I’ve always been an avid reader; my family brought me up surrounded by books. I love that feeling when you’re lost in a book and everything else just blurs in to the background – I feel this is the sort of escapism we all need sometimes.

Recently life has got so busy so I’ve been slacking on my reading, but as I’ve just moved house I was unpacking all of my books on to my new bookshelf and just admired how nice they looked (how sad do I sound). In that moment it really encouraged me to get back in to reading.

I hope you can find some inspiration in my list of books you should read in 2019 as I have thoroughly enjoyed all of them!

This post is not sponsored in any way by Waterstones. I am however a Waterstones affiliate associate. This means that affiliate links are included in this post and I may receive a small commission at no cost to you if you purchase. For more info please see my privacy policy.

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Books to Read Right Now

Lucy Diamond
On A Beautiful Day

This is the first Lucy Diamond novel I have purchased and it won’t be the last. The story was so compelling that I found this book hard to put down.

The story follows four friends that witness a serious accident. Throughout the novel we learn how the accident affected the characters in different ways; it follows them individually but is then tied together which is a structure that I personally really liked.

I also loved that it is based in Manchester, England. Being from England myself, it’s nice to read a book that’s set in a location that you are semi-familiar with.

One thing I will say is that it is quite close to home. You will feel all of your emotions reading this book – laughter, love, but tears too and in the end I was so emotionally involved in the decisions the characters had to make that I completed the book in just a few days.

Get On A Beautiful Day at Waterstones

Dana Reinhardt
Tell Us Something True

I had no idea what to expect from this book but I ended up really enjoying it. The novel tackles some more serious topics without being too intense – there is a light-hearted tone throughout this book but this does not diminish the importance of the issues discussed.

The plot follows a teenage boy, River Dean, through his lies and feelings of heartbreak of a girl he very much depended on, and ends up at a group to support those with drug addictions. As the plot continues, we see his lies unravel but his character develop – becoming very relatable and fallible. I thoroughly enjoyed the depth and realism in this book, I just wish it was a little longer!

Being from the point of view of a young male, I was originally unsure if I would enjoy this novel as it wasn’t something I was particularly familiar with but as the chapters progressed I liked the premise and found myself giggling with every page that I turned.

Get Tell Us Something True at Waterstones

Ian McEwan
Nutshell

This is one of the weirdest and twisted books I’ve ever read. It’s so original and beautifully written.

This is told from the perspective of an unborn baby which is totally bizarre and absurd, yet intriguing and enticing. The plot follows Trudy and Claude plan the murder of Trudy’s husband, which just happens to be Claude’s brother. The characters are so unlikable – it really highlights deception, adultery and chicanery but it’s witty and clever and damn right compelling.

I believe this is described as a modern take on ‘Hamlet’, which isn’t usually my style, but I enjoyed the plot and expanding my vocabulary by a vast amount! It will suit some people more than others, but as a short story it’s definitely one I will keep for a rainy day.

Get Nutshell at Waterstones

Michael Faber
Undying

This poetry book from Michael Faber is one I have cried at. Several times.

These poems showcase the heartbreak Faber felt during and after his wife’s 6 year battle with cancer. This book is SO personal and heartfelt that I almost feel like a sadist for enjoying the lines of his grief. It’s raw, it’s beautiful and it pulled every one of my heart strings.

The intimacy broke my heart – I felt like I could feel the pain he felt as I read every page, but somehow I still love to read it. Be prepared and get tissues ready.

Get Undying at Waterstones

Markus Zusak
The Book Thief

This book is intense, heavy and quite long so if you’re looking for a light, fluffy read I would say this is not the one for you.

This as actually published as a Young Adult novel but I would say it’s suitable for any adult. After reading this, I felt like I’d had my heart broken, then fixed, and a very intense history lesson.

This book is based in 1939, Nazi Germany and follows a young orphan called Liesel who takes a book she found by her brother’s grave. This introduces her to a world of books, and she ends up stealing them from where ever she can get them.

Oddly, the narration is from the point of view of “death” which is probably why I thought this was so intense and heavy. I don’t want to spoil it by adding too much detail as it’s not one for a happy ending but I did enjoy this book nonetheless.

Get The Book Thief at Waterstones

Ali Smith
Public Library

It took me such a long time to read this after I purchased it – I was unsure if I’d enjoy the format of several eclectic short stories under one book but I was surprised how much I did enjoy it. Each story discusses different topics – they are loosely connected but this book displays quite a varied plot of different matters.

I read that the motivation behind this collection is to raise awareness of the increasing library closures throughout the UK which makes me like it even more.

Between each short story, there are snippets from different people sharing their views on libraries and the affect they’ve had on their lives which is lovely to read and breaks up the fiction a little.

Get Public Library at Waterstones

Rupi Kaur
milk and honey

I know everyone went crazy over this book a few years back but I do really enjoy reading it still. It’s full of poetry and prose and beautiful lines and I’ve read it through in one sitting more than once.

The book is split in to four chapters and explores love, grief, heartache, abuse and everything in between. It’s very personal but I still find it relatable as we have all experienced some form of these emotions. The book is also quite heavily illustrated which I think is a really nice touch.

I bought this at the same time as Love Her Wild (featured below) as they probably could be compared slightly, but I enjoyed both of them very much.

Get milk and honey at Waterstones

John Green
Turtles All The Way Down

I bought this book as soon as it was released in Waterstones because everyone was raving about it. When I went to pay for the book, I was given a matching tote bag for free (I was totally unaware) so I was pretty pleased about this purchase!

This is another young adult novel about the sensitive subject of mental health. It’s close to home and very personal – mainly because it is so descriptive of the struggles the main character has of anxiety and OCD whilst grieving the death of her father.

Not many books I have read go in to such detail of the struggles of mental health that so many people can relate to, so I think this was a brave choice but a really inspiring one nonetheless.

According to my research, Green has suffered with his own mental health for many years so the decision to write about something so personal and close to home was strangely quite uplifting for me and I really enjoyed how the plot developed.

Get Turtles All The Way Down at Waterstones

Stephanie Butland
The Curious Heart of Ailsa Rae

This novel follows Ailsa’s life after she receives a heart transplant. Due to her condition, she had never had to do much for herself so came across as quite naive – she did not have to make any decisions and her life revolved around her popular blog. Once her transplant had been carried out she now had to start living her life like an adult.

The structure is very interesting for this type of novel – we see some of her blog posts, emails, newspapers etc as well as the usual dialogue which breaks the story up nicely. Despite being so personal, the problems regarding illness and potential death are discussed in a sensitive and respectful way.

I felt so many things during this book – I’d be laughing at one moment, I’d feel uplifted, and then soon emotional again. This is a really interesting and quirky read.

Get The Curious Heart Of Ailsa Ray at Waterstones

Atticus
Love Her Wild

This is one of my favourite poetry books – I love that it’s written by a guy. It’s split in to three categories; love, her & wild with the poems categorised respectfully. I have seen mixed reviews, as always, on this book so I wasn’t sure what to make of it originally.

Despite some of the poems being very simple, it still manages to fill me with warmth and love and I find I can relate to the simplicity as I don’t always have to analyse every poem in great detail to fully understand it.

This book is quite image based – there are little words on each page but I absolutely adore the aesthetic throughout and would 100% recommend this if you’re a soft romantic (like me)

Get Love Her Wild at Waterstones

I hope you have enjoyed exploring the books I have recently read. Every one included I would 100% recommend with no bias involved. If you have any book recommendations for me then please let me know! 🙂

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