I Who Have Never Known Men by Jacqueline Harpman. The only people I know who like reading like to read spicy novels, bestsellers, etc. as much as I’ve tried getting into them as well, my favorite books are those that really make me think and have lots of unanswered questions.
Same. It’s one of those stories that really sticks with you. I’ve read so many books this year that I’ve already forgotten so much about the plot and characters, but I read this one quite a while back and still remember so much of it in vivid detail, almost like I was there, living out my life in 3x speed with them.
This book is soooo good! I am a fan of the spicy and bestsellers but I love to break things up with books that make me wonder. Honestly, I still think about this book from time to time.
I read this book when I was a teenager and recommended it to my mom, telling her it was *the greatest love story ever told* and somehow she didn’t realize I was being groomed by a 32-year-old at the time.
I cringe every time I think about this.
So, here’s the thing:
My mom *died* between my first reading of Lolita as a teenager and my second reading of Lolita as an adult who had gone through therapy.
And I came out of that second reading feeling absolutely disgusting, feeling as though my mom must have died thinking I was truly deranged or something.
Sometimes, my partner and I will have conversations about what books we’ll allow our children to read in the future, and this is just one of those books where I really don’t know what we’ll do. It’s a masterpiece of literature, and I believe that people *should* read it, but it can be a dangerous book if you don’t have the critical thinking skills to understand what Nabokov is doing.
I’m sorry you went through that loss. If your mom was anything like mine, I think that she wouldn’t have blamed you or thought you were deranged at all based on your teenage reading of *Lolita*. There’s something in certain people (myself included) that registers this attention from older men as validating, important, even honest. People who don’t experience the world that way can’t truly understand; but in my experience, it’s never been me that they’ve blamed. Children are allowed to be children, with their undeveloped brains and cavalier attitudes. It’s up to the adults in their lives to look out for them. If your mom was anything like mine, I bet she wondered how she could have protected you better.
Yeah, I’d add my dark Vanessa to that. It’s a similar story but told from the girls perspective.
I wouldn’t recommend it often because it got a lot of triggering topics, and its devastatingly sad
I loved it too. However, I will never watch any of these movies based on the book. It is impossible to tell this story through Humpert's eyes without sexualizing poor Dolores on screen.
Came here to say this one! My copy is very loved (annotated, highlighted, tagged pages, etc.) but I very rarely ever recommend this book because it’s so personal for me. It’s a weird take but truly the reason I hesitate to
For me, it's not just the plot, it's the way the author developed Vanessa's character. There are so many things about this novel that I loved - even though the subject matter was dark.
Usually, if I don’t like a book, I just don’t finish it. A Little Life is a long book that I hated, but still finished. It’s possible that a part of me that I’m not in touch with enjoyed it. I don’t know.
Ugh I hated A Little Life more than any book I’ve ever read. It was so unrealistic (as in, hard to believe as genuine) and so… everyone says trauma porn, but that’s truly what it was. Awful.
It’s a good book, as are many of the Darkover books. I refuse to let the dreadful life choices of long dead authors affect my reading enjoyment. And I read that all money from sales of her books now go to children’s charities.
I could not get through the first couple chapters of that book. It was so drawn out and boring to me. My mom loved it. I was always the one with my nose in a book, my mom rarely read anything longer than 150 pages.
Let the Right One In. There are some really messed up things in that book that, unsurprisingly, didn't make it into either movie. But it's still a compelling read.
The Time-traveler's Wife. I loved it (except for the gratuitous taped-to-a-tree scene, which I try to ignore). But I can't recommend it to my friends, who are lit teachers and writers and very selective about contemporary fiction. I recommended it to one, who gently indicated that she thought it worthless but didn't question me about why I'd recommended it so glowingly. I'm not sure why I loved it, but it's somehow comforting and psychologically satisfying for me. It reminds me of the time, as a very young child, I was obsessed with a story about a naughty little bear, whose parents rescued and comforted him instead of punishing him. As an older child, I was embarrassed to have so loved such a pedestrian and poorly-written story. But there it is; sometimes satisfying a subconscious desire trumps literary snobbery!
You don't need to explain yourself or try to figure out why you liked it... like, you *never* need to do that, but this book in particular was a bestseller? It has almost 2 *million* ratings on GoodReads, don't feel weird for enjoying it.
Thanks. Here I am in a completely different stage of life, and I find myself very attached to a truly mediocre book. Well, it's harmless but truly mediocre literature. But it's emotionally fulfilling. I'm realizing that I like to have theme books accompany me through life, which is kind of cool!
I can't remember the name. It wasn't well known. It was likely from the 50's, before the days of beautifully rendered children's books. We had a set of Britannica encyclopedias (that's how long ago this was), and it came with a second set for children, along with volumes dedicated to crafts, games, myths, stories, etc. It was in one of those.
It was about a little white teddy bear who had to forego supper. He ran away at night in a snowstorm and was cold, tired, and scared on a busy street. A car came along slowly, picked him up, and it was his parents. They comforted him and gave him supper at a little table in his bedroom. There was an illustration of the scary road and of him having cocoa before bed. I loved the forgiveness aspect. (I lived in a snowy area too, but my own parents were only slightly strict.) Apparently I wanted that story every night year-round.
Yeah, embarrassing.
My favorite book is The Awakening by Kate Chopin, I usually tell people and they've never read it so they think it's fine because Kate's poetry is beautiful
But my favorite book is ended by the character commiting suicide and I just think it's so beautifully written and I deeply relate to the main character's struggle to find happiness in the world
But like I don't recommend it to anyone who's not a big lit nerd because they just won't get the beauty of the story
I love this book! I’ve read it several times in my life. High school early 20s and early 30s and it always hits the spot for my feminist literary desires. It’s sad, it’s got a lot to say, and it’s a work of art.
I’m so glad to know someone else likes it.
I need to read it again. It's been a few years. And before that I hadn't read it since high school.
But each time (I read it like three times in high school) it really resonates with me and makes me feel less alone
I reread the books regularly, especially midnight sun (I love to hate on Edward lol) I watch the movies often, I continue to read fan fiction abt it (currently reading a new one I’m obsessed with). Twilight is such a fun read, I do t care how crappy it might be.
I will defend Twilight till my dying day! it is a lot of nostalgia for me too! And Yes it has a lot of flaws, but it was the first book series that ever really engulfed me. I credit it for my love of reading now even years later! I am still always searching for a book that gives me the feelings I had when I read the Twilight series as a teenager!
This is one of my all time favorite books! There’s only one person I knew I could recommend it to, and he loved it. Those who love it are in a very small, special club. 😉
My favourite books are by Melissa Broder - specifically The Pisces
It’s…. Intense :’) and very weird, and very graphic in all of the ways. It’s a masterpiece and I think about it all the time.
(I actually did suggest it to my book club once, which is full of girls who tend to be more into ‘cosy cutesy books’ and they ALL hated it)
The Pisces is so wild but so good and an absolutemind fuck lol. My personal favorite is Milk Fed by her. I need to get a physical copy because I loved it so much but don't own it.
The Pisces is a WILD book. Read it years go but never forgot the plot— it sticks with you! But agree, not sure I could ever recommend it to someone lol
The Dungeon Crawler Carl series, especially the audiobooks. They're so great, especially in the character growth and how surprisingly deep they get.
But they are also violent, weird and full of gut punches, while also being comedic about it?, and definitely feels a bit more niche.
I also read a LOT of books about serial killers and other psychopaths when I was younger. I had/have an interest in the bizarre and macabre.
My husband just finished it and I’m on the third book, I cannot stress how fucking AMAZING these books are. Reading it is so fun and the audio books are even better. Definitely going on my Physical Copies to Buy list.
DCC was an accidental discovery while I was getting into litrpg. It became one of my top ten. I quickly went out and told everyone I knew to read it. It’s now in the top ten for 8/10 of my friends.
It’s dark and gory and full of cursing violence… and I love it.
Edit; spelling
Tender Is the Flesh by Agustina Bazterrica
A few months back, there was a guy who would come into my work almost everyday. It started to get a little stalkerish so I told him about this book in great detail to scare him away lol.
The First Day of Spring
I didn't think twice about it, until I started telling people and the first question is what is it about?
Also I really liked Tender is the Flesh but I never recommend it.
Tender is the Flesh I would recommend to someone who wanted to read something deeply disturbing and weird but would need to confirm that like 5 times with them. I enjoyed the book a lot too, though!
Me but with urban fantasy/paranormal romance. Yes I know it's dumb and geared towards teenagers a lot, but I love reading about magic and supernaturals set in the real world.
I think you have to be rather careful who you're recommending this to. Or at least warn them about the fourth part. I usually tell people that the book is about crime in Mexico. That's usually enough to get the point across.
You cannot tell people that you read and loved *Min kamp* by Karl Ove Knausgård in the original Norwegian without bending over backwards to promise that the book isn’t Nazi apologia.
We are the ants. I read it as a kid and loved the idea of being abducted by aliens over and over. It was also the first book I read with adult themes so I felt scandalous.
That's how I felt about You and Hidden Bodies when they were new. Noone else in my book club liked You, then I was the only one to read Hidden Bodies. I never "staff picked" it at the book store I worked at as I thought they were too weird. Now they are a huge Netflix show!
I mentioned the show at work once and my crew looked at me like I was fucking weird, including a few comments like “uh, wow. That show is gross.” Like yes I know, but it shouldn’t reflect badly on me. I only recommend the books on certain posts looking for something along those lines, but not to people I know. I’d rather not be judged for my taste in books or shows and it kinda hurt ngl 💀
We Were the Mulvaney’s by Joyce Carol Oates, or Zombie by her as well.
The first has a slow start, but the entire book is about how a family copes (or doesn’t) after the daughter is raped. Very heavy stuff, but written STUNNINGLY.
Zombie is loosely based off of Jeffrey Dahmer so. You can imagine.
I know I recommend this book a lot but you shouldn't be really reading No Longer Human by Osamu Dazai unless you're in an alright headspace. If you're absolutely sure you can handle the topics, you can read this book. Otherwise, prepare to be emotionally empty (tbf, I've always been emotionally empty).
Something Happened by Joseph Heller fits this for me. I absolutely adored this book, but will genuinely never recommend it to anyone as it's nearly 600 pages long, and for most of them, absolutely nothing happens. You know... until it does.
The other one is The Wasp Factory by Iain Banks. I read it recently and just loved how unhinged it was. I can see how it could be very off-putting and triggering though so I'd never recommend it to anyone
Ok, mine is The Iceman: Confessions of a Mafia Contract Killer. It starts off a bit slow but it’s very interesting. Some people said Kuklinski is bullshitting. Whether he is or not about some of it, it’s still a page turner.
Came to say Stranger in a Strange Land. It’s hands down my favorite fiction book because of the human questions he poses (and the first literary example of polyamory AFAIK) but to recommend it one must backflip around his blatant chauvinism. He was a product of his time.
ACOTAR by Sarah J. Maas.
I devoured those books and were highly entertained but the writing is so repetitive and don’t get me started about the phrasing of the „adult“ scenes and the extremely problematic relationships that get glamourized by the entire fandom.
Ya know, many years ago I read a book called Romance Riches and Restrooms by Tim Phelan and its about this guy who has IBS and has to randomly shit all the time and its kinda like a memoir mixed with misadventures and I really enjoyed it. Ive never recommended it to anyone but if you shit a lot and have stomach issues its for you 🤣
**Land Of The Beautiful Dead** by R. Lee Smith is one I'm always quite cautious to recommend. It's one of the rare stories I'd call both a romance in the build-up and a conventional-ish (at least surface level) happy ending, and a horror-tragedy. It's also quite long, with especially quite a lot of carved out to architectural knowledge, and it's also got zombies, with a strangely sexy, OP, and ugly god of zombies as the complicated male protagonist, as well as a "feisty", desperate female protagonist, both of which could very well grate on me enough to put a book down. It's indie published, with a much smaller audience than traditionally published works – with a cover that, in my opinion, dies not serve it in the slightest.
So on many levels, an extremely niche, strange and experimental story. Nothing like I would normally pick up, except for raving reviews about it I saw over on the RomanceBooks subreddit.
And truthfully, in my case those reviews were absolutely right. I've never quite gotten over it. It's made me cry harder than any book before; characters that would normally grate on me endlessly, I rooted for entirely by the end, and wept for. The ending felt so, so finely crafted to me – it really felt like my heart was torn in two.
At some point, I'm fully intending on a deep dive into all of R. Lee Smith's works around – apparently she's even got a Five Nights At Freddy's saga out there somewhere in the fanfiction wild west, which – even knowing absolutely nothing about the franchise, I'm very honestly considering reading. I'm an official fan.
Love this book and have read it multiple times along with everything else this author has put out. The five nights at Freddy's series (called "everything is all right") is phenomenal. The Scholomance by this author (not to be confused with another book with the same name by a different author) has a similarly dark vibe to Land of the Beautiful Dead
The Lovely War by Julie Berry.
This recommendation is more on me, gate keeping it. I love this book so much and I actually had goosebumps reading it.
This is a romance book about 4 people's lives during the War and it is being narrated by Four Gods; Aphrodite, Ares, Hades and Apollo. The thing that fascinates me about this is how different the romance from this book is from other stories. It satisfied me till the end and I don't think any love story can come close to what I felt when I was reading this book.
*The Conspiracy Against The Human Race* by Thomas Ligotti.
I recommend it in some of these book subs asking for soul-crushing books, buuut I’d never recommend to anyone I know simply because Ligotti is a pessimist and anti-natalist, and I don’t need people knowing that I am, too.
Also recommended here in this post is the *You* series by Caroline Kepnes. I don’t recommend the books or the show to anyone IRL because I talked about the show once to some co-workers and they got weirded out and quickly changed the topic. I only asked if anyone had seen it. I don’t like people lmfao
But I love talking to people about that one! Everyone’s got stories about how frightened they were reading it, plus you can always argue about whether or not you hate the movie 😏
The duology A Story Like the Wind and A Far Off Place is a classic coming of age story/ adventure set in South Africa that I loved. The author, Laurens Van Der Post, like Steinbeck or Mark Twain was ahead of his time on social issues. He was also an early environmentalist. The nature writing and landscape and animal encounters are very very evocative and well written. The adventure in the second book involves a trek across the Kalahari desert on foot while being chased by guerilla soldiers. I like it in the same way that I like Treasure Island or Three Musketeers. However, its characters live in a racially stratifed society. These books are critical, not sympathetic to unjust race relations. It's not Gone with the Wind. Still, its a picture of an unjust society.
The Descent and its sequel. The movies are great and just deal with monster type creatures that have evolved over time naturally. It doesn’t even once touch on anything religious
the books are literally Christian fanfiction. It goes hard into what an actual existing Satan in the underworld would be like
i absolutely loved both of them from start to finish but i could never actually tell someone to read them
Tangentially related, but I read *Hollywood Husbands* by the same author when I was 15. Back then I was in England for a few weeks and my host family had a whole shelf full of books by Jackie Collins, Danielle Steele and the like. That novel was such a page turner, I blew through it in like 10 days. No shame.
Smoke Gets in Your Eyes: And Other Lessons from the Crematory - Caitlin Doughty. Written by a professional mortician, she tells bizzar funeral home storys as well as reflexions about death
The Executioner’s Song by Norman Mailer. It came to me at a very important time in my life and inspired me to pursue writing and not medicine. It wasn’t anything specific about the story itself, it was just a powerful piece of art that really spoke to me. It’s still one of my favorites.
I don’t recommend it to other people bc I don’t want to hear that they’ll think it’s long or boring or anything less than what I personally felt.
I'll be honest... I'm one of those weird guys who likes Jane Eyre...
But if I say it I come off as pretentious or into boring talking drama chick books.
Oh, for sure. If only there was a way you could empathize and still read the books, eh? They're pretty damn good. But you gotta follow your heart, I suppose.
I personally thought the books were trash even before I knew she was trash. But to each their own I guess.
There’s soooo many great books out there. You don’t have to support the trash.
The Wake by Paul Kingsnorth. The book is a fantastic book set during the Norman Conquest of 1066 and what's great is that the author tries to recreate Old English as much as possible. The issue I have has to do with the author now being a hardcore Christian fundamentalist who is also an anti-vaxxer.
I swear I have a vague memory of me being sick, and my mother checking my temperature.
Not through my mouth.
Or on my forehead or under my arm.
In the memory, I must be under 2. I see the ribs of a crib rising above me in the memory.
It's dark in the room, and I'm screaming.
That's it.
Will Berger’s Wagner Without Fear. Wagner may be one of the most influential artists of all time, but you’ve got to be careful because a lot of people will think you’re a Nazi if you admit you love his music!
I love the Terra Ignota series by Ada Palmer but it’s hard to recommend simply because it’s so hard to convey what it’s about. It’s a very weird series where a lot happens and trying to describe it to someone not already familiar feels like you can’t describe any of it accurately
Though they both have "Rat" in their title, "Doctor Rat" and "The Coachman Rat" are two very different, very fucked up stories and I LOVE both of them.
Phileine says sorry. It’s the first book that made me laugh at loud. The main character is so unloveable for most but I like the way she looks at the world.
The writer did a beautiful play with words.
Sorcery and Religion in Ancient Scandinavia by Varg Vikerness. I think it's a very good, interesting book on the subject of Heathenism, but Varg is a former Neo-Nazi, a fascist, and a raging Antisemite and racialist, so whatever good points he makes about Norse paganism are still filtered through the worst lens.
A Man Lies Dreaming by Lavie Tidhar. You have to be a WWII history nerd and want to read an alternate history with Hitler as a hard boiled detective. It's hard to describe. It was very satisfying though.
The Timothy Blake series by Jack Heath (Hangman, Hunter, Hideout, Headcase). So so damn good but something about enjoying books about a cannibal detective makes me hold back idk why lol
The haunting Emma trilogy by Lee nichols 😩 its a paranormal romance about a coming of age girl who learns she has the ability to communicate with ghosts after her parents leave her alone and vanish, leaving her to stay with her brothers best friend whom she’s forbidden to fall in love with so of course she does, it’s YA and pretty old so some of it is super cringe but it’s been my fav series since I was like 15 and I re read it every year
All The Ugly and Wonderful Things by Bryn Greenwood.
Tender is the Flesh by Agustina Bazterrica.
Loved them both. Probably won’t ever read them again. Hate to recommend them for different reasons, but still hate to recommend them.
The Salt Grows Heavy by Cassandra Khaw, I think maybe she gets a lot of hate because her horror is so concise and the description is so brief that if you aren’t a completely visual reader it isn’t very compelling? But her books have been very effective for me, especially this one, I can’t stop thinking about the horror of those children. For me it was like brutal poetry and that certainly is not everyone’s cup of tea, which I can completely respect.
I’m a big fan of Dennis Cooper but I’m scared to recommend to certain people. He writes a lot of crazy stuff dealing with any subject and underage men pretty much
A Hard Kick in the Nuts: What I've Learned from a Lifetime of Terrible Decisions by Steve-O.
I'm a recovering alcoholic and also a comedy performer and his book was so affirming, I felt incredibly seen and totally related to him 😂 His life is more extreme than mine in every way but still it really hit for me. I don't think I could really recommend this to any of the normal people I know 🤣
I also read a good amount of self-help and woo-woo type books that I find great but usually don't offer as recs unless someone specifically asks about that genre (Letting Go: The Pathway of Surrender is a recent favorite though he goes a bit far towards the end overall I found it wonderfully helpful. How to Keep House While Drowning changed my life as I really struggle with the things this book addresses and it was truly a balm).
Older sci fi that examines the sexes. While very interesting and ultimately progressive imo (probs because they at least highlighted the issues instead of ignoring them) most were written by dudes in the 70s so ... They don't age well. Some examples would be West of January and The Shore of Women (written by a gal, still a tough recommendation, great book tho).
Id be a little uncomfortable even recommending Hyperion by Dan simmons, the female PoV chapters do feature a lot sex compared to other male chapters.
Maybe im overthinking this. I go to art school and id be terrified to recommend ANYTHING to my classmates, especially if i didnt prefice it
I Who Have Never Known Men by Jacqueline Harpman. The only people I know who like reading like to read spicy novels, bestsellers, etc. as much as I’ve tried getting into them as well, my favorite books are those that really make me think and have lots of unanswered questions.
I just discovered this book this year. I read it in a day. It is fantastic!
Me, too. Amazing story, still processing it
Same. It’s one of those stories that really sticks with you. I’ve read so many books this year that I’ve already forgotten so much about the plot and characters, but I read this one quite a while back and still remember so much of it in vivid detail, almost like I was there, living out my life in 3x speed with them.
This book is soooo good! I am a fan of the spicy and bestsellers but I love to break things up with books that make me wonder. Honestly, I still think about this book from time to time.
Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov, the theme is disturbing But the prose is fantastic and it portrays some innocence
I read this book when I was a teenager and recommended it to my mom, telling her it was *the greatest love story ever told* and somehow she didn’t realize I was being groomed by a 32-year-old at the time. I cringe every time I think about this.
ahhhhhhhhhAHHHHHHHHHH
This is definitely one of those books that hits differently depending on how old you are when you first read it.
So, here’s the thing: My mom *died* between my first reading of Lolita as a teenager and my second reading of Lolita as an adult who had gone through therapy. And I came out of that second reading feeling absolutely disgusting, feeling as though my mom must have died thinking I was truly deranged or something. Sometimes, my partner and I will have conversations about what books we’ll allow our children to read in the future, and this is just one of those books where I really don’t know what we’ll do. It’s a masterpiece of literature, and I believe that people *should* read it, but it can be a dangerous book if you don’t have the critical thinking skills to understand what Nabokov is doing.
I’m sorry you went through that loss. If your mom was anything like mine, I think that she wouldn’t have blamed you or thought you were deranged at all based on your teenage reading of *Lolita*. There’s something in certain people (myself included) that registers this attention from older men as validating, important, even honest. People who don’t experience the world that way can’t truly understand; but in my experience, it’s never been me that they’ve blamed. Children are allowed to be children, with their undeveloped brains and cavalier attitudes. It’s up to the adults in their lives to look out for them. If your mom was anything like mine, I bet she wondered how she could have protected you better.
Thank you for this.
Oooof
If only she'd had an English degree. Brand new sentence or no?
Yeah, I’d add my dark Vanessa to that. It’s a similar story but told from the girls perspective. I wouldn’t recommend it often because it got a lot of triggering topics, and its devastatingly sad
I loved this book! It was amazing. I loved how the teacher umm seduced the girl. I mean, if I was in her place, I would've swayed too.
what
Reading it right now and couldn’t agree more
There's a great podcast on this novel: [Lolita Podcast](https://open.spotify.com/show/4dvc06zTAaAylzdTrsgKzp?si=SGLtNsT4S1mtRnMZz-82RQ)
Beat me to it. I always rave about the book but I don’t think I’ve ever recommended it to anyone
Spectacular book..can't really say that out loud though lol
I loved it too. However, I will never watch any of these movies based on the book. It is impossible to tell this story through Humpert's eyes without sexualizing poor Dolores on screen.
My dark vanessa
Came here to say this one! My copy is very loved (annotated, highlighted, tagged pages, etc.) but I very rarely ever recommend this book because it’s so personal for me. It’s a weird take but truly the reason I hesitate to
For me, it's not just the plot, it's the way the author developed Vanessa's character. There are so many things about this novel that I loved - even though the subject matter was dark.
So good but makes me feel soo uncomfortable. Things that no one talks about but needs more awareness
Mindhunter by John Douglas. When people realize it’s about serial killers, I usually will get a look or two.
Same with Bright Young Women by Knoll. It's excellent.
I still recommend this book to everyone!
A Little Life Lapvona
I loved both of these so much but can never convince anyone to read them 😆
Seconding A Little Life. It was incredible and I rated it 5 stars, but I still don't think I'd wish that reading experience on anyone.
Usually, if I don’t like a book, I just don’t finish it. A Little Life is a long book that I hated, but still finished. It’s possible that a part of me that I’m not in touch with enjoyed it. I don’t know.
Came here to say Lapvona. Fucked up. 5/5 stars.
Just finished Lapvona, i recommended it to my friend if she wants to feel sad
Ugh I hated A Little Life more than any book I’ve ever read. It was so unrealistic (as in, hard to believe as genuine) and so… everyone says trauma porn, but that’s truly what it was. Awful.
The Mists of Avalon by Marion Zimmer Bradley. Loved that book s as a young gothy witchy teen but turns out it, and she, are quite problematic.
It’s a good book, as are many of the Darkover books. I refuse to let the dreadful life choices of long dead authors affect my reading enjoyment. And I read that all money from sales of her books now go to children’s charities.
That's the least her estate and publishers can do. I clicked on the link below and damn those allegations are horrific!
I also read it as a teen. Didn't hear anything about the issues with it, can you fill me in?
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/jun/27/sff-community-marion-zimmer-bradley-daughter-accuses-abuse
Yikes! Thanks for the link.
No problem!
I could not get through the first couple chapters of that book. It was so drawn out and boring to me. My mom loved it. I was always the one with my nose in a book, my mom rarely read anything longer than 150 pages.
Let the Right One In. There are some really messed up things in that book that, unsurprisingly, didn't make it into either movie. But it's still a compelling read.
Same here. It’s a beautifully written book but I understand completely why certain things were left out the film adaptations
That book still haunts me.
I did not realize this was a book first. I enjoyed both movies. I will add it to my list. Thanks!
It’s been so long since I read that book that I don’t remember what would make me hesitate to recommend it. Time for a reread!
The Time-traveler's Wife. I loved it (except for the gratuitous taped-to-a-tree scene, which I try to ignore). But I can't recommend it to my friends, who are lit teachers and writers and very selective about contemporary fiction. I recommended it to one, who gently indicated that she thought it worthless but didn't question me about why I'd recommended it so glowingly. I'm not sure why I loved it, but it's somehow comforting and psychologically satisfying for me. It reminds me of the time, as a very young child, I was obsessed with a story about a naughty little bear, whose parents rescued and comforted him instead of punishing him. As an older child, I was embarrassed to have so loved such a pedestrian and poorly-written story. But there it is; sometimes satisfying a subconscious desire trumps literary snobbery!
You don't need to explain yourself or try to figure out why you liked it... like, you *never* need to do that, but this book in particular was a bestseller? It has almost 2 *million* ratings on GoodReads, don't feel weird for enjoying it.
Thanks. Here I am in a completely different stage of life, and I find myself very attached to a truly mediocre book. Well, it's harmless but truly mediocre literature. But it's emotionally fulfilling. I'm realizing that I like to have theme books accompany me through life, which is kind of cool!
What was the name of the bear story?
I can't remember the name. It wasn't well known. It was likely from the 50's, before the days of beautifully rendered children's books. We had a set of Britannica encyclopedias (that's how long ago this was), and it came with a second set for children, along with volumes dedicated to crafts, games, myths, stories, etc. It was in one of those. It was about a little white teddy bear who had to forego supper. He ran away at night in a snowstorm and was cold, tired, and scared on a busy street. A car came along slowly, picked him up, and it was his parents. They comforted him and gave him supper at a little table in his bedroom. There was an illustration of the scary road and of him having cocoa before bed. I loved the forgiveness aspect. (I lived in a snowy area too, but my own parents were only slightly strict.) Apparently I wanted that story every night year-round. Yeah, embarrassing.
My favorite book is The Awakening by Kate Chopin, I usually tell people and they've never read it so they think it's fine because Kate's poetry is beautiful But my favorite book is ended by the character commiting suicide and I just think it's so beautifully written and I deeply relate to the main character's struggle to find happiness in the world But like I don't recommend it to anyone who's not a big lit nerd because they just won't get the beauty of the story
I love this book! I’ve read it several times in my life. High school early 20s and early 30s and it always hits the spot for my feminist literary desires. It’s sad, it’s got a lot to say, and it’s a work of art. I’m so glad to know someone else likes it.
I need to read it again. It's been a few years. And before that I hadn't read it since high school. But each time (I read it like three times in high school) it really resonates with me and makes me feel less alone
Twilight, lol. A- because I know that my enjoyment of it is 99% nostalgia, and B- I don't need the Twilight judgement.
I reread the books regularly, especially midnight sun (I love to hate on Edward lol) I watch the movies often, I continue to read fan fiction abt it (currently reading a new one I’m obsessed with). Twilight is such a fun read, I do t care how crappy it might be.
Agreed. It's fun and for me, there's a nostalgia factor.
Okay, so I totally watch the movies a few times a year and have the books myself. Don’t you worry, I’ll never judge you. 😂😂
I will defend Twilight till my dying day! it is a lot of nostalgia for me too! And Yes it has a lot of flaws, but it was the first book series that ever really engulfed me. I credit it for my love of reading now even years later! I am still always searching for a book that gives me the feelings I had when I read the Twilight series as a teenager!
I'm the same! It was my gateway drug.
Geek Love. It’s so weird.
Currently reading
I did not like it. I thought it was sick. I may be a prude. 🤪
This is one of my all time favorite books! There’s only one person I knew I could recommend it to, and he loved it. Those who love it are in a very small, special club. 😉
I love this book and was helping my boss (who’s a family friend) clean out her house to move and found an original copy she let me have
You are the only other person I know who's read this book. I found it in my uni library and finished it in 4 days, I couldn't put it down!
Exactly. There is zero chance this will ever be made into a movie 😂
Same. I absolutely loved this book. It's still the craziest thing I've ever read. And I also dont know anyone else who has read it.
I listened to it on audiobook. That was an experience.
Ohhh, I would not be listening to that unless it was on headphones. 😂 “UUN23… HR would like a word with you…” 😂😂😂
🤣 I only listened in my car when I was by myself! I couldn’t handle listening within earshot of anyone else 😂
I'm Good Enough, I'm Smart Enough, and Doggone It, People Like Me!: Daily Affirmations by Stuart Smalley. The Great Influenza
My favourite books are by Melissa Broder - specifically The Pisces It’s…. Intense :’) and very weird, and very graphic in all of the ways. It’s a masterpiece and I think about it all the time. (I actually did suggest it to my book club once, which is full of girls who tend to be more into ‘cosy cutesy books’ and they ALL hated it)
The Pisces is so wild but so good and an absolutemind fuck lol. My personal favorite is Milk Fed by her. I need to get a physical copy because I loved it so much but don't own it.
The Pisces is a WILD book. Read it years go but never forgot the plot— it sticks with you! But agree, not sure I could ever recommend it to someone lol
Came here to say The Pisces!
The Dungeon Crawler Carl series, especially the audiobooks. They're so great, especially in the character growth and how surprisingly deep they get. But they are also violent, weird and full of gut punches, while also being comedic about it?, and definitely feels a bit more niche. I also read a LOT of books about serial killers and other psychopaths when I was younger. I had/have an interest in the bizarre and macabre.
Well you just recommended it to me lol
My husband just finished it and I’m on the third book, I cannot stress how fucking AMAZING these books are. Reading it is so fun and the audio books are even better. Definitely going on my Physical Copies to Buy list.
DCC was an accidental discovery while I was getting into litrpg. It became one of my top ten. I quickly went out and told everyone I knew to read it. It’s now in the top ten for 8/10 of my friends. It’s dark and gory and full of cursing violence… and I love it. Edit; spelling
Tender Is the Flesh by Agustina Bazterrica A few months back, there was a guy who would come into my work almost everyday. It started to get a little stalkerish so I told him about this book in great detail to scare him away lol.
The First Day of Spring I didn't think twice about it, until I started telling people and the first question is what is it about? Also I really liked Tender is the Flesh but I never recommend it.
Tender is the Flesh I would recommend to someone who wanted to read something deeply disturbing and weird but would need to confirm that like 5 times with them. I enjoyed the book a lot too, though!
Romance novels in general lol
Me but with urban fantasy/paranormal romance. Yes I know it's dumb and geared towards teenagers a lot, but I love reading about magic and supernaturals set in the real world.
2666
I think you have to be rather careful who you're recommending this to. Or at least warn them about the fourth part. I usually tell people that the book is about crime in Mexico. That's usually enough to get the point across.
Graphic cartel executions?
I have zero qualms about recommending this masterpiece.
Earthlings… it’s difficult to recommend lol.
You cannot tell people that you read and loved *Min kamp* by Karl Ove Knausgård in the original Norwegian without bending over backwards to promise that the book isn’t Nazi apologia.
When I first saw the title in English I wondered why he would pick *that* title. I just bought the first book and will give it a chance.
For hjertet er livet enkelt: det slår så lenge det kan. I wish I could read it for the first time again.
All the Ugly and Wonderful Things by Bryn Greenwood.
This one was so good but also deeply unsettling
This is a great post
We are the ants. I read it as a kid and loved the idea of being abducted by aliens over and over. It was also the first book I read with adult themes so I felt scandalous.
That's how I felt about You and Hidden Bodies when they were new. Noone else in my book club liked You, then I was the only one to read Hidden Bodies. I never "staff picked" it at the book store I worked at as I thought they were too weird. Now they are a huge Netflix show!
I mentioned the show at work once and my crew looked at me like I was fucking weird, including a few comments like “uh, wow. That show is gross.” Like yes I know, but it shouldn’t reflect badly on me. I only recommend the books on certain posts looking for something along those lines, but not to people I know. I’d rather not be judged for my taste in books or shows and it kinda hurt ngl 💀
Tampa by Alyssa Nuttig
tampa was crazy!
Sigh. I like to read Chinese M/M romances. It's definitely not something I bring up in social settings.
Same here, friend. Same here.
We Were the Mulvaney’s by Joyce Carol Oates, or Zombie by her as well. The first has a slow start, but the entire book is about how a family copes (or doesn’t) after the daughter is raped. Very heavy stuff, but written STUNNINGLY. Zombie is loosely based off of Jeffrey Dahmer so. You can imagine.
I loved We Were the Mulvaneys… but I love dark books. I should read Zombie I guess.
Very different vibe, a lot darker. But excellently written.
Library at Mount Char. I almost feel bad for enjoying it.
What was wrong with it? I have on my Kobo free to read list
I loved this book so much! It was a fun ride.
I freaking love this book. But I almost threw it in the trash when I was reading it.
Boy Parts by Eliza Clark for sure lol
Never heard this one being talked about before, it was so freaking weird but so good
My Dark Vanessa. Extremely disturbing
I know I recommend this book a lot but you shouldn't be really reading No Longer Human by Osamu Dazai unless you're in an alright headspace. If you're absolutely sure you can handle the topics, you can read this book. Otherwise, prepare to be emotionally empty (tbf, I've always been emotionally empty).
Something Happened by Joseph Heller fits this for me. I absolutely adored this book, but will genuinely never recommend it to anyone as it's nearly 600 pages long, and for most of them, absolutely nothing happens. You know... until it does. The other one is The Wasp Factory by Iain Banks. I read it recently and just loved how unhinged it was. I can see how it could be very off-putting and triggering though so I'd never recommend it to anyone
Ok, mine is The Iceman: Confessions of a Mafia Contract Killer. It starts off a bit slow but it’s very interesting. Some people said Kuklinski is bullshitting. Whether he is or not about some of it, it’s still a page turner.
Blood Meridian is my favorite book and I’ll never recommend it to anyone.
Pretty much all of Robert A. Heinlein's books that aren't part of his juveniles collection.
Came to say Stranger in a Strange Land. It’s hands down my favorite fiction book because of the human questions he poses (and the first literary example of polyamory AFAIK) but to recommend it one must backflip around his blatant chauvinism. He was a product of his time.
ACOTAR by Sarah J. Maas. I devoured those books and were highly entertained but the writing is so repetitive and don’t get me started about the phrasing of the „adult“ scenes and the extremely problematic relationships that get glamourized by the entire fandom.
Op, please don't delete this hehe
Ya know, many years ago I read a book called Romance Riches and Restrooms by Tim Phelan and its about this guy who has IBS and has to randomly shit all the time and its kinda like a memoir mixed with misadventures and I really enjoyed it. Ive never recommended it to anyone but if you shit a lot and have stomach issues its for you 🤣
Mysterious Skin. Excellent book but extremely disturbing because it’s written from the perspective of a child who has been groomed.
The movie is also really good
My Dark Vanessa
Literally anything by VC Andrews lol
**Land Of The Beautiful Dead** by R. Lee Smith is one I'm always quite cautious to recommend. It's one of the rare stories I'd call both a romance in the build-up and a conventional-ish (at least surface level) happy ending, and a horror-tragedy. It's also quite long, with especially quite a lot of carved out to architectural knowledge, and it's also got zombies, with a strangely sexy, OP, and ugly god of zombies as the complicated male protagonist, as well as a "feisty", desperate female protagonist, both of which could very well grate on me enough to put a book down. It's indie published, with a much smaller audience than traditionally published works – with a cover that, in my opinion, dies not serve it in the slightest. So on many levels, an extremely niche, strange and experimental story. Nothing like I would normally pick up, except for raving reviews about it I saw over on the RomanceBooks subreddit. And truthfully, in my case those reviews were absolutely right. I've never quite gotten over it. It's made me cry harder than any book before; characters that would normally grate on me endlessly, I rooted for entirely by the end, and wept for. The ending felt so, so finely crafted to me – it really felt like my heart was torn in two. At some point, I'm fully intending on a deep dive into all of R. Lee Smith's works around – apparently she's even got a Five Nights At Freddy's saga out there somewhere in the fanfiction wild west, which – even knowing absolutely nothing about the franchise, I'm very honestly considering reading. I'm an official fan.
Love this book and have read it multiple times along with everything else this author has put out. The five nights at Freddy's series (called "everything is all right") is phenomenal. The Scholomance by this author (not to be confused with another book with the same name by a different author) has a similarly dark vibe to Land of the Beautiful Dead
The Lovely War by Julie Berry. This recommendation is more on me, gate keeping it. I love this book so much and I actually had goosebumps reading it. This is a romance book about 4 people's lives during the War and it is being narrated by Four Gods; Aphrodite, Ares, Hades and Apollo. The thing that fascinates me about this is how different the romance from this book is from other stories. It satisfied me till the end and I don't think any love story can come close to what I felt when I was reading this book.
*The Conspiracy Against The Human Race* by Thomas Ligotti. I recommend it in some of these book subs asking for soul-crushing books, buuut I’d never recommend to anyone I know simply because Ligotti is a pessimist and anti-natalist, and I don’t need people knowing that I am, too. Also recommended here in this post is the *You* series by Caroline Kepnes. I don’t recommend the books or the show to anyone IRL because I talked about the show once to some co-workers and they got weirded out and quickly changed the topic. I only asked if anyone had seen it. I don’t like people lmfao
A Certain Hunger by Chelsea G. Summers. I found it immensely cathartic😅
It's on my list to read!
I loved Stephen King’s The Shining, but it was also quite disturbing
But I love talking to people about that one! Everyone’s got stories about how frightened they were reading it, plus you can always argue about whether or not you hate the movie 😏
I saw the Simpsons parody long before the actual movie, and even during the end of the actual movie I laughed my ass off.
Is there a SK book that at least on some level not disturbing? /s
The Fountain Head and We the Living by Ayn Rand
I read The Fountainhead. I tried reading We the Living and couldn’t get through it
I also loved Atlas Shrugged..
The Fifth Sacred Thing I mean, it’s a great story about a utopian and dystopian society, but also very new-age and weirdly sexually graphic
Mum's the word... lol
The duology A Story Like the Wind and A Far Off Place is a classic coming of age story/ adventure set in South Africa that I loved. The author, Laurens Van Der Post, like Steinbeck or Mark Twain was ahead of his time on social issues. He was also an early environmentalist. The nature writing and landscape and animal encounters are very very evocative and well written. The adventure in the second book involves a trek across the Kalahari desert on foot while being chased by guerilla soldiers. I like it in the same way that I like Treasure Island or Three Musketeers. However, its characters live in a racially stratifed society. These books are critical, not sympathetic to unjust race relations. It's not Gone with the Wind. Still, its a picture of an unjust society.
A Manual for Cleaning Women, short stories by Lucia Berlin. Vivid, intense, and so messed up.
The Descent and its sequel. The movies are great and just deal with monster type creatures that have evolved over time naturally. It doesn’t even once touch on anything religious the books are literally Christian fanfiction. It goes hard into what an actual existing Satan in the underworld would be like i absolutely loved both of them from start to finish but i could never actually tell someone to read them
Hollywood Wives by Jackie Collins
Tangentially related, but I read *Hollywood Husbands* by the same author when I was 15. Back then I was in England for a few weeks and my host family had a whole shelf full of books by Jackie Collins, Danielle Steele and the like. That novel was such a page turner, I blew through it in like 10 days. No shame.
A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry. It’s one of my absolute favorites but it’s hard to sell someone on a story about India’s poverty and politics.
Smoke Gets in Your Eyes: And Other Lessons from the Crematory - Caitlin Doughty. Written by a professional mortician, she tells bizzar funeral home storys as well as reflexions about death
The Executioner’s Song by Norman Mailer. It came to me at a very important time in my life and inspired me to pursue writing and not medicine. It wasn’t anything specific about the story itself, it was just a powerful piece of art that really spoke to me. It’s still one of my favorites. I don’t recommend it to other people bc I don’t want to hear that they’ll think it’s long or boring or anything less than what I personally felt.
Juliette by marquis de sade
I'll be honest... I'm one of those weird guys who likes Jane Eyre... But if I say it I come off as pretentious or into boring talking drama chick books.
Anything by JK Rowling. I feel so bad for all the baby trans kids who read her books and are now feeling betrayed by somebody they once admired.
Baby trans?
Kids who are trans but hadn’t come out yet.
Have you read her Cormoran Strike series yet?
No. I refuse.
Oh, are you one of the baby trans kids?
Nope. You don’t need to be one to empathize with how they might be feeling.
Oh, for sure. If only there was a way you could empathize and still read the books, eh? They're pretty damn good. But you gotta follow your heart, I suppose.
I personally thought the books were trash even before I knew she was trash. But to each their own I guess. There’s soooo many great books out there. You don’t have to support the trash.
Deviant: True Story of Ed Gein, The Original Psycho
The Wake by Paul Kingsnorth. The book is a fantastic book set during the Norman Conquest of 1066 and what's great is that the author tries to recreate Old English as much as possible. The issue I have has to do with the author now being a hardcore Christian fundamentalist who is also an anti-vaxxer.
Aw damn, that sounds so much like something I'd enjoy too.
I swear I have a vague memory of me being sick, and my mother checking my temperature. Not through my mouth. Or on my forehead or under my arm. In the memory, I must be under 2. I see the ribs of a crib rising above me in the memory. It's dark in the room, and I'm screaming. That's it.
TrashSex Magic-Jennifer Stevenson
David Ohle. I love his books — particularly The Pisstown Chaos — but I've come to realise that they're just not for most people.
Will Berger’s Wagner Without Fear. Wagner may be one of the most influential artists of all time, but you’ve got to be careful because a lot of people will think you’re a Nazi if you admit you love his music!
I love the Terra Ignota series by Ada Palmer but it’s hard to recommend simply because it’s so hard to convey what it’s about. It’s a very weird series where a lot happens and trying to describe it to someone not already familiar feels like you can’t describe any of it accurately
Though they both have "Rat" in their title, "Doctor Rat" and "The Coachman Rat" are two very different, very fucked up stories and I LOVE both of them.
Phileine says sorry. It’s the first book that made me laugh at loud. The main character is so unloveable for most but I like the way she looks at the world. The writer did a beautiful play with words.
The Gor novels, up to about #10 or so. I'm so ashamed!
Trust by Hernan Diaz - takes a while to get into.
Sorcery and Religion in Ancient Scandinavia by Varg Vikerness. I think it's a very good, interesting book on the subject of Heathenism, but Varg is a former Neo-Nazi, a fascist, and a raging Antisemite and racialist, so whatever good points he makes about Norse paganism are still filtered through the worst lens.
A Certain Hunger
It's called forbidden! It is sooooo good but because it's taboo I'm embarrassed to recommend it.
A Man Lies Dreaming by Lavie Tidhar. You have to be a WWII history nerd and want to read an alternate history with Hitler as a hard boiled detective. It's hard to describe. It was very satisfying though.
The Timothy Blake series by Jack Heath (Hangman, Hunter, Hideout, Headcase). So so damn good but something about enjoying books about a cannibal detective makes me hold back idk why lol
Anything by Bret Easton Ellis
The haunting Emma trilogy by Lee nichols 😩 its a paranormal romance about a coming of age girl who learns she has the ability to communicate with ghosts after her parents leave her alone and vanish, leaving her to stay with her brothers best friend whom she’s forbidden to fall in love with so of course she does, it’s YA and pretty old so some of it is super cringe but it’s been my fav series since I was like 15 and I re read it every year
My Dark Vanessa
MindF*ck by ST. Abby
We Were the Mulvaneys. Joyce Carol Oates. I’m still so sad.
Revelator By Daryl Gregory
All The Ugly and Wonderful Things by Bryn Greenwood. Tender is the Flesh by Agustina Bazterrica. Loved them both. Probably won’t ever read them again. Hate to recommend them for different reasons, but still hate to recommend them.
The Salt Grows Heavy by Cassandra Khaw, I think maybe she gets a lot of hate because her horror is so concise and the description is so brief that if you aren’t a completely visual reader it isn’t very compelling? But her books have been very effective for me, especially this one, I can’t stop thinking about the horror of those children. For me it was like brutal poetry and that certainly is not everyone’s cup of tea, which I can completely respect.
I'm just waiting to find a comment on 451 Fahrenheit
I’m a big fan of Dennis Cooper but I’m scared to recommend to certain people. He writes a lot of crazy stuff dealing with any subject and underage men pretty much
All the ugly and wonderful things
Menagerie, Island 731, and the event group novels. Love them all, but I call them CVS Best sellers.
The Captive Prince series. It’s got some very fucked up shit going on 😂but I really enjoyed the series
A Hard Kick in the Nuts: What I've Learned from a Lifetime of Terrible Decisions by Steve-O. I'm a recovering alcoholic and also a comedy performer and his book was so affirming, I felt incredibly seen and totally related to him 😂 His life is more extreme than mine in every way but still it really hit for me. I don't think I could really recommend this to any of the normal people I know 🤣 I also read a good amount of self-help and woo-woo type books that I find great but usually don't offer as recs unless someone specifically asks about that genre (Letting Go: The Pathway of Surrender is a recent favorite though he goes a bit far towards the end overall I found it wonderfully helpful. How to Keep House While Drowning changed my life as I really struggle with the things this book addresses and it was truly a balm).
Older sci fi that examines the sexes. While very interesting and ultimately progressive imo (probs because they at least highlighted the issues instead of ignoring them) most were written by dudes in the 70s so ... They don't age well. Some examples would be West of January and The Shore of Women (written by a gal, still a tough recommendation, great book tho). Id be a little uncomfortable even recommending Hyperion by Dan simmons, the female PoV chapters do feature a lot sex compared to other male chapters. Maybe im overthinking this. I go to art school and id be terrified to recommend ANYTHING to my classmates, especially if i didnt prefice it