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Original poster

Unputdownable, short-ish, not trashy books

184 replies

Europeanbanana · 16/09/2026 14:37

I need books that will grip me so much I won't look at my phone. I don't want anything trashy or too long. Let's under under 350 pages. Any suggestions for really wonderful books that fit the bill?

OP posts:
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Thewalrusandthecarpenter · 18/10/2026 20:22

@HurricaneG thank you for the recommendation of Unsettled Ground - read and enjoyed over the weekend!

Aydel · 06/10/2026 06:42

The Victorian Chaise Longue by Marghanita Laski

NewspaperTaxis · 06/10/2026 04:30

I suppose that's like Roxy Music and Abba both having songs out called Angel Eyes.

SnowFrogJelly · 06/10/2026 00:55

Anything by Claire Keegan

Ruby866 · 06/10/2026 00:43

Anything by Deborah Levy.

ronconcoke · 05/10/2026 16:09

I’ve just read The Correspondent, which was good too.

Recently read Girl with the Pearl Earring by Tracey Chevalier - a great read and not too long. I also really loved her novel The Glassmaker, which was a real page-turner, but a lot longer!

Original poster
Europeanbanana · 02/10/2026 20:18

ronconcoke · 02/10/2026 19:44

The Safekeep, Yael van der Wouden. Saw it recommended on here.

Also, The Women - but as a PP
has said, not a short book. So gripping though I read it in a few days.

I agree with others re The Names - very absorbing but some disturbing accounts of domestic violence.

I've read and loved all of these. This is exactly the kind of book I'm after!

OP posts:
ronconcoke · 02/10/2026 19:44

The Safekeep, Yael van der Wouden. Saw it recommended on here.

Also, The Women - but as a PP
has said, not a short book. So gripping though I read it in a few days.

I agree with others re The Names - very absorbing but some disturbing accounts of domestic violence.

ZebraPyjamas · 02/10/2026 16:52

We burned so bright - TJ Klune

SereneGoose · 02/10/2026 16:42

I just gave my copy of 'H is for Hawk' to a friend whose imprinted magpie died. It is without doubt one of the most howling beauties of a book.

Comtesse · 28/09/2026 10:24

NewspaperTaxis · 24/09/2026 04:32

Lie with Me by Philippe Besson is about an author who due to a return to his French home town is prompted into reminiscing about his first gay love affair as a teenager. Very poignant and maybe 200 pages long so I read it in 2 days having got it out from Epsom Library. Shades of Call Me By Your Name.

The translation is done by Molly Ringwold of Breakfast Club fame.

How interesting about Molly Ringwald and the translation!

I didn’t like Eleanor Oliphant either. I got through it in the end but a weird mixture of cringe and unpleasantness.

Pigtailsandall · 28/09/2026 08:54

This is a great thread! Lots of books I like have already been mentioned, but I'd add The Sense of an Ending by Julian Barnes - a perfectly crafted book, amd short.

I'm currently reading Cranford by Elizabeth Gaskell which would fit the bill

Anyone who liked Circe and Song of Achilles, I'd recommend Glorious Exploits by Ferdia Lennon which i think is really under appreciated.

Of the newer books, the Safekeep, which read quickly in a few days

BrandiedAromatics · 27/09/2026 20:22

Silas Marner, George Eliot
After Dark, Haruki Murakami
Slade House, David Mitchell

Original poster
Europeanbanana · 27/09/2026 17:05

MyThreeWords · 27/09/2026 12:13

That's a shame. Thanks for the heads-up!

I've just bought her "Lying in Wait" (which is currently only 99p in the Kindle store) on the strength of Strange Sally. Hope it is one of the good ones!

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That one is good I think

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MyThreeWords · 27/09/2026 12:16

cariadlet · 27/09/2026 11:56

I really disliked Eleanor Oliphant but that's because I found it unconvincing and not very well written.

In what way did you find it an uncomfortable read?

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Completely agree with this. I couldn't understand why it was highly rated. It didn't even really seem like a finished manuscript to me, because it worked so badly.

MyThreeWords · 27/09/2026 12:13

Europeanbanana · 27/09/2026 10:39

I loved this book so much and recently read her new one "The Truth About Ruby Cooper" which I found so disappointingly bad :-(

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That's a shame. Thanks for the heads-up!

I've just bought her "Lying in Wait" (which is currently only 99p in the Kindle store) on the strength of Strange Sally. Hope it is one of the good ones!

cariadlet · 27/09/2026 11:56

BCBird · 24/09/2026 09:20

I didn't really like Eleanor Oliphant is not ok. Was an uncomfortable read.

I really disliked Eleanor Oliphant but that's because I found it unconvincing and not very well written.

In what way did you find it an uncomfortable read?

Original poster
Europeanbanana · 27/09/2026 10:39

MyThreeWords · 26/09/2026 21:32

Thank you to whoever it was that recommended Strange Sally Diamond somewhere upthread. I've just finished it, and I enjoyed it a lot.

I was sceptical at the beginning, because the narrative voice was in a style that has been very much overused over the last decade or two, but I felt the author did manage to do something new with it.

And the ending was very impressive, Not in terms of exciting new revelations, but because it had genuine psychological depth and integrity, despite (unavoidably) there being some implausibilities along the way, for the sake of a good yarn.

I loved this book so much and recently read her new one "The Truth About Ruby Cooper" which I found so disappointingly bad :-(

OP posts:
Mamamia35 · 27/09/2026 09:49

@MyThreeWords it was an excellent book. Simultaneously funny, dark and upsetting. You should try Yesteryear next.

MyThreeWords · 26/09/2026 21:32

Thank you to whoever it was that recommended Strange Sally Diamond somewhere upthread. I've just finished it, and I enjoyed it a lot.

I was sceptical at the beginning, because the narrative voice was in a style that has been very much overused over the last decade or two, but I felt the author did manage to do something new with it.

And the ending was very impressive, Not in terms of exciting new revelations, but because it had genuine psychological depth and integrity, despite (unavoidably) there being some implausibilities along the way, for the sake of a good yarn.

Picoloangel · 25/09/2026 14:02

I rarely go wrong with any Reese Witherspoon book club pick

FrostyMorn · 25/09/2026 13:59

I've just borrowed The Cafe with No Name by Robert Seethaler from the library partly because it's quite short (prompted by this thread). Set in Vienna in 1966. Hope it will be good.

Recently read Clear (mentioned by pp) in our book group - we all really enjoyed it. Very unusual little book! And I learnt something about the Scottish clearances.

LethargeMarg · 24/09/2026 19:44

SorryforyourlossMoveon · 17/09/2026 18:10

Five by Ilona Bannister and Julia by Sandra Newman.
Loved them both.

Five is brilliant, read it in one day. I would also recommend ‘Last one at the party’ by Bethany Clift. This was a mumsnet recommendation by a lot of posters and much deserved- everyone i have then recommended it to has loved it. It sounds a bit bleak as it’s set during a pandemic thar has killed nearly everyone but it’s actually hilarious at the same time.

Catok178 · 24/09/2026 19:36

Warm Waters by George Hopewell. Truly quirky and great fun. I'm not sure if it's in print or ebook only.

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