Books like Ordinary Human Failings — picked by fans

This novel took much of America by storm, and I am no different.

I love the voice of Demon Copperhead, which bleeds from the Appalachian Mountains. He has endured more trauma over his early years than most people do in several lifetimes. I think what’s most endearing about this novel is that it is sadly believable. Demon is a boy whose local environment has doomed him before he took his first breath. He’s the kind of boy who is just hoping for a break, and as the reader, all I wanted to do was adopt him and give him a good home.

And of course, it did win the Pulitzer Prize for fiction, so that probably means something!

I love learning about flawed characters who must make hard choices, and this book dropped me immediately into the lives of several.

Braffet raises dark themes of guilt, sorrow, and the power of community shaming to a high art in this gripping suspense story. Here’s a worthy struggle, indeed: How to rebuild your life as an outcast when the destruction isn’t your fault and the burden shouldn’t be yours to bear. I found myself liking and caring about these very flawed characters in spite of the bad choices they make. The writing is thoughtful and nuanced until suddenly, it isn’t.

The ending is NOT predictable.

I loved following the exploits of Sophie, described as a “brilliant hacker, MMA fighter, domestic abuse survivor, and chronic depressive” who likes kids and animals better than adults.

She’s the strong woman protagonist who’s also socially awkward and vulnerable. Add in the well-rendered descriptions of Maui—the lush and beautiful, the dark and dirty—and the high-stakes intrigue, and, well, it’s all here. And I’ll follow any writer who accurately captures the complex nuances of Hawaiian culture and societal issues.

This book snuck up on me. It’s a lovely story of hope and the strength of the human spirit, featuring three ordinary people living their lives who are suddenly tied together by the tragedy of an accidental death.

I love Hooper’s descriptions of their attempts to muddle through pain and loss, seeking reconciliation and a path forward. This book finds a more upbeat ending than the others on my list, as forgiveness, hope, empathy, and the possibility of a new life come shining through. I love the writer’s obvious compassion for all her characters.

Leaving Piccadilly for the moment, we have the adult western. As if the name of the genre and the name that starts every book title isn’t enough, it’s published by Playboy. And as you might have guessed from there being four hundred of these books, put out damn near monthly since the seventies, it’s a bit of a fool’s errand to single out any one book. They’re somewhere between the formulaic nature of needing to be a Western with literally obligatory sex and violence, and the author being a house name that’ll change with any given volume, who by necessity will have his own idiosyncratic take on the material. 

One book, you might get a writer that’s really into delivering the sex appeal promised by the cover. Another time, you’ll get someone who just wants to write a Western (if that: people weren’t writing these things for their health,… show more.

If you adore a second chance romance, then this is the steamy billionaire romance with a trip to London for you.

I adored how Rebecca Castle weaves together hints for the second standalone in this series, and a few of the scenes made me pant! So sizzling. Make sure you grab it now.

Only one night with a handsome stranger in London? This has been my dream forever, and once I read this blurb, I immediately one clicked.

Sandi Lynn made me feel like I was literally living this, and I found it almost impossible to drag my eyes away. I wanted this book to continue forever, and if you haven't read it already, you need to.

I love a bit of historical crime, and this novel, the first in a series about Cat Lovett and James Marwood, has everything. It’s a brilliantly plotted mystery but it is also so much more. Set in 1666, it opens with the Great Fire of London, as the chaos of fire sweeping through the city is used to cover up murder.

I found the story and the characters compelling, so much so that I’ve gone on to read the rest of the series, each of which intertwines the personal lives of Cat and James with the political events of the day.

A once-elegant Victorian mansion in London has been chopped up into individual “bed-sit” apartments occupied by a quirky assortment of tenants, each with his or her own secrets. The enjoyment of this book lies in the claustrophobic atmosphere of the house and the unbearable tension of wondering how each tenant will escape the killer in their midst.  

I really loved the way this book told the story of London across the Victorian era. I often call London my spiritual home, and books about the city always capture my attention. Each chapter covers a separate topic, such as the Middle Class, Buildings, Amusements, etc., with interesting stories for each one.

I love the book as it is the sort I can pick up if I only have a few minutes to read.