people see as not really worthy of being treated with compassion and value. There is a rape scene that I felt was a bit more in-depth than it needed to be, but overall it was clean and opened my eyes to parts of history that I didn’t know. I would definitely recommend if you are looking for a good fiction read.
(Interesting tidbit: I finished this book at the hospital I was staying at a few years ago with Micah because he was very sick with a stomach bug.)
7. Remarkably Bright Creatures
So, this is a book I never expected to be on my top 7 list. But, I was completely surprised by how much I loved it and grew attached to the clever characters in it – including the octopus!
In fact, I started listening to it on audio (I had gotten it for free from the library through Libby) and enjoyed it so much that I bought a copy so I could finish reading it instead of listening to it! I don’t often do that, so you know I loved the book.
It is a book with many different characters telling their story from their point of view and the way they all come together in the end is beautiful and lovely. If you enjoy a fictional story told from different heights that covers a wide range of ages and interests, definitely check this book out!
Note: This is not a Christian book and has some silly language in it, but it’s well written and an engaging story… and it made me want to read more about the octopus in it as it was interesting and I learned a lot in the parts of the book about it!
Want to Find More Time to Study?
Do you want to learn more but can’t find the time? You are not alone – and it happens more than you think. Check out my post on how to find more time to study, even if life is busy.
My favorite trick? Audiobooks. Doing laundry, waiting in the carpool line, doing the dishes – all become time to read audiobooks, making it one of the easiest ways to sneak in more books without rescheduling your entire day. Browse my favorite audiobooks here and find your next listen!
More Links You’ll Like:
What are your favorite fantasy books? I would love some recommendations!
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