To be losing my love of reading?

[opheliacat]

Probably just me being a grumpy cow, but stay with me.

Downloadsd Friend Request by Laura Marshall on my Kindle. Stupid woman accepts friend request from dead person. Why? WHY would you do that? You would say something about sick bastards in the world and block, wouldn't you?

Jojo Moyes The One Plus One. Annoying bint goes to Scotland and comes back.

Sarah Rayner One Moment One Morning. Annoying twats on a train.

Are there any books without a fucking annoying main character?

Try Kate Atkinson or Barbara Kingsolver. The good thing about having a Kindle is you can download samples of books to see if you like them first

Give Donna Tart's books a try OP, also Kazuo Ishiguro's.

A Very British Scandal, by Ben Preston is a great read. It's about the Jeremy Thorpe trial. Really funny.

Try some Anne Tyler or Julian Barnes.

You've had loads of good suggestions on here OP. Recently I've enjoyed The Girls, The Handmaid's Tale, Our Endless Numbered Days, Little Deaths, The Underground Railroad, The Mountain Story, Wild and The Bees.

The latter, The Bees by Laline Paul has become one of my all time favourites!

Lots of good ideas. Some are touch and go. Dh has the endless numbered days book but I can't get into it at all.

I also have an English degree. Spent my teens and early adulthood absolutely wallowing in Shakespeare, Austen, Dickens, Hugo and Tolstoy. Now won't read anything without dragons, or at the very least a magic wolf. And I'm ok with that.

How about Chris Carter? Thrillers but really different and kind of bloody. Or Chelsea Cains Archie and Gretchen series? Female serial killer and a male detective with a very twisted relationship. Excellent books.

Also Gather the Daughters is amazing.

The latter, The Bees by Laline Paul has become one of my all time favourites!

I'm so pleased to have found someone who also loved The Bees! It's absolutely fantastic and so different. I seriously went from reading it because it was weird to loving it.

You are reading the wrong books !

BARBARA vine
Margarat Atwood
Kate Atkinson
Sarah waters

Try them !

Sarah Waters looks interesting. I don't really like Kate Atkinson books though.

@shox ah finally someone else who likes monster love!

Oh and for decent crime - Belinda Bauer books are brilliant

I find a lot of contemporary so-called 'literary' fiction is either gimmicky with its narrative devices (Atonement, The Time Traveller's Wife, We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves) or flat-out suicidally bleak and depressing, because happy endings are just so unsophisticated, Professor. I want something substantial enough for me to get my teeth into, with a plot that makes sense, characters I actually care about and something interesting to say about life today. It's hard to find it in anything written much before the 1950s I must confess.

Yes to Belinda Bauer

Come and join us on the 50 book threads - you don't need to read 50 , or even 5, books but it's great for ideas.

Encouraged by others on the thread, I've just read and loved Stephen King's It, a million miles away from my normal comfort read. Loved it.

Loved your detective story about Dave.

Try Mary Stewart's Madam, Will you Talk, currently 99p on Kindle. Daft but fun.

Barbara Vine - Asta's Book is one of my all time favourites.

Try non fiction. I've got a problem with remembering the plot of books which has reduced my enjoyment. (I suspect I have knackered my attention span being on my phone too much.) Am now reading a fascinating non fiction book, surprised myself how much I'm enjoying it. Of course I still can't fucking remember what I've read but it is interesting at the time iyswim.

Michael palmer or Robin Cook?

Mike Carey (girl with all the gifts) also did a very good series about an exorcist private investigator (Felix castor). If you at all enjoy crime, try Dennis lehane, well written series (Kenzie and gennaro) plus mystic River/shutter island which were made into films.

After the 1950s that should say.