To think so many books these days are fairly crap and unoriginal

[goddessoftheharvest]

I'm going away for the weekend, so I decided to get some new books for my kindle.

There's thousands of books in the Kindle store, it shouldn't be so hard to locate something decent!

They all seem to be trashy crime (there's a time and a place for a good crime thriller, but really)

Or else they have awful twee names, along the lines of "The Cotton Candy Teashop For Hopeless Cat Ladies In Badly Patterned Retro Swing Dresses"

Or they look ok, then you read the description and it's one of those plots where Mandy finds a letter in her granny's shoe, and for some reason this means that every other chapter flashes back to Cynthia in 1914, who has a dark secret that is actually bloody underwhelming, once you are 554 pages in.

Then there's the ones where the author can write well, but they try to be a bit too highbrow, and they churn out some huge fucking tome which tarts itself out as "a moving depiction of the disintegration of a marriage",when really it's about Barbara finding out that Cyril has been shagging round with the lady in the chemist.

I love books, and I'm not even that picky. I don't think it has to make big statements about love, or war. I'm not adverse to trash, especially when it's fairly well written, you can tell the author has just had a good time writing it, tongue firmly lodged in cheek

Everyone seems to feel their book has to be deep, to say something really original and meaningful and subversive. Either that or it's a story about Mary Sue opening a fucking organic cupcake shop

AIBU? Suggestions welcome, by the way. So far I've only downloaded a book about Nepalese cookery,which is lovely but not exactly what I'm looking for

OP, what genres do you like? In the meantime, I recommend this free novel

I download a lot of free stuff, but this one? I bought all the sequels.

I've really enjoyed Secret River and Sarah Thornberry by Kate Grenville. I also find Simon Mayo's Radio 2 book club a good source of (very varied) inspiration. There's lots of dross but still plenty of good stuff OP.

I also love the Rebus crime novels - Black and Blue is the best IMHO.

If you like action/adventure/travel/history I would recommend This Thing of Darkness which is a swashbuckling tale of ships exploring South America and negotiating Cape Horn and Tierra Del Fuego in Victorian times. With Charles Darwin on board.

O.K. if you're partial to some non-fiction can I recommend The Wicked Boy by Kate Summerscale?

The Truth About The Harry Quebert Affair by Joel Dicker.

The best book I have EVER read, and I've read a lot. I don't even know how to describe it, or how to give it a genre. It's just gripping. Incredibly written. It shouldn't even be a book, I don't know how someone can create something that can fit together so cleverly.

"The Cotton Candy Teashop For Hopeless Cat Ladies In Badly Patterned Retro Swing Dresses"

Those books make my teeth hurt, even just the sight of the cover.

There's a book called 'The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake'. Has there ever been a more fucking twee book title?

YANBU and your descriptions of books really amused me. There seem to be some good recommendations here though that I will be adding to my list.

I hated The Fireman. Felt cheated by its lazy derivative plot and twee Mary Poppins references.

Fellside is truly fabulous.

Sarah Hall's books worth a look.

There's a book called 'The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake'. Has there ever been a more fucking twee book title?

Where's the 'boak' emoticon when you need it

The Truth About The Harry Quebert Affair by Joel Dicker

Thanks, Rosalie, I've just ordered this

haha YANBU. It's ridunkulous. A book will do well (and usually because its pretty decent) then there will be a SLEW of bandwagon jumpers trying to cash in, down to the typeface and cover. Drives me batty.
Me and DH catorgorise them as such then pick the best one of that bandwagon. Gone girl/Girl on a train - read. Black book with swipy grey letters and harsh relationship hints - avoid.
Bondage, difficult childhoods and spouses who secretly hate each other seem to have taken over from dippy singletons and vampires

The Improbability of Love by some woman is great - also shortlisted for various awards. Hannah Rothschild is author I think.

A Little Life that someone mentioned earlier is by Hanya.... Yama... something... a Hawaiin Lady. It Is good but very long and personally I found the protagonist to be quite tiresome after 500 pages in. Too sad for a holiday read. You need a classic like Captain Corelli's Mandolin.

I really rate Sarah Waters, and am currently working my way through Anne Tyler's novels (A spool of blue thread is a good starter).

Good ones - The Girl With All tHE gIFTS - zombie sympathiser, Lean On Pete - modern day huckleberry finn, A man called Ove - just lovely, Power of the dog - mexican cartels. Wool - sci-fi/human nature.

The light between oceans by ML Steadman. It stayed with me.

I am with you goddess. It's all utter shite. I get about a third of the way through something and just can't bear to go on. It's all just too damned trite and frankly, predictable.

I too enjoy a good mountaineering story, so if you've not read Joe Simpson's "Touching the Void" or "This Game of Ghosts" then put them on your list. He's published other, more recent ones, but those are the two I've read.

I'm about to start Brian Blessed's autobiography, if only for the mountaineering parts. Will update if any good.

Remember me by Lesley Pearse.
When God was a rabbit by Sarah Winman.
The Thread by Victoria Hislop.

All great.

Have you read Margaret Atwood's Oryx and Crake? It's first of a trilogy, and they are PHENOMENAL. Dystopian fiction, and SO GOOD.

Surely Brian Blessed's autobiography would be better enjoyed via an audio book NARRATED BY THE MAN HIMSELF.

*I really rate Sarah Waters+

Me too. Beautiful prose, clever plotting, plausible historicity. Love her.

Do you think, Mitzy? Have you heard it? Am willing to give it a go!

Oh, and for those of you suggesting Oryx and Crake, yes, although it was a long time ago that I read it, you're all right, it's excellent.

I agree - it's all a bit wishy washy. Our book club sank because these books kept being suggested and there just wasn't much to discuss! But I think it's because there are so many more writers out there who are good, that the great ones get swamped. And good writers are fine for switching off and not thinking, but you need a great one to get your mind whirling and excited.

There's a book called 'The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake'. Has there ever been a more fucking twee book title?

Don't think I managed to get past page 100. Considered shredding it.