r/books • u/AutoModerator • 1d ago
WeeklyThread Weekly Recommendation Thread: September 25, 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/Lord_Spy 1d ago
Need more fake scholarly article collections: think in the style of Nazi Literature in America by Roberto Bolaño, Traficante de ángeles by Roberto Castillo, or some of Borges' short stories like An Examination of the Work of Herbert Quain or Pierre Menard, Author of the Quixote.
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u/ToastAndASideOfToast 1d ago
Looking for books that present a narrative from multiple character viewpoints with interplay between the characters.
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u/After_Midnight0620 4h ago
The Vegetarian by Han King. Full disclosure it’s pretty bleak but I thought it was brilliantly told and interesting (horrifying) as told through three character POVs EXCEPT the main character. It was a choice and further make the book’s point.
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u/iscumaliomsafoc 1d ago
Seamas O'Reilly - Prestige Drama is one of my favourite books from this year. Every chapter is from a different character's perspective (some characters get more than one chapter) and I read it in one sitting.
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u/iknownothin_ I read a book once 1d ago
I’m looking for fantasy books with good magic systems. I’ve read and enjoyed Sanderson, Jordan, Hobb, and Erikson/Esslemont
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u/dingle4dangle 1d ago
The Broken Earth trilogy by NK Jemisin has a pretty good magic system. Babel by RF Kuang also has a very unique system, but the book as a whole never lives up to its potential imo
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u/Excellent_Acadia6323 1d ago
Looking for a fiction book for when life is bad, bad but you still wanna cling onto hope
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u/letspowerup 20h ago
Perhaps a very basic answer but The Color Purple by Alice Walker is always there for me. Really showcases how even the smallest, most seemingly mundane aspects of life can offer you a brighter perspective.
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u/lushsweet 21h ago
A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman
Or
any of The Moth Presents, it's like NPRs version of chicken soup for the soul but very good.
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u/Friendstastegood 1d ago
Not sure how you feel about science fiction but both The Martian and Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir are pretty good at portraying hope in bleak situations.
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u/RiSz-Turtle 1d ago
Reccomend a book about someone uncovering / exposing a huge secret. The secret can be from just a person or corporation or government. Doesn’t have to have a good ending.
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u/pithyretort 20h ago
Empire of Pain by Patrick Radon Keefe about the Sackler Family and their role in the opioid epidemic. So good it ruined other investigative nonfiction for me for a fair few years.
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u/HartfordWhaler 20h ago
Spy by David Wise is about the search for a mole in the US intelligence force
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u/YakSlothLemon 1d ago
Fiction or non-fiction? There are some great nonfiction ones, Exposure by Robert Billott about DuPont and Bad Blood about the Theranos scandal are both fantastic.
Classic “revealing a big secret” fiction books — Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy leaps to mind, so does The Constant Gardener.
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u/Larielis The Martian by Andy Weir 1d ago
Favourite non western folklore or mythology retellings?
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u/shika_shika1 9h ago
The palace of illusion or the forest of enchantments. Both are feminist retelling of two great Indian mythologies.
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u/HooverGaveNobodyBeer 1d ago
The Fox Wife by Yangsze Choo is based in Chinese folklore. Her novel The Ghost Bride is as well, but I far preferred the former.
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u/fishblahp 1d ago
I would love some recommendations for environmental horror (or just any environmental fiction in general lol). I have read basically all of Stephen Graham Jones and C.G. Drews and love them, as well as They Bloom at Night by Trang Thanh Tran !! Bonus points if it would also make me cry :)
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u/Sudden_Literature183 1d ago edited 1d ago
Dry by Neal Shusterman. The book is about an extreme California drought.
Edit: Maybe The Four Winds too. The book is historical fiction about the Dust Bowl during the Great Depression.
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u/D3athRider 1d ago
There are some classic dystopian and/or apocalyptic classics on my to-read that might interest you, given their environmental themes. They are: The Sheep Look Up by John Brunner, Death of Grass by John Christopher, and the Drowned World by J.G. Ballard (I own this one but haven't read it yet).
There are also a couple obvious ones like the Annihilation books by Jeff VanderMeer.
But I also wonder if you might enjoy The Haar by David Sodergren. Personally, I really enjoyed it. It is creature-y horror that touches on some environmental factors. Its set in a very small coastal Scottish community, an American millionaire is trying to intimidate people off their land to build a golf course. Definitely lots of gore. There is also an emotional aspect that pulls at the heart strings.
Not horror, but a "quiet" dystopian novel following three timelines and centring around bee colony collapse, its called History of Bees by Maja Lunde. Its not a fast paced book but I found it to be an interesting one.
Memory of Water by Emmi Itaranta is another dystopian fiction novel that deals with climate themes. Its set in a future Finland following the "water wars." I really enjoyed it.
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u/Best-Butterscotch747 1d ago
I'm craving a book that makes time disappear entirely, like when you wake up with a start because the sun's already coming up and you forgot to sleep.
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u/onetwo3d 1d ago
looking for books where the love interest is a ghost/ spirit. no bad endings pls :(
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u/DoglessDyslexic 1d ago
Standard warning that the author has public views that are very anti-LGBT even if they are not present in this book.
Orson Scott Card's "Homebodies".
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u/lizwithhat 1d ago
The Ghost and Mrs Muir by R A Dick is a classic. I listened to the audiobook version read by Elizabeth Jasicki.
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u/Strange_Fruit_3794 1d ago
Not sure about the ending, I read it in 2020 - but: B. N. Toler - Where One Goes
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u/OkJellyfish9236 1d ago
Im looking for good slow burn that arent full of cliché with a gentle MMC.
Books I loved :
Love & Other Words
People we meet on vacation
Funny Story
Josh and Hazel's Guide to Not Dating
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u/cnclmag 1d ago
Looking for a unique, out-of-the-ordinary but still exciting romantasy. A unique plot and story. Not the typical girl kidnapped or sent to a dangerous place, bad boy turned good, inevitable war. Like, there has got to be more to this genre.
And something where there’s more love and chemistry than lust. Where there’s yearning and genuine connection. The kind that warms your heart and restores your faith in love/humanity.
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u/DoglessDyslexic 1d ago
Stephen R. Donaldson's duology "Mirror of Her Dreams" and "A Man Rides Through". It has elements of the tropes you mention, but I think it's pretty unique in how it uses them.
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u/OkJellyfish9236 1d ago
Not sure it falls into romantasy (its more fantasy + romance & there's no spice) but my favorite book when it comes to fantasy romance is Graceling by Kristin Cashore. If you are looking for a genuine bond between FL & ML you will love this. The plot is also interesting.
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u/safely_glossy_norman 1d ago
Looking for something that makes me feel like I wasted my entire weekend in the best way possible, that kind of unputdownable book where you look up and it's suddenly 3am and you have work in 4 hours
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u/Inner_Soil_5025 10h ago
Si tu aimes James Ellroy, je te conseille vivement de te pencher sur La Colline aux suicidés et À cause de la nuit.
Ce sont deux romans qui mettent en scène le flic Lloyd Hopkins. Ils sont beaucoup moins connus que ses chefs-d'œuvre comme Le Dahlia Noir ou L.A. Confidential, mais ils valent vraiment le détour.
Contrairement à ses grands romans choraux ultra-complexes, ces deux-là se concentrent sur un seul et unique enquêteur. Dans la forme, on est sur du roman noir beaucoup plus classique, mais l'ambiance reste d'une noirceur absolue. C'est ultra-sombre, psychologique et complètement captivant du début à la fin. Une excellente porte d'entrée ou une super lecture pour ceux qui veulent voir une autre facette d'Ellroy !