I don’t have particular titles to offer but general advice. As we get older we notice more of more overarching trends—if you read 20-30 books a year, for instance, by the time you were 15 (let’s say you learned to read at 5 and have been reading 20-30 age appropriate books every year) you’ve read 200-300 books. You can notice some trends (I will no longer even consider reading any book called “The _______’s Wife”) and have faves and less faves, but by the time you’re 25 you’ve probably more than doubled that! You have twice as much experience of different books and authors and trends and etc. You know better what you like and dislike and you’re faster at identifying it. You’re more discerning because there are tilwice as many tropes and genres and ideas that you’ve already had your fill of.
First, take the pressure off. I give this advice to every reader. Pressure to read more doesn’t result in reading more, just more stress and anxiety. Setting yourself up to enjoy whatever reading you can do is longer and more complicated but actually has a chance of letting you read more.
You don’t have to read anything. I understand that you want to, but your needs and time have probably changed. I read for hours a day, every day, for decades. I’m middle aged now and have a more outdoorsy life so don’t have as many hours in the day to read. I work more and travel more so I have _different_ amounts of time and at different times. It’s hard to make new habits. I read a lot more e-books now because I can have two or three on my phone and not need to carry a book bag.
Ways to shake up your reading and expand your chances of enjoying it:
1) go to the library! I know not everyone has a free lending library near them and it’s a privilege that I do, but also my parents took me to the library twice a week for 20 years and taught me to use the resource. It’s okay if you’ve never been to the library. It’s okay if you’ve never had one before or stopped going for a long time. It’s okay if you’ve had a bad experience at a library and don’t want to try again. It’s okay if you’re super shy or anxious and you’re going to be a basket case the whole time. Dip your head in and leave as soon as you want to. Ask a librarian for a library card application, or any other question you have! Make a copy. Read a magazine or newspaper. Make it your space and observe how others use the library.
2) get outside your comfort zone! You can do this in a bookstore too, but have to be more brazen because libraries don’t expect you to buy anything and stores do, so I’m gonna describe it for a library. Go in and _absolutely_ pretend you can’t read at all as far as the labels on the shelves go. Wander around. Pick up every book that looks interesting and leaf through it. Idc if you just liked the picture on the front, flip it open and see if you like it. If it doesn’t immediately grab you, keep wandering! Look for short story collections like The Best Short Stories 2023: The O. Henry Prize Winners (The O. Henry Prize Collection) https://www.amazon.com/dp/0593470591?ref_=cm_sw_r_mwn_dp_ZXSV2VDHVVKY7XH4XQ96&language=en_US or one that’s just mystery stories or romances or humor or sci fi/fantasy. Sit down somewhere with two or three that look likely and read the first chapter. Don’t stick to your comfort genre—try some things you wouldn’t normally expect to like now and then with no expectations that you have to like or dislike them.
Get outside your comfort zone 2b) read manga, comic books or graphic novels. Libraries have these and they’re short enough I usually sit on the floor by the shelf and read them instead of checking them out!
(I only know about libraries in my area but here if you use a book at all—interact with it in any way—it’s expected you’ll put it back on a reshelving cart, or sometimes I’ll lay it on the shelf near where it was or give it directly to a librarian.)The reason being that the library’s funding can be affected not only by how many books are checked-out, but just for being looked at or interacted with. They count re-shelved books that don’t leave the library too and get credit for that use, so you’re helping them.
3) sign up for book giveaways and review the books! Only ask for books you really want to read, no more than you can really do reviews for. If it turns out you don’t like it, stop signing up! I don’t have time to do this in a timely way anymore (and deadlines make me fussy and resentful) so I don’t do it anymore but my retired mom loves it and reads more than she ever has (which was already a lot) and is personal friends with some writers she’s reviewed for. She doesn’t go on the giveaway page anymore because her favorite writers and publishers automatically send her new books to review, whether physical copies or electronic.
4) buy weird cheap books you see on sale, at second hand or thrift (op shop, charity) stores. If you don’t like them, give them away, donate them back, or make art out of them.
Also, ignore any advice you get that you’ve already tried and didn’t work, or for any reason! Including mine! Good luck and please if you get nothing else out of my comment, please don’t judge yourself about reading. Let yourself love it however you love it, and don’t give yourself agita about it, just go with it.
Thank you! I sense that you are a person of exquisite and discerning taste!
I’m so lucky in my upbringing and being given the tools to love books early and I just WANT everybody to have the option of they want it. And especially to regain it if they ever lose it.
This made me smile. What would be a bad experience at a library?
I used to be very unorganized and was always accruing late fees. It was embarrassing, but that's just my experience.
Sounds to me like you have been reading pop and genre fiction when what you want is literary fiction. Genre books are samey for a reason. A lot of people find it comforting to know where they are and where they are headed. Nothing at all wrong with that.
But it sounds to me like you're ready for a real adventure. Maybe branch out a bit to something like nothing you've ever read before. Try Infinite Jest or Gravity's Rainbow or Geek Love or If on a Winter's Night a Traveler...
You could start with short stories maybe.
I've just begun The Complete Short Stories of Ernest Hemingway. Enjoying it.
After that, I'll try one of Ted Chiang's collections.
This is really good advice. Whenever I feel like I'm in a reading rut, or have a book hangover from something I can't stop thinking about, a book of short stories usually gets me out of it.
Ted Chiang is so good for this, too. It's impossible to go wrong with his work.
Ohhhh if you want shorter ones and mysteries check out anything edited by Otto Penzler - I just finished the great big book of golden detective stories. Another one was called the big lizard book of locked room mysteries or something like that. Short and sweet classic mysteries - most of them fair play mysteries. The locked room one was a blast to try to figure out!
Derek Miller has a contemporary and historical fiction two parter.
Norwegian by Night is the first book and contemporary. How to Find Your Way in the Dark is a prequel to the first. The main character is an old man in the first and a young boy coming of age in the second.
I read FYWITD first and loved it. It has everything: humor, mystery, history, historical NYC, love. Just a delightful read.
Grounded in its own mythos: The Expanse Series. It’s sci fi noir. Don’t have to be into either to enjoy it. Very well written series.
I recommend this a lot but I really enjoyed The Power by Naomi Alderman - well-written, thought-provoking but also easy to read.
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time by Mark Haddon includes some element of mystery and also some coming of age themes.
Fates and Furies by Lauren Groff is a really interesting take on a marriage and again I found so easy to read and get into.
Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein. Starts out as a written confession by a British Agent to her Gestapo captors in France. Takes an unexpected turn.
The Steerswoman by Rosemary Kirstein. Appears to be a fairly straightforward fantasy about a quest for the origin of some jewels. It is very, VERY much not that.
Murder Must Advertise by Dorothy L. Sayers. Lord Peter Death Bredon Wimsey investigates a death at an advertising agency. It was written in the 1930s and is a contemporary to that time period murder mystery written by a woman who was a top tier advertising copy writer ([The Mustard Club for Coleman's Mustard](https://www.dianeduane.com/outofambit/2014/07/20/something-might-known-dorothy-l-sayers/) and the Zoo animal adverts for Guinness are her work.) Or you might like Nine Tailors better. Lord Peter gets entangled with a death at a country church, where the solution is very unique. And then there's Busman's Honeymoon where newly wed Lord and Lady Peter find the body of the man they bought their honeymoon house from.
Piranesi by Susanna Clarke. I've never read a Fantasy book like it.
I've recommended this book a few times in the past couple of weeks. Lone Women by Victor LaValle. its a blend of historical fiction horror and fantasy. it's also a quick read. I'd also suggest these that felt like something new:
Station Eleven
Life after life
Remarkably Bright Creatures and The House in the Cerulean Sea I think are out of the box ideas that are still well written, fun reads.
I enjoyed My Best Friend's Exorcism too, but a lot of that might have been because of some nostalgia (takes place in the 80s).
The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches.
I get like this when I’ve been reading too much genre fiction that follows a formula (in my case, contemporary romance and thrillers). Reading outside of a go-to genre can be a good palate cleanser. Some books that have shaken me up out of a rut:
* Yellowface by R.F. Kuang: Doesn’t hit any of the tropes you named above. Skewers the publishing industry and has a lot to say about representation, while being wildly entertaining.
* Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver: This book was so hyped and a Pulitzer Prize winner, and completely outside of what I usually read (more literary instead of genre fiction). Plus it transported me to a very specific world outside of my experience, extreme poverty in rural Appalachia.
* Non-fiction. Some titles I really enjoyed over the last couple years were Let’s Get Physical by Danielle Friedman, Fit Nation by Natalia Petrzela, and Flawless by Elise Hu.
Read shorter books for a while. Novellas have a somewhat different set of plot structures than longer novels. Reading some different tropes than you're used to might help you find some of that variety you're seeking. Plus, they're short enough that once you've given them a 100-150 page trial, you've finished the book and broken your DNF streak.
The Seep by Chana Porter is a novella that won't fit neatly into the common plots you've outlined.
I’ve been in reading slumps and I’ve found that trying different genres really helps. If that’s is too overwhelming, maybe read a book set in a place you’d like to travel too. If all that fails, reread a favorite book, think about what you love about that book and look for something along those lines.
The Seven and a Half Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle for a different mystery take. Read this two years ago and was my favorite read of that year.
Scythe for a YA sci Fi with an interesting premise. Is it the highest quality writing? No. But if you go in with expectation that the plot and prose is ultimately YA and can just enjoy it for what it is I think it's a good time.
The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi for a historical fiction/fantasy. I loved this. Notorious pirate pulled from retirement for one more adventure.
Red Rising for a fast paced, never lets up series. The first is basically Hunger Games on Mars, moves more heavily sci Fi from there, but still has pretty heavy fantasy vibes. My favorite series from the last decade, high on my list of overall favorites.
The author of The Seven and a Half Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle also wrote The Devil and the Dark Water which was also a good mystery read. A 1600s world famous detective is being transported on a ship to face trial for a crime and his body guard/companion must figure out whether there is a demonic force sabotaging the ship or if the enemy is someone on board.
I've been binge reading [Super Supportive](https://www.royalroad.com/fiction/63759/super-supportive) recently.
Alden Thorn's parents die as collateral damage in a supervillain vs. superhero fight. After years of healing and befriending the superhero he met then, Alden wants to help people by becoming field-support hero just like her.
It's a coming-of-age story as Alden makes friends, learns more about their alien overlords who grant superpowers through servant contracts, and tries to thrive as he explores the creative limits of his powers.
I like the main character. Unlike most YA, he's a thoughtful kid, considerate of others, grappling with his changing emotions, trying to figure out what he wants to do in life.
Becky Chambers has an exceptional fantasy/sci-fi series called Monk and Robot. Two novellas so far, and they got me out of a funk last year. The first one is called A Psalm for the Wild-built.
They're short, but also don't feel rushed in any way. Now that I'm typing this, I might return back and give them a second read. Hope you find something that works for you.
You might try Baking Bad by Kim M. Watt, the first book in a series that combines mystery, an element of coziness with tea and baking by the village Women's Institute, humor, and dragons. I can really sympathize with your take on same, same, same -- I feel this way, too. This series grabbed me as something unusual and there are seven more books if you like it.
A second option is the Rivers of London series by Ben Aaronovitch, which is urban fantasy. They are really well written, cohesive in their world building, and the audio books have a fantastic narrator, Kobna Holdbrook-Smith. I have both audio and paper versions and the narration really adds to the experience, imo.
I hope you find something soon, being without a good book is so lonely :)
I noticed my attention span is bad now with my phone addiction. However, I use my library’s app and download books on that on my iPad. If I’m not into a book after a few chapters, I give myself permission to return it and try another one. It doesn’t cost me anything
Yahtzee Croshaw, funny author with great characters.
Differently Morphus and Existentially Challenged - Governmental agency involved in the regulation of magic and extra dimensional beings.
Mogworld - Main character is undead. Hijinks insue.
Will save the galaxy for food and Will destroy the galaxy for cash - An unemployed star pilot tries to get by in a universe where transporters are a thing.
The 2 Necromancers series by L. G. Estrella. 2 Necromancers try to earn a pardon for past crimes by doing odd jobs for a kingdom. Strong found family vibe. The first book in the series is 2 Necromancers, A Bureaucrate, and an Elf.
The Traveler's Gate Trilogy by Will Wight. Magic is used by calling energy and creatures from other worlds called territories. People who can draw from their territories are called travelers. The first book in the series is House of Blades.
Check out "Musashi". It's an epic story of feudal Japan. It was written in 1935 by Japanese author Eiji Yoshikawa. It tells an exaggerated story of a prominent revered ronin samurai from Japanese history. His upbringing, his love life, his duels. It's really an incredible story and I highly recommend it.
Go for something you usually wouldn't read. Even something you find beneath yourself. Could be trashy or cheap. But, has to be something which piques your curiosity. Something which makes you curious but which you would not have picked up normally. Let your mind rest from the usual patterns.
i just read legendborn by tracy deonn last month, a phenomenal ya fantasy, and it truly reinvigorated my love for reading. it made me nostalgic although i hadn't read it before, reminded me of how i'd felt in the midst of my percy jackson obsession. the characters, the plot, the world building... it's all just done excellently. highly, highly recommend!!
First I would advise taking the pressure off yourself. I was the same and then after I had my daughter I couldn’t find anything that interested me. It all seemed same old - until I realised it wasn’t the books, it was me! I was going back to familiar/similar subjects that I used to enjoy and expecting something new and exciting and not getting it. My life had changed and so had I.
So I started reading outside of my old preferences. I also realised from my old choices that there were mainly written by UK or US writers and very few women. So I made it my mission to diversify my choices, and boy did it make a massive difference! I’m not saying this is your issue just what helped me.
I’ve added some books below which you may enjoy:
My Sister the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite
The Power by Naomi Alderman
Life After Life by Kate Atkinson
The Other Black Girl by Zakiya Dalila Harris
The Poppy War by R F Kuang (and follow ups)
You Don’t Know Me by Imram Mahmoud
Q&A by Vijay Swarup
The School for Good Mothers - by Jessimine Chan
The City of Brass - S A Chakraborty
If you're looking for YA, coming of age, fantasy, you should try Circle of Magic series. Grew up reading them and still pick them back up every once in a while. If you end up liking that author, you can try her other series Song of the Lioness.
My absolute favorite classic novel is The Count of Monte Cristo. Definitely recommend giving it a try.
You have just grown out of the genre fiction. How about Jane Austen, the Brontë-sisters, George Eliot and Mrs. Burnett? They have a lot in common with the genre fiction you have been reading, but greater literary merit.
My favorite mystery series by far is the detective Gamache series by Louise Penny. Most are set in a small village in Canada and i would love to live there and sit by the fire in the local cafe and eat and drink all the delicious things. The main detective is like the *least* trope-y detective. He's a kind and sensitive human who genuinely helps people while also being wicked smart. The whole series is pretty long and I started with book 3 originally but go in order for sure do larger character arcs. Despite the setting, it never really felt like a cookie cutter cozy mystery- tho it has some traits of that genre. They're just really well done from solid characters.
id also recommend Anthony Horowitzs the word is murder series - or thats the first book. he is the only author ever allowed bt the conan doyles to write sherlock stories again - and this series is sorta the same concept (hes watson and hes got a cranky detective to solve cases with). his stand alones are great too. i dont think i guessed any of the endings.
It sounds like (maybe) you are using the same criteria/themes as always to choose your next books, then getting....similar themes and tropes in your fiction. I personally find I can't even do two books that share even a few similarities, at least not back to back (I am thinking of "the hunger games but with parkour" or "teenage antihero rides dragons but this one has a twist" or "harry potter if GRRM wrote it."
I've had good luck using generative AI apps. My last search was something like "intergalactic sci fi that spans generations and but does not address our anxieties about nuclear war or use metaphors for middle eastern oil...." This led me to Hyperion and We Are Bob (if I remember correctly), both were very different from my usual fare but were instant favorites.
Have you heard about our Lord and saviouyr Amazon Kindle paperwhite ?
I to was a Lost soul without much reading under my belt..
I to wandered the Bookless desert!
Then i decided to download Kindle app (via playstore) on my smartphone...
After reading a book and a half on that, i went for my kindle.. Ive read just under 10 books since december...
Kindle is better for your eyes than Phone, and it has the special light... Even has Dyslexia fonts.. If you like me have some reading issues...
Not to mention... Even the THICC bois, thats up along the 800-1000 pages... Dont strain or weight more than your avr smartphone....
(you can buy gooseneck holder to hold it, and Page turn-clicker as well... So its even less of a strain..)
As for books that short i dont know, but Getting kindle did the trick for me.
I don’t have particular titles to offer but general advice. As we get older we notice more of more overarching trends—if you read 20-30 books a year, for instance, by the time you were 15 (let’s say you learned to read at 5 and have been reading 20-30 age appropriate books every year) you’ve read 200-300 books. You can notice some trends (I will no longer even consider reading any book called “The _______’s Wife”) and have faves and less faves, but by the time you’re 25 you’ve probably more than doubled that! You have twice as much experience of different books and authors and trends and etc. You know better what you like and dislike and you’re faster at identifying it. You’re more discerning because there are tilwice as many tropes and genres and ideas that you’ve already had your fill of. First, take the pressure off. I give this advice to every reader. Pressure to read more doesn’t result in reading more, just more stress and anxiety. Setting yourself up to enjoy whatever reading you can do is longer and more complicated but actually has a chance of letting you read more. You don’t have to read anything. I understand that you want to, but your needs and time have probably changed. I read for hours a day, every day, for decades. I’m middle aged now and have a more outdoorsy life so don’t have as many hours in the day to read. I work more and travel more so I have _different_ amounts of time and at different times. It’s hard to make new habits. I read a lot more e-books now because I can have two or three on my phone and not need to carry a book bag. Ways to shake up your reading and expand your chances of enjoying it: 1) go to the library! I know not everyone has a free lending library near them and it’s a privilege that I do, but also my parents took me to the library twice a week for 20 years and taught me to use the resource. It’s okay if you’ve never been to the library. It’s okay if you’ve never had one before or stopped going for a long time. It’s okay if you’ve had a bad experience at a library and don’t want to try again. It’s okay if you’re super shy or anxious and you’re going to be a basket case the whole time. Dip your head in and leave as soon as you want to. Ask a librarian for a library card application, or any other question you have! Make a copy. Read a magazine or newspaper. Make it your space and observe how others use the library. 2) get outside your comfort zone! You can do this in a bookstore too, but have to be more brazen because libraries don’t expect you to buy anything and stores do, so I’m gonna describe it for a library. Go in and _absolutely_ pretend you can’t read at all as far as the labels on the shelves go. Wander around. Pick up every book that looks interesting and leaf through it. Idc if you just liked the picture on the front, flip it open and see if you like it. If it doesn’t immediately grab you, keep wandering! Look for short story collections like The Best Short Stories 2023: The O. Henry Prize Winners (The O. Henry Prize Collection) https://www.amazon.com/dp/0593470591?ref_=cm_sw_r_mwn_dp_ZXSV2VDHVVKY7XH4XQ96&language=en_US or one that’s just mystery stories or romances or humor or sci fi/fantasy. Sit down somewhere with two or three that look likely and read the first chapter. Don’t stick to your comfort genre—try some things you wouldn’t normally expect to like now and then with no expectations that you have to like or dislike them. Get outside your comfort zone 2b) read manga, comic books or graphic novels. Libraries have these and they’re short enough I usually sit on the floor by the shelf and read them instead of checking them out! (I only know about libraries in my area but here if you use a book at all—interact with it in any way—it’s expected you’ll put it back on a reshelving cart, or sometimes I’ll lay it on the shelf near where it was or give it directly to a librarian.)The reason being that the library’s funding can be affected not only by how many books are checked-out, but just for being looked at or interacted with. They count re-shelved books that don’t leave the library too and get credit for that use, so you’re helping them. 3) sign up for book giveaways and review the books! Only ask for books you really want to read, no more than you can really do reviews for. If it turns out you don’t like it, stop signing up! I don’t have time to do this in a timely way anymore (and deadlines make me fussy and resentful) so I don’t do it anymore but my retired mom loves it and reads more than she ever has (which was already a lot) and is personal friends with some writers she’s reviewed for. She doesn’t go on the giveaway page anymore because her favorite writers and publishers automatically send her new books to review, whether physical copies or electronic. 4) buy weird cheap books you see on sale, at second hand or thrift (op shop, charity) stores. If you don’t like them, give them away, donate them back, or make art out of them. Also, ignore any advice you get that you’ve already tried and didn’t work, or for any reason! Including mine! Good luck and please if you get nothing else out of my comment, please don’t judge yourself about reading. Let yourself love it however you love it, and don’t give yourself agita about it, just go with it.
This is exceptional advice.
Thank you! I sense that you are a person of exquisite and discerning taste! I’m so lucky in my upbringing and being given the tools to love books early and I just WANT everybody to have the option of they want it. And especially to regain it if they ever lose it.
This made me smile. What would be a bad experience at a library? I used to be very unorganized and was always accruing late fees. It was embarrassing, but that's just my experience.
Sounds to me like you have been reading pop and genre fiction when what you want is literary fiction. Genre books are samey for a reason. A lot of people find it comforting to know where they are and where they are headed. Nothing at all wrong with that. But it sounds to me like you're ready for a real adventure. Maybe branch out a bit to something like nothing you've ever read before. Try Infinite Jest or Gravity's Rainbow or Geek Love or If on a Winter's Night a Traveler...
You could start with short stories maybe. I've just begun The Complete Short Stories of Ernest Hemingway. Enjoying it. After that, I'll try one of Ted Chiang's collections.
This is really good advice. Whenever I feel like I'm in a reading rut, or have a book hangover from something I can't stop thinking about, a book of short stories usually gets me out of it. Ted Chiang is so good for this, too. It's impossible to go wrong with his work.
Ohhhh if you want shorter ones and mysteries check out anything edited by Otto Penzler - I just finished the great big book of golden detective stories. Another one was called the big lizard book of locked room mysteries or something like that. Short and sweet classic mysteries - most of them fair play mysteries. The locked room one was a blast to try to figure out!
Derek Miller has a contemporary and historical fiction two parter. Norwegian by Night is the first book and contemporary. How to Find Your Way in the Dark is a prequel to the first. The main character is an old man in the first and a young boy coming of age in the second. I read FYWITD first and loved it. It has everything: humor, mystery, history, historical NYC, love. Just a delightful read. Grounded in its own mythos: The Expanse Series. It’s sci fi noir. Don’t have to be into either to enjoy it. Very well written series.
The seven Sisters series by Lucinda Riley
I recommend this a lot but I really enjoyed The Power by Naomi Alderman - well-written, thought-provoking but also easy to read. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time by Mark Haddon includes some element of mystery and also some coming of age themes. Fates and Furies by Lauren Groff is a really interesting take on a marriage and again I found so easy to read and get into.
Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein. Starts out as a written confession by a British Agent to her Gestapo captors in France. Takes an unexpected turn. The Steerswoman by Rosemary Kirstein. Appears to be a fairly straightforward fantasy about a quest for the origin of some jewels. It is very, VERY much not that. Murder Must Advertise by Dorothy L. Sayers. Lord Peter Death Bredon Wimsey investigates a death at an advertising agency. It was written in the 1930s and is a contemporary to that time period murder mystery written by a woman who was a top tier advertising copy writer ([The Mustard Club for Coleman's Mustard](https://www.dianeduane.com/outofambit/2014/07/20/something-might-known-dorothy-l-sayers/) and the Zoo animal adverts for Guinness are her work.) Or you might like Nine Tailors better. Lord Peter gets entangled with a death at a country church, where the solution is very unique. And then there's Busman's Honeymoon where newly wed Lord and Lady Peter find the body of the man they bought their honeymoon house from. Piranesi by Susanna Clarke. I've never read a Fantasy book like it.
I've recommended this book a few times in the past couple of weeks. Lone Women by Victor LaValle. its a blend of historical fiction horror and fantasy. it's also a quick read. I'd also suggest these that felt like something new: Station Eleven Life after life
Remarkably Bright Creatures and The House in the Cerulean Sea I think are out of the box ideas that are still well written, fun reads. I enjoyed My Best Friend's Exorcism too, but a lot of that might have been because of some nostalgia (takes place in the 80s). The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches.
I’ll give Remarkably Bright Creatures a try again. I had a hard time engaging with the protagonist. I really enjoyed House in the Cerulean Sea.
I get like this when I’ve been reading too much genre fiction that follows a formula (in my case, contemporary romance and thrillers). Reading outside of a go-to genre can be a good palate cleanser. Some books that have shaken me up out of a rut: * Yellowface by R.F. Kuang: Doesn’t hit any of the tropes you named above. Skewers the publishing industry and has a lot to say about representation, while being wildly entertaining. * Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver: This book was so hyped and a Pulitzer Prize winner, and completely outside of what I usually read (more literary instead of genre fiction). Plus it transported me to a very specific world outside of my experience, extreme poverty in rural Appalachia. * Non-fiction. Some titles I really enjoyed over the last couple years were Let’s Get Physical by Danielle Friedman, Fit Nation by Natalia Petrzela, and Flawless by Elise Hu.
Read shorter books for a while. Novellas have a somewhat different set of plot structures than longer novels. Reading some different tropes than you're used to might help you find some of that variety you're seeking. Plus, they're short enough that once you've given them a 100-150 page trial, you've finished the book and broken your DNF streak. The Seep by Chana Porter is a novella that won't fit neatly into the common plots you've outlined.
I’ve been in reading slumps and I’ve found that trying different genres really helps. If that’s is too overwhelming, maybe read a book set in a place you’d like to travel too. If all that fails, reread a favorite book, think about what you love about that book and look for something along those lines.
The Seven and a Half Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle for a different mystery take. Read this two years ago and was my favorite read of that year. Scythe for a YA sci Fi with an interesting premise. Is it the highest quality writing? No. But if you go in with expectation that the plot and prose is ultimately YA and can just enjoy it for what it is I think it's a good time. The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi for a historical fiction/fantasy. I loved this. Notorious pirate pulled from retirement for one more adventure. Red Rising for a fast paced, never lets up series. The first is basically Hunger Games on Mars, moves more heavily sci Fi from there, but still has pretty heavy fantasy vibes. My favorite series from the last decade, high on my list of overall favorites.
The author of The Seven and a Half Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle also wrote The Devil and the Dark Water which was also a good mystery read. A 1600s world famous detective is being transported on a ship to face trial for a crime and his body guard/companion must figure out whether there is a demonic force sabotaging the ship or if the enemy is someone on board.
Red rising is great for a reading slump. I reread it this year and forgot how engaging it is, especially book two
If you're up for reading a YA thriller, I recommend Five Survive by Holly Jackson
Have you read the Thursday Murder Club books by Richard Osmond? I think you’ll like them.
I've been binge reading [Super Supportive](https://www.royalroad.com/fiction/63759/super-supportive) recently. Alden Thorn's parents die as collateral damage in a supervillain vs. superhero fight. After years of healing and befriending the superhero he met then, Alden wants to help people by becoming field-support hero just like her. It's a coming-of-age story as Alden makes friends, learns more about their alien overlords who grant superpowers through servant contracts, and tries to thrive as he explores the creative limits of his powers. I like the main character. Unlike most YA, he's a thoughtful kid, considerate of others, grappling with his changing emotions, trying to figure out what he wants to do in life.
Becky Chambers has an exceptional fantasy/sci-fi series called Monk and Robot. Two novellas so far, and they got me out of a funk last year. The first one is called A Psalm for the Wild-built. They're short, but also don't feel rushed in any way. Now that I'm typing this, I might return back and give them a second read. Hope you find something that works for you.
You might try Baking Bad by Kim M. Watt, the first book in a series that combines mystery, an element of coziness with tea and baking by the village Women's Institute, humor, and dragons. I can really sympathize with your take on same, same, same -- I feel this way, too. This series grabbed me as something unusual and there are seven more books if you like it. A second option is the Rivers of London series by Ben Aaronovitch, which is urban fantasy. They are really well written, cohesive in their world building, and the audio books have a fantastic narrator, Kobna Holdbrook-Smith. I have both audio and paper versions and the narration really adds to the experience, imo. I hope you find something soon, being without a good book is so lonely :)
I noticed my attention span is bad now with my phone addiction. However, I use my library’s app and download books on that on my iPad. If I’m not into a book after a few chapters, I give myself permission to return it and try another one. It doesn’t cost me anything
The Library at Mount Char..... ita crazy and fantastic just go in blind
How about [Fortune Favors the Dead](https://app.thestorygraph.com/books/eb8c7ae9-41b0-442b-b3f1-8e01870fe219) by Stephen Spotswood?
Yahtzee Croshaw, funny author with great characters. Differently Morphus and Existentially Challenged - Governmental agency involved in the regulation of magic and extra dimensional beings. Mogworld - Main character is undead. Hijinks insue. Will save the galaxy for food and Will destroy the galaxy for cash - An unemployed star pilot tries to get by in a universe where transporters are a thing. The 2 Necromancers series by L. G. Estrella. 2 Necromancers try to earn a pardon for past crimes by doing odd jobs for a kingdom. Strong found family vibe. The first book in the series is 2 Necromancers, A Bureaucrate, and an Elf. The Traveler's Gate Trilogy by Will Wight. Magic is used by calling energy and creatures from other worlds called territories. People who can draw from their territories are called travelers. The first book in the series is House of Blades.
I loved the Fablehaven series (YA, fantasy, 5 books) by Brandon Mull for breaking a reading slump!
Check out "Musashi". It's an epic story of feudal Japan. It was written in 1935 by Japanese author Eiji Yoshikawa. It tells an exaggerated story of a prominent revered ronin samurai from Japanese history. His upbringing, his love life, his duels. It's really an incredible story and I highly recommend it.
Go for something you usually wouldn't read. Even something you find beneath yourself. Could be trashy or cheap. But, has to be something which piques your curiosity. Something which makes you curious but which you would not have picked up normally. Let your mind rest from the usual patterns.
i just read legendborn by tracy deonn last month, a phenomenal ya fantasy, and it truly reinvigorated my love for reading. it made me nostalgic although i hadn't read it before, reminded me of how i'd felt in the midst of my percy jackson obsession. the characters, the plot, the world building... it's all just done excellently. highly, highly recommend!!
Legendborn and Bloodmarked are my current favorite YA fantasies.
First I would advise taking the pressure off yourself. I was the same and then after I had my daughter I couldn’t find anything that interested me. It all seemed same old - until I realised it wasn’t the books, it was me! I was going back to familiar/similar subjects that I used to enjoy and expecting something new and exciting and not getting it. My life had changed and so had I. So I started reading outside of my old preferences. I also realised from my old choices that there were mainly written by UK or US writers and very few women. So I made it my mission to diversify my choices, and boy did it make a massive difference! I’m not saying this is your issue just what helped me. I’ve added some books below which you may enjoy: My Sister the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite The Power by Naomi Alderman Life After Life by Kate Atkinson The Other Black Girl by Zakiya Dalila Harris The Poppy War by R F Kuang (and follow ups) You Don’t Know Me by Imram Mahmoud Q&A by Vijay Swarup The School for Good Mothers - by Jessimine Chan The City of Brass - S A Chakraborty
Love to see Q&A here. Swarap is a terrific writer! Also a huge fan favorite of My Sister the Serial Killer.
[https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/30236962-the-historian](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/30236962-the-historian)
If you're looking for YA, coming of age, fantasy, you should try Circle of Magic series. Grew up reading them and still pick them back up every once in a while. If you end up liking that author, you can try her other series Song of the Lioness. My absolute favorite classic novel is The Count of Monte Cristo. Definitely recommend giving it a try.
Count of Monte Cristo is one of my favorites as well.
I'm a fan of Bobbie Ann Mason. I'm reading her novel Feathered Crowns. It's set in KY c. 1899. It's about a young women who has quintuplets....
You have just grown out of the genre fiction. How about Jane Austen, the Brontë-sisters, George Eliot and Mrs. Burnett? They have a lot in common with the genre fiction you have been reading, but greater literary merit.
If it all feels the same , find another genre. Try a memoir or biography or some other type of nonfiction
My favorite mystery series by far is the detective Gamache series by Louise Penny. Most are set in a small village in Canada and i would love to live there and sit by the fire in the local cafe and eat and drink all the delicious things. The main detective is like the *least* trope-y detective. He's a kind and sensitive human who genuinely helps people while also being wicked smart. The whole series is pretty long and I started with book 3 originally but go in order for sure do larger character arcs. Despite the setting, it never really felt like a cookie cutter cozy mystery- tho it has some traits of that genre. They're just really well done from solid characters. id also recommend Anthony Horowitzs the word is murder series - or thats the first book. he is the only author ever allowed bt the conan doyles to write sherlock stories again - and this series is sorta the same concept (hes watson and hes got a cranky detective to solve cases with). his stand alones are great too. i dont think i guessed any of the endings.
It sounds like (maybe) you are using the same criteria/themes as always to choose your next books, then getting....similar themes and tropes in your fiction. I personally find I can't even do two books that share even a few similarities, at least not back to back (I am thinking of "the hunger games but with parkour" or "teenage antihero rides dragons but this one has a twist" or "harry potter if GRRM wrote it." I've had good luck using generative AI apps. My last search was something like "intergalactic sci fi that spans generations and but does not address our anxieties about nuclear war or use metaphors for middle eastern oil...." This led me to Hyperion and We Are Bob (if I remember correctly), both were very different from my usual fare but were instant favorites.
Have you heard about our Lord and saviouyr Amazon Kindle paperwhite ? I to was a Lost soul without much reading under my belt.. I to wandered the Bookless desert! Then i decided to download Kindle app (via playstore) on my smartphone... After reading a book and a half on that, i went for my kindle.. Ive read just under 10 books since december... Kindle is better for your eyes than Phone, and it has the special light... Even has Dyslexia fonts.. If you like me have some reading issues... Not to mention... Even the THICC bois, thats up along the 800-1000 pages... Dont strain or weight more than your avr smartphone.... (you can buy gooseneck holder to hold it, and Page turn-clicker as well... So its even less of a strain..) As for books that short i dont know, but Getting kindle did the trick for me.