What's the last brilliant book you read?

[HoggleHoggle]

I'm very excited to be going to an actual bookshop on Sunday rather than buying online but I'm all out of inspiration! I read a lot and am running out of stuff I'm aware of.

Can anyone tell me the last book they read that they absolutely loved?

Mine was The Light Years by Elizabeth Jane Howard. Picked up solely because it has an outrageously beautiful cover I'd never heard of it before but it was AMAZING. And the first of a five volume series so that's how I've been spending the last month of my life!

Am interested in novels mostly but also happy to hear about non-fiction. Thank you!

I really liked the farm by Tom rob smith and currey reading the year of living danishly which I love much more then I thought.

Loved the lowland by ?? Can't recall and the goldfinch as well

Oooh I loved The Lowland too, Jhumpa Lahiri is one of my favourite writers.

I don't often read crime fiction and have no idea what's 'good' but when I find it always enjoy reading...I will look out for the Tom Rob Smith, thank you.

My Brilliant Friend

Usual I have always meant to read that and never have even though I used to work at his publishers so that is an excellent suggestion, thanks!

Rachel's holiday by Marian Keyes. It was suggested on mn and I thought I'd try it for a change. I really enjoyed it.

Do No Harm by Henry Marsh

It's the memoirs of a brain surgeon - fascinating, thought provoking, not at all gory and easy to read.

Bike I've read that and loved it, though have no idea how I stumbled across it initially.

In a similar-ish vein I loved The Skeleton Cupboard by Tanya Byron, stories from her clinical training in psychology. Very, very interesting and often sad.

I'm not finished but i'mhalfway thru Girl on the Train and only started it on Sunday night. This is the first book in about a year that has really made me look forward to picking it up. Thought i was losing my bookworm identity

I was going to say "Girl on the train"! Is a great book.

Also "The Separation" - Dinah Jefferies

Have just started "A year of Marvellous Ways" - Sarah Winman. Looking good so far..

H Is For Hawk was interesting...

I have just read The Paying Guests by Sarah Waters. Beautiful!

Burial Rites by Hannah Kemp I think - fantastic and really unusual book about a woman sentenced to death in nineteenth century Iceland. Beautiful writing.

The Shardlake series by C J Sansom
Giordano Bruno series by S J Parris
The Bone Clocks by David Mitchell
Norwegian Wood by Haruki Murakami
Brixton Beach by Roma Tearne
Life After Life by Kate Atkinson
A God In Ruins by Kate Atkinson

"The Invisible Library" by Genevieve Cogman - getting the second one on Monday so looking forward to reading that :)

The poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver, read it after recommendation on here. Didn't dissapoint, very rich story of family of 4 girls growing up in the Congo in the 60's.

A Little Life, by Hanya Yanigahara. Heartbreaking, devastating, disturbing, but so so good. I usually forget what I read but this one has stuck with me. Roughly it's about 4 college friends who move to NYC and grow up but there's way way more to it.

Re My Brilliant Friend, what is wrong with me that I didn't love it? It was OK but everyone else seems to think it was amazing. Shkjkd I persevere to the second book?

Alex - I couldn't even make to halfway through My Brilliant Friend. I found it so dull, lost track of who everyone was and gave up.

A Whole Life by Robert Seethaler. It's really short and beautifully written, the (fictional) life story of a man from an Austrian mountain village.

These are all so brilliant thanks very much! Lots of options for me to look for.

Villainous dh has just read H is for Hawk and kind of liked it but also found it hard going. I know everyone raves about it though.

apple that is my favourite book, I always recommend it on threads like these.

The most recent books I've enjoyed were Kate Atkinson "Life After Life" and, very different, "The Girl in the Spiders a Web" which I was in two minds about as I was scared it would ruin the Millenium Trilogy for me but I loved it.

The bean tree and pigs in heaven are better than poison wood bible imo.

Mrs Bridge, by Evan Connell. Deceptively simple. Mr Bridge is also good and you need to read them both.

Moving by Jenny Eclair
And another vote for Marvellous Ways

I thought Life After Life was very powerful but I can't get started on the sequel, A God in Ruins. DH loved both books, which probably means I will too eventually.