r/books • u/AutoModerator • 7d ago
WeeklyThread Weekly Recommendation Thread: August 28, 2026
Welcome to our weekly recommendation thread! A few years ago now the mod team decided to condense the many "suggest some books" threads into one big mega-thread, in order to consolidate the subreddit and diversify the front page a little. Since then, we have removed suggestion threads and directed their posters to this thread instead. This tradition continues, so let's jump right in!
The Rules
Every comment in reply to this self-post must be a request for suggestions.
All suggestions made in this thread must be direct replies to other people's requests. Do not post suggestions in reply to this self-post.
All unrelated comments will be deleted in the interest of cleanliness.
How to get the best recommendations
The most successful recommendation requests include a description of the kind of book being sought. This might be a particular kind of protagonist, setting, plot, atmosphere, theme, or subject matter. You may be looking for something similar to another book (or film, TV show, game, etc), and examples are great! Just be sure to explain what you liked about them too. Other helpful things to think about are genre, length and reading level.
All Weekly Recommendation Threads are linked below the header throughout the week to guarantee that this thread remains active day-to-day. For those bursting with books that you are hungry to suggest, we've set the suggested sort to new; you may need to set this manually if your app or settings ignores suggested sort.
If this thread has not slaked your desire for tasty book suggestions, we propose that you head on over to the aptly named subreddit /r/suggestmeabook.
- The Management
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u/RheaFitnexa 4h ago
For the closest mix of adventure, revenge, loyalty, and painful separation, try James Clavell’s Shogun. It is much longer and more politically intricate, but like The Count of Monte Cristo, it makes strategy feel as tense as swordplay. Its central character is also constantly adapting to a world determined to use him.
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u/Determined-Fighter 8h ago
Anyone read MrBeast’s new book The Most Dangerous Games? It’s hard to find genuine reviews.
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u/420ball-sniffer69 1d ago
Hi guys, I was recently interested to learn more about the story of how DNA was discovered. I’ve read the biography by Walter Isaacson but I saw there’s a recent title by Matthew Cobb called “A mind in motion”. Just wanted to know if anyone else has read this title and what your thoughts are? Thanks
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u/Least-Raisin8216 1d ago
Lets me say, im not the biggest reader, but randomly decided to read The Count of Monte Cristo. Hands down this is the best piece of media across any domain that I have consumed. It is beautiful, I resonate a lot with Dantes, I felt every scene, each now burned into my memory. I am honestly super sad its over.
This is why I am looking for help. Is there any book thay is the perfect next read? I loved this book so much I think anything else I think of will be hard to read. Most I loved the character of Dantes, and adventure, and his separation with Mercedes.
I would highly appreciate any recommendations!!
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u/Even_Divide4320 23h ago
I highly recommend Pachinko by Min Jin Lee. Its sweeping multigenerational storyline, set across Korea and Japan, follows a family through love, hardship, migration, and history, making it an immersive and deeply character-driven next read.
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u/AccessOne8287 2d ago
I want a book about a normal modern person somehow gaining unlimited supernatural power, immortality, etc and then using that power to establish a new world order, and then having to deal with the geopolitical consequences of doing so or becoming a tyrant.
I know this is an insanely specific suggestion but I’ve been running this hypothetical in my head for far too long to not see what a professional writer can do with the idea.
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u/AccomplishedNet6644 21h ago
Dune? although i guess not so normal or modern...
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u/DoglessDyslexic 4h ago
I didn't even think of Dune in this context, but I agree it matches a lot of the ask, especially for Leto. Leto doesn't actually sweat the "becoming a tyrant" thing, as he understands that he must become a tyrant as the only way to save humanity, and he's effectively almost immortal.
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u/Guapdad8k 2d ago
Might not fit to a T but red rising starts with a very “normal” guy who is given top tier traits in order to overthrow his current worlds social order. It’s a whole series, so I don’t know if it tackles that last aspect of the struggle of becoming a tyrant.
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u/hmoudiee- 2d ago
Hey guys I'm new to the community, I was wondering what advice you guys would give about reading more books, and having better attention span, because I'm fried sadly, and I'm also into history books, but I wanna explore my options.
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u/Raineythereader The Conference of the Birds 17h ago
The only advice I can suggest is to treat your attention span like a muscle to exercise, and not burn yourself out on something suoer dense :) For history specifically, I can recommend several books that are short and pretty light:
- Stiff (Mary Roach -- really anything by her is good)
- Cod (Mark Kurlansky -- Salt is another good introduction to his stuff)
- Longitude (Dava Sobel)
- The World That Trade Created (Pomeranz and Topik -- this one is more academic, but the chapters are super short and mostly stand alone from each other)
- The Disappearing Spoon (Sam Kean)
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u/rachelmikadoo 2d ago
Hi there! I also struggled with my attention span, primarily because of social media 😅 this is totally not an ad, but I downloaded ScreenZen and it limits my app usage (I set it to an hour a day for IG, FB, etc) and I have to answer a whole bunch of math questions before I can even unlock lol
Because I’m essentially locked out, I made it a conscious effort to pick up my book every time I would pick up my phone to scroll. Again, not sure if that’s what’s affecting your attention span, but it’s worked wonders for me!!
I also find it helpful to use an app/website like Goodreads or StoryGraph (what I use) to just put BUNCH of books in your to-read pile. Every time I come across something I event might want to read, I add it there - close to 200 on it now. For me, its exciting to see all the books I want to read in one place and I love having a spot to check them off :)
Best of luck!
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u/GLP310 2d ago
I finished the Knives Out trilogy and I need to read more murder mystery novels,at the moment I've only read a lot of the novels by Agatha Christie (Murder on The Orient Express,And Then There were None,Murder on the Nile and a lot more) and A Study in Red by A.C.Doyle.
I specifically want something with similar vibes of the movies like a group of suspects,a genius detective and good plotwists.
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u/gazamcnulty 2d ago
Anyone have a suggestion for collections of very short stories or articles?
I'm trying to replace doom scrolling with having a quick read, but I don't really like picking up a novel for just 5 - 10 minutes and putting it back down again. I'd love something I can just leaf through, read a short story over a few pages for 5 - 10 minutes and be done. With my job, I'll sometimes be waiting a few minutes in between calls or even for a short break, I would much prefer to read them just scroll Reddit.
Any suggestions would be appreciated, please and thanks.
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u/Outrageous_Tea9700 2d ago
I read this years ago but Bad Behavior is a collection of stories by Mary Gaitskill. The stories are dark though so don’t know if that’s the best for short breaks at work lol
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u/ragequit3605 3d ago
Hi,
Recently learned about the 18th century journalist Jean-Paul Marat and his influence in the French Revolution. I am quite intrigued and want to learn more about it.
Please suggest some books/articles that Marat wrote, or some books about the French Revolution.
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u/Alleyvvay 4d ago
I’m trying to read more books and get a better habit. Thing is I’ve not read any of the “classics”. I am not looking for a specific genre, rather I’m looking for genre defining books, and just good pieces of literature. I have no idea where to start or look
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u/catactuar 2d ago
I started my reading habit by picking up books that I have seen adapted as a show/movie already, like Harry Potter, Game of Thrones, Hunger Games, Les Miserables, etc. We had required reading of classics in high school but it never stuck with me until I got into imagining the world being described by the words. It helped a lot that I have seen them in some visual media already and that I enjoyed watching them.
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u/DoglessDyslexic 3d ago
I'm fond of "Pride and Prejudice". There is a surprising (to me) amount of humour to it, especially the interactions of Mr. and Mrs. Bennett (Elizabeth's mother and father). I was one of those avid reader and book starved kids that would read everything that the school gave you, even the optional books and this one was one of them. I'm normally more of a sci-fi and fantasy buff, but this one was a pleasure to read.
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u/MaxThrustage More Everything Forever 4d ago
The Count of Monte Cristo is pretty good for starting with the classics. It's a fun, rollicking adventure with serious emotional weight. It is quite long, but apart from that it's a fairly easy read.
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u/PrestigiousBridge764 4d ago
Looking for something fast past and quick, I'll take fiction or non-fiction so long as it's interesting.
Currently reading though DCC but the wait-list at my library is a bit long, so it might be a few weeks until I get the next book.
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u/DoglessDyslexic 3d ago edited 3d ago
Try "One Woke Up" by Lee Gaiteri. A different kind of zombie apocalypse book.
Edit: Gaiteri's "The Affix" is also a fun and fast paced book.
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u/Resident-Juice2398 4d ago
16 year old here, kinda shameful about not reading as many books as I probably should be (seriously, last book I've read that wasn't for school was a Big Nate novel). I'm not satisfied with my knowledge, intelligence and habits, so I feel books are a great place to start with that.
I like sci-fi and mystery and I'd welcome dystopian too. I want something with a lot of intellectually challenging content. The goal here is a good balance of fun and brain stimulation.
Thank you in advance!
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u/Coffee_fuel 1d ago edited 1d ago
"1984" and "Animal Farm" by Orwell are extremely accessible and influential dystopian classics with a lot of concepts for a brain to munch on.
If you want a contemporary author, Adrian Tchaikovsky writes in a very approachable manner. You could try his short story prequel, "Human Resources": https://reactormag.com/human-resources-adrian-tchaikovsky/ and if you find that you like it, continue with the novel "Service Model".
Asimov is, of course, a sure bet for sci-fi with a philosophical bent. Among his more famous works, you could dip your toes in with the short story "The Last Question", which he considered his favourite. "The Dead Past" is also a popular and accessible novelette.
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u/DoglessDyslexic 3d ago
Generally speaking John Scalzi is usually fun and funny to read. His stuff isn't super deep, but it often has some brilliant moments. I'm particularly fond of his "Agent to the Stars", "The Android's Dream", "Fuzzy Nation", "Old Man's War", and "Lock-In".
If you want something a little deeper, I'd suggest "The Gate To Women's Country" by Sheri S. Tepper, "Implied Spaces" by Walter Jon Williams, and "The Madness Season" by C. S. Friedman.
And if you're feeling particularly ambitious then either the "Expanse" books by James S. A. Corey or Peter Hamilton's "Reality Dysfunction" series, both of which are fairly epic scale space operas.
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u/PrestigiousBridge764 4d ago
Shadow of the Torturer. Bit of a tricky read, but still an interesting novel, you can probably get through it in a week or two if you give it the time.
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u/MrB00mbastic01 4d ago
Which is the book that got you most hooked??
About me: I am a 21 years old (male) who has never read a book in his life apart from school textbooks. Though I have always wanted to read books and have tried multiple times, I have never been able to keep reading more than 5 pages. I often found myself doom scrolling these days, which is not good. So, I have finally decided to fight my procrastination and seriously start reading a book. Not to flex to others but for my own self.
I want some book recommendations. Interested in fictions, not much into philosophy or biography or autobiography, but don't mind reading good ones
Currently reading: The ALCHEMIST by Paulo Coelho
Planned to Read: The whole series of 7 original books associated with "Game of Thrones" by George R.R. Martin
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u/DoglessDyslexic 3d ago
If I may suggest, if you find you are easily bored by reading books, Game of Thrones is probably not one you're going to be ready for for a while.
I'd suggest something fast paced. You may also find that audiobooks are more your jam. Fast paced ones I like:
"Vertical Run" by Joseph Garber. Thriller, somewhat similar in setting and action to a Die Hard movie.
"Dungeon Crawler Carl" by Matt Dinniman (also exemplary audiobook version). The genre called LitRPG where the characters are forced to play in a deathsport game that shares traits with RPG games.
"How to Become the Dark Lord and Die Trying" by Django Wexler. Fantasy with a time loop.
"Project Hail Mary" by Andy Weir. Near future sci-fi.
"Agent to the Stars" by John Scalzi. Modern day first contact sci-fi.
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u/MagnumMiracles 4d ago
I would love some horror recommendations with good character work. I love horror, but one of its windfalls I see time and time again(for me at least) is the weak character work. Scares are only effective for me if I care about the person in this horrible situation.
And no Stephen King. Already read his stuff. I've also read The Fisherman, which is something I get recommended a lot. Liked it, but didn't love it as much as other people.
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u/DoglessDyslexic 3d ago
I don't know if I'd classify it as horror, but it gives off some horror feels. "The Monstromologist" by Rick Yancey reads like a cross between Stephen King, Arthur Conan Doyle, and Edgar Allan Poe. The narrator is the Watson to the monstromologist Dr. Pellinore Warthrop's Holmes and follows their search for monsters that are killing people. Part of a series, I've read the first two of three and they both had the same vibe.
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u/Glum_Kangaroo_4560 book just finished - Meet The Newmans 5d ago
Hello folks!
As we come in to the darker nights here in the UK I gravitate towards some darker reads. I would like to try to some Stephen King but I don't like paranormal (I have OCD and it's a big trigger for me).
Other than "The Long "Walk" what would you guys recommend?
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u/elphie93 2 5d ago
I'd try Misery! No paranormal aspect, but definitely dark.
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u/Glum_Kangaroo_4560 book just finished - Meet The Newmans 5d ago
Oooo perfect, thank you. I just read the blurb and it sounds right up my street
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u/MarmadukeTheGreat 4d ago
Misery fits the bill!
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u/Glum_Kangaroo_4560 book just finished - Meet The Newmans 4d ago
I will definitely be checking it out. Scheduled for October <3
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u/Friendstastegood 5d ago
My 8yo (almost 9) is pretty picky about books. Recently however we found a short series of books that she really likes and one of the things she likes about it is that the books are a mix of graphic novel and regular novel - so both comic pages and pages of just text interspersed with each other. However I haven't been able to find any other books using this format.
Other than that she mainly likes urban fantasy but might be open to trying other genres too.
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u/Raineythereader The Conference of the Birds 4d ago
The "Horrible History" and "Horrible Science" non-fiction series both do this a lot, but (A) it sounds like she might not be interested in those genres, and (B) you might want to vet them beforehand. (I read at least a couple of them at that same age, but some of the details of medieval wars and plagues, Victorian-era consumer safety standards, etc., got rather grim.)
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u/Kooky_Adeptness1704 4d ago
Unsure if they like mythology, but maybe consider the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series? You can find them as graphic novels which maybe a better option then the actual books since your looking for a mix. I also believe that the limited editions have some pictures as well in them but that might not be the best option if just getting into it.
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u/HaxTheCook_ 6d ago
Count your recommend me a book about the Chinese/Burma theatre??
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u/Impressive-Peace2115 2d ago
I'm not familiar with this topic, but one way I sometimes find books about niche topics is to go to a relevant Wikipedia page and see if there are books listed in the references and/or bibliography.
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u/Insomniac__Owl-617_ 6d ago
I'm a huge fan of macabre: the atmospheric, eerie, psychologically intense kind. Recently I read through the entire Barnes and Noble's "The Complete Tales and Poems of Edgar Allan Poe" because I've been a Poe fan ever since I was a teen. I searched a lot but I'm not finding any other works of his that I've not read...
Can someone suggest me any other authors who have an adjacent style? I want a type of book that will keep me thinking about it for days. Especially if the book contains themes of paranoia, suspense or escalating psychological tension.
Drop your recommendations, and tell me why you loved it! I'd love to know.
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u/MarmadukeTheGreat 4d ago
I would try Dracula or some Sheridan La Fanu. There is a through line of Gothic Horror there that I always felt resonated with Poe that could be interesting for you.
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u/Star_journey1208 5d ago
Not a singular story, but the collection “The 50 Greatest Mysteries of All Time” compiled by Otto Penzler includes some great Poe and Poe adjacent stories.
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u/Insomniac__Owl-617_ 5d ago
Tysm for the recommendation! I love compilation type books. I'll definitely try it :D
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u/Trashyturdgremlin 6d ago
I’ve been in a reading slump and want to break out of it. I finished the audiobook for Clytemnestra by Costanza Casati, but I really want a physical book that will suck me in and make me lose track of time.
The last series I read was the full Realm of the Elderlings by Robin Hobb and have been considering picking up the KingsBridge series by Ken Follett again. I would love historical fiction and/or fantasy recommendations that are very character-driven.
Thanks everyone! :)
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u/_llama_queen 4d ago
I just finished Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell and I LOVED IT. Absolutely sucked me in, but it is very long so be wary!! I lost two whole days straight to it.
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u/HorrorSun4646 6d ago
If you like fantasy with a bit of a twist and "realistic" characters I absolutely loved The First Law trilogy by Joe Abercrombie (book 1 - The Blade Itself). Great adventure, well paced but the thing that always stands out for me is how distinct all the characters voices are. Often I've found characters voices blend into the authors voice at some stage and telling them apart is only possible because the dialogue is named, but this series you know who's speaking. The audio book is also fantastic.
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u/Rhubarb776 6d ago
A very fun character-driven fantasy I read recently: The Last Rift Dragon. It was a fast read, and I’m still thinking about it weeks later.
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u/RedSoxPC 6d ago
My number one recommendation for recent historical fiction/fantasy books is "The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue," by V.E. Schwab. Perhaps my favorite read of the 150-ish books I've read in the last five years.
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u/Larielis The Martian by Andy Weir 6d ago
What are your favorite books for autumn? 🍂
Any genre.
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u/Glum_Kangaroo_4560 book just finished - Meet The Newmans 5d ago
The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt
Bloom by Delilah S. Dawson
Agatha Christie books, especially towards the end of the autumn heading in to Christmas time.
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u/DoglessDyslexic 6d ago
"Something Wicked This Way Comes" by Ray Bradbury.
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u/FearlessReader85 6d ago
I'm currently listening to Nobody's Girl by Virginia Giuffre. It's such a tough one.
Looking for a suggestion of a lighter, humourous read when I'm done that doesn't have any victimized kids for when I'm done. Not into fantasy or romance, but anything else really!
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u/BasilAromatic4204 6d ago
The only one I've read with memory loss is in two series. The Jason Bourne series and I felt like it was treated well. The first one is my favorite. They're thrillers and a bullet fragment causes amnesia
The otger which I really enjoyed is called just Isolde by Samantha Behm. The first one handles this really well in that she awakes in the forest. I think the trauma and working through the winding of her memory like Bourne does around faces and places guides her back slowly but it was done well. If I recall a scent in the book helps. One of the difficulties for both book characters was being around people that they honestly did not know and so that made it difficult. I enjoyed both mysteries. The Bourne series has a good bit of books in it and I did not finish series. The other has two and both were great
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u/SvalinnSaga 6d ago
I recently read Dot Slash Magic by Liz Shipton and the mind control and mind rape was (attempted) to be treated as the serious violation that is is. It didn't follow through because the ending took things in a different direction.
Does anyone have recommendations for books that treat memory erasure, mental compulsion, etc seriously and as the violation of personhood they are?
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u/Impressive-Peace2115 2d ago
In The Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wells (starting with All Systems Red), the protagonist has spent most of its life with a mental compulsion system that it's now free of, and it's definitely treated seriously. A significant part of the series and the character arc is unpacking the trauma and defining its personhood on its own terms.
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u/SvalinnSaga 22h ago
Ya, I know MurderBot but it doesn't really get into the tramma of mind control and memory eraser.
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u/DoglessDyslexic 6d ago
Not directly, but the sci-fi novel "Implied Spaces" by Walter Jon Williams does feature a society that in its past nearly fell to mind control technology and is facing a new villain that uses the same methods.
The society treats this as a serious and fundamental violation but it's in a larger context of villian + thralls vs. everybody else in a rather futuristic war and not a lot of time is spent on the impact to the individual.
There's also "One Woke Up" by Lee Gaiteri which is a non-standard zombie book where one of the zombies (feral human zombies, not undead) becomes self-aware again for reasons that are not immediately clear, but has total amnesia about his former self and tries to re-integrate with humans trying to rebuild society. Minor spoiler: it becomes apparent that the zombie virus is part of a conspiracy to control people and the MC understandably has feelings about that
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u/Erazzphoto 2h ago
Any recommendations for good non-fictional spy books? Just finished listening to the spy and the traitor and a spy among friends. Prefer audiobooks books to listen to while I walk and like the WW2 and Cold War era